After the nine needles were in place, Billy took out a few supreme-grade healing pills from his body. He placed the pills in front of Elder Xavier, and as they vaporized, Elder Xavier inhaled them. Once done, he began to channel the Heart Sutra of the Azure Void, infusing Chi power into Elder Xavier’s body.
An hour later, a hint of color returned to Elder Xavier’s face, but he still showed no signs of waking up. Billy frowned again and continued to exert his bloodline power. Time passed quickly; two or three hours went by in the blink of an eye. Elder Xavier’s complexion returned to normal, and his breathing stabilized. However, he still did not wake up.
Billy exhaled heavily and withdrew his hands. With his current medical skills, this was all he could do.
“Boss, when will Elder Xavier wake up?” Frostblade asked.
“Not sure,” Billy shook his head slightly. “The injuries are too severe; it might take a while.”
“Elder Xavier won’t become a vegetable, will he?” Stout asked.
“Don’t jinx it!” Ivy glared at him. “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all!”
“Billy, should we inform the Institute? Maybe the dean has a solution,” Harleen suggested.
“Elder Xavier’s condition might be beyond what the Institute can handle,” Aubree replied from the side.
“We can only try,” Billy nodded slightly. He then looked at Casey. “Take Elder Xavier; we’re going to the Institute!”
“Got it!” Casey nodded in response.
Just as Casey finished speaking, an overwhelming pressure enveloped the entire orchard. Casey and Azure Dragon involuntarily shivered and felt difficulty breathing.
“Ivy, Stout, stay here and watch over Elder Xavier!” Billy said before stepping outside. The others followed after a brief moment of surprise.
Soon, they arrived at an open space outside and looked up into the sky but saw no one.
“Hand over the person, and I’ll spare your lives!” A hoarse voice echoed through the air.
“Who are you?” Billy shouted.
“Don’t test my patience. You have three seconds. If you don’t comply, you die!” The old man spoke again.
“Stop hiding and show yourself!” Aubree frowned and flew tens of kilometers away swiftly.
“Opal, stay here with everyone else!” Billy commanded before taking to the sky.
White Feather let out a cry and flapped its wings to follow. Harleen and Ivy also took to the air simultaneously.
In a few blinks of an eye, Billy, Aubree, and White Feather arrived in the sky tens of kilometers away.
“You court death!” The old man’s voice rang out again. Ripples appeared around them as space twisted.
Billy felt trapped in a spatial prison; the force was suffocating.
“Harleen, Ivy, it’s dangerous! Don’t come any closer!” He shouted after taking a deep breath.
“Mr. Billy, he’s on your left side! It’s up to you now!” Aubree called out.
She then turned to White Feather. “White Feather, let’s break his mental prison together!”
As soon as she finished speaking, an overwhelming aura erupted from her body like a tidal wave. White Feather cried out and released its aura as well, shaking the surroundings instantly.
Under their combined efforts, the oppressive force in that part of the sky shattered and vanished. At that moment, Billy moved!
He dashed to the left while drawing his blade and unleashed a fierce slash-Cracked Sky! Though he couldn’t gauge his opponent’s cultivation level precisely, he knew it had to be above Entering Dao Realm; only his strongest move would suffice.
The blade light flashed like lightning, tearing through space instantly. A faint sound came from not far away as if something had been cut.
“Impossible?!” The old man’s shocked voice echoed through the void.
“Show yourself!” Aubree shouted while striking towards the sound’s direction with her palm.
A muffled sound followed as a shadowy figure shot out thousands of meters away-a white-robed figure with sharp eyes surrounded by a faint white mist.
“A soul projection?” Aubree frowned at this sight. Billy’s face also showed seriousness. If just a soul projection was this powerful, how strong would the real person be?
“A mere early stage Otherworldly Realm brat managed to injure my soul projection!” The old man looked at Billy. “I didn’t expect such a talented genius in Canyon View City.”
As he spoke, his gaze swept over Harleen and Ivy not far away before narrowing slightly. “Crystal Spirit Physique? Interesting!”
He then turned back to Billy with a somber tone. “Tell that old man our business isn’t finished yet; he’d better stay alive because I’ll come for him soon!”
With that, the shadowy figure vanished instantly.
“If you’re here already, stay!” Billy said while glancing at White Feather.
White Feather cried out and flapped its wings to give chase. Moments later, a muffled sound echoed thousands of meters away as the soul projection exploded into nothingness.
“Elder Xavier probably wasn’t injured by this soul projection,” Aubree said thoughtfully while staring ahead.
“Agreed,” Billy nodded slightly. “It might have been done by its real body.”
Though this soul projection wasn’t weak-it had fourth-rank Entering Dao Realm strength-it couldn’t compare to Elder Xavier’s mid-to-late Entering Dao Realm cultivation level based on Billy’s estimation.
They then returned to the orchard with White Feather in tow.
“Boss, are you all okay?” Casey and others greeted them upon their return.
“We’re fine,” Billy shook his head before briefly explaining what had happened earlier.
“For someone to injure Elder Xavier so severely means they must be at least late-stage Entering Dao Realm,” Azure Dragon commented after hearing everything.
“Indeed,” Billy nodded in agreement.
“I wonder who could have done this? Could it be someone from another star domain?” Azure Fang speculated aloud.
“Unlikely,” Vermilion Bird responded. “If such powerful beings from other star domains came here unnoticed by Akabuchi Star Palace?”
“True,” Azure Dragon nodded again.
“Let’s take Elder Xavier to the Institute first; once he wakes up, he should be able to tell us what happened,” Billy said while heading back inside.
“Billy, your essence blood might heal his injuries,” Purple Spirit’s voice suddenly echoed in Billy’s mind.