For Halika to hold the position of branch president of the Heng Luo Commerce Association, his strength had reached the Return to Void Stage Three — the most powerful realm below the Void King Realm.
Even so, Halika was in a wretched state at this moment. His left arm had been frozen solid into ice, and no matter how he channeled his own power, he couldn't melt the chill that gripped his limb. Worse, the freezing energy seemed almost alive, spreading toward the rest of his body, and was about to creep past his shoulder.
Halika's eyes nearly split from fury. A flash of terror and resolution crossed his gaze. Suddenly, he gathered every ounce of power in his body and let out a thunderous roar.
In the deafening cry, his frozen arm snapped clean off at the shoulder. Blood gushed from the severed limb like a fountain, and Halika's face went deathly pale as he stumbled backward.
He had severed his own arm!
Yang Kai's pupils contracted slightly — partly shocked by Halika's decisiveness, and partly stunned by the sheer power of that icy energy.
For a Return to Void Stage Three powerhouse to cut off his own limb just to preserve his life, whatever that freezing energy was, it had to possess terrifying destructive power — force that Halika couldn't hope to withstand!
Lin Mufeng and the middle-aged woman rushed over, stanching Halika's bleeding while stuffing handfuls of healing pills into his mouth.
The other warriors who had barely escaped alive with Halika saw their branch president resort to such measures and had no choice but to grit their teeth, draw sharp blades, and hack off their own frozen flesh. In an instant, severed limbs flew through the air and blood poured freely. Several of them screamed in agony, wailing at the top of their lungs.
Halika sat cross-legged on the ground, silently circulating his cultivation technique to stabilize his injuries, panting heavily, his face still haunted by the near-death experience.
"What was that?" Lin Mufeng asked anxiously.
"Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water!" Halika answered through clenched teeth.
"Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water?" the middle-aged woman shrieked. "That was actually Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water? There's actually such a treasure in those ancient ruins?"
Even Lin Mufeng couldn't help his heart skipping a beat, an expression of longing crossing his face.
Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water — a supreme treasure of the Void King grade. Any martial artist who successfully refined even a single drop would see their strength undergo a leapforward progress. If one's cultivation was low enough, they could even break through an entire realm in one go.
The Heng Luo Commerce Association was primarily a trading power. Their research into the world's treasures surpassed that of any other force, and Lin Mufeng and the middle-aged woman naturally knew the immense value of Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water.
If they could safely extract the Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water from those ancient ruins, it would be an extraordinary merit. They might even be transferred to the main planet, Water Moon Star, to enjoy a superior cultivation environment and receive better treatment!
However, this substance was exceedingly rare, requiring extremely specific conditions to form, and a formation period lasting tens of thousands of years.
The Heng Luo Commerce Association governed several cultivation planets, with countless Medicine Stars and Mineral Stars, and employed countless martial artists. In all their years of gathering resources, they had never once encountered a supreme treasure like Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water.
So the moment Halika uttered those four words, both Lin Mufeng and the middle-aged woman couldn't help their eyes lighting up, excitement surging across their faces.
"How could there be Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water beneath this mining district?" Lin Mufeng still found it hard to believe.
"Perhaps some ancient sage once possessed it and left it behind here. We discovered it in a space ring that was on the verge of collapsing. The Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water suddenly erupted, destroying the ring. Everyone was caught completely off guard," Halika explained quickly, his face still pale green. Remembering what he'd just been through, a look of having survived a near-death ordeal washed over him.
If he hadn't reacted quickly, he'd have lost more than just an arm this time — he'd probably be dead and buried already.
"What about Lady Xue?" Yang Kai stepped forward, his face grim.
Halika looked up at him and let out a somber sigh.
Yang Kai's expression darkened further.
"She was the one holding the space ring. When the Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water erupted, she was hit head-on..." Halika sighed heavily and said no more.
He was certain that Lady Xue was dead beyond any doubt!
After all, she was only at the Saint King Stage Three realm. If he himself — a Return to Void Stage Three powerhouse — couldn't withstand the icy erosion of the Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water, how could Lady Xue, who'd been drenched in it head to toe, possibly survive?
She was surely dead beyond death!
Yang Kai let out a cold snort. "Is there a map of the routes below?"
"What are you going to do?" Lin Mufeng stared at him in surprise.
"She's not dead!" Yang Kai shot him a cold glance.
"You want to go save her?" The middle-aged woman immediately saw through Yang Kai's intentions and slowly shook her head. "Young man, don't be reckless. If she was hit by Mysterious Yin Sunflower Water, there's no possibility of survival. Going down there would just be throwing your life away for nothing."
Halika added, "The restrictions below are layered and dense. With your meager strength, you won't be able to penetrate deep at all."
"If she's alive, I need to see her. If she's dead, I need to see the body!" Yang Kai said flatly.
The branch leaders stared at him, and an involuntary look of appreciation surfaced on their faces.
Yang Kai's official identity was Xueyue's bodyguard. They assumed he was desperate to rescue his mistress, which was why he insisted on his position, willing to brave the danger and venture below. A bodyguard like that, even if somewhat lacking in strength, wasn't a big deal. The most important quality in a bodyguard was loyalty!