"Ningshang!" Xue Yue was stunned, rooted to the spot, unable to fathom how things had taken such a sudden turn. She had thought Xia Ningshang's condition was merely triggered by Yang Kai's return, but it was clearly far more complicated than that.
Yang Kai sat sideways on the bed, cradling Xia Ningshang in his arms. His hands slipped beneath her armpits and clasped her small hands from behind as he channeled his pure power into her body in a steady, methodical flow.
Though he had sealed his own cultivation and could only display the peak strength of the Void King realm, the fundamental nature of his Emperor Essence had not changed much. Emperor Essence was two full tiers above both Source Power and Sacred Power, so channeling it into Xia Ningshang's body produced an immediate and remarkable effect.
The seven ink spots that had been slowly spreading across her body noticeably slowed, even showing signs of being suppressed. The roiling black energy wreathing her form gradually stabilized as well.
Yang Kai worked diligently for a full quarter of an hour, not daring to let his concentration waver for even an instant, yet he could only suppress the seven "ink spots" down to the size of a fist before he could go no further.
He knew these "ink spots" were merely the external manifestation of Xia Ningshang's condition. The root cause lay in what the Great Desolation Star Domain's cultivators had done to the Tongxuan Continent. If he was not mistaken, it had to do with those sinister, yin-choked formations. The Tongxuan Continent and Xia Ningshang were intimately connected—what harmed one harmed the other. To resolve Xia Ningshang's current predicament, he first had to deal with the calamity befalling the Tongxuan Continent.
In other words, unless those formations were ripped out by the roots, the "ink spots" could never be eliminated.
Ripping out the formations would not be particularly difficult—Yang Kai merely needed to make a trip. But before that, he had to stabilize Xia Ningshang's life force.
The black energy and ink spots enveloping her devoured her vitality and that of the Tongxuan Continent ceaselessly, every moment. She had already been extraordinarily weakened, and this sudden eruption had struck her a devastating blow.
If he did not stabilize her life force first, she was in real danger of perishing.
He raised a hand and tossed several jade vials to Xue Yue. "Get the pills and feed them to her."
Xue Yue caught them and hurriedly popped the stoppers, pouring out several spirit pills. She pried open Xia Ningshang's small mouth and slipped the pills in, then pressed a palm against her chest, gently channeling Sacred Power downward to help her absorb the medicinal efficacy.
The effect was negligible. These spirit pills were only at the Dao Source grade, and their power was pitifully limited. Yang Kai had plenty of Emperor Pills on hand, but given Xia Ningshang's cultivation level, she simply could not take them—a single pill would be enough to make her body explode.
He slapped his own forehead, cursing himself for being so scatterbrained. At a critical moment like this, he had actually forgotten about that thing.
He withdrew his consciousness into the Miniature Realm. A moment later, a bright green leaf appeared in his hand, bearing a single drop of milky-white sap. The sap was pristine and flawless, yet it contained inconceivable life force—as though it were not merely a drop of liquid but a living existence in its own right.
The leaf was the same.
It was a leaf from the Undying Tree, and the sap was sap from the Undying Tree.
Either one alone was incomparably precious. Even in the Star Realm, they were treasures that people would claw each other's eyes out to obtain. Yet Yang Kai produced them without a moment's hesitation. If it could resolve the crisis Xia Ningshang faced, he would not have hesitated even to let her refine the Undying Tree itself. The problem was that he had never found a method to refine it in the first place. A single leaf and a single drop of sap—that was the limit of what Xia Ningshang's body could endure.
He pried open her mouth and placed the leaf and sap together inside. Yang Kai gave her back a gentle pat, and both slid down into her stomach.
His Emperor Essence surged softly. Yang Kai held her as though she were a delicate piece of porcelain, his movements supremely gentle. The slightest lapse in care could spell disaster for the woman in his arms.
The Undying Tree's leaf and sap slowly dissolved, and the medicinal power of the earlier pills dispersed along with them.
A faint green glow suddenly blossomed within Xia Ningshang's body, merging into the black energy and diluting it.
Xue Yue saw this and wept with joy.
She had no idea what methods Yang Kai had employed, or what he had given Xia Ningshang to consume, but the scene before her eyes left no doubt—Xia Ningshang was improving.
Having no man in the house really did make all the difference.
There was nothing she could do to help at the moment, so she could only keep softly calling Xia Ningshang's name, hoping to rouse her.
The green glow gradually intensified. Her depleted vitality began to recover, and the black energy shrouding her was beaten back. The two colors intertwined across Xia Ningshang's body, slowly reaching a kind of equilibrium.
The power of the Undying Tree was formidable beyond measure. For anyone else, even one on the brink of death, it would have been enough to spring back to vigorous life. But Xia Ningshang's situation was different. The fundamental problem had not been resolved.
A soft moan escaped her lips. Xia Ningshang's eyelashes fluttered, and then her eyes slowly cracked open.
Xue Yue gasped softly, "Ningshang, Ningshang!"
"Sister… Yue…" Xia Ningshang's gaze was hazy. It took a moment after recognizing Xue Yue for her thoughts to clear, but soon she became aware that she was lying in a broad, comfortable embrace, her nose and mouth filled with a scent she yearned for.
She tilted her head back to rest against Yang Kai's shoulder and looked at his profile. A bitter smile crossed her face. "Junior Brother!"
She hadn't wanted to see him, yet in the end she had still let him see her in this state. She must have looked absolutely terrible.
"Call me Husband." Yang Kai gently bumped her with his forehead.
A faint blush spread across Xia Ningshang's pale cheeks, there and gone in an instant. She lowered her head and called out softly.
Yang Kai laughed aloud. "Su Yan can call me Junior Brother if she likes, but I can't have every one of you doing the same. I am the head of this household, after all—where would my dignity be then?" He turned his head toward Xue Yue. "And you?"
Xue Yue flushed with embarrassment. "Save Ningshang first."