Chapter 166: The Multi-Colored Egg
"Lin Yi, you go back with Old Chu. Don’t worry about things here. Leave the rest to us!"
They arrived at the foot of the mountain.
Chu Zhengxiong was loaded into the ambulance.
Yang Yong then turned back to Lin Yi.
At this point, there was no longer any reason for Lin Yi to stay.
Chu Zhengxiong had been found.
The other survivors had all gone after the Blood Lord and the Demon King.
Meanwhile, members of the Martial Arts Police Station were on the mountain, collecting the bodies and handling the aftermath.
It made more sense for Lin Yi to leave with Chu Zhengxiong than to stay on the mountain.
He nodded. "Coach, all of you be careful!"
"Don’t worry, we’ve got this under control. If there’s any update on Old Chu, give us a call!"
"Okay!"
Lin Yi didn’t waste any more words.
He got right into the ambulance.
The doors closed, and it sped off toward the nearby Wushan County.
Given Chu Zhengxiong’s current condition, he needed immediate medical attention.
The journey back to Xinghai City was too far—a three to four-hour drive.
They could easily miss the optimal window for saving Chu Zhengxiong’s life.
From their location, however, it was only a twenty-minute drive to Wushan County Hospital.
So, the ambulance headed straight for Wushan County Hospital.
The paramedics in the vehicle busily tended to Chu Zhengxiong’s injuries, providing first aid.
They also fed him a pill.
Lin Yi had seen that kind of pill before; there was an identical one in the first-aid kit Tang Qinru had left for him.
The label indicated that it treated injuries and had a miraculous effect on stopping bleeding.
The WEE-WOO WEE-WOO of the siren echoed constantly in his ears.
Lin Yi stared at Chu Zhengxiong, who was lying on the stretcher.
The paramedics beside him weren’t idle, constantly treating his wounds.
Then, after just over ten minutes...
As the ambulance was entering the county seat...
The previously unconscious Chu Zhengxiong suddenly snapped his eyes open.
"Haaa..."
He let out a long breath, which gave the paramedics treating him a huge fright.
"Brother Chu?" Lin Yi hurried forward to check on him.
"Where... am I?"
"In an ambulance. We’re taking you to the hospital for treatment!"
"Oh, no wonder... I... right... a gift for you..."
"Huh?"
Lin Yi froze, staring at Chu Zhengxiong with a completely dumbfounded look on his face.
’Now, of all times? This is a life-or-death moment, and he’s trying to give me a gift?’
Just as Lin Yi’s face filled with worry...
Chu Zhengxiong raised a hand and fumbled around his clothes a few times, then his face lit up. "It’s... it’s here. Get it yourself... A gift for your martial arts exam... Just, just consider it compensation..."
Lin Yi quickly reached over, feeling for where Chu Zhengxiong was pointing.
It was something round.
Lin Yi pulled it from Chu Zhengxiong’s pocket.
To his surprise, it was an egg-sized bead.
It shimmered with a brilliant, multicolored light and felt warm in his hand.
"What is this?"
Lin Yi held the bead, puzzled.
A faint smile crossed Chu Zhengxiong’s pale face.
"Don’t know what it is... Picked it up on Wushan. Thought it looked pretty, so I wanted to give it to you as a gift... Alright... I’ve given it to you now. Just take it..."
Chu Zhengxiong smiled.
In that moment, he seemed to be treating Lin Yi like a child.
Holding the egg-like bead, Lin Yi nodded again and again.
"Brother Chu, I really like it. Thank you!"
Chu Zhengxiong weakly waved a hand. "Hey, uh... can I have a smoke?"
"Absolutely not!"
Before Lin Yi could speak, a nearby paramedic sternly refused.
They then took out an oxygen mask and clapped it over Chu Zhengxiong’s mouth.
A moment later, Chu Zhengxiong fell back into unconsciousness.
Lin Yi clutched the iridescent egg in his hand.
He watched Chu Zhengxiong with concern.
The paramedics around him resumed their treatment.
Fortunately, it wasn’t long; less than ten more minutes passed.
The ambulance arrived at Wushan County Hospital.
The medical staff there were already prepared.
The moment the ambulance came to a stop...
Lin Yi and the others jumped out of the vehicle.
Someone then pushed Chu Zhengxiong’s stretcher out.
After transferring Chu Zhengxiong to a gurney, they quickly rushed into the building.
Lin Yi followed them all the way to the operating room doors, where he was finally stopped.
He sat down on a bench in the hallway outside.
His eyes were filled with worry as he waited for news that Chu Zhengxiong was safe.
...
Time ticked by.
The surgery had been going on for over three hours, and it still wasn’t finished.
Lin Yi kept an anxious vigil in the hallway.
He clutched the egg tightly in his hand.
His wait was broken by the sound of hurried footsteps from the far end of the corridor.
Lin Yi quickly turned his head to look.
He saw Yang Yong, Zhao Jian, and Tang Zhan hurrying over.
"How is he? Old Chu..."
Yang Yong asked anxiously as he approached.
Lin Yi shook his head, pointing at the light that was still on above the operating room door.
"It’s been over three hours, and the surgery isn’t over yet!" Lin Yi said, his voice weary.
The men exchanged glances.
Yang Yong patted Lin Yi’s shoulder comfortingly. "It’s okay. Old Chu is tough as nails; he’ll definitely pull through this. You haven’t slept all night, either. Go get some rest!"
Tang Zhan quickly walked over. "I’ve arranged for a car for you downstairs. It’ll take you back to Xinghai City. We’re here, so you don’t need to worry!"
"Back to Xinghai?"
Lin Yi froze, his brow knitting tightly.
"Of course you’re going back to Xinghai. Even after Old Chu’s surgery is done, he’ll have to be transferred back to Xinghai anyway.
Don’t overthink it. You just went through the martial arts exam, which was draining enough, and now you’ve been up all night. You need to rest and recover your strength!"
Lin Yi glanced at them, then back at the doors to the operating room.
After a long moment, he nodded. "Okay. Coach Yang, let me know if there’s any news!"
"Go on. The car’s waiting for you!"
Lin Yi said no more and headed downstairs.
Outside the hospital, a police car was parked and waiting.
Just as Lin Yi walked out, two officers from the station came over.
"You’re Lin Yi, right? Captain Tang told us to take you back to Xinghai City. Hop in!" one of the officers said with a smile.
Lin Yi nodded, offered a word of thanks, and got into the car.
The police car quickly made a U-turn and drove toward the hospital gate.
After the events of that night...
Lin Yi’s perspective had undergone a major change.
Before this, his goals had been the martial arts exam, the New District, and a Martial Arts University.
He had even been just like every other student preparing for the exam.
He’d thought that passing the exam and getting accepted into a Martial Arts University would be enough.
That entering the New District was all it would take to change his life.
But then he saw the brutal scene on Wushan last night.
The deaths of Zhan Kai, Sun Lang, Yin Xiaoyu, and Shen Yuzhe.
Even Chu Zhengxiong, the man Lin Yi idolized, was gravely injured...
All of this was undoubtedly a heavy blow to Lin Yi.
His mindset had shifted profoundly.
He had a deep realization: his true purpose was to grow stronger, ceaselessly.
In the battle of Wushan...
Lin Yi hadn’t been able to help at all; he wasn’t even qualified to participate.
This was more than enough to prove that he was still too weak.
Only by making himself stronger, by becoming a true expert...
...would he be qualified to fight alongside Chu Zhengxiong and the others.
If he had participated in yesterday’s battle on Wushan as an expert...
Perhaps so many people wouldn’t have died.
And perhaps... he could have changed the tide of battle.
But alas, there are no "what ifs."
In that moment, Lin Yi deeply understood that only by constantly strengthening himself and raising his Cultivation Realm...
...would he have a chance to change things.
A look of determination flashed in Lin Yi’s eyes.
His desire for strength grew even more intense.
In a way, this experience was another form of growth for Lin Yi.
And then, without him even realizing it...
Waves of sacred chanting seemed to drift in from beyond the distant heavens.
’Is this... the sound of a teaching?’
Startled, Lin Yi snapped his eyes open.
In that instant, he was astonished to find...
...that he was sitting in the middle of a vast sea of stars.
All around him was total darkness, without a single point of light.
A White Tiger was crouched docilely beside him, the light emanating from its body far stronger than before.
Its body was even much larger than the last time he had seen it.
The voice of the teaching grew increasingly clear.
He could almost make out the words.
But the language was so abstruse and profound that Lin Yi couldn’t understand a single word.
Runes streamed down from the heavens.
They spiraled around Lin Yi like sprites from another world.
Then, one after another, they vanished into his body.
After a long moment, Lin Yi murmured to himself, "Am I in the state of the Star River Qi Transformation Technique?"