Butcher, the Mute Smith, Grandpa Blind, and the others chased after the retreating god-demon army, slaughtering as they went. The demon ancestors led a stampede of Netherworld monsters, fleeing madly across the mountains.
After chasing for thirty to fifty li, the god-demon army halted. Crippled Joe, still carrying Apothecary on his back, kept charging forward with his head down—until he suddenly realized everyone else was gone and only the two of them remained. He shivered, turned tail, and ran back to the main group before finally relaxing.
Granny Sue whispered to him, "This is Deaf's limit. We can't go any farther—if we chase any more, we'll give ourselves away."
Crippled Joe grumbled, "You all could've warned me ahead of time! I was still charging forward..."
Apothecary climbed off his back, his legs still trembling, and complained, "Damn cripple, you nearly got me killed in that chaotic mess!"
On the other side, Deaf was still painting at lightning speed, his face flushed. Quinn Shepherd noticed something was wrong and rushed over, shouting in a voice clear and stirring as a dragon's roar: "Grandpa Deaf, pull back! Wake up!"
Deaf stopped his brush, looking dazed. Suddenly, his throat tightened and he coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Quinn's expression changed. His fingers flew, tapping rapidly on Deaf's throat and chest to seal his rampaging qi and blood. Then, with one finger to the brow and moving swiftly around him, Quinn unleashed the Heaven-Forging Demon Art, pressing a series of vital points on Deaf's body!
This time, Deaf had truly gone all out and injured both heart and spirit. Heart and spirit are split into the physical heart and the Primordial Spirit; the heart is the center of qi and blood. His qi and blood went berserk, his blood vessels couldn't handle it, and neither could his heart—so he spat blood.
Quinn sealed his heart and throat, forcing the blood back.
Deaf's Primordial Spirit was too badly depleted, growing unstable and on the verge of collapse. So Quinn used the Heaven-Forging Demon Art to seal his hun and po souls, keeping them anchored in his body.
This bought them time for treatment.
Quinn quickly gathered medicine and refined pills. After a moment, the pills were ready—he opened Deaf's mouth, fed them to him, and used various techniques to dissolve the medicinal power.
Granny Sue, Grandpa Blind, and the others returned. Apothecary immediately took over, treating Deaf and saying, "Good thing Quinn reacted quickly—Deaf's problem isn't serious. He's drained, but with me here, he'll be bouncing around by tonight."
Deaf grunted and replied coolly, "I won't be bouncing around. A scholar should have some dignity, after all."
Everyone relaxed. Granny Sue asked, "Deaf, how long can your painting last?"
"As long as the world inside the painting isn't shattered, this god-demon army can exist forever."
Deaf sat down, and Apothecary busied himself treating him. Quinn assisted, while Lina the Spirit Fox held the needle tray for Quinn. The three exchanged ideas, making for a lively scene.
"But breaking the world inside the painting isn't that hard. The demon race was just caught off guard and couldn't see through our trick, so my plan worked."
Deaf's face was covered in silver needles, his eye twitching. Apothecary stuck another needle in the corner of his eye; the twitching stopped, but half his face now felt numb.
Deaf's eyes went crooked—one up, one down—and drool dripped from his mouth. He muttered, "If I recover by tonight, I'll paint another scene and scare them even more... Apothecary, I feel like the chicken's face isn't a chicken anymore, I can't find the right color..."
"This needle is for your Primordial Spirit, but it'll mess with your facial nerves for a bit. Don't worry! Quinn, you did well sealing his hun and po—come look, where should this next needle go?"
Apothecary hesitated, pointing to a spot on Deaf's spine. He asked Quinn, "I'm not sure if I should needle this spot..."
Quinn studied it carefully and smiled. "Apothecary Grandpa, you're testing me! If you needle here, it'll go straight through the earth soul and anchor at the Primordial Spirit's perineum. One jab, and the needle would pierce the Life-and-Death Treasury. Netherworld demon qi would invade, corrupt the perineum, pollute the earth soul—he'd lose fertility and his temperament would completely change."
Apothecary calmly withdrew the needle and nodded slowly. "I was testing you, and you saw right through it."
Quinn grinned. "I knew you were testing me! Apothecary Grandpa, you meant to connect the Life-and-Death Treasury and Divine Bridge Treasury so Deaf's vitality could circulate between them. So the needle should go here! It enters from the Divine Bridge Treasury, guides its qi into the Life-and-Death Treasury, suppresses the demonic influence, and doesn't harm Deaf's fertility."
He moved his finger up a bit, looking expectantly at Apothecary. "This is the spot you meant, right?"
Apothecary gave a long "mm" and, without missing a beat, needled the spot Quinn indicated. Internally, he felt a twinge of embarrassment: "That kid Quinn really did invent the Divine Bridge spatial systems model—he understands Divine Bridge better than I do..."
Deaf overheard their conversation, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead, rolling down in big drops.
"What if the needle goes here instead?" Lina the Spirit Fox asked excitedly, pointing to Deaf's qi sea.
Quinn and Apothecary quickly said, "Don't needle there! One slip and you'll cripple his cultivation!"
Deaf's face went ashen. He glanced sideways at Lina the Spirit Fox and muttered, "Lina, I even taught you to read..."
Apothecary was still more skilled than Quinn; Quinn just understood the Divine Bridge Treasury best, but for the other treasuries, Apothecary had the edge. Most of the time, Quinn could only watch.
At last, Deaf's Primordial Spirit stabilized, and Apothecary gave him medicine to restore his vitality.
That night, the distant demon race howled and beat drums, feigning a night raid. But they never moved their army—just tried to keep Quinn and the others from resting.
By the next day, more demon reinforcements arrived—troops kept pouring in, swelling their numbers.
Many demon-god generals came to the front lines, gazing toward the City of No-Regrets Abyss. Their hearts were shaken: an impossibly magnificent god-city had suddenly appeared atop the ruins!
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The god-city soared a hundred zhang tall, its walls like mountains. Towers rose within, and god-cannons lined the battlements. Atop the tallest towers, a hundred giant, eye-shaped Solar-Shooting God Cannons stared down!
On the city walls stood countless god-demon soldiers and golden-armored gods, patrolling the ramparts with imposing might.