Chapter 105: Rebirth After Destruction

"Brother-in-law must have a way to contact her," Yu Shiyu said, refusing to give up, his face looking even more withered and grey than autumn leaves battered by rain.

Ignoring her second brother, Yu Youwei turned to Wen Shaokun. "Get me a set of silver needles, quickly!" If she hadn't lost all her belongings in the Dragon Blood Pool, including the Shadowless Needles gifted by her sworn sister, she wouldn't have needed to ask anyone for help to save the Old Master.

"Silver needles? Right, I'll get them immediately." Wen Shaokun leaped and vanished into the distance.

Only then did Ning Mofei ask belatedly, "Do you want me to find the Patriarch?"

Filled with hope, Yu Shiyu said, "Yes! You have a transmission talisman to contact her, don't you?"

"No! The Patriarch didn't give me a transmission talisman, and I don't know where to find her," Ning Mofei said, scratching his head in frustration.

"Then why did you even ask?" Yu Shiyu was furious.

"I just wanted to tell you that I can't find Patriarch Shui!" Ning Mofei said aggrievedly.

"Alright, Second Brother, even if you are anxious, you shouldn't take it out on Mofei!" Yu Youwei scolded. She then turned to Ning Mofei and said solemnly, "Go back to the Ning family with Yixuan and the others. Wait for Patriarch Shui to take you away, or wait for me to pick you up."

The tall and sturdy Ning Mofei hung his head, twisting his fingers together pitifully. "Then you must come and pick me up quickly."

Feeling a pang of guilt, Yu Youwei cursed him silently as a beautiful devil, gave a vague reply, and pushed Ning Mofei toward Ning Yixuan, urging them to leave quickly.

By this time, Old Master Yu had practically plowed through the ruins of the Yu Residence. The severed limbs and rotting flesh on the ground, along with the broken walls and shattered tiles, had all been ground into dust. The swarms of flies, snakes, and rats that failed to escape in time were reduced to mire. The aura around him grew increasingly chaotic, the veins on his skin bulging like earthworms, and his face was terrifyingly red.

No one came to watch the commotion, at least not openly.

The imperial family, the Ning family, and the other clans associated with the Yu family could not possibly be ignorant of the commotion here. Yet, not a single soul came to offer aid. Were they planning to just watch Grandfather die of qi deviation? Patriarch Xiang inviting away Patriarch Shui of the Xianchen Sect was likely done on purpose as well.

With the imperial capital's Yu family massacred, the Dongling branch of the Yu family would surely suffer a similar fate. Without the guidance of his elders, Yu Shiyu was ultimately too young and inexperienced. They were all waiting for Grandfather to fall. Once Shiyu failed to protect the Yu family's foundation, it would be the perfect time for them to divide and devour it.

Yu Shiyu was consumed by hatred!

"Don't let hatred control you!" Yu Youwei barked sharply. Her voice carried a soul-shaking pressure, instantly calming Yu Shiyu's chaotic breathing.

After Ning Yixuan dragged Ning Mofei away, Wen Shaokun quickly returned, carrying a medicine chest typically used by traveling doctors. It made one wonder if he had just robbed a physician on the street.

"Ninth Sister, you'll have to make do with these silver needles for now. If you need anything else, just say the word!" Wen Shaokun panted, his face unusually flushed, with a clear handprint stamped on his left cheek.

Who had slapped Wen Shaokun?

Everyone tacitly refrained from asking.

Taking the silver needles, Yu Youwei was about to move when Yu Shiyu suddenly grabbed her, saying in anguish, "Ninth Sister, if it's impossible, don't force it!" He was afraid—afraid that not only would she fail to save Grandfather, but she would also get dragged down with him.

Pulling her hand free from her brother's grip, Yu Youwei gave him a confident smile. "Don't worry. Who do you think I am?"

*Right, Ninth Sister is also the Poison Lady!* Thinking of this, Yu Shiyu finally calmed down.

However, Yu Youwei was not as calm as she appeared. Accustomed to using the divine Shadowless Needles, she felt completely out of her element holding the ordinary silver needles Wen Shaokun had hastily scrounged up. Most crucially, she could not pierce the Old Master's protective spiritual energy.

The Shadowless Poison Needles were the signature spiritual weapon of the Poison Rakshasa, Ye Yinchen. There were seventy-two needles in total, corresponding to the seventy-two Earthly Fiends, making it an extremely ominous weapon. They had vanished ten years ago when Ye Yinchen disappeared from the world. These needles left no trace, making them incredibly difficult to defend against. Furthermore, they specialized in destroying the dantian, once striking terror into the hearts of the cultivation world at the mere mention of them.

When she was five years old, relying on the protection of Azure Frost to shield her from all poisons, Yu Youwei had by chance saved Ye Yinchen, who was suffering from the backlash of her poison cultivation. She secretly cared for her for three years, dragging the despairing Poison Rakshasa, who had been betrayed by a faithless man, back from the brink of death. The two became sworn sisters. Although Ye Yinchen did not teach her how to refine poisons, she gave Yu Youwei all the poisons she refined along with the Shadowless Poison Needles.

Unfortunately, after entering the Dragon Blood Pool, all the items gifted by her sworn sister were reduced to nothing. The Shadowless Poison Needles, in particular, were an heirloom of the Ye family, and the thought of their loss still pained Yu Youwei deeply.

She shot the silver needles one after another through the air, but they were all reduced to dust by the surging waves of spiritual energy surrounding the Old Master. Seeing him grow increasingly manic, Yu Youwei grew anxious. With a flick of Azure Frost, a brilliant green light erupted from the tip of the sword, easily piercing through the red spiritual energy swirling around the Old Master. The sword light burst open, and a silver needle enveloped within it shot into his lumbar spine.

As the needle entered his spine, Old Master Yu froze and fell straight forward.

Having prepared for this, Yu Youwei leaped forward to catch the Old Master. Her hands moved like the wind, inserting nine silver needles in a matter of breaths. She then helped him sit upright on the ground and began channeling her wood-attribute spiritual energy to repair his meridians, which had been ravaged by his rampaging power.

The wild energy inside the Old Master's body was suppressed by the silver needles. Not only did it not reject the incoming wood-attribute energy, but it also allowed itself to be guided, slowly circulating through his body. Generally speaking, to soothe the meridians of someone suffering from qi deviation, a higher-stage cultivator had to do it for a lower-stage cultivator, and the process was also restricted by the grade of their cultivation techniques.

Yu Youwei's strength was far inferior to the Old Master's. She relied on the silver needles to suppress his energy, avoided using her highly aggressive fire-attribute energy, and instead utilized her gentler wood-attribute energy to bypass her limitations. Fortunately, the *Flame Evolution Art* she practiced was of a higher grade than the Old Master's *Dragon Flame Art*, which barely allowed her to guide the flow of energy within his body.

At first, the flow of spiritual energy was somewhat sluggish, but it gradually became smooth, like melting glaciers merging into a river and rushing down joyfully. Eventually, Yu Youwei did not need to guide it at all; the tiny amount of wood-attribute energy she channeled acted like bait, and the energy in the Old Master's body followed it like fish chasing a lure.

After three full cycles of circulation, the Old Master actually entered the state of breaking through his limits to achieve rebirth. With her wood-attribute energy exhausted, Yu Youwei withdrew her palms and let the energy in the Old Master's body circulate on its own.

The Golden Core in the Old Master's dantian shattered into mist, and the circulation of his spiritual energy grew faster and faster. A miniature version of the Old Master was gradually taking shape within his dantian.

"Even this old geezer has better luck than you!" the Little White Bear's resentful voice echoed from the beast-taming tablet.

Coincidentally, the Scarlet Flame Sword Spirit was also roused. It sighed, "Even this old geezer can achieve rebirth after destruction. Where is the justice in this world? I might as well recognize him as my master; my recovery would probably be faster."

It was one thing for the little bear to complain, but for the Scarlet Flame Sword Spirit to have the nerve to grumble at her made Yu Youwei almost cough up blood. "Speak with a conscience, will you? If you hadn't devoured so much of my spiritual energy, would I have fallen all the way from the Foundation Establishment Stage back to the Qi Refining Stage?"

"Is there any difference between a Foundation Establishment rookie and a Qi Refining rookie?" the Scarlet Flame Sword Spirit questioned disdainfully.

Yu Youwei was speechless. The little bear cub had said the exact same thing before, and now the Scarlet Flame Sword Spirit was saying it too. Could it be that even Foundation Establishment cultivators were once considered mere ants?