Yao Jun didn't elaborate further on his answer, his sharpened gaze sweeping over the camp and the people that were rushing about within it. But even if his answer was a bit confusing since it didn't give any specifics, it told Zhuan Yi enough to at least get her mind rolling. And by going over the things Yao Jun had already shown her, or rather, what his companions had shown her, it didn't take too long for her to hazard a guess. But sadly for her, Yao Jun simply sent her a sideways glance and crushed her guess without much emotion.
"I didn't call for reinforcements. I don't have any allies or friends here, the only people I know in this competition are those who would love nothing more than to take my head. So don't expect any sort of cavalry to come here and back us up as we cut a path to your kin, their lives are still hinging entirely on an uncertain bet."
There were no comforting words, nor did he try to sugarcoat the situation in the slightest. Whether or not Zhuan Yi's race managed to get through this ordeal was almost entirely up to chance. But only almost. People would definitely come, the rest just depended on how many came and how long they managed to stay reasonable.
Zhuan Yi's expression sank slightly when Yao Jun so plainly stated that no one would come to help them. It was something very reasonable when you thought about it, but it was still a bit off-putting when he so blandly stated that he had no friends or allies here, only enemies. It only made her all the more curious about his true identity and how he got three Divine Beasts to follow him so loyally. At the same time, his current actions and attitude also spawned another curious thought in her mind.
"You know, I wasn't quite expecting you to accept the deal my ancestor gave you, especially not so readily. You don't seem like the person who would accept such a dangerous deal without at least being 100% certain of what the reward is. So, since we've got some time, mind telling me why you accepted? You certainly don't look like you're concerned about the fate of my race so I highly doubt that's the cause."
Yao Jun had stayed cool and calm throughout their entire journey through her ancestor's tomb, his expression barely wavered even when he stood face to face with the Thousand Arms Master. So you'd think that he wasn't a person who really felt fear, but he had wavered heavily when she offered her advantageous alliance, only agreeing after his companions spoke up. And looking at how little he acted unless forced when in the tomb, it was inevitable that he would paint himself as someone who had to be sure of the gains before he decided on something.
Cool and calculated, didn't move too much, but when he did he did so because he was certain that there was something good to be gained from doing so. But even so, he accepted the Thousand Arms Master's deal without even confirming what the reward would be, he basically accepted it on the empty promise that it would be useful. He clearly hadn't accepted because he wanted to save the unfortunate race, if that was the case then he wouldn't have so plainly stated that he would abandon them if things went wrong.
"There aren't any grand reasons or underlying schemes, I accepted it because I felt like it. I can get a useful reward, and whether I like it or not, leaving an entire race to fade while I have the chance to act would make me feel a bit annoyed. And I only have one thing to say to that final statement, there was once a time where I didn't care about the fates of Ba-Shei and the others either."
She had played with a few various ideas, but the actual answer she got from Yao Jun was pretty far removed from anything she had toyed with. It was simply because he felt like it, because it would annoy him to do nothing. Would he be annoyed at his weakness that failed to help, annoyed because he didn't act when he could, or just annoyed because potential allies had gone down the drain?
Yao Jun didn't specify anything, and Zhuan Yi was starting to feel that she actually didn't understand him enough to guess at what he meant. But while she was starting to feel like she didn't understand him as well as she had guessed, his last sentence was also something that allowed her to at least peer into his thoughts. All creatures are born alone and uncaring, even the closest lovers were once just strangers who didn't care about each other. But did that mean that things would always be like that? Did people not grow to care about each other over time?
He wasn't a good person, that was something apparent to all who saw him for even just a short while. He ended lives with the same cool expression he used to look at his surroundings, it was as if the act of reaping those souls didn't affect him at all. But did that mean he was a bad person?
The answer Zhuan Yi had reached in regards to that question was no, he wasn't good, nor was he bad, he was just someone who danced around on both sides. In that regard, she had to admit that he was quite similar to a Demonic Beast, it was a very honest way of living, transparent and true to your own emotions.
Yao Jun paid no mind to Zhuan Yi's thoughts as he observed the camp below them. He originally thought that she should be fairly old since she had already reached the early stage of the Sovereign God realm, but the way her thoughts showed so clearly on her face made him revise that thought. It was foolish to have your thoughts be apparent on your face, it made it far too easy for others to read and exploit you, a weakness that had to always be kept in mind.
Yao Jun didn't have any reason to inform Zhuan Yi about this weakness of hers, and he certainly didn't have any obligation to help her fix it, they were only temporary allies after all. It was, however, a bit nice to have someone to talk to, he was so familiar with Ba-Shei and the others that they didn't really need to talk all that much. As such, he wasn't above answering Zhuan Yi when she questioned him, it was a neat way to pass the time as they observed the people from Basilisk's Tail.
But whether or not they talked, the passage of time was something that couldn't be stopped. Minutes turned to hours and then to days, the mission Yao Jun had given Sirius and Little Gray was one that wouldn't take just a single day so he had already been prepared to spend a prolonged period of time here.
And when he had to be, Yao Jun was a very patient man, his figure barely shifting as the days passed. He was still an Earthly Deity in both body and soul cultivation, going for an extended period of time without food was quite easy for him, staving off his body's natural expulsion techniques was also something that was easily done so he didn't really need to move.
There was no need to mention Ba-Shei, he was practically a statue as he stood next to Yao Jun. Zhuan Yi also showed proper patience, shifting around occasionally but otherwise remaining still, most of her attention focused on the walled-up wagons that contained her kin. But no matter how much he would have preferred to remain stationary until Sirius and Little Gray returned, sometimes things just wouldn't go your way. After their fifth day of waiting, the camp below them moved into action.
"Fuck, I have to go!"
Zhuan Yi's expression sank drastically as she gazed down at the camp, rising to her feet with a sharp movement. Her actions were understandable, the people in the camp had just dragged a man out from one of the wagons and were dragging him towards the altar. And drag truly was the right word in this case, the man was entirely slumped in their arms, his entire body stretching out as if it was slowly melting.
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"Sit down. Acting rashly here will just ruin everything. Do you want to be the one that condemns your race to extinction?"
Yao Jun's hand shot up and grabbed onto the back of Zhuan Yi's robe, forcefully pulling her down into a seated position again. His eyes traced the people pulling the captive to the altar, his pupils occasionally flickering to make sure that the four strongest of the camp weren't accompanying them.
And it seemed like they carried a healthy amount of dread towards the array, the four leaders made sure to keep a good distance from the lake itself and simply observed from cover. Zhuan Yi was clearly anxious, this was her own kinsman after all, but Yao Jun held her down so that she couldn't do anything rash, calmly observing the situation.
The man, whose entire face was so droopy that it looked like it would slide off of his head, was dragged to the top of the altar and sloppily tossed down on it. It didn't seem like the Basilisk's Tail knew too much about the array so they elected to start with the most standard method, introducing familiar energy into a likely core part of the array. Yao Jun looked on as the men pulled out a dagger that looked like it was fashioned from a fang, his eyes narrowing slightly as he held out his open palm to Zhuan Yi.
"Give me a bit of your flesh, fill it with the densest energy you can muster."
He didn't give any explanation or the like, he simply curled his fingers a few times to urge Zhuan Yi on. She didn't understand his plan, but she had done nothing but make bets since she first headed towards her ancestor's tomb so what did it matter if she made another bet? Her left hand separated from her wrist and turned into a smoke-filled orb, a somewhat suffocating amount of energy radiating out from within it.
Yao Jun released his own two energies and surrounded the hazy orb with a thick layer of water, violet bolts of lightning dancing relentlessly across its surface. He used up a bit over half of both his energies, making sure that the newly formed orb would be able to last for quite a while.
"Sorry, but can I rely on you? It will have to be fast, yet slow and natural. And above all, quiet and stealthy."
Yao Jun's somewhat apologetic question was directed at Ba-Shei, who practically beamed as he accepted the glittering orb. He carefully covered the orb with his hands and then sank into his own shadow, Yao Jun visibly tensing up as he directed his gaze towards the altar again.
They couldn't see Ba-Shei so their only course of action was to observe the altar, where the two men who had tossed the droopy man onto the altar were finishing up. The one wielding the curved dagger raised it up and then brought it down without much fanfare, the tip easily piercing into the centre of the droopy man's chest.
Transparent and somewhat hazy blood immediately poured out from the wound as the man pulled back the dagger, running onto the altar and the lake just beyond it. And as the blood reached the lake, Ba-Shei performed his part, his timing impeccable.
The orb that Yao Jun had given him was released into the lake, something Yao Jun immediately sensed since it contained his Qi. He burst it open the moment he sensed it again, the law of water that he had used to surround Zhuan Yi's flesh interacting with the rest of the lake and making it seethe and roil. The lightning he had inserted was also unleashed at the same time, the gleaming arcs dancing across the surface of the lake in a mesmerizing display. And at the centre of it all was the energy that Zhuan Yi had inserted into her flesh, energy that was forced out when Yao Jun had his two laws explode outwards.
Thanks to that, it looked like the entire lake had sprung alive, the energy of Zhuan Yi's race radiating from within the water as it tossed and turned. And while this happened, the shadow cast by the altar rose up slightly and formed a platform beneath the man who had been stabbed. His body started to slowly sink into the darkness, seemingly becoming a part of the altar. But very few people actually bothered with this seemingly respectful send-off, most of them were keeping an eye on the active lake with shining eyes.
Yao Jun's eyes sharply swept over all the people in the camp, making sure that none of them eyed the vanishing body with suspicion. His sharp look only receded slightly when he saw that no one paid attention to the altar even after the body finished sinking into the darkness. Ba-Shei evidently didn't return directly to Yao Jun, moving around a bit to make sure that no one was actually tracking him.
Once he felt confident, he returned to the safety of the barrier that the Thousand Arms Master's armament had set up, placing the droopy man onto the ground. He was bleeding heavily from his chest, but he wasn't dead yet, convulsing slightly as his body continued to melt away.
"Make him stay in his human form, he might actually have a chance at survival if he does that."
Yao Jun's voice reached Zhuan Yi's ears just as she was racing to come up with a plan, and just like before, she made her bet. She placed both hands on the side of the man's head and closed her eyes. She seemed to be contacting him in some strange way, his body ceasing its melting and pulling itself together into a more standard human shape.
Yao Jun placed two fingers on the man's chest, focusing his gaze on the hole left by the dagger. He could no longer see into the man's body, his greatly enhanced vision had been robbed from him when he lost his God Gate. But he still had his memories, and he had peered into many people's bodies in the past so he was quite familiar with where the veins, organs, and bones were positioned.
"It's placed right at the centre... but the blade was curved so it's not impossible that it also cut through the veins higher up... may also have touched the lungs..."
He muttered to himself as he inserted his energy, going through his memories of human anatomy. The two energies he had available right now weren't really suited for exploring the body of someone else, Monarch Essence was too heavy and Anima Essence was more focused towards the soul. Of course, this might also just stem from his inexperience with using these two energies, he had always just been using his Qi after all.
But a bit had to be inserted whether he wanted to or not, his Monarch Essence carefully getting introduced into the man's body. He first froze the most obvious arteries that had been cut, extending his Monarch Essence to the other veins that he couldn't see but that had also had a chance of getting cut. He froze the places that might have been cut, even creating a small patch of ice on the man's lung since it may have been nicked by the tip of the dagger.
It was extremely basic, but it would at least stop his bleeding and give them enough time to apply some other medicines. Yao Jun kept two fingers on the man's chest while his other hand swept his interspatial ring, pulling out two pills and a handful of different leaves and mushrooms. He tossed the two pills to Zhuan Yi, who grew a third arm from her chest to catch them.
He didn't need to tell her what to do, she simply forced the two pills into the man's mouth and massaged his throat so that he had no choice but to swallow them. While she was doing that, Yao Jun created an orb of water with his Monarch Essence and tossed in some of the leaves. He warmed up the water with his law of fire, dissolving the leaves and making a thick paste. He then created four more orbs of water, tossing the remaining plants and mushrooms into them and melting them all down into paste.
He mixed two of the pastes and then swiped his interspatial ring, pulling out a vial filled with a light blue liquid that he mixed with the paste. He kept the other orbs of paste floating in the air and moved the first mixture towards the man's wound, slowly inserting it into his body and pushing it towards the patch of ice he had created on the man's lung.
He replaced the ice with the paste and them moved onto the three remaining orbs in front of him. He made a cut in his finger and dripped some of his blood into two of the orbs, mixing them rigorously before he pushed the two orbs into the man's wound. One of the orbs was used to coat his cut arteries while the other orb was pushed towards the man's heart and the other organs that may have been nicked by the knife, replacing the ice he had used to seal them up. The final orb of paste wasn't mixed with anything else, he just used it to cover the wound itself.
Once he finished covering up the wound, he pulled back his hand and spat out a breath of air, it felt like ages since he had last performed medical aid like this. He was no trained doctor for sure, he had always only used his enhanced vision to locate the source of the problem and then used his variety of laws to fix it in a decent manner. But he had read up on books about medicine because of that, preparing for the time he encountered something he couldn't fix with just his laws. But little did he expect that he wouldn't use this knowledge on his family but rather on a stranger.