The great battle came to a close. Over half of the Seventh Domain's cultivators had been killed or wounded in this war.
Relying on just seven people, Li Guanqi and his companions had slain over a hundred immortal realm cultivators.
With this, the name of the Seven Prodigies of the Human Spirit rose to prominence like never before.
Li Guanqi brought everyone to the Pill Pagoda to heal, with Cao Yan and the others carrying particularly severe injuries.
Yet the two most critically wounded were still Ye Feng and Tang Ru!
Ye Feng had swallowed three Violent Spirit Pills, and the terrifying recoil nearly caused his realm to drop.
He remained unconscious and severely injured even now, his cultivation aura fluctuating violently, with his realm on the verge of plummeting at any moment!
When the alchemists of the Pill Pagoda examined Ye Feng's interior, their faces drained of color, and they shouted in exasperation, "Foolish! Utterly reckless!"
Only those inside Li Guanqi's domain knew the truth.
Had Ye Feng not held out on his own, Li Guanqi would never have bought enough time to break through to the Tribulation Transcendence realm.
Tang Ru's injuries were just as critical. His life force was rapidly bleeding away, and hardly a patch of intact flesh remained across his arms and entire body.
Li Guanqi looked at the elderly alchemist beside him and asked in a low voice, "Will my brother be all right?"
The leading elder among the alchemists furrowed his brow, speaking with a grave expression. "The secret technique he used is still somewhat flawed. Once the vital essence in his body is exhausted, it burns his lifespan and life force instead. Fortunately, he hasn't been cultivating for long and possesses ample lifespan, so this depletion isn't fatal."
At this point, the elder looked up at Li Guanqi and said bluntly, "However... if he faces an even more perilous crisis in the future and continues like this, how much lifespan will he have left to burn? You must think ahead about this matter—either prevent this from ever happening again, or find a foolproof solution!"
Li Guanqi also realized the gravity of the situation.
In every recent battle, Tang Ru had pushed beyond his own limits to help them, pouring everything he had into the fight.
Yet a string of consecutive brutal engagements had thrust him into battlefields far beyond his realm of capability.
Li Guanqi's eyes flickered. He felt that he had overlooked Tang Ru's limits and feelings lately.
Tang Ru was a deeply passionate, devoted brother. To ease the burden on his brothers during battle, he never showed the slightest trace of exhaustion, even when he was completely spent.
This battle had virtually squeezed every ounce of potential out of them.
Ye Feng was an outright gambler—swallowing three Violent Spirit Pills, gambling that his life was stubborn enough not to die, and gambling that Li Guanqi would awaken before he reached absolute exhaustion!
Li Guanqi held his forehead and offered a wry smile.
Ye Feng's inveterate gambler mentality truly gave him a pounding headache.
Meng Wanshu was still recovering from her injuries inside the Nirvana Pagoda. The Seven Generals had long since returned to the Fourth Domain to recuperate and stand guard while Long Hou prepared for his breakthrough.
After settling everyone in the Pill Pagoda, Li Guanqi took his leave.
Li Guanqi and his companions had achieved illustrious merits in battle, so the finest pills and natural treasures were provided for their recovery without the slightest hesitation.
When Li Guanqi broke through to the Tribulation Transcendence realm, he had already used the heavenly tribulation's lightning to mostly heal his injuries.
After pondering for a moment, Li Guanqi decided to head to the Fourth Domain.
Long Hou's breakthrough was taking longer than expected, which meant his situation was just as perilous.
Without Li Guanqi's help, there was a real possibility the breakthrough might fail.
Thus, he decided to visit the Fourth Domain first.
The Human-Immortal Realm Barrier had been reforged, which proved that Grandfather Su Xuan's injuries were not as dire as feared.
Li Guanqi took to the air, leaving the Pill King Pagoda and darting straight for the Fourth Domain.
Along the way, cultivators stopped in their tracks and bowed respectfully to him!
Word had spread: counting the immortals Li Guanqi had killed after his breakthrough, Li Guanqi and his sworn brothers—seven people—had slaughtered a hundred immortals!
Facing an army of descended immortals, Li Guanqi had chosen to take the severely wounded cultivators into his domain, leaving the seven of them to face nearly a hundred immortals alone!
This was absolute confidence in their own strength, as well as compassion from the strong toward others.
In that situation, even if he hadn't pulled those cultivators into his domain, they could at most have killed a handful of enemies before dying in vain.
Li Guanqi's choice filled them with profound veneration.
Li Guanqi nodded and cupped his fists in return. Passing through the Second Domain, he noticed many cultivators dressed in black robes, standing solemnly before the Sword Stele.
Without a second thought, Li Guanqi halted, changed into a black robe, and walked slowly to the Sword Stele.
Seeing Li Guanqi approach, the crowd parted to make way.
Looking at the newly carved names densely covering the Sword Stele—over a hundred of them—Li Guanqi's heart grew immensely heavy.
Taking a deep breath, he respectfully offered incense and stood in silence for a long time.
He gazed at each name. Just a few days ago, these had been vibrant lives, formidable powerhouses who once shook the world.
Yet now, on this battlefield, in the end, each was reduced to nothing more than a name on stone.
Everyone's hearts weighed heavy. After all, the casualties this time were simply too devastating.
Many had even been struck down by their own hands!
Weighed between reason and desire, they had chosen reason.
Ascension was their lifelong aspiration, but... if the price was the annihilation of all living beings in the Human Spirit Realm, they would rather never ascend!
With a heavy heart, Li Guanqi arrived at the Third Domain, where the guardian cultivators bowed to him one after another.
If not for Tang Ru, the surviving half of them would never have made it out alive.
Consequently, across the entire Seventh Domain, the reputation of the Seven Prodigies of the Human Spirit now showed signs of eclipsing even the Eight Generals!
Furthermore, after this battle, everyone recognized the terrifying prowess of the sworn brothers at Li Guanqi's side.
Many even murmured in private that the Seven Prodigies were fully equal to the generals—perhaps even surpassing them.
After all, Li Guanqi's strength spoke for itself: even before his tribulation, he had defeated Long Hou at full power.
Now that he had broken through to the Tribulation Transcendence realm, his might was terrifying beyond measure.
It was worth remembering that a second wave of enemies had descended into the Fourth Domain, and the Heavenly Immortals among them were by no means weak.
Soon enough, Li Guanqi arrived at the Fourth Domain. The instant he appeared, Hong Zhi flashed directly in front of him.
Grabbing Li Guanqi with an anxious face, she bolted toward the grand hall, saying frantically as they flew, "Hurry! Long Hou's breakthrough looks dangerous this time!"
Li Guanqi looked ahead and saw traces of Geng Metal power surfacing around the perimeter of the colossal floating island!
Golden spear rays crisscrossed in wild disarray without pattern or control.
Wherever the spear rays swept across the peaks, mountains shattered and boulders tumbled down.
Xiang Huaizhi and the others stood anxiously outside the grand hall.
Li Guanqi's expression shifted drastically. Closing his eyes to sense the situation, he immediately shot forward at full speed!
With a wave of his hand, myriad arcs of lightning formed a celestial cage, enveloping the entire void.
With a flick of Li Guanqi's wrist, dozens of purple gold crystals detonated in a blast of spiritual energy.
Casting down a spirit-gathering array disc and a mind-calming array disc, he pulled out two talismans and forcefully breached the barrier of Long Hou's secluded meditation chamber, appearing right at Long Hou's side.
Li Guanqi's brow twitched. Long Hou was seated cross-legged in midair in the center of the room, the power within him dissipating wildly as if completely out of control.
The hundred-zhang chamber was now blanketed in razor-sharp Geng Metal power.
Li Guanqi said in a deep voice, "Leave this to me. All of you seniors, please back away outside!"
Chapter 1312