Myriad Rivers to the Sea

He turned his attention to Queen Calyptra who remained perfectly still. A dark regal statue locked in agonizing pain. The heavy flowing silks draped over her form seemed to twitch slightly, not from her movement but from the violent battle happening beneath the fabric.

Li Yu approached the dais. Healing the Guardian Beast first had been a calculated choice. Not only were his skills better with beasts, the Nine Paths Moth was a supreme entity of poison and illusion; having it conscious and stabilized was a vital asset for dealing with the toxic affliction ravaging the Queen.

He stopped at the edge of the jade platform. "I need to examine her."

The Nine Paths Moth stirred. Despite its severely damaged soul, the ancient beast slowly dragged its massive body forward. It pressed its head against the Queen's side once more. Its dull wings glowing with a faint and desperate silver light. It was willing itself to keep going, sacrificing the meager strength it had just regained in order to help its master.

Li Yu reached out and placed two fingers against the Queen's wrist, just above the edge of her dark silk sleeve.

He closed his eyes and sent a thread of his Life laws and soul sense into her meridians. The internal landscape was horrifying.

The poison was not localized; it was everywhere. It was a vicious, highly aggressive toxin that felt like liquid ash. It was actively eating away at her physical body, breaking down her dense Domain King flesh to strengthen itself. But the true terror was its dual nature. It was also highly corrosive to the soul.

Queen Calyptra’s immense Domain King Qi and her own powerful soul force were acting as a dam, desperately trying to keep the liquid ash at bay. But the dam was cracking. The poison’s effects were accelerating. Every second that passed, the toxin grew stronger and the Queen grew weaker.

A soft and ancient voice echoed directly into Li Yu’s mind. It was the Nine Paths Moth communicating via soul transmission.

‘It is unlike anything I have ever encountered, human,’ the beast’s voice was tired and seemed to carry the weight of centuries. ‘Even at my absolute peak, I could not neutralize it. I could only act as a filter to keep it contained. But that would require us both to remain locked in this chamber for eternity, slowly withering away.’

Li Yu opened his eyes and withdrew his fingers.

"It is a highly aggressive and self-strengthening dual toxin," Li Yu announced to Xerxis. "It attacks both the flesh and the soul simultaneously. It cannot be neutralized with pills or ambient healing arrays. It has embedded itself too deeply. It is also too powerful."

Xerxis stepped closer and his dark eyes were filled with anxiety. "Then how do we cure her?"

"Removing the poison without giving it a new host is almost impossible," Li Yu explained. He had never seen this type of poison before but it was similar in nature to other types. "If we try to force it out into the air, the poison will dig deeper. But transferring it to another living vessel is much easier. The poison wants to attack; it wants to feed. There is far less resistance if we offer it a fresh target."

Xerxis frowned, his mind instantly grasping the grim reality. "That is why none of her healers or generals have done it. The poison is too potent. Anyone who tried to take it would die long before the transfer was complete and the poison would simply snap back to the original host."

Li Yu looked at the Hive Emperor.

"In theory, you are the only person in this realm with the power to take the poison out of her completely. Just about everyone else would be long dead before the transfer was complete." Li Yu stated.

Xerxis stiffened. The Emperor of the Hive was a ruthless conqueror but his affection for the Moth Queen was undeniable. He stared at the dark silk figure on the dais. If he took the poison, he would save her but the liquid ash would eventually consume him. It would be a fatal sacrifice. After a moment Xerxis decided.

"I will do it," Xerxis said. “If I take it, I can at least suppress it for much longer than she can. Perhaps a solution will come then.”

"You will not," Li Yu countered instantly. "If you take it, you will most likely die unless you are really lucky and someone in this realm has the answer. A dead Emperor cannot repay the debt he owes me."

Xerxis looked at Li Yu as confusion warred with desperation. "Then what is your solution?"

"I will take it."

The statement hung in the air. Xerxis stared at the young human with disbelief washing over his face. "You? Young Master, with all due respect, your cultivation is only at the Divine Transformation realm! You just absorbed a lethal soul curse! If you take a poison of this level into your body you will die!"

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"My foundation is unique," Li Yu replied and was projecting supreme confidence.

Internally, he was incredibly calm. He had several times tested himself against poison. Sovereign Morven’s poisonous techniques didn’t affect him at all. He was, by all accounts, completely immune to poison.

"I need you and the Guardian Beast to assist me though." Li Yu instructed. "The Nine Paths Moth will use its remaining energy to push the poison toward the surface of her meridians. Xerxis, you will assist it and then use your Qi act as a bridge between her and me, ensuring the transfer is smooth and unbroken."

Xerxis hesitated. The fear in his eyes was palpable. He was not just worried about Li Yu dying; he was terrified of the consequences. If this "Young Master" perished while attempting to heal the Queen, the hidden experts would manifest from the void and completely annihilate the Eclipse Court, the Hive Empire and the entire realm in an afternoon of apocalyptic vengeance. While it was clear he cared about Calyptra, it was all useless if Li Yu died and everyone died with him.

"Young Master, please reconsider," Xerxis pleaded as his voice cracked slightly. "If something happens to you... everything we have fought for will be for naught. We should just end it here and hope to get lucky with a cure. There are many great minds in this realm. We shouldn’t take this risk."

"Nothing will happen to me," Li Yu stated and was already stepping onto the edge of the jade dais. He held his hand out toward the Queen. "Do your part, Emperor."

Xerxis swallowed hard. He knew he could not defy a direct command from someone of Li Yu's perceived status. He stepped up to the dais and placed his hand gently over Queen Calyptra’s wrist.

The Nine Paths Moth let out a low hum. A faint silver glow enveloped the Queen and was pushing deep into her pathways and corralling the liquid ash. It was much easier to do because it wasn’t trying to extract the poison. It was giving the poison a new target and as long as the poison could eat, it didn’t care.

Li Yu placed his palm directly on the Queen’s stomach.

"Begin," Li Yu commanded.

Xerxis channeled his dense Qi into her body as well. He was aiding the Moth and creating a wide, stable spiritual bridge between the Queen’s afflicted body and Li Yu’s body.

The transfer started instantly.

The liquid ash, sensing a fresh and uncorrupted host, surged forward with terrifying speed. It poured out of Queen Calyptra’s body, traveling through Xerxis’s protective Qi bridge and slammed directly into Li Yu’s body.

Li Yu kept his face a perfectly blank mask. He opened his meridians wide and was allowing the toxic flood to enter his body without resistance.

The process was incredibly smooth. With the Guardian Beast pushing from within and Xerxis helping while also stabilizing the bridge, the highly aggressive poison practically threw itself into Li Yu’s waiting vessel. The suffocating dark aura surrounding the Queen slowly began to lift. Her breathing which was previously shallow and erratic, deepened into a steady rhythm.

Within minutes, the final drop of the liquid ash left the Queen’s body.

Xerxis immediately dropped the Qi bridge and stepped back with his chest heaving with exertion. He looked at Queen Calyptra. The dark, corrosive energy was gone. She was still incredibly weak but the immediate threat had been entirely removed. She just needed time, pills and other treasures to fully recover.

Xerxis turned his frantic gaze toward Li Yu.

The young human stood perfectly still on the jade dais. He did not scream. His skin did not melt. He simply lowered his hand and let out a calm and steady breath like before with the soul attack on the Moth.

Xerxis felt a wave of profound relief wash over him. The Young Master truly was an unfathomable monster. He had absorbed a soul curse and at least a Domain King poison in the span of an hour without showing a single sign of distress. The unseen experts must have forged his body from countless rare and priceless treasures.

"It is done," Li Yu announced with some pride. He was able to save two lives. "She will need time to recover but the poison is gone."

Xerxis dropped to one knee. "Your supreme methods are beyond words, Young Master. I am eternally—"

The Emperor’s words died in his throat.

Li Yu suddenly staggered backward. The calm facade shattered instantly. A violent shudder ripped through his body. He fell off the edge of the jade dais with his knees slamming hard into the obsidian floor.

"Young Master!" Xerxis yelled as panic surged back into his voice.

Li Yu gripped his chest, his eyes widening in shock. Deep within his body, the liquid ash had realized it was trapped. It encountered the Devouring Abyssal Leviathan Physique. For the first few minutes, the poison had remained dormant, confused by the strange internal environment.

But then, it flared up.

The toxin exploded with violent and corrosive fury. It bypassed his natural immunities entirely, tearing into his meridians with force. A searing, blinding agony flooded Li Yu’s entire body. Dark purple veins bulged across his neck and arms. His skin began to turn an unnatural and sickly grey. Then it turned slightly green and was cycling between the two.

Li Yu clenched his jaw and was biting back a scream of agony. He had miscalculated. He had assumed his poison immunity was absolute. He had only ever tested it against King level toxins but it just seemed natural that he was immune since he was never affected before. The qualitative difference between a King and a Domain King was a gap wider than an ocean.

The poison was spreading rapidly and was ignoring his resistance. It was attacking his entire body all at once.

Xerxis stood frozen in absolute terror as he was watching the Young Master collapse.

The Emperor’s mind raced with apocalyptic visions. The boy was dying. The supreme foundation was failing. The unseen experts were going to descend from the void at any second and wipe the entire realm from existence.

‘It’s over. Everything will indeed be for naught. We are all doomed!’ Xerxis screamed internally.

Li Yu fell forward, his hands gripping the cold floor as the world around him dissolved into a haze of blinding pain.