C11 The Mysterious Ancient Bronze Medallion

Upon witnessing Gu Feng sever the legs of his childhood friend, his face drained of color. He had been convinced that his ally would overpower Gu Feng, and then he could have his way with the stunning woman before him. Her evasive maneuvers, ducking and weaving, caused her ample chest to heave and bounce tantalizingly, as if on the verge of breaking free.

However, the sight of a blood-soaked Gu Feng advancing like a demon incarnate sent him fleeing in terror, too afraid to engage in combat.

"Stay where you are!" Xianyue, panting heavily, brandished her longsword and blocked his path, forcing him back.

"Move aside!" he shouted, having spent the entire time evading the edge of Xianyue's blade, unwilling to clash with her unarmed.

"Surrender and you won't be harmed. Run, and I'll end you, tearing you to shreds!" Gu Feng, drenched in blood, pursued him and bellowed.

Realizing escape was futile and that capture by Gu Feng meant certain death, he was petrified when Gu Feng offered mercy. His legs gave out, and he fell to his knees, pleading, "Ah, please don't kill me, I had no part in this. It was all Gu Tian's doing."

It was clear this man was both foolish and cowardly. Did he truly believe Gu Feng would spare him? One informant was sufficient; there was no need to release another.

"What's the matter? Not running anymore?" Gu Feng, drenched in blood and resembling a deity of death, fixed his gaze on the quivering man kneeling before him.

"No, no, please don't kill me!" he begged, as Gu Feng, bloodied and wielding a longsword, loomed over him.

"If you wish to live, sever one of your arms, and I'll let you go. Otherwise, I'll puncture your body with holes," Gu Feng roared at him.

"Fine, I'll do it, I'll do it! Just let me go, and I'll cut it off!"

Without a second thought, he struck his left arm with his palm, gruesomely snapping the limb. Blood sprayed wildly, his face ashen with agony, but he managed to stand, suppressing the pain.

He never imagined that as he was about to make his escape, Gu Feng's longsword would thrust into his chest, leaving him staring in shock as the blade pierced him. He also caught sight of the malevolent grin spreading across Gu Feng's face.

"You, you, you're not keeping your word," he gasped, clutching Gu Feng's longsword with both hands as blood spurted from his mouth.

"Trust? What's the worth of trust? Lucky for me, you're down an arm. Otherwise, I'd stand no chance against you. Haha, time to die!" Gu Feng, wincing in pain, mocked the coward before him.

With a grunt, Gu Feng drove the longsword deeper, twisting it viciously to shatter the man's heart and snuff out his life.

"Mother, are you hurt?" Gu Feng asked, turning his attention to Xianyue, who had been struck by a palm.

"I'm fine, just a minor wound," Xianyue replied, her concern for Gu Feng outweighing her own discomfort.

"Once I've dealt with this scum, we need to get out of here quickly," Gu Feng said, coughing up blood. "Cough, cough, did I damage my organs?"

The man with the shattered legs had pinned his hopes on his ally, only to find him more craven than Chen Bei. He knew his fate was sealed today. He regretted accepting Gu Tian's order to pursue Gu Feng and his mother. As he gazed at Xianyue's stunning visage and her heaving chest, he burst into a bitter laugh.

"Who would've thought, the old man was right. I really would die at the hands of a woman. Haha, Gu Feng, go ahead and kill me. To die alongside the Gu family, my death will have been worthwhile!"

The Gu family, Gu Tian? Gu Feng couldn't care less about their fates. With his severe injuries, he needed to find a place to heal without delay. He plunged the longsword into the neck of the arrogant fool, pinning him to the ground.

Gu Feng discarded the weapon, taking only the two they needed with Xianyue and tossing the stolen steel weapon to the ground. They rifled through the corpses, collecting several hundred silver notes and a few bottles of healing medicine before hastily departing from the scene to find a safe haven for recovery.

As they traveled, Gu Feng couldn't stop coughing up blood. Had he not consumed a second-level healing pill found on their persons, he would have surely passed out from his injuries. His chest was fractured, his bones shattered, and his internal organs were hemorrhaging – he was on the brink of becoming disabled.

"Feng, are you okay?" Xianyue, her heart aching as if sliced by a knife, supported Gu Feng as they made their way deeper into the forest.

"I'm fine, Mother. We need to find a place to rest!" Gu Feng said, his face ashen and sweat drenching his brow, feeling utterly unable to take another step.

"Alright," Xianyue agreed, her voice tinged with concern.

Eventually, Xianyue and Gu Feng stumbled upon a cave that seemed to have been carved out by human hands. Such caves were often the work of hunters, providing a modest shelter stocked with hay and dry branches for overnight stays in the wilderness. Now, it served as a refuge for Gu Feng and Xianyue. Heeding Gu Feng's instructions, they barricaded the entrance with branches and stones before attending to their wounds.

"Come, let me help you undress and apply the medicine," Xianyue said, holding a jar of healing salve, after making all the necessary preparations.

"Yes," Gu Feng replied, his injuries severe, his eyelids heavy. He lay on the hay, too exhausted to move, allowing his mother to tend to his wounds.

As he removed his shirt, Xianyue was not met with the sight of a perfect physique but rather a torso marred by swelling and bruises. Tears welled up in her beautiful eyes, the emotional pain she felt far surpassing the physical pain that racked Gu Feng's body. She repeatedly asked if he was in pain, though the absence of pain would have been the true deception. Not wanting to worry his young, beautiful mother, Gu Feng simply shook his head and downplayed his discomfort.

The medicine Xianyue held had been a gift from Gu Mong. It had not been entirely used up the last time, and she had not anticipated needing it again so soon. Its efficacy was undeniable; as it was applied to the wounds, a soothing coolness replaced the searing pain, offering much-needed relief.

"Feng, just bear with it a little longer. Mother will set your bones right," Xianyue said, her delicate fingers gently caressing the area around Gu Feng's fracture.

"Go ahead, I can take it!" Gu Feng, seeing Xianyue's reddened, swollen eyes, felt a pang of sadness and was at a loss for how to comfort her.

In the pursuit of strength and survival, Gu Feng braced himself against the pain. Clenching the Nine Dragons Sky Mandate between his teeth, he grimaced as if in labor while Xianyue skillfully realigned his bones, causing him to break out in a cold sweat.

By the time Xianyue had finished tending to Gu Feng's wounds, it was midnight. The day's battle had been a hard-won victory at great cost, leaving both mother and son utterly drained. In the confines of the small cave, they drifted off to sleep without realizing it.

As they slept, the Bronze Mandate in Gu Feng's palm glowed with a faint green light in the darkness, enveloping him in its radiance. The light bathed his injuries, miraculously healing the bruises and wounds as if they had never existed. Even the fractures within his body mended rapidly.

Regrettably, both Gu Feng and Xianyue were asleep and unaware of the remarkable transformation taking place. It wasn't until Gu Feng's injuries were completely healed that the green light vanished as if it had never been there.

The next day, upon waking, Gu Feng discovered that all his injuries had vanished. He felt an inexplicable sense of well-being, nothing like the critically ill state he had been in. Examining his body in wonder, he exclaimed, "The pills in this world are miraculous! They're light-years ahead of any medicine on Earth."

"Ah, Feng, you're awake," Xianyue said with a drowsy gaze, watching her son as he prodded and pinched himself.

"Mom, I'm all right now. Let's get moving," Gu Feng informed Xianyue about his miraculous recovery.

"That doesn't make sense. With the severity of your injuries, you should have needed at least three to five days to heal. How did you recover overnight?" Xianyue asked, her concern turning to bewilderment at her son's rapid recuperation.

"Who cares how long it's been? I'm all good now, let's hit the road." Gu Feng emerged from the cave with a beaming smile, stretching languidly. He pondered to himself, "Has my mysterious constitution undergone a change? Could it be the Undying Holy Body? Oh, Undying Holy Body, how I adore you."

"..." He found himself at a loss for words.

Afterward, Gu Feng and Xianyue, having narrowly escaped disaster, proceeded on their journey with renewed caution.

One day, Gu Feng and his mother, Xianyue, arrived at a small river. It seemed Xianyue had been lured by the sound of the water, expressing a need to bathe after several days. Gu Feng completely understood; not only did Xianyue require a bath, but he did too. Since his injury, he hadn't bathed and was starting to reek, worse than a scavenger. In stark contrast, Xianyue's natural scent was that of a woman's fragrance, her sweat sweet-smelling.

"Mom, you go ahead and bathe. I've checked around; there's nobody here," Gu Feng assured her after scanning the surroundings.

"Alright, just give me a moment. I'll be quick," Xianyue replied with a slight nod.

"I'll head downstream to clean up. See you in a bit," Gu Feng said, gesturing downstream to Xianyue.

"Take care of yourself!" Xianyue called out to him.