Oh. My. Fate?! (BL, Volume 8, Part 2)

289 The Beast People's Core

The people in the room all stared at Zheng Yin as if he had lost his mind. The only one who didn't show any surprise was Nian Hong Fang.

Instead, he looked up and nodded to admit to what Zheng Yin had said. "He's right. Zhi Wu once told me that he had some relation with the demonic beast people. I think it's only faint but I think it isn't wrong to say that he isn't completely human. I think that was what got him in trouble with the Chun Feng Sect in the first place."

Zheng Yin nodded. "Yes, the demon-hunting sects have gone overboard in the past few years. They have been hunting both our people and those of the demonic beast clan. Many of us have died, some just vanished. We mostly haven't even dared to enter the human realm because of that but there were still people vanishing close to the border."

Jinde gave him a look, silently pondering. Normally, that kind of thing shouldn't be a big issue. The spirit beasts, as well as the demonic beasts, were strong. They definitely didn't have a problem handling a normal human and even most cultivators or practitioners would have a hard time dealing with them.

But just like with the dragons, they were also susceptible to some materials that could be found in the mortal world. So subduing them like that wasn't much of a problem anymore. The only ones who would be able to take it would be those who only had faint traces of beast blood running through their veins and those might not even be found in the first place. Although ... the demon-hunting sects were pretty good at distinguishing the other races from humans. He had to give them that.

Anyway, what made him worry much more was that this issue hadn't been brought up before. Xin Lan had told him a lot about recent changes in the immortal realms after they reconnected and he hadn't heard even a single word about this. Thus, it stood to reason that even Xin Lan had no idea.

Considering the situation between the spirit beast people and the dragons, they likely hadn't dared to bring it to the dragon king's attention and had instead suffered on their own, just hoping that it would stop someday. Unfortunately, it hadn't.

Well, now that he knew, he could mention this matter to his stepson. Even if Qiu Ling could be pretty flippant, he did take his task as the dragon king seriously if he needed to. And since the crown prince's reincarnation would stay in the human realm for some time, he might as well use that time to take care of it. It was just a matter of bringing it to his attention.

Jinde didn't say any of these thoughts out loud though. That was something that could only be spoken about when Qiu Ling had really returned with those herbs and this Ma Zhi Wu was healed. For now, they had to focus on the matter at hand. "Well, since he isn't completely human, that does change things. What do you think is the main problem?"

Zheng Yin couldn't help but be a little disappointed that this person didn't care at all about what he had said about the demon-hunting sects being after the spirit beasts. But then again, the dragons didn't really care about them, did they?

He pushed the thought away and just focused on the issue at hand. If he offended one of them, things would be even worse, after all. "The beast clans have slightly different bodies from that of the other races. The most noticeable is that their cultivation relies on the core in their bodies. If that core is damaged, then not only will they lose all the cultivation acquired so far, some might not even be able to hold up the form they currently have."

Nian Hong Fang slightly furrowed his brows. "I don't think Ma Zhi Wu has any other form though."

Zheng Yin nodded. "I thought so. Which is precisely the problem: Normally, after losing all the cultivation they had, they will regress to the original form they were born in. Contrary to other races, that is not a humanoid form.

"Reverting back will save them some energy and might allow them to save their lives. In his case though, there is no other form. So he won't even be able to do that. Unfortunately, that also means that he needs to use more energy to maintain this only body of his.

"That is precisely why I think that he does not have much time left." He turned to the Grandelder that had spoken up before, slightly lowering his head to show his respect to this Elder. Even though he wasn't of his race, he was still somebody who had learned for much longer than him. He deserved his respect. "The treatment you gave him was effective. It is just that it can't undo what a damaged core does to a spirit or demonic beast. So right now, this has only allowed him to have slightly more time. But with the energy he needs to expand, it won't be enough to save him."

The Grandelder looked at the potion that he was currently refining and couldn't help but feel that there was no use at all. If it was like this ... He was unable to save Ma Zhi Wu.

Jinde slowly nodded. "What you say makes sense. In that case, we would have to supply him with enough energy until we are able to treat his wounds. The problem will be that healing his core should be difficult."

Zheng Yin nodded. "That is true. In most cases, there's no way to do that. A beast that loses their humanoid form will seldom be able to get it back. In his case, I'm afraid that means he will die."