Courtyard Houses: From Bronze Compasses to Global Reach

Chapter 274 Healing and the Baby Orca

He plunged straight into the sea, the splashing water instantly swallowed by the waves.

The ocean currents dragged him deeper, like an unreasonable strongman dragging a tattered sack. He sank into the dark depths one moment and was pushed to the surface the next. His eyes remained tightly closed, and even the icy seawater couldn't rouse him.

Only thanks to his Foundation Establishment cultivator foundation did he avoid sinking. The warm current carried him slowly away from that raging sea.

A group of orcas on patrol noticed the strange thing.

It wasn't that they wanted to eat it, it was just curiosity. This thing didn't look like fish, but its taste made them feel very comfortable.

The younger one came closer and gently nudged him with its nose, chirping loudly. When he didn't react, it chirped even more enthusiastically.

Just then, the largest female orca swam over. The other orcas fell silent. She leaned closer and sniffed, recognizing a familiar scent on the two-legged creature—like the smell of a forest after rain, a scent that instinctively made them feel safe.

She let out a low chirp, as if saying "Give me a hand".

The mother orca used her broad head to steadily support Lin Yan, carefully keeping him afloat on the surface. Other orcas automatically formed a circle around him, chasing away the curious little fish and using their bodies to shield him from the waves on the side.

This strange team carried him along, swimming towards the familiar island.

Once they reached the shallow waters, the orcas could not go any further.

The mother whale gently pushed him onto the beach with the force of the wave. His head rested on the dry sand, while his lower body was still immersed in the clear seawater.

The orcas circled the deep water a few times, emitting long, drawn-out calls, as if bidding farewell. Then they turned, their massive dorsal fins slicing through the water, and gradually disappeared into the blue depths.

Lin Yan was left alone on the beach. The waves gently lapped at him, as if soothing a wounded child to sleep.

Lin Yan was awakened by the sound of the waves.

He slowly opened his eyes and found himself lying on an unfamiliar beach, half of his body still submerged in shallow water. He tried to move his fingers, but his whole body ached as if it had fallen apart.

"I really messed up..." He smiled bitterly and tried to use his divine sense to explore his surroundings. As soon as he gathered his divine sense, his sea of ​​consciousness felt like it was being pricked by needles.

He gritted his teeth and looked inside, and what he saw chilled him to the bone—his internal organs looked like they were charred, and there were still traces of lightning power in his meridians, which would throb from time to time, causing him to gasp in pain.

The wounds must be healed first.

With a thought, he flashed into the space. The familiar spiritual energy enveloped him, making him feel slightly better.

Trembling, he rummaged through his storage ring and pulled out a jade bottle, pouring out two pills the size of longan fruits. The pills were blood red with faint golden patterns on them; they were the top-grade "Life-Generating Blood Pills" he had refined before.

He swallowed both pills directly.

The pill entered his stomach, transforming into two streams of heat. Its potency was extremely potent, burning wherever it passed. He dared not delay and quickly began circulating his body-refining technique.

The medicinal power was guided, slowly nourishing the charred internal organs. This process was extremely painful, like tearing away the burnt tissue bit by bit and then forcing new tissue to grow. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and his lips turned white from biting them, but he dared not stop circulating his internal energy for a moment.

Time seemed to stand still in this space. By the time he finally finished his practice, his injuries had stabilized. Although he was far from fully recovered, he was at least able to use some of his true energy.

Lin Yan stayed in the space for an unknown amount of time.

When he finally pushed open the gate to the courtyard and stepped out, his face was still somewhat pale, but his eyes had regained their clarity. A whole bottle of top-grade Blood-Making Pills, plus two top-grade Spirit-Nourishing Pills, had finally repaired his internal organs and sea of ​​consciousness, which had been ravaged by the lightning, to a considerable extent.

"elder brother!"

He had just stepped out the door when a golden figure rushed into his arms, the force so strong it made him sway slightly. Xiao Qi rubbed against his chest, her voice trembling with tears, "You're covered in smears, are you hurt? Are you alright?"

Lin Yan felt a warmth in his heart and gently touched the pair of glistening little horns on its head.

"It's alright, Xiao Qi." He said in a relaxed tone with a hint of a smile. "Don't worry, I just... took a shower in the minefield."

He paused, recalling the purple-white lightning python that tore through the sky, and the excruciating pain of his internal organs being instantly burned, but his eyes shone with an astonishing light.

"Although I got a little injured," he squeezed Xiao Qi's soft paws, "the gains were even greater."

Lin Yan sat cross-legged in the cultivation room, his mind sinking into his sea of ​​consciousness.

The phantom that represented his "humanity" was now surrounded by several points of light of different colors, like stars that were perfectly integrated with him.

The azure blue of water, the earthy yellow of earth, the emerald green of wood, the turquoise of wind, and the domineering purple light—the lightning—flickered and leaped from time to time, emanating a terrifying aura of destruction.

"Water, earth, wood, wind, thunder... I'm still missing three." Lin Yan pondered silently. If he could grasp the basics of ice, fire, and metal, he would have gathered the foundation stones for his breakthrough to the Golden Core stage.

He decided not to rush things. Although this forced comprehension of the Thunder Intent had yielded tremendous gains, it had also made him truly feel the terrifying power of heaven and earth. He needed time to reflect, to fully integrate the five existing intents, and to adjust his state to its optimal level.

He wasn't sure before, but now he has a premonition that when he gathers all eight of his powers and tries to condense his core, a tribulation of lightning will surely come!

The Heavenly Dao has not been completely silent, and it will not easily let go of a cultivator like him who attempts to condense a pill using multiple realms of intent and defy the heavens.

"It seems I need to make thorough preparations in advance. Protective array plates, defensive magic artifacts, healing pills—I need to get them all ready." Lin Yan rubbed his temples, feeling a pang of poverty.

The protective array should be a high-level item capable of weakening the Heavenly Might by at least 30%, and preferably multiple arrays that can be stacked.

As for defensive magical artifacts, you need to prepare everything you can think of, such as a breastplate, a protective robe, and a shield. The higher the grade, the better, as these are all life-saving items.

We must also prepare a batch of top-grade elixirs that can quickly restore our vitality and repair our Dao foundation after the tribulation, and the quantity must be substantial.

Most importantly, while space is wondrous, it cannot influence the external Heavenly Dao, and therefore cannot unleash a tribulation of lightning. He must return to the real world and find a sufficiently secluded place that will not harm innocent people to undergo the tribulation.

"The task is arduous and the road ahead is long..." he sighed softly, but his gaze grew even more determined. This was the path he had chosen himself, and no matter how difficult it was, he had to keep going.

Lin Yan led Xiao Qi out of the space and stood once again on the beach of that nameless island. The sea breeze, carrying a salty and damp scent, caressed their faces.

Just then, a familiar and cheerful cry came from the sea not far away. He looked up and saw a group of black and white killer whales swimming rapidly towards the island, their rounded dorsal fins cutting through the azure water and splashing up tiny droplets.

They stopped in the shallow waters near the island, and several young killer whales eagerly poked their heads out of the water, chirping and making undisguised noises of excitement.

Lin Yan's heart softened at their lively appearance. He bent down and picked up Xiao Qi, and with a slight thought, a gentle current of air surrounded him. The wind supported his feet, allowing him to walk on the waves as if on flat ground, slowly approaching the orca pod.

He stopped in front of the most lively little orca and gently stroked its smooth, wet forehead. The little orca let out a contented whimper and rubbed against his palm. This seemed to flip a switch; the other orcas immediately swarmed around him, quickly forming a tight circle around him, their curious and eager gazes fixed on him.

Listening to the incessant, unintelligible chirping around him, Lin Yan smiled helplessly. He truly couldn't understand the little creatures' language.

"Little Seven," he gently patted the little beast in his arms, "can you do me a favor?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a soft golden light flashed. Little Qi leaped gracefully into the air, its body stretching and growing larger in the light—revealing its majestic Qilin form. Although still in its juvenile stage, its sacred aura instantly silenced the noisy pod of orcas.

Little Seven hovered in the air, its golden eyes sweeping over the ocean dwellers below, letting out a few low, soft moans. The orcas seemed to understand, responding with submissive and gentle calls.

"Brother," Xiao Qi's voice rang in Lin Yan's mind, tinged with a hint of suppressed laughter, "They say you smell wonderful, like warm sunshine and a lush seaweed forest. They all want you to touch them, and they're wondering if your injuries have healed yet..."

Xiaoqi paused, her voice becoming more serious: "They also said they were very worried when they saw you unconscious last time. But they couldn't get ashore on their own, so they had to work together to push you onto the beach. They hope it didn't make you uncomfortable."

Lin Yan was stunned.

He looked down at the little creatures, and his heart felt as if it had been gently struck. It turned out that when he lost consciousness, it was these complete strangers from the ocean who had saved him in their own way.

"So, it was you who saved me."

Thank you.

"My injury is healed."

Lin Yan scanned the spatial warehouse with his divine sense. The next moment, a fresh sea fish the size of a small mountain appeared out of thin air on the open ground beside him. Its scales shimmered silver in the sunlight, and a strong fishy smell instantly filled the air.

The orca pod erupted in excitement!

Several young orcas leaped excitedly out of the water, their massive, black-and-white bodies tracing powerful arcs in the air before crashing back into the water with a deafening roar, sending up a spray of white foam. They surged toward the shore, mouths agape, emitting rapid, high-pitched chirps.

"Alright, alright, stop fighting, everyone gets a share."

Lin Yan was amused by their greedy looks. As he spoke, he scooped up a large handful of fish from the air and tossed them evenly in different directions like casting a net.

This action clearly calmed the restless whale pod. They stopped crowding together and instead each guarded a section of the water, precisely catching the delicious prey tossed to them. For a moment, the only sounds on the sea were the precise catches and satisfied swallowing of large fish, and the joyful moans emanating from their throats.

Watching them eat happily, Lin Yan also felt relaxed and happy.