Chapter 187: Last Resort

Throughout the history of cultivation, I've never encountered anyone nor heard a story of someone separating a portion of his or her Original Qi Core for security measures. I may not be the first one to do it. But I know for a fact that only the crazy of crazies would resort to such unorthodox cultivation. Separating a portion of my Original Qi Core is a risk in and of itself. And adding the risk of destroying my Original Qi Core while I tried to bring Natalia back to her former self just made it a bit difficult for me. If my chances of survival for doing a risk is less than 10%, then adding another risk would bring that percentage lower.

Sweat gathered in my brows but I didn't have any leisure of wiping it. Any big movement would throw me off my concentration, that's why I cannot afford to move an inch. There were still rabid humans surrounding us but if they ever venture nearer, then I'll just summon my Rare Rabid Human Feng and he can take care of them.

Slowly but surely, Natalia's constitution lightened and her skin reverted to its smooth and jade-like state. The visible changes happening superficially was a cause for celebration but I didn't have the leeway to jump for joy. I know that this is just on the surface. Deep inside her body, there are still a lot of things to restore, especially her organs.

Then there's also the part where I get rid of the virus in her brain. That's one of the most crucial parts of reverting someone to their human form... and it's likely that it would be the most critical stage. But let's not think about that. Right now, I have to do all I can to stabilize both her body and her Qi Core, and then we'll take it from there.

Stabilizing her Qi Core was almost done so I proceeded to bring her organs back to their former state. Her bones and muscles were deteriorating as well so I have to work on that. Frankly, there are a lot of things to do with such little time. Why did I even put myself into such a mess?

After heaving out a sigh and taking a breather, I focused on her blood vessels and her circulatory system next, turning my pure Qi Energy into fresh blood and having it run through her System. With this, her heart was beating in no time, increasing her rate of cultivation and the recuperation of the human body. Since she was already near Transcendent Realm when it comes to cultivation, her recovery rate was even better, making my job a bit easier than before.

With the blood and circulatory system out of the way, I worked on rejuvenating her muscles and bones next, just like what I did to Wu Jia when her Qi Energy Core broke. Once again, thanks to my prior experience, I managed to finish it in no time.

And now, everything is going too well. Usually, when that happens, something ominous would happen next... hopefully not.

"Hang in there a little longer." It's not like I was telling Natalia to hang in there, I was telling myself it. I know that if I stop midway, death will come to me like a raging bull.

Natalia's stiff body relaxed and she fell into a deep sleep. She wasn't acting all embarrassed now and her face doesn't look like that of a rabid human as well. Honestly, I don't know how I got this far. Had it only been thirty minutes? Perhaps I've been here far longer than I think.

Muscles and Bones, Check! Skin, check! Blood and Circulatory System, check! Organs, check! One by one, my checklist got shorter and shorter until there was only one thing left before I could free myself from this misery. My Original Qi Core is now gone and the small portion that I saved up for security measures is dwindling as well. I know that I can't do this for another hour. I have to finish this as soon as possible.

With my last ounce of strength (well, not really, I still have four Qi Cores at my disposal), I traced Natalia's Qi Energy Flow until I reached her brain. There, I saw a huge cluster of the Virus, blocking her consciousness and turning her into a feral beast.

But aside from that, I saw that the Virus is not limited to infecting the brain... it was actually producing a different kind of Qi Energy— the same energy that made Natalia more formidable than she already is. I know that this Qi Energy is the Qi of the Virus and it basically makes up my Virus Qi Core... but who would've thought that the Virus Qi Core is actually a byproduct of the Virus!

I thought that the Virus Qi Core was given to me by the System to help me combat the virus in my body. My thoughts were undoubtedly misplaced!

Having observed the nature of the virus, I finally realized that curing someone from it was a lot easier than I had thought. Without further ado, I accessed my Virus Qi Core and affected Natalia's body with it through my Skill: Qi Control. Technically, I'm still controlling Qi since the Qi Energy of the Virus is a Qi as well. It's just a different type of Qi.

Once I accessed Natalia's brain through the strand of my Qi Energy that I redirected through her body using her Qi Energy Flow, I siphoned the Virus and the Qi Energy of the Virus from her brain. I did it in an unhurried manner so she won't experience any drawback from having her mind tinkered.

Of course, I also affected her Qi Energy so that she will automatically combat the Virus in her system. That way, even if she was infected again, she would have a better chance of surviving it. It would be a pain if I were to cure her and then she gets infected the next day. That would be really awful.

The Qi Energy emitted by the Virus was like a huge inkblot in the brain. As I proceeded with the treatment, the brain became even clearer. This motivated me to keep on and not surrender to my sleepiness. I was getting drowsy, and my missing Original Qi Core wasn't helping at all.

I felt like I was in a weakened state. If someone in the Immortal Realm were to attack me now, I don't think I'll stand a chance against it. Well, I have the Astral Lion with me so I don't have to worry about that... but do I even have enough Qi Energy to summon him? I have no idea.

One may think that I have the option of summoning my Pets to aid me in curing Natalia... but after my experience with Wu Jia, I don't think it would do much. After all, receiving an influx of Qi Energy would just break me. With my Original Qi core gone, I may very well be courting death if I asked for more Qi Energy.

Right now, it's just a matter of whether Natalia would get cured first, or I run out of Qi Energy first. If it were the former, then I'd have succeeded. If it were the latter, I may have to summon my Pets as a last resort even if it means certain death.

See this Natalia, I'm doing all this for you. So why don't you be a good lady and just get cured already?!

Deep inside, I was getting impatient, my mind is thinking of a hundred curse words that wanted to escape from my lips. I was on the verge of losing it... and my drowsiness is not helping.

Regardless, I kept on. I was about 99% done with the treatment. However, I have no idea why the remaining 1% is playing hard to get. Just let me rest in peace already.

I mean, let me rest! I don't want to die yet.

Suddenly, my Holy Qi Core stopped working. It's not like I ran out of Qi Energy. I probably spent way too much Qi Energy from my Holy Qi Core, forcing it to go dormant. In a bit of a panic, I tried accessing my Fiery Qi Core but after just five seconds, my Fiery Qi Core also shut down as well. The same thing happened to my Virus Qi Core and Dark Qi Core. They all became dormant!

With no Qi Cores left to spare, I held my breath and accessed what's left of my Original Qi Core. The amount of my Qi Energy was so minuscule that my Berserker Mode was deactivated. I wasn't expecting all of my Qi Cores to become dormant just like that... and by now, it's too late to even call the Astral Lion for help. I just don't have enough Qi Energy.

Curse this!