Chris could scarcely believe that just when despair was about to claim her, she had found John again!

She ran forward in sheer ecstasy, entirely unaware that she had just brushed past Death himself.

Yan Fang’s brow furrowed slightly; the hand she had extended was withdrawn, though a flicker of surprise crossed her features as she trotted forward. “She” needed to confirm if John was still alive; “she” absolutely could not allow any uncontrollable variable to appear while undergoing the transfer of soul and body.

Chris saw John lying on the mountain path, covered in scrapes, bruises, and the evidence of a terrible fall. She quickly crouched down and felt for his breath.

The moment her fingertips touched him, a distinct warmth bloomed beneath them. Chris instantly rejoiced, crying out, “Thank God, he’s alive!” In her overwhelming joy, she actually stood up and embraced Yan Fang, the person who had just tried to kill her.

Yan Fang smiled and returned the hug, but her eyes darted suspiciously over Chris’s shoulder, studying John. “She” asked tentatively, “Are you sure he’s truly alright?”

Tears streamed down Chris’s face from sheer relief as she laughed, “We have to get him to a hospital immediately; if we wait any longer, something might happen!”

As she spoke, she heard John suddenly moan softly, whispering, “Water…”

Chris frantically patted her pockets, then gasped, “Damn it, Fonna has the water!” She quickly turned to Yan Fang. “You watch him here, I’ll call Fonna!”

But when she pulled out her phone and dialed, the signal was too poor in the mountains to connect. Helpless, Chris glanced at Yan Fang, who seemed to anticipate her need and quickly interjected, “I’ll stay with him. You go find Fonna and take this good news to her.”

Chris suspected nothing, smiled happily, nodded emphatically, and turned to leave.

Watching Chris’s retreating figure, the smile on Yan Fang’s face slowly evaporated, turning grim. “She” ground her teeth and glared at John, muttering curses under her breath, “Damn it! Why did you have to show up now? Damn it, why aren’t you dead yet?”

Yan Fang fixed a venomous gaze on John, her anger and resentment boiling the more she thought about it. “She” bent down slightly and whispered, “I can still smell the Qi-Restoring Elixir on you! Who saved you? Was it Zhang Ling? Hmph, that busybody, why didn’t she just let you die! Do you know how hard it is for me to find a suitable vessel, a good body? Do you know how badly that Li Yundong forced me to flee?”

Yan Fang’s features contorted like a demon cursing everything: “Look at me now, neither male nor female, not quite human, not quite ghost! Even my cultivation has regressed so much! Curse it, why do you foreigners have such good luck? You fall off a cliff and don’t even die? Why is Chris so lucky? She actually managed to absorb the essence of a divine elixir! It’s infuriating! Li Yundong, that bastard, aiding evil, why does Heaven always side with him, why?”

Yan Fang’s low growl echoed through the jungle like the howl of a devil. As murder flared in her eyes, she suddenly saw John’s eyelids flutter slightly. The fair-haired, blue-eyed foreigner forced his eyes open and struggled to speak, “My Master, he—he is a good person…”

That simple sentence was no less than a bolt of lightning striking “her” down!

Yan Fang sprang up suddenly, stumbling back two steps, staring at John with an expression of utter shock. She stammered, “You—you’re awake? What did you hear? You—you heard everything?”

John kept his eyes barely open and spoke haltingly, “I heard everything you said. You misunderstood Master, he…”

Yan Fang didn't catch another word after that. Her mind was ringing deafeningly; fear and panic instantly drowned her soul!

Yan Fang had never imagined that her cultivation had regressed to the point where she couldn't even tell if someone nearby was awake!

But what was even more terrifying was that John had heard her words!!

This meant her identity was exposed!

Even if she could switch to another body, where would she find one so easily? Who would she inhabit next? Chris? What if she returned and John told her what he’d heard? Should she possess John? This foreigner’s Yang energy was even stronger than Yan Hua’s!!

Furthermore, even if she took John’s body, what about Yan Hua’s corpse? Where would she hide it? How would she explain his disappearance? Could she adapt to this foreigner’s speech patterns, demeanor, and habits? At least she understood Yan Hua, but… this foreigner?

For a moment, Yan Fang’s expression flickered uncontrollably, shifting from terror to bewilderment, from bewilderment to dread, from dread to fury, and finally, from fury to murderous intent!

Why was Li Yundong progressing by leaps and bounds in his cultivation, growing stronger daily, while she was forced to scurry around like a stray dog, her power weakening instead? Why?

The more Yan Fang contemplated, the more wicked thoughts sprouted. She glared viciously at John, thinking: If only this fellow would die!

Though severely injured, John’s instinct for survival remained, that innate human sense of impending death. Seeing the killing intent growing stronger in Yan Fang’s eyes, he started, instinctively trying to roll away.

But at that instant, Yan Fang let out a chilling laugh and lunged forward, bringing her palm down toward John’s head!

John, a martial artist trained for years, even while critically wounded, unleashed every reserve of potential in this life-or-death moment. He instinctively twisted his body, narrowly dodging the fatal strike, but his shoulder took the full force of Yan Fang’s blow. His body flew away like a broken kite, tumbling rapidly down the steep slope.

Yan Fang watched John roll down the mountain, sneering coldly. “After taking my blow, his bones must shatter within two hours. And on top of that, rolling down such a height! If he doesn't die this time, it would defy Heaven’s will!”

Yan Fang looked with venomous eyes in the direction John had rolled down the cliff for a long moment before turning back. “She” quickly rearranged the scene to suggest John had slipped accidentally, then retreated to the side, waiting quietly for Chris and Fonna to return.

But Yan Fang had no idea that as John tumbled down the steep mountainside, his head fortunately avoided striking any rocks. Just as he stopped rolling at the base of the slope, he heard a clear, youthful female voice ring out: “Oh dear, someone fell down! Master!”

Hearing that voice, John managed to muster the last ounce of his strength to shout a single plea for help before immediately losing consciousness.

A pretty young girl approached the unconscious John. This girl was none other than Zhang Liufang, the youngest junior sister of the Zhengyi Sect, who had previously attended the Lotus Picking Assembly with Zou Ping.

Zhang Liufang curiously approached John. Seeing the foreigner bruised and battered beyond recognition, she crouched down to check his pulse. She then turned to an old man dressed as a farmer standing behind her and said, “Master, he’s a foreigner! He still seems to have a breath! Hmm… he smells of our Zhengyi Sect’s Qi-Restoring Elixir. That’s strange. Who gave it to him?”

Zhang Kongyun, leaning on a cane, walked over unhurriedly. He narrowed his eyes, glanced at John, and sighed, “If I’m not mistaken, it must have been Senior Sister Zhang Ling who saved him.”

“Is Eldest Martial Uncle here too?” Zhang Liufang asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.

Zhang Kongyun stroked his beard and chuckled, “Nonsense! If I’m looking for the Medicine King Cauldron, how could she not be?”

Zhang Liufang blinked a few times, pointed at John beneath her feet, and asked, “Master, should we save him?”

Zhang Kongyun shook his head. “Alas, Eldest Senior Sister gave him the Qi-Restoring Elixir, which clearly means he was already seriously injured before falling off the cliff. Now, injury piled upon injury… hmm, he seems to have taken a blow too? Let me see!”

Zhang Kongyun bent down and checked John’s pulse. He immediately frowned. “This energy… it feels like the Profound Gate Qi of our Zhengyi Sect! Impossible! Could it be Eldest Senior Sister?”

Zhang Liufang was dumbfounded. “Could it be that Eldest Martial Uncle accidentally injured him while attacking and then gave him the Elixir?”

Zhang Kongyun shook his head. “Impossible! Eldest Senior Sister is proud and self-assured. Though she can be quick-tempered, overly protective, and stubborn, her heart is fundamentally good. She wouldn’t do something so heinous.”

Zhang Liufang looked at John with sympathy. “This man is truly miserable, falling off a cliff twice! And he’s still alive both times! Master, please save him?”

Zhang Kongyun frowned, troubled, and tugged at his beard. “This person already consumed the Qi-Restoring Elixir, meaning he was wounded beforehand. Now, on top of that, he has the palm strike injury and the trauma from the fall. It’s injury layered upon injury upon injury! Even an immortal would struggle to save him!”

Zhang Liufang was greatly disappointed. “Ah? Master, even you can’t save him?”

Zhang Kongyun thought for a moment. “I can try, but the outcome will depend on his own destiny.”

Zhang Liufang smiled. “Master, be bold and try. If you fail, no one will know you did it.”

Zhang Kongyun glared at her, feigning anger. “Nonsense, you jinx!” Saying that, he rolled up his sleeve, drew a golden needle from its cuff, and swiftly plunged it into John’s Baihui acupoint on the crown of his head.

Zhang Kongyun’s technique was fast and steady. He twisted his fingers slightly, driving the three-inch needle completely in, leaving only a tiny bit of the tip exposed.

Zhang Liufang watched wide-eyed, looking tensely at her Master. She saw him gently tremble the needle with his fingers before swiftly drawing it out.

Soon after, John’s eyelids indeed fluttered slightly, and he opened his eyes.

Ugh, I was halfway through writing the bonus chapter I promised, but my boss rushed me to sleep... So I’ll just post today’s second update now, and finish the remaining chapter I owe tomorrow, getting it online early to clear my conscience...