7: Showing off my acting skills before the thunder? I pretended to be dead in front of my senior sister!

Lin Gou's mental abacus clicked away.

Zhao Linger's appearance was simply a heaven-sent S-rank script; the perfect stage and audience were both present.

The 'honest and simple' yet 'worshipful and yearning' expression on his face was perfectly controlled.

He watched Zhao Linger point at the runes on the stone wall, nodding his head like a chick pecking at rice.

"Senior Sister knows so much! She explains things a hundred times clearer than those Outer Sect deacons who only rush us to our deaths!"

This direct flattery made a hint of a smile appear on Zhao Linger's usually cool and aloof face.

But she quickly regained the composure of an Inner Sect Senior Sister, her pretty face becoming stern.

"This Thunderclap Array is no small matter, its power is unfathomable. Junior Brother, you must not risk your life out of momentary curiosity."

She warned him again, and Lin Gou precisely caught the subtle concern in her tone.

Success!

Lin Gou chuckled inwardly, the last bit of wariness before the fish took the bait had to be dispelled.

He scratched his head, revealing an 'aha moment' expression mixed with 'itching curiosity'.

"Thank you for the reminder, Senior Sister! I understand now, this thing absolutely cannot be touched randomly!"

He paused, then his tone suddenly shifted, his eyes seemingly sparkling with stars.

"Then, Senior Sister, you said these runes can draw down the Nine Heavens thunder... how terrifying would that thunder be? Is it even more powerful than the earth fire Elder Wang of the Artifact Refining Hall draws when he refines artifacts?"

Seeing that he seemed genuinely curious, Zhao Linger patiently began to explain.

"Earth fire is the essence of the earth, violent in nature. But the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder is the might of heaven and earth, grand and righteous Qi, possessing even greater destructive power, especially effective against all evil and ghostly entities."

She glanced at Lin Gou, specifically adding,

"With Junior Brother's current cultivation, even if you were only grazed by the aftershock of this Thunderclap Array, you would probably be instantly annihilated, body and soul."

"Annihilated, body and soul?"

Lin Gou 'nodded repeatedly' as he listened, but inwardly he was overjoyed: "Excellent! I love these high-risk, high-reward projects!"

On the surface, however, he looked terrified and regretful.

"That powerful? Then I'd better stay far, far away."

As he spoke, he feigned panic and retreated two steps, but 'accidentally' stepped on a loose piece of gravel he had already eyed.

"Oh no!"

Lin Gou let out a short cry of alarm, his entire body seemingly losing control, stumbling and falling towards the stone wall.

His hand, seemingly flustered, actually pressed with precise accuracy against an inconspicuous corner of the stone wall.

There, he had analyzed with his 'Dao of Arrays Comprehension' talent the optimal contact point—a secondary rune node that could trigger a small-scale lightning storm without actually reducing him to ashes.

This node, Zhao Linger, who was skilled in the Dao of Pills, had not noticed.

"Junior Brother, be careful!"

Zhao Linger's face turned pale with fright; she tried to stop him but was a step too late.

Sizzle—!

A teeth-grinding crackle of electricity echoed through the cave!

The rune where Lin Gou's palm rested suddenly erupted with dazzling light, and a silver electric snake, as thick as a thumb, violently shot out, striking his chest squarely!

"Ugh ah—!"

Lin Gou let out a shrill, inhuman scream, his entire body flying backward like a kite with a broken string.

He crashed heavily on the ground seven or eight meters away, his body convulsed violently twice, then became completely still.

The clothing on his chest instantly turned to charcoal, and the air was filled with the smell of burnt flesh protein.

"Junior Brother!"

Zhao Linger's face instantly turned ashen; she darted to Lin Gou's side and knelt down, trembling.

Lin Gou's eyes were tightly shut, his face ashen.

Beneath the charred clothing on his chest, his flesh was torn open, a bloody mess.

His breath... was extremely faint, like a flickering candle in the wind, threatening to extinguish at any moment.

"How could this happen..."

Zhao Linger was completely flustered, somewhat at a loss.

She had clearly warned him repeatedly, so how could he still... Was it really just an accident? Extremely bad luck?

But the spot he touched, the power shouldn't have been so... Numerous thoughts flashed chaotically through her mind, but saving him was paramount.

She quickly took out a precious Medicinal Pill for healing from her Storage Pouch, intending to put it into Lin Gou's mouth.

Just then.

Lin Gou, who had been lying motionless on the ground, suddenly had his eyelids twitch violently.

Immediately after, he coughed violently, spitting out a large mouthful of black, charred-smelling clotted blood.

"Cough... cough cough..."

Lin Gou slowly opened his eyes, his gaze filled with a perfectly timed blend of 'bewilderment', 'pain', and 'survivor's relief'.

"I... Where am I...?"

He struggled to sit up, but immediately aggravated the injury on his chest, wincing in pain and sucking in a sharp breath.

"Ding! Host encountered a 'near-death' lightning strike! Death method: Actively triggered the Thunderclap Array's secondary node, drawing lightning power to attack self (performance nature)."

"Overall rating: B+ (Precise injury control, superb acting, successfully triggered intense emotional fluctuations in key target character)."

"Reward: Lightning Resistance +3%, 'Actor's Self-Cultivation' insight +10, Zhao Linger's favorability (concern value) +5."

"Resurrection countdown: 00:01... Resurrection successful! Status restoring... Minor lightning strike after-effects (disguise effect) loaded."

The System prompt flashed by.

Lin Gou felt delighted; a B+ rating, though not top-tier, was safe and controllable.

The key was that he successfully gained 'concern value' from Senior Sister Zhao.

"Lightning Resistance, good stuff! When I'm Undergoing Tribulation later, the heavenly thunder will just be a massage!"

Zhao Linger was first stunned, then surprised and delighted to see Lin Gou actually 'wake up'.

"Junior Brother, you... you're not dead?"

Her hand, holding the Medicinal Pill, froze in mid-air.

Everything happening before her eyes was beginning to challenge her cultivation worldview.

Just now, Lin Gou was clearly on the brink of death, yet in a blink of an eye... Although he still looked miserable, his spirit had clearly returned?

This recovery ability was simply unheard of!

Even the Sect's best healing holy medicine couldn't have such an immediate miraculous effect.

Lin Gou looked at Zhao Linger's pretty face, which was filled with shock and confusion, and thought to himself: It's stable.

He forced out a 'weak' yet 'lucky' smile.

"Th-thank you for your concern, Senior Sister. I don't know what happened, I felt like my soul flew away just now... Now... it seems... it doesn't hurt as much."

As he spoke, he 'arduously' climbed up from the ground, deliberately stumbling, almost falling again.

Zhao Linger subconsciously reached out to support him.

A soft touch came from his arm; Lin Gou's heart fluttered, but his face still maintained that 'innocent and harmless' honest expression.

"Maybe... I've been tough-skinned since I was little, hehe."

He grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth, which formed a strong visual contrast with the charred blackness on his face and chest.

Zhao Linger supported Lin Gou, feeling the solid strength from his arm and the faint smell of char, her eyes becoming more complex than ever before.

Tough-skinned?

A cultivator's Physical Body was indeed tougher than a Mortal's, but to withstand a lightning strike and recover to this extent in an instant, this already completely exceeded the scope of what 'extraordinary talent' could explain.

This Outer Sect Junior Brother definitely harbored a huge secret.

She suddenly remembered his 'tragic death' and 'resurrection' under the Demon Wolf's claws last time, and then connected it to this bizarre scene before her.

A thought so absurd it made her scalp tingle uncontrollably emerged from the deepest part of her heart.

Could it be... he really... couldn't die?

As soon as the thought appeared, she forcibly suppressed it.

Impossible!

Resurrection from the dead, that was a supreme method only possessed by the legendary Immortal Emperor!

"Junior Brother, your injuries are not healed; you should return to the Sect for treatment as soon as possible. This Blackwind Valley is not suitable for prolonged stay."

Zhao Linger released her hand, her tone regaining some of its usual coolness, but the probing look in her moist eyes could no longer be hidden.

She decided that she must pay more attention to this Outer Sect Junior Brother named Lin Gou in the future.

Lin Gou couldn't wait for her to leave so he could go find his next 'auspicious spot'.

"Thank you for your concern, Senior Sister, I'll go back now! Senior Sister, you must also be extremely careful!"

He pretended to be still shaken, cupped his hands at Zhao Linger, and then 'limped' away, stumbling towards the outer perimeter of Blackwind Valley.

Until his figure completely disappeared from Zhao Linger's sight.

The 'weakness' and 'fear' on Lin Gou's face instantly faded, replaced by an excited glint like a hungry wolf's.

"This Zhao Linger is getting more and more interesting, truly worthy of being my chief audience."

"However, these small-scale antics like the Thunderclap Array still receive too low a rating, not powerful enough."

"I must find something more exciting!"

He identified a direction; he wasn't really leaving, but rather, he cast the Aura Concealment Technique he had just learned, stealthily heading deeper into Blackwind Valley, towards the area rumored to make even Inner Sect Disciple turn pale at the mention of it.

He believed that with his keen sense for death, he would surely find a more 'premium' death package.