Within the vast, ethereal expanse of the mirror world, a single structure stood in solitary defiance of the empty horizon. It was a modest but elegantly crafted building, likely designed for a solitary occupant. Intrigued, Bai Xifeng crossed the threshold and began to explore. The layout was efficient and purposeful, consisting of a central hall, a single bedroom, a kitchen, a specialized pill-refining room, and a large storage chamber.
"Baishe," Bai Xifeng called out to the python, who followed her with silent, watchful grace. "To whom did this place belong?"
"The original owner perished long ago," Baishe replied, his voice echoing slightly against the smooth walls. "By virtue of our contract, everything within these walls now belongs to you, Xifeng."
"Oh, I see..." Xifeng murmured, her eyes scanning the rooms with a calculating glint.
Her primary objective at that moment was simple: wealth. She needed resources to navigate the treacherous Bai household, so she headed straight for the storage room, hoping to find chests of gold or rare jewels. To her utter disappointment, the shelves were packed not with treasure, but with dusty, ancient books.
"What? Not a single thing of value in here?" she grumbled, her shoulders slumping in frustration.
However, as she began to absentmindedly leaf through the volumes, her disappointment vanished in an instant. Her eyes lit up with a predatory spark, and she lunged for another book, then another. The contents were a masterclass in the macabre, page after page detailed the most sophisticated and lethal poisons known to man. Aside from cold, hard cash, toxins were her greatest passion in life.
"I absolutely love poisons!" Xifeng shouted, her laughter ringing out with a touch of madness.
Baishe watched her from the doorway, his serpentine expression unreadable. 'Indeed,' he thought, 'this girl is even more peculiar than I first imagined.'
"Baishe, you mentioned earlier that I could cultivate," Xifeng said, finally tearing her eyes away from a particularly nasty recipe involving viper gall. "How do we begin?"
"First, I must examine your pulse," Baishe stated. With a shimmer of light, he shifted back into his handsome human form to better facilitate the check.
He took her delicate hand in his, closing his eyes as he attempted a standard pulse reading. On the surface, everything felt perfectly normal; a rhythmic, healthy heartbeat. He could detect no trace of foul play through a simple physical examination.
"I need to conduct a deeper search using my Qi," Baishe explained, his expression turning serious. "You must relax completely and allow my energy to flow through your meridians. Are you comfortable with me doing that?"
"Go ahead," Xifeng agreed without a moment's hesitation.
She was blissfully unaware that allowing another person's Qi to enter one's body was a gesture of ultimate, life-or-death trust. To a cultivator, an outsider's energy could easily shatter internal organs or sever the soul if the intentions were malicious. One would never grant such access to a stranger, yet Xifeng, assuming this was merely a routine "doctor's visit" in this world, remained completely at ease.
Baishe was internally stunned by her immediate compliance. He hadn't expected such profound trust from a girl who had only just met him. Nevertheless, he began the process, guiding a thread of his potent energy into her arm.
As his Qi circulated through her system, his brow furrowed deeper and deeper until it was a knotted mess of concern. 'This is impossible,' he thought. 'This girl's body is a literal graveyard of toxins.'
It wasn't just common street poisons; her system was saturated with rare, deadly substances that should have ended her life years ago. He realized with a shudder that someone had been systematically poisoning her for a very long time. However, to his absolute bewilderment, her body hadn't succumbed. Instead of killing her, the poisons had formed a dense, sludge-like barrier within her meridians, completely blocking her ability to cultivate energy. The side effect was even more staggering: the constant exposure had rendered her body entirely immune to toxins, making her own blood and breath potentially lethal to anyone else.
Bai Xifeng watched Baishe's face as it went through a kaleidoscope of shock and grim realization. She didn't need a medical degree to know the diagnosis wasn't "perfect health." 'Well,' she thought, 'let's see what the expert has to say about this mess.'
She waited in composed silence until Baishe finally withdrew his energy and released her hand. He took a heavy breath, looking at her face with a mixture of pity and awe..
*** This novel is a work with w e b n o v e l. c o m. If it is not read this novel on w e b n o v e l. c o m, then it has been stolen. It breaks my heart when someone steals my hard work. For those who read my novel on another website besides w e b n o v e l .c o m, can you consider reading it on the original website? As your support to me. Thank you, for your shameless author, ZerahNeko***
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