For a healer, the most important thing is to remain calm, especially when facing complex, critical, and urgent medical conditions.
The tribulation clouds had dissipated, and the sky was once again full of stars.
Every second counts in a rescue; there is no time for agony...
Carefully cradling Song Qing Shi in his arms, Wu Huan hurried back to the Medicine King Valley in secrecy.
First, he fetched a Golden Lotus Heart-Stabilizing Pill from the treasury's collection and administered it to Song Qing Shi to steady his vital essence. He then covertly moved Song Qing Shi to a secluded chamber designed for closed-door cultivation. Located beneath his sleeping quarters, this room was filled with unfinished research materials and an abandoned medicinal spring bath, known for its restorative properties.
Song Qing Shi used to bathe here, but later he had a larger bath built outside his chamber and abandoned this one. Wu Huan had discovered this place while cleaning and, since it had gone unused for centuries, no one in the Medicine King Valley knew about it.
The injury to the Medicine King Celestial Master was a matter of life and death, affecting both the safety of the valley and Song Qing Shi himself. Utmost secrecy was imperative.
Wu Huan rechanneled the medicinal spring and gently placed Song Qing Shi, stripped of his tattered clothes, into the water.
The frail body was marred by extensive burn wounds that stood out starkly against his fair skin, especially shocking on the left side where the lightning had almost charred his flesh and severed his meridians. One could only imagine the agony he must have suffered at the moment of impact.
And yet, even in the face of life and death, he never hesitated.
He had even used all his remaining spiritual power to lock up the Underworld Darkfire within him, to prevent its spread and harming those nearby, at the cost of not being able to regenerate his body like other Nascent Soul cultivators.
After a thorough spiritual scan, Wu Huan looked at the man in the pool, his heart sinking further. Striving to recall all he had learned, he endeavored to maintain composure as he introduced Bone-Mending Elixir and Soul-Returning Powder into the water, aiming to stabilize Song Qing Shi's bodily functions and preserve his vital essence.
Thankfully, his diligent studies paid off; the medicines took effect.
Song Qing Shi's vital signs began to stabilize. However, the damage to his life-bound magical instrument and Nascent Soul meant he couldn't wake from his unconscious state.
Having accomplished all that he could, Wu Huan finally allowed himself to grieve.
Staring at the man floating in the water, he was reminded of the terrifying rumors he had heard about the Medicine King Celestial Master: like how his fearsome Twin Lotus Flames could incinerate mountains and annihilate sects, how he could reduce unwanted cultivators to ashes with a flick of his finger. Yet the person before him was so kind and gentle, the epitome of all that was good in the world, now reduced to a cracked porcelain figure by fate, so fragile that the slightest touch could shatter him.
His disdain for this corrupt world grew, along with his hatred for the unjust heavens. What he detested most was his own powerlessness. A bitterness filled his heart; every fiber of his being ached.
He wanted to destroy everything.
His breathing became erratic, his emotions teetering on the edge of control.
But he couldn't.
Realizing that his emotions were collapsing, Wu Huan hastily activated the Locking Spell to suppress his destructive urges. Taking deep breaths, he tried to employ the psychological therapy techniques taught by Song Qing Shi, focusing on beautiful thoughts to keep his sanity and repress any self-harming tendencies.
For some reason, a promise made by Song Qing Shi suddenly came to mind.
"Whatever you've lost, I'll find it for you; whatever you want, I'll give it all to you."
He didn't understand before, but now he does.
It turns out this vow also encompasses his very life...
The more Yue Wuhuan understands, the deeper his infatuation, the stronger his love grows.
He's a demon, crawled out from the depths of hell, wrapped in the guise of vulnerability and harmlessness. Desiring, through sordid emotions, what should not be sought, and wanting to defile the purest deity in the world with his tainted body.
How disgusting he is...
Yue Wuhuan closed his eyes, unable to let his thoughts wander any further. He slowly knelt beside the pool, lifting Song Qingshi's still intact right hand from the water and reverently pressing it to his lips,
"Qingshi, don't worry, there are many medical books in Medicine King Valley, I will learn with all my might..."
"Qingshi, don't worry, I'll protect Medicine King Valley and prevent any harm from befalling it..."
"Qingshi, don't worry, I'll take good care of your lab mice..."
"Qingshi, don't worry, I will no longer abandon life..."
Yue Wuhuan opened his eyes, his heart weeping though no tears would fall, his body in agony but numb to the pain. Blood trickled down his forehead like tears, sliding down his cheek to fall upon the back of Song Qingshi's hand, staining it with unsightly marks.
This red substance... how filthy it is...
He wanted to wipe away the intrusive blood stains but hesitated, fearing that a light touch wouldn't clean it completely, and a heavier one might disturb the slumbering man.
After a moment's thought, he lowered his head, gently placing his scalding lips upon the cool flesh of the hand's back. His tongue delicately glided over each finger, sucking them into his mouth before reluctantly letting go. He meticulously kissed every inch of skin on that hand, leaving it utterly clean, and locked this intimate breath deep within his heart. From this point on, he could not dare to overstep even the smallest boundary.
Holding the most important hand in his life, Yue Wuhuan made the most crucial promise of his life:
"Qingshi, I will heal you."
...
Beichuan, Zhenhe City, Sentong Sect.
Zhenhe City is a remote outpost, home to Cantong Sect, a subsidiary of the Huanhuan Clan. Led by the venerable Master Gui Yuan, whose cultivation has reached the nascent soul stage, he runs brothels and gambling houses in the city. With fox-like eyes and a seemingly amiable demeanor, he is in truth cold-blooded and ruthless, a figure that no one in the city dares to cross.
Tonight, Master Gui Yuan could no longer muster a smile.
Countless horrifying insects swarmed the sky and crawled the walls, engulfing the entirety of Cantong Sect and exterminating every living being they encountered.
An Long sat in the grandmaster's chair, lips tightly pursed. His narrow eyes radiated menace as he idly played with a wine cup, thoroughly entertained by the scene before him. At his side, a disheveled male concubine, who had just crawled off Gui Yuan Celestial Master's bed, was obediently pouring wine for him, not daring to so much as glance at his former master.
Gui Yuan Celestial Master was already ensnared within a mound of gu insects, paralyzed, unable to move.
His eyes were bloodshot, wanting to question his assailant on why he sought to kill him. Yet, a horrifying centipede emerged from his mouth, his tongue swollen, rendering him speechless. All he could manage was a feeble whimper.
Discerning his thoughts, An Long chuckled, "You want to know why I'm killing you?"
Gui Yuan Celestial Master frantically nodded, letting out a hissing sound.
"That day, you saw what I did on the mountain, didn't you?" An Long's smile took on a demonic form as he seemed to speak of something trivial. "Although we bear no grudges, and this matter might not matter much now, who asked you to witness my moment of disgrace?"
Just because of a moment of disgrace, he would annihilate his entire sect?
Gui Yuan Celestial Master's eyes nearly bled with frustration. He had contemplated many possible reasons why the Gu King of the West Forest might seek to kill him. Never had he thought it would be over such a trivial matter—a matter he had never even taken to heart!
The West Forest Gu King was a malevolent wolf, devoid of typical human sentiments; his actions could not be logically explained.
Raised in an atmosphere of slaughter, he lived merely to consume others.
Draining his cup, An Long gestured disinterestedly. The gu insects swiftly severed Gui Yuan Celestial Master's neck, swarming over and engulfing the corpse.
The tremulous young male concubine refilled An Long's cup. Recalling rumors of the Gu King's taste for beauty, he attempted to flirt with a few sultry glances but ended up looking more like he was experiencing eye spasms due to excessive fear.
Finding it amusing, An Long checked his wine jug and saw it wasn't empty yet. Reluctant to leave, he grinned, revealing his fangs, and struck up a casual conversation. "Pretty one, what's your name?"
Straining to maintain a smile, the young male concubine answered, "Si Yao."
"Ah, interesting name," An Long perked up. Observing Si Yao's fair hands, he asked, "What's your connection to medicine?"
Si Yao cautiously replied, "My father is a pharmacist."
Again, An Long asked, "Don't you wish to avenge your former lover?"
Si Yao responded with a laugh, without even turning his head, "Celestial Master jokes. How could that man ever qualify as a lover?"
Amused, An Long probed further, "When I arrived, you seemed rather passionate in bed, calling him your darling. How come he's not your lover now?"
Struggling to compose himself, Si Yao couldn't fathom what the man before him wished to hear. At last, he mustered his courage and spoke truthfully, "I belong to Nanfeng Pavilion. I'm just a courtesan. Whoever pays, becomes my darling."
An Long paused briefly, then burst into hearty laughter, exclaiming, "Good, good, good!"
Si Yao continued to ingratiate himself, "With a master as magnificent as you, even without payment, I'd consider you my darling."
An Long eyed Si Yao's slender figure, clothed in white. He casually plucked a strand of Si Yao's long hair and twirled it around his fingertip. Seemingly lost in thought, he finally muttered, "If only he could think like you, calling me 'darling' for the sake of money. How wonderful that would be. Money is the least of my concerns..."
Not understanding An Long's meaning, Si Yao dared not interject.
Abruptly, An Long yanked Si Yao's hair and asked, "Tell me, are there many cultivation partners in this world who don't love each other?"
Wincing in pain, Si Yao replied, "Many."
Hesitating, An Long inquired further, "And how do such partnerships come to be?"
Without hesitation, Si Yao answered, "For the sake of each other's wealth, power, strength, or beauty."
"Well said! That's exactly what I like!" Elated, An Long let go of the hair he held and said contentedly, "Who needs feelings in a cultivation partnership? As long as he covets my wealth, my power, my strength, my good looks, and my kindness towards him, that's enough."
Si Yao listened in bewilderment, "With a Celestial Master as genuinely devoted as you, who in the world wouldn't love you?"
"He won't love me," An Long drained the last drop of wine from the jug, finally feeling a bit tipsy. Slowly, he stood up and pressed his fingertip against Si Yao's forehead. Staring at the fragile, white figure that bore some resemblance to someone else, his eyes momentarily filled with despair. He burst into sardonic laughter, "That person... he follows the Path of Heartlessness."
He had known his infatuation was foolish, five hundred years ago.
The Path of Heartlessness is one of absolute emotional detachment. Any emotional indulgence could lead to the collapse of one's cultivation.
Therefore, he would never have the emotional connection he sought.
Therefore, he would never win that person's heart.
...
An Long used Lock Emotion to control his nearly overwhelming greed and malice.
A tiny gu insect emerged at his fingertip and entered Si Yao's forehead like a speck of light, "For the sake of your name, for the sake of your pleasing answers..."
As the gu insect devoured his memories, Si Yao slowly collapsed.
An Long strode out of the main entrance, and the swarm of insects gradually retreated. A blood-soaked white snake slithered across the corpses scattered on the ground, then contentedly coiled around his arm and shoulder. The snake then turned its head away disdainfully. Patting its head, he coaxed:
"Alright, alright. I'll write a letter to Xiao Qing Shi, asking him not to be angry anymore."
"What interesting things should we send him this time?"
"I heard the Yunling Secret Realm will open soon. How about we seize some intriguing herbs for Qing Shi?"