Hua Yan felt quite embarrassed. She had finally managed to dry her clothes, but her body alternated between feeling cold and hot, making it extremely uncomfortable. She couldn’t sleep well, her head hurt, and she felt utterly miserable. In the end, it was Great Hero Lu who showed kindness by lending her a knee.
Her head rolled back and forth on Lu Chengsha’s leg for a while before she couldn’t help but whisper, “I feel so awful…”
Hua Yan didn’t realize how much she sounded like she was whining.
She had never been sick before and felt like she was poisoned with some strange toxin and had been hit on the head dozens of times, making her exceptionally vulnerable. If she were in front of her parents at this moment, she would definitely start fake crying to gain their sympathy.
Lu Chengsha sat upright, his spine as straight as a javelin. Hearing her, he slightly lowered his head, his gaze sweeping across Hua Yan’s face, as beautiful as a blooming peach.
Her lips were slightly parted, sweat beads formed between the strands of hair on her forehead, even her nose tip was red, her brows furrowed, and her face showed a mix of grievance and bewilderment.
Lu Chengsha instantly looked away, staring into the distance. His voice remained as calm as ever, but there was an inexplicable hint of helplessness, “The medicine will be ready soon.”
He really wasn’t good with words.
After a while, Lu Chengsha added, “Just bear with it.”
Hua Yan could only nod and reply, “Oh.”
She closed her eyes, and after a while, she suddenly felt something gently stroking the top of her head. Hua Yan opened her eyes and saw Lu Chengsha’s hand softly patting her head, as if comforting her.
Hua Yan almost burst out laughing.
When she was a child and couldn’t sleep because she was being mischievous, her father would pat her like this and sing little tunes from Qingzhou to lull her to sleep.
Suppressing her laughter, Hua Yan looked at Lu Chengsha. He stared straight ahead with his dark eyes, his tight jawline visible from her angle, his lips tightly pressed together, and his Adam’s apple moving awkwardly in his long neck, looking extremely tense.
Hua Yan wanted to laugh even more.
She couldn’t help but reach out, gently tapping Lu Chengsha’s Adam’s apple with her fingertip.
Lu Chengsha’s body jolted.
He immediately lowered his eyes to look at her, but Hua Yan had already withdrawn her hand, closed her eyes, and was laughing hysterically inside.
Great Hero Lu is too amusing!
After a while, she couldn’t resist opening one eye to peek at him, only to meet his gaze directly. Caught red-handed, Hua Yan’s face reddened even more.
Lu Chengsha’s voice was tight as he softly said, “Don’t mess around.”
Hua Yan obediently replied, “Mm!”
It made sense; the throat is a vital area, and martial artists typically dislike having their vital points touched, so it was no wonder that Great Hero Lu got upset.
Hua Yan understood very well, but she still felt a bit itchy in her hands.
So she tugged at the dark blue hair tie holding Lu Chengsha’s long hair. It was the standard accessory of Tingjian Manor, made of high-quality dark blue brocade, smooth and delicate to the touch. Did Great Hero Lu get up every morning to tie his hair? His hair looked very soft and she really wanted to touch it…
As she was lost in thought, Lu Chengsha grabbed her wrist.
Lu Chengsha moved his lips slightly, seeming a bit helpless.
Hua Yan raised her face and smiled, trying to play it off.
“Uh, excuse me…” Ming Qi very cautiously held a bowl in his hand, his eyes showing a mix of caution and fear as he said, “The medicine is ready… do you still need it?”
Lu Chengsha: “…”
Hua Yan: “…”
The three of them stared at each other, and the atmosphere became awkward.
Hua Yan immediately withdrew her hand, quickly sat up, tidied her hair, and said sternly, “Yes!”
Moments later.
Yes, my foot!… This medicine is so bitter.
Hua Yan held the bowl of medicine. Before it even reached her lips, she could smell a strong bitter scent that went straight to her head, making it impossible for her to drink.
In the past, Yu Ye made medicine in pill form to make it easier to sell and to carry around. She had only seen other disciples of the demonic sect drink this terribly bitter concoction during trials; she had never drunk it herself.
She hesitated and struggled.
The disciple from Cixin Valley, dressed in white, kindly reminded her, “Drink it while it’s hot. It will be even more bitter when it cools down.”
Hua Yan: “…”
Thank you very much.
But then Lu Chengsha stood up and walked outside.
The disciple from Cixin Valley immediately backed away from Hua Yan, asking, “Young Master Lu, where are you going…”
Lu Chengsha left a quick “I’ll be right back” and disappeared without a trace.
He said he would be quick, and indeed he was. By the time he returned, the medicine in Hua Yan’s bowl was still as warm as when he had left.
Lu Chengsha brought back the honeycomb and fruits that had been left in the stone cave.
Seeing the honeycomb and fruits reminded Hua Yan of how empty her stomach was. The sudden cold had made her forget her hunger.
Lu Chengsha set the items down and pointed at the honeycomb, saying, “Sweet.”
Hua Yan understood his intention.
She sighed, sniffled, and looked at the dark, murky medicine in the bowl. Pinching her nose, she gulped it down in one go, immediately scrunching up her face from the bitterness. She quickly grabbed the honeycomb and poured some into her mouth.
The honey was extremely sweet, instantly neutralizing the bitter taste in her mouth.
Hua Yan took a few more sips, her mouth filled with sweetness, and she gradually felt revived.
When she turned her head, she saw Lu Chengsha watching her.
“Hmm?”
Lu Chengsha asked, “Still bitter?”
Hua Yan shook her head, hugging the honeycomb with a look of delight. She said, “Do you want some? It’s really sweet…”
The Zhengyi Sect’s surroundings were all desert and yellow sand. There were hardly any flowers, let alone honeycombs. She had only heard about honey before and was tasting it for the first time today.
It was really sweet!
Then Ming Qi saw the two of them sitting together, each holding a piece of dry food, dipping it in honey, and eating it bite by bite.
It was as if that hard, shriveled dry food was some kind of gourmet delicacy.
Watching them made him hungry too. Ming Qi pulled out his ration for the day from his pocket and took a hard bite. The dry food was not only cold and hard but also tasteless. He glanced down at his unconscious junior brother beside him, feeling inexplicably resentful.
***
After drinking the medicine and eating the dry food, Hua Yan took a short nap and soon felt her body relax and her spirits lift.
She took off her outer robe and returned it to Lu Chengsha. Stretching her limbs, she even had the energy to check on the poisoned disciple from Cixin Valley.
“Miss, do you know medicine too?”
Hua Yan modestly replied, “Just a little bit.”
For some reason, the disciple from Cixin Valley named Ming Qi kept a deliberate distance from her, as if she were some great scourge, all the while casting nervous glances at Lu Chengsha.
Lu Chengsha didn’t react much; he simply looked around to ensure the area was safe.
Ming Qi shifted a bit further away and said, “My junior brother accidentally inhaled toxic mist while traveling at night. We’ve already administered medicine to stop the spread of the poison, so there’s no immediate danger…”
Hearing this, Hua Yan felt somewhat relieved. Thankfully, the mist Lu Chengsha and his companions encountered the other day was just disorienting fog. Toxic mist would have been much more troublesome.
She checked the disciple’s pulse, examined his eyelids, tongue, and the area behind his ears, and asked Ming Qi about his symptoms. From this, she roughly deduced the type of poison.
Indeed, it originated from the Zhengyi Sect.
Hua Yan sighed inwardly.
At this point, she wasn’t entirely sure who was behind this incident, or even if Xie Yingxian was involved. Although Xie Yingxian had a casual and lazy personality, he was by no means a kind-hearted and innocent person. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to maintain his position as the leader of the Zhengyi Sect for so many years. He had no qualms about using any trick, plot, or frame-up to his advantage.
Given that he was now imprisoned in Dangshan’s dungeon and had suffered greatly, he might have decided to retaliate against the entire martial world.
Then there was Wan Gu Sect, where Yu Ye and You Weitian resided, which was also highly suspect.
Yin Xiangsi, despite her notorious reputation, had a smaller following compared to the Zhengyi Sect, and her disciples rarely mingled with the martial world. Thus, they weren’t seen as a significant threat by the righteous factions. Consequently, when Wan Gu Sect’s disciples committed misdeeds, the blame often fell on the Zhengyi Sect. This led Yin Xiangsi to become even more extreme, frequently committing atrocities and leaving the Zhengyi Sect’s mark behind.