Estranged - Chapter 114

Changming felt numb because of the dizziness. When he came to, Yun Weisi was already supporting him to keep him from falling—Changming had lost control and had almost collapsed.

Changming breathed in, swallowing the cold air. The burn on his hand stopped stinging so much for a moment, before hurting even more violently. It brought on an unbearable pain, as if boiling water had been spilled on the back of his hand and scalded his skin thoroughly. At the same time, he felt weak, and started falling down helplessly again.

“Don’t transfer spiritual power to him! Quick, help him inside!”

Yun Weisi raised his head and saw a man in light blue robes come out of the building.

However, when Yun Weisi saw the man’s face, his blood froze at once.

It was a momentary reaction, but Changming noticed it anyway. Putting aside his pain, Changming looked at Yun Weisi with concern.

The man quickly walked over and stretched out his hand to help Changming.

Yun Weisi subconsciously pulled aside Changming to avoid this hand.

The man froze. He looked a bit surprised.

By this point, the shopkeeper had come over as well, dispersing the awkward atmosphere.

“Doctor Jiang is a doctor who treats people that come to our shop. He’s like a living immortal! If he told you two to come inside, do as he says!”

A living immortal: a great talent

Yun Weisi decided to push the boat down the current and wait for further developments, so he did not object anymore and supported Changming to go sit inside the shop.

The man looked exactly like the image in Yun Weisi’s memories.

For a cultivator, a hundred years passed as quickly as one could snap their finger.

The only difference in this man was that he was a doctor treating patients in a small town rather than the master of the glorious Wanjian Immortal Clan.

Naturally, doctor Jiang felt Yun Weisi’s gaze. But he was absorbed in taking Changming’s pulse, so he hung his head for a while, thinking.

“Old Chang, you two can go for now. But don’t go too far away from the shop, keep in mind that it’s unsafe outside right now!”

The shopkeeper and his assistant nodded. Obviously, they trusted doctor Jiang.

After they left, doctor Jiang told Yun Weisi and Changming: “You’re probably cultivators. It seems that you, daoyou, were poisoned by a fox and also suffer from old wounds. I’m afraid it’ll flare up from time to time, worsening the situation with the fox poison. What is even more strange, your meridians are in chaos and totally running amok. You are supposed to be unable to walk at all, yet you can still move around without any trouble. There’s something I’ve failed to take into account.”

Yun Weisi looked at him: “You remind me of a cultivator I know.”

Doctor Jiang raised his eyebrows: “You’ve seen me before?”

Yun Weisi: “The master of the Wanjian Immortal Clan, Jiang Li.”

The man ah-ed, and did not deny these words: “I rarely descend from the mountains, so how do you know me? I don’t remember ever meeting you, daoyou.”

“I happened to have seen you once several years ago, but Clan Master Jiang left quickly, so we didn’t meet face to face.”

Yun Weisi gave a vague, but succinct answer. However, Jiang Li did not find it strange and nodded.

As a clan master, even if he seldom left the mountains, he still attended Qianlin Assemblies occasionally. At that time, every sect would present many disciples of every kind, and many paid attention to Jiang Li, while he could not remember everyone.

“What are your names, daoyous?”

“Yun Weisi. He’s Jiufang, my shidi.”

Jiang Li had no impression of these names.

“Daoyou Yun, your shidi is heavily wounded. I’m afraid that the fox poison on top of everything else will be quite bothersome.”

Yun Weisi knew what the fox poison was. Sacrificing its life, the fox spirit poured all of its resentment into a final attack, leaving the three scratches on the back of Changming’s hand.

Fox spirits were adept at enchantments, and the fox poison was unbearably painful. If it was not quickly purged, the effects of the poisoning would worsen with each passing day.

But Yun Weisi did not know the consequences of being afflicted with the fox poison.

“How do we get rid of the fox poison?”

After hesitating for a moment, Jiang Li said: “By fighting poison with poison. Another fox spirit that is more than a hundred years old can be used to regulate it alongside the Ice-Snow Grass. If they’re refined in the Dragon Feet Cauldron, it should neutralize the poison.”

Yun Weisi: “The Dragon Feet Cauldron of the Wanjian Immortal Clan?”

Jiang Li nodded and added, smiling uncomfortably: “I can’t return to my clan right now, but I can send them a letter and ask a disciple to deliver the Dragon Feet Cauldron to help you refine an antidote. Elder Fang of my sect is skilled at refining pills. Ask him when the time comes.”

He stated every ingredient and treasure needed to create an antidote, clearly expressing his goodwill.

The Wanjian Immortal Clan was a prominent and glorious sect one hundred years ago as well. Being the leader of the clan, Jiang Li was however neither haughty, aloof nor distant from the common people. On the contrary, he was treating patients in some common medicine hall.

Be it the past or the present, Yun Weisi had never been a close friend of Jiang Li’s. He had no way to tell whether Jiang Li was acting like always or abnormally.

As they had figured out, the real Jiang Li’s body had been occupied by his shifu, Luomei, at some point. Immortal Luomei had taken over Jiang Li’s identity and traveled through the Jianghu with his face, setting the formation step by step, eventually ruining the entire human world.

They had traveled one hundred years back in time, and originally Yun Weisi had thought that they would be able to get closer to this person instigating the accidents from behind the scenes only after some time. Yun Weisi certainly did not expect to run into Jiang Li just like this.

If they killed Jiang Li, none of the future catastrophes would take place, and everything would go back to normal. Jiufang Changming would not need to sacrifice his body to learn about their enemy’s conspiracy, the Nine Layers of the Abyss would never appear, and everything would get a fresh start. He and Jiufang Changming could also get another ending.

However, the question now was whether the Jiang Li in front of their eyes was the real Jiang Li or Immortal Luomei?

If he was not under Luomei’s control, did he know anything about his teacher’s plans?

“Thank you very much for your advice, Clan Master Jiang. This place is plagued with demons. Has Clan Master Jiang come here to eliminate evil?”

Yun Weisi’s mind was wandering, and he was thinking about many things at this moment, yet his expression did not change at all, leaving no hint to others about what he was thinking.

Jiang Li touched his nose.

“Would you believe me if I said that I came here to flee from a disaster?”

Seeing that Yun Weisi gave no response, Jiang Li laughed.

“To be honest, I went down the mountains to travel and gain experience. You can’t tell anyone about me! Just pretend we never met here.”

Yun Weisi: “We’re just traveling rogue cultivators and have no connections with any sects. Be at ease, Clan Master Jiang.”

For some reason, Jiang Li felt that this pair of shixiong and shidi were strange.

This feeling stemmed from the fact that whenever rogue cultivators heard mention of the Wanjian Immortal Clan and learned about Jiang Li’s identity, they would subconsciously start to regard him with reverence or even tremble with awe. However, these two remained indifferent, as if this was just a casual meeting.

Jiang Li could not even determine their cultivation levels or where they had come from.

However, Hongluo was a mess at this moment. Bizarre things occurred all the time, so these people were not all that unusual.

Since one of them had been scratched by a fox spirit, it was obvious that they had been in a fight with it. So, at the very least, they were not on the same side as the fox spirits.

“Before daoyou Jiufang gets rid of the fox poison, you can only endure it. Using spiritual power would only accelerate the effects of the poison. Moreover, no one can say when it will flare up again as the intervals are inconsistent. I’ve heard this is what happens during my journeys, but I don’t know the reason. There’s not much more help I can give you.”

Jiang Li was sincere in his offer of help. He said he would write a letter asking for the Longzu Cauldron, and he actually took a brush in his hand immediately. Very soon, the letter was sealed with a stamp he had been carrying on himself.

A golden light ignited when the seal touched the paper. It was the private seal of the master of the Wanjian Immortal Clan, and was something that could not be faked.

After sealing the letter, he handed it over to Yun Weisi.

“Several days ago, demons and spirits suddenly appeared in Hongluo, and innocent commoners have suffered. The constables under the town supervisor are common people as well. Since you two are cultivators, please, stay here for some time. Help me flush out the culprits and return peace to Hongluo.”

Jiang Li’s intonation now had nothing in common with the style of that person who regarded human lives with even less signficance than ants and wanted to pave a new path by destroying the world.

Yun Weisi asked: “Perhaps Clan Master Jiang knows the reason why these fox spirits appeared?”

Jiang Li exclaimed: “Don’t call me Clan Master Jiang all the time! Just call me Doctor Jiang. It seems that I should change my appearance while traveling for convenience… I’m unaware of the reason, but I know that at dusk half a month ago, a blood-colored moon appeared in the sky, and the incidents started that night. Moreover, there are not only fox spirits here, but also nightmare demons and malicious ghosts. I’ve even fought with a nightmare demon myself. They are very difficult to tame and hard to destroy. If you’re careless for a moment, it will slip away.”

Yun Weisi had fought with a nightmare demon too, so he knew that Jiang Li’s words were not meaningless.

“We want to stay here for a few more days. If there’s a chance, we’ll be sure to take care of it,” said Yun Weisi.

“Then I should thank you, daoyous, on behalf of the common people of the town.”

Jiang Li took a silver bell out of his sleeve. It was exquisite and beautiful, but did not ring when shaken.

“This bell is called a Bell of One Mind. You and I will have one. If you hold it and wish for it, the bell will ring. If you’re in danger, let me know at once, and I’ll hurry over to help you.”

Changming remained silent all this time.

Firstly, he was enduring pain, waiting for the flare-up to pass.

Secondly, he noticed that Yun Weisi was on guard while talking to this man.

This vigilance was not obvious, but Changming could feel it after having spent so much time with Yun Weisi.

On their way back to the guest house after leaving the medicine shop, Changming finally spoke: “Is this Clan Master Jiang the main culprit you’ve mentioned before?”

Yun Weisi hummed in agreement: “I don’t know whether we can believe his words.”

Just as Jiang Li appeared in the town, spirits had started to pester Hongluo. This occurrence was reminiscent of the Jiang Li who had been luring over demons to kill people to refine Soul Gathering Pearls.

In Yun Weisi’s opinion, Jiang Li was the prime suspect.

However, he could not act rashly. They needed time to understand the situation.

“Let’s wait and see,” Changming said. His voice was soft, he was almost groaning.

When Yun Weisi saw Changming touch his chest with his face flushed, Yun Weisi wanted to hold him tighter. However, Changming’s expression changed, and he pushed Yun Weisi away instead.

“Don’t come so close…”

Beads of sweat had appeared on Changming’s forehead, and he breathed heavily, speaking in a trembling voice.

Yun Weisi recalled Jiang Li’s words about fox spirits being adept at enticing, and he vaguely realized what that meant.

…

Sun Wuxia turned his head abruptly. He calmed down a bit and breathed out with relief, but was still somewhat surprised.

“Daoyou Chi, why did you follow me?”

“I saw a fox spirit out of my window, so I left to chase it,” Daoyou Chi slightly furrowed her delicate eyebrows, which was very affecting. “But I lost it after going outside.”