Chapter 15

“Go wait outside.”

Little Qiu came back to himself and hurried out, closing the door behind him.

Lou Yue calmly watched the door. The moment it clicked shut, she turned and tried to pry Xiao Rangchen’s fingers away. She forced at them for a long while, but his hand did not budge. Instead, her own wrist was squeezed red.

She glared irritably at the unconscious man on the bed. “Fine. You’re the one refusing to let go. Don’t blame anyone else for leaving you to die once you reach the Yellow Springs!”

Lou Yue sat down directly on the edge of the bed. Long Aotian didn’t want to live, and that had nothing to do with her. Surely the heavenly thunder wouldn’t strike her for no reason, right? Hmph.

The thought had barely crossed her mind when the hand gripping hers suddenly loosened.

“...”

Lou Yue whipped her head around and glared daggers at the man on the bed. “Xiao Rangchen, did you do that on purpose?” He had to be awake!

Lost in a hazy stupor, Xiao Rangchen’s long lashes drooped listlessly. The sharpness that usually defined his brows and eyes had faded, leaving behind nothing but exhaustion. He looked, in fact, rather pitifully fragile.

Lou Yue shot to her feet and began pacing around the room, her steps hurried.

She was Long Aotian’s rival in love. Why did the Heavenly Dao always force her to face the question of whether or not to save her enemy? Was it testing her moral character? This was ridiculous...

The future Long Aotian would kill her. Of course she couldn’t save him. There was no need to think about it—

Yet when her gaze accidentally swept over the edge of the bed, Lou Yue froze.

The hand that had been gripping hers now hung limply at his side, utterly devoid of color. It reminded her of a withered skeleton on a snowfield, drained of all vitality and steeped in deathly silence.

Lou Yue stamped her foot hard and warned herself in a low voice, “Lou Yue, don’t be a bleeding-heart saint!”

As long as she stood by and did nothing, the future would be completely rewritten. As long as she did nothing...

The air in the room was oppressively heavy, making it difficult to breathe.

Lou Yue turned and headed for the door, but just as her foot crossed the threshold, she inexplicably stopped.

Seeing Lou Yue with her brows lowered and a troubled look on her face, Little Qiu wisely said nothing.

After a long while, Lou Yue slowly closed her eyes and muttered resignedly, “I must have been cursed for eight lifetimes.”

Then she suddenly opened her eyes and instructed him, “I’m going out for a while. Whether I’m back or not by the end of the late afternoon, go and bring Feng Que here.”

Little Qiu was just about to ask whether she needed someone to accompany her when Lou Yue had already hurried back into the room, changed clothes, and swept out like the wind.

Little Qiu thought for a moment, then personally stood guard outside Xiao Rangchen’s door.

Dusk descended, and the lanterns came alight.

At the end of the late afternoon, a dust-covered figure hurried back.

A thin sheen of sweat glistened at Lou Yue’s temples. In her arms, she carried a three-foot-long white jade box, its surface wreathed in faint spiritual energy.

“Where’s Feng Que?” Lou Yue asked between breaths.

“He’s inside,” Little Qiu hurriedly replied.

“You stand guard here. Don’t let anyone come near.”

Lou Yue tossed out the order, pushed open the door, and closed it behind her.

In less than half a day, the man on the bed had somehow grown even more pallid. He looked no different from a corpse.

Lou Yue’s heart clenched. She hurried forward and grabbed one of his hands to feel for his pulse. She had rushed back, and her heart was pounding wildly in her chest. For a long moment, her fingertips could not detect the slightest beat.

“Stop checking. He’s not dead yet.”

Feng Que looked at the woman who had entered without sparing him a glance and teased her.

At last, Lou Yue felt a faint pulse. The heart that had been hanging in her throat dropped back into place, and she immediately flung Xiao Rangchen’s wrist away in disgust.

Tsk. At least he knew better than to die. If he had, she would have suffered a huge loss.

Lou Yue placed the white jade box on the table in front of Feng Que. “Now it’s your turn to show what you can do.”

Feng Que opened the box. Inside lay a Buyan flower wreathed in spiritual energy. Its petals were a translucent purple, and it was of the highest grade.

He raised his eyes to Lou Yue, his meaning clear. “This old man really didn’t misjudge you.”

Lou Yue dragged over a chair and sat down. She poured herself a cup of tea and drained it in one gulp before lifting her eyes. “Spare me the nonsense. If you can’t save him, I’ll hold you responsible.”

Feng Que pinched one of the petals between his fingers. “With a Buyan flower of this quality, this old man now has a seventy percent chance.”

Lou Yue rolled her eyes. “I only accept success.”

“Then it depends on him, and on whether Heaven is willing to give him a way to live,” Feng Que replied irresponsibly.

He took out his tools and began processing the Buyan flower. Without even looking up, he ordered, “Go have someone bring in a large bathing tub and fill it halfway with clean water.”

Lou Yue couldn’t be bothered to move. She called out, “Little Qiu!” toward the door and tossed the errand to him.

Before long, a huge bathing tub was carried inside.

Feng Que chased Little Qiu out and had Lou Yue set up a barrier. Only then did he begin pouring the medicinal pills he had ground into powder into the water. The once-clear water immediately began bubbling, and a faint medicinal fragrance spread through the room.

Lou Yue stood beside him, watching. Just as Feng Que was busy with his work, he suddenly jerked his chin toward her.

“What are you standing there for? Go bring him over.”

Lou Yue remained rooted to the spot. After a long moment, she forced out three words. “...Absolutely not.”

Feng Que: “?”

He turned to look at her, then gestured toward the half-processed Buyan flower in his hand. His expression was exaggerated. “If you’re not going, what are you doing here? If you’re not going to help, find someone else. Don’t waste time!”

Lou Yue: “...”

She didn’t want to help, and she especially didn’t want to carry anyone. But she did want to stay.

Clearly, Feng Que didn’t care in the slightest about her wishes. He remained completely absorbed in fussing over the Buyan flower.

Lou Yue clenched her jaw, then walked to the bed. She raised both hands for a long time, unable to find anywhere to put them, and finally abandoned the idea of carrying him.

Instead, she bent down and helped Xiao Rangchen sit up, draping his uninjured arm over her shoulder. Then, dragging and hauling him with all her might, she finally managed to move him beside the bathing tub.

Feng Que happened to turn around. He glanced at them, then frowned. “Why is he still wearing clothes?”

Lou Yue, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, stiffened. “He has to take them off too?”

Feng Que looked at her as if she were an idiot. “Who takes a medicinal bath fully clothed? If you don’t mind the clothes getting in the way, this old man minds wasting the medicinal ingredients!”

Lou Yue: “...”

Feng Que even urged her on. “Stop dawdling. The medicine will lose its potency. You’ll be the one crying then.”

Lou Yue gritted her teeth and crouched down, settling Xiao Rangchen on the rim of the tub. Then she reached for his belt.

But an unconscious person couldn’t cooperate. Xiao Rangchen’s body kept listing first to the left and then to the right. By the time sweat had beaded on her forehead, she still hadn’t managed to remove even his outer robe.

Afraid Feng Que would start nagging again if she delayed any longer, Lou Yue steeled herself. Since he was unconscious and wouldn’t know anything, she might as well get it over with.

She stood in front of Xiao Rangchen and rested his chin in the hollow of her shoulder, letting him lean against her. Only then did she finally manage to strip off his outer robe and inner garment.

Under the effects of the high-grade pills, the sword wounds on his shoulder and abdomen had nearly healed on the surface.

Lou Yue’s gaze swept over his old and new scars before finally settling on his trousers. She found herself at a loss.

The last time she had stripped off his trousers, she had been blindfolded. Besides, she had done it then to humiliate him. This time was different.

Lou Yue supported his waist. Her hand rose, then fell. She repeated the motion several times. Just as Feng Que was about to turn around, spiritual energy suddenly flashed in her hand.

With a sharp ripping sound, Xiao Rangchen’s trousers turned into scraps and scattered across the floor, leaving him wearing only a pair of close-fitting black shorts.

Feng Que looked over at the sound.

Lou Yue hurriedly turned her head away, the tips of her ears flushing uncontrollably.

“...Put him in.”

Feng Que’s voice carried a strangely meaningful tone. Lou Yue had no desire to investigate what it meant. She only felt as though she had narrowly escaped disaster.

But just as she was about to put him into the tub, she realized that her ordeal was only about to escalate.

With no clothes between them, the skin beneath her palms was cool and smooth, the powerful muscle beneath it firm and clearly defined. It was a completely different sensation from her own.

Lou Yue frowned. She had no interest in taking advantage of Xiao Rangchen. Even if he was handsome and had an incredible physique, that did nothing to change the fact that he was a womanizing scumbag. Besides, she was a man right now.

She simply imagined the sensation beneath her hands as three-layer pork belly on a butcher’s chopping board.

Well, it really did feel rather similar. The corners of Lou Yue’s lips curled up. Once she was free of the psychological burden, her work became much more efficient.

“All done.” Lou Yue stood beside the tub and clapped her hands.

Feng Que came over, pried open Xiao Rangchen’s jaw, and fed him a pill. “In ten breaths, use your spiritual power to heat the water.”

Lou Yue did as instructed.

“That’s enough. Keep the water at this temperature and let him absorb the medicine’s effects for now. Get ready.”

Lou Yue did not ask what they were preparing for. She simply braced one hand against the rim of the tub and pressed the other against its side, continuously channeling her spiritual power into it.

Whether it was because of the warm water or because the medicine had begun to take effect, Xiao Rangchen’s complexion gradually regained some color. He no longer looked as lifeless as before.

After roughly the time it took to burn a stick of incense, Feng Que came over carrying a bowl of medicine. Judging by the careful way he held it, as though he could not bear to spill even a single drop, it was probably the processed Buyan Flower.

He carefully fed every drop of the medicinal liquid into Xiao Rangchen’s mouth before straightening up. “You can stop now. From this moment on, there is only one thing you need to do.”

Feng Que’s tone was grave. “Hold him down firmly. Under no circumstances can you let him climb out of the tub, or all our efforts will be wasted! Remember, no matter what happens, you must not use your spiritual power.”

Under Feng Que’s solemn gaze, Lou Yue gave a slight nod. She bent over and pressed both hands against Xiao Rangchen’s shoulders.

Feng Que said nothing more. He moved behind Xiao Rangchen, drew a dagger across the back of his neck, and cut a small opening beneath it. Then he opened an intricately carved metal sphere.

Lou Yue stared at the translucent insect crawling out of the sphere. “What is that?”

“A gu worm. I’ve nurtured it with my own heart’s blood for fifteen years, and it is linked to my mind and spirit.” Feng Que gazed at the worm as it slowly crawled onto his finger, his voice turning gentle and affectionate. “Good little treasure, I’m counting on you...”

He brought the translucent worm to the wound at the back of Xiao Rangchen’s neck. The instant it caught the scent of blood, it burrowed straight inside. Feng Que immediately closed his eyes and sat cross-legged behind Xiao Rangchen.

Lou Yue looked away and pressed down hard with her palms.

Before long, Xiao Rangchen began to move. At first, it was only a faint tremor, but soon his hands and feet began to struggle as well.

Splash!

Xiao Rangchen’s arms suddenly shot upward, both hands gripping the edge of the tub as he desperately tried to pull himself out. Lou Yue increased the pressure and forced him firmly back down.

The muscles throughout his body bulged one by one. The veins on his arms stood out like twisted cords, and his fingernails dug into the wood with a creaking sound. Mixed with his heavy breathing, the noise lingered beside Lou Yue’s ears.

His struggles grew more violent. His legs began kicking, while his hands tried to pull away the ones she had pressed against his shoulders. Bent over him from the front, Lou Yue found it increasingly difficult to hold him down.

At this rate, she would not only fail to restrain him—the tub itself was going to be torn apart...

Lou Yue clicked her tongue. Forgetting whether she was wasting the medicinal water, she slid both hands down along Xiao Rangchen’s arms, locked them against his sides, and pressed inward with all her strength. Then she lifted one leg and stepped into the tub, using her knee to pin down his thrashing legs.

With one of his points of support gone, Xiao Rangchen’s struggle weakened considerably, but he still refused to give up.

To keep him restrained, Lou Yue inevitably ended up very close to him. His rapid breathing sprayed across the side of her face, carrying a faint, crisp scent of frost and snow.

Lou Yue glared at him, but the unconscious man had no idea what restraint meant. Again and again, his breath brushed across her cheek, irritating her more and more.

Time seemed to stretch endlessly. Every second passed with excruciating slowness.

His trembling gradually subsided. Just when she thought it was over, Xiao Rangchen’s entire body suddenly tensed, and he heaved upward with tremendous force. Lou Yue was caught off guard, and her knee slipped off his legs.

Seeing that he was about to sit up, Lou Yue steeled herself and threw caution to the wind. She sat directly on his thighs, lowered her body, and wrapped both arms tightly around his neck, using her own weight to keep him down.

Xiao Rangchen struggled violently in his unconscious state. Pulled along by his movements, Lou Yue swayed back and forth in the water, splashes of medicinal liquid flying everywhere. Some of it got into her eyes, burning painfully.

Lou Yue closed her eyes and devoted all her strength to resisting Xiao Rangchen’s struggles, clinging tightly to him.

Just then, his violent struggling came to an abrupt stop.

Lou Yue did not know what had happened, but afraid that the same thing might happen again, she still did not dare loosen her hold. She continued to cling tightly to him until a pair of slightly cool hands covered her arms—

Hehe.