Chapter 307 - I May be Your Fate
Time… indeed was an unimaginable beast. It could cause the strongest man under the stars to die, as well as cause the most valuable medicines to turn to waste. Perhaps Zhou Dufu did not understand medicine, but of the medicines that he had collected, they had all been stored exquisitely, no matter the environment or equipment used for storage. However, even so, there was still no method to maintain the medicinal effects after hundreds of years.
Xu Yourong confirmed it from Chen Changsheng’s silence, and thought a little. Afterwards, she said, “Since it will be like this, let me sleep a little more.”
She no longer coughed, and slept very peacefully.
If she was about to enter the eternal sleep, it would be impossible for a normal person in her situation to fall asleep. Chen Changsheng looked at the girl who was sleeping soundly, and an endless amount of admiration and respect bloomed in his heart. Just how strong of a willpower and mental power was needed for someone to sleep comfortably in such conditions?
The fireflow pill failed. How could he save her?
He hesitated a while, and resolved to use the method that had caused him to hesitate for a dozen or so days in the grassland—forceful stimulation of blood through acupuncture.
Forceful stimulation of blood through acupuncture was a method that ignited the vitality and the strength of one’s bloodline. It would cause extremely great harm to the subject. Before it had been successfully improved by his master Daoist Ji, the acupuncture technique basically belonged to the evil techniques in the Orthodoxy, with its use being strictly prohibited. Even now, the acupuncture technique was unable to completely avoid its severe side effects, so normally, it could only be used on a patient right before death.
From a certain perspective, forceful stimulation of blood through acupuncture was like the final gulp of old ginseng soup.
Since he made the decision, he no longer hesitated. He sat in front of Xu Yourong, and removed the golden silk on the ring finger of his right hand. With a slight control of his spiritual sense, the golden silk became straight like a needle, piercing the back of her neck like lightning.
Forceful stimulation of blood through acupuncture was very difficult. The most difficult part was entering the diseased vein with a single stroke. At the moment, she was asleep, so it was very suitable.
Xu Yourong furrowed her brows slightly, and was slightly in pain. She woke up.
“Don’t move—I am treating you.”
Chen Changsheng knew that she was not old, but to face change without being alarmed and to face matters calmly, he only need to speak clearly, and she would co-operate. Just as expected, Xu Yourong calmed down very quickly. His true essence slowly carried a coldness into her body through the golden needle, travelling along her meridians and blood vessels like a tide. It dispersed all the poison that had deposited in her diaphragm, and at the same time, it dispersed her doubts from before.
Sweat beads the size of soybeans constantly appeared on Chen Changsheng’s forehead, before being frozen into ice droplets, rolling and landing on the ground. It gave out a sharp and clear sound. As time flowed, the ground around the two of them was covered with frozen beads of sweat, which seemed like a fragment of a pearl sea. Some ice droplets even rolled far along the stone steps, only stopping after coming directly in contact with the huge obsidian coffin.
After a very long amount of time, the golden needle was removed from the back of Xu Yourong’s neck, once again wrapping around Chen Changsheng’s finger.
Even after another very long period, he did not speak, nor did Xu Yourong.
He lowered his head, and looked at the ice droplets on the ground. He felt slightly sad, and even more unwilling to resign—forcefully stimulating the blood through acupuncture was the last method he could think of. It was extremely dangerous and violent, but even so, it did not have any effects.
This type of acupuncture technique could ignite the vitality and bloodline of humans. Even an old man who was on his sickbed and on his last breath could have some of his energy revived, or even have an opportunity to live stolen back from the netherworld. However, it did not have any effects on Xu Yourong, because her bloodline was already completely exhausted. Her vitality had long been exhausted by the constant battles and the journey.
Without wood, no matter how hotly and fiercely the fire burnt, how could it be ignited?
“Apologies.”
The person who said that was not Chen Changsheng, but rather Xu Yourong. She looked at him and said with a smile, “Although I don’t understand medical expertise, I know that the acupuncture technique you used earlier was very impressive. It is just a pity that I, the patient, am just too disappointing.”
This was true. She used the Sacred Light Technique to save many people in the Garden of Zhou, but this and medical expertise were matters of two different areas.
Chen Changsheng raised his head, and looked at her slightly swollen, but still elegant appearance. His mood was very gloomy.
“Your essence blood has already been exhausted. Other than enriching the blood, there are no other methods. However, I have already attempted to do so several times over the past few days. Your bloodline is slightly special, so the blood of monsters has no effect on you. I even believe that other than your own blood, there are no other types of blood that can have an effect on you. Then, even if we leave the Garden of Zhou, there may be no method of treating you.”
He explained the current situation to her very honestly. To describe to a girl how her imminent death would come about, it had nothing to do with the admiration of her great willpower. Rather, it was a great, or even obstinate, attitude he had towards death. People did not know how they came to this world, but when leaving the world, they should have been clear-headed. Only like this could the journey of coming to this world be considered not to be wasted.
He did not explain his thoughts to Xu Yourong. Xu Yourong did not grieve, much less vent her anger at him, as if she understood what he meant. She said with a smile, “But if we are able to leave the Garden of Zhou, at least you will be able to survive.”
After arriving in this mausoleum, Xu Yourong often smiled, but the smiles actually were very weak. Chen Changsheng could not even bear to keep looking.
“I have not found the method of leaving the Garden of Zhou. I don’t know if this will make you slightly happier.” He looked at her and smiled. He knew that it was impossible for her to be happy because of this, but wished that an unfunny joke could cheer her up.
Xu Yourong did not cheer up, and the smile on her face instead slowly disappeared. Looking at him, she said peacefully, “Looks like I will die.”
Despite hearing this sentence before, Chen Changsheng suddenly felt his chest being ruthlessly smashed by a rock, feeling horrible to the extreme.
He recalled that night when she had said that she was only fifteen, the same age as him. For life to end in the middle of youth, this really was the most sorrowful thing in the world. It was a sorrow that he had felt in advance on countless nights.
Towards death, he had already prepared for a very long time. No one was more prepared than him, but now that she was just about to die in front of him, he still did not have any methods.
“I don’t want to die,” Xu Yourong looked at him and said seriously.
When she said that, she did not feel sad, and her expression likewise remained calm. This was because she did not want to cordially invite his pity, and only wanted to tell him her thoughts at the final moment.
“You will not die,” Chen Changsheng said.
Xu Yourong said, “You know that I am unable to accept this kind of unpersuasive comforting.”
Chen Changsheng suddenly thought of something and was slightly entranced. He said with a slightly trembling voice, “You… won’t die.”
Xu Yourong’s expression changed slightly. She did not understand why his mood had suddenly become slightly abnormal.
“You won’t die.”
Chen Changsheng said it for the third time. But this time, his voice was abnormally calm and resolute, and his clear eyes were incomparably bright.
Xu Yourong thought that he had grown slightly foolish and said, “For my death, you do not need to shoulder any responsibilities.”
Chen Changsheng said, “But I don’t want you to die.”
Xu Yourong used a tired voice to make fun of him, “Perhaps you are a god, able to let people live as long as you want to.”
“Yes.” Chen Changsheng’s clear voice echoed in the spacious mausoleum. It carried such determination.
Xu Yourong stared at him blankly.
He began laughing.
He did not know why fate brought him into the Garden of Zhou, or why it had brought him to this mausoleum. Perhaps it was due to the sword intent, perhaps it was something else, but he knew one thing: he could perhaps change the fate of this girl.
In other words, he was her fate, or at least, a part of it.