You've made something of yourself.

The last vestige of feigned smile in Xie Yan's eyes vanished completely, leaving only his sinister gaze fixed on Gu Jinghong: "You lied to the Pavilion Master and tarnished my reputation, then turned around and asked another man about the Warmth Powder? Gu Jinghong, what do you take me for, Xie Yan?!"

He suddenly stepped forward, grabbed Gu Jinghong's wrist with such force that he felt he could crush bones, and demanded with a terrifying look in his eyes, "Who is it?!"

With a hidden weapon in hand and sensing Xie Yan's dangerous aura, Gu Jinghong instinctively threw it at his face.

Xie Yan dodged Gu Jinghong's hidden weapon by sidestepping, but a strand of hair on his forehead was hit by the weapon and fell silently to the ground.

His sinister aura intensified, consumed by a furious rage at the violation and an indescribable panic of betrayal. Before he could even see how he moved, his figure had already pounced on Gu Jinghong like a ghost, his five fingers forming claws, carrying a chilling wind, aimed straight for her slender neck.

"Xie Yan, what's wrong with you!" Gu Jinghong was prepared, her waist bending backward swiftly to narrowly avoid the fatal grab. A cold light flashed from her sleeve, and several silver needles, gleaming with a chilling light, were already between her fingers.

"Good question!" Xie Yan's voice was hoarse and distorted, like the low growl of a demon from hell, but his attacks became increasingly fierce and ruthless, each move aimed directly at vital points. "I want to ask you, which ignorant fool dares to touch me, Xie Yan..." The rest of his words were drowned out by an even more violent palm strike.

Gu Jinghong moved with agility and speed, dodging Xie Yan's ferocious attacks like a butterfly flitting among flowers, her silver needles ready to retaliate, targeting his joints and vital points. But Xie Yan was like a madman at this moment, his inner strength surging, and he actually used his protective qi to shake off most of the needle shadows, leaving only a few shallow bloodstains, which only further aroused his ferocity.

"Stop!" Xuan Ru shouted angrily, both surprised and furious. But the two of them, one blinded by rage and the other focused on self-preservation, wouldn't listen. The carefully tended herbs beside the herb garden were broken by the strong wind, and the utensils on the stone table rattled loudly.

Just as Xie Yan's palm strike, imbued with terrifying internal force, was about to land on Gu Jinghong's shoulder, Xuan Ru's eyes sharpened, and she no longer hesitated. With a flick of her slender hand, a pale purple powder, like a light veil, silently enveloped Xie Yan's mouth and nose.

"Cough!" Caught off guard, Xie Yan inhaled a small amount, his movements abruptly halting. The powder seemed to instantly drain the strength from his bones and muscles, and his domineering internal energy deflated like a punctured balloon, its circulation sluggish. A flash of astonishment and rage crossed his eyes as he glared intently at Xuan Ru.

It was that momentary delay.

Gu Jinghong's eyes flashed with cold light. Instead of retreating, he advanced, almost brushing against Xie Yan's arm, which was slightly clumsy due to the effects of the drug, and slid into his central opening. A silver needle, as thin as a cow's hair and shimmering with a ghostly blue luster, was inserted into an acupoint on the side of Xie Yan's neck with incredible speed and precision.

Xie Yan groaned, feeling a sharp, tingling sensation explode from that point, like countless tiny ice needles instantly freezing the meridians of half his body. His condensed internal energy collapsed, and his entire arm and half of his body lost all strength, hanging limply at his sides.

His tall body swayed, half of his body completely out of his control, and he fell to one knee in a sorry state. He then used his other hand, which was still functional, to support himself on the ground so that he did not fall completely.

He was breathing heavily, veins bulging on his forehead, his eyes burning with raging fury and malice, yet still fixed on Gu Jinghong, like a severely wounded beast that refused to fall, each heavy breath carrying a hiss of resentment and humiliation.

"Xuanru, you, you all!" He tried to roar, but his voice was hoarse and weak, filled with deep resentment and humiliation.

"Shut up!" Xuan Ru slapped the powder off her hands in annoyance, looking at the messy herb garden with lingering fear. "If you make another sound, I'll make you a prescription that will keep you from ever speaking again! Ah Hong, are you alright?"

Gu Jinghong's chest heaved slightly, and fine beads of sweat appeared at her temples. She stared warily at the limp Xie Yan, and only after confirming that he had truly lost his threat for the time being did she breathe a sigh of relief and shake her head: "It's alright."

Xuan Ru then turned to Gu Jinghong, her brows furrowed, her eyes filled with disbelief and inquiry: "Now, can you tell me? Warmth Powder? What exactly happened?"

Gu Jinghong hesitated for a moment, "There's only one man. If he's poisoned by the 'Heartwarming Powder' and tries to tough it out..."

Hearing this, Xie Yan, who was slumped on the ground and unable to move, burst out laughing: "Hard-hard, haha, hard-hard, how hard does one have to be to withstand that... haha..."

Gu Jinghong and Xuan Ru both silently closed their eyes, speechless at Xie Yan's character.

As a healer, Xuan Ru knew the potent effects of the Warmth Powder; to withstand it was tantamount to suicide. "But Ah Hong, who was it that was poisoned by that stuff and... is trying to withstand it? Did he get his brain caught in a door?"

At this point, a figure flashed through Xuanru's mind with incredible speed, so fast that Xuanru didn't have time to delve into it before she heard Xie Yan let out another extremely disdainful snort from his nose. His voice was still hoarse, but it was full of sarcastic mockery.

"Ha... what else could it be? She must be an ugly, disgusting piece of trash. If she had even a tenth of my charm, Xie Yan, countless beauties would throw themselves at her. Why would she have to endure this?"

Gu Jinghong glanced at him coldly, her eyes like ice: "Xie Yan, do you think the needle was too light? Say one more word, and we won't mind 'helping' you go silent forever."

Xuanru immediately reached for an inconspicuous small black leather pouch at her waist, her eyes darting dangerously towards Xie Yan.

Xie Yan's Adam's apple bobbed, and he glared fiercely at Gu Jinghong before finally shutting his mouth in a huff, expressing a silent curse with his sinister eyes.

Gu Jinghong then turned to Xuan Ru, her expression grave: "He... pulled through. He's out of danger now, but..." She chose her words carefully, "...he doesn't seem to be fully recovered yet. His body is extremely weak and he needs recuperation."

"You pulled through?!" Xuan Ru was even more shocked than before. She gasped and circled around Gu Jinghong for a bit, looking at her as if she were some rare treasure.

"The warmth of affection burns the heart and corrodes the bones; forcibly suppressing it is tantamount to setting oneself on fire. The meridians will inevitably be smashed to pieces by the violent internal force, and the heart meridian will be as if it has been fried in hot oil. He survived? This... this is simply... I can only say, Ah Hong, it has to be you."

Gu Jinghong was taken aback, and immediately realized that Xuan Ru had misunderstood. He waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "No, it has nothing to do with me."

"It's alright, yet you came all the way to my Medicine Master Valley to beg for medicine for someone? It's alright, yet you hesitated for so long about such a small matter?" Xuan Ru said, secretly raising an eyebrow at Gu Jinghong. "Ah Hong, you've really made something of yourself. The medicine you used?... Was it high-level? Was it handsome?"

Before Gu Jinghong could answer, Xuan Ru smiled and sighed, "However, the price of stubbornly enduring it is extremely high. The meridians and internal organs will inevitably suffer severe damage, which cannot be cured by ordinary medicines."

Gu Jinghong: "Is there any way?"

Xuan Ru pondered for a moment, then pointed to the direction shrouded in thick fog deep within the Medicine Master Valley.

"Ordinary medicines are unlikely to be effective quickly. The only way is for him to come to the Valley of the Medicine Master himself. Deep within the forbidden area of ​​the valley, there is a thousand-year-old cold jade bed. Its cold energy can suppress the residual heat and toxins in his body caused by his stubborn resistance, and repair the damaged meridians. In addition, with my uniquely formulated medicinal bath to strengthen his foundation and clear internal stagnation, both internal and external treatments can be combined. After seven days of quiet recuperation, he may be able to recover most of his vital energy and preserve his foundation. Otherwise..."

Gu Jinghong's heart sank, but when she heard there was hope, she breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, I'll find a way to get him here."

Xie Yan sneered from the side and said slowly, "You want him to come? Ah Hong, who is he to you that you have to worry about him like this? You beat me up like this, and then treated him like that, what are you trying to do? Do you even have any respect for me?"

A cold smile suddenly appeared on Gu Jinghong's face, and with a "whoosh," a silver needle pierced straight into Xie Yan's acupoint.

He then carefully took out a small packet wrapped in a clean cloth from his bosom, opened it layer by layer, and found a small amount of brownish fine powder inside.

"Aru, there's one more thing. Can you take a look at this powder... what is it? What are its uses?"

Xuan Ru leaned closer, picked up a bit of powder with her fingertip, and sniffed it carefully. Her brows furrowed more and more: "This... the amount is too small, and it seems to have been specially processed. The aroma is mixed... Gu Jinghong, do you really think I'm a god? You think you can identify the specific ingredients and effects of the medicine with just this little bit of powder?"

Gu Jinghong said without hesitation: "Add more money. Double the consultation fee and medicine fee."

Xuanru's eyes lit up, and she immediately rewrapped the powder and put it into her sleeve, saying decisively, "Deal! But it will take some time; I need to analyze it carefully using the tools in the valley."

“Okay, I’ll wait.” Gu Jinghong nodded.

For now, we can only stay in the Valley of the Medicine Master.

She glanced at Xie Yan, who was sprawled on the ground, staring at her with eyes as cold as a venomous snake. She felt a surge of annoyance, but there was nothing she could do.

Xuanru glanced at the two of them, sighed, and pointed to several empty bamboo huts in the valley: "Ah Hong, there are bamboo huts over there. Let Xie Yan tidy them up himself. You'll stay in the usual place... You know the rules of this valley. You're absolutely not allowed to go near the forbidden area or the secret chamber. The miasma here is no joke; it's both hallucinogenic and extremely cold..."

Gu Jinghong and Xuan Ru said together, "...If you accidentally go in, even a Great Luo Golden Immortal can't save you! You can go anywhere else, but don't touch my herbs. Don't blame me if you get poisoned."

After saying that, Gu Jinghong chided, "It's always the same few lines over and over again, I can recite them by heart. Don't worry, I definitely won't run around aimlessly. If I wanted to run, I would have done it long ago. Why would I wait until now to satisfy my curiosity?"

Xuan Ru looked at Gu Jinghong's beautiful face and said, "In short, don't run around recklessly, otherwise I can't afford to compensate such a good-looking person."

After saying that, Xuanru called a young medicine boy to deal with Xie Yan, and then turned around and hurriedly walked towards the medicine hut.

Gu Jinghong found a high spot by the water in the Medicine Master Valley, with a blade of grass in his mouth, his legs bent and crossed, and he was thinking about going to the southwest.

Xiao Chengyan is a man of his word, especially when it comes to military affairs. If he says he won't take her to the Southwest, he definitely won't. But if she wants to investigate old matters, especially those that the Pavilion Master suppressed, then she absolutely cannot touch the people of Zhuoyue Pavilion again. Otherwise, any problem at any point will push her into an abyss of no return.

Therefore, finding a safe way to verify this information in the southwest is particularly important...

Just as Gu Jinghong was pondering this, she saw Xuan Ru's figure walking towards the restricted area from afar, seemingly carrying something in her hand, holding a handkerchief, and then knocking on the door.

Gu Jinghong suddenly became interested—she had known Xuan Ru for many years and knew his character very well. Either the other party had paid her an exorbitant medical fee, or was exceptionally handsome; otherwise, Xuan Ru wouldn't have personally taken care of him. This must be why a rogue like Xie Yan could still receive Xuan Ru's treatment.

But a moment later, Gu Jinghong saw that Xuan Ru still came out carrying the things as before, and the other party seemed... not to appreciate it?

Gu Jinghong took the grass out of her mouth and subconsciously sat up straight—the people here are quite interesting. They went through all that trouble to come to Medicine Master Valley, and they still won't drink their medicine. And not only that, but Xuan Ru is so patient with this patient? Is he incredibly wealthy, or exceptionally handsome?