Chapter 102 A single needle strikes the heavens, making the Bai family patriarch bow down in submission!
Bai Qishan led the two through several corridors, finally stopping in front of a magnificent building made entirely of black boulders.
There are no superfluous decorations, only an overwhelming sense of solemnity and grandeur.
Above the lintel, three ancient characters are carved in a flowing, elegant style: Trial Hall.
Just standing here, an invisible pressure descends heavily, making one's heart tighten.
"The clan leader and the elders are already waiting in the hall." Bai Qishan stopped, his expression more solemn than ever before.
He looked at Su Wanqing: "Child, the Bai family's trial to return to the clan is no child's play. It tests both medical skills and character. Are you... ready?"
Su Wanqing nodded, her gaze calm and serene: "Ready."
Bai Qishan then turned to Lu Zhanting, his face apologetic: "Mr. Lu, according to clan rules, outsiders are not allowed to enter the Trial Hall. Please move to the side hall and wait for a moment."
Lu Zhanting frowned slightly, and his eyes darkened.
But he knew that this was a battlefield she had to face alone.
He gripped Su Wanqing's hand tightly, his knuckles digging into it, and whispered, "I'll be waiting for you outside. Don't be afraid, you're the strongest."
The scorching heat of her palms was her strongest support.
Su Wanqing smiled at him, her smile filled with unwavering determination.
"Creak—"
The heavy stone door opened inward, as if an ancient behemoth had opened its mouth.
Su Wanqing released Lu Zhanting's hand and, led by Bai Qishan, stepped alone into the deep darkness.
With a loud crash, the stone door slammed shut behind her, separating the two worlds.
The Trial Hall was surprisingly spacious, with a high dome and several unidentified crystals emitting a soft yet bright light, illuminating the entire hall as if it were daytime.
Directly above, a row of stone seats stands solemnly.
Seated in the center was a man in a white robe, with white hair and beard, but his face was as smooth as a middle-aged man's, without a single wrinkle.
His eyes were closed, his breath was long and deep, as if he had become one with the world around him.
Bai Jinghong, the head of the Bai family.
To his left and right, several elders exuded equally unfathomable auras. Su Wanqing caught a glimpse of Bai Zhi standing behind one of the elders, her gaze filled with venom and provocation.
Su Wanqing withdrew her gaze, fixing it on the center of the hall, her mind as calm as still water.
She bowed slightly, her voice clear and cold: "Su Wanqing greets the clan leader and elders."
Bai Jinghong slowly opened his eyes.
In that instant, Su Wanqing felt as if she were being stared at by a sleeping, prehistoric beast.
An invisible pressure suddenly descended, as if it would crush her bones inch by inch!
This is not a deliberate targeting, but rather the natural aura emanating from those who have long held positions of power, enough to cause those with weak wills to collapse on the spot.
Su Wanqing's fingertips trembled slightly, but her back stood as straight as an unyielding gun, meeting the scrutinizing gaze without flinching.
A slight ripple finally crossed Bai Jinghong's usually calm eyes.
The oppressive aura receded quietly like a tide.
"You have come bearing this token. According to the rules, you must pass three trials before you can return to your clan." His voice was calm, yet it resonated in the empty hall. "Any objections?"
"No."
"Alright." Bai Jinghong nodded slightly. "The first test is to identify the herbs."
As soon as he finished speaking, a dull thud came from the stone wall on one side of the hall as a mechanism slowly moved aside.
An entire wall of medicine shelves was prominently displayed.
There are thousands of kinds of medicinal herbs, each with a different shape.
Some are intact, while others are just broken roots and leaves; some have a clear and refreshing medicinal fragrance, while others have a strange and fishy smell; and there are even miraculous herbs that have long been extinct in the outside world and are full of radiant beauty.
An elder stepped forward, his voice booming: "There are 1,080 kinds of medicinal herbs here, including 360 kinds of counterfeit, poisonous, and similar interfering substances. Within one hour, identify their names, properties, and authenticity, and record them on paper. If you get one wrong or exceed the time limit, you will fail."
Upon hearing this, even Bai Qishan's expression changed.
This difficulty far exceeds that of the Trials of Returning to the Ancestor in previous generations!
Bai Zhi couldn't help but smile, her lips curling into a smug grin. She herself had faced a terrifying ordeal to pass this exam; what made this wild, untamed girl think she could?
Su Wanqing walked to the long table in front of the wall, picked up a pen, but did not write anything immediately.
She closed her eyes.
My mind sank into the space within my body, where the aura of the spiritual spring intertwined and resonated with the rich spiritual energy from the outside world.
In an instant, her senses were magnified a thousandfold.
The aroma, energy strength, and spiritual properties of thousands of medicinal herbs transformed into an incredibly clear three-dimensional map in her mind.
Which one contains pure vitality, which one hides deadly poison, which one is merely an empty shell with depleted spiritual energy... everything is revealed.
Su Wanqing opened her eyes again, her gaze clear and bright.
She moved.
The steps were slow, yet carried a strange rhythm, as they walked from one end of the wall to the other.
Her gaze didn't even linger on most of the medicinal herbs; her nose twitched slightly, as if she wasn't looking but "smelling."
At the same time, her pen flew across the paper, making a constant scratching sound.
"Tianshan snow lotus, fake. It is made from a century-old white cabbage soaked in ice spring water and accelerated by a secret method. It looks similar but has no warming and nourishing effects."
"Dragon Blood Vine, genuine. 310 years old, at the peak of its vitality."
"Heartbreak Grass, mixed in with Seven Star Grass, has leaves with a single vein, is highly poisonous, and can kill instantly."
She not only wrote down the authenticity, but also clearly marked the manufacturing techniques of the counterfeit, the exact year of the genuine article, and the subtle characteristics of the poison!
The room was deathly silent, save for the scratching sound of pens on paper.
The composure on the elders' faces was shattered by shock. They looked at each other, each seeing disbelief in the other's eyes.
Bai Zhi's smile froze completely on her face, her eyes shifting from disdain to shock, and then to disbelief.
The clan chief Bai Jinghong, who sat at the head of the table, leaned forward slightly, his unchanging posture unchanged for millennia, his gaze fixed on the composed figure.
In less than half an hour.
Su Wanqing finished the last stroke.
She turned and bowed to the person in the main seat: "Reporting to the clan leader, the identification is complete."
The presiding elder strode forward, picked up the few sheets of paper covered in writing, and his hands trembled slightly.
He checked each item one by one, his expression becoming increasingly complex, and fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.
After a long silence, he raised his head, his voice trembling with excitement: "Reporting to the clan leader... all one thousand and eighty kinds of medicinal herbs, correct! Not a single mistake! Absolutely perfect!"
The entire audience erupted in uproar!
This is no longer medical skill, this is a miracle!
The first time Bai Jinghong's eyes gleamed with true brilliance was like the burning desire of a hunter seeing a priceless treasure.
He nodded slowly and uttered six words: "First test passed. Prepare for the second test."
Before the words were finished, the other stone door opened, and two people carried in a stretcher on which lay an old man with a pale face and weak breath.
"The second test is pulse diagnosis." Bai Jinghong's voice deepened. "This is our clan's seventh elder. Three years ago, he suffered a qi deviation while practicing martial arts and has been in a coma ever since. All the clan's physicians are helpless and can only prolong his life with spiritual medicine. If you can diagnose the root cause of his illness and explain the treatment method, you will pass this test."
Su Wanqing walked to the stretcher, and after just one glance, her heart sank.
The Seventh Elder's skin was shrouded in dark energy, and his aura was faint and elusive. This was definitely not a simple case of qi deviation.
She extended three fingers and gently placed them on the Seventh Elder's withered wrist.
Seeing this, Bai Zhi couldn't help but sneer, "Pretending! Even my father is helpless with this illness, what can a naive girl like you, who comes from humble beginnings, possibly know?"
Her father was Bai Changqing, the chief medical officer of the Bai family.
Su Wanqing ignored him, and a wisp of internal energy probed into his fingertips.
The true energy in his meridians flowed in reverse, creating a chaotic mess, and a cold and eerie force suddenly rebounded!
Su Wanqing let out a muffled groan, her fingertips jerking as if struck by lightning, and she quickly withdrew them, her face paling slightly.
"What? Are you scared already?" Bai Zhi's mockery was even more grating.
Su Wanqing closed her eyes and regulated her breathing; conventional diagnostic methods were no longer effective.
The only solution is to use her trump card.
She reached out again, this time, her fingertips carrying a barely perceptible wisp of spiritual spring energy, carefully probing into the Seventh Elder's body.
That aura, like a divine lamp, instantly illuminated all the darkness and chaos within the Seventh Elder's body.
Su Wanqing "saw" it.
Deep within his dantian, a swirling black mist lurked, greedily devouring his life force and true energy.
This is not going astray.
This is an ancient and rare poison that has long been lost—the Soul-Eating Gu!
This poison does not harm the body, but devours the soul, until it turns the host into an empty shell, a walking corpse.
Su Wanqing withdrew her hand, already understanding the situation.
She raised her eyes, looked directly at Bai Jinghong, and said each word slowly and deliberately, each word carrying immense weight: "The Seventh Elder did not suffer from a qi deviation, but was poisoned by a strange poison called 'Soul-Eating Gu'."
"Nonsense!" Bai Changqing stood up abruptly and retorted sharply, "I and the physicians have examined him countless times, and there is absolutely no sign of poisoning in the Seventh Elder's body!"
“This Gu parasitizes the soul; it’s an unconventional poison, so it can’t be detected by ordinary methods,” Su Wanqing replied calmly.
"You're just making baseless accusations. What evidence do you have?" Bai Changqing pressed aggressively.
"The proof is curing him." Su Wanqing's tone was resolute and firm.
"I need a set of silver needles, as well as three herbs: Zhiyang grass, black nightshade root, and phoenix tail flower."
These herbs have conflicting properties; when mixed, they become highly poisonous!
"Nonsense!" Bai Changqing roared in fury. "This is a method of murder! Clan leader, this woman is wicked and intends to use this opportunity to harm the Seventh Elder!"
The elders were also full of doubts, and even Bai Qishan was sweating bullets for her.
Su Wanqing did not argue, but looked at Bai Jinghong in the main seat with clear and unwavering eyes: "Please, clan leader, trust me this once."
Bai Jinghong's insightful eyes gazed intently at her, as if trying to see through her soul.
The lobby was deathly silent.
After a long while, he slowly spoke, his voice not loud, but carrying an undeniable authority.
"Give it to her."
"Clan leader!" Bai Changqing and the others exclaimed in alarm.
"I told you, give it to her."
The silver needles and medicinal herbs were served quickly.
Su Wan-qing publicly crushed the three medicinal herbs using a special technique, mixing them into a pool of dark green medicinal juice.
She took out the longest silver needle, soaked it in the medicinal liquid, and aimed it at the ancestral acupoint in the center of the Seventh Elder's forehead.
Everyone's heart was in their throat.
Su Wanqing flicked her wrist, and the silver needle pierced in with lightning speed!
The second needle, the third needle... nine silver needles fell, forming a mysterious array under her fingers, the depth and angle of each needle were exquisitely precise.
After doing all this, she had beads of sweat on her forehead.
Time passed by, second by second.
The Seventh Elder on the stretcher showed no reaction.
Bai Zhi's cold smile reappeared: "See? Just trying to attract attention, creating a false sense of mystery..."
Before the words were even finished, a sudden change occurred!
The Seventh Elder's body suddenly convulsed violently, and the ends of the nine silver needles between his eyebrows began to exude wisps of black energy, thicker than ink!
The black mist struggled and climbed like a living thing, but it was trapped by the medicinal juice attached to the needle and could not escape.
"puff--"
The Seventh Elder suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of incredibly foul-smelling black blood!
The black blood splattered on the ground, making a sizzling, corrosive sound and sending up a wisp of blue smoke!
As he spat out the mouthful of black blood, the deathly pallor on the Seventh Elder's face faded visibly, and although his breathing remained weak, it became steady and powerful.
The entire room fell silent.
Everyone was terrified by what they saw.
Bai Changqing's old face drained of color. He staggered back half a step, muttering, "It really...it really is Gu poison..."
Su Wanqing removed the silver needles, wrote down a prescription, and handed it to Bai Qishan: "With this prescription, the Seventh Elder will wake up within seven days."
Bai Qishan accepted the prescription with trembling hands, treating it as a precious treasure.
At that moment, Bai Jinghong, the clan chief who had been sitting upright like a mountain, slowly stood up.
He walked down the platform step by step.
He came up to Su Wanqing.
He looked at this young man, whose face was tired but whose spine was still straight. In his calm eyes, there was an unprecedented shock, excitement and ecstasy.
Amidst the stunned silence of the entire audience.
Bai Jinghong, the patriarch of the Bai family, bowed deeply to Su Wanqing, his waist, which had been noble for nearly a hundred years.
He performed a very solemn and respectful bow.
"My Bai family owes you a huge favor."
"child……"
Welcome home.
The aged yet powerful voice echoed in every corner of the Trial Hall, striking heavily into the hearts of everyone present.
At this moment, all doubts, scrutiny, and hostility vanished into dust.
Su Wanqing's eyes welled up slightly.
From an orphan abandoned by her family to standing here today, receiving a bow from the highest authority of the entire family.
She walked this path for too long, and it was too difficult.
"Boom—"
The doors of the Trial Hall opened with a click, letting in golden sunlight.
Lu Zhanting rushed in immediately, his gaze piercing through everyone and landing precisely on Su Wanqing in the center of the hall.
He saw that she was safe and sound.
He saw that the elders who had once held high positions around her were now looking up at his wife with a mixture of awe, gratitude, and fervor.
His heart finally settled back into his chest.
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