Chapter 44 Marking the Boat to Find the Sword: Only That Year Surpasses Every Other Year
In the dimly lit dungeon, a single candle flickered. Ning Hanshuang wiped away her tears and looked at the newcomer through the oppressive atmosphere of the cell.
“He is dead,” Ning Hanshuang said in a low voice.
The candlelight burst in the darkness, and the shadowy figure swayed in the backlight.
The newcomer seemed unwilling to see his old friend again in the dim light; he raised a lamp again, illuminating the distance between Ning Hanshuang and himself.
Xi Ling gazed at the already dead Huo Yunfeng, and repeated:
He is dead.
The moment the light came on, a flash of hatred crossed Ning Hanshuang's eyes, but it didn't escape Xi Ling's gaze.
Xi Ling didn't care, she only focused on Huo Yunfeng, who was no longer human, and her utter madness overshadowed her dried-up sorrow.
He chuckled briefly, blew out the candle, took the lamp with him, and the dungeon returned to darkness.
He had just stepped out of the dungeon when he saw Feng Lian stumbling towards him. From a distance, it seemed that she had lost a hand and looked utterly disheveled.
Xi Ling coldly watched as Xie Fenglian walked towards him like a stray dog, and only when he reached him did he reach out and block Xie Fenglian's path.
"Xi Ling, quickly find me a doctor!" Xie Fenglian grabbed Xi Ling's sleeve with her only remaining hand, dark red blood smeared on the sleeve, like a vengeful ghost.
"Doctor?" Xi Ling smiled enigmatically, then quickly adopted a genuinely concerned expression. He nodded, "Go to the East Garden, and I'll find you a top-tier doctor."
Xie Fenglian had no suspicions and walked towards the East Garden, but she turned back several times, only to see Xi Ling's flawless smile.
"Xi Ling, don't forget that only I can kill Lin Youbie!" Xie Fenglian felt a chill run down her spine, reminding Xi Ling and comforting herself.
Soon, Xi Ling arrived at the East Garden with a doctor who was over thirty years old.
His smile was gentle, showing no sign of madness, and he acted like a gentleman as he led the way.
"My friend is injured, so I'm sorry to trouble you to make this extra trip."
The doctor waved his hand: "Saving patients and treating them is just my duty."
Xi Ling pushed open the door and, unsurprisingly, found that Xie Fenglian had already fainted, and the hastily treated wound on her severed hand was already red, swollen, and festering.
"The wound is so clean; your friend must have been injured by a sharp weapon."
Xi Ling was not surprised; he had already guessed that Zhou Ziheng was behind it. He was not particularly alarmed and nodded slightly.
He turned and closed the door. In an instant, the natural light disappeared, and the room was filled with shadows. Before the doctor could panic for long, Xi Ling quickly lit the lamp.
A complete tea set was laid out on the table. Xi Ling calmly poured tea while slowly speaking to the doctor, who was looking at her with alarm: "Doctor, my friend has no other requests. He just hopes to wake up. Do you think this is easy to handle?"
The doctor stared in disbelief at the gleaming sword already drawn from its sheath behind Xi Ling, swallowed hard, and stammered, "E-good, easy, this isn't, it's not difficult..."
The doctor shakily pulled out his medical kit. Under the cold glint of the "Xiang Wang" sword, he could barely hold the herbs. In the end, he could only apply them to the wound and make a haphazard bandage.
These simple steps almost scared the doctor half to death. He stole glances at Xi Ling while wiping away sweat.
Xi Ling didn't really pay much attention to the doctor's subtle movements. In his line of sight, another identical version of himself was hugging him, and then he quickly looked away to check on the unconscious Xie Fenglian.
He laughed and said, "Keeping him alive until now is really an eyesore. If you ask me, we should have killed him long ago."
Xi Ling closed her eyes slightly, ignoring the words of her imagined self.
The imagined version of herself continued to laugh: "That's true. With Jie Fenglian dead, who would kill Lin Youbie for you? If Lin Youbie were willing to share an extra lotus seed, why would my Mei Zhiying have left so hastily?"
"Ah! I hate it so much! I wish I could tear Xie Fenglian to pieces!"
While Fantasy was speaking, the doctor finally finished the emergency treatment.
He used acupuncture to wake Xie Fenglian, and dared not linger. He picked up his medical kit and fled without asking for payment.
Xi Ling's expression was calm; years of hard work for Xi Bao had etched wrinkles onto his face.
He looked at Xie Fenglian, who had just woken up, her face still showing the pain and confusion of struggle. He looked at himself laughing wildly beside Xie Fenglian, silently poured a cup of tea, and handed it to Xie Fenglian.
He said, "I haven't even had a chance to ask you who hurt you like this."
He laughed: "Kill him! Kill him!!"
Xie Fenglian was still somewhat dazed. She reflexively took the tea, drank it all in one gulp, and said bitterly, "It's all because of that good disciple Lin Youbie! But I think he's about to die anyway. I don't believe he can survive after being pushed to the limit like that!"
Xi Ling smiled and said, "Really? It seems our plan is going smoothly."
Fantasy laughed even louder: "Hahaha! This day has finally come!"
Jie Fenglian continued, "Yes! Finally, we can—"
Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, which splashed into the teacup and became blood flakes floating in the tea.
"Xi Ling! You!"
Jie Fenglian's eyes were bloodshot with rage; she couldn't believe that Xi Ling would poison her to kill her!
At this moment, his internal organs were in excruciating pain, as if being cut by knives. His pupils were wide open, but he only managed to utter half a sentence: "Without me, you couldn't have killed Lin..."
The poison took effect quickly; Xie Fenglian didn't even have time to close her eyes before she collapsed and stopped breathing.
Xi Ling laughed as he rose, his figure merging with his fantasy. He went to Xie Fenglian's side, cradled his stiff head, and raved:
"If it weren't for you, how could Huo Yunfeng have lost his mind so quickly?! If it weren't for you, how could my Zhiying have gotten hurt?! Every moment I use you, you vicious scum, I feel utterly disgusted!!"
Xi Ling grasped Xiang Wang and slowly dissected Xie Fenglian's gray eyes, cruelly gouging out both eyeballs.
Blood streamed down his hands, and the gleaming sword reflected Qi Ling's crazed smile.
Fantasy laughed wildly to the side, shouting, "That's right!! That's it!! Only by slowly killing him can I quell the hatred in my heart!"
For many years, Xi Ling calmly watched her fantasies run rampant, observing from the sidelines and never speaking to the other party.
But today, perhaps it's because a great grudge has been avenged, or perhaps it's because of long-suppressed emotions—
Xi Ling finally echoed her imagined self, saying, "That's right, it can't quell the hatred in my heart."
"Zhiying..."
Xi Bingyi, far away at Plum Blossom Manor, could not witness this scene. She waited anxiously and bewildered until she finally saw Zhou Ziheng and Huo Qin, who were in a disheveled state.
Besides the arrow wound that pierced his left chest, Huo Qin's left little finger was also missing.
Zhou Ziheng, who was being carried on his back, was unconscious and covered in blood.
Hongchen, being carried by Huo Qin, relaxed the moment he saw Xi Bingyi, and the two of them collapsed together.
Xi Bingyi screamed, her voice muffled, and she only had time to lunge at Huo Qin, seemingly to catch the two disheveled figures.
...
It's hot, very hot.
In the darkness, Huo Qin opened his eyes.
In the midst of nothingness, he unexpectedly glimpsed glimpses of Huo Yunfeng and Ning Hanshuang's daily life at home through fragmented memories.
A gentle lullaby was hummed from Ning Hanshuang's lips; it was rare to see Ning Hanshuang, who was usually as cold as a goddess, being so tender.
She had just put little Huo Qin to sleep when she saw Huo Yunfeng tiptoeing up to her side.
"This kid is so lucky. You've never flattered me like this before," Huo Yunfeng said in a low voice.
Ning Hanshuang remained silent. Looking back, she saw that the laurel wreath on Huo Yunfeng's forearm resembled a gaping maw.
She frowned, her expression turning somber.
Seeing that Ning Hanshuang was in a bad mood, Huo Yunfeng quickly gave her a hug and comforted her, "It's okay, Mei Zhiying and Xi Ling are already helping me find a solution."
Ning Hanshuang nestled in his arms and sighed softly.
"Actually, things are fine as they are now. Even if there's no way to solve it, I'm still very happy."
Huo Yunfeng lowered his head and kissed Ning Hanshuang's hair, a satisfied smile appearing on his face.
“I have long accepted it. I have lost a lot in my life, but I have also gained a lot. Apart from not being able to let go of you and the children, I have no other regrets.”
The scene abruptly ends here. Flames engulf everything, burning away memories. Everything from the very beginning is erased and devoured, like a raging fire leaving only ashes.
Huo Qin only had time to realize that this happened after Huo Yunfeng lost control and stabbed Mei Zhiying, and then left Plum Blossom Manor with Ning Hanshuang.
At this time, Mei Zhiying and Xi Ling were still actively searching for a way to break the curse, and everything had not yet veered into an irreversible abyss.
However, as the flames consumed him, his memory became as empty as a broken window leaking air, and he could no longer find any light.
Huo Qin opened his eyes.
Xi Bingyi looked extremely haggard. Seeing that he had finally woken up, she felt half relieved. She let out a long sigh, wanting to laugh but unable to, only managing a particularly twisted and ugly smile.
"You're finally awake. What happened?"
what happened?
Huo Qin only remembered glancing at the bamboo slip in his haste before rushing to the unconscious Zhou Ziheng. The throbbing pain in his chest made his vision go black.
After finally managing to help Zhou Ziheng up, for some unknown reason, Zhou Ziheng, as if manipulated, snatched the "Report to the Emperor's Will" from his hands—
A sword strikes!
Caught off guard, Huo Qin's already weakened body had no way to avoid it and could only wait to die.
Fortunately, Zhou Ziheng's body was also extremely weak, and he lost his aim, only managing to cut off Huo Qin's little finger.
Fortunately, it's only the little finger of my left hand!
For an archer, losing the crucial little finger would inevitably hinder their martial arts skills...
But Huo Qin had no time to care about martial arts at that moment. He was in so much pain that he was about to faint, but he still gritted his teeth and quickly knocked Zhou Ziheng unconscious, afraid that he would cause any more harm.
On his way back to Plum Blossom Manor, he thought several times that he was going to die.
But when he turned around and saw Zhou Ziheng's dusty face on his back, and thought of his parents' tragic fate, Huo Qin mustered his faith again, which supported him to come back.
Does saving Zhou Ziheng mean that his own father can also be saved?
...
Huo Qin concealed the matter of the bamboo slips and simply recounted what had happened along the way.
Xi Bingyi could sense the danger in his words. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she choked out, "I've read many books, and one of them mentioned that perhaps we could suppress the spread of the curse by inhibiting plant growth. I wonder if it's too late, Senior Brother..."
"It's too late." Huo Qin turned to look at Zhou Ziheng, who was still unconscious, and rolled up his sleeve.
His face was serene, his expression peaceful, and he even had a faint smile on his face, as if he were just in a light sleep.
But if you look down, you can see that his fingertips are covered with vines.
Huo Qin skillfully cut open his palm and fed Zhou Ziheng his blood, but it had no effect. Instead, he was held down by the terrified Xi Bingyi, who quickly used a lot of herbs to stop the bleeding.
"At most another month, on the fifteenth, will be his death day."
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