Chapter 44 Divergence
Guan Xiaoxian made a decision on such a big matter in just the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.
Lin Chengye's words carried weight, and the elders in the hall displayed various expressions, yet none dared to utter a single question. Guan Yue stood at the end of the line, head bowed, suppressing a laugh, lest his expression be too convincing and he be caught by the other elders later and questioned about it.
Guan Xiaoxian walked down and helped Lin Chengye up. Her broad hand grasped the young man's calloused fingertips. The two looked at each other for a moment, and though they didn't say anything, their feelings were clear.
"Dr. Bian, the Two-Headed Bone-Growing Serpent is now in your care."
Guan Xiaoxian was clearly in a good mood, and she went out laughing. Bian Yi couldn't understand why she suddenly changed her mind, or how she got the two-headed serpent. Even in her dreams, she hadn't had such a wonderful dream come true in a long time.
"Thank you for your kindness, Master Guan. I owe you a favor in return," Bian Yi hurriedly said.
"Oh? This is truly an extraordinary gift."
This statement was unexpected for Guan Xiaoxian, who turned around and raised an eyebrow. Actually, she didn't feel it was a loss. If the Bone-Body Two-Headed Serpent wasn't used, it was just something to embellish the Heavenly Mystery Sect. Moreover, this beast was extremely vicious and had bitten many sect members when it was first fed.
Even without this item, the Divine Pivot Heavenly Mystery Sect remains the number one sect in the martial arts world, so there's nothing to regret. Now, using it to save his daughter and gaining a favor from the King of Hell for nothing, it's a win-win situation no matter how you look at it.
"As you remember, Divine Physician Bian. The most urgent task is to rebuild Chengye's inner sea and reconnect his meridians. I await your good news."
"January!"
As if afraid that Guan Xiaoxian might suddenly change her mind, Bian Yi quickly agreed. In fact, it would take three months to fully recover after the procedure, which would be late autumn or early winter by then.
She grabbed the cage containing the two-headed serpent with one hand. Suddenly, the serpent became agitated, opening its blood-red mouth and gnawing incessantly at the iron cage, its eyes bloodshot.
Bian Yi barked twice like calling a dog, and a flash of golden light appeared between his two fingers. Two needles, as thick as hair but as long as a palm, pierced through the junction of the snake's head and body. The once arrogant beast immediately curled up in pain, twisted and rolled around in the cage a few times, and then went limp and motionless.
...
"Today is a good day."
Bian Yi hummed a few off-key lines of a song happily as she walked side by side with Lin Chengye back to the courtyard.
The contents of the cage were too conspicuous, so Lin Chengye wrapped them back in red silk, but they still attracted frequent glances.
"What, you're not even going to ask me what happened between the two of us?"
Lin Chengye smiled.
Bian Yi was almost the same as usual today, smiling as she talked to her about trivial matters, such as how the elders in the palace had lined up to come to her for treatment a few days ago. They didn't actually have any serious illnesses, but as people get older, they start to worry that they won't live much longer.
It was as if nothing had happened when she entered the Southern Qi palace. If she hadn't witnessed Bian Yi being driven nearly mad by Mi Fan's words yesterday, she probably would have believed that what happened today was real.
Lin Chengye now feels he can't understand Bian Yi. Perhaps it wasn't her intention, but the twenty-year age gap between them meant that there were many things she couldn't participate in. The concept of a friendship across generations is inherently difficult, and this realization still makes him feel somewhat disheartened.
"Anyway, we already have it, and Sect Leader Guan can't go back on his word. I won't ask any more questions." Bian Yi shook her head, and suddenly her words were tinged with annoyance.
"But I really wanted you to inherit Jiang Jinmeng. Now she's beaten me to it. What are we going to do with such a big Jiang Jinmeng?"
"You're not that old, and you're already thinking about retiring?" Lin Chengye asked in surprise.
"I'm not good at managing such a large alliance. I'm lucky if I can manage my own life. I've also said that it's all thanks to those four. If you were the alliance leader, it might be better."
Suddenly, Bian Yi looked at her seriously and said.
"However, I must give you the Yunya Yitian Manual. This thing was forcibly given to me by the previous manual master. But this thing can only be considered temporarily stored in my possession. It needs to be taken over by a truly upright person."
This sounded strange, and Lin Chengye frowned before speaking.
"Even the most upright character is a matter of personal taste; why do you have to be like this..."
Before Lin Chengye could finish speaking, Bian Yi continued, smiling as she looked at him. Lin Chengye couldn't pinpoint the source of his unease, and ultimately swallowed his confusion.
...
She came back too late yesterday and got up too early today. As soon as Lin Chengye got back to the house, his eyelids started to droop and he kept yawning. He urged her to go to the room and take a nap, without worrying about how long she would sleep.
It was already very hot in Southern Qi, and they dared not put too many ice buckets in the room. Lin Chengye lay on the bed for a while, and sweat began to drip from her forehead. The heat made her irritable.
Lin Chengye tossed and turned in bed for an unknown amount of time. Her consciousness gradually became hazy, as if she were floating on a lake or sea, but not completely submerged. Yet, she clearly realized that she was not truly asleep.
Suddenly, Lin Chengye felt the bed beside him slowly sink a bit, followed by a cool breeze that gently blew the hair that clung to his cheeks.
Lin Chengye comfortably rolled over and lay flat on her back, letting the breeze fall entirely on her exposed neck. The breeze stirred her consciousness slightly, and she opened her eyes a crack. As expected, the person was sitting on the edge of the bed, his usually high-tied hair now loose, his expression indifferent, his lips pursed as he looked at a book in his hand, while a palm-leaf fan was being fanned up and down in his other hand.
"Did I wake you up?" Bian Yi immediately sensed the change in Lin Chengye's breathing and asked softly.
"No... I have something I want to ask you."
Lin Chengye gestured for Bian Yi to come closer, but her voice was hoarse and she couldn't speak.
"how?"
“I went to see Chu Wuding last night, and he… told me about the Half-Immortal. I probably know everything that he can know.”
Lin Chengye clearly saw Bian Yi's face stiffen, and her lips instantly lose their color. She seemed to have a lot to say, her lips opening and closing many times, but she couldn't utter a sound. Finally, Bian Yi sighed and asked nervously.
"What...do you think of fortune tellers? Are you interested in becoming one?"
“I have no interest whatsoever. Even if I fail to take revenge in this lifetime, I will never become a demigod.”
Lin Chengye answered decisively.
"Chu Wuding told me that all the half-immortals are unforgivable sinners, but I'm not really sure. If the person Mi Fan mentioned is indeed unforgivable, are all the other half-immortals the same? He told the story of the first three half-immortals; were they also unforgivable sinners?"
“Cheng Ye, Chu Wuding is right.” Bian Yi’s expression was extremely indifferent as he tugged at the corner of his mouth, which could hardly be called a smile.
"Whatever the reason, the fortune teller is not innocent."
"You really think so too?"
"I've always thought so."
When their eyes met, it was like the uncertain clouds touching a cold mountain, neither willing to yield. Bian Yi's gaze was almost too firm, bordering on resolute. Lin Chengye, on the other hand, was somewhat annoyed. She couldn't understand why Bian Yi didn't hesitate at all, not even Chu Wuding was as decisive as her.
"never mind."
Lin Chengye first looked away, turned his head, and said in a somewhat stiff tone.
"What's going on with Qin Ruoliu? Why did you... tell Chu Wuding not to go looking for her? Is it really not her?"
"...It was her. She was the executioner in the destruction of Qingluan Medicine Valley."
Bian Yi stared intently at Lin Chengye.
“But Chengye, you know that too, don’t you? She’s not the one in control; she’s a knife, a powerful and useful knife.”
"Chu Wuding and I were just guessing, why are you so sure?"
"...I asked Qin Ruoliu myself, I questioned her."
"Then why emphasize not letting Chu Wuding go? You can't deal with the half-immortal, but he can. Even if he can't go to Lai Kingdom, it doesn't mean there's no way..."
"She has received the punishment she deserved!"
Bian Yi growled, his eyes unusually filled with anger as he looked at Lin Chengye. The two had been speaking increasingly urgently, almost turning into an argument, but it was suddenly stopped by Bian Yi's self-destructive words.
The faint sparks between the two could find no place to land, so they drifted through the sweltering air and floated in the air.
But for some reason, Lin Chengye felt that Bian Yi's expression was becoming increasingly pitiful. She must be extremely angry, but what was that anger directed at? It certainly wasn't him.
Whether it was Bian Yi's eyes brimming with tears, the downturned corners of her eyes, or the hopelessness etched on her lips, there was a kind of suffering she couldn't comprehend, a suffering compounded by an immense amount of time.
Her wisdom cannot transcend time to understand all the scars on an old tree, nor can it trace their origin.
"...Is it because her Yulin City was also destroyed?" Lin Chengye paused, calming himself down.
"...Sorry, I wasn't angry with you." Bian Yi rubbed his eyes and exhaled a breath of stale air.
"Yes, she's gone mad too. So be it. She's... reached her end. Qin Ruoliu is now just an empty shell. She's merely alive, breathing. Her ambitions, her family, everything she wanted to protect are all destroyed. That hurts far more than killing her."
Her words were somewhat incoherent and illogical, and Lin Chengye could only barely understand them. She bit her lower lip, stretched out her arm and placed it across her eyes, the skin obstructing the movement of her eyeballs.
"Never mind, I'm going to sleep a little longer."
This conversation ended without a conclusion.
Lin Chengye quickly fell asleep again under the silent cool breeze of the palm-leaf fan. This time she slept very soundly, greedily enjoying such a tranquil and gentle time.
She wasn't actually worried that this argument would create any rift between them, but Lin Chengye realized that beneath Bian Yi's incredibly easygoing and carefree exterior lay a stubborn and biased side.
...
He woke up again to the sound of rustling conversation. Lin Chengye was wondering why it was so lively today, but when he listened carefully, he realized that the voices seemed to be right next to his ear.
"Why is she still sleeping? We've been waiting for half an hour." An impatient voice said, but it was clear that the voice was being kept as low as possible.
"Don't rush, Doctor Bian said Cheng Ye slept little today and shouldn't be woken up, have you forgotten?" another voice said gently.
"...Of course I remember. If it weren't for Doctor Bian saying so, I would have woken her up long ago." His impatient voice rose a little, then he quickly suppressed it.
"Ah, good things come to those who wait..." Before the lukewarm voice could finish speaking, a new voice suddenly chimed in softly.
"I'm awake."
Yu Jiang and Liu Zhenglin were both startled. The two were standing by Lin Chengye's bedside, talking to each other.
Yu Jiang coughed, raised an eyebrow, and couldn't hide his joy in his tone.
She reached out to pull the blanket off Lin Chengye. Lin Chengye had a bad feeling and quickly snatched it back.
"When did you get back? Why didn't you tell us? It was the Master who told us the news," Yu Jiang said, dissatisfied.
"Just got back, just got back." Lin Chengye touched the tip of his nose guiltily. He had been too busy these past few days and had indeed forgotten.
"Shall we go then?" Liu Zhenglin gestured towards the outside, raising his hands to reveal two jars of wine he was carrying.
"Huh?" Lin Chengye looked a little confused.
"You haven't forgotten, have you?" Yu Jiang crossed his arms and snorted coldly.
"You still owe us a meal."
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