Chapter 46 Chapter 46 Nirvana (Part 1)
After that night, Lin Chengye experienced a period of relative peace, spending his days moving between the Wenshu Academy, the Baimian Building, and the forging workshop.
Yu Jiang and Liu Zhenglin would stop by Lin Chengye's courtyard to go to school with her, and if they had enough time, they could sit down and eat together. If they didn't have time, they would grab the pastries Bian Yi gave Lin Chengye to take to school for breakfast. Lin Chengye wasn't quite satisfied and mentioned it to Bian Yi in a depressed mood. Bian Yi smiled and said that he would make a separate portion for the two children tomorrow, so they wouldn't fight with her for it. Lin Chengye nodded contentedly.
Lin Chengye didn't know when news of Wei Jingchen's return to the capital would arrive, or how long this situation could last. He could only dedicate himself to studying formations and forging techniques. The Lai Kingdom's palace was fraught with danger.
The more she learned, the more eager she became to reconnect her meridians and resume martial arts training. Especially seeing Bian Yi feeding the two-headed, boneless snake with live chickens and ducks every day fueled her intense desire. Lin Chengye initially found the idea of skinning the snake for medicine somewhat cruel, but his selfishness grew stronger each day, and now his gaze towards the snake was like that of a hungry wolf, his eyes gleaming green.
Bian Yi has been excessively busy lately, and she has visibly lost weight, with dark circles under her eyes and skin clinging to her bones. She spends the entire day engrossed in medical books, barely managing to eat a few bites before her eyes are drawn to them.
Occasionally, she would go out to consult with the doctors in the Tianji Sect, but their medical skills were far inferior to her own, and they all looked embarrassed and said they couldn't help. Bian Yi would then sigh and, as usual, take a silver needle and examine it on her body, muttering to herself.
"Alas, the medical profession is full of quacks..."
Lin Chengye was startled awake in the middle of the night by Bian Yi sitting on a tree branch dressed in white, and thought he was a hanged ghost coming to claim his life.
Normally, that person should indeed be dashing and debonair, but recently Bian Yi's face was ashen, and he even had a few blisters on the corners of his mouth. He was no longer the carefree person he usually was.
Little did she expect that the day was merely frightening. For several days afterward, he simply disappeared. Lin Chengye found only half-cold food and pastries on the table. She quickly realized that they had been living under the same roof for five days without seeing each other. Helpless, she could only hastily write a note and place it under her bowl before going to school.
"Why have you been so busy lately? Are you still worried about my vein reconnection? There are very few cases of this throughout history, so it's okay if it takes a little longer. I hope you take care of yourself."
Returning home late at night, Lin Chengye found the bowl still on the stone table, with a new note underneath. She unfolded it by the moonlight. The handwriting, as always, reflected her free and unrestrained nature.
"I have no experience in using the two-headed snake to reconnect meridians, so I can only be extremely cautious. But just yesterday, I obtained all the rare medicinal herbs I was looking for, and I have also found a suitable place for nurturing the meridians. I truly am a divine physician; the King of Hell is rightfully my equal. In three days, everything will be in order!"
As the writing progressed, the characters became increasingly slanted, like swallows about to leap off the paper, revealing the immense joy in the writer's heart. Lin Chengye couldn't help but smile as well. If word got out that Bian Yi had rescued her, the martial arts world would soon be abuzz with tales of the Divine Physician Bian, capable of reviving the dead and restoring flesh to bones.
But the thought that she would soon no longer have to drag this crippled body, no longer have to endure the excruciating pain on rainy days, and no longer have to envy those with healthy bodies suddenly brought tears to Lin Chengye's eyes. His hands, gripping the note, trembled, and he couldn't help but read it carefully over and over again.
There are still... three days left.
...
When Lin Chengye arrived at his lodging the next day, he lay flat on the bed but couldn't fall asleep.
There was no moon tonight, and her eyes reflected the shadowy branches outside the window. A crow, also awake, stared at her; its pupils, after a while, seemed dull and eerie. Lin Chengye turned over again, the thin blankets rubbing against the silk on her body, and even the slightest sound irritated her.
Can't sleep?
Suddenly, the two windows swayed slightly. Bian Yi's movements were very elegant and graceful. He flicked his fingers through the window, and his body spun around like a fish. His white robe slowly fell to the side of the bed.
Why didn't you use the door?
As Lin Chengye spoke, she couldn't help but laugh. She didn't hide anything, sat up and moved half a body away from Bian Yi, tucked her loose black hair behind her ear, looked sincerely into the man's eyes, and said.
"nervous."
"I'm nervous too."
Bian Yi's faint smile vanished, revealing his true appearance beneath the mask. His brows furrowed, he bit his lower lip, and sighed repeatedly.
She must have gone far away; her hair was disheveled, and there was a piece of brown bark on her face.
"I just went to the back mountain of Shen Shu Tian Ji Men to make some preparations. In theory... everything should be foolproof."
What do I need to do?
Lin Chengye then realized that he hadn't inquired about anything these past few days. To say he trusted him was an understatement; rather, he genuinely didn't know what else to do but listen to Bian Yi.
Heaven was actually quite kind to her; her parents treated her with respect, and her sister-in-law and brother were also very affectionate towards her.
It's just that fate took all of this away too quickly.
But she was able to have a new home and make new friends in the martial arts world, so she should be content and not be constantly trapped in grief and hatred.
"The Bone-Growing Two-Headed Serpent is a yin-yang creature that maintains a delicate balance while alive. However, its bones are extremely yang in nature and are very potent. Moreover, it must wait for them to seep into the blood and slowly repair the meridians, which is bound to be an extremely painful process."
Bian Yi spoke slowly, her brows furrowing more and more tightly. She raised her hand, and suddenly the half-extinguished candle by the bedside was relit, barely illuminating their faces.
"Fortunately, there's a confluence of two springs, one hot and one cold, in the back mountain of the Divine Pivot Heavenly Mystery Sect. I asked Sect Master Guan to have a jade bed made from warm jade from Mengshan City in Southern Qi. You'll lie on it tomorrow, which will alleviate some of the discomfort... but still..."
"What do you do with those snake bones... eat them? Or drink them?"
Lin Chengye rested his chin on his hand with interest, reached out and plucked a green leaf from Bian Yi's head, and said something quite pitiful.
"Dr. Bian, please think of a way. Could you put it in my porridge, or even better, in my chestnut cake?"
"Hmm, that might not work... Chestnut cake will turn bitter, and porridge will turn bitter too..."
Bian Yi knew she was doing it on purpose, but she was still coaxed into chuckling softly.
"I have prepared the necessary medicinal materials, but the most important thing is to use its blood to dissolve its bone powder, add my own blood as a guide, and use the gentle spring breeze and rain as an aid."
"Don't worry, if I can do it, so can you."
Lin Chengye reached out and smoothed the furrowed brow of the man, speaking softly.
"Do your best and accept your fate."
...
On the fifteenth of June, a light drizzle fell in the early morning.
The atmosphere inside the main hall of the Divine Pivot Heavenly Mystery Gate was tense and oppressive, almost solidifying as it crashed down.
Guan Xiaoxian paced back and forth nervously, sighing occasionally. Fang Yanzhou gently closed her eyes, her fair fingertips lightly fiddled with a string of Buddhist prayer beads. She hadn't really believed in them before, but now she could only use them to express her restless feelings.
Guan Yuenan was nearly driven mad by the oppressive atmosphere, so he went outside to get soaked in the rain. Standing atop a tree, he could only see the two springs behind the mountain shrouded in mist. He clasped his hands together and prayed fervently for everything to go well.
In the thick fog, Bian Yi's expression was solemn.
Warm jade serves as my bed, and cold spring water as my blanket.
Lin Chengye was perfectly lucid at this moment. She could hear her own long, steady breathing and the gentle sound of a spring in her ears.
In an instant, the Liaochen Sword was drawn, a flash of silver light, and the head of the Bone-Growing Two-Headed Serpent was severed cleanly. Bian Yi channeled his inner energy into a bowl of spring water to catch the gushing, thick, and viscous hot blood.
He placed his other hand on the snake's corpse, his five fingers circling silver threads, and actually peeled the snake's bones and flesh apart. The scene should have been bloody, but the absence of blood made it somewhat eerie.
Bian Yi's face was cold and indifferent, his head bowed, his face pale. He didn't look like a doctor, but rather like a ruthless demon who would kill without blinking an eye.
The hand controlling the silver thread gathered powerful internal energy, crushing the snake bones like a mountain. The snake bones broke inch by inch, cracking and shattering one after another. Lin Chengye was horrified and couldn't help but turn his head to take a look.
The snake bones beneath his palm had turned to powder, melting into the still-warm snake blood. Without any hesitation, Bian Yi drew a long line across his palm with the Liaochen Sword, and blood dripped down the blade into the snake blood.
So far, everything is going smoothly.
Bian Yi dared not relax, knowing that the most difficult part was yet to come.
"This drug is very potent. Before it takes full effect, it may blur the lines between reality and hallucination. You must keep your mind focused."
Lin Chengye tilted her head slightly, letting the bowl of bright red medicine slide down the bamboo and into the depths of her throat. This was the least bitter medicine she had ever drunk from Bian Yi's hands; even the strong bloody taste had a hint of sweetness.
So sweet, so sweet.
Lin Chengye licked his lips, seemingly still savoring the moment, and even gave a faint smile. But for some reason, that smile was exactly like a snake's—incredibly cold and chilling, sending shivers down one's spine.
"Dr. Bian, it doesn't hurt at all... at all..."
Lin Chengye's voice was strange, sharp and hoarse, like a toddler learning to speak.
Bian Yi's expression changed, and he reached out to lift Lin Chengye's eyelids. His originally dark, round pupils had turned into vertical pupils, with the left eye turning purplish-black and the right eye grayish-white! The colors were exactly the same as those of the two-headed snake!
"You are not Cheng Ye!"
Bian Yi's eyes turned blood red instantly, and he raised his hand to strike out with a palm imbued with internal force.
Lin Chengye, who should have no internal energy at all, actually flipped over easily and dodged the fierce palm strike.
"You beast..."
Bian Yi's sword, Dust Blade, shone brightly, but she dared not swing it lightly again. Looking at the person before her, whose smile stretched almost to his ears, she felt a chill and helplessness in her heart.
“All things have a spirit, let alone us two, who are the most extraordinary beings in the world… Only you, a bunch of utterly foolish people… have imprisoned my sister and me for a hundred years, and now you want to peel our bones to make medicine…”
Lin Chengye twirled a strand of hair between her fingers, her voice ethereal yet tinged with malice. She approached languidly, step by step, forcing Bian Yi to retreat again and again until she leaned against the rock at the very edge of the pool.
This is Lin Chengye's body, she can't... Bian Yi gripped the sword in her hand tightly, but was filled with utter despair.
She once believed that there was nothing that swords and medicine couldn't solve, but reality has repeatedly shown her how useless, laughable, and pathetic that is.
"Since you have stripped me of my bones and drunk my blood, then... let her become... new... flesh and blood for us."
Lin Chengye's fingernails suddenly became long and thin, tearing through the air like sharp blades, and continuously attacking towards Bian Yi.
"Lin Chengye, wake up!" Bian Yi could easily defend herself with her sword, but she could only dodge. She cried out in despair.
“Dr. Bian, you only needed one sword strike to kill us all. Me, my sister, and this girl.”
Lin Chengye said with a smile.
...
It doesn't hurt.
Lin Chengye moved her fingers in surprise. She sat up, and a gust of wind dispersed the mist in front of her, revealing that she was in a dense forest. She was lying on a path worn by people, and not far away was a long bridge with water flowing swiftly beneath it.
Where is this? Lin Chengye stood there blankly, then subconsciously took a step towards the bridge. She just felt as if someone was saying that this was where she should go.
"But... why did I say it didn't hurt just now?" Lin Chengye muttered to himself.
Should she be in pain? Why should she be in pain?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
