Chapter 18 The Disease of Loss
As the sun began to set in the west, a bright moon gradually rose from the distant mountaintop, illuminating the surrounding fields with a clear, cold light, as bright as day.
Mu Yao had been soaked to the bone by the rain, and Qin Wuyan was afraid she would catch a cold, so he took off his outer robe and wrapped it around her. He then took her back to Peach Blossom Palace, ordered people to help her change her clothes, and even had food brought to her.
Mu Yao was worried about her mother, but she had no appetite at all despite the table full of delicacies.
Qin Wuyan comforted her, "Fox Hill is very big, your mother might have gotten lost. Now that so many people are helping you search, she will definitely come back safely. Eat something so that she won't worry about you when she returns."
Mu Yao shook her head again, then suddenly remembered something, took out the Xuanhuo Mirror she always carried, and asked, "Master, can the fire dragon of the Xuanhuo Mirror be summoned without the incantation?"
Qin Wuyan was stunned for a moment, then said, "It's almost impossible."
The fire dragon in the Xuanhuo Mirror is actually the key to activating the Xuanhuo Formation, and the formation requires a specific incantation to execute. Therefore, even the Fenxiang Valley, which has possessed the Xuanhuo Mirror for hundreds of years, must be familiar with the incantation to summon the fire dragon, and the power of the fire dragon is also related to the summoner's cultivation level. At least so far, he has never heard of anyone being able to summon the fire dragon of the Xuanhuo Mirror without knowing the incantation.
But the next moment, Qin Wuyan rejected his own idea.
Mu Yao held her breath and focused her energy. The Xuanhuo Mirror, surrounded by red light, slowly floated in mid-air. As Mu Yao gathered more and more spiritual energy, the red light became brighter and brighter, like a raging fire. Then, the red light suddenly turned into a fire dragon more than a foot long, which circled around the Xuanhuo Mirror.
Qin Wuyan was shocked and his brows furrowed tightly, but he quickly calmed down. Mu Yao could summon a fire dragon, but she was not familiar with the incantation of the Xuanhuo Formation. If the fire dragon was not formed into a formation, and the person who summoned it did not know the incantation and arbitrarily withdrew his spiritual power, he would easily be devoured by the power of the fire dragon.
Seeing the fire dragon rushing towards her, Qin Wuyan quickly waved his hand to block the dragon's flames and said, "Yao'er, don't withdraw your spiritual power. Repeat after me, 'Wind and Lake in Harmony, Water and Fire in Harmony, Extinguish!'"
Mu Yao reacted quickly. After reciting the incantation, the fire dragon disappeared instantly, and the Xuanhuo Mirror floating in mid-air also lost its red light and slowly fell down.
Qin Wuyan caught the Xuanhuo Mirror, looked at Mu Yao with a complicated expression, took her hand, and checked her pulse. He then discovered that there was a special spiritual power in her body.
Fortunately, the spiritual energy was clean and pure, without any trace of evil, so it should not be harmful.
Thinking of this, Qin Wuyan felt relieved, but then suddenly wondered if this spiritual power might have come from her divine tree body.
Legend has it that in ancient times, Gonggong collided with Mount Buzhou, causing the sky to tilt and the earth to sway. The goddess Nuwa severed the legs of a giant tortoise to support the four pillars of heaven and earth. However, these four pillars were situated in the sea and would eventually be eroded and dissolved over time. To prevent the collapse of the sky from causing further destruction to all living beings, the gods ordered the Wood God to plant a divine tree next to each of the four pillars.
The East Sea is represented by Fusang, the South Sea by Jianmu, the West Sea by Ruomu, and the North Sea by Xunmu. Once these four divine trees have grown, they can connect heaven and earth, supporting the vast space between them, and thus replace the pillars of heaven formed by the tortoise's feet.
Because they were planted by the Wood God, the sacred trees all retain the Wood God's divine power.
If the power of the Ruomu Divine Tree belongs to the wood element, then in the Five Elements, wood generates fire. Perhaps this is why she can activate the Profound Fire Mirror without using any incantations?
While Qin Wuyan was still pondering, a disciple rushed over to report: "Sect Master, Yunniang has been found."
Upon hearing this, Mu Yao rushed out, only to find her mother lying on a stretcher, being carried by four disciples.
"Mother, Mother!!" Mu Yao stared wide-eyed in disbelief, ran to her mother, and shook her.
"Mom, what's wrong? Say something!"
The person on the stretcher remained with their eyes closed, offering no response.
“Mother…” Mu Yao held Yun Niang’s hand tightly, tears streaming down her face like broken pearls.
Qin Wuyan ordered someone to take Yunniang to her room. He was well-versed in medicine, so he first took Yunniang's pulse. He found that her pulse was weak and barely perceptible. She had no wounds on her body, but her face was deathly pale and she was barely breathing. No matter how Mu Yao called out to her, she did not open her eyes.
"Where was it found?" Qin Wuyan turned to ask the disciple behind him.
Xie Qingqiu stepped forward and said, "Reporting to the sect master, she was on a small path leading from Tianhu Mountain to Taowu Mountain, but she was hidden in the bushes. When we found her, she was like this. I have already had the doctor examine her, and she has no signs of injury. The disciples guarding the mountain said that there are few people during the day, and they did not see her. They also did not see any other people who had entered Fox Hill."
Today's sect trial has indeed seen fewer people patrolling the mountain than usual, but Fox Hill has a barrier in place, so if anyone were to intrude, Qin Wuyan would be able to detect it immediately.
Could it be someone from Fox Ridge Mountain who harmed Yunniang? But Yunniang had only been at Fox Ridge Mountain for a short time and had never made any enemies. Who would target such an ordinary woman?
Qin Wuyan then asked, "Have you checked her body? Are you sure there are no wounds?"
Xie Qingqiu lowered her head slightly: "This... I haven't looked at it all carefully."
"Take a few female disciples and stay behind to check if she has any injuries." After saying that, Qin Wuyan ordered Tang Yuan to take the others out.
Mu Yao stayed behind and examined Yunniang's body with Xie Qingqiu, but still found nothing suspicious. They had no choice but to open the door again and ask Qin Wuyan for help.
Qin Wuyan checked Yunniang's pulse again, and then injected a stream of spiritual energy into her body, but Yunniang still did not react.
He stared at her, pondered for a long time, and suddenly an incredible idea came to him.
Yunniang's pulse and appearance seemed to be exactly the same as Biyao's after she fell into a deep sleep.
A person who has lost their soul often has a barely perceptible pulse and appears like a dead person, but still retains a trace of breath, making people feel that they are still alive.
Biyao's soul was scattered due to the Love Curse, leaving only a wisp of her soul to protect her body from destruction. Yunniang, an ordinary commoner, could not have had her soul scattered due to magic; someone must have absorbed her soul.
After thinking for a long time, Qin Wuyan suddenly said to Mu Yao, "Yao'er, you try it. Just like you summoned the fire dragon of the Xuanhuo Mirror today, condense your qi and transfer the spiritual energy in your body to your mother. But you can't transfer too much. Stop when you feel that you don't have enough spiritual energy."
Although Mu Yao didn't understand why he had asked her to do it, she still did as he asked. When she had transferred seventy or eighty percent of her spiritual energy to Yun Niang, she saw Yun Niang's eyelashes tremble slightly and she slowly opened her eyes.
Mu Yao was both surprised and delighted: "Mother, Mother, are you awake? It's me, Yao'er! Mother, look at me!"
Yunniang's eyes were vacant, and she made no further movement except for opening them. Qin Wuyan took her pulse again; although it was still weak, it was clearer than before.
Just as Mu Yao was about to channel spiritual energy into her again, Qin Wuyan stopped her, saying, "You can't lose anymore, or your body won't be able to take it."
"But what about my mother? Master, what happened to my mother? Who killed her?"
Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, and her face was covered in tears. She looked utterly miserable.
Qin Wuyan felt a pang of heartache and pulled her into his arms, comforting her, "Yao'er, I will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly. Given your mother's current condition, I suspect that she was most likely possessed by some demon who stole a part of her soul. But fortunately, her soul wasn't completely scattered, so there is still hope for her resurrection."
Hearing that there was still hope, Mu Yao wiped away her tears: "Then how can we save her?"
Qin Wuyan gently stroked her head, his tone heavy: "Yao'er, I don't know much about the soul-loss disease either. However, you were born with a wood element, and the spiritual power you cultivated is extremely pure. I once read in an ancient book that among the five elements, wood element spiritual power has the effect of bringing withered trees back to life and reviving the dead. So the spiritual power you transferred to her just now should have been useful to her."
Mu Yao was both surprised and delighted: "So, I can save my mother?"
Qin Wuyan remained silent for a while, then nodded: "From the current perspective, you can indeed do it, but your foundation is still shallow, and your spiritual energy is naturally not enough to fully awaken her. For now, I can only try to preserve her physical body. You should cultivate every day and transfer your spiritual energy to her. If you have enough spiritual energy, she should be able to truly awaken."
"Then I'll go practice my skills now!" Mu Yao was anxious to save her mother, and she was about to run outside after saying that.
Qin Wuyan quickly pulled her back: "Yao'er, it's too late today. You should rest first, and you can practice tomorrow."
"Mm," Mu Yao replied. It was already dark outside, so it wasn't appropriate to go practice now.
Seeing that she still looked worried, Qin Wuyan said again, "Don't worry, I will set up a barrier to protect your mother later. No one can break my barrier. Your mother will be fine."
Seeing Qin Wuyan get up to leave, Mu Yao subconsciously grabbed his sleeve again, reluctant to let him go: "Master..."
Qin Wuyan turned around and saw that her big eyes were slightly brimming with tears: "Master...I...I'm scared."
She grew up pampered by her parents, carefree and without worries. Aside from a few illnesses, she had never experienced any real hardship. Yet now, in less than a month, her family members have suffered one tragedy after another. For a child who is only nine years old, this is an immense blow.
Now, the only person she can rely on and trust is him.
Qin Wuyan felt a pang of pity. He reached out and stroked her head, saying softly, "I will stay at Peach Blossom Palace tonight. I will personally watch over you and make sure nothing happens to you, okay?"
The worry on Mu Yao's face immediately disappeared, and she smiled like a flower: "Thank you, Master."
Under the deep moonlight, Mu Yao lay in bed after washing up, but couldn't fall asleep no matter how much she tossed and turned. Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of bright white light outside the window and couldn't help but get up and look out.
Under the bright moon, Qin Wuyan, dressed in purple, stood in the courtyard, his hands forming a hand seal. White light emanating from his fingertips transformed into a net that enveloped the room.
After finishing the spell, he did not rest, but paced slowly in the courtyard, as if some troubles were lingering in his mind.
Just as Mu Yao was about to push the door open, she saw a white figure emerge from the moonlight and land in front of Qin Wuyan. She stopped pushing the door open and peered out through the crack.
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