Chapter 318 Investigation and Treatment 1
Zhong Cai quietly observed Tan Zheng, who was mostly dead, while simultaneously searching through her extensive knowledge for the symptoms that would appear when a cultivator was poisoned by Xuanbing.
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Xuanbing poison is a very special ancient poison.
No one knows how it came to be; it seems to have been born naturally, like a rare and precious treasure.
From Heavenly Guidance to Spirit Transformation, among these seven levels, cultivators at any of these levels will exhibit the same characteristics when poisoned.
The ice-white color begins to spread from the cultivator's feet upwards, eventually reaching the top of their head, whereupon they will be completely transformed into a lifeless, ice-sculpted corpse.
The only difference between cultivators at different levels after being poisoned is how long they can survive.
The higher one's level of attainment, the longer one can persevere.
If a cultivator at the Heavenly Guidance Realm were poisoned, they might die within an hour or two.
Perhaps the Spirit Transformation technique can last for several years?
Tan Zheng, who is currently in the Fusion Realm, has been in a coma for nearly half a month. It is impossible to determine how long he can remain in this state.
At the same time, the poison of Xuanbing will not cause ice flowers to bloom on the cultivator's body.
If we really have to talk about anything related to ice flowers...
That is, when a cultivator is stained with ice white, clusters of ice blue patterns will appear as their skin and flesh crack due to the freezing. When these patterns are clustered together, they look quite like ice flowers.
Besides, cultivators poisoned by this poison will not grow horns.
Moreover, if it really is the poison of Xuanbing, it should have already spread to the upper part of the neck—at least there is a cluster of ice flowers in the throat—and the chin and lips have a faint blue tinge.
The poison must have already spread to the head.
But once it seeps into the head, even the faintest breath should disappear.
Could his ability to maintain such a faint breathing be related to his single horn?
Or perhaps, for some other reason?
If it's not just the poison of Xuanbing, then how is the unicorn displayed? Where did the ice flowers come from? And what caused their formation?
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At this moment, Zhong Cai recalled the various traditions she knew, comparing and distinguishing them one by one.
He would repeatedly bring out those with slightly similar symptoms for comparison, in order to find some clues and make further inferences and tests.
Zhong Cai's mind was racing, but outwardly she simply stood motionless beside the ice sculpture bed.
He seems to be spacing out.
His handsome face was very serious, without any other emotional fluctuations.
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Yu Su, standing nearby, was filled with anxiety, but dared not utter a sound to disturb him.
The Liu sisters didn't know why Senior Zhong was silent and motionless, and they dared not make a sound either.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhong Cai finally moved.
You Su and the Liu sisters immediately noticed and turned their attention to Zhong Cai.
The Liu sisters also cared about Tan Zheng. They opened their mouths, but ultimately left the rest of the communication to You Su.
You Su then cautiously inquired, "Master Zhong, my elder brother—"
Zhong Cai said, "We have some clues, but it's very complicated and needs further study."
You Su was initially disappointed, but his mind worked quickly, and he rapidly understood what Master Zhong meant—although he couldn't immediately discern the difference, he was willing to give it a try!
There is still hope as long as you are willing.
You Su took a deep breath and tentatively invited, "I wonder if I have the honor of inviting you two seniors to stay at my humble abode for the time being?"
Zhong Cai casually said, "I'll stay here; it'll be more convenient."
You Su immediately showed a look of joy.
The Liu sisters were also happy for You Su—in any case, at least it had aroused Senior Zhong's interest.
As for whether the Liu family would feel uncomfortable about this person, who was originally a distinguished guest of the Liu family, now living in someone else's home... the Liu sisters did not have any concerns. They would definitely stay here for the time being to take good care of the two seniors and at the same time comfort their friend who was determined to die.
Human life is at stake, and the Liu family will not hold a grudge against You Su because of this.
Besides, Senior Zhong can go wherever he wants; the Liu family has no right to interfere...
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In his joy, You Su cast a pleading look at the Liu sisters before bidding farewell to the Zhong and Wu couple and going to lead people to tidy up the courtyard.
He would do his best to make arrangements so that the two seniors could stay comfortably.
I also hope that Master Zhong Dan will be happier and able to better treat his sworn brother...
You Su is now completely devoted to his sworn brother.
He was willing to do everything in his power to seize any opportunity, no matter how small.
Either his sworn brother comes back to life, or he dies with his sworn brother.
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The Liu sisters diligently moved a soft couch over and placed it behind Zhong Cai.
They remembered that this senior was frail and now in such a cold environment, they couldn't let him stand there for so long while they checked his condition.
The two sisters also wanted to fetch a cloak and brocade quilt for Zhong Cai to wrap herself in, but they hesitated because they thought that Senior Wu might not want them to be so attentive to his Daoist partner.
Soon they wouldn't have to hesitate anymore.
The next moment, they saw that Senior Wu had already sat on the soft couch, and then quickly pulled Senior Zhong over to sit down next to him, and even put a piece of warm jade on Senior Zhong's wrist.
Sure enough, the sisters didn't need to worry about this more intimate and caring "service" at all.
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At this moment, Zhong Cai did not spare much attention for external matters, focusing all her attention on analyzing the patient's condition.
Tan Zheng's condition is indeed very troublesome. He is currently observing his body inch by inch, but he still feels that some things don't match up. The way his body has changed is very strange, as if it is a combination of multiple problems, or as if some elusive mutation has occurred.
Simply looking with the naked eye is far from enough.
Zhong Cai pondered.
It is still necessary to probe the person's body with one's spiritual sense, use profound energy to travel along the person's meridians and flesh, take some of the person's flesh and blood, and even scrape some powder from the ice flower and the unicorn... to verify carefully multiple times.
We cannot use any medicine for the time being, and even if we use Xuan power, we can only use the most neutral and peaceful methods.
Zhong Cai pondered for a while, but did not take any action for the time being.
At this moment, You Su returned, looking hurried and covered in sweat, clearly very anxious.
Seeing that Senior Zhong and his wife were sitting on the soft couch, and that Senior Zhong was deep in thought, he became even more anxious.
Wu Shaogan turned his head slightly and glanced at You Su.
You Su's anxiety seemed to be doused with a bucket of ice water, suddenly chilling him to the bone, but also instantly bringing him back to his senses.
It can't be rushed.
Senior Zhong is examining the case carefully. He still needs to take care of his elder brother afterward, so he can't be impatient.
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Zhong Cai noticed You Su's return, and he was standing there like a wooden stake.
So Zhong Cai instructed, "You Su, go behind your sworn brother."
You Su, of course, immediately obeyed the order and hurriedly went over.
Zhong Cai instructed, "Turn him over so I can see his back."
You Su quickly reached out his hand.
Seeing that the treatment was about to officially begin, the Liu sisters consciously withdrew from the room and closed the door behind them.
You Su supported Tan Zheng's waist, using his arms to endure the intense cold, causing him to be slightly turned to the side, which allowed Zhong Cai to clearly see what Tan Zheng's back looked like.
Many ice flower patterns appeared on his back, but no real ice flowers actually grew—all the ice flowers were in front of Tan Zheng, and with the keen senses of a cultivator, one could vaguely detect that the ice flowers were growing a little bit more at a very slow pace.
These ice flowers will obviously continue to bloom and increase over time.
You Su looked at his sworn brother's bluish face, his eyes filled with sadness, yet he was helpless.
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After reading it, Zhong Cai spoke again: "You can put it down now."
You Su carefully did as instructed.
Zhong Cai also said directly, "I need to examine him in detail now, starting with probing his soul..."
When facing the patient's family, Zhong Cai did not hide anything and directly listed all the things he would have to do next.
Yu Su's face stiffened when he heard "collecting flesh and blood," and his eyes were filled with heartache. But he knew even better that these were necessary steps. If he didn't confirm his sworn brother's true condition through every verifiable method, how could he research an antidote?
He suppressed his surging emotions and said sincerely, "Master Zhong, please do as you please, but... please take good care of my elder brother."
Zhong Cai nodded and casually said, "Don't worry, it won't cause any trouble."
You Su tried hard to reassure himself and not let worry overwhelm him.
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Since A-Cai was going to focus on the research, Wu Shao-Gan took out several array plates to reinforce the defense of the entire quiet room and even the entire mansion. He also used all kinds of shielding methods to prevent others from spying on this place.
Suddenly remembering something, You Su quickly asked, "Senior Zhong, would you like to set up another alchemy room here?"
Zhong Cai waved her hand: "No need, you don't have most of the things I need here, so please make do with whatever you like."
You Su looked ashamed.
However, he was also well aware that setting up a level-five alchemy environment was not easy. He was merely an enlightened being, and before his sworn brother woke up, he himself would not be able to satisfy Senior Zhong in this regard.
So he simply stood in front of Tan Zheng, patiently waiting.
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Following her pre-determined procedure, Zhong Cai first released her soul essence.
The soul's thoughts were like a net, instantly enveloping Tan Zheng completely, and it was as if countless fine threads were split from it, piercing into every inch of Tan Zheng's skin and flesh, from the basic condition of his flesh and blood to his internal organs, and even vaguely touching his primordial soul and the hazy glowing Dao Palace...
The soul saw as much as it could and recorded everything it could.
Then, the soul power attached to the soul thought was sent into Tan Zheng's primordial soul.
It was as if a deafening roar was heard, or as if an ancient scene suddenly appeared.
In a hazy state, Zhong Cai seemed to see an enormous, phantom.
That was a giant python that stretched for hundreds of feet and had an extremely large body!
The python's body was snow-white, emanating an incredibly terrifying chill. When it raised its head and exhaled, the world seemed to be shrouded in frost, freezing everything instantly, as if space itself had become stiff.
While the python's colors were beautiful, its overall shape was somewhat ferocious.
The python's head was fierce, and the outline of each scale revealed an irregular sharpness. Even the surface of the python's body was covered with dense barbs, each one extremely hard and full of terrifying sharpness.
Finally, there's the single horn on the python's head.
It is long, straight, and equally sharp, as if it could pierce the heavens and the earth.
The ferocious aura emanating from it seemed to have devoured countless lives—for a moment, one could almost see crimson blood seeping from the tip of the single horn—or perhaps it was just a mistake, and that was clearly just the occasional gleam of light reflecting off the python's head as it moved.
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This giant unicorn python is Tan Zheng's companion treasure, the soul of a rare beast.
If you look closely, you can see a human figure standing on the python's head. His figure is slightly illusory, but overall it is still very solid.
At this moment, the man remained motionless, his feet never leaving the python's head, and a continuous stream of primordial spirits was slowly flowing through his feet and merging into the python's body.
It seems that when Tan Zhengyuan's soul merged with the giant python's soul, the part of his soul that entered was the giant python's head.
Tan Zhengyuan's soul has only become slightly illusory, which is because his fusion with the beast soul is still very shallow.
It seems that they simply found the "key point" for fusion and then incorporated a trace of Tan Zhengyuan's soul.
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Zhong Cai seemed to be deep in thought, and then asked, "Is Tan Zheng's companion beast soul the Heavenly Crystal Ice Python?"
You Su nodded and said, "Yes." He recalled for a moment and continued, "It is said that when my elder brother summoned his companion treasure, strange phenomena appeared in the sky and the soul of the ice python raged in the sky. The scene was very magnificent."
"Back then, some people recognized this ancient giant python."
"Uncle Zhou deduced that it was related to the poison of Xuanbing because the Heavenly Crystal Ice Python often appears near various ice-attribute resources, many of which are poisonous, yet they have no effect on the Heavenly Crystal Ice Python..."
Upon hearing this, Zhong Cai added, "However, Xuanbing poison is one of the few poisons that is effective against ice pythons. Once a Heavenly Crystal Ice Python is contaminated with Xuanbing poison, it will become paralyzed and unable to move for a certain period of time. Under such circumstances, as someone who has fused with a beast soul, Tan Zheng would most likely experience unconsciousness as the most normal reaction."
You Su looked worried.
Many of the things Master Zhong is saying are unclear even to Uncle Zhou. However, he can certainly see that Master Zhong's knowledge is far more extensive than that of ordinary alchemists.
Zhong Cai didn't speak again, but thought about it carefully.
The Crystal Ice Python has a strong liking for poisonous substances; once you eliminate those that would have a negative effect on it, everything else tastes delicious to it.
However, when it ingested various poisonous substances, the toxins were absorbed by the Heavenly Crystal Ice Python's single horn.
The single horn on Tan Zheng's head now looks different from the one on the giant python's head that he saw in Tan Zheng's primordial soul, even if it were scaled down proportionally... It's as if it's melted and deformed.
Zhong Cai did not act immediately, but continued to observe the unicorn.
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About two hours passed.
Around the ice flowers on Tan Zheng's body, some extremely tiny petals have been added, while the single horn seems to have "collapsed" almost imperceptibly.
Zhong Cai frowned.
Could it be that this unicorn is fighting against the deadly poison that causes the ice flowers, and while it is hindering the poison, the unicorn is also being consumed?
Could this be... an unconscious act of self-preservation by Tan Zheng?
It looks very similar.
However, this horn is most likely a manifestation of a beast's soul, and even if it absorbed those deadly poisons, it shouldn't have changed shape.
Zhong Cai is now pondering whether the unicorn is merely an external manifestation of the Heavenly Crystal Ice Python's power battling against the deadly poison, or whether it is itself an outward manifestation of the beast soul, which has now been damaged due to the change in form...
If it is indeed the latter, the consumption of the beast soul will also consume the Tan Zheng Yuan soul that it is fused with. The later the stage, the more serious the consequences will be—the damage to the Yuan soul will become more and more severe.
Therefore, while researching the antidote, we also need to consider the issue of Tan Zhengyuan's soul loss.
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Next, Zhong Cai strictly followed the procedure to proceed to the next step.
The calm and balanced Xuan power was sent into Tan Zheng's body, probing inch by inch along his meridians and flesh, sensing the different types of ice-attribute power contained within, which belonged to Tan Zheng himself, which were tainted by the beast soul, which were related to the deadly poison, and whether any others appeared...
Both are of the ice attribute and both are mixed in Tan Zheng's body. The differences between them are very subtle and extremely difficult to detect.
However, Zhong Cai has a very strong sense of perception.
After carefully circling around, Xuanli had a general idea of what to do.
This still needs further verification.
Zhong Cai continued the examination.
He carefully scraped off a little ice flower powder, and then carefully took some frost from Tan Zheng's body. He was originally going to scrape off the unicorn horn as well, but after thinking about it, he chose to take a strand of Tan Zheng's hair, which was almost frozen to pieces.
As for the inspection of the unicorn itself, that should be left until last.
After all, there was very little material available for the experiment, and now it's best to use the freshest materials for the experiment.
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Under You Su's watchful gaze, Zhong Cai swiftly retrieved a variety of mysterious artifacts.
For example, alchemy furnaces, large cauldrons, and many bottles and jars...
You Su couldn't understand it, but his gaze remained fixed on these things, and he carefully observed Zhong Cai's every move.
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At this moment, Zhong Cai released the wood fire, which rushed out with a "whoosh" and quickly rose up with powerful firepower, enveloping and scorching all the alchemy furnaces and cauldrons.
After burning, all the residue and residual medicinal properties were completely cleaned up.
The traces left from the refining of elixirs or the processing of other medicines have all disappeared.
After eliminating all variables that could potentially affect the research, Zhong Caicai began to truly verify each material to determine the information it contained.
He took out various medicinal herbs and put them into the large cauldron, where they were quickly refined using wood and fire.
Zhong Cai's fingers moved incredibly fast, creating countless afterimages in the blink of an eye.
After these illusions, somehow the numerous medicinal herbs formed a solution of strange color, emitting an eerie glow.
Zhong Cai added fresh ice flower powder into it.
The solution boiled rapidly.
As it boils, it transforms from a vibrant red to a strange, icy blue.
The next moment, Zhong Cai poured the icy blue solution into a stone basin.
Suddenly, the stone basin began to hiss, and its bottom seemed to have been splashed with sulfuric acid, immediately bubbling up in a very eerie way.
Without hesitation, Zhong Cai quickly produced another liquid and poured it into the stone basin.
In that instant, all the unusual sounds disappeared again.
All the bubbling bubbles burst, and the burning sensation ceased. It seemed as if the "sulfuric acid" in the stone basin had been neutralized, and no other unusual phenomena appeared.
That's the right treatment.
However, Zhong Cai did not rush to a conclusion and waited quietly for a while longer.
When all the reactions disappeared and the white smoke from the neutralization process of the two solutions ceased, a transparent liquid appeared at the bottom of the stone basin—this was the residue after the solutions were neutralized.
It looks very clean, like clear water.
However, Zhong Cai's expression was solemn.
If you look closely, you'll see that beneath the transparent liquid, there's a thin layer of gray film adhering to the bottom of the stone basin.
Besides the membrane, there were also several living things that looked like threads.
The silk threads swam freely in the transparent medicinal liquid, just like fish swimming in water.
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You Su saw all these changes. In an instant, his pupils contracted sharply and his face turned deathly pale.
These things are all obtained from ice flower powder—
And since the ice flower grew from his elder brother's body, doesn't that mean that those highly toxic reactions, those wandering creatures, and those remaining strange things also came from his elder brother's body?
His older brother, who appears oblivious and calm at this moment, is actually... enduring what kind of torment?
How long did his older brother suffer?
You Su dared not imagine it, and was filled with immense fear.
His heart felt as if it were being gripped by a giant hand, causing him to hunch over as if he had angina.
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Zhong Cai ignored You Su's reaction and continued to ponder.
For now, he didn't analyze what the residue and living things were, but instead prepared a new pot of medicinal liquid and put the frost on Tan Zheng's body into it to observe.
Its reaction and final residue are no different from those of ice flower powder.
Subsequently, Zhong Cai prepared the solution again, placing Tan Zheng's hair strands into the solution for observation.
The reaction this time seemed similar to the previous two, but when Zhong Cai added another medicinal liquid to neutralize it, the stone basin calmed down again. The residue in the transparent liquid was still there, but there was only one kind.
Yes, one.
Previously there were two types, but now the remaining one is not the living thing, but a gray film.
Zhong Cai pondered for a while and then began a new experiment.
This time, after preparing the same medicinal liquid, he chose to take some blood from Tan Zheng and put it into the liquid to observe the new reactions and residues.
This was repeated time and again.
After each attempt, Zhong Cai could discover some clues and collect some residue.
Some of the residues were the same, some were different, and some new residues were even added later.
A quick count reveals that, after numerous experiments, as many as four different types of residues have been identified.
If we include the poison of Xuanbing, there are a total of five kinds!
Even now, Zhong Cai has not yet examined the unicorn powder.
Zhong Caiwei remained silent for a moment.
...Little brother, what exactly did you go about? This poison is way too complicated!
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