Chapter 5: Detoxification
Since that day, Di Feisheng came to the Lotus Tower more and more frequently, with all kinds of reasons - to check his injuries, to consolidate the therapeutic effects, or sometimes just to "pass by and ask for a glass of water."
Li Lianhua remained as indifferent as ever, brewing two cups of the cheapest tea. The two of them sat opposite each other, often in silence. However, Di Feisheng's gaze was like an invisible probe, constantly scanning Li Lianhua, not missing a single subtle movement.
One day, Di Feisheng seemed to accidentally push over a cup of hot tea with a little too much force, and the scalding tea was about to splash onto Li Lianhua's hands as she was sorting medicinal herbs.
Li Lianhua's fingers almost instinctively shrank slightly, their tips avoiding the water droplets at an extremely light and clever angle. She even pressed lightly on the table to steady the wobbling teacup. The whole process was so fast that it was almost invisible, as natural as a subconscious reaction to being scalded.
But Di Feisheng's eyes suddenly narrowed. That light press, the subtle force and angle of his fingertips, was not something an ordinary doctor could possess. It was more like an instinct ingrained in his bones, a precise control of force and angle—the instinct of a top swordsman.
Li Lianhua continued to sort the herbs as if nothing had happened. She just smiled and shook her head: "Alliance Leader Di, be careful, this tea is very hot."
Di Feisheng picked up his cup of tea and took a sip, his gaze fixed on Li Lianhua's seemingly pale, limp hands, their knuckles slender and well-proportioned. They were too clean, devoid of the thick calluses from years of sword-wielding. But his suspicions grew even stronger. With Li Xiangyi's internal strength, it wouldn't be difficult for him to deliberately remove the calluses.
Another day, Di Feisheng brought a pot of strong liquor, saying that it was obtained from the alliance, and asked Li Lianhua to taste it.
Li Lianhua couldn't refuse, so he took a sip and put down his glass. His fingers unconsciously tapped twice on the rough tabletop. It was such a casual movement that he didn't even notice it.
But Di Feisheng's chest seemed to be hit by something suddenly!
When Li Xiangyi was thinking, his right index finger would occasionally tap twice unconsciously! This extremely subtle habit would never be known unless someone was extremely close or observant!
The air seemed to freeze for a moment. Di Feisheng stared intently at the finger that had just completed the tapping action, his heart beating like a drum in his chest.
Li Lianhua seemed to notice his gaze and naturally withdrew her hand. She picked up the teacup and took a sip as if to cover up. She smiled and said, "This wine is too strong. I'd rather drink tea."
The flute flew without interrupting. Instead, he tilted his head back and gulped down the liquor in his glass. The acrid liquid burned his throat, but it couldn't suppress the surging heat in his heart. It was him! It had to be him!
The most direct one was when Di Feisheng leaned against the door frame, watching Li Lianhua feeding the vixen in the yard, and suddenly mentioned it as if chatting:
"The Si Gu Sect seems to be searching for their leader's whereabouts again lately. They're truly persistent. Tell me, if Li Xiangyi were still alive, what would he think of seeing his former subordinates acting like this?"
He pronounced the three words "Li Xiangyi" clearly and slowly, like a stone dropped into a calm lake.
Li Lianhua's figure froze for a moment, almost imperceptibly. Though it was fleeting, the feeding action did pause for a moment. Then, he continued to spread the dried meat as if nothing had happened, his voice as flat as if he were discussing the weather. "If a figure like Sect Master Li is still around, he must have his own considerations. How can mortals like us guess?"
There was no denial, no excitement, not even any unnecessary curiosity. This excessive calmness and detachment was itself abnormal.
Di Feisheng didn't ask any more questions. He knew the man before him had defenses stronger than the world's strongest fortress. Every attempt was like scraping the sharpest knife against the hardest iron. The scattered sparks that flew out weren't enough to illuminate the whole truth, but they were enough to burn his own eyes.
The days passed like this, one pressing forward, the other keeping a tight rein.
Di Feisheng's sense of certainty grew day by day, but he was troubled by the lack of any substantial evidence. He became increasingly anxious, and sometimes, looking at Li Lianhua's calm profile, he almost had a violent urge to tear apart all the pretense.
But he was strangely greedy for this strange "closeness".
Even if it's just drinking a cup of simple tea across a table, watching the other person slowly drying herbs in the yard, listening to that gentle but distant voice saying some insignificant words...this is much more fulfilling than the emptiness of having nothing for ten years.
He felt trapped in a web he had woven himself, knowing the answer lay at its center, yet unable to truly reach it. And the person he had been searching for for ten years was right before his eyes, engaging him in a silent, exhausting tug-of-war with the calmest of gestures.
The subtle atmosphere of past entanglements and present coexistence grew stronger in the air.
The days slipped by amidst Di Feisheng's relentless "visits" and Li Lianhua's impeccable dealings. The "Chansi Bie" poison was insidious and treacherous. While it wouldn't kill instantly, it was like a thorn in the flesh, requiring daily, intensive use of pure internal energy supplemented by golden needles to carefully expel the poison, slowly but surely. This was extremely draining.
Li Lianhua never refused. Every time the sound of the flute came, he would wash his hands, take out the needle, and concentrate on his technique. His technique remained precise and steady, but his complexion grew paler, a faint blue shadow lingering under his eyes. Occasionally, as he twirled the end of the needle, a subtle tremor would linger on his fingertips. He concealed it admirably, often lowering his head to cough or turning to retrieve something.
Di Feisheng saw it all.
He felt the subtle trembling of the cold fingertips behind him, listened to the breathing that was even shallower than usual, and the string of obsession in his heart grew tighter and tighter, almost breaking. A strange, bitter emotion grew in his cold, hard heart: heartache. He actually felt heartache for this person who might be his lifelong enemy, the person he had been searching for for ten years.
The accident happened one evening.
The acupuncture that day seemed particularly difficult. Cold sweat oozed from Li Lianhua's forehead, and the color of his lips faded. He inserted the needles more slowly than usual, and each insertion seemed to consume a great deal of energy.
As the last needle landed, he was about to channel his energy when his body suddenly lurched and his vision went dark. He subconsciously tried to hold onto the medicine cabinet next to him, but his fingers found nothing and he fell backwards, limp as an autumn leaf.
"Li Lianhua!"
Di Feisheng reacted extremely quickly, turning around before the man fell to the ground, extending his long arms and catching him tightly in his arms. The lightness of his grip startled him, and even through the coarse clothes, he could feel the unusual coldness and weakness of the body.
Li Lianhua had her eyes tightly closed, her brows slightly furrowed in discomfort, and she had already fainted, showing no response to the outside world.
Di Feisheng froze in place, clutching the unconscious figure in his arms, feeling momentarily bewildered. He had never seen Li Xiangyi (or Li Lianhua) so vulnerable. Ten years ago, during the Battle of the East China Sea, he had plunged into the sea, spitting blood, yet he carried an unyielding spirit. And now, he lay quietly in his arms, breathing weakly, as if he would shatter at the slightest touch.
All to detoxify him...
This realization was like a tempered needle, piercing Di Feisheng's heart. His ridiculous and selfish temptation had actually driven him to this point!
He carefully carried Li Lianhua to the couch and covered her with a thin blanket. His fingertips accidentally brushed her cold wrist, and he subconsciously felt her pulse. The pulse was weak and disordered, a sign of internal energy depletion. More importantly, a small amount of the cold and poisonous energy of the "Tangled Silk" was actually backfiring into the acupuncturist's body!
Is it because the energy is exhausted and the direction of toxins cannot be fully controlled?
A torrent of regret and anger (at himself) instantly washed over Di Feisheng. He stood up abruptly, the pressure around him plummeting, and a terrifying storm swirled in his eyes.
He glanced at the person sleeping on the couch, then looked down at the still obvious poison mark on his arm.
The next moment, he made a decision.
Di Feisheng sat cross-legged on the floor in front of the couch, eyes closed. Beifeng Baiyang's internal energy was surging, no longer restrained as usual. Instead, it surged through his meridians like a raging hurricane!
He forcibly channeled his immense inner strength, charging towards the spot where the "Silk-Channeling Blight" poison was lodged. Without Li Lianhua's exquisite golden needles to guide him, the process was rough and painful, like burning a cancerous tumor in the meridians with a red-hot iron!
Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, his muscles tensed and knotted in extreme pain, but his brows remained motionless. With his unparalleled internal energy, he forcibly gathered the insidious toxins into one place, then attacked and refined them with even greater force!
But within the time of an incense stick, he felt a sweetness in his throat, and suddenly opened his mouth to spit out a small amount of dark black blood - that was the residual poison of "Chansi Wei" that was forced out of his body!
After circulating his internal energy for several cycles, confirming that the toxins in his body had been cleared, Di Feisheng slowly ended his practice. His face had turned a little pale, but his eyes were surprisingly bright, with a calmness that came after a resolute decision.
He walked to the bedside and took another deep look at Li Lianhua's pale sleeping face. He stretched out his hand, as if wanting to touch the person's cheek, but his fingertips suddenly stopped just before touching, and slowly clenched into a fist.
He said nothing, but turned around silently and left the Lotus Building.
The next day.
Li Lianhua awoke from his coma, feeling unusually weak, but the lingering feeling of sluggishness was gone. He subconsciously checked his pulse and was startled. The remaining trace of the "Chansi" poison that had invaded his body due to the backlash was gone?
He stood up, waiting for the sound of the flute as usual, and thinking about how to continue the trick of removing the poison today.
However, when the sun was high in the sky, there was no sound of the flute.
It wasn't until the afternoon that Wu Yan arrived, bearing some precious tonics. He said respectfully, "Divine Doctor Li, the Alliance Leader has sent me here to inform you that he has unexpectedly found a way to completely eliminate the toxins in his body. He needs to consolidate his cultivation for the next few days, so he won't bother me any more. The Alliance Leader wishes to thank Divine Doctor Li for your patient care over the past few days."
Li Lianhua was stunned. He took the herbs and stood there, watching Wuyan leave, his heart filled with mixed emotions.
Di Feisheng...cleared the poison by himself?
Why did he do that?
Is it because... I fainted yesterday?
Li Lianhua slowly sat back in the chair, looking at the swaying shadows of the trees outside the window. For the first time, when faced with the sound of the flute, the airtight wall in her heart seemed to be pried open by a tiny crack, leaking in a bit of complex and indescribable light.
Meanwhile, Di Feisheng was currently practicing frantically in the training grounds of the Golden Mandarin Duck Alliance's headquarters. The sharp winds of his blades stirred up clouds of dust, as if to shatter and dispel all the turbulent, unfamiliar, and tender emotions within him.
Did he get an answer? Apparently not.
But he made a choice - he could no longer seek an answer by hurting that person.
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