Chapter 126 "Elder, this umbrella must not be separated from you."...
After traveling day and night, they arrived in Pinglu around noon. The journey from Pinglu to Taihang Mountain was still long. Elder He hurried over mountains and valleys, covered in dust, and did not arrive at the inn until nearly midnight.
"You traveled all this way to bring me..." Before the old man could catch his breath and finish half a sentence, he was dragged and pulled by several unruly and rude teenagers.
"Hey, stop pulling! You've torn my clothes! What kind of behavior is this? What kind of behavior is this?" These little rascals had only been down the mountain for a little over a month, and once they were out of the Taihang Mountains and unsupervised, they had all gone wild.
"Stop being so formal, Elder! We're waiting for you to save us!"
"This is a matter of life and death, Elder."
"No..." Elder He was carried into the guest room by them and brought to the bedside. Sure enough, he saw a person who was about to die but had not yet breathed his last.
Lian Zhao grabbed Ting Fengzhi's arm as fast as he could and shoved it into Elder He's hand.
"Hiss." Elder He touched it and immediately released it. "Why is it so cold? Is it a dead person?"
He's not some kind of celestial being who can bring the dead back to life and heal the wounded.
Lian Zhao immediately pressed Elder He's hand down: "He's not dead, he's still breathing."
Elder He then stopped wasting words and began to take the man's pulse. Hmm, the young men hadn't been fooling around; this man did indeed still have a pulse.
Several teenagers stood around him expectantly, waiting for him to give his diagnosis.
Elder He's thick eyebrows, a mixture of black and white, furrowed and relaxed repeatedly as he felt Zhou Yaren's pulse.
The teenagers stared at the elder's twitching eyebrows, their hearts tightening and relaxing in turn.
Lin Mu couldn't help but ask, "Elder, how is he?"
Elder He remained calm for a moment before speaking: "They're still alive even after all this."
Yu Heqi: "How is it?"
"Did you put him in an ice coffin and carry him here? Who came up with this ingenious method to save his life?" Elder He felt increasingly suspicious as he examined his pulse. "No, the frost only condensed on his meridians. He shouldn't have been in an ice coffin. What kind of technique is this? I've never seen anything like it before. It's extraordinary."
Wen Yi was anxious: "Elder, forget about the cultivation techniques for now, can Ting Fengzhi be saved or not?"
Elder He stroked his beard, as if afraid of fighting with the King of Hell to snatch someone away. After much deliberation, he remained silent for a long time.
"Elder..."
"What's the rush!" Elder He slammed his hand on the bed, snorting and glaring. "Didn't I have to look closely? How could he be injured like this? Did he want to die so he self-destructed?" Elder He was furious. "I can't be bothered to save these people who are trying to kill themselves."
Lin Mu immediately retorted, "Who doesn't want to live?"
Everyone knows Elder He has a stubborn streak. Of course, he was once a skilled Taoist physician who dedicated himself to healing and saving lives. However, he was betrayed by some suicidal scoundrel, leading to his current state. The younger disciples of the Taihang Sect vaguely recall that Elder He once risked everything to save a dying person. Upon waking, the person not only showed no gratitude but also stabbed Elder He to death, leaving Elder He dumbfounded. There was another person also on the verge of death, but the medicine was only available in one dose. Unaware of this, Elder He fed it to the suicidal person first. Later, the person who wanted to live succumbed to the illness and died, resulting in the loss of two lives. Enraged, Elder He almost whipped the corpse, and from then on declared he would not save those who didn't value their lives, letting them live or die as they pleased.
Lin Muzhen was afraid that his stubbornness would get the better of him and he would give up, so she quickly said, "We are being chased and killed. Ting Fengzhi is risking his life just to survive."
"Being hunted down?!" Elder He glared angrily. "What trouble have you gotten yourself into?"
To be precise, they weren't being hunted down, Yu Heqi retorted, "We didn't cause any trouble."
When you get older, you start to nag endlessly.
“This is a long story,” Li Liuyun began. “I will explain it to the elders in detail later. For now, let’s treat Tingfeng’s injuries.”
Elder He treated everyone equally, but he didn't give Li Liuyun a particularly kind look either: "I know what I'm doing."
The boys dared not utter another sound.
After a thorough examination that took about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Elder He solemnly examined Zhou Yaren's body, which was covered in injuries that were so tattered and pitiful that they were almost unbearable to look at.
Fortunately, we were able to do our best to save them.
Elder He hunched over his desk and wrote several large prescriptions. He then arranged for the younger members to prepare the medicine, boil water, wash the patient, crush the medicine, decoct the medicine, assist with acupuncture, turn the patient over, and so on. No one was idle, and they were busy all night long.
"Wen Yi is supporting him." Elder He was about to pierce the acupoint on the back with a needle when he suddenly realized it was in the way and said, "Take the umbrella away."
I've seen outlaws or wandering swordsmen sleep with their swords and knives with them, but I've never seen a comatose person with an umbrella in their hand.
Wen Yi immediately replied, "No."
"What's wrong with that?" Elder He, who had spoiled their bad habits, reached out to grab the Death Umbrella, but the living dead man actually gripped it tightly.
Lin Mu was terrified. He slammed the basin of water on the table and lunged towards the bed, grabbing the death-reporting umbrella and shouting, "Elder, don't move that!"
Elder He was startled by his excited and impulsive reaction: "What are you yelling about, brat?!"
Lin Mu hadn't dared to touch the Death Umbrella before, but now he was holding it down tightly, afraid that Elder He would snatch it: "Elder, this umbrella can't be moved."
"No, you brat, what's wrong with you? Get off me." He said, grabbing Lin Mu by the back of his collar.
Wen Yi, supporting Zhou Yaren, chimed in, "Elder, this umbrella really shouldn't be moved."
The little brat did something wrong, and Elder He was furious: "What did I do? Did I take it apart or can I keep it? Do you think I care about an umbrella? You're protecting it like this. Take the umbrella and get out of here!"
Lin Mu Bu Gun: "Elder, this umbrella is something Ting Fengzhi values very much and cannot be separated from him."
Elder He was utterly exasperated: "Fine, fine, then get out of my way and stop blocking my way."
Lin Mu then hesitantly stood up and stood guard to the side, afraid that Elder He would grab the umbrella and throw it away. Just now, when he touched the Death Umbrella, apart from feeling the cold, he did not feel anything, just as Senior Brother Liuyun had said.
Elder He glanced at the Death-Reporting Umbrella, then ignored the surrounding trees and bent down to administer acupuncture to Zhou Yaren. He had to stabilize the person's meridians before the frost protecting them dissipated, so Elder He felt that time was of the essence.
But half an hour passed, then an hour, and the frost-like energy within Zhou Ya's body continued to protect him until Elder He finished administering the last needle.
By now, even a lump of ice left indoors would have melted. Even if Elder He was slow to notice something amiss, he turned to the two boys inside and asked, "What kind of divine skill is protecting his life?"
The two boys simultaneously turned their gaze to the Death Umbrella, too guilty to utter a sound, fearing that the stubborn old man would find out and demand to exorcise the demon.
Elder He shouted sternly, "Speak!"
"I don't know," Lin Mu said, rolling his eyes as he made up a story. "Well, we met a hermit who helped us along the way."
Elder He chuckled, "Your eyes follow your mind; don't try to outsmart me."
"Senior Brother Liuyun!" Lin Mu turned around and saw Li Liuyun and Lian Zhao each carrying two buckets of brewed medicinal bath. He rushed out as if fleeing, "I'll help you."
Elder He followed him, but couldn't help feeling worried. The younger generation of the Taihang Sect was truly getting worse with each generation. The martial world was treacherous, and people's hearts were unpredictable. These lads couldn't even tell a coherent lie; who could they possibly fool? In his opinion, only that Li fellow from the Jingzong sect was somewhat cunning, probably because he was born into the royal family; such treachery was simply a royal trait.
Elder He curled his lip, looking at them from all angles, he didn't think they were as promising as his own disciple.
After they filled the bathtub, Elder He instructed them to carefully carry Zhou Yaren inside. Immediately, his eyelids twitched, and he couldn't help but explode again: "Why did you put the umbrella in there? Are you all out of your minds!"
The group of teenagers: "..." It's hard to explain.
"What are you standing there for? Take it out!" He had never seen anyone do this before. How did these idiots manage to do such a thing?
The group of teenagers: "..." It's impossible for them to take it out.
Lin Mu said weakly, "Elder, this umbrella cannot be taken away from you."
Elder He slapped his forehead, utterly exhausted. Good heavens! With these stupid disciples supporting the Taihang Sect, it's likely doomed!
Okay, let's go for a soak, even with umbrellas! Let's soak however we want! These heads should be soaked too!
Elder He personally looked after Zhou Yaren for two hours, repeatedly pressing and acupuncturing her meridians and acupoints. When he was exhausted and his eyes were getting blurry, Elder He finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing Elder He sway, Li Liuyun quickly supported him, saying, "Elder."
Elder He was exhausted and waved his hand, saying he didn't need help and simply said, "He's lucky to be alive."
Upon hearing this, the group of teenagers finally felt relieved.
Weariness washed over him, and Elder He, who hadn't rested for a moment, rubbed his temples: "Give me a couch."
"Elder, this way please."
As Elder He walked out, he said, "Let him soak for another hour before moving him to the bed. You few should stay outside and take turns watching over him. Call me anytime if anything happens."
Li Liuyun agreed to all of their requests. After settling Elder He in, he let his fellow disciples take turns going back to their rooms to rest. Everyone had been traveling for days and had been up all night, and they were all exhausted, but they had finally managed to rescue Tingfengzhi.
Li Liuyun leaned against a pillar, standing guard outside the door, occasionally glancing at Zhou Yaren's condition through the half-open window.
When he looked through the crack in the window for the fourth time, he froze on the spot.
The Death Umbrella briefly materialized into human form. Bai Yuan's face was pale, his body covered in frost, and he sat in the bathtub with Ting Fengzhi, his eyes closed.
This scene was truly unbelievable. Li Liuyun was filled with astonishment and shock, as if he were hallucinating, because in the blink of an eye, the bathtub had transformed back into Tingfengzhi and a death-reporting umbrella.
Li Liuyun stood frozen for a long time before finally calming down his turbulent emotions.
After Zhou Yaren had soaked in the bath for an hour, Li Liuyun settled him on the bed as Elder He had instructed, and soon Lian Zhao came to replace him.
Another day has passed, and the wind tells me everything is stable.
After nightfall, Lin Mu brought over some soup and ointment, greeted Yu Heqi who was waiting there, and then pushed open the door. There was suddenly someone on Ting Fengzhi's bed.
Lin Muxing's eyes widened in shock, and she dropped the tray she was holding.
Yu Heqi reacted quickly, hurriedly catching the medicine, spilling most of it: "So careless..."
Sensing that Lin Mu's expression was off, Yu Heqi turned his head in the direction of his gaze. The tray slipped again, and he almost lost his grip, spilling all the medicine. Fortunately, he managed to grab the bowls and plates at the last moment and hold them tightly in his arms, preventing them from breaking on the ground with a loud noise.
Yu Heqi remained half-squatting, trying to salvage the cups and plates, staring dumbfounded at the two people on the couch, her mind reeling as if she'd seen a ghost: "She—"
Meanwhile, Elder He, having slept through the day, slowly arrived, intending to check on the patient's injuries. However, upon reaching the doorway, he was caught off guard by a man and a woman on the bed. Elder He immediately exploded: "Outrageous! I've worked tirelessly to save his life, and he's barely clinging to life, and he's already slept with a woman… mmm… mmm…"
Lin Mu was jolted back to his senses by Elder He's shout, and jumped three feet high, covering Elder He's mouth tightly.
"Elder! You can't talk nonsense!"
"Mmm mmm mmm."
"It's not what you see!"
"Mmm mmm mmm."
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