Chapter 24: Taoist Hua Shen and Luo Xuanyi
As soon as she entered Ruoyu Peak, she saw a man guarding the mountain road. His expression was very urgent and vaguely familiar. Yi Sanmei took a closer look and remembered that it was the outer sect disciple of Danxin Pavilion that she had met on the way to the initiation. As she approached, the aroma of medicine that had been soaked in his body for many years hit her face.
When Su Yang saw him, he asked, "Brother Chen Rong, did the master mention our whereabouts?"
But Chen Rong shook his head and said, "After the Supreme Lord came out of seclusion, he only ordered us to hand over the names of the elixirs he refined during his retreat. He hasn't asked you two brothers yet. I was just worried that you were too hasty when the Supreme Lord summoned you, and I passed on false information. I hope you won't mind." After saying this, he bowed deeply to the ground. The two men called each other by their names. Chen Rong was just an outer disciple of the Danxin Pavilion, but Su Yang, seeing his seniority, insisted on calling him Senior Brother.
Su Yang naturally wouldn't blame this announcement of friendship. While Taoist Hua Shen hadn't summoned them yet, the two of them immediately said their goodbyes and headed for Zhaojian Palace. Third Sister Yi had memorized the formula for entering Zhaojian Palace by heart, though she struggled at first. But with Su Yang ahead of her, she felt relieved and silently recited the formula as she entered.
The Zhaojian Palace remained exactly as it had been when Yi Sanmei first encountered it, its details exquisite yet not ornate, exuding a majestic aura of ancient simplicity and profound heritage. Instead of entering the Zhaojian Palace to reach the abdication stone chamber, Yi Sanmei walked along the Nine-Curve Corridor alongside it, curious about what the main hall would look like.
Su Yang whispered, "After entering, you must circulate your spiritual energy and close all the pores on your body. No matter what you see, you must not touch it." His expression was very serious. Yi Sanmei's heart sank, and she nodded in agreement.
As soon as she entered Zhaojian Palace, a chilling chill mixed with the rich aroma of medicine hit her face. Third Sister Yi immediately closed her pores as Su Yang had instructed, only then daring to look around. Inside the palace, the mermaid candles burned eternally, illuminating rows of enormous medicine jars.
The medicine jars were all of the same standard design. In front of them sat a tall desk with an open book on it. Even more bizarre, a pen was floating in mid-air, writing something on the book. Yi Sanmei leaned in to take a look and saw that the writing was likely a record of the effects of the medicine at different times of day, though the handwriting was unique to each pen. Yi Sanmei stood on tiptoe to peer into the jars, her eyes widening.
In the jar, a thick brown liquid soaked a "human," its form barely visible. He was still alive, but not far from death. His throat was exposed to the air, revealing his vocal cords and tongue, rotting into a pool of blood. The book before him read: "...1561st Day. It has been confirmed that he will not die today. This roughly confirms the success of the muteness potion. The downside is that there's still some time left after taking the drug, and it could potentially cause self-destruction. You can try supplementing with..."
Sister Yi San took a few steps back and glanced at the countless medicine jars placed everywhere, and her hair stood on end.
Su Yang sighed softly with some reluctance, not knowing how to comfort Yi Sanmei. His tone was a little mechanical: "Don't worry, these people are used to test medicine like this after their bodies are broken. Master will not..." As he said this, he couldn't help but feel sad for people like us who can see the reactions directly.
"So, were all these people once Master's medicine boys?" Seeing Su Yang nod his head in agreement, Yi Sanmei asked persistently, "Brother, you've been Master's servant for ten years and haven't fallen to... that kind of situation. It would have taken time for you to end up like this, right?"
"My fellow apprentice is among them." Su Yang stroked the bandage on his arm. "I was born with a poisonous body. I am not afraid of the accumulation of poison in the pills. I can also gradually consume the poison in my body through the circulation of spiritual energy. Even after ten years, I would be almost exhausted. Master values me and allows other disciples to replace me from time to time, which is why I am still alive. These ordinary disciples have already undergone initiation and are physically and mentally devastated. Generally, taking one or two pills will be regarded as dregs by Master. However, Master feeds me pills every time, about four to five years. Compared to that, there is still more than enough time."
Yi Sanmei walked past countless medicine vats, clenching her palms fiercely. Four or five years down the line, she had to find a way to survive before she was reduced to mere dregs. Time was running out, but Yi Sanmei's fighting spirit was also rising. When oppression reached its peak, there was nothing to fear.
After walking for about an incense stick of time, they finally entered the main hall. The main hall was actually very spacious, but Yi Sanmei's first reaction was that it was extremely narrow, and the reason was because of the furnishings in the main hall.
Here, without those frightening medicine jars, she could finally breathe freely. On either side of the main hall were countless books, piled high to the ceiling like walls pressing down towards the center. Besides the books and bamboo slips, there were also tortoise shells and stone slabs inscribed with inscriptions. On one of the clearly older bamboo slips, Yi Sanmei spotted a familiar character, and her heart immediately began to pound—it was one of the characters that had appeared on the bamboo slips at her waist!
Taoist Hua Shen sat at the head of the hall, writing furiously. Unlike what one might imagine, he wore a wide robe, stained with various medicinal liquids, its original color unrecognizable. Perhaps displeased with the large opening, he had gathered the sleeves with two strips of cloth and tied them under his armpits. His gaze was intense as he gazed at the book before him. His face was remarkably youthful, that of a young man in his mid-twenties. Judging by his features, one would never guess he was the legendary Taoist Hua Shen.
Yi Sanmei and Su Yang stood quietly waiting under the emperor's throne. After a long moment, Taoist Hua Shen finally let out a sigh of relief and put away his scroll. He looked up at Yi Sanmei, his eyes immediately lighting up as he waved to them, "Xiao Yang, is this the new kid? Why is there only one?"
Third Sister Yi felt a powerful force, beyond her control, dragging her before Taoist Hua Shen. Even with her eyesight, she couldn't even grasp the flow of his spiritual energy. His every move seemed to align with the yin and yang of heaven and earth, requiring no spiritual energy at all. Third Sister Yi calmed herself and bowed her head in greeting.
Taoist Hua Shen looked at Third Sister Yi, and his elation grew with each passing moment. "You have good roots, and your behavior is lawful. Are you from another state, or are you from the Zang Yao clan? What's your name?"
"I'm from the Third Valley. My common name is Yi Sanmei. I don't have a name."
Taoist Hua Shen was even more delighted, and laughed heartily before saying to Third Sister Yi: "Except for Xiao Yang, who refused to change his name, all of you who join my sect will take my surname. Would you like to share my surname, Luo? If you are included in my Luo family tree, I will definitely treat you as my own son from now on."
Although they were her biological son, Sister Yi San thought of the half-dead medicine residue in the medicine jars, and hesitated for a moment. Just as she was about to agree, Taoist Hua Shen saw her hesitation and did not get angry but explained to her instead.
"You join my clan just to continue the family lineage. Think of how glorious our Luo family was once in Xuancheng Prefecture! But we were framed by those sinister villains, and now I'm the only one left. I have no children, so I want to take in disciples as a family lineage. But I, the Luo family, naturally disdain disciples who rely on protection to survive. Aside from testing medicine, which is unavoidable, I will teach you everything I know about any doubts you may have."
Third Sister Yi slowly realized that Taoist Hua Shen was genuinely interested. With a master of such immense power and knowledge willing to teach her, Third Sister Yi had no reason to hesitate. She accepted immediately. However, she already had an opinion about her name, and now was a good opportunity to further test Taoist Hua Shen's attitude, so she decided to speak frankly.
Third Sister Yi knelt down and kowtowed to Taoist Hua Shen, then stood up and spoke respectfully, "It is heaven's good fortune that Third Sister can join Master's clan, and I will never refuse. However, Third Sister has already thought of a name, and I hope Master will grant it."
Taoist Hua Shen didn't look angry, just a little surprised. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Of course. But most children in the valley can't read. If you give me a strange name, it will embarrass me. I still have to check it out. Now, what name do you want?"
"Xuan Yi, the flawless beauty of jade, the graceful and elegant Yi."
She hoped that she could escape from this silt and live like a person with dignity rather than a piece of material. Although she might not be able to do these two words, she wanted to remind herself all the time and not forget her wish.
Luo Xuanyi. Taoist Hua Shen considered it carefully and immediately decided, "Yes, that's a good name! You, Luo Xuanyi, are now accepted into my clan. If you have any questions in the future, just come and ask me!" He immediately beckoned a book from the top shelf, took out his pen, and wrote the three characters Luo Xuanyi. As soon as he put pen to paper, a petite figure appeared on the paper. With just a few strokes, it was clear it was the third sister of the Yi clan.
Su Yang raised his hand to congratulate: "Congratulations, Master, for getting Junior Sister Xuanyi." Luo Xuanyi looked at him, and seeing Su Yang looking at her with approval, she couldn't help but feel happy.
Taoist Hua Shen pointed at Su Yang and said, "You stubborn ox, are you still unwilling to change your surname?" Seeing Su Yang shaking his head, he didn't lose his temper. "Xuan Yi doesn't have a room in Zhaojian Palace yet, so she will live next to you. Take my newly prepared Bodhi Pills and try them. Let me see if you have improved in alchemy over the years."
He grabbed Luo Xuanyi's arm and made her stand up, and said excitedly: "Xuanyi, come with me to try this Bodhi Pill!"
Although the hand holding her arm was so warm, and Taoist Hua Shen's expression did not show any malice, and he was simply curious about the new medicine he had prepared, Luo Xuanyi still felt a chill in her heart that lasted for a long time.
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