Chapter 255: Chapter 253: Flesh and Blood Kinship
After the fight, the Seventh Elder had calmed down considerably. He stared at the Grand Elder, his eyes full of suspicion, and asked in a heavy voice, "It really wasn’t you?"
The Grand Elder laughed in extreme anger. "Lao Qi, oh, Lao Qi, we’ve been together for over a hundred years. We know each other inside and out. That’s right, I’ll admit I have designs on that woman’s secrets. Even if I didn’t, you’d all assume I did anyway. But let me ask you one thing: do I strike you as someone that stupid? Besides, that woman doesn’t have much longer, does she? If she were alive and well, I might be interested. But she can’t even speak. Why would I steal her?"
"Lao Qi, why don’t you first tell us what exactly happened?" the Sixth Elder said, stroking his beard and giving the Seventh Elder a quizzical look. ’Logically,’ he mused, ’even if only that woman were taken, he wouldn’t be so enraged as to senselessly attack the Grand Elder’s disciples, would he?’
The Seventh Elder closed his eyes and took a deep breath before speaking. "The dozen or so disciples of the Celestial Shattering Realm I had stationed in that courtyard... they were all killed!"
HISS!
Everyone couldn’t help but suck in a cold breath, staring at the Seventh Elder in disbelief.
"Is this true?" the Fourth Elder asked, the corner of his mouth twitching violently. ’No wonder Lao Qi acted like a madman,’ he thought. ’If something like this happened under any of our watch, none of us could possibly remain calm either.’
The Grand Elder was stunned at first, then consumed by boundless fury. He pointed at the Seventh Elder and cursed, "Lao Qi, have you lost your mind? Are you an idiot? Would I do something like that? Even if I wanted to take that woman, I would never murder our own junior disciples! You... you... You’re pissing me the hell off!"
By now, the Seventh Elder himself could sense how strange the situation was. A moment ago, he had been so blinded by rage he hadn’t even considered any other possibilities.
Knowing he was in the wrong, he still forced himself to say, "I saw the culprit with my own eyes... they fled in your direction..."
SIGH!
At this, the others all sighed in unison. ’The Seventh Elder really has been blinded by rage and lost all reason,’ they thought. ’If someone wanted to frame the Grand Elder, where else would they flee but in this direction?’
The Sixth Elder gave a wry smile. "Lao Qi, oh, Lao Qi, you’re normally such a sharp person. Think about it. If it really was our First Senior Brother, would he flee back to his own mountain peak? Besides, to kill over a dozen Celestial Shattering Realm Martial Artists before you could even react... First Senior Brother is probably the only one here who could do that. But look closely. Does he show any sign of having been in a fight? And have you examined the wounds on the deceased? Surely you can tell how they died?"
"I..."
The Seventh Elder now knew he had definitely fallen for a trap. But the woman he had loved for so many years had been stolen, and the rage in his heart, far from subsiding, now burned even hotter.
He raised his head and said through clenched teeth, "I was wrong about this. After I find my wife, I will return to personally apologize! At that time, I will accept any punishment First Senior Brother deems fit!"
A flash of killing intent glinted in the Grand Elder’s eyes before his expression softened. He sighed and said, "What’s the point of saying such things now? Is this only your problem? Junior brothers, give the order at once: the entire Divine Eagle Sect is to be locked down! Then... conduct a sweeping search! We will not allow an enemy to run wild in our territory!"
...
When Qin Li returned to the stone cave, he saw Shangguan Shiyu waiting there, silently weeping as she cradled Lin Yunlan. Seeing him return, she quickly wiped her tears away and whispered, "Are you okay?"
"I’m fine. We need to leave immediately, or we’ll be trapped," Qin Li said. He took Lin Yunlan from Shangguan Shiyu’s arms, hoisted her onto his back, and had Shiyu secure her in place with a silk sash.
After so many years of being bedridden, Lin Yunlan’s body was failing. Though she looked relatively normal on the outside, her internal organs were already on the verge of collapse. Qin Li first infused a stream of Innate Purple Qi into her body, then whispered, "Let’s go!"
Because everything had happened so suddenly, the two were able to exploit the resulting chaos. By midnight, they had managed to successfully slip past the main gates of the Divine Eagle Sect!
Once they were out of the mountain range, Shangguan Shiyu stopped and turned to look back in the direction of the Divine Eagle Sect, a look of profound hatred flashing in her eyes.
Qin Li said in a low voice, "Let’s leave this place first. Healing your mother is what’s most important right now. As for revenge... the ones who deserve to die won’t escape."
Shangguan Shiyu nodded lightly. "I’ll follow your lead."
With Qin Li carrying Lin Yunlan on his back, the pair traveled through the night, heading for the entrance to the Mysterious Land. A few days later, they reappeared in Yundian Town and discreetly checked into a small inn.
Wasting no time, Qin Li began by using his Innate Purple Qi to sort through Lin Yunlan’s chaotic meridians. Her Primordial Power was stagnant, her energy channels were blocked, and her Sea of Consciousness was in complete turmoil!
Clearly, Lin Yunlan had fallen into this state after suffering a devastating blow from her husband’s death.
For her to awaken, physical healing was not the priority. The crucial part was awakening her spirit. In other words, Lin Yunlan had to *want* to wake up herself!
The Innate Purple Qi from Qin Li’s body flowed continuously into Lin Yunlan. The miraculous nature of Innate Purple Qi was that, under Qin Li’s control, it could be used to shatter another person’s meridians and clash with their Primordial Power. Alternatively, it could merge with their Primordial Power to perform a thorough Washing of Marrow and Peeling of Hair!
This was the same principle he had used when he performed the Washing of Marrow and Peeling of Hair for Leng Yao and Bu Yunyan.
It took Qin Li two full days to complete this process. After all, Lin Yunlan had been unconscious for many years and, unlike a conscious person, couldn’t circulate her Primordial Power according to his guidance.
Lin Yunlan’s body had been utterly depleted internally, forcing Qin Li to be exceedingly cautious. When he was finished, even Shangguan Shiyu could sense the vibrant life force radiating from her mother’s ruddy complexion!
Seeing how exhausted Qin Li looked, Shangguan Shiyu’s heart ached for him. "You’ve been working for days," she said gently. "Go get some rest."
Qin Li nodded, preparing to meditate and regulate his energy. Though he was exhausted, this process was actually beneficial for his own cultivation.
Shangguan Shiyu held Lin Yunlan’s hand, quietly gazing at the woman who looked so much like her. She pressed her mother’s hand to her cheek and murmured, "Mother, can you hear me? I’m your daughter, I’m Shiyu! I’m grown up now. Please, open your eyes and look at me. Your daughter is normal again. It was all my fault... it’s because of me that Father..."
As Shangguan Shiyu spoke, tears streamed uncontrollably down her face, dripping onto Lin Yunlan’s hand. Lin Yunlan’s fingers twitched almost imperceptibly.
Overcome with emotion, Shangguan Shiyu failed to notice. She continued to sob, pouring out everything that had happened over the years as if a dam in her heart had broken. All because the person lying in the bed was her birth mother!
The person she was closest to in the entire world!
Like any ordinary girl, Shangguan Shiyu gradually stopped crying. Holding her mother’s hand, as if just making small talk, she began to slowly recount her life experiences, bit by bit, from childhood until now.
She talked, and talked, and talked.
Having long since recovered, Qin Li stood quietly beside Shangguan Shiyu, listening as her gentle voice grew progressively hoarser. By the end, her voice was so raspy it was hard to believe it was coming from Shiyu.
He couldn’t help but gently interrupt. "Shiyu, that’s enough. Your mother needs to rest, and so do you."
Shangguan Shiyu took a small sip from a cup of water and shook her head stubbornly. "No. I want to stay with my mother. I don’t want to leave her side for even a second!"
One day, two days, three days passed!
For three full days, Shangguan Shiyu remained by her mother’s side, talking nonstop without a wink of sleep. Even with the Elixirs Qin Li gave her, her voice remained terribly hoarse. If one were to just hear her voice without seeing her face, they would have mistaken it for that of an old woman.
Finally, Lin Yunlan’s fingers began to curl, bit by bit. Then, gently, they clasped Shangguan Shiyu’s delicate hand. Her lips trembled, and a nearly inaudible voice whispered, "Shiyu..."
"Mother!!!"
Shangguan Shiyu’s voice suddenly broke through its hoarseness in a piercing shriek. She threw herself onto Lin Yunlan’s body, wailing uncontrollably.
If Qin Li hadn’t already sealed the room with a barrier, that single cry might have alerted more than half the town. In that same moment, Qin Li’s eyes grew red and his nose tingled. He pressed his lips together and turned away.
The bond between flesh-and-blood relatives is something no one can sever. Heaven and Earth are vast, but a mother is the greatest of all.
Qin Li gently patted Shangguan Shiyu’s back, sending a steady stream of Innate Purple Qi into her. With his other hand, he took Lin Yunlan’s pulse, infusing her with Innate Purple Qi as well. "Shiyu, stop crying," he said softly. "Your mother just woke up. Let her rest for a while."
More than ten days later, Lin Yunlan had finally recovered. It could be said that Qin Li’s Innate Purple Qi was the primary reason for her recovery. Anyone else, even a Martial Artist of the Venerable Realm, would have had no guarantee of waking her. The combination of his precise control over his power and the miraculous properties of the Innate Purple Qi itself had given Qin Li the abilities of a divine physician.
Having moved past the initial emotional turmoil, Shangguan Shiyu had completely calmed down. For more than ten days, she never left Lin Yunlan’s sight. The mother and daughter felt almost no distance between them, bonding deeply in an incredibly short time.
As for Qin Li, who had saved her, Lin Yunlan looked upon him with all the fondness of a mother-in-law for a future son-in-law; the more she saw him, the more she liked him.
From Lin Yunlan, Qin Li and Shangguan Shiyu also learned about the long-buried events of the past.
