Chapter 54

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Chapter 54: Title

The group emerged to find the healer and her puppet shell standing atop the flying boat’s canopy, robes flapping like war banners.

Lu Ciyou gaped at the figures perched above cloud-filled voids. "How’d you climb up there?"

The healer descended like falling cherry blossoms, landing soundlessly.

"Like this."

Lu Ciyou’s cheek twitched. As if anyone could scale air itself.

"The master is busy. Who needs saving? Speak quickly," the puppet shell abruptly spoke.

The healer stood nearby, pursing her lips in a faint smile, maintaining an air of mystery.

Suiyin leaned toward Xia Shi and whispered, "Why doesn’t she speak for herself?"

Xia Shi answered, "It… makes her appear more formidable."

Their conversation wasn’t through voice transmission, allowing everyone present to hear clearly.

The healer turned her gaze toward Xia Shi, arching an eyebrow slightly. "Better than I anticipated."

Closing her eyes, she sniffed in Xia Shi’s direction.

"Took the medicine. At least three months’ worth."

"Decent results."

Lu Ciyou’s eyes widened. "What kind of nose can smell that?"

"The master is busy. Who needs saving? Speak quickly," the puppet shell reiterated.

Jiang Xinian’s injuries couldn’t be delayed further. After exchanging glances, the group motioned for the healer to enter first.

Recognizing Jiang Xinian immediately, the healer remarked, "So it’s this lad."

Recalling Jiang Xinian’s earlier words, Xia Shi inquired, "Were you in Si Hai City during Canghai’s calamity?"

The healer nodded. "Indeed. I crossed paths with this youngster once."

"Can his wounds still be treated?" Lu Ciyou interjected.

Without glancing up, the healer heard the puppet shell declare from the corner, "My master can cure anything."

Lu Ciyou fell silent.

"She stays. The rest of you, out," the healer ordered, pointing at Xia Shi.

"Absolutely not!"

"Impossible!"

Suiyin and Yan Li protested in unison, shielding Xia Shi from both sides.

Wariness flickered in Yan Li’s eyes. This mysterious healer’s origins were unknown – she couldn’t abandon her junior master here alone.

"Refusing to leave?" The healer surveyed them and sighed. "Very well. I’ll depart."

She made to withdraw from treatment.

"Wait." Xia Shi raised a restraining hand before addressing her protectors. "I’ll be fine. Wait outside."

"But—!" Yan Li’s protest died under Xia Shi’s firm stare.

"A Li." Lu Ciyou’s voice carried quiet authority. "Come."

When Yan Li hesitated, Suiyin guided her out with an arm about her shoulders.

"Out we go."

After the room emptied, the healer shot a glance at the puppet shell.

The puppet gave a slight nod and positioned itself outside as sentry.

“I’m no saint who shows up whenever someone’s injured,” the healer said bluntly. “I came for you, Xia Wuwei.”

Xia Shi didn’t flinch at the exposure of her identity. She quietly moved to adjust the Spiritual Plants by the window. “I heard Hua Sheng, the current master of Divine Doctor Valley, once had a junior sister whose skills matched his own. She was exiled for breaking taboos and vanished. Is that you, healer? Or should I call you ‘Ghost Hand’ Chen Ci?”

Chen Ci’s gaze sharpened. “Can’t stand losing, can you? Take an inch, demand a mile. What if I refuse to save this boy—or cure your poison?”

Xia Shi’s gaze remained still as frozen water. “You won’t.”

The certainty made Chen Ci pause. He mentally retraced their past—they’d never been close. “You speak as if we’re acquainted,” he scoffed. “Most flee from my name, calling me heartless.”

“True,” Xia Shi agreed.

Chen Ci stiffened.

“But I also know Ghost Hand Chen Ci thrives on unsolvable cases,” she continued. “When we first met, you vowed to keep me alive even if my poison defied cure.” Such obsession wouldn’t yield to petty anger.

“True.” Chen Ci frowned, annoyed he’d mirrored her words. “Want the poison gone?”

“There’s a condition?”

“The cold poison’s trapped by a barrier in your Dantian. Removing it requires breaking the seal first. Who sealed it? Why?”

“Does it matter?”

“Would I ask otherwise?”

Xia Shi exhaled. *Temperamental grudge-holder.* “My Master sealed it,” she said, piecing together fractured memories. “To stop me from losing control.” The barrier had buried both poison and memories. Now, as memories resurfaced, the seal weakened.

“I’ll break the seal and purge the poison,” Chen Ci said, lips quirking. “But once cured, you’ll never wield a sword again. Your cultivation, spiritual power, realm—all gone. Starting over’s possible, but few dare.” He leaned forward, eager to see if the Nine Realms’ former best in sword techniques would rebuild her path.

“No need.” Xia Shi’s reply came swift, her face untroubled.

“Don’t need it?” Chen Ci asked, astonished. “Do you realize you’ll die without detoxification?”

“I know.” Xia Shi’s expression remained indifferent. The poison requiring her Master’s barrier seal must be lethal.

But she couldn’t afford to restart now. She had to find Lu Qingyu and uncover the truth of past events. Someone like Pei Jiu wouldn’t perish easily – there were still scores to settle.

“Fine.”

Disappointment flickered in Chen Ci’s eyes. So the so-called best in sword techniques lacked nerve.

Third floor of the flying boat—

Lu Ciyou and Suiyin sat at the table while Yan Li paced restlessly before them.

Suiyin shot her a curious glance. Why this agitation over Xia Shi?

She nudged the distracted young lady and tilted her head toward the pacing figure.

“What?!” Lu Ciyou snapped, irritation evident. Noticing Suiyin’s meaningful look and Yan Li’s odd behavior worsened her mood.

“Aren’t you controlling her?”

“Control?” The young lady snorted. “She’s not Liujin Pavilion’s servant. How could I restrain her?”

Yan Li kept peering downward, ignoring their exchange. The pacing resumed.

“Stop that infernal circling!” Lu Ciyou slammed the table, hiding her stinging palm. “She won’t devour Xia Shi! Why the fuss?”

Yan Li lowered her gaze, recognizing her own impulsiveness, and reluctantly sat.

“A Li.” Lu Ciyou studied her anxious demeanor. “You fancy her?”

Suiyin blinked. “Who? Fancy whom?”

Yan Li stiffened. “What nonsense! We’re both women. That healer’s origins are unclear, and her cultivation level’s undetectable. Merely caution.”

“Since when does gender matter? Female companions abound in the Nine Realms.” Lu Ciyou eyed Suiyin’s stunned face. “You’ve shared divine connection with Xia Shi – surely you like her?”

“Like! Yes!” Suiyin nodded dreamily. Xia Shi captivated her completely.

“Hear that?” Lu Ciyou jabbed a finger at Yan Li. “Don’t meddle where you’re not wanted.”

Blushing beneath her mask, Yan Li muttered, “No such intention.”

She merely followed her Master’s instructions.

“Truly?” Lu Ciyou pressed.

“Truly.” Yan Li shook her head vehemently. Harboring feelings for Master Fan? Her Master would disown her.

“Then quit orbiting her. Come.” The young lady jerked her shoulder in summons.

Yan Li had been by her side long enough to understand her needs. She rose and moved behind the young lady, hands naturally beginning to massage tense shoulders.

"Mm—" The young lady leaned back into her arms, contentment smoothing the frustration lines around her mouth. Days of pent-up resentment dissolved like morning frost.

Noticing the eased tension, Yan Li softened her kneading motions. Her own breathing steadied in rhythm with the young lady’s calm.

Suiyin stood watching.

…

She felt like third wheel yet again.

The door’s creak snapped her attention. Suiyin’s eyes lit up as she vanished from the room, reappearing downstairs in a swirl of displaced air.

Chen Ci barely had the door open when the sudden materialization startled him.

"Well? Can you cure it?" The words tumbled out before he’d fully turned.

"Physically possible," Chen Ci answered, then added with deliberate calm, "She refuses treatment."

Suiyin’s face shifted through emotions, her heart rising and falling with his words.

"Why?"

"You should ask her yourself."

As their sleeves brushed in passing, his voice transmission vibrated in her ear: "This body isn’t yours."

Suiyin froze mid-step, head snapping toward him.

Their eyes met across sunlit dust motes.

No further messages came. Only his amusement-tinged "Until next time" hung between them before he vanished with the waiting puppet.

Footsteps sounded on the stairs as Lu Ciyou and Yan Li descended. The three entered to find Xia Shi studying a paper filled with dense characters.

Lu Ciyou drifted to the bedside, eyebrows lifting at Jiang Xinian’s restored legs. "Impressive work."

Not only had the crippling injury been reversed, but the meridians chewed raw by blood leeches now showed smooth regeneration.

Yan Li hovered near the doorway, tension leaving her shoulders when she confirmed Xia Shi’s unharmed state.

"What’s that?" Suiyin appeared at Xia Shi’s elbow in a rush of curiosity, trying to peer at the document.

Xia Shi tilted the paper away with practiced ease.

"Nothing important."

The dismissal stung. Suiyin’s gaze dropped to the floorboards.

"…Oh."

A soft chuckle broke the silence. Her head jerked up in time to catch the lingering spark of mirth in Xia Shi’s gaze.

Teasing?

Xia Shi was teasing her?

Suiyin’s lower lip jutted out in a half-pout as she thrust her palm forward. "Show me."

A piece of paper was held between two slender, jade-like fingers, resting in her palm, the warmth of her hand meeting cool fingertips.

Suiyin lifted her gaze to meet calm, fathomless eyes that mirrored only her reflection at this moment.

Only her.

"Did I ever mention who owns this body?"

"You’re not its true master, are you?"

Aunt Yan and the healer’s words echoed in her ears. Suiyin hastily lowered her head, pretending to read the paper’s contents to conceal her downcast eyes.

She’d have to return eventually.

Xia Shi’s eyes would never hold only her.

The smooth paper crumpled under her grip, carrying its owner’s resentment.

A hand covered hers.

"Only one antidote formula exists."