Chapter Thirty-One: The Girl with a Dark Fate

  The sunlight shone brightly, illuminating the ancient wooden knife in his hand with a dark luster. The fingers grasping it appeared as transparent as jade. Xuan Zhen turned the handle slightly towards the light, and indeed, the fine texture of the knife's surface was filled with golden light, clearly visible. However, there were only some strange patterns of flowers and grasses carved on it, and the name hidden within could not be seen. The gentle breeze stirred, and the five-colored silk threads on the handle fluttered and danced in the air, causing Xuan Zhen to squint slightly at the dazzling colors before him.

  His heart was filled with doubts, and he couldn't help but think of several possibilities. He had searched for answers in Huangshan many times before, but to no avail, and the memories of his past had long been shrouded in a sense of abandonment. But now, hearing the old man say that something on him came from Nanjiang, it was like a glimmer of light in the darkness, or finding food and drink when one is starving. He secretly made up his mind to go to the Black Witch tribe no matter what. In his heart, he thought: if he could recover his memories, that would be best; if not, then he would just consider it a trip to Nanjiang.

  Xuān Zhèn immediately asked Hòu Sù about the route to the Hei Wū tribe. As soon as Hòu Sù heard this, he knew what Xuān Zhèn was thinking and shook his head, sighing: "In our southern border, there are mountains everywhere, big and small, with several hundred mountain peaks. Those mountain roads are all hidden in the weeds, if you're not a seasoned traveler, you'll definitely get lost as soon as you enter. Moreover, the mountains are full of poisonous insects and plants, and there's also plenty of poisonous fog and miasma. Why must you take such risks, Hero?"

  It's about whether I can recall my memories or not. Although this dissuasion is well-intentioned, I'd rather not listen to it. Xuan Zhen said: "Master Huo doesn't know something. I have a matter that has been weighing on my mind for over ten years. Now that I have a way to resolve it, no matter how slim the chances are, I want to give it a try. Even if it's just for peace of mind. Master, please make an exception this time."

  He spoke sincerely, and his face was full of determination. The villain saw that he had already made up his mind and couldn't change it, so he could only sigh and say: "You go south, and you'll encounter a mountain peak with giant trees growing all over it. That's the Spiritual Mountain, where the Black Sorcerer tribe is said to live. As for the exact location... no one knows except for their own people."

  As they spoke, the sun had already set in the west, with a riot of colorful clouds at the horizon, matching the vibrant red flowers that filled the city, as if the entire sky was ablaze. Even the faces of the people in the city were tinged with a reddish hue. Huo Zhen and Xuan Zhen repeatedly cautioned each other about being careful when entering the mountains, while quickly disassembling the wooden birds on the ground into small pieces and tossing them into a deep blue canvas bag. The group of children who had gathered around, seeing that there was nothing more exciting to watch, gradually dispersed and headed home.

  Xuan Zhen concentrated his mind and listened carefully to the teachings of the calamity, when he suddenly felt a slight force pulling at the corner of his clothes. He looked down and saw that it was the tiger-headed child, who was staring up at him with big round black eyes, puffing out his cheeks as he opened and closed his small mouth like a goldfish out of water. After a long time, he finally managed to squeeze out a sentence: "Big brother, Little Di and San Mo also want to ride the big knife and play, will you come again tomorrow?" The child didn't recognize the precious sword of the immortal family, seeing that the blade was sharp but not harming anyone, and the body was narrow and long, so he thought it was just an ordinary knife used by street performers. His words were innocent and lovely, and Xuan Zhen listened without taking offense.

  Xuan Zhen smiled slightly, bent down and stroked the tiger's head, saying: "Tomorrow is fine, but after a few more days it's uncertain. If you want to play, you'd better ask early."

  The tiger head only listened to the first sentence and cheered up, bouncing and jumping towards the flower tree below several small hair balls, Xuan Zhen looked at their back shadow with a smile, suddenly a fragrant wind swept past his shoulder, elegant but not thick, it seemed like the fragrance of phoenix flowers that filled the city.

  Then a pleasant voice came from nearby, entering my ears. The tone was soft and gentle, but the enunciation was clear and cold: "Master Wang, I haven't been to the market recently, if it wasn't for Auntie next door telling me she saw you here, I would have missed you again... Do you still have some of those medicines you gave me last time? My father drank the soup made from those medicines and his cough got a lot better, and he doesn't spit up blood as often. I...I'm very grateful."

  Xuan Zhen turned around to look, and saw a young girl in green clothes standing in front of Jiu Sou. The girl was only seventeen or eighteen years old, with long black hair tied up with a hemp-colored cloth strip and hanging down to her waist. Although it was just a side face, the outline was delicate, with eyelashes like feathers, and occasionally reflecting some golden sunlight. Her dark eyes were moist, reflecting the phoenix flower without any coquettish color. Her skin was white and delicate, like fine porcelain, and she had an elegant demeanor. Although she wore simple clothes, she was a rarely seen beauty.

  At this moment, the girl's eyebrows were furrowed, and although there was a joyful expression on her cold face, it was also very faint. Xuan Zhen pondered the meaning of her words, and it seemed that her father had fallen seriously ill, and only the medicine of Huo Dou had some therapeutic effect, so as soon as she heard that Huo Dou was here, she hurriedly rushed over, without even taking the time to carefully comb her hair.

  He was secretly sizing up the girl with a hint of sympathy, when he suddenly saw her glance over, only to have her eyes scan his face and then look away. The next instant, he saw the girl and the similarly looking-over Hou Tu both reveal shocked expressions.

  Xuan Zhen was taken aback, and following the two people's gaze to his own chest, he too was shocked. He saw that inside his Taoist robe with blue edges and embroidered patterns, there was a round object emitting white light, which was clearly visible through the thin fabric of his clothes as it was backlit by the setting sun. The light burst out hastily, as if to prove its existence over the past half year, Xuan Zhen quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out the cool, smooth, round object that he had touched.

  He took out the jade pendant, and the white light landed on his hand. The girl and the old man naturally knew that the source of the light was this object, and their eyes followed it over. The spiritual light of the jade still reluctantly emitted a bright white glow in Xuán Zhèn's palm, and only slowly weakened after a long time. The old man stared with a pair of dull old eyes, speechless, while the girl recovered from her surprise in an instant and returned to her calm demeanor. Xuán Zhèn stared at her for half a day without blinking, but the girl remained calm and composed, perhaps because she was used to being looked at like this and had grown accustomed to it, and didn't say a word, not even bothering to glare back.

  She turned to the old man and begged: "Old Master, if there is still some spiritual medicine left, please give me some more... I brought some money this time, although not too much..."

  "Trouble, this young lady's filial piety is truly commendable. You might as well give her some medicine. If the silver isn't enough, I'm willing to make up for it." Xuan Zhen was originally uneasy in his heart, but seeing the young girl mention the modesty of her pouch, her cold face full of embarrassment, he softened and hastily interjected.

  The girl glanced at him, though silent, but her eyes also had a hint of gratitude. Xuan Zhenchong smiled at her and turned to look at Huo Sou, waiting for his answer.

  "It's just some wild herbs I picked from the mountain, naturally grown and watered by heaven. I didn't even need to tend to them, so how could I dare accept your money? If your father recovers, it's all thanks to the blessings of the Goddess Nuwa, no need to thank me. There isn't much of the herb, but since I was coming down the mountain anyway, I happened to pull out a few handfuls. You're welcome to take them all if you want, just hoping they can help your father recover."

  The girl listened, her eyebrows finally dispersed a little, the corner of her lips curved like a red lotus, and this gentle smile was like spring returning to the earth with hundreds of flowers blooming. Even an old man like Gu Sui couldn't help but stare blankly for a moment. Xuan Zhen's heart was still calm, and he could still maintain a dignified expression on his face.

  It wasn't until the girl took over a small package of muddy herbs that the fortune teller asked another question: "Miss, I don't know if you're aware, but your father's coughed-up blood... is it red with a hint of pink, much brighter in color than before?"

  The girl nodded in agreement: "Old Master said it's not bad, Father used to cough and couldn't catch his breath, the blood he spat out was dark brown, but since taking this medicine, occasionally coughing up a little blood, the color has gradually returned to bright red, I think it's the effect of the divine medicine." She thanked him several times before hurrying away with the medicine package, her skirt trailing behind her.

  Xuan Zhen directly used his gaze to see off the girl as she turned around the street corner, but when he turned back, he was stunned. Hui Sou also stood beside him, looking at the girl's receding figure, but on his face, there was no longer the kind and smiling expression from before, instead, it was a worried look.

  "Mr. Hu Lao... isn't there something wrong with that girl?" Xuan Zhen couldn't help but ask.

  The old man was startled, and then he was stunned for half a day. Only after Xuan Zhen repeatedly asked him did he slowly shake his head: "It's not that. I've seen this girl several times. She has an elderly father who is seriously ill again, and the whole family relies on her to take care of everything. She also has to worry about finding medicine for her father... Her heart is truly admirable, which is why I especially picked those herbs for her..."

  "It turned out that this herb was specially picked by Old Master for her, no wonder he didn't accept any payment." Xuan Zhen nodded.

  "Even with good medicine, I'm afraid it won't last much longer... Her father's illness is a coughing up blood syndrome. At first, it was just a persistent cough, but gradually it became more severe, with more phlegm and dry mouth, and the coughed-up phlegm often had blood threads in it. Later on, it simply became coughing up blood, from little to much, and the color of the blood also gradually turned dark and brown..."

  This remark was roughly consistent with what the girl had said earlier, and Xuán Zhèn nodded again: "But didn't she just say that after taking Mr. Huò's herbal medicine, her father got a lot better?"

  The old man shook his head, with a heavier look of worry on his face: "It's all wrong, not good at all, but a great disaster! Although the spiritual medicine has slightly suppressed the symptoms of coughing up blood, the disease has already reached its final stage. Unless the goddess Nuwa performs a miracle, there is no way to save him back. This girl's father only has one or two months left to live, and he will leave behind such a young daughter, what can she do?" As he spoke, he sighed and groaned, his face filled with dark clouds of sorrow.

  Xuan Zhen's heart sank as soon as he heard the news. For some reason, when he saw the girl asking for medicine for her father, he felt a deep sense of empathy, as if he had experienced the same anxiety and sorrow from seeing his own loved ones suffer from illness. Now that he heard her father was about to pass away, he wished he had some kind of miraculous medicine that could prolong life, and he would have immediately delivered it to her doorstep.

  Just thinking of the miraculous medicine, Xuan Zhen's chest shook violently, and he suddenly said in a low voice: Ah, yes! Even if I myself don't have any medicinal pellets on me that can cure illnesses, Qingyang Elder from the Dragon's Spine Hall of the Qionghua Sect might... The Qionghua Sect doesn't lack any precious treasures! Moreover...

  He lowered his head to gaze at the Spirit Light Jade in his hand, which was no longer glowing, and felt even more determined. After thinking carefully for a moment, he changed his expression and smiled slightly at Hui Xian: "Don't worry, Mr. Hui, I have my own way of helping that young lady. However, there's one more thing I'd like to ask, may I ask where... does that young lady live?"

  P.S. Because climbing Mount Hua was too exhausting, I'm currently feeling weak and lethargic all over, as if poisoned by a lazy insect... Just hoping that the ladies and gentlemen will graciously give me some time to rest and recover... No need to rush for updates...

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