Pei Guanli’s sobs ceased, and she broke into a tearful smile as she hugged him. "Brother-in-law, you’re okay! You’re okay..."
"COUGH, COUGH..."
Chen Yi tried feebly to push her away, but when he couldn’t break free, he simply let her hold him.
He gazed at the full moon peeking through the gaps in the dense canopy of leaves and thought to himself:
’That was genuinely dangerous.’
’The Five Poison Sect, Liu Zhaoxue of the Jing State Liu Family... This isn’t over!’
But what Chen Yi and Pei Guanli didn’t know was that, on a tree several hundred yards away...
Chen Yunfan was staring at them, dumbfounded.
To be precise, he was staring at Chen Yi lying on the ground, his face and eyes filled with utter disbelief.
’Brother Yi?’
’Is that Brother Yi?’
’Brother Yi has reached Spear Dao Perfection?!’
’Damn it, that’s impossible.’
’How is that even possible?’
’He, Chen Yunfan, had practiced Martial Arts since he was a child. After more than a decade of hard work, his Cultivation had only just broken through to the Lower Fourth Grade.’
’His Sword Dao had only just reached the Great Success Realm.’
’With this rate of progress, the family elders already called him a prodigy.’
’They said he had the greatest talent for Martial Arts the Jiangnan Prefecture Chen Family had seen in a century.’
’But if he was a once-in-a-century talent, then what did that make Chen Yi?’
’He was younger, his Cultivation was a bit lower, but his Spear Dao was immensely more powerful!’
’Father, Mother, Second Uncle, Great-Grandfather, Third Grandpa, Fifth Grandpa, you have to come and see this.’
’Brother Yi has made it big! He... damn it all... he’s reached Spear Dao Perfection!’
’Damn it all, how is that fair?’
’He had toiled and suffered since he was a child to cultivate his Martial Arts, and he couldn’t even show it, all so he could one day make a stunning debut.’
But before he could even make a name for himself among the scholars, before he could dominate the Jianghu, he discovered someone in his own family was already more incredible than him.
’Brother Yi, your Calligraphy Dao is at Perfection, and your Spear Dao is at Perfection too... Talent like yours puts your big brother in a really tight spot.’
A moment later, seeing that the corrosive effects of the Evil Poison in his body had subsided slightly, Chen Yi couldn’t help but speak again.
"Stop crying."
"Help me. Help me up."
Pei Guanli finally snapped out of it and hurriedly helped him sit up. "Brother-in-law, are you feeling any better?"
Of course, she could see for herself how he was doing.
The Evil Poison was still coursing through Chen Yi’s body. Apart from his face, which was relatively unharmed, the rest of his body was swollen and festering.
It was a truly gruesome sight.
But after checking himself with his Qi Observation Skill, Chen Yi sighed in relief.
"It’s fine. They’re just superficial wounds. The Evil Poison didn’t reach my internal organs. I reckon I’ll be fully healed by tomorrow."
Her heart aching for him, Pei Guanli was about to touch his wounds when his words made her freeze. "Tomorrow?"
Chen Yi hummed in affirmation, took out an earring, and began to treat his wounds with it.
As he began Controlling Needle with Qi, he made sure to instruct her, "When we get back, don’t mention anything that happened tonight."
"Your Sister Wan’er is too pure-hearted. She can’t handle these sordid affairs. Plus, her health is poor. It’s better to save her the worry."
"If she asks, we need to have our story straight. We’ll say you ran into some Jianghu People and almost got into a fight..."
Pei Guanli nodded to show she had it memorized, all while watching his actions with curiosity.
"Brother-in-law, is that ’Controlling Needle with Qi’? I remember Ah Ma saying that only the most incredible Medical Saint Hands can use it."
Chen Yi confirmed with a grunt and continued, "Don’t worry about that for now. Just memorize what I told you. Don’t slip up like you did in front of your Sister Jinghong."
"Don’t worry, brother-in-law. I—I promise I won’t give anything away."
"Speaking of which, what happened with you? You were carrying so many vials and jars, and even Gu Insects. How did you get caught by the Five Poison Sect?"
At the mention of this, Pei Guanli’s face flushed with indignation.
"They—they’re horrible! They used a little kid to trick me!"
"I had just come out of the latrine when a child ran up to me, saying he couldn’t find his mother. I offered to help him look."
"But as soon as we entered a small path, someone knocked me unconscious..."
’Knocked unconscious, huh.’