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Chapter 22: Words Left Unsaid
After dealing with the beginning and the end.
Lan Chang'an went to the boulder and helped the unconscious Mu Xiuyun up.
He circulated his Evergreen Energy to dispel the poison in her body.
But he did not completely remove it, only ensuring her life was not in danger and her condition was stable.
Although wood-type cultivation techniques generally contain plant and wood spiritual qi with healing effects that can dispel poisons to some extent, it was far from the exaggerated effects of the Evergreen mana.
Lan Chang'an also gave Mu Xiuyun a Recovery Pill.
As the deadly poison weakened and her magical power recovered, Mu Xiuyun opened her eyes and felt the aura of the man supporting her from behind.
"I'm... not dead?" Mu Xiuyun's breath was weak, unable to care about the difference between men and women. Her beautiful face, still with some brownish spots, showed half surprise and half puzzlement.
Calming herself down.
She asked, "Ge Yi didn't continue pursuing us?"
"At that time, Ge Yi came after us on the flying boat, and we couldn't escape. I could only stubbornly defend with the Bedrock Shield, exhausting all my talisman slips. Just as my spiritual power was depleted and I reached my limit, Ge Yi suddenly retreated..."
Lan Chang'an calmly recited the story he had prepared beforehand. To make it seem more convincing, his robe was torn with a few bloody wounds.
While listening, Mu Xiuyun occasionally revealed her thoughts: "Ge Yi was poisoned and not at his peak. Even so, for Lan Chang'an to hold out for a moment was not easy."
As for why Ge Yi retreated, there was no need to ponder much about it. After all, near the Mu family's residence, even Zheng Yuanhua at the ninth layer of Qi-Refining would not dare linger for long.
Mu Xiuyun had no doubts about Lan Chang'an's account.
She could never have imagined that Lan Chang'an, who had just entered the fourth layer of Qi-Refining, could slay Ge Yi, who was at the seventh layer.
"Miss, the poison in your body can only be slightly alleviated by my wood-type spiritual power. You must seek proper treatment once we return." Seeing that Mu Xiuyun could sit and regulate her breathing, Lan Chang'an released his arms from holding her.
"Lan Chang'an, I truly must thank you this time..." Mu Xiuyun seemed to recall something, her starry eyes lowered as a faint blush appeared on her pretty face.
Earlier, when her magical power was depleted and the deadly poison flared up, Lan Chang'an had carried her as they fled. That natural, refreshing masculine aura of the other party's body still lingered.
"It was only my duty." Lan Chang'an did not boast. As long as it wasn't in return for his body, anything was fine.
After waiting for a moment, the sound of air being torn apart could be heard.
Their hearts tightened.
They saw a tall, sturdy man in disheveled black robes riding a blue flying boat, his face anxious as he searched through the mountains.
"Uncle Renglong."
Relieved, Mu Xiuyun waved excitedly.
Seeing the two of them, Mu Renglong let out a long sigh of relief.
Blood stains still fresh on his mouth, and his gaping grin coupled with his grim, sharp gaze gave him a ferocious appearance.
"Greetings, Second Elder." Lan Chang'an cupped his hands in salute. He had heard of Mu Renglong's renowned might as the strongest elder of the Mu family.
"Xiuyun, you're alright?"
Mu Renglong approached Mu Xiuyun with concern on his face.
"No grave injuries, the poison in my body has been temporarily stabilized." Mu Xiuyun forced a smile, the poisonous spots still visible on her face.
"This is the Marrow Corroding Powder! Ordinary detoxifying pills are ineffective. Fortunately, you had the Hundred Herb Scented Sachet."
After examining her, Mu Renglong took out a translucent white pill and had Mu Xiuyun consume it.
Mu Xiuyun said gratefully, "Uncle Renglong, thank heavens you arrived in time. Otherwise, against Zheng Yuanhua, we would have had no chance of survival."
Lan Chang'an was slightly puzzled by this. When he had set off the signal talisman, Feiyue Mountain Villa was over two hundred miles away. Mu Renglong should not have been able to get here so quickly.
"Hmph! I never liked that Ge fellow. If not for his relationship with the Patriarch..." Mu Renglong's expression turned gloomy, a murderous aura emerging.
"Today, I originally had something to discuss with Xiuyun. When I learned about the situation at the herb garden, I felt it was suspicious. That old man turned out to be the mole!" It turned out that in recent years, Mu Renglong had been searching for the mole within the family. Elder Ge Dan was one of the few suspects he was keeping an eye on.
"A mole?" Lan Chang'an recalled how, years ago when he and Li Ergou were returning to the Mu family, they had been ambushed halfway by people from the Zheng family like the Ugly Woman.
The Zheng family had somehow known the precise timing of their departure and return. However, since Ge Yi had already been killed by Lan Chang'an, if he was the mole, then the grudge had been avenged.
As for the Ugly Woman and others from the Zheng family, he would find an opportunity to deal with them later.
...
"By the way, how did you two escape the pursuit? What happened at the herb garden?"
"Uncle Renglong, it was Lan Chang'an..."
At this point, some color returned to Mu Xiuyun's pale face as the brownish spots faded.
"Oh?" Mu Renglong listened with an astonished expression.
Occasionally asking a question, his gaze towards Lan Chang'an gradually revealed appreciation.
"Lan Chang'an, you have rendered great service to the family today! The family will record your merit." Mu Renglong walked over and patted Lan Chang'an's shoulder.
In that instant of contact, Lan Chang'an sensed a hidden fluctuation of mana.
"An ordinary wood-type cultivation technique..." Mu Renglong's thoughts turned profound as he had probed Lan Chang'an's earlier but found nothing unusual.
Reviewing this crisis at the herb garden, Lan Chang'an's contributions were not insignificant, leaving no major suspicions. However, there were two minor points of doubt:
First, Lan Chang'an was able to resist the Marrow Corroding Powder and quickly recover, which ordinary poison resistance training could not achieve.
On this point, Lan Chang'an might have been hiding something. Perhaps he possessed some strange object that could detoxify and expel poisons, which was not uncommon in the cultivation world. For example, Mu Xiuyun's sachet of fragrances was normally just an accessory but could ward off poisons in crucial moments.
Second, in this battle, Lan Chang'an displayed considerable talent in spell casting and combat prowess, holding off Elder Ge Dan alone for at least twenty breaths, even though the latter was poisoned and not at full strength.
Of course, such exceptional performance did not exceed the bounds of reason. In the cultivation world, some cultivators with mediocre aptitudes excelled in combat talents and spell comprehension, even capable of fighting above their level.
At the very least, Lan Chang'an's performance did not surpass some of the peerless geniuses in the history of the cultivation world in Liang Nation. f𝗿e𝗲𝘄𝗲bn𝐨𝚟𝚎l.com
Moreover, as a Martial Innate Master, Lan Chang'an's experience in the martial world, battle-hardened skills, and use of poison tactics all aligned with his background.
Mu Renglong never even considered the possibility that Lan Chang'an could jump his level to kill Ge Yi, who was at the seventh layer of Qi-Refining.
Even for Mu Renglong himself, killing Elder Ge Dan would require some effort.
...
"Lan Chang'an, it's a bit of a pity that a talent like you didn't go to the frontline to battle." Mu Renglong said with a piercing gaze.
Lan Chang'an's expression twitched slightly: "This junior cannot shoulder such a heavy responsibility. It is more suitable for me to draw talisman slips for the family."
Having rendered such great service today by rescuing the Mu family's young lady, if he was "rewarded" by being sent to the front lines, he might as well leave this family.
Fortunately, Mu Renglong was only probing and did not make any requests.
He knew that Lan Chang'an was a talented outsider who refused to marry and have children, and had been cultivating in a low-key manner. Asking him to risk his life for the family would definitely be unrealistic.
...
An hour later, Mu Renglong brought the two of them back to the herb garden.
The losses of medicinal herbs in the garden were still acceptable, aside from those coveted by Ge Yi.
"Uncle Cheng..."
What pained and grieved Mu Renglong was that several low-level Qi-Refining cultivators in the herb garden, those plant tenders and servants, had all succumbed to the poison.
Among them was the fifth layer Qi-Refining plant tender. By generational titles, that elderly spiritual planting master was Mu Renglong's uncle.
Lan Chang'an surveyed the surroundings and noticed the Earth Rock Rat was nowhere to be seen. Without spiritual power to sustain it, the Restraining Vine Technique had a time limit.
After properly arranging the corpses of the deceased, Mu Renglong gazed at the desolate, empty herb garden for a long while before speaking:
"Lan Chang'an, you will continue to guard the herb garden. The family will promptly send reinforcements. Once the dispute over the mining districts on the front lines is resolved, the family will reward you for your service."
Continue guarding it?
Lan Chang'an knew the Mu family was in dire need of manpower currently.
After this crisis and rescuing Mu Xiuyun, the Mu family's higher-ups placed even more trust in him. As long as he didn't go to the front lines and remained stationed at the herb garden, Lan Chang'an had no objections.
"Second Elder, that Elder Zheng from the Zheng family..." Lan Chang'an inquired.
"You can rest assured." Mu Renglong understood Lan Chang'an's concern.
"I injured Zheng Yuanhua, and he won't dare return. Moreover, I will be setting some covert plots in motion to take revenge on the Zheng family..."
Mu Renglong's tone was vicious.
"That's good." Lan Chang'an seemed to relax slightly.
In fact, he was not too afraid of the Zheng family elder. Against a ninth layer Qi-Refining cultivator, he had ways to protect himself, but it would still be troublesome.
Lan Chang'an still had a few Golden Blade Talismans left that he had refined a few years ago. This talisman was enough to deal with ordinary late Qi-Refining opponents. But against powerhouses like Mu Renglong and Zheng Yuanhua at the ninth layer of Qi-Refining, it might not be so advantageous.
Ge Yi had been instantly killed by a single blade because of the element of surprise. At that time, Ge Yi was fully focused on controlling two artifacts, leaving openings in his defenses.
...
That evening.
After her injuries from the poison were initially treated, Mu Xiuyun followed Mu Renglong to return to the family.
"Lan Chang'an, be careful." Before parting, the elegant Mu Xiuyun in a modest long dress, graceful and beautiful, looked back at Lan Chang'an with her starry eyes.
Her red lips pursed slightly, revealing a hint of puzzlement and curiosity on her face.
During that period of unconsciousness, she had felt as if she had fallen into an endless darkness, powerless to return. But at the crucial moment, a strand of pale green warmth had pulled her out of the abyss.
The details were not very clear, so she did not mention it to Mu Renglong, nor did she feel it appropriate to directly ask Lan Chang'an.
"Take care, Miss."
Seeing Mu Xiuyun's unspoken thoughts, Lan Chang'an smiled and waved goodbye.
...
"Finally, I can check the spoils of battle!"
After confirming Mu Renglong and Mu Xiuyun had gone far enough, Lan Chang'an returned alone to the wooden hut in the herb garden and laid down a few layers of restrictive spells.
He took out Ge Yi's storage pouch and spent some time breaking through the sealing spells on it.
When the storage pouch opened, his eyes immediately lit up.
"As expected of an Elder Dan, it's brimming with riches!"