coobybook Chapter 49 "Coward"
Chapter 49 "Coward"
Fei Xi slowly rubbed the white powder, while trying hard to listen to the sounds coming from the alchemy room.
She couldn't hear anything. Unable to practice martial arts and lacking internal energy, she could hardly hear sounds from more than 5 meters away, let alone from the next room separated by doors and walls.
She waited outside the door for almost an hour before she saw Elder Miao emerge from the alchemy room, looking worried.
As soon as she saw him come out, she immediately stepped forward and asked, "Grandpa Miao, how are Senior Bian's injuries?"
The old man wasn't one to keep secrets or keep things to himself. He shook his head and sighed, saying:
"I have never seen my master suffer such a serious injury. The wound itself is secondary; the main problem is that the butcher's frenzied blade energy is incompatible with my master's constitution, and it will not be easy to completely eliminate it."
After hearing the old man's words, Fei Xi could no longer contain her worry and rushed into the alchemy room. When Elder Miao finally reacted, he could only mutter a few words:
"Girl, Master has already gone to sleep."
On the bamboo couch, just big enough for her to lie down, the man lay prone, with part of his body sticking out. His eyes were closed, and a gruesome knife wound marred his broad shoulders, narrow waist, and muscular back.
A long, deep wound, blood still slowly oozing out, staining the surrounding skin red. The edges of the wound are neatly turned outwards, revealing the white fascia and bare bone. The knife mark on the fair, firm skin is like a piece of silk that has been cut open.
Fei Xi smelled the faint scent of blood in the air, and her remorse made her bite her lower lip. She quietly walked to the man's side and touched his right arm, which was resting under his head.
Upon touching the other's wrist, the man's long, feather-like eyelashes trembled slightly as if he were about to open them. In an instant, his nostrils twitched twice, as if he had smelled something. His face relaxed, and he let his consciousness drift away into chaos.
After taking his pulse, Fei Xi frowned. She could tell that Elder Miao had already administered acupuncture, and Senior Bian, in cooperation with Elder Miao, had expelled most of the sword energy from his body. The reason the wound hadn't been bandaged yet was that the Du Meridian and Yangwei Meridian among the Eight Extraordinary Meridians had been injured by the sword energy, with the residual energy rampaging wildly within them. If the remaining sword energy wasn't removed from his body, even if the wound healed temporarily, the lingering effects would be enough to halt Senior Bian's martial arts progress, perhaps even rendering him unable to fight again.
She released the other person's wrist, gently covering them with a U-shaped quilt, avoiding the wound, before going outside. After speaking with Elder Miao, she walked alone towards the Shuohan Peak residence halfway up the mountain.
Inside a guest room at Shuohan Peak, a man of indeterminate age with a delicate face leaned against the window, seemingly admiring the wind and snow outside.
On a nearby table, Shi Mo took the earthenware pot from the small stove and poured the wine into an agate wine cup. A delicate woman held the cup by its two corners and presented it to the man. The beautiful woman gazed at the man with adoration and softly said:
"Lord Cui, the wine is warmed up."
Instead of taking the wine cup directly, Cui Chou lightly lifted Shi Mo's chin with his finger and asked a strange question:
"Shimo, how old are you this year?"
"This servant is only eighteen years old, my lord. If there is anything that I need to do, I am willing to do it."
The fingers that had lifted her chin seemed to lose interest and immediately released them. Cui Chou withdrew his gaze, not taking the wine from Shi Mo's hand, his eyes continuing to look out the window, and said in a rough voice devoid of any emotion:
"Put the wine on the table, you may leave."
Shi Mo seemed surprised that Lord Cui, who was always gentle with them, would be so cold today, and her soft voice became somewhat urgent:
“The night is cool, Lord Cui, Shimo… Shimo is willing to warm your quilt.”
Cui Chou seemed slightly moved by Shi Mo's words, and looked at Shi Mo with a half-smile, asking:
"Where is your master?"
“The master has gone out on business and is not in the manor today. No matter what happens tonight, Shimo will not tell anyone.”
Upon hearing this, Cui Chou burst into laughter, as if the woman's words were quite amusing.
Shi Mo was completely bewildered by the laughter, but she knew that once she missed this opportunity, it would be extremely difficult to have such an opportunity again.
This distinguished guest used to appear and disappear mysteriously, always challenging the master to a duel upon arrival, and staying in this guest room if injured. She and Shishu would sometimes come to serve the master at his command, and he always treated them with gentleness and consideration, occasionally gifting them rare jewels. Unlike Shishu, she wouldn't place all her hopes on the master. Thinking of the rumors she had heard, she disregarded her feminine modesty, steeled her resolve, and directly removed all her outer garments.
Her graceful figure trembled slightly as she raised the wine cup to the man's lips with her slender, white arms. Her eyes were alluring, and she looked at him shyly, her voice filled with seductive charm.
"My lord, the night is long, why not have a drink first to warm yourself up..."
His fox-like eyes narrowed slightly, and a cold smile curled at the corner of Cui Chou's lips. Normally, he wouldn't care much about a woman's scheming. But now, in a bad mood, seeing such treacherous behavior, his eyes held a smile, yet his voice was utterly cruel:
"According to the rules of Tianshan, once a servant girl turns eighteen, she will be sent down the mountain, and the eight great families under the sect will select suitable girls to serve their masters on the mountain. Little girl, your master didn't take a liking to you, do you think I, Cui Chou, am someone who doesn't care about anyone!"
"You! Waaah..."
Being directly rejected after having her thoughts exposed, the young maid, being easily embarrassed, couldn't stay any longer. She picked up her clothes, covered her face, and ran out of the room crying.
Fei Xi asked the gatekeeper, Elder Luo, and learned that Cui Chou had indeed not left directly, but had returned to his guest room in the mansion.
She followed the direction pointed out by Old Luo to the door. Before she could even open it, she saw Shi Mo running out of the room, his clothes disheveled and his face covered.
The other person saw her, glared at her hatefully, then covered their face and ran away. Fei Xi felt somewhat bewildered, as if she had been made a scapegoat for someone else.
She had heard tales of the butcher Cui Chou before; people in the martial arts world spoke ill of him far more than they praised him. But when her master mentioned Cui Chou, he told her that people cannot be simply categorized as good or bad; human nature is incredibly complex and changeable. Different people have different principles of conduct, and judging someone based on only a partial view is not objective. Some people require personal interaction to truly know their character.
She's now in contact with them, but all she wants to do is curse.
"Ha, is this never going to end today?!"
Fox-eyed coldly stared at the little girl before him. He didn't understand why Bian Yuan would take a knife from him to save her. But since he considered Bian Yuan a friend, he would naturally respect his rules; there were places in Tianshan he wouldn't force his way in.
Seeing the young maid leading people towards the forbidden area, he didn't follow, but instead returned to Bian Yuan's residence to await news. Unexpectedly, he encountered the other party's servant eagerly coming to warm his bed, betraying her master.
Instead of tending to Bian Yuan, who was injured because of her, this little girl ran up to him and said she was going to treat his old wounds, and immediately tried to touch his abdomen...
"Ha," Cui Chou sneered. "They all think he's a lustful devil who'll take any woman."
“Senior Cui, you have prominent blue veins on your nostrils, red eyes, and pale, purplish lips. These are enough to indicate that there is a blockage in your Yang meridian. You don’t feel anything unusual normally, but when you circulate your Qi to your lower right abdomen, about three inches below the waist, you should feel a blockage in your internal energy. It’s in this area…”
Fearing the other person wouldn't believe her, Fei Xi reached out to press the spot she guessed on to let them test her luck. Unexpectedly, her hands were grabbed, and with a thud, she was thrown out of the room, landing with a dazed and disoriented head.
"Little girl, don't think you can fool me just because you can fool your master. Whatever your purpose is, give up on that idea!"
Fei Xi sat up in the snow. Luckily, there was snow outside the window, so the fall didn't hurt much.
But she was very angry!
She had ulterior motives; she originally intended to bring it up again under the guise of seeking medical treatment, but unexpectedly, this person threw her out the window.
Scholars can be killed but not humiliated!
She glared angrily at the pair of contemptuous, narrow eyes in the window. Recalling what she had heard during her time in the Tianshan Mountains, her eyes lit up. She got up from the snow and deliberately spoke sarcastically:
"Hmph, I know! You won't let me treat you because you think that every time you lose to Senior Bian, it's because of your physical ailment, not because you're incapable. You're afraid that once you're fully recovered, you'll have no excuse for your failures. You're afraid to face your own defeats, you coward, you wimp! What kind of butcher Cui Chou is that? You're the coward Cui Chou!"
"Ha! Hahahaha!!!"
Cui Chou had forgotten how long it had been since he had heard someone call him a "coward".
These three words stirred up unbearable memories, and unforgettable recollections floated before his eyes one by one. He couldn't help but sneer, and then burst into maniacal laughter.
As he laughed, he glanced coldly at the woman in the courtyard. She had insulted him so blatantly, yet she glared at him without a shred of fear. It was as if he were a coward afraid to admit he was inferior to Bian Yuan.
His sharp gaze swept sharply towards the oblivious person outside the window. He admitted he had misjudged her; he had initially thought the woman before him was a newly arrived maid from one of the eight great families, but such courage was clearly beyond the reach of ordinary people. Unfortunately for her, she had encountered him, Cui Chou!
A murderous intent surged within him. Cui Chou placed his hand on the Ao Xue Blade, his rough voice like the Grim Reaper knocking on the door:
"You think your provocation will work on me? State your name, and I won't kill nameless nobodies."
"Fei Xi, the senior sister of the Qingcheng Sect!"
"Hmm, the Qingcheng Sect?"
He lowered his hand holding the knife. He remembered that a little over a month ago, this sect, which adhered to the code of chivalry, was betrayed by the very justice it believed in. The entire sect was killed. He never expected to encounter survivors here.
"To call a woman like you, who doesn't even know martial arts, the senior sister is no wonder the Qingcheng Sect was so easily wiped out. Who is your master?"
She knew no martial arts, which meant her sect was looked down upon. Her wound was reopened, and Fei Xi took a deep breath. Especially in situations like this, she needed to remain calm. She calmly looked into the other person's eyes and gave them her master's name:
"Wei Jiucheng."
"You're Wei Jiucheng's apprentice? Come in."
The window was closed by the person inside. Fei Xi's expression was unreadable. After a moment of contemplation, she stepped around the corridor and went back into the room.