Chapter 5 - 2: The Pragmatic Fairy
Lu Changyuan lived in the village at the foot of the mountain.
He was actually quite popular in the surrounding area; many of the farmers’ daughters wanted to get their hands on him.
This was because five or six years after the Elder Physician who adopted him had died, Lu Changyuan became the only Young Physician in the surrounding area. Whenever the villagers had a headache or fever, they had to come to the village entrance to have Lu Changyuan check their pulse.
After he checked their pulse and prescribed a dose of medicine for them to drink, most of the village’s ailments would be cured.
And so, everyone in the village, even its big yellow dog, held Lu Changyuan in high regard.
The sky was exceptionally clear after the rain, making the Bai Hen in the sky perfectly visible.
Lu Changyuan opened the door to his home, placed Qiu Yuehan on his bed, then sat by the window and poured himself a cup of tea.
A faint female voice came from the bed. "I need to send a message to my Sect to come get me. When they do, you will simply come back with me."
Lu Changyuan turned his head and saw a pair of fair, rosy feet. A jade bracelet encircled a delicate ankle, making the foot seem even more dainty and exquisite.
His gaze traveled up a pair of well-proportioned legs to an exquisite figure and a flawless face.
It had been too dark earlier, and he had been lost in thought while carrying Qiu Yuehan back. Lu Changyuan hadn’t really gotten a good look at this True Inheritor Fairy from the Immortal Palace, who was second only to one and above all others.
The Fairy looked weak and ill. Her pale face was devoid of color, and a lock of dark hair had fallen across her cheek, making her look rather pitiable.
"I’ll tell them you saved me. Miao Yu Palace will owe you a favor. Even if your talent is abysmal, you can still become an Outer Disciple and avoid being just a servant."
Qiu Yuehan’s voice was as pleasant as a clear spring. "I am very grateful that you saved me. So, once we’re back at the Palace, you can come to me for anything."
Lu Changyuan narrowed his eyes.
’In just four short hours, she’s already calmed down, accepted that she’s been captured by a mere mortal, and quickly figured out her position.’
’She hasn’t even mentioned the Demon Pattern on her body.’
’As expected of a True Inheritor from a Major Sect.’
’How boring.’
’I was expecting the classic, much-anticipated scene where the Fairy swears to die rather than submit, only to end up shedding tears of humiliation.’
’Pragmatic Fairies like this are rare these days.’
’It’d be a pity for her to die just like that.’
So Lu Changyuan said, "Go ahead and send your message. I’ll go brew your medicine. It won’t completely heal your injuries, but it should at least soothe your qi and blood."
Qiu Yuehan said nothing, her gaze lowered.
Only after Lu Changyuan closed the door did she finally let out a sigh of relief.
’The man before me seems to have no interest in my body. His mind is filled only with Cultivation... This is actually a relief.’
’Then again, there are plenty of people like that, I suppose.’
’In this world, it’s normal for people to lose interest in women for the sake of Cultivation. Some cultivate until they become interested in men, or even things that aren’t human.’
At this thought, she couldn’t help but touch the Demon Pattern on her shoulder. She gritted her teeth as a thread of coldness crept from her shoulder toward her heart.
’My shattered heart meridians... they’re slowly recovering!?’
’That’s strange. This Demon Pattern was supposed to be fatal.’
This made Qiu Yuehan, who had been preparing to try and break the Demon Pattern’s seal, hesitate.
"So be it. This is fine too."
The Fairy murmured softly. Her tightly furrowed brow gradually relaxed as she leaned against the bed and slowly closed her eyes.
’Besides, even if Lu Changyuan had ill intentions toward me right now, it’s not like I have the strength to resist.’
~~~~~~~~~~~
As the fire CRACKLED, Lu Changyuan sat on a pile of firewood, exhaling slowly in the firelight before setting down his cattail fan.
He slowly turned his head.
The blue sky suddenly rippled. With a clear, sharp whistle, two streaks of light shot from his house, parting the clouds as they raced toward the horizon.
Their brilliance nearly overshadowed that of the Bai Hen.
’So that must be how Qiu Yuehan contacts Miao Yu Palace,’ he thought.
"Continue. Tell me, what’s the deal with that Xia Lianxue?"
The firelight danced in Lu Changyuan’s eyes, and soon, blood-red words appeared within them.
[Miao Yu Palace has two True Inheritors, Qiu Yuehan and Xia Lianxue, but Xia Lianxue has never defeated Qiu Yuehan.]
Lu Changyuan paused for a moment, but he wasn’t too surprised.
"This is the Cultivation Realm I know and love."
’That’s more like it,’ he mused.
The Cultivation Realm was just this sort of despicable place. There was only one spot for the Young Palace Master, so in the end, only one person could be left smiling.
Another line of text appeared in his vision.
[Out of jealousy for her senior, Qiu Yuehan, Xia Lianxue has been tainted by a Desire Demon.]
’Interesting.’
’I didn’t expect to be dealing with these damn things again so soon.’
In the game "Emotionless Immortal Path", there was a terrifying concept: Desire Demon Taint.
In it, any Cultivator, whether of the Righteous Dao or the Demon Dao, would be tainted by a Desire Demon if their state of mind wavered and they fell prey to their desires. They would become something neither human nor ghost, eventually dying a miserable death under their tribulation.
Thus, the Righteous Dao practiced the Desire Destruction Technique, while the Demon Dao practiced the Desire Relief Technique—both in an effort to resist "Desire."
Clearly, Qiu Yuehan’s junior sister had failed to resist her own desires.
Lu Changyuan touched his eyes, and the text quickly faded away.
To this day, Lu Changyuan still hadn’t figured out what this text was, or what triggered its appearance.
It was like a temperamental cat lived in his eyes; whenever it felt like reminding him of something, it would pop out and meow twice.
’Works for me, I guess.’
A wisp of spiritual energy slowly drifted into Lu Changyuan’s body, only to be expelled with his next breath.
This body still wasn’t fit for Cultivation—it was far worse than his previous one, in fact.
"Talent, oh, talent. It really brings back memories."
Lu Changyuan gave a helpless smile.
’I can’t believe I have to start on Hell difficulty again.’
Back when he was the Chang’an Daoist, Lu Changyuan had chosen the hardest difficulty, shaping his own innate constitution to be utterly unremarkable.
As a result, the Chang’an Daoist only barely managed to step onto the path of Cultivation at the age of fifty.
Of course, the fact that he proceeded to slaughter the Cultivation Realm until rivers of blood flowed *after* he turned fifty doesn’t count.
It was his first time cultivating the Heartless Killing Dao. He was young and foolish, just messing around.
Suddenly, a shout came from outside the house.
"Physician! Is Physician Lu home?"
The voice was quite young, seemingly belonging to a little girl.
As if he knew she was coming, Lu Changyuan took a small cloth pouch from a nearby cabinet and walked outside.
A small, skinny girl was indeed standing at the door.
She was so dark and scrawny, she looked more like a little boy.
Because of last night’s storm, the muddy ground had yet to dry despite the morning sun, and the little girl’s shoes were caked with wet soil.
She was panting, clearly having run all the way here. "Doctor Lu, you said I should come get the prescription this morning."
The girl’s name was Bitter Girl. Her father, a hunter, had been eaten by a tiger in the mountains a few years ago, leaving her to care for her gravely ill mother on her own.
Lu Changyuan handed the cloth pouch to the little girl. "Brew and drink it as usual."
Bitter Girl nodded vigorously, wiped her hands hard against her clothes, and only then did she respectfully accept the pouch. "Thank you, Doctor Lu. I’ll bring you the eggs in a few days."
The mountain folk didn’t have much money and still relied on bartering.
Lu Changyuan just smiled and waved a hand. "Alright, go on home now. And don’t leave your house for the next few days. Things might get dangerous."
Bitter Girl stared blankly. "Physician, is something going to happen?"
"I heard a tiger’s roar on the mountain yesterday. I’m afraid it might come down to prey on people. It’s best not to go out for the next few days."
Hearing this from Lu Changyuan, Bitter Girl nodded forcefully. "I’ll tell the other villagers on my way."
Bitter Girl carefully tucked the cloth pouch inside her clothes and ran all the way home.
She had already planned out her day.
She would run home, brew the medicine for her mother, prepare lunch, then run to her family’s field. As long as she was fast enough, the day’s farm work shouldn’t take too long.
She should be able to make it home before sunset.
BUMP.
Bitter Girl steadied the bulging bundle in her clothes with her right hand and touched her forehead with her left.
’I bumped into someone.’
"I’m sorry."
She had always been polite and apologized instinctively.
"No matter."
The voice that replied was cold. Though it was the height of summer, it sent a shiver down Bitter Girl’s spine. She followed the person’s shadow up with her gaze.
They were two pale-faced people in black robes.
Bitter Girl stumbled back two steps and fell to the ground, her right hand still clutching the medicine pouch tightly. She asked cautiously, "E-excuse me... who are you?"
To her surprise, the two gaunt men in black actually smiled at her.
One of them reached out, helped Bitter Girl up, and said in a raspy voice, "Don’t be afraid. We’re just peddlers passing through the village."
This was a complete lie.
What kind of peddler didn’t carry their wares on a shoulder pole?
Bitter Girl didn’t believe them, but she still nodded obediently, praying they weren’t here to steal her medicine.
"Little one, have you seen any strangers enter the village today?"
The village was so small that a stranger would be spotted in an instant.
Bitter Girl shook her head. "N-no, I haven’t."
As if afraid they wouldn’t believe her, she added, "I really haven’t."
Lu Changyuan had hidden Qiu Yuehan in his room before dawn. Other than the village’s big yellow dog, truly no one had seen her.
The man in the black robe nodded. "Then go on about your business."
The two men stepped aside. After a moment of stunned silence, Bitter Girl scrambled to her feet and ran off as fast as she could.
’Doctor Lu was right after all.’
Bitter Girl ran further and further away under the sun, finally vanishing among the scattered village houses.
After a long moment.
One of the black-robed men spoke. "I never expected to find someone with a Bitter Blood Life Chart in a poor mountain village like this."
"Once our business is done, we’ll take her back with us. The Young Master will be pleased."
"I’ve already left a mark on her."
A dry, raspy laugh slowly echoed.
"First, let’s kill that Miao Yu True Inheritance. Tsk. These so-called Righteous Dao Fairies from the heavens above are all just a bunch of black-hearted vipers."
"They’ve always been like this. What’s so surprising?"
The two of them slowly vanished into the shadows of the houses, disappearing from sight.