The next morning at dawn.
Urgent knocking sounds arose, rapid and chaotic, betraying the door-knocker's haste and tension.
The door was abruptly yanked open, revealing a pair of bloodshot eyes.
"What's the matter?" Li Xin stared at the knocker, whose fist was still raised, recognizing him as one of the two house servants who had followed Li Qiuyan back to the Li Family yesterday.
"You..." The knocking servant took a step back, intimidated by Li Xin's fierce expression, but then remembered he was representing the Patriarch and Mrs. Li. Emboldened, he stepped forward and haughtily declared, "Li Xin, your damn dead mother suddenly fell ill last night, and before the doctor could arrive, she passed away. The Patriarch instructed me to summon you to tend to her body."
Although Li Xin was only an illegitimate son, his martial talent was not bad; he had reached the Postnatal Seventh Realm in his twenties, much stronger than those two good-for-nothing disciples of the Zhenwu Sect. Moreover, he was bold and brave in fights, and had earned the appreciation of the Patriarch, taking charge of the Iron Saber Association. Ordinary servants wouldn't dare be insolent in front of him.
This house servant, who had a knack for brown-nosing and was a confidant of Li Qiuyan, had the audacity to spout such impudence in front of Li Xin, under the guise of borrowed authority.
Although he had learned of his mother's death the night before from the young master, Li Xin couldn't help but feel grief well up from his heart, and large tears rolled down his cheeks.
"What are you crying for? If you have to mourn, do it away from me. It's really damn unlucky," the lackey said, trying to save face from his earlier display of cowardice and to assert dominance in front of Li Xin. In his mind, he was a trusted confidant of the third young master, and Li Xin, the unloved bastard son, was nothing more than a yes-man in front of him.
Unfortunately, he failed to realize that the Li Xin before him was no longer the submissive wolfhound wearing a collar, but rather a rabid wolf, straining at its chains, eager for blood, still stubbornly courting death with his words.
"Your damn dead..." the servant was in full flow when an iron grip suddenly reached out, grabbing his neck and hoisting him into the air.
The servant frantically clawed at the death grip on his neck, trying to break free from its hold, his eyes filled with pleading and begging as they met Li Xin's bloodshot gaze.
"When my mother was dying, she must have looked at you all in the same way," Li Xin lifted his head to look at the servant who had relied on others for power, "Your pitiful struggle in the face of death reminds me of my mother. You deserve to die."
Rage ignited his heart, and Li Xin's grip tightened, swiftly snapping the servant's neck and tossing him aside.
"Let's see what kind of drama the Li Family will have today..." Li Xin thought, anticipating with interest. Then, remembering his innocent mother who had died tragically, grief overcame him once more, his face contorted into an eerie mix of laughing and crying.
When Li Xin entered the room, only the house servant led the way, taking him to his mother's resting place. He saw that his mother was only covered with a white cloth, without even a proper coffin. With the wealth of the Li Family, they could have arranged for a coffin at any time, even before dawn, if they had wanted to. Not to mention, his mother had actually died the previous afternoon, and pitifully, at that time, he was preoccupied with cleaning up after that human beast, Li Qiuyan.
Apart from Li Xin who had just arrived, there wasn't even a single servant or maid in the room, and Li Pingsheng, Li Xin's biological father, was nowhere to be seen. Such desolation of human life was evident.
As Li Xin was immersed in his sorrow, suddenly he heard loud shouts from outside, one after another.
"Someone come quickly, the third young master has gone mad..."
"Hurry, call the doctor..."
"Quick, call the master, the third young master is biting the lady..."
When Li Xin came out, he heard the house servants and maids shouting as they passed by.
He followed a few house servants and made his way to the origin of the disturbance.
After a short walk, they arrived at the courtyard of the Li Family. Upon entering the courtyard, Li Xin saw several house servants struggling together to pry the beast's hands and feet apart, trying to pull him away. On the ground, a lady dressed in luxurious garments was wailing miserably; her face was bloody and indistinct, and she was pressing on her wounds and rolling around on the floor.
Li Qiuyan's face was streaked with bulging veins and his eyes were full of greenish blood vessels, looking like a demon or ghost, his wide mouth filled with fresh blood, still clinging to bits of flesh and skin between his teeth. He was held by the arms by several strong house servants, who were trying to restrain him with great effort. Normally hollowed out by indulgence in wine and pleasure, his body now possessed superhuman strength, and the servants were having some trouble holding him down. Seeing no hope of escape, Li Qiuyan tried to bite the house servant next to him, frightening the others into retreating repeatedly, and in a moment of inattention, Li Qiuyan broke free.
Li Qiuyan pounced on one of the house servants nearby, burying his head and gnawing voraciously, accompanied by screams of pain. The surrounding servants, fearing they couldn't dodge in time, not one dared step forward to rescue.
"Insolence." A furious shout echoed, and a figure appeared in the scene, subduing Li Qiuyan with both hands. The newcomer was none other than the Patriarch Li Pingsheng. Li Qiuyan, realizing he was captured, howled and struggled like a wild animal, his cries piercing and hair-raising.
Li Pingsheng took the iron chains handed over by a servant and quickly bound Li Qiuyan. After that was done, he looked around at the crowd, hoping to identify the assailant through their reactions. However, to his disappointment, the crowd was mostly comprised of house servants and maids, none of whom dared to meet his gaze.
Under the scrutiny of Li Pingsheng, Li Xin also lowered his head to hide the uncontrollable smile at the corner of his mouth.
While Li Pingsheng was surveying the crowd, the miserable wails of the richly dressed woman gradually ceased, as she had fainted from the pain. Seeing the woman's horrific state, Li Pingsheng could not continue his search for the assailant and shouted, "Don't just stand there; fetch a doctor quickly."
The servants and maids came to their senses and the scene descended into chaos.
Li Pingsheng commanded the house servants to detain the mad Li Qiuyan and carried Mrs. Li to the bedroom himself. Before leaving, he gave Li Xin, who was now extremely diminishing his presence, a profound glance.
Deep into the night.
Li Xin sat alone at a square table, pouring and drinking by himself, without even lighting a lamp.
"The play was quite gratifying." A voice came from behind.
Li Xin hurriedly stood up to pay respect, "My regards to you, young master."
"The play was very enjoyable, just that…" Li Xin hesitated slightly.
"Fearful of being cured?" Qing Yu perceived Li Xin's concern.
"Rest assured. The elixir I administered to Li Qiuyan is named 'Three Corpses Brain God Pill.' This pill contains three corpse worms that show no abnormalities after consumption. However, every year at noon on Dragon Boat Festival, if the antidote restraining the corpse worms is not taken in time, they will break out. Once they enter the brain, the person who consumed the elixir will act like a demon or ghost, even biting and eating his own parents and spouse. I peeled away the outer casing of the pill, leaving just a thin layer, causing it to take effect earlier than planned. Once the corpse worms enter the brain, he won't last through the night."
Indeed, the Three Corpses Brain God Pill, originating from the 'Swordsman,' was a poison used by the Sect Hierarch of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect to control his followers. Qing Yu found the formula for the Three Corpses Brain God Pill on the last page of Ping Yizhi's Medical Book. Bold as ever, Ping Yizhi secretly researched the Three Corpses Brain God Pill, his fascination with medical skills outweighing his fear of life and death. The formula for the Divine Pill is highly variable; the maker is the only person who knows the antidote. Just as Sect Leader Ren knows the formula, he couldn't counter the Three Corpses Brain God Pill given by Dongfang Bubai. It's difficult to solve, but researching and creating it wasn't beyond Ping Yizhi's capability, enabling him to devise it.