Chương 19: The Great Waves

Biên tập viên: Atlas Studios

"Huh?" The old man was stumped. Troubled, he shook his head. This was indeed a problem. He had slipped in without anyone's knowledge, but he couldn't do that every time. Although the Chu family's defense didn't deter him, he couldn't be so casual if he planned on coming to learn something from Chu Liuyue.

Moreover, the line of heavenly doctors had many rules and regulations. One should know that many Heavenly doctors placed extreme importance on their own concocting methods and its processes; they rarely allowed bystanders to watch and study them unless they were teaching their own disciples.

Chu Liuyue had already promised to allow him to visit once every fortnight. In fact, she was already very generous.

As for his status…

"How about… accepting me as your apprentice?" The old man spoke with excitement, but he frowned instantly and looked hesitant.

"Oh my, I already had a master. He might have passed on, but it's still a bit difficult for me to just acknowledge someone else as my master."

Chu Liuyue looked at him, speechless. This proposal also placed her in a difficult position. She had no wish to have such an elderly apprentice.

"How about this? Why don't you be my master?" suggested Chu Liuyue.

The old man was surprised as he played with his fan. "Eh… that won't do! How can I be your master when I'm the one seeking your advice?" He could tell that Chu Liuyue's standard was as good as the others; he wasn't qualified to be her master.

Chu Liuyue's eyebrows curved. "Why are you being so polite? I am new to the world, and there are many things I don't understand. Naturally, I will need a master for guidance. Don't tell me that you have no wish to accept me as your disciple?"

"No, no, no… how can you say that? How could anyone in this world not want you as their disciple?" Suddenly, something dawned on the old man. He stopped talking abruptly, his eyes widening. "Wait, wait! You mean to say that you have not accepted a master up to now?"

Chu Liuyue blinked sincerely. "That's right! Didn''t I tell you that from the beginning?"

The old man eyed her with suspicion, not daring to believe wholeheartedly. In the end, he could only guess that she definitely had a highly-skilled expert behind her, and for some reason, he couldn't come forward. "You—are you saying that you want me to be your master?"

Chu Liuyue nodded. The old man might believe her earlier words, but anyone else would doubt it. She needed a 'master' as a reason for her sudden change. In the future, all she had to say was that she had already been secretly taught by her master and had been biding her time before if anyone asked.

The old man was silent for a long while. He wasn't stupid; he knew exactly what Chu Liuyue was planning. To have such a mind and tactics is enough to prove that she is definitely not as useless and incompetent as the outside world says she is! On the contrary, she has top-notch talent and superior intelligence.

Such a girl was only 14 years old… There was no telling how many secrets she was hiding. Once she agreed, she would definitely be involved in a lot of trouble.

Chu Liuyue looked calm; she didn't rush him.

The old man's expression changed; his eyes went back and forth between Chu Liuyue's face and the boiled medicine soup. He had already made up his mind that he would never get involved in those messy things, but…

He really wanted to watch Chu Liuyue concoct medicine!

"Yes! I promise!" The old man gritted his teeth and finally made up his mind. "From now on, I will watch you concoct medicine in secret. But in plain sight, I will be your master."

Chu Liuyue was unsurprised by his reply. Her eyebrows smoothened at his words. She then folded her hands and bent her knees slightly. "Master, your disciple, Chu Liuyue, greets you."

It was a formal ritual for a master to accept their apprentice.

The old man was startled as he looked at Chu Liuyue's somewhat green face. For a moment, he felt unrestrained joy rising inside him as well. This… is.. My first disciple!

In the past, he had always found it troublesome to take on a disciple. However, he had taken on such a genius as his disciple purely by coincidence!

"Good! Good!" He felt much closer to Chu Liuyue at that moment. He hurriedly helped Chu Liuyue up. "We, as master and disciple, need not talk about those empty things. If you need anything in the future, just look for me."

Chu Liuyue smiled, and her eyes curved into slits. "Thank you, Master."

Hearing her call him 'Master' filled the old man's heart with love and compassion. "My last name is Ye. If you need to look for me in the future, you can go directly to Autumn Wind Garden in the city's west side."

Chu Liuyue quickly tried to recall in her mind, but she couldn't remember any character with the last name Ye, let alone Autumn Wind Garden.

This was also normal. Being trapped in the Chu family for many years, she didn't know much about the outside world.

This was not the time to ask about this. She simply didn't dwell on it any longer. She would know when the time was ripe.

After that, Ye Lao and Chu Liuyue talked for a long time about the ways of refining medicine. He parted reluctantly when it was sunset.

Chu Ning was naturally in the dark about all this. Chu Liuyue also acted as if nothing had happened as she recuperated calmly.

More than 20 days flew by.

Early in the morning, Zhen Bao Pavilion sent the last batch of the medicinal herbs. After Chu Liuyue counted the herbs, she began to refine the medicine in an orderly manner.

Unlike the past, Chu Ning was home this time. He checked Chu Liuyue's room from time to time, feeling proud and nervous.

After a few hours of boiling, Chu Liuyue finally stopped and scooped the medicinal soup out of the pot.

"Father, this is the last time. After drinking this, you may attempt to re-cultivate." Chu Liuyue sent the medicine over.

Chu Ning quickly moved forward to accept it with excitement. His body had improved significantly over this period of time. Not only had his previously crippled calves became stronger, but his perception of his force also seemed to be even stronger!

His condition even hinted that he seemed to be even better than he was at his previous peak! He had been hoping for a comeback after being down and frustrated for so many years. He just didn't expect that his own daughter would be the one to give him hope.

Chu Ning drank without hesitation. The blazing power extended downwards, then entered his dantian.

He lay with his legs crossed, and his hands folded in front of him. With closed eyes, he began to channel this power.

The Force of Heaven and Earth around them seemed to have been guided in some way and began converging toward Chu Ning.

It was a sign of a breakthrough!

Chu Ning smiled with satisfaction.

Chu Ning indeed had some talent to be able to take advantage of this opportunity and attempt a breakthrough. It was a pleasant surprise.

Chu Liuyue withdrew quietly and returned to her room.

After this period of recuperation, her body's Yuan meridian had almost recovered. There was only one last critical step left before she finished healing.

She began to refine the medicine for the last time.

The sky had turned dark completely by the time the medicinal soup was ready.

She shed her clothes and entered the tub. The medicine's rich fragrance lingered in the air.

The rising white mist almost obscured her form.

She held her breath and allowed her qi to sink into her dantian.

Power seeped into Chu Liuyue's limbs.

Her Yuan meridian, which was originally crippled, had become moist and strong. Under the nourishment of the abundant power, her Yuan meridian continued to spread and grow.

At the same time, that small lake within Chu Liuyue's dantian was actually causing waves again!

A pale-red water droplet was suspended in the middle of the lake, then transformed into countless tiny, unseen particles that merged into the Yuan meridian within Chu Liuyue's body.

Buzz!

A majestic and vast aura overwhelmed Chu Liuyue.

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Chương 20: The Banquet

Biên tập viên: Atlas Studios

Chu Liuyue's whole body was shaking. At this moment, she actually felt a terrifying pressure from the ancient past that made one's soul tremble.

A sudden fiery and horrifying burning sensation spread throughout her body before she even had time to be shocked.

That one water droplet dispersed into millions of particles and rested on top of her Yuan meridian as though a comet had landed, instantly stirring up a great fire.

Her entire body felt like it was wrapped in blazing flames.

Chu Liuyue's heart thumped. Subconsciously, she curled her body into a ball, clenched her fists, and gritted her teeth. A strong bloody scent filled her nostrils and mouth. It was as though she had returned to that nightmarish day all over again.

The pain she was having now was worse than that day.

Chu Liuyue's body was red all over; her face was scarlet-red from the gush of blood. Her entire body was like a piece of burning charcoal. She was sweating profusely, but the steam from her blazing body dried before it could fall.

For an instant, she was in complete despair.

Betrayal.

Burn.

Death.

But she bit her tongue so hard that the sharp pain woke her up the next moment. She told herself desperately that this wasn't the night for her to die in Tianling Dynasty's ancestral hall.

She wanted revenge; this was what she had to go through. Right now, every second became more torturous than the last. At the same time, Chu Liuyue's Yuan meridian had finally completed its connection.

After an unknown amount of time, the intense pain gradually disappeared.

Chu Liuyue opened her eyes slowly and saw the murky medicinal soup in her tub, which had been clear. She immediately examined her crippled Yuan meridian. Upon examination, she couldn't help but draw a breath of cold air. "The Dijing Yuan meridian?"

The Yuan meridian that was crippled initially was fully repaired; it was fluorescent and clear. It even had a faint red color.

She never thought that her Yuan Meridian would reach the level of a Dijing Yuan meridian after it was restored.

One had to know that in the entire Tianling Dynasty's 1,000 years of history, only two people had the Tianjing Yuan meridian. Although a Dijing Yuan meridian was a notch lower, it was still considered to be an extremely rare existence.

For a body that was born with crippled Yuan meridian, she thought it would be good enough if she could reach the level of a Xuanjing Yuan meridian upon recovering, but she never thought she…

It was such a huge surprise!

With this, her future cultivation will be twice as effective with half the work.

Chu Liuyue quickly changed the water in the tub for a wash.

This time, her Yuan meridian's reshaping seemed to have incidentally forced out the impurities within her body, making her feel much lighter.

After tidying everything up, Chu Liuyue sat on the bed with her legs crossed beneath her and tried to absorb nature's force. She succeeded in condensing that force in her dantian and transformed it into her own power.

Feeling the threads of power moving around her body, she was reassured by its familiarity. From now on, she would be able to walk the path of cultivation again! However, there was still doubt in her heart.

That transparent page from the book in my dantian… what is it? The water droplet that flew out from it seemed to cause the change in my Yuan meridian. The vast and terrifying pressure I felt in that instant… what was it?

Knock, knock, knock.

Someone was knocking on the door.

"Yue'er, are you awake?"

It was Chu Ning.

Chu Liuyue looked around and realized one night had passed. She took a deep breath, got up, and walked over to open the door.

Chu Ning was standing at the doorway. Instead of looking depressed and in dire straits like how he used to be, Chu Ning looked radiant. Today, he was obviously an entirely different person from before.

Chu Liuyue tilted her head and smiled. "Father, you've broken through?"

Chu Ning was stunned, and he whirled around to ruffle her hair. "There's really no hiding anything from you!"

Ten years ago, he suffered severe trauma when he was just a step away from attaining the fifth stage as a martial artist. He hadn't made any progress since then; he was even unable to exert half the strength of a stage four martial artist because of his physical disability.

Unexpectedly, ten years later, he recovered to his previous condition and even broke through to become a stage five martial artist in one fell swoop!

One should know that only the Chu family head and the two elders were the only ones to reach this level.

"Father, I told you it would be better than before!"

Chu Ning's talent was inherently good. It was normal for him to break through to the fifth stage after careful recuperation.

Chu Liuyue had a sweet smile on her face, yet there was no surprise in her eyes. Chu Ning thought for a moment and guessed that she must have known this would happen. Chu Ning sized her up carefully. His eyes widened as a thought suddenly dawned on him. "Yue'er, your Yuan meridian…"

He could actually feel the force coming from her body.

Chu Liuyue blinked. "Father, what day is it today?"

Chu Ning turned pale. "The eighth day of the eighth month. You will be of marriageable age in two days." It was also the day of her engagement to the Crown Prince.

Up until now, there weren't any apparent signs that the Crown Prince had been preparing for their engagement.

Chu Ning thought Chu Liuyue was feeling aggrieved, and he said hastily, "Yue'er, don't worry. I will go to the palace to seek an audience with His Majesty today and request to cancel your engagement to the Prince. His Highness is not a good match for you. That will be a relief."

He was now a stage five martial artist and was considered worthy to speak to the Emperor.

Chu Liuyue chuckled lightly. "Cancel my engagement with the Crown Prince so that Chu Xianmin can sit back and reap the rewards? That would be too good to be true for both of them, wouldn't it?" She had not settled the score with them for all the years of grievances she had suffered!

Chu Ning was confused. "Yue'er, what are you going to do?"

Chu Liuyue replied softly, "I have my own plans."

…

Outside the Imperial City, the mountains extended forever.

The sunlight dappled the lush forests with light and shadows. Somewhere at the foot of the mountain, a grand birthday banquet was being held.

Precious white jade tables were placed on either side with all kinds of delicacies and top-quality wine.

Most of the Imperial City's distinguished sons and daughters were here, drinking and gambling. It was lively.

From time to time, they looked towards their leader.

There was a jaded seat in purple and gold. A young man dressed in a red and purple brocade was listening to the crowd with a smile. It was the Crown Prince, Rong Jin.

Seated below him, on his right-hand side, was Chu Xianmin, looking demure and beautiful. To be placed in this position meant that the Crown Prince did indeed intend for her to be the Crown Princess!

"Your Highness is so refined and elegant to have chosen such a scenic place to hold your birthday party. It really is extraordinary!"

"Haha. Brother Yue, there's something you don't know. The scenery here is beautiful, but more importantly, this mountain is the Crown Prince's hunting ground. His Highness cares about this place, but it's rarely been opened for years. Today will be a long day for us."

"Seriously?"

With that, all heads turned towards the Crown Prince.

Rong Jin nodded his head with a smile. "That's right. Whoever can tame any of the beasts today will be able to take it away!"

Everyone shouted in unison after hearing the news.

"Your Highness is so generous!"

Someone couldn't help but ridicule.

"Your Highness is so generous. I'm afraid it's not for us old men, but to get a smile from a beauty. Am I right? If my memory serves me well, it seems that Third Miss Chu hasn't made a contract with any magical beasts yet."

Chu Xianmin blushed, and she glanced shyly at Rong Jin.

Rong Jin smiled and drank his wine. "If you are not as skilled as the others, how can you blame Minmin for stealing your beasts?"

The crowd humored him by laughing along.

Naturally, the girls from other noble families felt annoyed and jealous. However, judging from the situation, they knew they had no choice but to hold back.

Rong Jin waved his hand. "Go on. Get them to open the gates."

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