Feng Shui Chapter 176: Beyond Saving

Chen Xiao thought about the rumors he had heard yesterday and couldn’t help but ask, “Did he really damage his spiritual root? Has his cultivation been crippled?”

Li Yuzhou often struggled with strangers, but around people he knew, he was much more at ease. He sighed and nodded. “Liu Lang was truly unlucky. That day, he was originally just escorting Zhi Zhi. But he got caught between two sides in a duel. Ye Jinglan ended up trapped, and since they grew up together, there was no way he could just stand by and watch. In the end, although Master Mu arrived just in time and Ye Jinglan got away unscathed, Liu Lang suffered severe damage to his spiritual root.”

Chen Xiao raised an eyebrow, so there were even more layers to this. If that were really the case, Liu Lang’s actions weren’t without cause, and Ye Jinglan certainly wouldn’t just leave him to suffer after all this.

Li Yuzhou continued, “Right now, a few friends and I, along with Ye Jinglan and her fellow disciples, are all desperately trying to find a solution. But every method costs a fortune. I’ve already spent everything I earned in Gengsheng, and the only valuable things I have left are these potions.”

Chen Xiao understood his meaning and said, “Alright, I’ll lend you some spiritual pearls for now so you won’t have to sell your potions at a loss.”

Li Yuzhou was overjoyed and quickly said, “Thank you, Brother Xiao! I’m truly grateful. Don’t worry, I’ll take the potions to Zhen Cao Hall to sell. Once I’ve raised enough money, I’ll pay you back immediately.” Selling them off cheap would have been a real shame, they were worth far more than that.

Chen Xiao looked around. Since the area was fairly quiet, he simply opened his storage box and retrieved a small case, placing one thousand spiritual pearls inside and handing it to Li Yuzhou. He added, “Here’s a thousand to start. If that’s not enough, come back and ask.”

Li Yuzhou gasped at the full box. “This much?!”

Chen Xiao replied, “A damaged spiritual root is the hardest to treat. Even this may not be enough.”

Although Li Yuzhou agreed with the logic, he had not expected such a large sum. His heart felt uneasy, while he and Chen Xiao shared a strong bond of friendship, their actual time together had been brief. They’d only met a handful of times.

But Brother Chen Xiao doesn't think too deeply about it. Even if Li Yuzhou couldn’t pay him back in the end, it didn’t matter. He saw this as an investment in their relationship. A genius alchemist full of wild ideas was worth supporting.

After a moment’s thought, Li Yuzhou carefully placed the box into his medicine chest. “I won’t be refining pills for a while, so I’ll leave my pill furnace with you as collateral. Once Liu Lang’s situation is handled, I’ll come retrieve it.” If it were just fifty or a hundred spiritual pearls, he would have borrowed it without a second thought. But a thousand made him feel uneasy about carrying such a debt.

He insisted, so Chen Xiao had no choice but to follow him back to his residence.

Li Yuzhou’s home sat on the outskirts of the city, near Zhen Cao Hall. It was a square courtyard about a thousand square meters in size, filled with racks for drying medicinal herbs. Three large rooms faced the main gate, one for living and receiving guests, one on the east side for alchemy and meditation, and the west room, originally used for storage, had been cleared to house Liu Lang.

Li Yuzhou led Chen Xiao and the others inside and immediately hurried to the west room. He handed the box of spiritual pearls to Ye Jinglan, who was tending to Liu Lang.

“With these pearls, we can buy higher-grade spiritual pills. My network isn’t as broad as yours, this is your task now!” Li Yuzhou said bluntly.

Before Ye Jinglan could respond, Liu Lang, pale and frail, leaned against the bed and said hoarsely, “Jinglan, don’t get involved in this right now. The match between your sect and Wanjin Pavilion is in two days. This one is crucial, it could decide whether you become the successor of Qianxiu Pavilion. You can’t afford any distractions.”

The three of them didn’t enter the room, but from where they stood at the door, they could see Ye Jinglan in profile. She was slender, with delicate features. Her fine eyebrows and monolid phoenix eyes gave her a gentle and refined appearance.

“I’m not going to leave you like this!” she said. “You don’t have to say anything more, I’m going out to find medicine for you right now.” She stood up and moved to leave.

“Stop!” Liu Lang shouted, which sent him into a violent coughing fit.

Ye Jinglan and Li Yuzhou rushed to his side in panic, fumbling to help. Ye Jinglan pleaded sorrowfully, “Don’t get worked up! I’ll listen to you, okay?”

After calming his cough, Liu Lang looked at her and said, “You only agreed because I forced you. If your mind isn’t clear, how can you possibly perform well in the match?”

Ye Jinglan bit her lower lip, visibly troubled. “Compared to the match, helping you recover your spiritual root is clearly more important…”

But Liu Lang cut her off sharply, “Don’t be ridiculous! Do you want all your past efforts to go to waste?!”

Ye Jinglan fell silent, not because she agreed, but because she didn’t want to further upset him at this moment.

Liu Lang caught his breath and continued, “Wasting your energy on me now is missing the point. Only if you win the match will Master Mu truly value you. Once she does, and you ask for her help, she’ll definitely be willing to find a way to treat me. As for me… a delay of three or four days won’t make things any worse.”

Ye Jinglan thought about it and realized he had a point. She quickly gathered herself and nodded, “You’re right. I know what I need to do. Don’t worry, I’ll give it everything I have and win this match!”

Ye Jinglan returned the box to Li Yuzhou and asked him to take good care of Liu Lang before finally leaving. As she departed, she brushed past Chen Xiao and the others. Since they hadn’t met before, she only gave a slight nod in greeting.

Seeing her truly leave, Liu Lang finally relaxed and collapsed back onto the bed with a sigh of relief.

Li Yuzhou cradled the box in his arms and muttered, “If I’d known earlier that Ye Jinglan could have gone to plead with Master Mu, I wouldn’t have rushed around so desperately trying to scrape together money.”

Liu Lang gave a weak, bitter smile. “I only said that to get Jinglan to focus on the competition. I know the extent of my injuries. My spiritual roots are too severely damaged. Even if she won and begged Master Mu in person, it wouldn’t change anything. Besides, she doesn’t have the kind of influence it would take to move someone like Master Mu on behalf of someone unrelated like me. And honestly… I really was overestimating myself back then. Forget it. Let’s just leave it at that. No one needs to go through more trouble.”

Li Yuzhou looked a bit panicked. “Liu Lang, you can’t give up on yourself like that. Ye Jinglan has been running herself ragged these past few days for your sake. I can tell, she clearly has feelings for you!”

Liu Lang shook his head with a trace of bitterness. “We came to Yingxian Island together from our hometown in search of opportunities, and it’s only the bond of our shared past that’s kept us close. I can tell, there’s no romantic affection between us. What she feels now is probably just guilt. We didn’t get together before, and there’s even less of a chance now.”

Li Yuzhou understood that, with Liu Lang’s pride, he would never entertain any lingering hopes. This was a one-sided love that would ultimately fade away without a conclusion.

Moreover, knowing Liu Lang’s temperament, once he recovered, he would likely leave this place full of sorrow and never return again. The thought made Li Yuzhou clutch the box more tightly, a wave of melancholy washing over him.

“You rest for now. I’ll come back in a bit.” Li Yuzhou left the room with the box and shut the door behind him. “Sorry to keep you waiting, Xiao." he said to Chen Xiao.

Chen Xiao had just watched an unexpected emotional drama unfold and couldn’t help feeling sympathy for Liu Lang. He shook his head and asked quietly, “Is it okay to leave Liu Lang alone?”

Li Yuzhou nodded and lowered his voice. “Let’s go to the east room. My alchemy furnace is there.”

To have one’s spiritual roots destroyed, one’s cultivation completely abolished, it was like falling from the heavens to the mud. A weaker-willed person might have taken their own life already. But Liu Lang still had the strength to consider his childhood friend’s future. It showed his resilience and good character. Unfortunately, Chen Xiao had no way to help him, he could only sigh at Liu Lang’s misfortune.

When Li Yuzhou handed over his most precious possession to Chen Xiao, it was as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

As the three of them left Li Yuzhou’s home and made their way back, Tong Nuonuo commented, “That alchemist must be a bit slow in the head. He pawned off his furnace, how is he supposed to make medicine now? An alchemist without a furnace can’t earn money or repay his debts.”

Tang Ru laced her hands behind her head as she walked and said, “I wouldn’t call it foolish, just… sincere. He probably saw the furnace as his most valuable asset and gave it up to Xiao without a second thought. At that moment, he wasn’t thinking about how he’d keep making medicine.”

Chen Xiao said, “Don’t worry. I won’t hang on to someone else’s lifeline forever. When we’re about to leave Yingxian Island, if he hasn’t come to retrieve the furnace, I’ll just post a delivery task at Zhishi Hall and have it sent back to him.”

When they returned to the pavilion, Xi Yunqing was already back and brought good news: in two days, they would be allowed to watch the competition between Qianxiu Workshop and Wanjin Pavilion.

Tong Nuonuo cheered with excitement. Tang Ru was happy too, though more reserved, she didn’t lose her composure like Nuonuo.

Xi Yunqing reminded the two girls, “The event will be formal, so make sure you wear proper attire.”

Fortunately, both Tong Nuonuo and Tang Ru had attended palace banquets before, so they were able to choose appropriate robes for the occasion.

After dinner, Xi Yunqing sat in the lounge of Chen Xiao’s room as Chen Xiao shared everything that had happened that day. When he finished recounting the events at Li Yuzhou’s house, he sighed and said, “The cultivation world really is cruel. Just because someone’s spiritual roots were destroyed, they fall from heaven to hell. It’s such a pity about Liu Lang.” He looked at Xi Yunqing. “Is it really impossible to restore damaged spiritual roots?”

Xi Yunqing shook his head. “If they’re only injured or withered, there are ways to heal them. But once they’re destroyed, there’s no saving them.” After a pause, he added, “The moment a person begins their cultivation journey, they must be prepared to die at any time. Every trial, every duel carries risk. No cultivator’s path is free of hardship, including ours.”

Chen Xiao felt a pang in his heart. He had already faced danger many times, and twice had narrowly escaped death. But now that he’d taken up this path of cultivation, there was no turning back.

He reached out and placed his hand over Xi Yunqing’s. Xi Yunqing turned his hand to hold his.

Looking into Xi Yunqing’s eyes, Chen Xiao said seriously, “I’ll work hard, really hard. I want to stand by your side in battle one day, strong enough to protect you.”

Xi Yunqing curved his lips into a smile. “I’ll be waiting, big brother.”