Heart-Stopping

She stopped speaking—not because she begrudged the Longevity Art, nor because she feared he would stand by with folded arms, refuse treatment, and let her lose her life. Rather... she had suddenly thought of something, something all the more terrifying the deeper she considered it.

The three of them, mother and sons, had obtained the miraculous book, the Longevity Art, by chance in Yangzhou. Soon after, Yuwen Huaji had hunted them down. With no road to heaven and no gate into the earth, they had ultimately been forced to risk their lives in a deathmatch.

But Yuwen Huaji truly deserved his standing as the Yuwen Clan's second strongest expert. His Ice Profound Force was incomparably formidable. Even after exhausting all her strength and unleashing the Art of the Sword, she had been no match for him. Instead, she had suffered a heavy blow, and the Profound Ice Cold Toxin had entered her body.

Just as she was about to be killed by him, a group of mysterious people suddenly emerged at the crucial moment. Together, they held back Yuwen Huaji, allowing the three mother and sons to escape with their lives.

Afterward, while seeking doctors and medicine, someone had given them news that Xuzhou had a divine doctor whose Medical Arts were extraordinary, one capable of reviving the dead and fleshing white bones, curing all the world's rare and difficult ailments. Thus, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling had carried her, severely injured as she was, and rushed nonstop toward Xuzhou.

Along the way, Yuwen Huaji and the Imperial Court's forces had continued their relentless pursuit. Yet they had repeatedly been intercepted and obstructed by that Mysterious Force through all manner of means. In the end, not only had Yuwen Huaji been left in a bloody, bedraggled mess, even she had been left thoroughly baffled, unable to understand the Mysterious Force's intentions.

Only now, looking at this Divine Doctor Xu, did she vaguely understand what was going on.

That Mysterious Force was likely connected to this Divine Doctor Xu—or perhaps they were simply his subordinates. They had openly and covertly escorted the three of them all the way to Xuzhou for the sake of the Longevity Art.

No, if all they wanted was the Longevity Art, why go to such great lengths? Why risk intercepting Yuwen Huaji and the Imperial Court's forces to escort them all the way to Xuzhou?

They could have simply seized it by force. She was injured to this extent, while Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling did not know martial arts. Did they have any ability to resist?

Could it be that this Divine Doctor Xu was a man of integrity? Though interested in the Longevity Art, he believed in taking what was rightfully earned and refused to seize it by force?

After considering it again and again, Fu Junzhuo could only arrive at this answer.

"The Longevity Art?"

"That's right!"

Xu Yang took the book and flipped through it for a while before confirming its authenticity.

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling hurriedly asked, "Can you save our mother now?"

Xu Yang shook his head. "No."

"Ah?"

The two were both startled at this, looking at Xu Yang with uncertainty and alarm.

Xu Yang explained, "Her injuries are too severe and her body is too weak. The treatment just now was already her limit. If I continue removing the Cold Poison, she definitely will not be able to endure it. She must first recuperate. After that, I will perform the treatment once every three days. After three treatments, she will naturally recover completely."

"So that's how it is."

Only then did the two let out a sigh of relief, but before long, they hesitated again, looking at Xu Yang as if they wanted to speak but could not bring themselves to.

Xu Yang did not concern himself with that. He had not deceived them. With his current capabilities, even Divine Intent Cold Poison was no great difficulty to remove. If Fu Junzhuo had not been so severely injured and physically weak, he could have activated the Pure Yang Life-Returning Divine Qi right now and completely purge the Profound Ice Cold Toxin from her body.

"Rest well. In three days, I'll come treat your injuries again."

Leaving those words behind, Xu Yang turned to depart.

"Wait!"

Fu Junzhuo awakened with a start and hurriedly called out to stop him. "Divine Doctor Xu, you do not know this, but this book is of great importance. Yuwen Huaji, Commander of the Imperial Guards under the Sui Emperor and a member of one of the Four Great Clans, has been eyeing it like a tiger eyeing its prey. He has relentlessly hunted the three of us. I imagine it will not be long before he catches up to us here..."

Though she had already guessed that the Mysterious Force escorting them to Xuzhou had been dispatched by the Divine Doctor Xu before her, since he had not admitted it, she could not expose it outright. She could only bring up Yuwen Huaji's pursuit.

Xu Yang was unconcerned. Holding the Longevity Art, he said, "Since I have accepted this book, I will naturally ensure your safety. Recover well. There is no need to overthink it."

With that, regardless of her reaction, he turned and left the room. His eldest disciple, Su Beixuan, followed after him.

"This..."

Watching his departing figure, Fu Junzhuo knitted her brows tightly, her heart filled with even greater uncertainty.

Li Suwen, the third disciple who had treated her injuries just now, chuckled and comforted her, "Rest assured. Master is a man whose promise weighs a thousand gold. If he says he will ensure your safety, then he will ensure your safety. Let alone a mere Yuwen Huaji—even if the Three Grandmasters came, they would not be able to harm you in the slightest."

Fu Junzhuo: "..."

As the disciple of Master of the Sword Fu Cailin, one of the Three Grandmasters of the World, she very much wanted to refute Li Suwen's words, but she could not bring herself to say so.

She admitted that this Divine Doctor Xu was indeed unfathomable. Especially during the treatment just now, that vast and majestic Pure Yang Force had definitely belonged to one of the foremost experts of the age. But compared with her master, the Master of the Sword who had reached the ultimate realm of the sword dao, he was probably still lacking by just a little.

The Three Grandmasters were peerlessly powerful figures universally acknowledged by the martial world, and even by the various kingdoms, to stand at the pinnacle of Martial Dao. Apart from an unparalleled genius such as the Lingnan Heavenly Saber, who in the world could be mentioned in the same breath as them?

This Divine Doctor Xu was not well known. Though he might be a reclusive master, compared to her master, he should still fall short by just a tiny bit.

Still, dealing with Yuwen Huaji should not be a problem. After all, along the way, Yuwen Huaji had been stopped by that Mysterious Force several times, and the two sides had fought without either gaining the upper hand. Now that they had reached Xuzhou, with this Divine Doctor Xu of unfathomable Strength added to the matter...

Wait, no!!!

A flash of lightning streaked through her mind. Fu Junzhuo's expression changed, and terror flooded her face.

She... had thought of something, something even more terrifying the deeper she considered it.

That Mysterious Force had escorted and helped the three mother and sons reach Xuzhou. It was probably not merely because this Divine Doctor Xu was a gentleman who loved wealth but took it by proper means.

They... had another target. Beyond the Longevity Art, they had another target.

That target was...

Yuwen Huaji!

They wanted to lure Yuwen Huaji to Xuzhou, lure him here, lure him before that person!

What did they want to do?

What did they want to do?!

Fu Junzhuo did not know. And precisely because she did not know, she was so horrified, so terrified.

Vaguely, she felt herself being swept into a vortex—a bottomless, violently spinning, terrifying vortex that seemed poised to engulf the whole world and swallow everything within it!

This Divine Doctor Xu...

The more she thought, the more terrified she became. The more she pondered, the more afraid she grew. Before she knew it, cold sweat had broken out over Fu Junzhuo's body, and her face had gone pale again.

"Mother?"

"What's wrong?"

"Don't tell me it's flared up again?"

"I'll go get Divine Doctor Xu!"

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling were both shocked when they saw this and hurried forward to check on her. The impulsive Kou Zhong was already about to go find Xu Yang.

"No, don't!!!"

Only then did Fu Junzhuo snap out of it. She hurriedly stopped Kou Zhong and forced out a smile. "Mother is fine. I merely thought of a few things."

Though she said that, the corner of her eye still involuntarily glanced to the side, watching Li Suwen's expression and reaction.

Li Suwen, however, did not care. He merely revealed an amused smile. "Rest well. If anything happens, just call for me."

With that, he too turned and left the room.

Fu Junzhuo: "..."

Fine, since everyone is so strongly requesting it, starting today I'll switch to two updates a day. At worst, I'll put it behind a paywall after three hundred thousand words.