Healing Wounds

"In short, you should cultivate well. That day will come."

After hearing Nangong Yiyi's words, my gaze became even more determined.

Then I said to Qianqian, "Qianqian, one day I will make sure you are always by my side."

"It's okay, Brother A Tong. It's good now too."

Then Nangong Yiyi said, "Stop being so lovey-dovey. I'm still here."

"Please be mindful of the occasion. Besides, this isn't a place for sweet talk."

My face flushed, and I said, "Then let's go first and talk about it when we get back."

"As for the body, I'll trouble you, Sister. I'm in such a state, I'm afraid it will be difficult to even get back."

Nangong Yiyi nodded, flicked her sleeve, and Qianqian's body floated over.

Then she picked it up and walked towards the cave entrance, while Qianqian supported me as we walked outside.

After leaving the cave, I made an emergency call and explained the situation.

The police officer on the phone asked who I was and how I knew something had happened here.

I said I was a tourist passing by and saw it, and that I had already left because I was scared.

Then they asked for a statement, and I made up a reason over the phone.

After that, our group hurried back to Martial Uncle's wooden cabin.

Since it was still night, there was no one around, and the journey was relatively smooth.

It's just that I fainted several times in the middle due to excessive blood loss.

Nangong Yiyi checked my wounds and said they weren't life-threatening and the problem wasn't serious.

Qianqian suggested taking me to the hospital for a blood transfusion, but Nangong Yiyi said it was fine.

Martial Uncle has a lot of medicinal herbs, and it would be enough if I took them for a while.

Nangong Yiyi carried Qianqian's body and rushed back to Martial Uncle's wooden cabin like this.

I don't know how long we walked, but I felt completely drained of strength.

It was difficult to even move a finger, and then my head lolled, and I lost consciousness.

When I woke up again, I found myself lying in bed. The surroundings were quiet, with no sound at all.

I looked around and realized I had returned to the wooden cabin.

Soon, with a creak, the door opened, and Martial Uncle walked in and sat by my bed.

Martial Uncle was silent for a moment, then said to me, "You did a good job this time. You were decisive and brave.

This will ensure you don't die too soon in the Underworld Practices, even if I can't say how long you'll live."

I grinned and asked, "Right, Martial Uncle, that kid said his master never came back.

My dad also never came back. Could there be any connection between the two?

Logically, one of them should have sent news by now.

But there's no news at all, and that kid wouldn't dare lie in that situation."

Martial Uncle nodded and said, "Yes, this is also one of the reasons for my trip.

Many things are unclear, so I have to go and see for myself."

Hearing Martial Uncle's vague words, I became a little impatient and asked him, "What exactly is going on? Can you tell me?

Ever since I left the village, I've been kept in the dark, not knowing anything.

I finally managed to get some clues from that kid, but then they were cut off again."

Martial Uncle hesitated for a long time, then sighed heavily and said to me, "Alas! Child, telling you will only add to your worries.

It's not that I look down on you, but you don't have the ability to solve these matters now. You'll only bring trouble upon yourself."

After Martial Uncle finished speaking, I stared at him intently.

Then Martial Uncle shook his head and said, "Forget it, forget it. You have to grow up sooner or later, and you'll have to face it.

If you want to hear it, I'll tell you, but I'll warn you beforehand.

I don't have definitive answers for many things. I'm inferring them from the clues I've gathered.

It's precisely because I don't know the truth of these matters that I'm going personally to figure them out.

Also, what I say today, once it leaves my mouth and enters your ears, you cannot let a third person know. Can you do that?"

I quickly nodded and said I could. Martial Uncle got up, glanced at the door, and then closed it.

He sat back down by my bed and continued, "I won't talk about some past matters, which are my personal grievances.

Now, let's talk about your grandfather. Including my own speculations, I think your grandfather might not be dead."

I was startled, then I sat up abruptly. As I did, I pulled at the wound on my lower abdomen, and the pain made me grimace.

"How is that possible? My grandfather has been dead for many years," I exclaimed.

Martial Uncle said with a grim face, "That's an empty grave. There was no body in the coffin at all. I discovered it over a decade ago."

He continued, "At the time, I thought your grandfather didn't put the body in the coffin because he was afraid some villain would do something bad with it. After all, your grandfather was one of the strongest individuals back then. So I didn't think much of it. But now, looking back, and including some recent events, I vaguely sense your grandfather's shadow at crucial turning points. Although he hid it well, his methods and usual style of doing things are exactly the same as your grandfather's back then."

I asked with doubt, "Could it be someone else entirely? Someone whose style is similar to my grandfather's? There are hundreds of millions of people in the world, and our country alone has so many. Of course, it would be best if my grandfather were alive."

Martial Uncle looked at me with determined eyes and said, "Yes, that's a possibility. But that's precisely why I've come out of seclusion to investigate."

"If your grandfather is dead, then where is he buried? If he's alive, then where is he? I have to get to the bottom of this."

This influx of information was overwhelming, and I was caught completely off guard. My brain felt like it couldn't keep up, and I just stared at Martial Uncle, feeling lost.

After a moment, I snapped back to reality and asked, "Then where do you plan to look? The world is vast, like finding a needle in a haystack. You can't possibly ask everyone, can you?"

Martial Uncle shook his head and said in a low tone, "I don't have a specific direction yet. I'll start by finding some old friends to sound them out. Then I'll revisit places I used to go when I was young to see if there are any clues."

Just then, I felt a twinge of pain from my wound. I pulled back the blanket to look at the injury on my lower abdomen and saw that the gauze was stained red with scattered bloodstains. "Hiss~" I gasped.

Seeing this, Martial Uncle hurried over to take a look and then said, "Regarding your grandfather, it's still just speculation. Why are you getting so worked up? You've just wasted a set of medicinal herbs. I went through great lengths to find these in the deep mountains and old forests. You prodigal son."

With that, he told me to lie still and went to prepare a new set of herbs to apply to my wound. He then rolled his eyes at me before turning and walking towards the door.