Warning

"What condition?" Madam Hu asked anxiously. For my son, I can agree to anything.

"I want him to take me as his master." The Poison Hand Medicine King pointed at Hu Fei, but inwardly he sighed. As he grew older, Cheng Lingsu alone would likely be unable to keep that traitorous disciple in check.

Madam Hu exchanged a glance with Song Qingshu, and both secretly breathed a sigh of relief. They had not expected the condition to be so simple. Yet Hu Fei suddenly spoke up. "Before I become your disciple, there is something I must clarify."

"What is it?" The Poison Hand Medicine King looked at him in surprise.

"Was Black Fiend Cold Ice a creation of the Medicine King?" Hu Fei asked, enunciating every word.

"That is correct. I refined it in my early years, but because it was excessively sinister and poisonous, I never used it." After some thought, the Poison Hand Medicine King gave his answer.

"Then why did my father die from Black Fiend Cold Ice?" Hu Fei demanded furiously. Madam Hu's heart churned with countless emotions. If he truly is the murderer, then wouldn't Fei'er's life...

The Poison Hand Medicine King showed regret. "In my younger days, I chose disciples without considering their character. As a result, my first three disciples all betrayed our school. The man just now was my eldest disciple—Murong Jingyue. I gave him a portion of Black Fiend Cold Ice back then as well."

"What?" Madam Hu clenched her teeth. At last, this unsolved case had a lead. "Fei'er, study properly under the Medicine King and master his skills. With your father's inherited martial arts added to that, you need fear no one under heaven. Mother will first seek out Murong Jingyue and track down the true culprit. Later, we will avenge your father together."

Hu Fei nodded forcefully. Seeing that she looked ready to set off at once, Song Qingshu hurriedly said, "Sister-in-law, you have only just recovered from severe injuries. Your opponent is highly skilled and adept with poison as well. If I go with you, we can look after each other."

Madam Hu had felt somewhat uncomfortable around Song Qingshu these past days. She always felt there was something else in the way he looked at her. Still, he had indeed helped her and her son greatly, and he was Brother Hu's sworn brother, so she could not directly refuse him. Then an idea struck her: a perfectly legitimate way to refuse his company without embarrassing him.

"Senior Medicine King, my brother here suffered grievous injuries before, leaving all his meridians severed. He believes that only the Poison Hand Medicine King in all the world can heal him, which is why he crossed mountains and rivers to seek you out. I beg you to lend him your aid." Madam Hu gave a slight bow and pushed Song Qingshu before the Poison Hand Medicine King.

"Er, the final disciple of Hu Qingniu, the Butterfly Valley Medical Immortal, examined me before and found himself helpless. After much thought, I fear that only Senior Medicine King might be able to reconnect my meridians." Song Qingshu was deeply uneasy. If even he was helpless, then Song Qingshu was probably destined to remain a cripple for the rest of his life.

"I have always admired Sect Leader Zhang of the Ming Cult for his medical skill." The Poison Hand Medicine King felt his pulse, then examined various points across his body. He shook his head slightly. "The young master's meridians are completely severed. Not even metal and stone can save them now."

Madam Hu's expression changed as she looked at Song Qingshu with concern. Yet he merely smiled calmly. "I was torn by hope and fear before because I still held onto an illusion. Now that even Senior Medicine King says so, it seems I need not trouble myself any longer. A real man walks between heaven and earth—what does it matter if he has no martial arts?"

"What a broad mind, young master!" the Poison Hand Medicine King praised. "But there is no need for despair. While medical arts cannot reconnect your meridians, have you considered cultivating a divine art or secret technique to heal yourself?"

Song Qingshu looked at him doubtfully. "My meridians are completely severed. Even if the greatest martial arts manual in the world lay before me, I could not cultivate it." I still remember peerless arts like the Nine Yin Manual and the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, but with my meridians severed, there is simply no way to practice them.

The Poison Hand Medicine King sank into recollection and slowly said, "Though there are many martial arts in the world today, most are merely the studies of ordinary men. Yet the Sunflower Manual of Blackwood Cliff, the Star Shifting of the Murong Family, the White Head Profound Sutra of the Southern Sea, and perhaps other arts unknown to me—strictly speaking, these have already surpassed the bounds of martial arts. They are closer to the ancient methods of cultivation passed down through legend. Young master may perhaps find a way among them to heal his own meridians."

"I have heard of these arts as well, but I never knew they possessed such miraculous power. May I ask how you came to know..." Song Qingshu instinctively found it hard to believe.

"It is rather shameful to say," the Poison Hand Medicine King said with a bitter smile. "That traitorous disciple of mine, Murong Jingyue, is a descendant of a collateral branch of the Murong Family. Because he was born of a concubine, he had no right to cultivate Star Shifting. He went to great lengths to steal the martial arts of various sects, and he also coveted my 'Medicine King Divine Tome.' His goal was to one day enter Yanziwu, take control of the Murong Family, and glimpse the mysteries of Star Shifting. Years ago, he once complained to me by chance that their ancestor, the Kunlun Sword Immortal Murong Ziying, had relied on Star Shifting to move even the stars. Yet by Murong Fu's generation, he could not even defeat a Qiao Feng. He constantly cursed Murong Fu for having poor talent."

"Oh? It is truly that wondrous?" Song Qingshu's heart stirred.

The Poison Hand Medicine King said to Madam Hu, "Murong Jingyue is highly skilled and moves in secret. It will likely be difficult for Madam to find him. I suggest that Madam accompany Young Hero Song to Yanziwu in Gusu. First, you may use the Murong Family's power to clean house. Second, you may see whether there is an opportunity to heal Young Hero Song's meridians."

Song Qingshu was so excited that he practically wanted to kiss the Poison Hand Medicine King twice. He truly was a reincarnated matchmaker!

After considering it for a moment, Madam Hu nodded. "All right. Uncle and I will go to Yanziwu together."

Over the next few days, Madam Hu waited until Hu Fei's condition stabilized before preparing to depart. During those days, Hu Fei and Cheng Lingsu, the two children, were like a pair of quarrelsome enemies. One called the other ugly, while the other called him stupid. Hu Fei could not resist giving her a sound beating, only to be poisoned by Cheng Lingsu's Crimson Scorpion Powder until he yelped miserably...

Madam Hu sat on a stool, watching it all with a smile, her heart filled with warmth. Song Qingshu leaned closer and teased, "The way you are looking at her, it is as if you are sizing up your future daughter-in-law."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Madam Hu shot him an annoyed glare. The two had become increasingly familiar with each other, and their manner around one another had grown more natural.

"Looks like you think that girl is too ugly," Song Qingshu said with a chuckle.

"Pah!" Madam Hu spat softly. "Lingsu is not particularly pretty, but she is full of spirit. Sometimes, when she smiles without meaning to, there is such a charming allure..." As she spoke, her face reddened, and she refused to continue. Still, it was clear she was quite satisfied with this prospective daughter-in-law.

The next day, the two bid farewell to Medicine King Manor. On the road, Song Qingshu recalled how Hu Fei had grabbed him before they left and said with a strange expression, "Brother Song, take good care of my mother—but you are not allowed to have any improper ideas about her." He could not help bursting into laughter.