The Method of Healing

Looking at his master's desolate, lonely back, as though every last ounce of spirit had been drained from him.

Zhua Yun's heart ached, yet his gaze could not leave the old man's gaunt, stooped figure.

His master had devoted his entire life to the sect. His theories had been astonishingly brilliant, yet he had ended up in such a state!

Living under an assumed name, hiding underground, his mind lucid one moment and muddled the next. Even in his final years, he had to endure the torment of being misunderstood, with his grand ambitions left unfulfilled.

No... I absolutely can't let this end like this, Zhua Yun roared inwardly.

A powerful thought crashed wildly through his young chest.

His thoughts inevitably drifted to the boy who had fled in panic not long ago—Long Zhanye.

"Long Zhanye... You were once a celebrated genius, a thirteen-year-old Soul Ancestor, a miracle with Twin Martial Souls... But what about now?"

"Your first Martial Soul has been crippled, your heart meridians and foundation damaged. Your life force is like a guttering candle in the wind. You likely have less than three years left to live."

"From the clouds into the mud, from hope into a 'waste'... Even peacefully living out the rest of your life has become a luxury..."

A cold, resolute gleam flashed in Zhua Yun's eyes. "Rather than slowly exhausting the last of your life force in pain and resentment, with no value at all..."

"Why not... why not use that broken body of yours to burn one final time? If it succeeds, you can be reborn and perhaps even become stronger than before!"

"If it fails... it will only bring forward that inevitably brief ending by a little."

His thoughts grew clearer and firmer. "This isn't just for you, Long Zhanye. It's also for my master!"

"All he has ever wanted was to prove that his theories were not empty fantasies, to let the Body Sect go further."

"He needs an opportunity, proof! And you... perhaps you are the only one who can bear his final hope."

"Fulfilling my master's wish and giving the sect a sliver of hope for the future! Isn't that more meaningful than quietly rotting away?"

Zhua Yun's gaze shifted from hesitation to sharpness, like a dagger drawn from its sheath.

He was unwilling. Absolutely unwilling to watch his master spend the final years of his life drowning in the sorrow and despair of being misunderstood.

He decided that he had to do something, even if... it meant a desperate gamble, even if he had to persuade a boy to walk an unprecedented and perilous path whose outcome in life or death was unknown.

A few days later, a seemingly accidental opportunity arose.

On a relatively secluded corridor within the Body Sect, Zhua Yun "happened" to run into Long Zhanye, who was taking a walk alone.

Zhua Yun quickly adjusted his expression, adopting a warm and courteous manner as he stepped forward.

"Junior Brother, please wait," Zhua Yun said gently.

Long Zhanye stopped and looked at the unfamiliar young man in confusion.

The other man was tall and straight, handsome in appearance, composed in bearing, and dressed in the sect's disciple robes.

Long Zhanye felt that the man seemed somewhat familiar, but he could not remember where he had seen him.

Just as he was pondering this, an image flashed through his mind like lightning—the young figure beside Mad Old Man!

Long Zhanye's heart tightened, and he instinctively became wary.

But then he remembered Elder Xu's confident assurance—"That old fellow isn't a bad person."

Seeing the young man's warm, polite, and harmless attitude, the wariness that had just risen in him eased somewhat.

Perhaps this man was merely a relatively normal disciple or assistant serving that "Mad Old Man"?

"You are...?" Long Zhanye asked hesitantly.

"I am Zhua Yun, and I serve as an Outer Sect Supervisory Disciple of the Body Sect," Zhua Yun said with a slight nod.

"Forgive my abrupt interruption, but there are some... matters that may be extremely important to you, Junior Brother. I would like to speak with you privately. Would you be willing to take a few steps aside?"

His attitude was sincere, and his reason seemed legitimate enough.

Long Zhanye hesitated for a moment, but ultimately nodded. With some curiosity, he followed behind Zhua Yun.

The two walked one behind the other through several winding corridors and around several secluded courtyards.

They eventually arrived at a deserted corner of the sect's rear mountain, surrounded only by jagged rocks and sparse shrubs.

Only after confirming that there was no one else nearby to overhear them did Zhua Yun stop, turn around, and face Long Zhanye.

The gentle smile on his face gradually faded, replaced by a grave and direct expression.

"Junior Brother," Zhua Yun began bluntly, lowering his voice with an unavoidable sharpness, "I know you."

"I know that you were once the sect's Radiance Ten Thousand Zhang genius, a thirteen-year-old Soul Elder with limitless prospects. But I also know that now... you are no longer that person."

Long Zhanye's face instantly turned even paler. His lips pressed tightly together, but he did not argue. Only the fingers hanging at his sides curled slightly.

Watching his reaction, Zhua Yun continued in that calm yet cruel tone, "To put it bluntly."

"With your current condition, your heart meridians damaged, your foundation nearly destroyed, and your life force constantly fading..."

"You and I both know that you likely... do not have much time left. At most, three years."

"From a genius admired by countless people to someone barely clinging to life, even a dying man in need of others' pity... Long Zhanye, are you really willing to accept that?"

"Are you truly willing to resign yourself to fate and wait in despair and resentment for the day your life is completely extinguished?"

"I'm not willing!" Long Zhanye blurted out almost immediately.

The pride and stubbornness buried deep in the boy's bones were completely ignited at that moment.

He raised his head and stared directly at Zhua Yun. "How could I possibly be willing?!"

"But... what can unwillingness change? Even Elder Xu, even the sect..."

The rest of his words turned into a choked sob full of helplessness.

Seeing Long Zhanye's reaction, Zhua Yun knew he had struck his weak point.

His tone shifted, carrying a faint and subtle temptation. "If... if I said that I have a way—no."

"More accurately, I know someone who may have a way, someone who might be able to... cure you, and even..."

"Give you the chance to walk the path of cultivation again. Would you be willing to try?"

"What?!" Long Zhanye's eyes widened abruptly, as if he could not believe his ears.

An astonishing light instantly burst from his eyes. He hurriedly stepped forward, his voice rising. "Really?"

"Senior Brother Zhua Yun, is what you said true? Is there really... a way to cure me?"

As though afraid Zhua Yun might change his mind, he hurriedly added, "If... if there truly is a possibility, even if there is only the slightest hope, even if I have to pay any price, I'm willing!"

"I'm willing to try!!!"

The instinct to survive and his desire to regain his strength overwhelmed every rational consideration Long Zhanye had at that moment.

"Good!" This was exactly what Zhua Yun had been waiting to hear. He nodded, his expression growing even more serious.

"Since you have such resolve, I will not hide it from you. The one who can save you is not me, but my master."

"Your master?" Long Zhanye looked utterly confused as images of the sect's highly respected elders swiftly flashed through his mind.

Yet he could not connect any of them with something as unbelievable as "curing himself."

Zhua Yun looked into his eyes and said, word by word, "Beneath Short Bridge, within the Underground Secret Chamber..."

"The one you encountered before and called 'Mad Old Man' is my master."

"What?!" Long Zhanye was shocked and instinctively staggered back half a step.

His face was filled with disbelief and alarm. "That... that Mad Old Man?! He... he is your master?!"

The terrifying and bizarre sight of the Underground Secret Chamber, the old man's skeletal face and crazed behavior, surfaced vividly in his mind again, filling him with instinctive resistance and fear.

"That's right." Zhua Yun nodded firmly, unsurprised by Long Zhanye's reaction.