Treatment and Hope

"Bang!"

The door was yanked open from within!

Old Man Gu's eyes went wide as he stared fixedly at the pale pink, violet-tinged Immortal Herb in Long Zhanye's hand.

His pupils suddenly contracted!

"Ar... Aromatic Silk Beauty?! The Bane of a Hundred Poisons?! Is... is this real?!" he cried out.

He extended a trembling finger, wanting to touch it, yet stopped halfway, afraid that his finger would defile the Immortal Herb.

His eyes remained glued to the herb. As someone who refined pills and made medicine, he knew all too well how valuable it was!

This was practically a legendary divine treasure—something one could only hope to encounter!

In some respects, its value even surpassed certain Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bones!

With it, many Elixirs that had once been impossible to attempt due to material limitations could now potentially be refined!

Seeing that Elder Gu had been completely captivated by the Aromatic Silk Beauty and had let down his guard, Long Zhanye knew the time had come.

With a flick of his wrist, he swiftly put away the Immortal Herb and held it tightly against his chest.

The action immediately brought anxiety and reluctance to Elder Gu's face, his gaze following the herb as it moved.

Seeing Elder Gu's expression, Long Zhanye steadied himself inwardly.

Keeping Elder Gu in suspense, he slowly said, "Elder Gu, you have seen it yourself. As long as you are willing to help and save my life..."

"This Aromatic Silk Beauty will be offered to you with both hands as payment for this treatment."

"What do you say?"

The expression on Elder Gu's face instantly became exceptionally colorful.

First came the urgency of seeing the herb taken away, followed by instinctive resistance and difficulty upon hearing the condition.

Yet his eyes remained firmly stuck to the Immortal Herb, greed and longing nearly spilling out of them.

After struggling for merely a few breaths,

Elder Gu suddenly gritted his teeth and swiftly swallowed down the trace of hesitation on his face.

He nodded, his voice somewhat dry. "Fine! Fine, boy! This old man... agrees!"

As he spoke, he reached for the Immortal Herb in Long Zhanye's arms, already unable to wait to claim it for himself.

"Then... then give it to me first. Let me have a good look and study its medicinal properties, so I can prepare for the treatment..."

However,

Long Zhanye nimbly stepped back, avoiding Elder Gu's reaching hand while drawing the herb farther away.

He shook his head, a trace of caution appearing on his face. "Elder Gu, it is not that I do not trust you. It is simply... the rules cannot be broken."

"When you have cured my illness, I will personally offer it to you with both hands. There will be no further discussion."

Elder Gu's outstretched hand froze in midair, and the urgency on his face was instantly replaced by annoyance.

He glared at Long Zhanye and huffed into his beard. In the end, he reluctantly withdrew his hand and laughed as he scolded, "You little rascal!"

"You may be young, but you sure have plenty of tricks up your sleeve! Fine! This old man will trust you this once!"

"However, the treatment is extremely dangerous, and there are many things that need to be prepared. You must give me time."

Over the following days,

Long Zhanye practically became a tireless messenger, shuttling back and forth between the secret chamber and the side room every day.

Whenever he knocked on the secret chamber door and saw Elder Gu or Zhua Yun, the questions he asked most often were:

"Elder Gu, how is the research going?"

"Has there been any progress?"

"When can we begin?"

He was afraid that if he came even one step too late, the progress of his treatment would be delayed because of it.

This wait lasted a full twenty days.

Long Zhanye began to wonder whether Elder Gu was merely brushing him off, dragging things out because he could not bear to part with that Immortal Herb.

Finally, one day, when he could no longer resist asking again,

"Elder Gu, exactly... exactly when can you 'do' it for me?"

What he had in mind was naturally the shocking Heart Grafting Technique Zhua Yun had once mentioned.

To his surprise, Old Man Gu paused for a moment, then shook his head like a rattle-drum. "Do? Do what?"

"The Heart Grafting Technique?" Long Zhanye blurted out.

"Grafting Technique?" Elder Gu snorted and repeatedly waved his hands. "No, no, no, boy, you have misunderstood!"

"That thing is far too risky. The chance of success is minuscule. It would practically be sending you to your death."

"Since this old man intends to take your Aromatic Silk Beauty, I naturally have to make sure you live long enough to receive it afterward."

"What this old man has been considering is another path."

"Another path? There is another way?"

"Yes, of course there is!" Elder Gu straightened his hunched back slightly, a trace of pride appearing on his face.

"Just wait in peace. Once this old man succeeds in developing it, I will naturally have that boy Zhua Yun notify you."

With that, he waved his hand and turned, burying himself once more among the pile of bottles and jars.

Seeing this, Long Zhanye could only nod half-believingly and quietly withdraw.

Then one day,

Zhua Yun rushed into Long Zhanye's side room, his face filled with rare excitement. "It worked! It worked! Hurry!"

"Come with me! Master wants you there immediately!"

Long Zhanye froze at first, then abruptly rose to his feet. Without even bothering to tidy himself up, he followed behind Zhua Yun.

"Bang!"

Zhua Yun shoved open the secret chamber door.

Inside, Old Man Gu stood with his back to them. Hearing the commotion, he spun around.

"Little one! Come here! Come here!" Elder Gu repeatedly beckoned at him.

Long Zhanye hurried forward, unconsciously holding his breath.

He saw Elder Gu mysteriously take a jade bottle, emerald green all over, from a nearby shelf.

He carefully removed the stopper, gave his wrist a light shake, and a pill no larger than the nail of his little finger, shimmering with a pale green luster, rolled into his palm.

The moment the pill appeared, an exceptionally faint herbal fragrance that seemed to penetrate directly into the lungs and calm the mind quietly spread through the room.

Elder Gu held the pill before Long Zhanye. "This pill, this old man has named the Pure Heart Spirit Pill! You will take it now."

Without the slightest hesitation, Long Zhanye picked up the pill from Elder Gu's palm and placed it in his mouth.

The pill dissolved upon entering his mouth, turning into a warm, cool liquid that flowed down his throat.

At first, he felt little. Yet after only a few breaths, a gentle current of warmth gathered directly toward his damaged heart!

The medicinal power was not overbearing. Instead, it was like the gentlest of hands, softly wrapping around every injured part of his heart.

The dull ache that had persisted for months, like being slowly cut by a blunt knife, was noticeably relieved at that very moment!

A long-lost sense of ease spread throughout his body, and even his breathing became much smoother.

Long Zhanye could not help taking a deep breath. This Elixir... really worked! Old Man Gu had not deceived him!

"How does it feel?" Elder Gu narrowed his eyes, a smug smile on his lips.

"I feel... much better! My heart feels so comfortable!" Long Zhanye answered excitedly.

"Hmph, this is only the beginning." Elder Gu pointed at the small jade bottle in Long Zhanye's hand.

"This Pure Heart Spirit Pill mainly nourishes and repairs the heart meridians, strengthening the foundation and replenishing vitality."

"This old man has not refined many yet. There are ten pills in this bottle. You must take one each day. Remember, do not interrupt the dosage, and do not take extra."

"After ten days, come back here. This old man will give you the next stage of medicine."

As he spoke, he placed the small jade bottle containing the remaining nine Pure Heart Spirit Pills into Long Zhanye's hand.

Long Zhanye tightly gripped the jade bottle, took a step back, and gave Elder Gu a deep bow. "Thank you, Elder Gu, for this life-saving grace! I will never forget it!"

Seeing this, a glint flashed through Elder Gu's eyes, and the faint air of a lofty master on his face immediately changed into a merchant's shrewdness.

He rubbed his hands together, leaned forward slightly, and piled a smile onto his face as he probed, "Ahem... little one..."

"You see, you have taken the Elixir, and you have felt its effects..."

"This old man exhausted countless precious materials and poured his heart and soul into refining this pill... so that Aromatic Silk Beauty, perhaps... could you first..."

Before he could finish, Long Zhanye had already straightened up and slowly shaken his head. "Elder Gu, we agreed before that I would offer the Immortal Herb only after you cured my illness."

"The treatment has only just begun, and we are still far from 'cured.' If I give you the Immortal Herb now, what if..."

"What if you stop caring about me afterward? It is not that I do not trust you, but this concerns my life. I have no choice but to be cautious."

The smile on Elder Gu's face instantly froze, and his extended hand awkwardly stopped in midair.

He glared at the seemingly frail yet remarkably meticulous young man before him. After a long while, he angrily withdrew his hand.

Pointing at Long Zhanye several times, he blew into his beard and glared. "You... you little brat! Fine!"

"This old man will let you owe me for now! But let me tell you, the later treatment will cost even more. If you dare go back on your word... hmph!"

Though he sounded dissatisfied, there was not much genuine anger in Elder Gu's eyes. Instead, there was a trace of... appreciation for Long Zhanye.