Cultivation Regression

At last, the seventh day arrived. The girl blinked a few times and spoke. "Where is this?"

"Xiao Yun, you're finally awake?" Ye Wan had been outside the room. Hearing that call, she rushed in excitedly.

"Who are you?" Startled by Ye Wan's sudden entrance, the girl cried out in panic.

"Xiao Yun, what's wrong? I'm your sister! Don't you recognize me?" Ye Wan's joy instantly turned to worry.

The girl looked dazed, as though trying to recall something. Then she shook her head. "I don't know you. Do you know who I am? Why can't I remember anything?"

"Ah!" Ye Wan panicked and hurried to Ye Yun's side, wanting to examine her. Yet Ye Yun warily backed away, refusing to let Ye Wan touch her.

"What exactly is going on?" Ye Wan muttered to herself, utterly confused. The poison had clearly been completely purged, and Ye Yun had regained consciousness. Why had this happened?

"This should be an aftereffect of the Spirit-Mystifying Incense." At that moment, someone appeared behind her and spoke calmly.

Ye Wan abruptly turned around and saw Chen Fan slowly entering the room. His gaze fell upon Ye Yun as he said gently, "Don't be afraid. We're both your family. You were poisoned before, so you lost your memories. Don't worry, it's nothing. You'll remember again."

The moment Ye Wan heard Chen Fan say that the Spirit-Mystifying Incense had caused it, her heart sank again. She had previously learned much about this poison. It could affect the mind; when ordinary people were poisoned, they would either fall unconscious and never wake again, or wake with brain damage and all kinds of aftereffects—vacant-minded and muddled, perhaps even becoming idiots or vegetative patients. Moreover, such aftereffects had never been cured or reversed. The poison damaged the brain, and no matter how profound one's cultivation was in this world, repairing or altering the human brain was impossible. Throughout history, those who had attempted to repair the brain had either killed the subject outright or caused other irreparable consequences. Not a single successful case remained.

"You don't need to comfort me. I'm afraid no one in this world can cure such aftereffects." Ye Wan looked despondent, but she was not overly grief-stricken. Her sister's life had already been saved. Even if she had lost her memories, it was not a great matter. There was still a long road ahead, and they could slowly build things anew, so long as Ye Yun developed no other symptoms.

"Who said it can't be cured?" Chen Fan's tone did not ripple in the slightest, as if he were discussing something trivial.

Ye Wan stood frozen, her mouth agape. He could treat this too? Where had this man come from? Since that night in Blackrock City, Chen Fan seemed to have transformed into her savior god. And he had even done that with her... At this moment, she felt that Chen Fan was simply omnipotent. Before him, she was completely a weak woman who could do nothing at all.

"Y-you can really cure her? If you aren't certain, don't force yourself. It could easily—"

Chen Fan waved a hand and interrupted her. "There really wasn't a good method before, but now that she has drunk my blood, it will be much easier."

"Your blood?" Ye Wan exclaimed. Chen Fan cutting his wrist and letting blood that day had already exceeded everything she understood. Now he was saying that drinking his blood could cure illness. Was he truly a god? Could he be an immortal descended to the mortal world? Even with Ye Wan's current cultivation, such a childish thought arose in her mind.

"What exactly is so special about your blood?" Ye Wan finally could not hold back the doubt in her heart. This concerned her sister's life. The situation was no longer hopeless, so there was no need to take such a great risk. Unless she understood it clearly, she would not dare let Chen Fan act.

Chen Fan fell silent for a moment. Sigh, it seemed he had to give Ye Wan an explanation for some things after all. Their relationship was no longer what it had been; they had shared hardship, saved each other's lives, and become husband and wife in all but name. Chen Fan no longer intended to deliberately hide anything from Ye Wan.

"Because I was poisoned by this kind of poison before." As Chen Fan spoke, he slowly walked toward Ye Yun.

"You were poisoned by Spirit-Mystifying Incense—how could that be the same as Xiao Yun? A cultivator's constitution is stronger than an ordinary person's, not to mention that Xiao Yun is only a child." Ye Wan was still filled with misgivings.

"Who said the poison I suffered was Spirit-Mystifying Incense?" The corner of Chen Fan's mouth lifted slightly. He pressed two fingers against Ye Yun's neck. After sensing for a moment, he said, "Very good. She hasn't completely used up that bit of my blood essence yet."

"You said the poison you suffered wasn't Spirit-Mystifying Incense? Then what was it?" Ye Wan did not stop Chen Fan from making his next move. She was simply even more curious.

"Spirit-Drunken Incense." Chen Fan looked at Ye Wan and spoke each word distinctly.

Spirit-Drunken... Ye Wan considered it at first. Then, as though she had heard something utterly unbelievable, her eyes widened in shock. She stared at Chen Fan in terror.

Chen Fan did not pay much attention to Ye Wan's reaction. He merely whispered something into Ye Yun's ear, and Ye Yun obediently sat down cross-legged. Chen Fan placed one palm against her back, and a stream of Origin Qi entered Ye Yun's body. Gradually, the blood essence Ye Yun had absorbed before followed the flow of her blood vessels and spread throughout every part of her body.

Then Chen Fan withdrew his hand and continued murmuring softly into Ye Yun's ear. Ye Yun began meditating with her eyes closed. After a while, faint ripples of Origin Qi appeared around her, clearly the sign of drawing in and exhaling the Origin Qi of heaven and earth.

Ye Wan stared blankly from the side, still wearing the same stunned expression. She had not yet recovered from the shock. Only when Chen Fan came before her and said, "Let's go out. Don't disturb her for now," did she react.

"Oh." Ye Wan answered and foolishly followed Chen Fan outside.

"Looks like you know of Spirit-Drunken Incense as well." Seeing Ye Wan's expression just now, Chen Fan surmised that Spirit-Drunken Incense might be even more extraordinary than he had estimated.

Ye Wan still shook her head in disbelief. She had never connected Spirit-Mystifying Incense with Spirit-Drunken Incense before, because the difference between them was as vast as heaven and earth. She had only heard some things about it from the sect elders. "Spirit-Drunken Incense is said to be refined from the immortal fruit, the Spirit-Drunken Fruit. Apart from immortals, no one can withstand it, and no one can cure it. Are you sure you're not mistaken? Were you really poisoned by such a thing?"

Her question left Chen Fan somewhat puzzled again. If Spirit-Drunken Incense was truly so formidable, how could a weak cultivator like him have resisted it? However, saving Ye Yun was the most important matter now. It did not matter whether the poison he had suffered was truly Spirit-Drunken Incense. He had already taught Ye Yun several cultivation formulas from the opening sections of the Golden Wheel Scripture. The little girl had some foundation in breathing cultivation already, and Chen Fan had fused the portion of his blood essence inside her into her entire body. In this way, the principle was basically the same as when he had been poisoned and cultivated the Golden Wheel Scripture to recover. It was only that this detoxifying ability entirely depended on Chen Fan's special constitution. Once Ye Yun used up all the energy in Chen Fan's blood essence, she would be no different from an ordinary person. After all, Chen Fan was not bored enough to keep feeding her blood for no reason.

"Whether it was Spirit-Drunken Incense, I can't be sure. But Xiao Yun's recovery shouldn't be a problem." Chen Fan revealed a faint smile. To Ye Wan now, that smile was both confident and deeply reassuring. Since Chen Fan said there would be no problem, she completely relaxed. Still, many doubts remained in her heart, and she did not dare ask them, for they might involve Chen Fan's deepest secrets.

"This isn't convenient. Let's go to your room." Chen Fan said.

"Ah?" Ye Wan's face reddened. "What are you trying to do again? You've only just recovered a little, and you..." Even she could not continue the rest.

Chen Fan was utterly speechless. Was this woman still the Ice Fairy of before? Yet he clearly liked Ye Wan's current appearance very much. "What? Looking down on me? What is there to fear from such a minor injury? Besides, I only lost a little blood. Compared to that, it wasn't even as weakening as what came afterward that night." He had often heard people say that one drop of that was worth ten drops of blood. It seemed there really was some truth to it.

Ye Wan lowered her head in shy silence.

Chen Fan continued, "All right. I only want to tell you some things."

Inside Ye Wan's room, the two sat facing each other. Chen Fan shared his background and experiences with Ye Wan. In truth, it was quite simple when summarized. Before Golden Wheel Temple was massacred, there was almost nothing worth mentioning, and Ye Wan already knew everything that had happened after he entered Swordcry Mountain. Yet that tragedy of extermination had completely changed Chen Fan's life. He also told Ye Wan about his constitution and cultivation.

After hearing it all, Ye Wan's doubts were not resolved. Instead, the clouds of suspicion grew even thicker.

"You really are an oddity." That was Ye Wan's final evaluation.

Chen Fan smiled. "Could an ordinary person become your man?"

"Hmph, stop with your glib tongue. Is your body truly better now?"

"It would be even better if you could transfer some true qi to me mouth-to-mouth again." Chen Fan continued teasing her shamelessly.

"Hehe, I think you're already fine. Looking for a beating?" Ye Wan was both annoyed and amused as she punched Chen Fan in the chest.

"Ah!" Chen Fan screamed and fell to the ground. He was clearly putting on an act. Yet he immediately sat back up, his expression grave.

"What is it?" Ye Wan had wanted to scold Chen Fan for being such a good actor, but now she realized that something truly seemed wrong with him.

"..." Chen Fan murmured something indistinctly. Only his emotions seemed exceptionally low.

At this moment, Ye Wan seemed to realize something as well. She reached out and firmly seized Chen Fan's left wrist. A deep cut was still visible there. When she first grabbed his wrist, Chen Fan had tried to pull it back, but failed to break free. Only an instant later, Ye Wan's expression froze. Then, in the next moment, tears began to slide down her cheeks again as she looked at Chen Fan with unbearable heartache. "How could this happen?"

"It's fine. This little injury will heal after some time." Chen Fan gently moved Ye Wan's hand away.

"I'm not talking about this injury!" Every time she saw that wound, Ye Wan remembered the danger of that day. But what tore at her heart now was something else. "What happened to your cultivation? Why are you only at the second realm? You're even weaker than when you first entered the sect..."

In the cultivation world, regressing in cultivation usually meant that one's Internal Qi realm had changed, causing one's strength to plummet drastically. It was not especially rare. Usually, it happened when someone was injured in a great battle and their dantian qi sea was damaged, or when they suffered backlash after deviating into madness while breaking through a cultivation bottleneck. Ye Wan had never heard of someone's cultivation regressing while doing nothing at all. Yet Chen Fan had nearly died after letting blood, and with his special constitution taken into account, it was possible.

"It's fine. Don't cry. If my cultivation is gone, I can cultivate it back. Besides, if losing one realm can save Xiao Yun's life, then it is worth it." Chen Fan reached out and wiped the tears from Ye Wan's face. A confident smile returned to his face, as if nothing in this world could stump him.

"Let's return to the sect as quickly as possible. Then I'll ask the inner court elders for pills that can raise cultivation, or ask them to act and help you restore it." Ye Wan spoke anxiously. She knew that if cultivation regressed due to injury, there was generally still a remedy if treated quickly. Although Chen Fan was merely an outer sect disciple at the third realm, he had worked bitterly to reach that realm. He only had three realms in total, yet had suddenly fallen by one. Who could accept that? If things went badly, it might even affect his heart toward the Dao. Even if he cultivated back to the third realm someday, a heart demon could arise, and he might never be able to break through to the fourth realm for the rest of his life. The more she thought of it, the more anxious she became.

"Don't be in such a hurry. Xiao Yun still needs a few days of my guidance in cultivating the Golden Wheel Scripture to stabilize her condition." Chen Fan's face remained calm. He did not want Ye Wan begging those elders on his behalf. Leaving aside whether those great figures would be willing to treat an insignificant outer sect disciple like him, even if they were, their pills might not be better than his own cultivation method. After all, using medicine to raise cultivation came with aftereffects. Having them directly aid his cultivation was even less feasible, as it would too easily expose his secrets. Most importantly, one day he would prove through his own strength that he was worthy of marrying Ye Wan. He could not let others look down on him from the very beginning.

Ye Wan stared blankly at Chen Fan, not knowing what to say. This man was far too composed. Was he truly not worried at all about his cultivation?

"Rest assured. Even if I remain a minor cultivator of the second realm forever, I will still protect you for the rest of my life!" Chen Fan's tone was incomparably resolute, and his expression held no fear, as though he were merely stating something ordinary.

Yet Ye Wan did not think he was boasting in the slightest. Having witnessed what he was capable of before, what could possibly be impossible?

Several days later, Ye Yun had basically returned to normal and remembered Ye Wan as well as the neighbors and relatives in the valley. When she learned that Ye Wan and Chen Fan were leaving, she was reluctant to part with them. She tugged on Chen Fan's clothes and would not let him leave, wanting to cultivate under him. Chen Fan found it amusing. Your sister is so much stronger than I am, so why learn from me? Could it be that, because she had drunk my blood, she was more compatible with me?

In the end, Chen Fan left behind several cultivation formulas from the opening sections of the Golden Wheel Scripture. He told Xiao Yun to destroy them once she had mastered them and never let anyone else know of them. Then he and Ye Wan departed together.