A scream came from deep within the valley. The smile vanished from Li Qingshan's face, and he darted toward the sound.
After rounding several clumps of tall medicinal herbs, he saw a man kneeling on one knee beside the cliff, tightly cradling a boy in his teens.
The man had long green hair, narrow eyes and brows, and a thin red mark on his forehead. Dark green patterns adorned his black robes, and his collar stood high.
At that moment, however, he spared no thought for appearances, staring down at the child in his arms.
The boy also had dark green hair, and his features bore some resemblance to the man's. His face had an unnatural blue-green tinge, and his body convulsed repeatedly.
"Xin'er!"
Dugu Bo grasped his son's hand and tried to channel soul power into his body. The boy's convulsions eased for an instant, only for him to arch his back and let out a stifled cry of pain.
Dugu Bo's expression immediately darkened further.
"Xin'er, don't scare your father." He held the child a little tighter, anxiety creeping into his voice. "Hold on a little longer. I'll find a way."
Dugu Bo did not even notice immediately when Li Qingshan approached. One glance at the boy's greenish face was enough for Li Qingshan to form a guess.
It was easy enough to understand why Dugu Bo was at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. He simply had not expected their first meeting to coincide with the poison flaring up in the man's son.
"I can treat the poison in your son."
Hearing the voice behind him, Dugu Bo whipped his head around, a green glow instantly rising from his body.
Holding his son, he retreated half a step and fixed his gaze on Li Qingshan. His expression held both wariness and a trace of shocked anger at someone intruding into this place.
"Who are you?" Dugu Bo looked Li Qingshan over, then swiftly scanned the path behind him. "How did you find this place? What are you doing here?" he demanded coldly.
Li Qingshan did not come any closer. He put away the Passionate Sword, indicating that he had no intention of fighting.
"I came to Sunset Forest in search of medicinal ingredients. I reached this valley after passing through the poisonous miasma outside."
Dugu Bo remained on guard. The poisonous miasma outside kept out many soul beasts; ordinary soul masters could not possibly enter so easily.
This man was so young, yet he stood here completely unharmed. His strength was certainly considerable. Dugu Bo could not trust him on the strength of a few words alone.
"You wandered in here by accident, and you just happen to be able to treat my son's poison? Do you think I'd believe that?" Dugu Bo asked coldly.
"Believe me or not, hear me out first," Li Qingshan said, looking at the boy in his arms.
"I'm well versed in medicine, and I also know how to identify medicinal ingredients and refine medicines. Your son's poison has flared up to this extent. Suppressing it with your soul power alone will only ease his suffering for a little while."
As he finished speaking, a familiar Light Curtain immediately appeared before Li Qingshan's eyes.
[The host has once again publicly claimed the identity: Alchemy Master.] [Current Alchemy Master identity Reality Progress: 60%.] [Dugu Bo has not yet believed the claim. Reality Progress gained this time: 0%.]
Li Qingshan glanced at it, unsurprised. Dugu Bo himself was skilled in using poison. There was no way he would hand his son over during a poison flare-up merely because a stranger claimed to be an Alchemy Master.
Then he continued, "I can find a way to treat your son's poison. The same goes for the poison in your body."
"Me?" Dugu Bo's brows knitted tightly, his wariness lingering. "You haven't even checked my son's pulse, yet you claim you can treat him. Now you're saying I've been poisoned too?"
He was a soul master who used poison himself, and he knew what a poison flare-up felt like. But that was a secret he rarely mentioned to outsiders. How could this young man know?
"Why should I believe you?"
Li Qingshan did not rush to answer.
He could tell that the only thing Dugu Bo cared about right now was the son in his arms. Unless he demonstrated some genuine ability, Dugu Bo would never let him near Dugu Xin.
So Li Qingshan looked at Dugu Bo and slowly began to speak.
"Whenever the weather turns overcast and rainy, don't you feel numbness along both sides of your ribs? It happens once at noon and once at midnight, lasting more than an hour each time."
"Deep in the night, don't you feel needle-sharp pains at the crown of your head and around your heart, while your entire body convulses for half an hour, just like this child before us?"
Dugu Bo's expression changed abruptly at those words.
The first few sentences had already made his heart tighten. By the time he heard the description of his late-night poison attacks, his arms had involuntarily tightened around his son.
He had never told anyone about these symptoms. He even hid himself away every time they struck, unwilling to let anyone see him in that state.
The numbness along his ribs, the stabbing pain in his head, and the uncontrollable convulsions throughout his body-Li Qingshan had described them without the slightest error.
Dugu Bo stared at him, the shocked anger in his eyes gradually giving way to astonishment. "How... do you know so much?" he asked in a trembling voice.
Li Qingshan glanced at Dugu Xin, who was still twitching faintly, and his tone steadied. "Now, are you willing to let me examine your son first?"
Dugu Bo did not answer immediately.
The boy's breathing grew increasingly rapid in his arms, while this young man of unknown origins had described symptoms that even those closest to Dugu Bo knew nothing about.
Could everything he just said be true?
After a moment, Dugu Bo finally began to lower the arm he had held protectively in front of his son.
The next second.
A familiar Light Curtain appeared before Li Qingshan's eyes.
[Dugu Bo has begun to believe in the host's identity as an Alchemy Master.] [Reality Progress increased: 15%.] [Current Alchemy Master identity Reality Progress: 75%.] [Reality Progress has reached 75%. Milestone reward obtained: Heavenly Doctor Acupuncture Manual!] [The Heavenly Doctor Acupuncture Manual contains methods for reading pulses, identifying acupuncture points, and guiding energy through acupuncture. It can be used to treat internal injuries, meridian damage, chronic ailments of the internal organs, and many other conditions.] [Its Nine Needles for Suppressing Poison can condense soul power into needles, seal and protect the heart meridians, guide rampaging poison energy, and swiftly quell a poison flare-up. However, a single treatment cannot remove toxins accumulated in the body over many years.]
A vast body of acupuncture knowledge flooded into Li Qingshan's mind.
Which acupuncture points to use for different ailments, how to control soul power as it penetrated the meridians, and how to avoid injuring the internal organs while applying needles-all gradually became clear.
Li Qingshan looked at Dugu Xin and soon found the technique he needed most at that moment: the Nine Needles for Suppressing Poison.
Before, he could only identify that the boy had been afflicted with Jade Phosphorous Serpent Poison. Now, he could even clearly see which meridians the poison energy was surging through toward the heart meridians.
Just in time. Joy stirred in Li Qingshan's heart. This reward would allow him to rescue the child from the immediate danger.
He dismissed the Light Curtain and said to Dugu Bo, who was still holding his son, "Let me stop this flare-up first. As for the accumulated poison in both your bodies, we can discuss that once he recovers."
Dugu Bo stared at Li Qingshan, his gaze still wary, and spoke in a low voice.
"You had better truly be able to save my son. If anything happens to him, you won't leave this place unharmed today."
"Rest assured." Li Qingshan glanced at the still-convulsing Dugu Xin and gave a faint smile. "Lay him somewhere flat first, and stop channeling soul power into his body."
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