So Practiced It Hurt to Watch

Yu Zhi had no time to worry about anything else and hurried to check on Zhang Qiling. He was badly injured, his body densely covered in wounds, and he had nearly drowned in the lake. Yu Zhi panicked so badly that he forgot he could use spiritual energy. Acting entirely on instinct, he pressed on Zhang Qiling's chest to perform CPR, but there was still no improvement. Then he suddenly remembered his spiritual energy and hurriedly helped Zhang Qiling sit up, pouring spiritual energy into him without stopping.

"Wah."

Zhang Qiling spat out a large mouthful of water mixed with blood. Gradually, his chest began to rise and fall.

Yu Zhi discreetly took a spirit stone from his storage space and quickly absorbed it, then transferred the energy into Zhang Qiling's body to help him recover from his injuries, guiding it through one complete circulation.

Yu Zhi could feel that Zhang Qiling's life was no longer in danger for the moment, and that some substance in his body also seemed to be slowly recovering. Was this the power of Qilin Blood? He picked him up, carried him to a tree, and propped him against it.

The feel of Zhang Qiling in his arms made Yu Zhi pause. Zhang Qiling was soft all over, his body as supple as a woman's. He was nothing like the cold person he usually appeared to be, nor was he as powerful as the books described. In short, he felt nothing like Yu Zhi had imagined, but holding him in his arms felt pretty good.

Hei Xiazi lay on the ground and watched the man work on Mute. The treatment went smoothly, and Mute survived, so he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

After settling Zhang Qiling, Yu Zhi came over to Hei Xiazi and crouched down to look him over. "Need treatment?" he asked casually.

He had actually recognized him when he flung him ashore. Anyone dressed all in black and wearing sunglasses in the Zhang Family Ancient Tower had to be Hei Xiazi.

"Sorry for the trouble, brother. What should I call you?" Hei Xiazi asked with an odd, inscrutable grin. Judging by how worried the man had been about Mute, he was probably one of their own.

Hei Xiazi's sunglasses hid his eyes from Yu Zhi, who could only tell he was smiling from the curve of his lips and the muscles in his face. The man was handsome in a different way, cool with a roguish edge. Even that strange grin lent him a distinctive air that came perfectly naturally to him.

Rather than answer his question, Yu Zhi asked, "Hei Xiazi?"

"Uh, that's me." Hei Xiazi's expression stiffened, and he almost failed to keep smiling. The man had just looked as though he knew him, so what was he playing at, asking now?

"Where are you hurt?" Yu Zhi didn't move as he looked at the man lying on the ground. He didn't want to examine a stranger's body; it was impolite and out of character for him.

"My right leg, my right shoulder, and my chest are all injured. Turn me over, would you? I can't muster the strength myself. My ribs, thigh, and shoulder are probably fractured." Hei Xiazi spoke as though it were nothing, without a trace of pain on his face.

Yu Zhi didn't turn Hei Xiazi over. After all, his ability to treat wounds was limited, and he knew that a person with fractures shouldn't be moved lightly, lest they suffer further injury. Besides, lying like this kept Hei Xiazi from seeing what he was doing. He didn't want anyone other than Zhang Qiling to find out.

He used spiritual energy to focus treatment on the three areas Blind Man had mentioned, occasionally touching him to put on an act.

Blind Man lay on the ground, feeling the movements of the hands of the person beside him. Whatever it was, it wasn't like ordinary bandaging and treatment. He just felt a cool sensation, and his injuries improved considerably. He had seen exactly what this man had done to Mute just now. The man was mysterious, yet he had never heard of him in the business before, and he was involved with Mute.

"Thanks, brother. What should I call you?" Hei Xiazi slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position and adjusted his glasses.

"Yu Zhi. No need to thank me. Why are you here?" Yu Zhi asked rather bluntly.

"Uh, me? I just came by to have a look around." Hei Xiazi laughed it off, at a loss for words for the first time in his life. He couldn't reveal everything in this situation. Mute hadn't woken up, so who knew what this man's deal was?

"Did you run into Zhang Qiling down there?" Yu Zhi asked again.

"Yes." This time, Hei Xiazi answered directly instead of laughing it off.

"What did you run into? Where's Zhang Qiling's saber? Did you see it?" Yu Zhi pressed. There was nothing else for it. Zhang Qiling's condition was stable now, but he was unconscious, and Yu Zhi wanted to know what exactly they had encountered down there.

"We ran into monsters. Isn't the saber on Mute's back?" Blind Man said, jutting his chin toward Zhang Qiling.

Then he froze when he saw that Zhang Qiling's back was bare. "It might have fallen to the bottom of the lake," he added. "He brought it out with him."

"Watch him." Yu Zhi gestured for Hei Xiazi to look after Zhang Qiling, then hurried to the lakeside and plunged into the water. He used the Water Control Art with his hands to search for the Black Gold Ancient Saber. Not far from where he had pulled Zhang Qiling out, he saw it lying quietly on the lakebed. He quickly swam over, picked it up, and returned to shore.

To Blind Man, it felt like only a few minutes before Yu Zhi surfaced with the Black Gold Ancient Saber. His eyes darkened. Could Yu Zhi also be after the saber? Or was he after the secret behind Mute, like those people?

Only after Yu Zhi emerged from the water did he realize he was soaking wet. But he couldn't dry himself with spiritual energy, or Hei Xiazi would notice. Then he suddenly remembered that Zhang Qiling was injured and his clothes were still wet. He might catch a chill. Yu Zhi tossed the saber aside and hurried over to strip off Zhang Qiling's clothes.

Watching Yu Zhi casually toss the saber away, Blind Man thought he didn't seem to be after the Black Gold Ancient Saber. Then the next thing he saw left him somewhat dumbfounded. Mute had been stripped down to his underwear. Once Mute woke up, he would have to give him a good teasing about this.

Yu Zhi wrung the clothes tightly in his hands, water pouring out of them, and secretly dried them with spiritual energy before quickly dressing Zhang Qiling again. Honestly, his skin was so fair. With his black hair and pale skin, and his eyes closed, he had a handsome, unworldly air. Only his lips were deathly pale, a clear sign of excessive blood loss. But he looked so well-behaved. Mindful that Hei Xiazi was watching from the side, Yu Zhi made no unnecessary moves.

Seeing that Zhang Qiling still showed no sign of waking, Yu Zhi grew anxious. By rights, he should have woken up, so why was he still unconscious?

"Hei Xiazi, what exactly did you run into? Why did Zhang Qiling end up like this? You don't need to be on guard against me. I can tell you that I brought him out of the sanatorium. He and I are in the same boat," Yu Zhi said.

Hearing this, Hei Xiazi took a careful look at Yu Zhi. Having lived to such an age, he could tell that Yu Zhi was speaking the truth. He was much sharper than Mute.

"All right. The two of us were attacked by Miluotuo in the ancient tower. Zhang Qiling covered me. As for why he ended up like this afterward, I don't know either. He was still handling them with ease when I got out." Hei Xiazi spoke self-mockingly.

"Mm, I see. Let's get out of here first. Can you walk now?" Yu Zhi's voice had grown downcast.

"I can walk. I'd have no problem carrying Mute, either," Hei Xiazi said, getting to his feet and moving to carry Mute.

"No need." Yu Zhi stepped forward and scooped Zhang Qiling into his arms. Then he thought it over. Though Zhang Qiling would be comfortable like this, it wasn't convenient for walking through the jungle, so he shifted him onto his back.

Zhang Qiling's head rested against Yu Zhi's neck, his faint breaths brushing his skin and making Yu Zhi's goosebumps almost impossible to suppress. He took a deep breath and said, "Let's go. We should get out as soon as possible. You carry the saber."

With that, he checked their direction and set off along the way he had come. Blind Man followed behind with the saber on his back.

The two of them traveled for most of the day and finally reached a small town before dark. All along the way, Hei Xiazi had marveled at Yu Zhi's stamina. Carrying a person on his back, he still walked as swiftly as if he were flying, and even Hei Xiazi had almost failed to keep up. Why had he never heard of someone like him before?

They found a small inn that looked run-down from the outside and asked for a three-person room. Inside, it was quite nice, with clean bedding and a shower.

The three of them had been through a lot, so they ate a quick bite and rested. As for why they had asked for a three-person room, neither Hei Xiazi nor Yu Zhi felt at ease leaving Zhang Qiling to room with the other, so in the end, all three stayed together.

When Yu Zhi woke the next morning, he saw Zhang Qiling staring fixedly at him from the next bed and Hei Xiazi snoring.

"You're awake. How do you feel?" Yu Zhi asked, reaching for Zhang Qiling's wrist.

When he touched him, Yu Zhi felt the other man seem to struggle a little. He looked up at him in confusion and only then noticed that something was wrong with Zhang Qiling's expression. He seemed to have lost his memory again.

"Stop pretending, Blind Man. Come see if he's lost his memory again." Yu Zhi had little experience, but Hei Xiazi had plenty.

Hearing that, Blind Man stopped snoring. He got up, walked over to Zhang Qiling, and thrust a hand straight at his face. Just like that, the two began fighting in the cramped room. In the end, Hei Xiazi was caught yet again.

Pinned to the floor by Zhang Qiling, who had a knee pressed against his shoulder, Hei Xiazi said with practiced ease, "Mute, it's me. You recognize me, right? Have you lost your memory again?"

The whole sequence left Yu Zhi dumbstruck. They were so practiced at it that it hurt to watch.

Zhang Qiling released him and walked back to sit on the bed. He glanced at Yu Zhi, then looked away and began staring into space.