Hongku's Wait

Staying temporarily in the sorcerer's area of Yedie River Holy Land is not a good thing; one might unknowingly be tainted by a curse.

Staying in Hongku's residence was not a good thing either.

The mere thought of Hongku possibly returning made Zhang Xuezhou jump up abruptly.

"You've been lying down for so long, and your energy is still so high, that's impressive!"

As the clapping and familiar sounds approached, Zhang Xuezhou felt a slight unease creep into his heart.

This made him quickly bow and shout.

"Teacher, I've missed you so much!"

To Zhang Xuezhou's slight disappointment, Hongku and Zou Bugui reacted completely differently, with one even shaking her shoulders to avoid his attempts at further intimacy.

Cough cough cough!

Two meters away, Hongku stepped to the side and then sat down at the stone table in the courtyard.

He looked at Zhang Xuezhou, who had rolled over on the door panel, and raised the jade bottle containing the Nine Treasures Wine that Zhang Xuezhou had previously hidden.

"You came to the Sacred Land to find me after you left the tomb," Hongku coughed.

"How could I not keep my promise to my teacher?" Zhang Xuezhou patted his chest and assured him, "I haven't forgotten your life-saving grace since I left the tomb, and I came straight here to the Sacred Mountain!"

Zhang Xuezhou felt somewhat uneasy.

His methods clearly failed to buy time.

If Hongku does not return within seven days, there is neither good nor bad for him hiding the Nine Treasures Wine.

If Hongku returns within seven days and fails to find the Nine Treasures Wine, Zhang Xuezhou will undoubtedly have more confidence when facing Hongku.

The worst-case scenario is that Hongku returns within seven days and finds the Nine Treasures Wine he hid.

Zhang Xuezhou felt that his situation in this world was terrible; he was simply incapable of doing anything right.

Forcing a smile, Zhang Xuezhou began to use his charm.

Hongku was undoubtedly a heartless person, and Zhang Xuezhou was hoping that Hongku would be more ruthless and less hostile towards him.

"I'm quite impressed by your thoughtfulness," Hongku nodded.

His voice sounded strange, clearly indicating that he hadn't expected Zhang Xuezhou to come to him so willingly.

This caused him to wander around aimlessly for a month.

Had he known Zhang Xuezhou would come, he wouldn't have had to travel for so long, and Hongku even encountered considerable trouble on this trip.

He coughed repeatedly, and when a burning sensation surged up in his heart and a faint urge to vomit appeared in his throat, Hongku quickly pointed to the jade bottle in his hand.

"Is this the Nine Treasures Wine you said could cure my symptoms?" Hongku asked.

Hongku hadn't been back for long, but as it was where he had lived for decades, Hongku was familiar with every corner of his Black Stone Villa.

He found the jade bottle with ease.

However, Hongku did not drink the contents of the bottle.

Even though he had smelled the aroma of the wine, Hongku did not dare to drink it rashly.

The reason is quite simple: Zhang Xuezhou was a treacherous and disloyal person who not only threw Soul-Severing Powder at him but also made him drink the Water of Eternity.

If Zhang Xuezhou were to put something in the Nine Treasures Wine, Hongku would have to be on guard.

He got his hands on the Nine Treasures Wine, but he hasn't drunk it yet.

"I'm not trying to cure your symptoms, but I suspect it might alleviate your current symptoms," Zhang Xuezhou corrected his wording.

"Is this wine really so potent?" Hongku asked, skeptical.

"This is just my guess, believe it or not is up to you," Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand and said, "I've also handed over the Nine Treasures Wine to you. If there's nothing else, I'll head down the mountain and go home!"

"Hmm, wait a minute!"

When Zhang Xuezhou said he was leaving, he really meant it.

Seeing that the guy immediately prepared to go down the mountain after regaining consciousness, Hongku's suspicions grew even stronger.

"Such fine wine, you're really willing to give it to me like this?" Hongku asked.

"A man's word is his bond; there's no going back on what I've promised," Zhang Xuezhou patted his chest, then asked in a low voice, "What, are you going to give it to me again?"

"Since you've given it to me, I naturally won't return it," Hongku said. "But we can still drink together!"

Hongku originally intended to use Venerable Lei to verify the credibility of the wine, but his descent from the mountain triggered related consequences, Venerable Lei had already flown off to find fruit to eat somewhere.

Hongku had no way of verifying the authenticity and potential problems of the Jiuzhen Wine.

This led him to ultimately set his sights on Zhang Xuezhou.

This is what he saw as the person got up. He hadn't taken any antidote beforehand, but he knew the answer simply by tasting the wine.

No matter how good Zhang Xuezhou's mental fortitude was, and how well he could remain calm and composed, once he took the Nine Treasures Wine, the negative effects would be impossible to hide.

This is just like when they drank the Water of Eternity together.

Hongku pointed to the stone table, gesturing for Zhang Xuezhou to sit down.

No matter how weak he is, he is still a great cultivator in the Sole Self Realm. It would be no problem for him to suppress Zhang Xuezhou with a flick of his wrist, and it would be no difficulty for him to make Zhang Xuezhou obey him at this moment.

Zhang Xuezhou cooperated.

The two eventually sat down on either side of the stone table.

"If we're not going to drink directly from the jade bottle, we'll need to find two jade cups," Zhang Xuezhou suggested.

"Why use a jade cup?" Hongku asked.

"The Emperor used a jade cup when he drank wine," Zhang Xuezhou said. "If you use two stone bowls to share your wine, don't blame me if you get sick!"

"Oh!"

With a flick of his sleeve, Hongku swept the two stone bowls off the stone table.

He rummaged through his pouch for more than ten seconds before taking out two jade bottles containing pills.

Hongku disliked wine and did not have a jade cup, but obtaining a jade bottle for holding elixirs was not a problem.

He looked at Zhang Xuezhou, gestured to the jade bottle, and then began to distribute the Nine Treasures Wine.

A delightful fragrance wafted over, Hongku took a deep breath, feeling that his previous symptoms had lessened considerably.

If Zhang Xuezhou hadn't mixed anything into the wine, his ailment might actually have been cured.

"Please!"

The remaining wine in the bottle was emptied, Hongku raised the jade bottle for dispensing wine to Zhang Xuezhou.

This prompted Zhang Xuezhou to pick up the Nine Treasures Wine and drink it all in one gulp.

Although the timing of the drink was off, at least half of the Nine Treasures Wine given to Hongku was returned, which made Zhang Xuezhou relatively satisfied.

If you were to ask him why he hadn't drunk it before, firstly, it wasn't the time when his body needed it, and there was no need to force a breakthrough in his Mental Strengthening in reality; secondly, this wine was something he used to save his life under Hongku's control, and he couldn't drink it lightly.

Just as the Nine Treasures Wine had been given to Hongku, his life was no longer in danger.

Zhang Xuezhou's face was only slightly flushed, while Hongku's face was rosy after drinking, and white steam kept rising from his body.

As if his body was detoxifying, or as if he was distilling alcohol, a putrid smell of alcohol kept emanating from Hongku's body, and the light in Hongku's eyes grew brighter.

He is indeed detoxifying from the alcohol.

Previously, he would vomit after sixty breaths, but now it has increased to one hundred and twenty breaths, and is even continuing to lengthen.

If the amount of Nine Treasures Wine is large enough, this time could even be infinitely long, allowing his body to return to normal.

Thinking of the half of the Nine Treasures Wine that he had given to Zhang Xuezhou, Hongku felt as if his heart was bleeding.

Zhang Xuezhou has always been fond of playing tricks, but Hongku never expected that the other party would not have done anything this time, so clean that he couldn't even complain.