Chapter 212: Two Years, Coming Out of Seclusion (Part 3): The Death of Juexing (3)

Chen Jin'er usually does not handle affairs, but when Niu Dingtian is absent, she can mobilize the troops under her command, while Fentian handles the affairs of the Divine Sect.

Therefore, even though the matter was urgent just now, she still did not break the tacit understanding between the two.

After Fentian caught up, the group reached a cave halfway up the mountain, entered it, and Chen Jin'er, holding a torch to lead the way, ran quickly into the cave while anxiously saying: "Uncle, before his seclusion he feared Juexing would come looking for trouble again, so he hid the Dragon‑slaying Blade and the Heaven‑relying Sword that the old monk was thinking of in a secret chamber."

"The secret chamber is rigged with traps and packed with gunpowder; anyone who comes for the blades and is led inside cannot escape the chamber. Because it's too dangerous and he fears exposing a flaw, Uncle only told me and Rong'er about this."

"Now the gunpowder has been ignited by Rong'er; if she doesn't emerge from the entrance, she'll either die in the secret chamber or fall through a hidden compartment into this adjoining cave!"

Could she really die…

Han Xiao Ying's heart trembled. Thinking of that girl who had once, in Guiyun Village, hugged her at midnight with a chest smaller than a painting, a sour feeling rose in her nose.

Knowing the situation was urgent, the three kept moving without pause, daring not to delay, while behind them Niu Kui led five Xuanyi Guards, torches in hand, in swift pursuit.

After descending roughly a hundred zhang, when the torchlight revealed the path ahead, everyone's hearts gave a sudden thud. The once unobstructed cave had been largely blocked by collapsed stones at the entrance.

"Hurry and fetch people! Choose reliable ones, and remember to bring tools for clearing the rocks!"

"The rest, follow me!"

Seeing this, Niu Kui quickly ordered a nearby Xuanyi Guard, then called the remaining four, and began moving stones by hand.

"I'll go in from above to take a look."

Han Xiao Ying pressed her lips together, looked at the stunned Chen Jin'er beside her, and whispered, "One by one we go in; if the inside is passable, I'll call you back."

Having said that, she climbed onto the stone slab's top and slipped through a gap just over a person's width.

"Sister, wait here for the others to come in; I'll go in and look as well," Fentian said without hesitation, swiftly flipping over the stone slab and following inside.

While Niu Kui was clearing the debris and tried to stop them, the two had already vanished.

Chen Jin'er recovered, her face full of guilt, and tears welled up in her eyes.

She was about to chase in, but Niu Kui hurriedly blocked her, his expression solemn, saying, "It's too dangerous inside! The lady is waiting outside; I will go in first to scout, then persuade them to return."

Saying that, he swiftly climbed over the stone slab.

Although the cave formed naturally, the secret passage was also manually chiseled; the natural strata are inevitably prone to damage, and after this tremor, a collapse risk cannot be ruled out.

At present, one person's fate is unknown; if three more are buried, Niu Kui feels that when the sect leader returns, he won't need to stay alive either.

But Chen Jin'er was not willing; she felt the porcelain bottle in her sleeve and said to the remaining four Xuanyi Guards, "You clear the obstacles here, then send one to bring Huai Xi out of the cave to wait; remember, under no circumstances let her enter!"

Having said that, ignoring the guards' objections, she quickly slipped through the gap.

After passing the stone slab, although small piles of stones had fallen inside, fortunately they did not block passage, and Chen Jin'er quickly caught up with the three ahead.

"Is there water here?" The passage widened, and Han Xiao Ying saw a faint glimmer of water in the dimness, frowning as she asked.

Chen Jin'er lifted her torch, looked closely, and indeed saw the water glimmer; she hurried, "It's right there, a pond dug to prevent injuries from falling, find it quickly!"

As she spoke, someone already rushed forward with a torch, repeatedly calling anxiously, "Rong'er! Rong'er!"

Han Xiao Ying, Fentian, and Niu Kui dared not delay, hastening toward the pond to search separately.

Looking up toward the top of the pond, they could vaguely see a ceiling over ten zhang high, with large sections of falling stones.

Han Xiao Ying felt a sinking in her heart; in her urgency, her voice carried a hint of sobbing as she searched the stone slab, choking out, "Rong'er! Rong'er!"

"Xiao, Ying, sis—"

In the darkness, a faint, extremely weak call suddenly sounded.

Then the speaker seemed to regain some clarity, weakly whimpering, "Sister Xiao Ying, it hurts. Whimper, Rong'er hurts…"

"Rong'er!"

"Rong'er!"

"Rong'er!"

"Miss Huang!"

Han Xiao Ying, Chen Jin'er, and the other two's faces changed, and they hurried toward the voice.

When they approached the innermost wall of the cave and shone their torches, they saw Miss Huang, hair disheveled, her pretty face pallid, lying on the ground.

Her upper body seemed relatively uninjured, shielded by a recessed wall, but her thighs and lower parts were firmly crushed by fallen stones, with bright crimson blood seeping out.

"Quick! Act now!" Chen Jin'er cried mournfully, tears instantly welling up.

She, together with Fentian and Niu Kui, planted their torches in the ground and hurriedly cleared the stones from Miss Huang's leg.

"Alright, Rong'er, endure a bit longer; soon it won't hurt! Soon it won't hurt!" Han Xiao Ying tightly grasped Miss Huang's icy hand, gently comforting with tear‑filled eyes while continuously channeling inner power.

Miss Huang's pretty face was pallid, tears constantly falling onto the stones beside her cheek, she cried plaintively, "Rong'er's leg is broken, she can't move at all, she'll be like Senior Brother Lu."

"Wuwuwu—, Brother Niu once said that after emerging from seclusion he would marry Rong'er; if her leg is broken, he'll surely reject her," Han Xiao Ying's heart ached, tears streaming down, she reached out to the pale jade face, holding back her sobs and comforting, "It won't be like that, it will heal even if broken; Rong'er, don't speak defeatist words."

But Miss Huang said nothing further, merely lying on the ground with vacant eyes, continuously shedding tears.

At this moment, Chen Jin'er and the other two had swiftly cleared the stones; in sight, the white dress was already soaked crimson.

The girl who once seemed like an elf now resembled a blood‑stained rhododendron, silently withering on the ground.

Chen Jin'er felt a pang, wiped her tears, hurriedly retrieved the porcelain bottle from her sleeve, poured out five pills onto Miss Huang's lips, and gently said, "Rong'er, eat these first; after swallowing, let's see if your legs can move."

Miss Huang's eyes brightened; after she opened her mouth and swallowed the pills, her pallid jade face quickly regained its color.

"How is it?"

Chen Jin'er asked anxiously.

Miss Huang flared her delicate nose, bit her lip, tried to shift her legs, but only managed a slight movement.

She tried several more times; her eyes grew dim, and she whispered, "I feel something, but I still can't move."

Han Xiao Ying comforted, "It's because the bones are too broken; once we return and let Huai Xi set the fractures, they'll heal quickly."

"Madam! Vice Sect Leader!"

"Juexing's old monk is dead! You all leave quickly! The rocks above are shifting!"

At that moment, a shout from Su Lvzhi echoed from the cave's ceiling, and the group looked up to see a flame flare in the darkness.

"Run!"

A few people dared not stay long; lingering even a moment risked being buried alive. Chen Jin'er called out, swiftly extinguished two torches, and secured Miss Huang's legs.

Just then a few guards carrying a stretcher arrived; Han Xiao Ying carefully lifted Miss Huang onto it, and the men hoisted the stretcher and hurried outward.

Outside the cave, Yan Huai Xi, holding a medical case and wrapped in a fur cloak, had been anxiously waiting in the snow for a long time; the biting wind had flushed her delicate nose and cheeks slightly pink.

As Chen Jin'er and the others carried Miss Huang out of the cave entrance, she hurried forward with her medical case to examine her.

"What has she taken?" Yan Huai Xi asked after taking the pulse, then groped the blood‑soaked legs a few times, her brows furrowed as she inquired.

"They're the pills Uncle left, remarkably effective for flesh and blood injuries," Chen Jin'er said, pulling out a porcelain bottle for Yan Huai Xi to see.

Yan Huai Xi took it, held it to her nose and gave a light sniff, then, realizing, instructed, "The flesh has recovered; stop taking it for now. The bones and meridians are shattered, and if the vital energy is replenished too much, it may easily become deformed."

While speaking, she removed her fur cloak and gently covered Miss Huang, saying softly, "Let's go back first; I still need to cut open the clothing and examine her carefully. Rong'er, sister, don't worry; I'll make sure you're healed."

"Thank you, Sister Huai Xi," Miss Huang murmured softly, tilting her head slightly, staring blankly at the snow on the ground, saying nothing more.

Late at night, inside the Warm Pavilion.

Yan Huai Xi cut the clothing off Miss Huang's legs and examined her carefully several times; after the inspection, Chen Jin'er and Han Xiao Ying fetched hot water and washed the blood off her body.

When Miss Huang fell into a deep sleep, Chen Jin'er and Han Xiao Ying went to the Warm Pavilion opposite the small courtyard, where Yan Fangyu and his daughter Yan Huai Xi were discussing treatment plans by lamplight.

"Rong'er, is there any hope of recovery later? Mr. Yan and Sister Huai Xi, feel free to be frank."

Chen Jin'er set down the tea tray, poured each of them a cup of tea, then after a moment of contemplation asked directly.

Yan Fangyu glanced at his daughter, his expression solemn, and said, "According to Huai Xi's recent examination, the situation is indeed not optimistic."

"If it were an ordinary leg fracture, it would be easier to treat, but that girl's two leg bones are almost completely pulverized. Without timely pills to restore blood flow, we may have no choice but to amputate both limbs to save her life."

"Is there truly no hope?" Chen Jin'er's face went pale in an instant, and she asked tremblingly.

"Perhaps not…" Yan Fangyu said, his brows tightly knit as he shook his head.

After a pause, he took a small porcelain bottle from his bosom and, after a moment's thought, said, "I have studied for many days and found that the youngster left behind spirit water, which contains unimaginable vital energy. Vital energy resides in flesh and blood; if the injury is merely to flesh, blood, or organs, no matter how severe, drinking the spirit water freely will heal it."

"But bones are quite different. Bones house the divine qi; flesh can regenerate flesh, but bone does not easily regenerate bone. The fragments must first be properly aligned, then nourished with spirit water to help them fuse. Only after sufficient time can they hope to return to their original state."

"Since Mr. Yan already has a plan, why not try setting Rong'er's bones first?" Han Xiao Ying suddenly said.

"Rong'er is still young and knows the Yi Jing bone‑tempering technique; her tendons and bones recover differently from ordinary people, so even a slow repair will eventually succeed."

Yan Fangyu shook his head and sighed, "The difficulty lies in the bone setting; there are too many fragments in the leg bones, and achieving a complete repair is almost impossible."

"As for the Yi Jing bone‑tempering methods you mentioned, the 'Yi' refers to intact tendons, and the 'tempering' also to intact bones."

"If you keep joining piece by piece, the unjoined parts will gradually solidify; once that happens, the legs will become deformed, and even if she can walk later, she'll likely be a cripple."

Having said that, Yan Fangyu let out a soft sigh, lifted the tea cup before him and took a gentle sip, then furrowed his brows and fell silent.

"Is there truly no hope…"

Han Xiao Ying's heart sank to the bottom of a valley.

Leaving aside how Niu Dingtian would react upon hearing the news, how far might the 'Eastern Heretic' Huang Yaoshi go in his madness? (End of chapter)