Chapter 436: The Vanished Mortuary

After the physicians of the Pill Saint Hall took over the acupuncture treatment, Hua Changxi found herself with free time.

"Steward Yun."

Hua Changxi approached Yun You, who was inspecting the various medical sheds.

Yun You looked somewhat surprised: "Peak Master Hua, is there something you need?"

Hua Changxi pointed at Yang Zhaoye, who sat cross-legged beneath the Fire Lotus: "Call that steward over; I will discuss the overall condition of this batch of wounded with you both."

Yun You did not quite understand why Hua Changxi had taken notice of Yang Zhaoye, but she complied nonetheless, sending someone to fetch him.

"Peak Master Hua." Yang Zhaoye was also somewhat startled by Hua Changxi's sudden summons.

Hua Changxi 'looked' at the Nascent Soul bound by ghostly qi within his dantian, and her brows instinctively furrowed: "The Southern Bright Separation Fire within the Fire Lotus is of little use for your injury, unless you can subdue the Southern Bright Separation Fire and guide it into your dantian."

Hearing this, Yun You's expression changed, and Yang Zhaoye's heart skipped a beat.

Yang Zhaoye looked at Hua Changxi, his eyes filled with vigilance and wariness: "Does Peak Master Hua... know about my injury?"

He had indeed suffered a severe injury, yet he had told no one. Even after the people of the Pill Saint Hall arrived, he had not sought diagnosis from any physician.

Hua Changxi glanced at him, then at the clearly astonished Yun You, and said in a light tone: "Setting aside the fact that all physicians master the basic methods of observation, listening, questioning, and pulse-taking, are you unaware that extraordinary eyes exist in this world?"

Speaking thus, Hua Changxi swept her gaze up and down Yang Zhaoye's body: "Did you think you concealed it very well?"

Yang Zhaoye opened his mouth, but for a moment, he was speechless.

Yun You knew Yang Zhaoye had been injured, but since he usually acted as if nothing were wrong, she had assumed his injury had long since healed.

She did not ask Yang Zhaoye at this moment why he had concealed his injury, but instead turned directly to Hua Changxi: "Peak Master Hua, is Steward Yang's injury severe? We trouble you to give it your attention; you must surely heal him."

Hua Changxi was not distracted by Yun You's deflection; she kept her gaze fixed on Yang Zhaoye: "Why conceal your injury?"

"What are you afraid of?"

"Afraid someone else will snatch your position as steward?"

Hearing such blunt questioning, Yang Zhaoye's face immediately darkened, and his gaze toward Hua Changxi was no longer gentle.

Yun You, however, underwent a drastic change in expression and immediately stepped forward to defend Yang Zhaoye: "Peak Master Hua, you misunderstand; Steward Yang is not that kind of person." Then, quickly changing the subject, she asked, "Is Steward Yang's injury very severe?"

Hua Changxi did not respond to Yun You but continued to look at Yang Zhaoye: "Steward Yang has not yet answered my question."

Feeling some resistance toward Hua Changxi's assertiveness, Yang Zhaoye knitted his brows: "This seems to have nothing to do with Peak Master Hua."

The corner of Hua Changxi's mouth curled upward: "It indeed has nothing to do with me; I am merely curious and wanted to ask."

Yun You spoke again: "Peak Master Hua, Steward Yang serves as the steward of the Discipline Hall of the Lingguang Hall; his responsibilities are weighty. He did not disclose his injury out of consideration for the Lingguang Hall. As an outsider, please do not..."

"I simply did not want to lose my position as steward."

Yang Zhaoye suddenly interrupted Yun You, and under her astonished gaze, he continued: "I am not that noble; concealing my injury was not out of consideration for the Lingguang Hall, but for my own sake."

Yun You opened her mouth, wanting to say something, yet did not know where to begin.

Hua Changxi looked at Yang Zhaoye, her expression largely unchanged: "Are you not afraid that losing control of your injury will affect the operations of the Lingguang Hall?"

Yang Zhaoye looked straight at Hua Changxi: "That will not happen. The Discipline Hall has ten deputy stewards, each capable of replacing me."

Hua Changxi raised an eyebrow: "Ten deputy stewards? Did you train them?"

Yang Zhaoye remained silent.

Hua Changxi looked at Yun You: "Do other departments also have so many deputy stewards?"

At this point, Yun You also realized that Hua Changxi was overly curious about the affairs of the Lingguang Hall; although she had previously been certain that Hua Changxi was not the Hall Master, she now felt somewhat uncertain again.

"No."

Yun You could not reveal too many specific details about the Lingguang Hall, so she offered only a vague reply.

Hua Changxi glanced at the two of them, dropped the topic, and returned to discussing the injuries.

"You must mentally prepare yourselves; expelling the ghostly qi from this batch of wounded is only the first step."

"The subsequent treatment of the foundational damage caused by the erosion of ghostly qi is the most critical part."

"For those wounded whose ghostly qi has only eroded their physical bodies, treatment is relatively easy."

"As for those whose ghostly qi has penetrated their spiritual roots and caused erosion and damage to them, they can also be treated, but the spiritual medicines required are quite precious, and the Lingguang Hall will need to bear some cost."

Speaking to this point, Hua Changxi looked at Yang Zhaoye once more: "However, for those wounded whose ghostly qi has penetrated into the dantian... the only treatment method I can currently conceive is to subdue the Southern Bright Separation Fire, then guide it into the dantian to burn away the ghostly qi."

Hearing this, Yun You became anxious: "Is this truly the only method?" How could an ordinary cultivator subdue the Southern Bright Separation Fire?

Hua Changxi nodded and looked at Yun You: "One person's wisdom is limited; go ask Pavilion Master Meng and the others; perhaps they have other methods."

Afterwards, Yun You and Yang Zhaoye departed, their hearts heavy with worry.

Watching the backs of the two as they left, Hua Changxi shifted her thoughts away from the injuries of the Vermilion Bird Army and began to ponder the purpose of the Ghost Fire Well.

The reason the Prince of Shou could cultivate ghost clan techniques was most likely due to the Ghost Fire Well.

Yet the Ghost Fire Well is one of the twelve blessed lands of Nanxiangcheng; its existence should serve some positive function for the Vermilion Bird Army, rather than acting to harm or threaten it.

So, what exactly is the purpose of the Ghost Fire Well's existence?

Hua Changxi glanced at the busy physicians of the Pill Saint Hall, called Jia Lu over to give him a few instructions, and then quietly departed from the Lingguang Hall.

"No, given your condition, I must report this to the Hall Master."

After Yang Zhaoye recounted the details of his injury to Yun You faithfully, she without hesitation took out a One-Thought Communicator, preparing to report to Hua Changxi.

Watching Yun You send the message, Yang Zhaoye did not stop her: "It should be reported; in my current state, I should no longer be managing the Discipline Hall."

Yun You paused briefly, then comforted him: "This matter must be decided by the Hall Master; do not burden your thoughts excessively. What you must do now is find a way to heal your injury."

Yang Zhaoye did not refute her, but instead asked: "Do you think Peak Master Hua... asking about the affairs of the Lingguang Hall with such lack of propriety is merely out of curiosity? Is she... truly not our Hall Master?"

Yun You shook her head, rubbing her forehead: "I cannot say for certain; she seems like one, yet does not." After a moment of silence, she continued composing the message.

Meanwhile, just as Hua Changxi quietly arrived at the mass grave, she received Yun You's message regarding the state of Yang Zhaoye's injury.

"Tell him to arrange the affairs of the Discipline Hall, then rest assured and recuperate." She did not remove Yang Zhaoye from his position as steward.

After replying, Hua Changxi began to inspect the mass grave.

In the depths of the mass grave, the momentum of the 'Fire Axe' she had condensed remained undiminished, indicating that no outsiders had approached during this period.

Hua Changxi gazed at the concealment array left behind by the imperial clan, pausing in deep thought for quite some time.

The injuries within the Zhu Que Army remained unresolved, and the situation at the Pill Saint Hall had become uncertain following the ascension of the Secret Realm Master; now was not the time to explore the Ghost Fire Well.

After confirming that no one had set foot in the mass grave, Hua Changxi turned to return.

However, before stepping out of the mass grave's boundaries, she suddenly recalled the mortuary she had visited before and the boy with the Nether Eye, Jing Sheng, so she temporarily changed course and made a trip to the mortuary.

Alas, when she arrived, the mortuary, which had already been dilapidated, had collapsed with a crash; only broken walls and remnants remained, faintly outlining the foundation, proving that a mortuary had indeed once stood there.

Inside the mortuary, weeds grew thick and spiderwebs covered everything, showing no trace of any living inhabitant.

Seeing this, Hua Changxi frowned tightly; where had the boy with the Nether Eye, Jing Sheng, gone? Was he dead?