Chapter 296: Trapped in a Formation

"Brother Si Yi, how can that be counted as a threat? If you can cure the Gate Master, then all those things you fear will naturally not happen; but if you cannot cure the Gate Master, that's a different story."

Chi Nan Yi heard the words and sneered, "You Seek Dragon Gate people really turn hostile faster than flipping a book."

"Enough idle talk!" Jue Sha, standing beside Lie Qiong, shouted angrily, "To be frank, if you fail to heal the Gate Master, we will chop you and those two immortal old ones into pieces for fertilizer."

Chi Nan Yi lifted her gaze, cold eyes sweeping over Jue Sha's face; the man who had been swaggering now flinched.

"You… what are you looking at?"

"Nothing." Chi Nan Yi gave a light laugh, "I've simply never seen someone as foolish as you before, so I'm a bit curious."

"You!"

"Earlier I heard the Burning City Lord say your Seek Dragon Gate is such a mysterious hidden sect; now it seems… ha." She sneered, "If I were the Gate Master, I'd certainly keep you out of the public eye; your quality is too low, you can't even uphold this person. Those who don't know would think you're a bandit den!"

"Little brother, that's a bit excessive." The Seek Dragon Gate Gate Master's face darkened, the pressure around him dropped a few levels; his previously weak voice now carried a pressing aura: "To speak like that about Seek Dragon Gate, you're the first."

"Compared with those you just had try to use me as fertilizer, I've already given Seek Dragon Gate enough face; never has anyone survived this long after hurling insults at me."

Her gaze swept everyone, saying word for word: "If you want me to treat you, cooperate honestly and show a seeking‑medicine attitude; if you want to die, just say so."

The few guardians' faces turned sour, but the Gate Master said nothing, so they could not act against her.

The man's fingers tapped the table, a dull sound echoing in the silent room, his scrutinizing gaze scanning her back and forth.

After a long while, he closed his eyes and said lightly, "My illness, can you really cure it?"

"Yes."

"Fine! Then I'll trust you once; if you can heal him, I'll pay any consultation fee." He waved his hand, and the guards surrounding the Bai family father and son quietly withdrew.

He took a Silver Needle from the medicine box and pierced his inner elbow; the tingling made him frown.

Chi Nan Yi's eyes burned as she stared at the red thread gradually appearing on his arm, a smile curling her lips.

"Found it."

"What is this?"

"It's fine, I'm checking what poison the Gate Master actually has."

"What poison?" Jue Sha leaned forward; Chi Nan Yi withdrew the Silver Needle, saying coldly, "Why don't you treat yourself?"

Jue Sha, hearing that, closed his mouth in resentment.

"What exactly is the poison I've taken?"

Chi Nan Yi thought he truly knew nothing about his own body, her eyes flickered.

"Can't determine yet; I'll take some blood to study first."

She produced a bottle of white powder, dropped blood onto it; the moment of contact, the blood began to boil, spewing black smoke, and a burnt odor rose.

"It really is Soul‑devouring Gu."

His blood is full of Soul‑devouring Gu; no wonder his wounds won't heal.

Soul‑devouring Gu feeds on human flesh; once it erupts, the gu insects gather at the lesion and gnaw continuously.

All along, the dense flowers are full of Soul‑devouring Gu, yet as Gate Master he knows nothing.

"What secret does this Seek Dragon Gate actually hide?"

"The poison the Gate Master took is extremely complex; I need some days to study."

"Aren't you a Divine Doctor?" Yun Li said in a gentle voice, "If you're a Divine Doctor, how can you not even discern what poison it is?"

"Poison has countless forms; each person's constitution differs, so the manifestations vary greatly, and if several toxins mix, distinguishing them takes time." Chi Nan Yi said lightly, "If you don't believe, then forget it."

"Divine Doctor, don't blame me; just tell me how to diagnose and treat. If it needs time, stay here until you uncover the clues."

"Fine."

Chi Nan Yi and the Bai family father and son were placed in two adjacent rooms.

"Girl, have you seen the underlying principle?"

Chi Nan Yi's complexion darkened slightly, she nodded, "He's not poisoned; he's infected with Gu. Though he's the Gate Master of Seek Dragon Gate, above him there must be someone still unseen."

"And that person is the one who cultivated those plants and raised the gu insects, the true master of Seek Dragon Gate."

At night, Seek Dragon Gate was unusually quiet; the bright flowers that bloomed by day had all closed, their fragrance vanished, and the whole place was dead, filled with nauseating blood scent.

Evading the eyes, Chi Nan Yi kept slipping through Seek Dragon Gate.

The manor spanned a huge area; she wandered inside for nearly an hour without finding anything useful.

"This place is oddly quiet." She was about to leave when a light breeze stirred the trees, and Chi Nan Yi's steps halted, her pupils snapping shut.

"This is…"

"This is…"

No sound of trees moving.

"I'm trapped in a formation."

She drew the soft whip at her waist, eyes scanning the surroundings.

No wonder she felt something off; after circling so long, she was just looping in place.

All formations have a formation eye; shatter it to break the formation.

"This formation didn't exist by day; now it's active, and I'm caught again. It won't be long before Seek Dragon Gate notices—perhaps they already have—and that White Grandpa and White Uncle could be in danger."

Thinking this, she felt a twinge of regret; had she known, she should have incapacitated the two before leaving today.

"The priority now is to quickly dissolve the formation."

Her gaze turned slightly cold, her face showed no panic; she slowly closed her eyes, extended both hands, palms upward.

The formation's operation must involve qi flow, and the formation eye's location has the most rapid qi.

She does this by sensing the surrounding airflow with hearing and touch.

Moments later, she suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze fixed on a massive acacia not far away, swinging the soft whip to carve sharp whip‑flowers.

Her body leapt into the air, racing toward that acacia at great speed.

The long whip in her hand whirled, and just as she was about to approach, suddenly several iron chains shot out from beneath the tree, bearing a strong putrid stench as they coiled around her limbs; on close inspection, the chains were swarming with black gu insects, and just looking at them made one feel sick.

She swept the soft whip outward, her dantian's inner strength roiling, and she suddenly blasted it toward the iron chains.

With a "wham" sound, the iron chains shattered, and before she could catch her breath, even more iron chains erupted from the soil.

The sheer number made Chi Nan Yi's scalp tingle, like a spider web that trapped her in the center.