Chapter 598

Under my guidance, Yu Nian's emotions have stabilized and her thoughts have become coherent, so I brought the issue back to the initial stage.

This time, Yu Nian answered truthfully: "Wang Fanchem wants to take back this stone; it must be for our relationship, so I initially thought of getting the stone before him to stop him from continuing his foolishness."

I guessed as much.

Wang Fanchem desperately wanted to Continue Fate, while Yu Nian summoned all her strength to sever ties with him completely.

They have been entangled through life and death for three lifetimes; this lifetime, there should finally be an outcome.

I said solemnly: "Sister, the reason Liu Junyan and I risked taking this stone is first because of the pawn business, and second because we wanted an outcome. Now you have successfully removed the last trace of the crow left on you, let go of your obsession—this is the best result. I think you now should no longer cling to this stone and can calmly face your feelings for Wang Fanchem, right?"

Yu Nian let out a long breath, relieved: "Xiao Jiu, I understand now—I don't want the stone, but what I said before still counts; I won't run the Yin Dang Hang anymore, I will inherit my father's ferry boat and become a true ferryman."

"Also, you must never neglect your cultivation!" I urged. "Although the crow no longer exists, its remnants couldn't have been completely cleared; there are still those with ill intentions. Moreover, from your earlier words I sense more than one group has set their sights on you—you must be extra careful."

"You not only have a body of Buddhist bone, you also seem to have been affected by the crow, gaining an indestructible physique. Although I'm not sure whether you'll retain this trait after the Líxīn Suǒ is melted, it's already enough to make you a tempting target—you must protect yourself; you can use any of my people as you wish."

Yu Nian nodded, and we sisters leaned on each other, chatting softly until dawn.

No matter how I tried to keep her, Yu Nian still left.

She returned to the ferry boat again.

I persuaded Yu Nian, but I still hadn't decided whether, when the one‑month deadline expires, I should give the stone to the pawnbroker.

Of course, that pawnbroker must be Wang Fanchem.

Days passed one by one; as the day the pawnbroker would come to collect the stone drew nearer, I grew increasingly irritable.

Once a person becomes irritable, their focus easily wanders, and when doing things, small mistakes always appear.

That day I was making paper effigies, partly to stock up on goods for the upcoming March 3rd Shangsi Festival, partly to calm my mind; while shaving bamboo splints, the knife accidentally stabbed my left index finger, the wound deep, cutting through a third of the flesh, nearly exposing the bone.

I cried out, dropped the knife and pressed on the wound, but blood kept flowing.

Li Qingying heard the commotion, ran over, looked, exclaimed "Oh my!" and turned to rummage for the medicine box.

When she returned holding the medicine box, I stared blankly at my finger, utterly bewildered.

Li Qingying also froze: "Xiao Jiu, your finger…"

My finger stopped bleeding.

I watched it go from gushing blood, to stopping the flow, to the wound healing rapidly, leaving only a fresh red scar.

It… had healed that quickly.

This had never happened before.

Even when Liu Junyan treated my injuries before, it was merely expending his true qi to speed up recovery.

Such powerful self‑healing ability makes even me feel a bit startled.

I don't understand why my body has undergone such a change.

Li Qingying also specially fetched Bai Shulan, who questioned the whole process in detail and wondered, "Are you sure you didn't undergo any special treatment? Did it heal on its own that fast?"

I nodded: "It was very short—about two or three minutes total."

Li Qingying agreed: "Just the time it took me to turn around and fetch the medicine box."

Bai Shulan shook her head: "Even if special means or medicines—say, gu worms—could achieve this, such rapid self‑healing is exceedingly rare."

As we spoke, the scar's color seemed to fade a bit more.

I asked: "Wasn't I once poisoned by an ice silkworm gu? Could this be related?"

"Impossible," Bai Shulan said flatly. "The ice silkworm gu vanished along with your Nirvana."

I asked again: "Could it be related to Nirvana?"

She still shook her head: "After Nirvana you also suffered serious injuries, didn't you?"

Yes.

This situation just appeared out of nowhere.

The biggest thing I've done recently was only the trip to Jūnzhú Shān.

But I really can't think of which experience on Jūnzhú Shān could have caused my physique to change.

Unable to figure it out, I can only shelve the question for now.

In the mid‑afternoon, Liu Junyan and the others returned.

During this time they had been wandering in the Nether Realm, trying to gather news about the Chenghuang Temple.

Li Qingying instinctively asked: "Hey, you're back awfully early today."

Normally they're busy until midnight before they can return.

She swept a glance over Hui Moqiong, grabbed his sleeve and asked: "Where's the blood from? Are you hurt?"

"Not me," Hui Moqiong said, pointing at Liu Junyan. "It was Seventh Lord's finger—it suddenly spurted blood for no reason; I grabbed it to staunch the flow, but it clotted on its own, utterly bizarre."

I and Li Qingying both stared in shock.

I instinctively seized Liu Junyan's left index finger and examined it.

Then I extended my own left index finger and placed it side by side with his.

Same spot, same wound; the scar now turned a pale pink as well.

Probably by tomorrow morning even this scar will be gone.

Liu Junyan frowned: "Xiao Jiu, why is your finger…"

I recounted today's events to them; everyone was bewildered.

Then, in front of everyone, I took a needle and stabbed hard into my finger.

As a bead of blood welled up, the same spot on Liu Junyan's identical finger also produced a bead of blood.

"What's going on?" Hui Moqiong exclaimed. "Why do you two feel as if you're bound together?"

He said that, then took the needle from my hand and stabbed Liu Junyan's finger, his strike steady, precise and ruthless—no hesitation.

Likewise, the moment Liu Junyan's finger bled, my finger at the same spot also bled.

"Not right, very not right." Hui Moqiong couldn't accept it, "You two might have been poisoned with gu? Or a curse? Want to get A Cheng to take a look?"

He always acts in a hurry; as he spoke, he had already gone to contact someone.

And when I heard him say those two words, "curse", a bold guess formed in my mind.

I looked at Liu Junyan and asked, "Āyàn, could it be because of the Yuānyāng Tóngxīn Suǒ?"