Huang Quanwei stared sharply at Li Qiye, even to the point of being aggressive. This was clearly a provocation.
He wouldnât miss this chance of showing off in front of his crush, to let Yalan know that he alone is the best master of poison.
He was completely confident that in the entire system, no one could surpass him in this regard. If he couldnât cure it, no one else could. Thus, he had no problem challenging this First Disciple who got lucky enough to become Longevity Sageâs student.
âWellâ¦â The elder hesitated.
Though Miaozhen recommended Li Qiye and said that the guy was a master of everything, he had never heard of him, let alone seeing the guyâs abilities. This wasnât the case for the Poison King who was world-renowned.
Yalan was the one to speak: âBrother Huang has learned about poison for several decades on top of traveling quite far to get here. Iâm sure he can do it.â
She had no prejudice against Li Qiye, only thinking that this was the best route. One had evidence of his skill while she had never seen the other before. Risking the elderâs life was too much to ask.
âDonât worry, Junior Sister, I will cure Elder Yang, heâll be up and jumping in no time.â Quanwei became excited after seeing Yalan picking him.
Her recognition of his skill was the greatest boost of confidence. He believed that it wouldnât be long before he could take the beauty home.
âThat sounds amazing.â Elder Yang said. He didnât want to risk his life and was very skeptical. Alas, he didnât dare to refuse out of consideration for Miaozhen.
So now, Yalan had done him a huge favor.
Meanwhile, Li Qiye stood there without expressing his attitude. Miaozhen glared and elbowed him. The guy didnât respond to her at all.
âElder, let me have a look.â Quanwei was eager to get started.
The elder opened his robe to reveal the wound on his chest. It was quite serious, the size of a palm with burn marks all around and a sulfuric scent.
He had ointment applied but it was useless. The black marks on the wound were spreading, showing that the poison wanted to move on to the rest of the body. Fortunately, Yalan was talented enough to stop it for now.
âSo strong.â Quanwei was surprised to see this wound.
âThis isâ¦â Even Li Qiye took another glance.
âSenior Brother, you got a clue?â Quanwei noticed his interest and asked with an arrogant expression.
âItâs not just poison.â Li Qiye chuckled.
âDo you have an antidote?â Miaozhen smiled and asked.
Quanwei sneered and said: âIâm afraid you are misdiagnosing it. This is indeed poison, and a strong one at that, able to spread all over the body in the blink of an eye.â
âYes, yes.â Elder Yang added: âI was picking some medicine that day but something ambushed me, piercing me right on the chest. I turned black but I sealed all of my veins and meridians. Later on, Miss Mu forced the poison back to the chest and saved my life.â [1]
âDid you get a good look at the creature? Is it the size of a fist with sharp fangs, plated head, and a stinger?â Quanwei inquired.
âYouâre completely right, when I took it off my chest, my energy had killed it but its appearance is just as you described, you know what it is?â The elder was excited.
âSenior Brother, do you know what it is?â Quanwei didnât answer the elder but asked Li Qiye instead.
Li Qiye only smiled and didnât care for the provocation.
âLooks like you donât know much about it.â Quanwei assumed that he didnât know anything and continued on: âItâs a Devilclaw Louse, born in places with high temperature and humidity. I bet you were at the mouth of a volcano, or near one.â
âYes, completely right!â Elder Yang knew that he had met a master.
âThese lice hide in the dark, very good ambushers with lightning speed. Just one sting is usually fatal due to the fast-spreading poison.â Quanwei elaborated.
âNo wonder why youâre the current Poison King, Iâm definitely saved.â The elder became ecstatic.
Quanwei looked over at Li Qiye to show his superiority. This was his time to show off before Yalan. As for this so-called First Brother? He was only a stepping stone.
He carefully looked at the wound before concluding: âItâs a louse indeed, but the strange part is that the poison seems to be sealing you. Maybe when you sealed off your veins, the poison also sealed you off, or maybe too much time had passed and the poison had spread all over, or both.â
Yalan added: âMakes sense. When the elder called for help, despite sealing off his veins, the poison had already spread all over. Later on, I forced it back to his chest but probably not in entirety. This poison is sealing his true fate, resulting in this painful state.â
The elder smiled wryly and said: âIf it wasnât for the seal, I would have abandoned this flesh already. Please utilize your masterful ways and remove the poison.â
For cultivators, being poisoned was a difficult task, especially ancestors who were strong enough. They were virtually impervious to poisons. However, in the rare case of affliction, they could instantly abandon their flesh and destroy the body, running away with their true fate.
As long as the true fate was around, they could rebuild their body. It would only be a great loss but no real threat to their lives.
This wasnât the case for the elder. His true fate was sealed inside his own body by the poison, so a physical abandonment was out of the question. His true fate was bound to his body right now.
âDonât worry, this louse is fierce but it canât trouble me. I just need half a day to take care of this.â Quanwei was completely confident.
âVirtuous Nephew, youâre my savior.â The elder was in a great mood.
âItâs too early for a conclusion.â Li Qiye gently shook his head and reminded Quanwei.
âYou have a different perspective? Iâm listening, Senior Brother.â Quanwei said impolitely.
âThis poison is very strange, you need to rethink then rethink it again before making a decision.â Li Qiye repeated.
âThatâs probably the case for you, but I am the Poison King. A Devilclaw Louse is nothing, no need to waste time thinking.â Quanwei said.
âIâm confident in your abilities, please act fast to avoid further complications.â Elder Yang agreed.
âJunior Sister, what do you think about his opinion? Do you think we need more time thinking?â Quanwei wanted to show off and asked Yalan, ready to listen to whatever she says.
1. Now that we know it's a sting, poison should really be changed to venom to match the English usage. I looked back at the previous chapters and found that changing it to venom/venomous would make the text looks weird, since I'll be using the word poison to describe most of the things here. Seeing venom randomly in a sea of poison would be strange. There is no distinction in Chinese for venom/poison in a single word, as far as I know.