Shushan: Extinction

Chapter 53 The Master Has Suffered a Stroke

Take Li Gefei for example. Many years ago, he had been repeatedly reminded and practiced what to do if he was in danger, and he also had four contingency plans based on different situations.

The severe pain from the arrow piercing his abdomen had made Li Gefei realize the seriousness of the current situation. His original arrogance had disappeared. After calming down, he was able to make the most favorable decision for himself. The signal for help was sent out as soon as he was shot.

In this small piece of land in the capital, Li Gefei thought he still had some power. Reinforcements would surely arrive soon, and by then this bastard would be killed without a burial place!
Suddenly, Li Gefei felt the wall tiles behind him move slightly. He was immediately horrified and hurriedly prepared to dodge away, but at this time, the entire wall had exploded, and the sky was filled with choking dust and debris!

It turned out that Gong Tianwu had locked onto Li Gefei's position based on his heavy breathing, and then quietly lurked in a place only separated from him by a wall, and suddenly attacked!
Li Gefei was hit again this time.
The palm power that Gong Tianwu had accumulated for a long time poured out like a tidal wave and hit him directly in the chest!
However, the clothes on Li Gefei were not ordinary items, and they directly offset more than 70% of the force. Only less than 30% of the force could penetrate, but it still made him bleed and roll out.

Not only that, the ring worn by Li Gefei was also shining with light, and the next second, an illusion of a strange red snake suddenly jumped out of it and bit Gong Tianwu fiercely.

This forced Gong Tianwu, who was originally preparing to take advantage of the situation to pursue, to retreat quickly, but the illusion of the red monster snake seemed to be resurrected and continued to chase him at an even faster speed.

Gong Tianwu raised his shield to block in the midst of his busy schedule, but the illusion simply ignored the physical obstruction and continued to attack with greater force.

Under such circumstances, Gong Tianwu could only use his trump card. He pursed his lips and blew out the innate energy stored in his chest in an instant, but a pale white air arrow blew out of his mouth, accurately knocking the red monster snake illusion in front of him to stagger.

Seizing this opportunity, Gong Tianwu immediately turned around and jumped away. He tapped the ground next to him with his foot and immediately sank into the darkness behind him. He then suddenly felt his internal organs churning violently and a fishy-sweet taste surged in his throat. He could only force himself to swallow back a mouthful of blood and continue running.

This was Gong Tianwu's own problem. There were many hidden dangers inside his body, which he had previously been able to suppress with his own true qi. However, in order to deal with Li Gefei's passive counterattack, he had to go all out and consume all his innate qi.

***
Half an hour later,

Gong Tianwu, whose face was pale, had been recuperating in the cabin, and his injuries finally stopped worsening.

However, there was chaos in the Ming Mansion, like boiling porridge, because first a big fire broke out in the mansion, and the fire occurred in the master's study and bedroom. Although servants got up in the middle of the night and discovered the accidents in time, those two places were already burned to ruins.

What’s even more terrible is that the eldest son was carried back by someone, and his face looked not right, as if he was only breathing out but not in.

Unfortunately, the master was not at home at this time. The housekeeper followed the master out. The second housekeeper died directly in his room. The eldest lady hugged her son and cried like a tearful person.
The second wife who stepped forward to take charge was actively giving orders, but as she had no experience, she asked people to boil water and called the police at another moment, and it could be said that she was making things more troublesome.

After making a fuss for a while, Ming Zhenzi was finally carried back on the couch.

What? If it was urgent, why didn't the old man cast a spell to hurry back?

Of course there is a reason for that.

Although this old fellow is also a cultivator, he knows that his chances of building a foundation are slim, so he indulges in wine and women. As he is already over a hundred years old, his body is of course hollowed out.

Moreover, he had just gotten drunk, and was now agitated and dizzy, with double vision. It was extremely dangerous to cast spells and travel in this situation, like driving on the highway while drunk; that was simply courting death.

Of course, after Ming Zhenzi came back, she had to force herself to be strong and alert. The whole family felt like they had a backbone and started to work quickly.

Soon, an imperial physician and an alchemist were hired at a large sum of money to work together to treat the eldest son's current injuries.

Ming Zhenzi was originally optimistic about the injury. After all, it looked like an external injury caused by an arrow piercing his lower abdomen. Such an injury would be a serious injury for ordinary people, but for a cultivator with experience in the world of cultivation, it was not a big deal.

But after hearing the diagnosis, Ming Zhenzi was so angry that she almost jumped up:
"Brother Xia, what did you say? Do you need Tianguang Sanqing Pills to recover?"

The person who was talking to Ming Zhenzi was the alchemist Xia Wuqie. He had never had any friendship with Ming Zhenzi and came here purely for the generous reward, so he was straightforward and didn't consider Ming Zhenzi's feelings:

"Yes."

Ming Zhenzi almost laughed out of anger:

"This is a pill that can only be made by a great master in the Golden Core Stage! It is said that it can even suppress the poison of the golden silkworm. My child was only injured in the lower abdomen. Does he need such a magical medicine?"

Before Xia Wuqie could speak, the imperial physician Xu Zegui, who was pulling out the arrow to stop the bleeding, said:
"The murderer has put poison on the arrowhead. The poison is very thorny. Judging from its style, it should be something that came from a dangerous place like the Shiwan Mountains. I can only suppress it, but I can't eradicate it."

Ming Zhenzi began to feel something throbbing in her temple.

After listening to Xu Zegui's words, Xia Wuqi added:
"The murderer is a ruthless man. He actually combined several toxins together and blended them thoroughly to create an extremely vicious palm force."

"Your son's cultivation was already shallow, and he was also injured by alcohol and sex. After being hit by his palm, the poison spread directly into his internal organs. Although it is not fatal in a short period of time, it is very difficult to completely eradicate it. I am afraid that only a magical item like Tianguang Sanqing Pill can achieve such an effect."

Ming Zhenzi was stunned for a long while after hearing this, and said in disbelief:

"How can a mere mortal who only knows internal energy have such a threatening palm technique? Why have I never heard of such a thing before?"

Xia Wuqie said calmly:
"That's because, although this palm technique is extremely powerful, the damage it causes to one's own body is also extremely horrible!"

"The first prerequisite for practicing this palm technique is to seriously injure yourself. After practicing it, your life span will be shortened by at least 30 years. Moreover, this palm technique must reach the level of an innate master to exert its maximum power." "This presents a paradox. To reach the level of an innate master, one must have the combination of opportunity, talent, and hard work. Such a person doesn't even have time to cherish his life, so how could he possibly practice such a self-harming technique?"

After the joint treatment of Xia Wuqie and Xu Zegui, Li Gefei's condition finally stabilized.

But just as the two collected the consultation fee and were about to leave, Li Gefei, who was taking medicine, suddenly stiffened, then opened his mouth violently, not only vomited out all the medicine he had taken before, but also vomited blood in large mouthfuls! !
Seeing this situation, Xia Wuqie and Xu Zegui certainly did not dare to leave, and hurriedly gave him acupuncture and applied talismans. Ming Zhenzi even injected spiritual power into his son's body at all costs, and finally stopped the vomiting of blood.

The reason for this sudden deterioration was that Xia Wuqie underestimated the power of the poison in Gong Tianwu's palm, which was a mixture of marrow-eating poison, fire poison, and centipede poison.

Especially the poison of the purple-armored centipede, which is extremely serious. It usually hides deep among the internal organs and quietly corrodes the flesh and bones. Once stimulated by the wrong antidote, it will immediately jump out to show its presence.

The cunning Ming Zhenzi soon discovered that the situation was out of control, and he could only go to other doctors or alchemists in a rage, no matter what the cost.

So at dawn, all the famous doctors and alchemists in Yidu came to the mansion. Ming Zhenzi felt exhausted at this time and could only rely on taking elixirs to hold on, because his eldest son's life or death was uncertain, and his other children were of ordinary qualifications. Li Gefei was his only heir.

Once Li Gefei fell or became ineffective, there would be no one to inherit the huge family business that Ming Zhenzi had built, and it would even be the source of disaster! !
As the saying goes, one person's plan is more difficult than two people's. These famous doctors and alchemists discussed for a long time and finally worked out a relevant treatment plan and put it into practice. After spending a lot of favors and money, Ming Zhenzi finally received good news:

Li Gefei finally regained his self-awareness and the situation stabilized.

But as Li Gefei regained consciousness, bad news came one after another:

He had lost feeling in the area below his waist, and the arrow that penetrated his lower abdomen happened to injure his spine at the back.

Upon hearing the sad news, Ming Zhenzi staggered a few times, feeling dizzy, and suddenly collapsed unconsciously, as if the whole world was moving away from her.
Before she lost consciousness, Ming Zhenzi heard the Seventh Lady beside her screaming heartbreakingly:

"Someone come, the master has had a stroke!!!"

The news of Ming Zhenzi's stroke spread quickly.
For Baimanshan, this is simply a trivial matter, or even a good thing! !
Isn't it normal for an old man who joined the sect halfway to have a stroke? Once he fell, wouldn't the Mizhen Temple in Yidu be short of people to guard it? This is an absolutely lucrative position. Why don't those who want to go come and bid for it?

Of course, this is also a good thing for the rich and powerful in Yidu. Ming Zhenzi suffered a stroke, and his eldest son, who is also a monk, was paralyzed in bed. Wouldn't the huge family business left behind be a waste?
The sound of slurping saliva immediately came one after another.
Many greedy eyes gradually turned fierce!!
***
Gong Tianwu heard about this in a teahouse in Jiaojiapu. At that time, he was eating a large bowl of fish noodles, a local specialty, and drinking corn wine that had an extremely pungent taste.

After repeatedly confirming the authenticity of this matter, Gong Tianwu felt a sense of relief. After all, given Ming Zhenzi's current condition, the entire Ming family would no longer be a problem to him.

After leaving the riverside, Gong Tianwu came to a place called "Shibaozhai" on the street as usual. He greeted the smiling waiter at the door and said:
"Has the shopkeeper Wang returned today?"

The guy immediately laughed and said:

"I'm back, I'm back. Please come in and sit for a while. Manager Wang will be here soon."

The reason why Gong Tianwu came to see Shopkeeper Wang this time was for the rare item that looked like a vine or a whip that he had stolen from the Ming Mansion. He knew that this item was related to the foundation building process, so it must be very important to be treasured by the cunning Ming Zhenzi and hidden in a secret place to play with day and night.

However, precisely because this item was extremely valuable, Gong Tianwu did not dare to take it out directly for identification. Instead, he adopted an indirect approach, which was to first find out the origin of the wooden pillar that preserved this rare item.

After all, this wood looks quite special, and has a unique aroma, with very obvious characteristics.

But even so, Gong Tianwu went downstream and visited three or four wood shops and pawn shops along the way. Finally, he got the news that the shopkeeper Wang here had worked as a messenger for an immortal when he was young. He was knowledgeable and should recognize this item.

This is why Gong Tianwu stayed here for two days, and it has nothing to do with the lotus pond boat girls here! !
Soon, a waiter came over to ask Gong Tianwu to come over, saying that Manager Wang was free now.

Shopkeeper Wang looked to be in his seventies, with grey hair, but he had a strong build, a ruddy face, and a loud, talkative voice.

After some pleasantries, Gong Tianwu took out a box, opened it and pushed it in front of Shopkeeper Wang:
"I got this item by accident, but I don't know where it came from. I just know it should be quite valuable. After asking around, I found out that you might know this item. If you can help me solve this mystery, I will definitely reward you handsomely."

Shopkeeper Wang opened the box, and inside was a piece of wood that Gong Tianwu had cut directly out in accordance with the principle of not showing off one's wealth. This thing was only the size of a fingernail, but it still gave off a unique fragrance.

When Shopkeeper Wang saw the wood, his eyes immediately lit up. After smelling it, he laughed and said:

"You are very lucky, my dear. Others might not know what this thing is, but I followed my master on his travels and had the honor of seeing it two or three times, so I have a deep impression of it."

Gong Tianwu was delighted after hearing this, and immediately took out three silver treasures from his arms and placed them on the table. Shopkeeper Wang's eyes immediately showed joy, and after putting them away, he slowly said:

"This object is called the Godly Bone Wood. It looks like wood, but it is actually a strange object that was formed after a great demon died and its bones fell into the mud at the bottom of the water. It took thousands of years to form. To put it simply, it is similar to the formation process of the dark wood."

Gong Tianwu said tentatively:
"So what's the use of this thing?"

At this time, Gong Tianwu's special ability: reading the gods' art was suddenly activated again, but he found that the shopkeeper Wang in front of him did not have any bad intentions (perhaps because the bone of the sacred wood was too small).

(End of this chapter)