The Mirror of Startling Beauty: Her courtiers are everywhere

Tangxi Xue had hot water brought to her.

The rising steam filled the room, turning the medicine hut into a hazy, misty atmosphere.

She took out a petal of the Healing Flower from the medicine box. The petal was white jade-colored and as thin as a cicada's wing.

Under the candlelight, a warm, soft glow flowed, and the veins on the petals were as fine as silk, as if they were still breathing softly.

She gently dropped the petals into the hot water.

The petals melted upon contact with water, like a snowflake falling into a spring, silently dissolving.

The silvery-white medicinal power slowly diffused in the water, turning the entire bucket of water a light moonlight color.

Tiny silver glints floated on the water's surface, as if a handful of dazzling starlight had been poured into it.

Then, she took several more medicinal herbs and prepared the medicinal bath according to the prescription.

Her movements were fluid and graceful, and the dosage of each medicine was precise.

Her fingertips brushed over the herbs with an almost devout focus, as if she were not holding medicine in her hands, but a destiny about to be rewoven.

"Okay, remember to soak it until the water cools down."

Tang Xixue straightened up and let out a soft sigh of relief.

"Um."

Qi Wang responded with a sound of agreement.

He didn't ask any questions or raise any doubts; he simply followed her instructions quietly.

Like a sword temporarily sheathed, silently waiting for the moment it sees the light of day again.

"That's settled then, I'll be going now."

The snow in Tangxi did not linger for long.

The medicinal bath has been prepared; all that remains is for him to recover slowly on his own.

She turned and walked towards the door, her clothes brushing against the medicine stove, carrying a faint scent of medicine.

The fragrance was crisp and gentle, like the first wisp of mist rising from the mountains when the spring snow melts.

Thank you.

Qi Wang watched her leave, his voice low and sincere.

After her figure disappeared outside the door, Qi Wang, with the help of his guards, took off his outer robe and slowly immersed himself in the bathtub.

Silvery-white hot water washed over his shoulders, and the medicinal power of the Healing Flower seeped into his meridians in strands.

Like countless tiny needles, they shuttle and mend the broken meridians.

He had no hope and simply followed the doctor's orders out of habit.

Over the years, when he was injured in the army, he did the same thing: whatever the medic told him to do, he did.

If it can be cured, then it will be cured; if it can't be cured, it's just another scar.

"Ah Wang, you're not coming back to Forgot Snow City with me, is it because you're waiting for her?"

Xue Che leaned against the door, arms crossed, tilting her head to look at him.

Those bright, sparkling eyes were filled with curiosity, and her tone carried a hint of mischief.

He came with Qi Wang's bodyguards, specifically to take him back to Wangxue City to recover from his injuries.

But this stubborn girl refused to leave no matter what, insisting on staying at Zhiyun Xiaozhu.

He had been somewhat puzzled before, but now he finally understood the reason.

Qi Wang did not reply.

He simply tilted his head back slightly, rested it on the edge of the bucket, and closed his eyes.

The rising steam blurred his face, and also the hint of panic in his eyes that he couldn't hide in time.

"Silence means consent."

Xueche's smile widened even more.

He took a few steps closer, lowered his voice, as if sharing a tremendous secret.

"Ah Wang, you're finished."

"……Shut up."

Qi Wang finally spoke, his voice hoarse and low, carrying a hint of annoyance, yet inexplicably lacking in confidence.

What bad intentions could he possibly have?

I just wanted to see my younger siblings emerge from the Glazed Heaven Secret Realm safely.

Now that he sees that everyone is alright, he is relieved and can return to Wangxue City to let Ying Lin know that he is safe.

Otherwise, if Ying Lin were to ask, wouldn't he be completely clueless?

"I was just thanking her for saving my life."

He spoke solemnly.

"Don't talk nonsense. She's the apple of Ying Lin's eye. It wouldn't be good if Ying Lin misunderstood."

"Besides, love and romance are so boring, even dogs don't talk about that stuff."

He said this with unwavering conviction, as if declaring a firm and steadfast stance.

Xue Che couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, the smile on his lips becoming even more meaningful.

"Fine, I won't even talk to a dog."

He repeated it slowly and nodded.

"I've got it."

He stood guard nearby.

Qi Wang is now in ruins and could easily be taken away by his enemies in one fell swoop. His job is to protect him.

"You'd better not slap someone in the face again."

Xue Che lazily added a sentence.

"Oh."

Qi Wang gave a bitter smile, his gaze falling on the Daoist Sword lying quietly beside the couch.

The sword still gleamed coldly, but the tassels wrapped around the hilt remained silent.

"You're overthinking it. I can no longer wield a sword in this life; my heart is already dead."

As soon as he finished speaking, the medicinal effects of the Continuous Pulse Flower suddenly took hold.

It felt like countless red-hot needles piercing the bone marrow at the same time, like all the bones in my body being broken apart and reassembled.

Intense pain surged from all four limbs and bones simultaneously, wave after wave, almost crushing his consciousness.

His fingers gripped the rim of the bucket tightly, his knuckles turning white, and the veins on the back of his hands bulging.

His jaw was clenched, his lower jaw stretched into a sharp line.

But he remained silent.

"Ah Wang, what's wrong? Are you alright?"

Xueche noticed his unusual behavior, dropped her playful expression, and took a few steps forward, her tone now filled with worry.

"I...I'm fine."

Qi Wang's voice squeezed out from between his teeth, hoarse and low, yet still as steady as a rock.

He never showed his vulnerability to others, not even his closest friends.

He still retains the dignity and pride befitting the God of War of Yunchuan. His life revolves around the sword, his very essence is the blade. Born a blade to be drawn from its sheath, he never questions the path home.

Unbeknownst to him, the Continuous Pulse Flower was undergoing a rebirth within his body at that very moment.

The severed meridians were reconnected in the silvery-white medicinal power, like withered branches soaked in spring water, inch by inch, new veins sprouting anew.

Those damages he thought were irreparable are quietly reborn amidst the excruciating pain he endures.

As Tang Xixue stepped out of the medicine hut, a night breeze caressed her face, carrying the sweet scent of peach blossoms from the courtyard.

She looked up and saw He Lichen and Xie Jinlian playing chess under the bright peach tree in the courtyard.

Bathed in the soft moonlight, the delicate peach blossoms fall like rain.

One was dressed in white like snow, the other had silver hair like frost; the scene of them sitting opposite each other, playing chess, was inexplicably pleasing to the eye.

They seemed to be having a very pleasant conversation.

She stood at a distance for a moment, without going up to disturb them.

He turned and walked towards the guest rooms.

She wanted to check on Saint-Fémin's situation while she was there.

However, when she pushed open the slightly ajar door, the room was empty.

The candles were not lit, and moonlight streamed in through the half-open window, spreading a thin layer of silver frost on the floor.

The bedding on the tatami mat was folded neatly, as if no one had ever stayed there.

Only on the table lay a letter and a wooden box.

Tang Xixue stepped forward, her gaze first falling on the wooden box.

The box is small and made of agarwood, with a half-open Udumbara flower carved on its surface.

The petals are layered upon each other, the knife work is extremely simple, yet it has an indescribable ancient and Zen-like quality.

"Did Fei Ming leave this behind? Has he left?"

She reached out and opened the box, and a very faint sandalwood scent wafted out.

A string of Buddhist prayer beads lay quietly inside the box.

It is not made of ordinary sandalwood or bodhi seeds, but is strung with eighteen Garan rain beads.

The beads were smooth and lustrous, with a very pale sky blue color, and each one shimmered with a warm, gentle light.

It's as if the morning raindrops have been frozen in the beads.

When held between the fingertips, it feels warm and slightly cool, as if it still retains the warmth of the palm of the person who held the beads over the years.

Beneath the prayer beads lay a plain sheet of paper.

The stationery was ordinary white hemp paper, with no decorations on the edges, so simple and unadorned that it seemed unlike the work of a holy monk.

But when she unfolded the letter and saw those few lines, all her casualness turned into silent solemnity.

The letter was short, and the handwriting was elegant and gentle.

Every stroke of the pen exudes the composure and tranquility cultivated through years of copying scriptures and reciting Buddhist mantras.

"To Sister Zhi"

"This pearl is named Garan Shiyu. I am giving it to my sister not as a gift, but simply as a token of my remembrance."

"The blooming and withering of the garland flowers is but a fleeting moment. Though the light of the raindrops is faint, it can still illuminate a corner."

"May your future path be filled with light."

"Not clear."

Tang Xixue held the plain paper in her hand.

The moonlight streamed quietly in through the window, falling on the prayer beads in her hand.

The sky-blue beads then gleamed with a very faint, warm luster, as if someone were reciting a silent scripture for her from afar.

It whispers: "The road ahead is long, and though this light is faint, I hope it can guide you for a while."

The gift of Buddhist prayer beads embodied Sheng Feiming's deepest sentiments.

Giving away the Buddhist artifacts that he had carried with him for many years to one person was a way of giving her every verse he had recited before the Buddha, every stick of incense he had burned, and every dawn and dusk he had spent with her.

He wished her every step would be glorious.

He himself probably never imagined that he himself was a source of light for many people.

Tang Xixue gently gathered the prayer beads into her palm, her fingertips lightly stroking the round surface of each bead, as if she could feel the warmth left on them by the person who held them and chanted sutras over the years.

"Feiming, don't worry, I will find a way to save you. You will definitely be able to speak again, and you will live a long and healthy life."

The young monk who looked up at her under the ginkgo tree, the young monk who revealed the secrets of heaven and sacrificed half his lifespan so that she could return, should not have had such a pitiful end.

He should continue reciting his scriptures and practicing Zen, spending peaceful years amidst the morning bells and evening drums.

Thinking of this, she suddenly remembered someone else.

Frail and stubborn, like a solitary orchid blooming deep in a poisonous swamp.

Si Xingxuan.

That frail but never bowing-down divine physician, the one who could stay up for days and nights without rest in front of the alchemy furnace to refine medicine for her.

Her fingertips touched the medicine box she always carried in her sleeve.

A leaf lay quietly in the medicine box—a leaf of the Three Lives Tree.

This is one of the few remaining elixirs in the world that can defy fate and change one's destiny.

But she wasn't sure.

Zhe Yue's body is too special. Since childhood, she has been tempered by all kinds of poisons, so she is immune to all poisons and medicines are useless.

Ordinary life-extending pills were like mud oxen sinking into the sea for him, not even causing a ripple.

Can this Three-Life Leaf truly defy fate and change his destiny?

Are the legendary elixirs truly as miraculous as rumored, or are they merely wishful thinking on the part of the world?

She tucked the medicine box back into her sleeve.

Anyway, we should give it a try.

She didn't want to give up on his life.

"Zhe Yue, even if Heaven wants to take your life, it has to ask me first, and whether I agree or not."