The entire Luoyun Mountain was in chaos…
When Liuli returned, panting heavily, and announced that Feng Zihuang was in trouble, Yun Qingxue finally understood why she had been feeling so uneasy…
She rushed frantically to Jinlin’s residence like a madwoman.
At this moment, everyone had gathered except for Mosu, who was still refining the antidote for her, and the newly arrived little demons.
Purple Melody Sage and Jinlin were working together to treat Feng Zihuang.
Seeing Yun Qingxue enter, Mo Changxing stepped forward to greet her.
“How is Zihuang?” Yun Qingxue asked anxiously, her face filled with panic.
“Master and Jinlin are treating him together. Qingxue, don’t… worry too much.” Mo Changxing’s handsome brows were tightly furrowed. For the first time, he found his words utterly inadequate—so much so that he couldn’t summon anything useful to comfort Yun Qingxue.
Yun Qingxue bypassed Mo Changxing and walked straight into the room.
Purple Melody Sage, Jinlin, and Yun Ye were standing by Feng Zihuang’s bed, discussing something with grave expressions.
Seeing Yun Qingxue approach, Shui Liu, who stood nearby, opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing.
Adai moved toward Yun Qingxue, but she seemed not to notice him, walking past him directly to stand by the bed.
“Xuexue…” Jinlin’s voice was slightly hoarse.
Yun Qingxue gave him no response. Her eyes were fixed intently on Feng Zihuang, who lay weakly on the bed, his face ghastly pale, as if afraid that if she blinked, he would vanish forever…
“What happened to him?”
As everyone watched her with concern, Yun Qingxue finally spoke.
Purple Melody Sage’s brows furrowed deeply, his voice heavy. “He’s been poisoned…”
“Poisoned…” Yun Qingxue murmured the words, her gaze never leaving Feng Zihuang.
Just that afternoon, when they had parted, Feng Zihuang had been perfectly fine. How could he suddenly be poisoned?
“Master, do you have a way to cure him?” Yun Qingxue’s voice was eerily calm, devoid of any fluctuation.
Purple Melody Sage’s frown deepened.
“Then does Master know what poison he was given?” When no immediate answer came, Yun Qingxue asked again, her tone as still as stagnant water.
“Master… the poison the Phoenix King was given is… is an extremely rare and deadly toxin from the Water Clan!” Adai interjected hesitantly, avoiding eye contact.
“It has nothing to do with my Lord!” Shui Liu blurted out defensively the moment Adai finished speaking.
Yun Qingxue’s gaze finally shifted from Feng Zihuang to Jinlin.
Her once-clear eyes now seemed unfocused, clouded with darkness.
Jinlin felt as though his heart were being squeezed by an invisible force, an unprecedented suffocation enveloping him.
He and Purple Melody Sage had both examined Feng Zihuang’s condition. It was true—he had been poisoned by a rare toxin from the Water Clan, which had reduced him to this state…
But Jinlin hadn’t been the one to administer it. Yet, he was now the prime suspect…
He cared little for the opinions of the world, but Yun Qingxue’s suspicion made him wish he could die from the pain.
“Is there an antidote?”
Without any accusation, Yun Qingxue simply looked at him calmly.
Jinlin pressed his lips together. “Xuexue…”
“I believe you!” Yun Qingxue cut him off. “I believe you wouldn’t do such a thing! I just want to know—can you cure Zihuang?”
“No! This poison is unique to the Water Clan. Even if one of our own were poisoned, their fate would rest in the hands of heaven!” Shui Liu hastily answered for Jinlin.
“I see.” To everyone’s surprise, Yun Qingxue didn’t press further about the antidote. Instead, she calmly addressed the group. “Since there’s no cure, please leave. I want to spend Zihuang’s final moments alone with him.”
“Qingxue…” Everyone stared at her in shock. Her reaction was far too abnormal!
Shouldn’t she be doing everything in her power to save the man she loved?
Yet she seemed to accept Feng Zihuang’s fate with unsettling composure…
“Please leave!” Seeing no one move, Yun Qingxue repeated firmly.
“Qingxue, the Phoenix King still has a pulse. Master can try again—perhaps… there’s still hope!” Purple Melody Sage’s brows remained tightly knit. Yun Qingxue’s demeanor filled him with deep unease.
Not just him—Yun Ye and Mo Changxing were also gripped by a sense of foreboding.
They sensed that beneath Yun Qingxue’s icy calm lay a storm they couldn’t withstand.
“Master, what are the odds?” Yun Qingxue turned to him, her voice steady.
Purple Melody Sage pursed his lips. “I can only promise to do my best…”
Yun Qingxue suddenly smiled—a fleeting, breathtaking smile that sent chills down their spines.
“The poison comes from the Water Clan. Even Jinlin has no solution…
Though Master is renowned, he is not omnipotent…
Don’t worry about me. I’m fine…
Just let me spend Zihuang’s last moments with him in peace.”
“Xuexue, I can save him,” Jinlin suddenly stepped forward, as if resolved.
Purple Melody Sage sighed deeply at this moment.
“My Lord!” Shui Liu protested, then abruptly turned and knelt before Yun Qingxue without warning.
“Flower Queen! The Phoenix King’s poisoning was not my Lord’s doing! I beg you, in light of his sincere devotion to you, spare him!”
“Shui Liu!” Jinlin glared furiously at the kneeling figure. “Get out! You have no right to speak here!”
“If my Lord wishes to cure the Phoenix King, he must sacrifice hims—”
Before Shui Liu could finish, Jinlin struck him with a palm strike, sending him flying.
“Xuexue, don’t listen to his nonsense! The poison is from my clan, and as the Water King, I can cure it!”
“All of you—leave!” Yun Qingxue remained unmoved.
“Xuexue…” Jinlin murmured, his unease growing.
“Out!” Yun Qingxue’s voice suddenly rose, her composure shattering as she glared at them. “You’ve already brought Zihuang to this state—he’s dying! Won’t you let him go?”
“Xuexue…” Jinlin looked wounded, but Yun Qingxue conjured a blade and pressed it to her own throat. “If you don’t leave now, I’ll kill myself! Then you’ll be satisfied!”
“Qingxue, don’t act rashly!” Yun Ye, Purple Melody Sage, and Mo Changxing panicked.
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