Su Jing fidgeted with the base of the jade bowl.

Somehow, staying with Yawen now felt more troublesome than confronting Yazhu, the scarier of the two. Yazhu, at least, laid everything out in the open, but this man seemed intent on playing his own game.

Just as she contemplated breaking the ice by posing a question, Yawen shifted his gaze away, turning it towards his bowl.

"So, how's your stay here? Is your poison better?"

His tone was different from the one he recently used with Yazhu. Su Jing couldn't help but double-check him now that he wasn't looking, feeling that this man was as a whole a weirdo.

"I must thank Lady Zhu. She treated me with care."

Yawen nodded and didn't look surprised, as if everything was within his expectations. He began drinking the rest of the medicine, letting Su Jing analyse him as she pleased. Was he laying low now for her to get comfortable? 

She couldn't understand his intentions.

Remembering what Yazhu told her, he seemed to have sensed her poison since the root test, like a dog smelling everything. No character apart from his was able to do that. Even the female lead, known as a miracle Doctor, needed to be close to the person or touch them directly to make a detailed diagnosis.

Her only thought was that probably his fainting was a ploy to make Yazhu lower her guard, forcing her to bring her alongside. After all, a doctor like Yazhu wouldn't leave someone injured alone.

But the question remained: why?

Su Jing was sure that she didn't possess any extraordinary aspects. Even the bead where the ghost stood and his belongings were rather ordinary, as Feng Zhihao had already taken their power. Yazhu also gave them back, saying that they weren't at all interested in her things.

This matter was getting complicated.

She glimpsed at Yawen. He kept his usual fragile and harmless appearance - as if he was just a poor ill man, suffering alone in his tries to fight off death. 

Yawen sat up from the bed, surprising her when a white cane suddenly appeared in his hand - the same one she had seen him with earlier. He did this one swap, like a thing happening often enough to make him consider this normal.

Perhaps sensing her eager gaze, Yawen's smile grew wider. He moved towards her slowly.

"Surprised, right? I'm not as ill as Zhu'er makes it appear, so you shouldn't worry too much. Even this cane of mine is rather useless."

Su Jing couldn't help but get intimidated by his sudden approach. He was taller than her and looked quite handsome with his loose braided hair, like a wise immortal ready to impart hints about the way of life and Dao.

Yawen noticed her curiosity, but he left her to be as if testing the waters.

" What? Don't you think so?" 

Su Jing remained silent, feeling that he wanted to pull something from her. Yawen shook his head as if aware of her thought process, slightly amused.

"There is no need to feel shy. You can freely call me senior brother and talk without worries. It's just the two of us here."

His stance was relaxed as if telling her to calm down her anxiety. Su Jing sighed and complied since she wanted to receive some answers from him.

"Senior brother is the one who worries too much. Perhaps I am just affected by the medicine Lazy Zhu gave me."

Yawen nodded.

" Did she explain what happened to you?" he looked at her from left to right, checking her up. "I can also ease your pain a little if you want, though that may be a little forceful."

Su Jing frowned, not knowing how he wanted her to perceive the word "forceful".

Yawen made her not know what to expect from him.

"Thank you, senior brother, but what if your condition gets worse? You just woke up, after all."

Now that she thought about it, it would be only problematic. What if he suddenly lays death on the ground? She'll be left with not knowing what to do! 

Yazhu still hasn't explained to her how exactly she needs to take care of this ill person!

Yawen nevertheless only chuckled.

"It's okay. It's not like I have too little qi energy. You don't need to be nervous."

He put his hand closer towards her shoulder, like how someone would be checking an acupoint. Su Jing unconsciously stood put, a bit fearful of how he wanted to detoxify her. 

She could only bite her luck and hope he didn't wish to do something malicious to her.

"Then I am in senior brother's care."

He nodded, happy with her acceptance.

"Good, don't worry, just breathe with your mouth and don't lose your focus."

As he said that, Su Jing immediately felt how her skin prickled on her shoulder. She looked at his hand but didn't see anything, making her wonder if he was doing something.

However, not long after he instructed, Su Jing was paralysed, a strange feeling washing over her. It felt like an air suddenly compressing her body and mind.

Was this his Qi energy? 

Not more than a few seconds passed but it already felt agonising for her body to take. Su Jing couldn't quite describe the sensation. It felt pure and light, yet it made her blood boil and her veins ache. 

The whole ordeal didn't last too long because Yawen eventually released her, grabbing the bowl from her hands and putting it elsewhere.

"Are you okay? "

He held her with one hand, making sure she didn't fall on the ground.

Su Jing breathed slowly, her thumping heart being heard in her ears.

"Yes, I need to catch my breath a little..."

She barely gesticulated to him, feeling how her body was caught aflame. Yawen got worried seeing her like that.

" I tried to be as careful as possible. Unfortunately, your poison had spread almost everywhere in your body. It's quite astonishing that you can still move around so freely."

Su Jing glanced at him, hardly breathing.

"Is it that bad?"

If these two weren't so serious about this matter, Su Jing wouldn't have believed that she was poisoned.

" It could have been better but it seems that you were unlucky. Those fruits are quite double-edged. "

She put her hand on her chest and felt her heart beating strangely. Each beating sounded stronger, clearing some of the cloudiness that affected her. That was a part of Yawen's energy, which looked like taking in balance Su Jing's condition.

This had a much more pronounced effect than Yazhu's medicine.

Seeing such changes in her made Su Jing ponder whether getting rid of this poison was the key to recovering the memories from her current life.

Even though she was familiar with the novel's story and had blurry fragments of memories from a different world, it was frustrating to know so much about others and almost nothing about herself. 

Yawen stared at her as she got lost in thought, appearing more serious.

"I don't know what you thought about when getting those spiritual fruits, but it's a sure thing that they haven't bought the power that you've desired. "

Su Jing listened to him, his words contracting what she heard from Yazhu.

"What good could I ever get from a poison?"

Unconsciously she asked aloud, making Yawen raise his eyebrows curiously.

"Oh? So you actually took them for the bad effects?"

"Are there good ones?" Su Jing was getting only more confused!

Yawen laughed.

"No wonder Yazhu switched her attitude towards you. "

Su Jing could not understand how such a matter was to be laughed about! 

"Senior brother got it all wrong. I wasn't aware of the poison, so please don't make such assumptions about me."

She felt that if she wasn't making things clear now, a big mess later would come upon her head. Yawen leaned his head towards her apologetically, still retaining his good mood.

" Sorry, my intention wasn't to offend you. Usually, that's the case with the Duanzan fruit."

And that is suicide? Su Jing thought.

.

"How exactly are they good? "

Su Jing did not hear of a fruit having two opposite traits. Yawen was saying it as if it was sour and sweet at the same time.

Yawen shook his head.

"Poison is always harmful, but it can also get you stronger. It depends on your will and how you control it. Those shitbags of elders desire it so much that they are willing to destroy nations."

"..."

Su Jing was speechless. Did she just miss like a fool her chance of getting rich?

More than that, she got poisoned instead?

Yawen probably saw her standing calm and docile, but in reality, Su Jing was tempted to pull her hair and give herself a good smack. Why were her levels of misfortune skyrocketing?

Her poverty could have been resolved since chapter one.

"Was that why you followed me around so much?, Su Jing asked how sceptical of him, "I don't know where to find them. The last ones that I had were long consumed by me already. "

Yawen kept his smile wide on his face, briefly closing his eyes. 

"Is that the way you see me? That's not why I approached you. Do not think that far. "

He put his cane in his other hand, snapping his fingers. By the next second a fruit similar to what Su Jing saw appeared, being engulfed with a lot of protective qi energies.

"This is -!"

They were exactly like the berries she ate - although hers were smaller and worse in quality. Yawen did not dwell on it for too long because he made it disappear, stashing it in his storage bag.

"I couldn't help but notice your poison when I first arrived in the mortal realm. Its density and aura made you stand out to me. You were someone I couldn't ignore, and if anyone else were to discover you, you would be in great danger."

He paused, half crossing his arms as he narrated.

"However, my master took me back to the sect before I could explain to him or you about your oddity. My only option was to return to the Mortal Gate, hoping that you would eventually show up. Just as I was planning to return secretly to the mortal realm, you surprised me by appearing in the immortal realm on your own."

His words were in tune with what Yazhu told her. She wondered why such a high-ranking person like his master wasn't able to notice her poison. Or did he choose to ignore it? He either did that, or Yawen's ability was too strange or powerful to be reckoned with.

"Senior brother saw me at the restaurant, though. You were the one with the cane. Why did you choose to not say anything? "

The meeting was brief, but it was clear that he recognised her. Yawen sighed, putting his palm over his face.

"Ah, indeed, during that moment, my intention was to talk with you. However, considering that the restaurant was an esteemed place - the presence of someone with Ominous Qi would have undoubtedly raised suspicions among the other cultivators. I needed you to be in a different location to ensure your safety and then speak to you. Fortunately, you appeared later by the riverbank."

Su Jing glanced towards him. She hadn't thought that she could be in danger by simply entering a place surrounded by cultivators, and now that she heard Yawen, she couldn't help but feel that she was a bit stupid. What would have happened if she were to be caught by a higher-ranking cultivator? - someone who would have accused her of doing evil acts?

Fortunately,

Yes, fortunately, Yazhu and Yawen were those cultivators. 

They even welcomed her here. 

”Thank you,” Su Jing said, making a sincere bow towards Yawen. She felt a slight pang of embarrassment, realizing that her earlier questioning might have come off as brazen. Yawen sighed, and then she felt his hand touch her shoulder. She raised her head, meeting Yawen's smiling gaze.

"To tell the truth, we are not that different. Maybe that's why I felt the need to know you.” Yawen suddenly confessed, making Su Jing glance at him,” My body is weak, especially my dantian, making it difficult to control the Qi energy I absorbed. Some of it is lost, while another part is too densely concentrated.”

Although she wasn't a cultivator for now, she knew how important the dantian was to a future immortal. It was strange to hear that he suffered from this kind of thing. As Su Jing tried to remember Feng Zhihao's many patients, no one seemed to click with Yawen's case.

Yawen persisted in holding the smile on his face.

”Rather than put it into luck that you were alive, I like to believe that maybe your determination to come to the immortal realm was the true factor. I appreciate that about you.”

” Senior Brother,” Su Jing responded, her voice quivering, ”I am sure Lady Yazhu will find a way to cure you too."

Yawen shook his head at her words, making Su Jing confused.

”Yazhu or Yating would contradict me if they were to hear me, but I know my own body well. It will not resist past next spring.”

His revelation left Su Jing in stunned silence. 

Yawen closed his eyes, as if thinking about his end wasn't that much of a hard thing to do anymore. He made a pause, in which he let go of her shoulder.

"We may be similar, however, your situation is different from mine. I've accepted my fate long ago.” 

Su Jing hesitated in saying anything. Her hands trembled inside her sleeves and it felt somehow hard to breathe. She understood that many characters needed to die for the plot to be able to continue, but as much as she accepted that, now being in front of Yawen, it felt wrong. 

"So Su Jing," he called her gently, as he started to walk towards the door, "remember that you are still young and shouldn't burden yourself with such heavy worries. Life is a journey, and as you tread this path, you'll encounter challenges, but you mustn't let them weigh too heavily on your shoulders.”

She was left watching over his back, with complex thoughts.

The original story didn't have this kind of plot, or at least - Feng Zhihao didn't have to encounter directly these three disciples in this type of setting.

She healed a lot of people from the Tianhui Sect, but no one looked like having Yawen's name or characteristics. Was he just a forgotten NPC character whose only drive was for him to catalyse a chain of events?

The only time Elder He Ning, his master, was mentioned was when he organised a medical contest in which Feng Zhihao got to win a high-quality spiritual plant.

It was a scene where Feng Zhihao showed just how of a godlike doctor was she in comparison with the arrogant sect disciples and elders. Su Jing is sure this scene was at the beginning, meaning that if she continues to stay here, the female lead will soon make her appearance.

After this, however, the female lead left, continuing on her journey.

Yawen or this peak wasn't mentioned anymore, just when the Tianhui Sect fell and the author probably felt the need to mention their destruction too.

If Yawen wasn't mentioned even once, that couldn't be said about Yazhu or Yating. They weren't associated with the sect for some reason when the female lead met them.

Feng Zhihao encountered the two of them in different places, and they became the classic small villain girls who were good but still not enough as Feng Zhihao.

Yazhu was embarrassed in some kind of medical ability showcase, while Yating was in a performance where surprisingly the female lead knew how to dance better than someone who trained their whole life to do that.

Yating forced herself again and again to dance, accidentally hurting her ankles because of a spiritual anklet, which impaired her legs. She rejected treatment from Feng Zhihao, highlighting the arrogance of some individuals who prefer not to accept kindness, even from the female lead.

About Yazhu... she doesn't remember her, or at least after that brief encounter that she lost, she accepted the female lead's superiority, disappearing for good.

Both his sisters didn't look like ending well.