TRWSB – Chapter 23 Blood Spirit Gu

After Qi Shaorong stayed at Zhuang Linyuan’s residence for a while, he hurriedly took his leave.

Zhuang Hao followed Qi Shaorong outside, asking, “Why are you in such a hurry to leave?”

“Since I can’t be of any help, it’s better to leave early, don’t you think?” Qi Shaorong replied.

“Do you know something?” Zhuang Hao asked.

“What can I possibly know?”

“You’re scared.”

“The people from Zhuang Linyuan’s family are very kind; what do I have to be afraid of?”

“I don’t know why you’re scared; I just feel like you’re worried about something. Is it related to Sister Zhuang Ling’s illness?” Zhuang Hao stared seriously at Qi Shaorong.

Qi Shaorong stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Zhuang Hao. “Young Master Zhuang, you really do think too much. Your sister Zhuang Ling is just a bit physically weak.”

Zhuang Hao gazed at Qi Shaorong, frowning deeply. “My intuition tells me you’re lying. Senior Evil Doctor, you know it hasn’t been easy for Sister Zhuang Ling to make it this far.”

“I can tell.”

“If you have a way to help, I implore you to assist her,” Zhuang Hao said earnestly.

“Young Master Zhuang, do you know that it hasn’t been easy for me to get to this point either!” Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao, took a deep breath, and said, “I’ve told you, I’m powerless. Young Master, please stop talking nonsense.”

Zhuang Hao: “…”

……

Qi Shaorong’s villa.

“Young Master, you’re back?” Qi Heng asked.

Qi Shaorong nodded, saying, “Yes!”

“What about Young Master Zhuang Hao?” Qi Heng inquired.

“He got me so angry that I had to send him away.”

“What’s the condition of Miss Zhuang Ling?” Qi Heng asked.

“Not too good. I had heard about Zhuang Ling’s condition before; I was just making wild guesses, but it turned out to be just as I suspected,” Qi Shaorong replied.

“Is she going to die?” Qi Heng asked.

“She’s unlikely to live more than a month,” Qi Shaorong said.

Qi Heng frowned, saying, “That’s really a pity.”

“Indeed! Such a great beauty is about to wither away; it’s truly a shame,” Qi Shaorong lamented.

Zhuang Hao pushed the door and entered, saying, “Sorry.”

Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao and remarked, “Young Master Hao, barging into someone’s home is not the behavior of a gentleman!”

“Sorry, I knocked, but no one answered, so I came in myself,” Zhuang Hao said.

Qi Shaorong: “…”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop on your conversation,” Zhuang Hao added.

Qi Shaorong leaned toward Qi Heng and whispered, “Didn’t I tell you to set up some traps to prevent intruders?”

“Sorry, I didn’t have the time to set them up yet,” Qi Heng said.

“Your efficiency is too poor. Keep this up, and I might have to fire you,” Qi Shaorong warned.

Qi Heng laughed awkwardly. “I will set them up as soon as possible.”

Qi Shaorong waved his hand. “You can go out now.”

Zhuang Hao looked at Qi Shaorong. “You really do know something.”

Qi Shaorong shrugged. “I do know some things, but I advise you not to meddle too much.”

“Why not? Are you worried that Zhuang Linyuan, your uncle, is too poor to pay for the medical fees? If he can’t afford it, I’ll pay for him.”

Qi Shaorong looked at Zhuang Hao. “Young Master Zhuang, you know I love money, but I love my life even more. By the way, speaking of money, you took too long to pay the final payment last time. If I didn’t know the reputation of the Zhuang family, I would have thought you were trying to default.”

“I’ll make sure to pay on time next time. But back to the point, I don’t understand how saving Sister Zhuang Ling relates to your life,” Zhuang Hao said.

“Your uncle is quite skilled. If I mess with him, I might not be able to withstand his revenge,” Qi Shaorong replied.

Zhuang Hao looked at Qi Shaorong. “You think that if you save Sister Zhuang Ling, my uncle will kill you? Why would you think that? What kind of person do you think my uncle is?”

Qi Shaorong fiddled with his fingers. “Who knows? Just a person.”

Zhuang Hao: “…”

“A Heng, you go out and keep watch. I’ll talk to Young Master Hao alone,” Qi Shaorong instructed Qi Heng.

Qi Heng nodded. “Okay.”

“Young Master Zhuang, please have a seat,” Qi Shaorong said.

Zhuang Hao sat down across from Qi Shaorong.

Qi Shaorong crossed his legs and leisurely asked, “Young Master Zhuang, have you heard of blood spirit worms?”

Zhuang Hao shook his head. “No.”

“Young Master Zhuang is still young and inexperienced; it’s understandable. In fact, these blood spirit worms are rumored to have gone extinct, so it’s normal that you wouldn’t know,” Qi Shaorong said, pursing his lips.

“What are they?”

“A type of parasitic insect that resides within the human body, feeding on the host’s spiritual energy. Once this kind of insect resides in a person, the host will often feel weak and will need to consume spiritual medicine to suppress the condition.”

“What if the spiritual medicine is cut off?” Zhuang Hao asked.

Qi Shaorong shrugged. “Oh, that would be troublesome. The insect would consume the host’s internal organs due to hunger.”

“What use do these insects have?” Zhuang Hao inquired.

“They are of no use to the host, but they can be beneficial to the host’s relatives. Once the insect absorbs enough spiritual medicine, it becomes a high-quality spiritual medicine. At that point, as long as the host is combined with some spiritual medicine to make a concoction, it can be refined into a medicine that greatly enhances one’s abilities.”

“Over the years, your cousin should have absorbed quite a bit of spiritual medicine, right? The essence of those spiritual medicines is now stored within the insect. You can imagine how nourishing that insect must be.”

Zhuang Hao frowned. “What does this have to do with my uncle?”

“The reason blood spirit worms are on the verge of extinction is due to many restrictions on their usage. First, the worms can only reside in individuals with special constitutions. Your cousin seems to be a natural yin spirit body. Second, the spiritual medicine made from these worms will only be effective on people related by blood to the host. If an outsider consumes this kind of spiritual medicine, they will suffer backlash and die.”

“Speaking of which, Young Master Zhuang, you seem to have some blood relation with Zhuang Ling as well! However, the connection is somewhat distant. If you were to use that kind of spiritual medicine, you wouldn’t die, but the medicine’s effects might run rampant in your meridians, causing small cracks to form in your meridians.”

Zhuang Hao looked at Qi Shaorong. “Are you suspecting my uncle Zhuang Linyuan?”

Qi Shaorong shrugged. “Who knows? There are many cases of fathers harming their own children in this world.”

Zhuang Hao tightened his brows. “It can’t be him…”

“Whoever it is, they’re definitely not a character to be trifled with. Zhuang Hao, you should know that I don’t want to cause trouble,” Qi Shaorong said.

Zhuang Hao took a deep breath. “I heard you tell your subordinate before that there’s only about a month left. Why is that?”

“Right. If my estimation is correct, the worm is about to mature,” Qi Shaorong said.

“Is there a way to解 蠱 (dispel the worm)?” Zhuang Hao asked.

Qi Shaorong shook his head. “I don’t know, perhaps the person who set the worm will have a way, or maybe they will have an idea.”

Zhuang Hao pursed his lips. “So we need to find the person who set the worm?”

Qi Shaorong nodded. “That’s true. However, even if you find the person who set the worm, whether they will tell you is another question.”

“Wait, Zhuang Hao.”

Zhuang Hao turned around to look at Qi Shaorong. “Senior Evil Doctor, do you have anything else to teach me?”

“The blood spirit worm must be used while the host is alive, which means: when refining the spiritual medicine, your cousin must be alive. I don’t need to tell you; you should already know how ruthless the person who set this worm is. I value my life, so when you act, it’s best not to drag me into it,” Qi Shaorong warned.

Qi Heng walked in and said, “Young Master, Zhuang Hao has left. I noticed he didn’t look too good.”

“Just a kid with little experience; after hearing some terrifying stories, he’s frightened and at a loss. He’ll be fine after a few more years of eating and drinking,” Qi Shaorong said, sounding quite annoyed.

Qi Heng: “…”

“Who do you think the person who set the worm is?” 

Qi Shaorong shrugged. “How would I know? I don’t know much about Zhuang Ling’s family.”