Chapter 1370: The Person in the Thatched Cottage
The two of them had now fallen silent. Besides the sound of their footsteps, there was only the rustling of leaves in the wind.
Just like that, after walking for about four thousand feet in the forest, a thatched cottage appeared before Li Yan’s eyes.
The lower half of this thatched cottage was built with logs, and the roof was covered with a thick layer of thatch. There were even some scattered banana leaves on top.
From the outside, the thatched cottage looked to be only about a hundred feet in size. It stood there, alone and quiet, in the middle of this forest.
Besides a few chirps of insects, only the stone path they had come on led here, like a solitary grave in the dark night.
When the stone path reached the door, it came to an abrupt end, as if it had reached the end of a pilgrimage…
Li Yan had long since seen all of this with his Divine Sense, which was why he found Donglin Tingyue’s cousin a bit strange. However, for a cultivator, this was not too surprising.
Li Yan just found it a bit unexpected. At the same time, he noticed that there were no formation restrictions in the surrounding area. Only this thatched cottage had a layer of formation restriction fluctuations.
When they were still a short distance from the thatched cottage, Donglin Tingyue stopped. She turned her face and looked at Li Yan seriously.
The silver mask glowed with a textured silver light in the moonlight that filtered through the forest, making her seem even more mysterious and enchanting.
“Fellow Daoist Li, from now until you leave this forest, you cannot reveal a single thing you see!”
Looking at her serious expression, Li Yan silently nodded.
Donglin Tingyue once again moved her long legs and walked towards the thatched cottage in front. Soon, she arrived before the cottage. She gently raised a fair, jade-like hand, like a fairy under the moon preparing to dance lightly.
In the next moment, a statue in the shape of some kind of demonic beast appeared in her hand. She waved it gently at the door of the thatched cottage, and immediately, a circle of green light appeared on the door.
Although the door still did not open, Donglin Tingyue took a step forward and stepped into that circle of green light. At the same time, she turned her head and beckoned to Li Yan.
A faint black glow appeared on Li Yan’s body. At the same time, he spread his Divine Sense, and only then did he step into the green light…
Li Yan only felt a blur before his eyes. In an instant, his Divine Sense had already sensed four auras. These four auras were close at hand, some strong and some weak.
Among them was the familiar aura of Donglin Tingyue. Li Yan only sensed the direction of the surrounding spiritual energy fluctuations; they were not pressing towards him.
So, he also did not make any move.
What entered his sight was a softly lit room. The room was filled with a thick smell of medicinal pills.
The first thing Li Yan saw was a slender figure with her back to him. It was Donglin Tingyue. She had also just stood firm.
And six or seven feet in front of Li Yan was a bed. On the bed lay a person, and beside the bed sat an old woman.
At the same time, in a corner of the house, a large black dog was lying on the ground. Its front legs were stretched out, and its large head rested on its paws, looking sleepy.
At this moment, seeing Donglin Tingyue and Li Yan enter, the large black dog’s drooping ears only twitched slightly. Then, it lifted its eyelids.
Li Yan felt a powerful Divine Sense sweep over him. Then, the large black dog lazily closed its eyes again.
“A peak Mid-stage fourth-rank demonic beast!”
The moment Li Yan felt the other’s Divine Sense, he had already determined the cultivation of this large black dog. A powerful demonic beast at the Nascent Soul realm, it gave him the feeling that it was about to step into the Late-stage Nascent Soul realm.
What he found strange was that he couldn’t tell what kind of variant species this large black dog was. Besides its size, which was like half a calf, it looked like an ordinary domestic animal.
Li Yan felt that as long as it shrank its body, it would be no different from a village mutt. He couldn’t see any so-called bloodline suppression.
“The Donglin family is said to have five Nascent Soul cultivators. I wonder if this large black dog is included!”
Li Yan quickly recalled the information he had on the Donglin family in his mind. It was said that they only had five Nascent Soul cultivators.
“This old woman, Yuan Shuiyun, greets Fellow Daoist Li!”
As Li Yan was thinking, Donglin Tingyue in front of him had already quickly walked to the bedside. The old woman who was sitting by the bed also stood up at this moment and gave Li Yan a Daoist salute.
The old woman had a head of white hair, but she seemed full of energy. Her white hair was very glossy, not dry, and was neatly combed.
She was dressed in a simple and elegant attire. She looked to be about fifty or sixty years old. Although her face already showed signs of age, her skin was not too loose.
A pair of dark eyes shone with a bright light. From her brow, one could tell that she must have been a top beauty in her youth.
Perhaps the cultivation method she practiced was not the kind that preserved one’s youth, so she gave the impression of being in her fifties, but her whole body exuded an elegant temperament.
Li Yan also looked at her at this time, and at the same time, his Divine Sense also glanced at the bed.
A person was lying there, but a light green light shield covered the outside of the bed, so he couldn’t see their appearance clearly for a while. But he could tell that it was a man’s attire.
“Fellow Daoist Li, this is the Second Supreme Elder of my clan.”
Donglin Tingyue had already walked to the bedside at this time and turned back to say to Li Yan.
“Greetings, Fellow Daoist Yuan!”
As Li Yan walked slowly, he also cupped his hands towards the old woman and thought to himself.
“Yuan Shuiyun? The Second Supreme Elder is actually a woman with a different surname!”
“Fellow Daoist Li has been here for a few days, and this old woman has not been able to go and pay a visit. It is truly impolite. The reason is not complicated; it is the matter of the Inner Demon Oath that Tingyue told you about!”
The old woman looked at Li Yan, who was slowly approaching. A apologetic smile appeared on her face, but her words made Li Yan slightly stunned.
He had not expected that this old woman named Yuan Shuiyun would be so direct, bringing up the matter that had been puzzling him right from the start.
“Oh?”
A look of doubt appeared on Li Yan’s face, but he only uttered one word.
“That’s because this matter involves some of our family’s secrets, so the other Supreme Elders were divided. Some actually didn’t agree to have you treat him personally. They hoped to buy the pills or the treatment method from you with a large sum of money. But Tingyue said that this is a divine ability of yours and you won’t give it out, so this matter was discussed for a long time.”
At this point, the old woman’s still-dark eyes looked at Li Yan. Li Yan calmly nodded.
“It was taught by my sect. Please forgive me.”
He had made this point very clear to Donglin Tingyue back in the market. The fundamental reason was that he didn’t have an antidote.
“So, in the end, we still have to trouble you to personally take action, Fellow Daoist Li!”
The old woman nodded. She had already sensed the abnormal fluctuations in the clan earlier and had swept her Divine Sense over, seeing the contents of the oath scroll he had made with his Inner Demon.
Although it was only a few sentences, Li Yan had already roughly figured out some things. The Nascent Soul cultivators of the Donglin family had different opinions on the matter of the treatment.
But from the looks of it, it was this old woman who had ultimately made the decision, going against the opinions of the others.
‘To become the Second Supreme Elder with a different surname, this person’s status in the Donglin family must be somewhat special. From this, it seems that the strongest Supreme Grand Elder of the Donglin family should be in the same camp as this person!’
Li Yan had stayed with the Tianli Clan for so long and was very clear about this kind of cultivation sect that was based on clans. It was difficult for the people in the clan to be of one mind.
He thought quickly in his heart. Matters like this were generally decided by the Supreme Grand Elder, but from the way this old woman spoke, it seemed that she was the one weighing the pros and cons and making the decision.
And here, there were no other family elders besides Donglin Tingyue. This showed that this old woman could make all subsequent decisions.
“Alright, then please cast your spell, Fellow Daoist Li!”
As the old woman spoke, she gently waved her hand, and the light green light shield covering the bed was instantly removed.
By now, all necessary agreements had been made. Moreover, Donglin Tingyue had already proven Li Yan’s methods.
When she had spoken with Li Yan in the market, she had asked him to remove the poison from that large piece of flesh and blood.
To her delight, when she brought it back to the clan for everyone to inspect, the poison in the flesh and blood had not reappeared. It had remained in its cleansed state.
Therefore, the Donglin family had no other means to test Li Yan’s methods. They would just have him cast the spell directly.
After the light shield was removed, the moment Li Yan saw the face of the person lying on the bed, he frowned slightly.
Because what he saw was an old man with a pale face and gray hair, dressed in a purple robe. And his face was ashen and deathly, looking as if he would pass away at any moment.
“This is Donglin Tingyue’s cousin? He’s been tortured to this state by the poison?”
This was Li Yan’s first thought, but he immediately sensed that something was wrong. He could also feel three pairs of eyes staring at him without blinking—two people and one beast.
At this time, the large black dog that had been lying down also raised its head and stared at Li Yan’s face.
After a few breaths.
“This… this is the Supreme Grand Elder of your clan, isn’t it?”
Li Yan slowly turned his head. His gaze swept over Donglin Tingyue and finally landed on the old woman’s face. His gaze was still calm but carried a questioning tone.
“Fellow Daoist Li doesn’t recognize my clan’s Supreme Grand Elder?”
This time, it was Donglin Tingyue who spoke, her voice like an orchid in a secluded valley, filled with deep confusion.
“Did all of you fellow Daoists know me before?” Li Yan asked in return.
But he already had an understanding in his heart. No wonder they were so cautious, claiming he was Donglin Tingyue’s cousin.
After letting him come over, they didn’t want him to treat him. Finally, they made him swear an Inner Demon Oath. It turned out that the person who was poisoned was someone else.
And this person was the only Late-stage Great Cultivator in the clan. If this matter were to spread, the Donglin family would be in danger.
And with that, Li Yan also understood why he had guessed that it was the Second Supreme Elder who had gone against the others. It was because the Supreme Grand Elder was already unconscious and could no longer manage affairs.
“Fellow Daoist Li, now you finally know why my clan is so cautious!” the old woman sighed softly.
In fact, their clan had always been worried that by sending people out to find an antidote, some people with ulterior motives would guess the reason.
But they had no choice. They couldn’t just stand by and let the Grand Elder die.
“Then may I begin my examination?”
Li Yan didn’t say any more to them. He just wanted to complete this transaction as soon as possible, get what he deserved, and then leave this place.
A few dozen breaths later, Li Yan’s fingers, which had been placed on the purple-robed elder’s neck, were gently lifted. His brow was slightly furrowed.
“How is it?”
Donglin Tingyue’s nervous voice came over. They had seen this expression on Li Yan’s face more than once. It had appeared on the faces of the others, and the final result was always helplessness.
But Li Yan clearly had a way to remove the poison from that piece of poisoned flesh and blood. Why did he have this expression?
Li Yan did not answer immediately but fell into deep thought. For a moment, the room was surprisingly quiet. The old woman’s face was calm as she sat on the side.
After another few dozen breaths, Li Yan finally raised his head.
“The poison he was afflicted with has, due to the long passage of time, already seeped into his Nascent Soul. His Nascent Soul has even fallen into a coma. If I were to treat him, I am not confident that I can remove the poison from his Nascent Soul as well. At that time, his cultivation may even fall as a result. This is my main concern.”
After Li Yan finished speaking, a brilliant light flashed in the old woman’s eyes. Donglin Tingyue’s eyes also clearly showed a look of surprise, and then her whole person seemed to relax.
They were already helpless against this poison. They had tried everything, but they could only watch as his aura weakened day by day. Yet Li Yan was worried about his cultivation after he woke up.
“To what extent might it fall?” the old woman asked.
“This… there is a forty percent chance that he will fall by a minor realm. The possibility of falling by a major realm is… less than twenty percent! However, the remaining poison in his Nascent Soul will only be deeply integrated, but the amount will be very small. He can slowly expel it himself by circulating his cultivation.”
“No problem. Then we’ll have to trouble you, Fellow Daoist Li!”
This time, the old woman answered even more quickly.