Poison of the Human Panacea
Chapter 34
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The yao ren still had that dazed, confused look on his face, "Master?"
Bai Tan shut the door with a "bang" sound, and he looked at the few underlings who were there, then asked in a low voice, "That yao ren, has he been in the cabin this whole time and never went out?"
Li Wuzhang heard him asking such a thing, and felt a bit weird inside, then he answered truthfully, "This subordinate chased after the Sect Leader last night, all the way to Loulan and has just returned to the ship, I don"t really have this information."
Ji Du spoke, "This subordinate has been waiting on board the ship for news, and didn"t see the yao ren come out at all. Why is the Sect Leader asking such a thing?"
But as he spoke those words, he thought no one knew but earlier, he had helped shizun "secretly crossed the Wei River at Chencang[1]." He had used so much effort just to lure the few people left aside, it had been tiring enough to choke him, so the little evildoer better not become suspicious of it. Thinking back to Wu Yanfu"s bright and joyful face, Ji Du"s eyes couldn"t help but linger on Bai Tan"s body for a bit. "Never came out?" Bai Tan frowned, then was the medicine-blood smell from earlier really only his imagination?
Could he have been too thirsty? He gulped down a mouthful of saliva and felt his mouth becoming a bit too dry, he really hadn"t taken any of that blood for several days. But just as he wanted to cross to the door and go in, Gui Yu"er walked up to his side and spoke softly, "Sect Leader…"
When Bai Tan saw her look of wanting to say something but hesitating to say it, his heart jumped a bit, in both fear and worry. He quickly followed her to the side, "Aunt, what is it? Could my alluring bone have once again…?"
Gui Yu"er nodded, "Could the Sect Leader let me have a look at your alluring bone?"
Bai Tan hesitated for a while, then walked into a cabin, he waited until Gui Yu"er closed the door before he lowered the wedding robe down to his waist. A vivid, branching epiphyllum tattoo leaped into Gui Yu"er"s sight and she was a bit stunned, then took out a handkerchief to wipe away the blood stain on the tattoo. Seeing how bright and charming the youth"s alluring bone was, she squeezed on it boldly.
"You…" Bai Tan turned his head around and Gui Yu"er withdrew her hand, her expression became extremely horrible in an instant.
She took a step back and inhaled deeply. She then turned around, as red slightly surrounded her eyes.
"What is it?" Bai Tan put the robe back on and asked nervously.
Gui Yu"er closed her eyes and clenched onto the handkerchief in her hand tightly, it felt like her heart was being cut by blades. This pitiable nephew of hers…
Also had to have this kind of fate.
"Aunt?" Seeing that Gui Yu"er"s back and her, not letting out a single sound or word, the uneasiness within Bai Tan thickened more and more.
"Sect Leader…have you been hurt by love? Has someone ever betrayed you?"
The corner of Bai Tan"s lips quivered, "Naturally…never. What?"
"Then why… has your alluring bone changed like that already?" Gui Yu"er"s voice had a slight tremble to it as she spoke each word slowly, "I was originally wondering why, even though Sect Leader"s alluring bone hadn"t matured, yet the charms on you were already this heavy, so that"s how it is. Everyone says that us, rao ren, are like foxes. l.u.s.tful and perverted, which is why many of us are actors[2] and prost.i.tutes. But they don"t know foxes have extremely deep emotions for love, and rao ren"s are the same. Once our hearts move for someone, then we would love that person for the rest of our lives. But if we were to be betrayed by that person, then our alluring bone would have a pathological change. Normal people won"t be able to tell, but since I"m also a rao ren myself, I can see through it clearly."
"Love…" Bai Tan showed no expression, and no ripples appeared his eyes either, "If the alluring bone has a pathological change…what will happen?"
Gui Yu"er turned around and grabbed onto one of his hands, her fingers were ice-cold as she squeezed onto it extremely tight.
Bai Tan was in a bit of pain from her grip but didn"t struggle as he let her flip his hand over, one of her fingers traveled from his lifeline and down. Then she stopped at the start of his thumb…then for the rest of the line, there was…none left.
Gui Yu"er"s brows quivered once, a teardrop fell into the youth"s palm soundlessly.
Bai Tan"s heart warmed up, thinking about it, a person who would actually shed tears truthfully for him in this world now, would just be this one and only blood-related family member of his. He reached out his hand unnaturally, and like an obedient child, he helped the woman in front of him, who looked a bit like his birth mother, wipe the corners of her eyes, "Aunt, don"t cry. Aunt could just tell me straightforwardly, how many years do I have left to live?"
Gui Yu"er shed a few tears in silence, after being quiet for a while, she finally spoke, "Nephew, your Aunt wants to plead with you for something."
"Go ahead."
"Find a place like a paradise and live your days in joy…do not get involved in these killing acts of Jiang Hu anymore."
"So…that means there aren"t many days left?" Bai Tan nodded his head, it was as if he wasn"t talking about himself, since he had asked and answered himself, then he smiled, "Then I must do things as quickly as possible. Get what I"ve wanted into my hands and do what I"ve wanted to do, so that I don"t have to die with regrets. I, Bai Tan"s life is thinner than a paper…heart higher than the sky[3], but what of it?"
Gui Yu"er gazed at the youth"s face within the candlelight, and thought he was really like an epiphyllum, they only bloomed for a short while, but they would be extremely gorgeous. It wasn"t like other items that could stay in this world for a long period, with just an eddy of cold wind, he would wither away.
But he didn"t want to wither away soundlessly, instead, he wanted to be like the wildfire and burn all of this earth"s ground.
She wiped away her tears and smiled along with him, "Didn"t think that your and Aunt"s personality would be quite so similar…that year, your Aunt was also determined, so I"d endured it all up to now, and now my life has gone on for almost enough time. But, before I die, I need to finish a wish of mine first."
Bai Tan curled his hand back into his sleeve, as he felt his heart soften, just from the feeling that Gui Yu"er was extremely close to him and he asked softly, "Could Aunt"s wish, have to do with that Fu Lu?"
"Naturally. For him, I stole something I was supposed to be guarding and brought shame to the Mandala Sect, so I will help the young sect master retrieve the item. I went under the Mandala Sect at the age of twelve, while the old sect master was still alive, he treated me like he was both my father and master. Then entrusted the priestess position of guarding the sacred treasure to me, yet I made such a big mistake, for a vicious thief…" While mentioning the past events, Gui Yu"er felt remorseful then and coughed a bit, then exhaled lightly, "This is…for the young sect master and also for myself…the shame at Loulan, is an event I can"t forget, for my whole life."
Bai Tan looked at her attentively, "What did Aunt experience while being in Loulan? If Aunt isn"t willing to talk about it, it"s fine too."
Gui Yu"er shook her head, "Do you know of the origin of the "Demonic Beauty of Loulan" t.i.tle?"
Bai Tan shook his head.
"It was because on the birthday banquet of the Loulan king, I killed him and three princes, six officials, slaughtered three hundred of the royal palace"s guards and escaped Loulan. I killed them all to wash away the shame with blood…when I was imprisoned within the Loulan Palace, I suffered shame from the Loulan king daily." As Gui Yu"er spoke, a mad light shone lightly within her tear-covered eyes, "That Loulan king"s been impotent since he was young, so Fu Lu offered for me to treat his illness. Once the Loulan king"s illness was treated, he immediately stepped up to a high position and became the most powerful official of the country. Then he also took the princess of Loulan as his wife…"
Hearing that, Bai Tan couldn"t bear to continue listening, "Since Aunt has known Fu Lu for such a long time, and he is also the second tang zhu of Yue Yin Palace, do you know anything about the great tang zhu of Yue Yin Palace, Tian Su?"
"Tian Su?" Gui Yu"er mumbled the name once and thought about it thoroughly, "I"ve only gone to the Yue Yin Palace once and didn"t see him in person, but I"ve heard this person"s name…a few years ago, I also heard the thief mention, if it weren"t for Tian Su, then the Yue Yin Palace wouldn"t have fallen to that point either."
Bai Tan was a bit stunned, "What does that mean?"
"The things he said, I don"t know if they"re true or false either…"
"Go ahead and speak of it, it"s fine."
"According to his words, Tian Su and your shizun, Wu Yanfu, were really close with each other. When he was still young, and before he had entered the Yue Yin Palace as a disciple, he was actually once a disciple of Wu Yanfu"s. But then, for some reason, he got in touch with the third tang zhu of the Yue Yin Palace, "Ghost Envoy of Soul Hooking" and saved him, then also vowed to be brothers with the other. Like so, this event had angered Wu Yanfu and Wu Yanfu kicked him out of the sect. He beat him hard enough for him to lose memories, and it was the "Ghost Envoy of Soul Hooking" who took him back to the Yue Yin Palace to heal, only then did he barely survive from the injuries. From then on, he settled down within the Yue Yin Palace."
"So he experienced such a thing, that kind of cruel tactic does sound like that old demon"s style. No wonder he reached out a hand to help me that year…" Bai Tan"s eyes squinted while thinking, and his heart moved a bit.
So then that would explain it, it wouldn"t be so odd if Tian Su had taught him moves from his sect. Could that yao ren really be him?
"But I remember hearing Fu Lu say that day, Tian Su didn"t actually lose his memories, and the painful and bitter experiences of him being kicked out of the sect, were nothing but an act." Gui Yu"er stopped for a bit, "From beginning to end, it was all a plan set by Wu Yanfu."
"What?!" Bai Tan couldn"t react fast enough at the moment then.
"He said, Tian Su was a chess piece planted by Wu Yanfu into the Yue Yin Palace. He was his spy and only followed his order."
Translator: Crispyfry
Proofreader: Grumpykit
QC: Xiao
Important Notice: Updates on this story will be slow because the translator for this is super busy at the moment.
Translator"s Comments: Gui Yu"er is so sweet, I honestly wanted to cry when she was telling Bai Tan to live happily and stop being involved with the Jiang Hu. Again, Fu Lu, you sc.u.m.
Proofreader"s Comments: It seems, the fact that Wu Yanfu was keeping tabs on him at all times is about to come out. So, what now cutie? The guy you thought saved you, was acting on "That old demon"s" orders.
Xiao"s Comments: I kinda like how Bai Tan keeps on insisting on calling Wu Yanfu "that old demon" even though he, himself, admitted that Wu Yanfu was the most handsome man he had ever seen. It"s kinda like he"s trying to convince himself that he is, by no way, attracted to him or was/still is in love with him, lol. You know, if Ji Du wasn"t such a snake (pun intended), I"ll feel bad for him cause I"m sure Wu Yanfu is ordering him around like a dog to accommodate all his plans. But Ji Du"s such a selfish, backstabbing snake, so, yeah, you deserve what you getting~ Also, f.u.c.k you Fu Lu, you sc.u.mbag.
Translator"s Notes:
[1] "secretly crossed the Wei River at Chencang" – "暗度陈仓", refers to a stratagem used by Liu Bang 劉邦刘邦 in 206 BC against Xiang Yu 項羽项羽 of Chu. A tactic where they attack from the secret paths on the side unexpectedly, while the enemy is focused on the front.
[2] Actor – 戏子, this is a literal translation and actors in imperial china were looked down upon, they were basically on the same level of a prost.i.tute, due to similar reasons.
[3] "Life thinner than paper, heart higher than the sky" – 命比纸薄，心比天高, literal translation, a proverb that describes one who doesn"t have control over their life or death, they"re born poor and low-status, they can"t express their own ambitions in life, and so they will remain as a low being all the way to their death.
Chapter 35