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Chapter 40: The Secret of Evergreen
The poisoned bone arrow pierced through Mu Xiuyun's chest, with the arrowhead emerging from her back.
Although it did not hit her heart directly, it almost grazed it, and the dispersed damage and poison had already seeped into her heart veins.
"With such severe injury, there is no way to recover!"
Lan Chang'an's face was solemn as he sighed inwardly.
Such a fatal wound could only be saved by a third-rank healing pill or a Core Formation cultivator's personal intervention.
As a Foundation Establishment market town, Bamboo Leaf Mountain could not meet either of these conditions.
Lan Chang'an could only input his Evergreen power to neutralize the poison and protect Mu Xiuyun's heart veins.
He hoped to allow Mu Xiuyun a brief period of lucidity before her death, to leave a final message. At the very least, she should reveal the true culprit. So that Lan Chang'an could be on guard in the future.
However, as soon as he transferred Mu Xiuyun to the third-floor bedroom of the shop, her heartbeat was already inaudible.
Her heart had stopped!
Although Lan Chang'an Evergreen power had neutralized the poison, the damage from the poisoned arrow had already eroded and harmed her heart veins.
"Dead?"
Lan Chang'an stared blankly at the graceful and delicate young lady on the bed, whose breathing and heartbeat were gone, with her life force irreversibly fading.
To mortals or low-level cultivators, this was already a corpse. At best, a beautiful corpse.
It wouldn't be long before her soul dissipated and her body started to decay. But Lan Chang'an, coming from Earth and having undergone two lifetimes of cultivation, knew that a stopped heart did not mean there was no chance of saving her.
Perform CPR?
The power of the poisoned arrow had already eroded and damaged the heart, he was afraid that CPR would cause secondary damage.
"I can only try the Evergreen Technique's healing secret spell, even if it is just to temporarily sustain her life."
Lan Chang'an sat cross-legged by the bed, treating a dead horse as if it were alive.
The Ancient Trees Evergreen Technique being a wood-based cultivation method naturally had healing capabilities and included a healing secret spell.
Since it would deplete his vitality, Lan Chang'an had never used it before.
Buzz!
The mana in Lan Chang'an's body surged, and a layer of ancient, verdant green light swirled around his palm.
It was as if an ancient tree was extending new green shoots, absorbing and exhaling the breath of life.
At this moment, he couldn't care about the difference between men and women. Lan Chang'an untied Mu Xiuyun's dress, placing his hand, enveloped in green light, over her chest wound.
The dark green at the wound site faded at a visible speed.
The wound gradually scabbed over, and the nearby skin was restored to an icy, jade-like purity.
Lan Chang'an couldn't help but be surprised, the Evergreen Technique's healing secret spell was unexpectedly good. Just like its poison-dissolution ability, it far surpassed ordinary wood-based cultivation methods.
"Ugh..."
Mu Xiuyun on the bed groaned, a fine layer of sweat appearing on her forehead, and a faint red flush appeared on her pale face.
"Regaining consciousness?" Lan Chang'an's heart leaped with joy, keeping his hand on Mu Xiuyun's chest, afraid she would stop breathing the next moment.
"I...I didn't die?"
Mu Xiuyun opened her starry eyes and looked at Lan Chang'an, her pale face squeezing out a faint smile.
"Changan, it really is you..."
The last time she was poisoned in the medicine garden, she felt herself falling into endless darkness, but a strand of pale green warmth had pulled her out of the abyss. Today, that feeling came once more.
Even though Lan Chang'an was disguised, the familiar masculine presence was unmistakable.
"Steady your breath, speak softly." Lan Chang'an removed his disguise, raised his hand to stop her, and said sternly:
"Leave your final words quickly. Who is the murderer? I need to give the Mu Family an explanation."
Mu Xiuyun paused, the red flush on her snowy face showing a faint, tragic bleakness.
"The murderer is a rogue cultivator."
"Three late-stage Qi-Refining cultivators, wearing masks. The leader, at the ninth layer of Qi-Refining, was extraordinary, possessing a superior-grade magical bow and an extremely fast flying eagle spirit bird..."
As she described, her starry eyes revealed a sense of reluctance, instinctively tightening her grip on Lan Chang'an's warm hand, not letting it leave her chest.
After revealing the murderer, Mu Xiuyun felt a weight lifted off her shoulders.
She quietly gazed at Lan Chang'an, her delicate and graceful face showing a serene smile:
"Chang'an, dying in front of you is also a kind of luck."
"Do you know why I announced that I would not marry outside back then? You clearly had a slim chance in the path of immortality, why were you unwilling to join the Mu Family? If you were willing, we... could have had a child in the future and let him take your surname Lan."
Mu Xiuyun's heartfelt confession before death stunned Lan Chang'an.
But, young lady, you are thinking too far ahead!
Phew!
At this moment, Lan Chang'an power was exhausted, and his vitality greatly depleted, forcing him to stop the healing technique.
Mu Xiuyun clutched his hand tightly, keeping it on her chest.
"Before I die, can you hug me once?" A blush appeared on her face.
"Mm."
A dying person's last wish was hard for Lan Chang'an to refuse. Besides, the young lady had nurtured and taken care of him in many ways.
Lan Chang'an embraced the graceful and elegant young lady, who buried her head in his chest, experiencing the warmth before death.
Hm?
Lan Chang'an's hand was still on her chest, feeling the gradually steady heartbeat, realizing something was amiss.
Earlier, in the rush he had been touching an inappropriate spot, but did not pay close attention.
"Me, why am I still alive?" A few breaths later, Mu Xiuyun, slightly confused, touched the bone arrow in her chest.
"Strange! How come you are not dead?" Lan Chang'an said subconsciously, confused and uncertain.
He released his hand to check Mu Xiuyun's condition. Her pulse was steady, and the fatal wound on her heart had healed.
The bone arrow was still lodged in her chest, but for a cultivator, it wouldn't be lethal in a short time.
"How is it?" Mu Xiuyun looked at Lan Chang'an with a glimmer of hope in her eyes.
Lan Chang'an's expression was unusual: "You have come back to life."
"I really survived?" Mu Xiuyun's face lit up like the morning glow, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"You don't seem happy that I'm alive?"
Mu Xiuyun's starry eyes shifted to Lan Chang'an, who was lost in thought.
"...No."
Lan Chang'an's original intention was to sustain Mu Xiuyun's life, allowing her to leave a final message and reveal the murderer.
But plans couldn't keep up with changes.
The healing secret spell of the Evergreen Technique had exceeded his expectations, actually bringing Mu Xiuyun back from death.
After using this healing secret, Lan Chang'an realized that it had consumed two months of his lifespan.
The Evergreen Technique prolonged longevity by drawing on the energy of time.
The healing secret spell that brought back life would consume lifespan?
Through this accident, Lan Chang'an touched upon the core secret of the Evergreen Technique.
Hiss!
Mu Xiuyun was so happy that she moved her wound, causing cold sweat to stream down from the pain.
"Don't move, I'll help you remove the arrow."
Lan Chang'an had Mu Xiuyun lie on her side on the bed, first using a cleansing spell to remove the poison from the arrowhead.
One hand on her chest, using Evergreen mana to protect her heart veins.
The other hand slowly pulled out the bone arrow.
During the process of pulling out the arrow, Mu Xiuyun was drenched in fragrant sweat from the pain. But she smiled silently, looking at Lan Chang'an's serious expression.
After the arrow was removed, Lan Chang'an applied ointment and infused Evergreen mana to accelerate the healing of Mu Xiuyun's wound.
"Chang'an, your wood-based technique is extraordinary, its healing effects are truly amazing!"
Mu Xiuyun was silent for a moment, then couldn't help but speak.
Noticing Lan Chang'an's slightly furrowed expression.
She seemed to understand something and smiled with pursed lips: "Chang'an, every cultivator has their secrets. After the incident in the herb garden, I felt you were different from ordinary cultivators."
"If you are worried, I, Xiuyun, swear by my heart demon that I will never reveal today's events to a third party." Mu Xiuyun raised her hand, solemnly swearing.
"The young lady is not an outsider; it's not that serious."
Lan Chang'an's brows relaxed, showing a smile, satisfied with Mu Xiuyun's intelligence and thoughtfulness.
The healing effect of the technique was not a shocking secret. To ordinary cultivators, it was not as attractive as Bottleneck-breaking pills or Foundation Establishment pills.
Even the longevity extension of the Evergreen Technique, some high-level wood-based techniques also possessed, could extend life by more than ten percent.
Lan Chang'an's greatest secret was the NineSeal Stele; the Evergreen Technique was secondary, and the healing secret spell was just the tip of the iceberg.
"I, the 'final words' I just said..."
Mu Xiuyun, with her injuries stabilized, thought of her previous near-death confession, her face burning with embarrassment, both annoyed and awkward.
"What last words? How come I don't know." Lan Chang'an said calmly.
As he finished speaking, Mu Xiuyun took hold of his shoulder, her flowing hair dancing, and her delicate face enlarged in his vision.
Lan Chang'an was startled, feeling a soft, fragrant sensation between his lips.
The fragrance of osmanthus and orchid surrounded them as they kissed.
Moments later.
With a clear mind, Lan Chang'an released the still-weak young lady.
"Rest well and heal."
Lan Chang'an had Mu Xiuyun lie down on the bed.
"Chang'an, will you run away?" Mu Xiuyun, feeling uneasy, clutched his hand.
Lan Chang'an was surprised at Mu Xiuyun's intuition and decided to be honest:
"After reaching the seventh layer of Qi-Refining, I will leave the Mu Family."
After reaching the seventh layer, he planned to seek opportunities for Foundation Establishment, as the Mu Family would no longer be of much help.
Currently, the timing was not ripe.
How could Mu Xiuyun not understand the implication, her starry eyes dimmed.
Releasing her hand, Lan Chang'an left.
She murmured softly, "You are truly candid!"
"Knowing you will leave, do you not want to be entangled with me? Not even two decades with the entire Mu Family could make you hold any lingering attachment?"
...
Mu Xiuyun's near-death attack outside the market caused a stir afterward.
This was the second incident of merchants being attacked by rogue cultivators.
A few days later.
Mu Xiuyun, together with other major merchants, pressured the Maple Leaf Huang Family to strengthen market security and eliminate the rampant rogue cultivators. 𝑓𝓻ℯ𝑒𝑤𝘦𝑏𝑛ℴ𝓋ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝓸𝓂
Concerned about their safety, the major merchants stood united.
The Maple Leaf Huang Family, feeling the pressure, had to convene a meeting to discuss countermeasures.