Chapter 417: Under the Heavens, Who Doesn’t Have a Grudge with Your Master?
Chapter 417: Under the Heavens, Who Doesn’t Have a Grudge with Your Master?
Meng Jingzhou felt that there must be something wrong with Lu Yang.
Ever since they entered the Desolate Lands, he felt that Lu Yang’s condition had worsened.
“The thing is, I found Shuang Feiyan, the Valley Master of Seven Emotions Valley. Valley Master Shuang has some connections with the Fourth Elder and is willing to help you with the karmic backlash. However, her ability is limited, and she can only alleviate part of it, not fully resolve it.”
On the way to find Meng Jingzhou, Lu Yang had considered that if Valley Master Shuang’s Cultivation wasn’t enough to completely resolve the backlash, maybe they could ask the previous Valley Master or one of the Seven Emotions Valley’s Elder figures for help.
Valley Master Shuang’s response was—do you think that just because they’re older than me, they’ve reached the Tribulation Crossing Stage?
“Valley Master Shuang can change the karmic backlash from ‘unable to see women’ to ‘every woman you meet will hate you.’ However, to completely lift it will require further effort.”
Meng Jingzhou’s expression became strange. “Why does it feel like those two effects are about the same?”
“How can you say they’re the same? Before, you couldn’t even enter the front doors of a brothel. Now, you can actually go inside.”“Next time, please use a better analogy, thanks.”
Meng Jingzhou squatted on the ground, stroking his chin as he thought. If part of the curse were lifted, he wouldn’t have to hide in the mountains all the time, listening to Lu Yang brag about his luck with women. He could also return to the city, go wherever he wanted without restrictions, and no longer worry about disasters forcing him to flee in every direction.
“Alright, then I’ll trouble Valley Master Shuang. Uh, how should I communicate with her?”
Lu Yang sighed. Since Meng Jingzhou couldn’t meet Valley Master Shuang, and the old horse was unreliable, it was up to him to be the messenger.
Accepting his fate, he returned the way he came and found Valley Master Shuang meditating under a tree.
“Did you find your companion?”
“Yes, I did. He’s willing to accept your treatment.”
Valley Master Shuang nodded, but then another issue seemed to cross her mind, and she frowned slightly.
“Is something wrong?”
“His curse is extremely difficult to deal with. Even just partially alleviating it will be quite challenging. I need to observe his condition to determine the best method of resolution.”
“But you can’t meet Old Meng face to face, can you?”
“Yes, that’s exactly the problem.”
Valley Master Shuang, having lived over two thousand years and with far more experience than Lu Yang, quickly came up with a solution.
“There is a way. I can use the Suspended String Pulse Reading.”
“However, the vegetation around here interferes with the diagnostic process, making it inconvenient to perform. So, bring your companion to the entrance of Seven Emotions Valley, where there are no obstacles.”
After saying this, Valley Master Shuang flew back to Seven Emotions Valley on her own to prepare the magical tools needed for the Suspended String Pulse Reading.
Lu Yang once again returned to the barren mountain where Meng Jingzhou was, and with the help of the old horse, they were transported to Seven Emotions Valley.
This time, the old horse didn’t slow down and instead used a space technique to bring them back quickly.
By the time they arrived, all the outsiders who had come to Seven Emotions Valley for curse removal had already dispersed, and the disciples who had been attending to them had carried their stools back into the valley. Meng Jingzhou returned to Seven Emotions Valley without any issues.
Lu Yang entered Seven Emotions Valley and obtained the magical tool for the Suspended String Pulse Reading from Valley Master Shuang.
The Suspended String Pulse Reading was an ancient diagnostic method originating from the Great Qian Dynasty. One of the Qian Emperor’s concubines fell ill and required a royal physician for treatment. However, since the concubine was the emperor’s woman, it was not permissible for other men to touch her.
In the Great Qian dynasty, the royal physicians devised a method. They would tie one end of a silk thread around the concubine’s wrist, while the other end was held by the physician. Based on the sensations transmitted through the suspended thread—such as pulse patterns, spiritual energy, and other factors—along with their extensive medical knowledge, the physicians would diagnose the illness.
The more skillful physicians, however, would master stealth techniques, secretly visiting the concubine under the cover of night to treat her without anyone knowing.
(TL Note: I wrote an entire tl note to explain this… I should have read further on…)
“I understand all of this, but why have you tied me up so tightly? You said the Suspended String Pulse Reading only needed to wrap around my wrist!”
Meng Jingzhou was furious. He was entirely wrapped in white silk threads, with only his mouth left uncovered.
“Quiet, quiet.”
Lu Yang proceeded to wrap his mouth shut as well.
“This is the only way. This isn’t an ordinary karmic backlash. One silk thread isn’t enough to diagnose it properly. You need to be fully bound for the best diagnosis. Just bear with it; it’s what Valley Master Shuang suggested.”
Meng Jingzhou finally gave in and obediently waited for Valley Master Shuang’s diagnosis.
Meanwhile, Lu Yang returned to the Seven Emotions Valley, where Valley Master Shuang sat holding a bundle of thread ends, her eyes closed in deep meditation, thinking over how to resolve the situation.
Lu Yang held his breath, not daring to disturb Valley Master Shuang’s diagnosis.
“Twin Single Bachelor’s Golden Cores, huh? Quite the bold choice.”
“You can tell it’s a Single Bachelor’s Golden Core?” Lu Yang was astonished. This was the first time someone outside of the Dao Seeking Sect had identified Meng Jingzhou’s Golden Core.
“I once encountered someone with a Single Bachelor’s Spirit Root in my youth. He was quite talented, but still couldn’t compare to your companion.”
“Judging from these bloodline traits and the surname Meng, he must be a member of the Meng family.” Valley Master Shuang smiled, reminiscing about her younger days.
“This karmic backlash is interesting—it’s even more severe than Shanren described. But fortunately, it hasn’t exceeded my expectations.”
Valley Master Shuang had already formulated a plan to partially resolve the karmic backlash.
“Have you studied the principles of curses?”
“No.”
“Curses have both spiritual and physical attributes. To break a curse, you need to address both the physical body and the soul.”
“This is toad skin, dried centipede, and Five Poisons Insect Powder. Feed these to the Meng family kid in the order I’ve outlined. Remember, they must be eaten raw to break the physical aspect of the curse. Then, use this set of Seven Star Silver Needles to perform bloodletting. Once the wounds heal, repeat the process two more times. The Seven Star Silver Needles have the ability to connect to the soul, which will help break the spiritual aspect of the curse.”
“Do you remember everything I told you?”
“Let me confirm—are you sure that the toad skin and the other things must be eaten raw?”
“You can cook them if you prefer, but eating them raw is more efficient.”
“Absorption efficiency?”
“Time efficiency—you’ll save the time it takes to cook them.”
“Alright, I got it.” Lu Yang turned to leave but was stopped by Valley Master Shuang.
“Wait a moment, there’s something else I need to confirm with you.”
“Yes?”
“That old thief Daoist Non-Speaker is really still alive, huh? I know some sect leaders like to secretly fake their deaths to avoid causing too much of a stir. But if that old thief really is dead, just tell me, and I’ll personally take you to the Corpse-Driving Sect to learn how to refine a Living Corpse.”
“You have a grudge against my master?”
Valley Master Shuang laughed coldly. “Who under the heavens doesn’t have a grudge against your master?”
“Back in the day, when your master was imprisoned, Shanren and I went to visit him. When he saw me, he claimed that he was immune to curses, that no curse could harm him. He said if I didn’t believe him, I could test it out. Naturally, I didn’t believe him, so I placed a few curses on him. Then your master got released from prison on medical grounds.”
Lu Yang: “…”
“Later, when the matter was exposed, the authorities arrested both your master and me again for prison escape.”
“…My master is still alive. He was in prison just a while ago, though I’m not sure if he’s been released yet.”
“That’s a shame.”
(End of the chapter)