Chapter 9: Refraining his Killing Intent

Yi Chenlan’s rapid progress was something Shu Wan was pleased to see. 

However, she did not tell Jiang Yang, nor did she inform Shu Qi. 

After all, how many people could break through to the second level of the Blazing Sun Manual in just a few days? As the saying goes: “A tree that stands out in the forest will be toppled by the wind.” She was afraid it would bring trouble to Yi Chenlan.

She kept quiet, and Yi Chenlan did not speak either. 

For a time, this became their little secret.

However, Yi Chenlan did not anticipate Shu Wan’s silence. 

He had thought that Shu Wan would surely tell Shu Qi about it, and that his life would probably become difficult in the days to come. 

To his surprise, she told no one, and instead, every day she smiled at him and made playful eye gestures.

It seemed she was expressing that he was impressive and should keep working hard…

Finally, one day Yi Chenlan could no longer stand Shu Wan’s innocent, animal-like gaze. 

He coughed lightly and casually asked: “Wan Wan, why hasn’t Senior Brother Jiang come to practice these past few days?”

Wow, the beautiful woman was speaking to her today. Shu Wan immediately answered with delight: “Senior Brother Ah Yang has been practicing swordplay these past two days and isn’t focusing on internal cultivation.”

A hint of guilt appeared in Yi Chenlan’s beautiful eyes. “Wan Wan, you haven’t trained swordplay for a long time, have I delayed you by practicing with me?”

“No, no, not at all.” Shu Wan quickly waved her hand to deny it. 

It had indeed been a long time since she trained swordplay, but she didn’t miss it at all. 

First of all, swordplay wasn’t as fun as watching her cute villain, so it would be very boring. 

Secondly, practicing swordplay wasn’t like internal cultivation, where she could secretly slack off. 

In fact, there were several times she had fallen asleep while sitting there, and no one noticed.

Yi Chenlan smiled slightly but said nothing. 

He quietly adjusted his internal energy. However, today the True Qi within him was somewhat chaotic, and several of his major acupoints had become stiff and blocked.  ^[1]True Qi refers to the fundamental, innate life force that resides within the body, often cultivated and directed through internal practices like Qigong and Taijiquan.

He said nothing and focused on gathering his strength to break through.

A dull pain spread throughout his body, as though a steel needle were moving within him. Yi Chenlan ignored the intense pain, pressing harder to force a quick breakthrough.

Suddenly, a soft hand rested on his back. Yi Chenlan’s heart sank. 

The years of torment had made him instinctively want to strike. 

The next moment, however, he felt a gentle, soothing Internal Qi flowing into his body from his back.

It was Shu Wan… she was using her own Blazing Sun True Qi to help him adjust his breathing.

Yi Chenlan instinctively resisted, but Shu Wan’s hand gestures left him no room to refuse. 

Her gentle Internal Qi swept through his meridians like a soft breeze. 

When it encountered any blockages, it did not forcefully break through like he had done, but patiently unraveled them.

This made him feel an extremely unfamiliar sensation, one of being cherished…

Yi Chenlan thought he might have gone crazy. 

For the first time, such a sensation, which should have been pleasant, surged within him. Yet, instead of warmth, he felt an inexplicable fear—he didn’t even know what he was afraid of.

When Shu Wan’s Internal Qi had passed through the last major acupoint, Yi Chenlan immediately stood up and took two steps back.

Shu Wan suddenly felt a little guilty. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, did I hurt you?” That shouldn’t have happened. She had been very gentle just now.

“It’s not that.” Yi Chenlan noticed that he seemed a bit disheveled. He forced a smile. “It’s my own issue. Thank you for helping me clear my True Qi.”

His face was slightly pale, and Shu Wan seemed a bit worried. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, are you feeling unwell? You should rest today. Let me take you back, okay?”

Yi Chenlan was indeed finding it difficult to hold up. 

He had intended to return on his own, but since Shu Wan insisted on escorting him, he couldn’t refuse and allowed her to do as she wished.

Shu Wan could immediately tell that something was off with his physical condition, but after circulating her True Qi through his body, she found nothing. 

She quietly pondered, deciding it would be best to have Uncle-Master Zhou take a look at him for her to feel at ease.

As they entered Jingtong Pavilion, Shu Wan immediately smelled an unusual fragrance. She paused for a moment and then frowned slightly.

It was the scent of decayed ashes, mixed with a faint fruit fragrance. 

Since the entire world had been set up by her, and the scent was so unique, she immediately began to suspect it was a kind of deadly poison from the novel—the Reincarnation Incense.

The Reincarnation Incense was a kind of poison. 

Those who inhaled it for an extended period would gradually lose strength and eventually die. 

It had a simple composition, but the recipe was complicated. 

However, most poison practitioners would know how to make it, and even Yi Chenlan, after self-learning poison techniques on Snowy Night Mountain later on, would be able to prepare it. 

But right now, Yi Chenlan didn’t know any poison techniques, so he couldn’t detect the Reincarnation Incense. He also had no idea how long he had been inhaling it, which explained why he felt so weak.

In a moment of panic, Shu Wan grabbed Yi Chenlan’s hand and spoke urgently: “Senior Brother Ah Lan, someone is trying to harm you!”

Yi Chenlan froze for a moment, but Shu Wan had already let go of his hand and ran to the writing desk. She sniffed the incense burner and immediately recognized the smell—it was the Reincarnation Incense!

She grabbed the incense burner and rushed outside, dumping its contents into a tree pit and stepping on it. Then, she returned to Yi Chenlan, holding up the incense burner for him to see. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, the substance inside this incense burner is called Reincarnation Incense. It’s a deadly poison! Prolonged exposure can kill you! Who gave this to you? Tell me, I’ll make sure you’re avenged!”

Yi Chenlan’s expression was somewhat unreadable. He took the incense burner and slowly stroked it. “Is that so? Wan Wan, how do you know this is deadly poison?”

“I…” Shu Wan stumbled over her words, feeling flustered. “I—I saw it in Uncle-Master Zhou’s poison manual. The smell of Reincarnation Incense is exactly like this…”

Yi Chenlan nodded slightly and casually set the incense burner aside.

Shu Wan noticed that he didn’t seem to grasp the severity of the situation, which made her even more anxious. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, you still haven’t told me who gave you this incense? Who is trying to harm you?”

“I don’t remember.” Yi Chenlan lowered his head slightly. “Whoever gave it to me, I have no impression of it. It was delivered by a servant.”

Shu Wan’s heart softened painfully as she looked at him. 

How could he be so pitiful? If she hadn’t noticed this today, would the villain of her story have quietly been poisoned to death?

Was it because of the butterfly effect she had caused that the plot had veered off course like this?

Shu Wan looked at Yi Chenlan with a heart full of pity. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, you must have inhaled too much Reincarnation Incense, which is why you’re feeling so weak. Please rest for a moment while I go fetch Uncle-Master Zhou.”

Before Yi Chenlan could respond, Shu Wan turned and ran off.

Yi Chenlan stood in place for a long while. 

After quite some time, he slowly turned his head, his gaze landing on the small incense burner.

Since the Reincarnation Incense was in his room, Shu Wan naturally thought someone had poisoned him.

There was no way she could have known that this Reincarnation Incense… was something he had prepared himself.

His Jingtong Pavilion had never been visited by anyone, except for Shu Wan, who somehow seemed to come here almost every day. 

A few days ago, he had made the Reincarnation Incense, and having already taken the antidote beforehand, he had started burning it in his room from yesterday.

This deadly poison was meant for Shu Wan.

His plan had been foolproof. 

Before the poison took effect on Shu Wan, he would have already disposed of everything. 

He had taken advantage of his rebirth, and no one knew he could make and cure poison. 

In the eyes of others, he neither had the ability nor the motive, and his disguise was perfect.

Although Shu Qi often tried to frame him, this time was different. He knew that Shu Qi would not give up on finding the “real culprit” who poisoned his daughter, just to “frame” him.

He hadn’t expected that Shu Wan would so directly reveal the mystery behind it.

Yi Chenlan’s hand slowly pressed over his dantian, where there was still a warm Internal Qi—Shu Wan had left this to protect him. 

Earlier, she had hurriedly disposed of the Reincarnation Incense and repeatedly promised to take charge of the situation. Her clear, transparent pupils were filled with sincerity and concern.

He had always thought that there was no one in this world who would care about his life. No one would hoped for him to live well.

Yi Chenlan tried to force himself to recall the wrongs Shu Wan had done in his past life, to keep himself from wavering. 

But the two versions of Shu Wan—the one from his past life and the one from this life—tugged at his heart, and in the end, he sighed helplessly.

Fine.

In this life, she had shown him kindness. 

He had already killed her once before; let’s call it even.

As for escaping Zhongshan Sect, he would find another way.

“Alright, alright, I’m coming, don’t rush me. You little girl really isn’t polite. Do you think I’m your family’s doctor?” 

“Uncle-Master Zhou, you’ve worked hard, hahaha… A healer’s heart is filled with benevolence, with great righteousness. You must do this without hesitation. Look at the steps, look at the steps…”

Yi Chenlan’s brow slightly twitched, and he locked the incense burner in the cabinet. 

Shu Wan was easy to fool. If she mentioned it to Zhou Yuan, he could simply claim that he had already taken the antidote. And since it would no longer be detectable, he could easily say that she had mistaken the scent.

But if Zhou Yuan personally smelled the Reincarnation Incense, it wouldn’t be so easy to deal with.

As soon as Shu Wan entered, she saw Yi Chenlan still standing. “Senior Brother Ah Lan, what are you doing? Why aren’t you resting? Go lie down, let Uncle-Master Zhou check your pulse.”

“Is he made of porcelain?” Zhou Yuan’s tone was somewhat displeased as he tapped the table. “Come here and sit down.”

Yi Chenlan walked over and placed his hand on the table. His wrist was slender yet strong, subtly radiating power. “Thank you for your trouble, Uncle-Master Zhou.”

As soon as Zhou Yuan touched his pulse, he raised an eyebrow. “You’ve started practicing the Blazing Sun Manual?”

Yi Chenlan responded briefly: “Yes.”

He didn’t elaborate any further. Shu Wan who was so anxious for him, widened her eyes and asked Zhou Yuan: “Uncle-Master Zhou, is there something wrong with Senior Brother Ah Lan practicing the Blazing Sun Manual? Is there an issue?”

“It wouldn’t normally be a problem.” Zhou Yuan pondered for a moment: “Although your progress is fast and your internal energy is solid, after the severe injury and immersion in icy water, the evil cold still hasn’t fully dissipated. It clashes with the pure, yang energy of the Blazing Sun True Qi, damaging your meridians.”

He snorted derisively. “I’ve never seen anyone practice martial arts like this—when encountering blockages, you ignore them and force your way through. No matter how strong the body, it will be ruined like this.”

Yi Chenlan had planned to accelerate his cultivation, hoping to reach the fifth level and exchange energy channels with Shu Wan, then secretly speed up her poisoning. 

But now, he discarded that thought. Seeing Shu Wan again, he felt a complex mix of emotions and didn’t want to face her any longer. He then spoke: “Thank you for your guidance, Uncle-Master. In that case, I will pause my practice of the Blazing Sun Manual and focus on healing my meridians first.”

“There’s no need to stop.” Zhou Yuan suggested. “Just don’t push too hard while practicing. The Blazing Sun True Qi can expel cold and nourish the body, so it should be beneficial to you.”

After Shu Wan heard this, she understood the situation. However, she remembered another concern and asked: “Uncle-Master Zhou, is there anything else wrong with Senior Brother Ah Lan’s health?”

She didn’t dare mention the Reincarnation Incense directly. After all, she had never seen Zhou Yuan’s poison manual. If Zhou Yuan asked her how she knew about the Reincarnation Incense, it would expose her lies.

“This is the most pressing issue.” Zhou Yuan glanced at her and scolded: “What else could be wrong? Is he still alive or not?”

Nothing else? Could it be… she had misunderstood the situation?

Shu Wan began to doubt herself, but just then, Zhou Yuan turned to Yi Chenlan with a serious tone and said: “For your condition, medicine won’t help. You’ll need to recover on your own. Don’t take it lightly. If you don’t stop the damage now, you could end up paralyzed or severely weakened to the point of death.”