The moment Du Sheng tells his first lie, within half a minute, his hand starts to rot. The gruesome signs of decay crawl inch by inch up his skin. In a matter of seconds, they spread to his face. The people present watch in horror as their shock quickly turns into fear.

“How terrifying… Du Sheng is terrifying.” Someone mutters, while children in the crowd shiver with goosebumps at Du Sheng’s horrifying appearance.

Qing Heng, who had been transferring his vital energy to Ming Qiao, glances over, distracted by the sight. He sees Du Sheng’s rotting marks and the grim expression on You Qing’s face. Without hesitation, Qing Heng picks up the child with one hand and steps in to separate You Qing and Du Sheng. 

He recognizes the spell of truth. Once it is cast, death is inevitable unless undone. Despite being a revered Immortal General, Qing Heng does not let compassion cloud his judgment. From You Qing’s questioning and Du Sheng’s response, it becomes clear that Du Sheng poisoned Qiao Qiao. 

At such a young age, with such a venomous heart, who knows how many more people Du Sheng might harm if he grows older? Qing Heng hates such vicious children. But despite his disgust, he suppresses Du Sheng’s rotting condition.

You Qing, who had been pushed aside, stares directly at Qing Heng with confusion in his eyes as he watches him heal Du Sheng’s wounds. “Why are you saving him?” he asks.

“I’m not saving him…” Qing Heng whispers, so softly it is almost inaudible.

“I’m saving you.”

This kind of vicious truth spell, if discovered, would surely lead to a huge mess. Qing Heng is unwilling to let a bad child ruin a good one.

The rot is temporarily suppressed, and Du Sheng finally realizes that You Qing wasn’t bluffing. If he doesn’t tell the truth, his body will rot and stink, he will die!

“It was me…”

Having witnessed his own decay, Du Sheng’s psychological defenses collapse. His voice trembles as he admits: “I was the one who placed the bamboo leaf grass. Immortal General save me!”

Du Sheng confessed. Wang Feilong, upon hearing it, feels utterly overwhelmed. What a mess! He doesn’t want to offend either the royal family Fei or the Lin Tian Sect.

“Qing Heng…” Wang Feilong begins, trying to see if there’s still a chance for reconciliation. But it seems his luck is bad today. Every time he tries to speak, something interrupts him. This time, just as he says Qing Heng’s name, another incident occurs.

The royal family Fei arrives to check on Du Sheng. Whether someone informed them or they sensed Du Sheng was in danger, they arrive unannounced and enter without notice. Among them, Bai Yu sneaks in as well.

The newcomers immediately head to the gathering crowd in the cafeteria, where the most people are gathered.

“Sheng’er!”

“Third Prince!”

Du Sheng, lying on the ground, is now in plain sight. Though his face is disfigured, his clothes and figure are still recognizable. A woman dressed in luxurious clothes rushes forward, crying out “Sheng’er” as she hurriedly embraces her suffering son, tears streaming down her face. (again it’s nickname)

“My child! Who did this to you?” she cries.

The royal family’s medical healer rushes forward to treat Du Sheng. Seeing the woman arrive, Wang Feilong closes his eyes, losing all hope. Any attempt to smooth things over is now impossible. All he can do is hope that neither the third prince nor Ming Qiao dies. He can’t bear the responsibility for the lives of these two noble children.

“Immortal General Qing Heng, Lord Wang,” the woman says, her tone filled with rage but restrained. 

“Since you are both here, surely you know who harmed my child. I beg you to deliver justice for my son.”

This woman, a member of both the royal family and a daughter in family of cultivators. So she recognizes Qing Heng and Wang Feilong. She looks at them with a gaze full of fury, demanding an explanation.

Wang Feilong, throat dry with bitterness, glances at the healer, who is sweating as he treats Du Sheng. He feels like he could use some medicine himself, his heart nearly stopping from the stress.

“Lady Du, no one harmed your child.” Qing Heng’s cold voice cuts in, sparing Wang Feilong the trouble of responding. 

In a chilly tone, he explains: “Your child poisoned my son, and this is his retribution.”

Qing Heng’s explanation stuns lady Du into silence. After a moment of processing, she shakes her head in denial.

“Impossible! My son is pure-hearted, he would never do such things!” Lady Du declares.

She holds onto Du Sheng’s hand tightly, recounting his filial piety and kindness to the crowd. She speaks of how her son is devoted to his parents and how he cared for his weak younger brother. How devastated he was after the brother’s accident, unable to eat for days. Such a loving and kind child could never harm anyone, she insists.

You Qing, listening closely, notices a subtle change in Du Sheng’s expression when lady Du mentions his younger brother. His dark eyes flash with a hint of intrigue, and he steps forward slightly. Qing Heng notices this immediately.

The next second, before You Qing could take any action, Qing Heng speaks again.

“My little son was poisoned, and your son has already confessed to it.” He states calmly. 

“Lady Du, your son is under the truth spell. Under its power, there is no lie.”

Qing Heng notices a powerful figure among the people accompanying lady Du. Although he has concealed most signs of the truth spell, he cannot fully hide it. Since You Qing was the one who cast the spell, the royal family might fear the sect but would have no problem targeting You Qing, who has no backing. 

By exposing the truth spell now, Qing Heng makes it appear as though he cast the spell, thus protecting You Qing.

Lady Du’s face immediately changes upon hearing about the truth spell. The truth spell is known to be a dark magic technique, and Qing Heng is famous for his efforts to eliminate dark magic. The idea that he used dark magic on her son deeply unsettles her.

Her face shifts with various emotions before she finally speaks, voice filled with resentment. “Immortal General, my child is young and ignorant. How could you be so ruthless?”

Now, lady Du no longer claims her son’s innocence. Instead, she accuses Qing Heng of being overly harsh. Qing Heng, having taken responsibility for the truth spell, cannot be bothered to argue further. His mind is focused on his own son, who is still suffering. Every second counts, and he doesn’t want to waste any more time.

“Lady Du, if I hadn’t arrived in time, my son would already be dead.” Qing Heng’s voice remains cold. 

“As I said, this is his rightful retribution. If you are dissatisfied, feel free to seek me out.”

Holding his pale-faced child, Qing Heng gives a cold glare to the fallen lady Du, the battle readiness filling in his eye is unmistakable. Lady Du sees it clearly.

“You…you…” Lady Du stammers, having never seen this side of Qing Heng. She wants to blame him, vent her anger, but Qing Heng doesn’t even glance back at her. With his injured child in his arms, he walks away without looking back.

“I don’t care what the reason is, you cannot hurt my child!” Lady Du shouts after him, unafraid of Qing Heng’s status or the power of the Lin Tian Sect behind him. 

Her voice trembles with rage: “Qing Heng, come back here! Release the truth spell from my son!”

Her angry cries echo behind him, but they receive no response. In the crowd, Bai Yu watches the scene unfold and wants to chase after Qing Heng. However, he notices his junior disciple still nearby.

“Junior brother, let’s go.” Bai Yu says, wanting to bring You Qing along to follow Qing Heng.

Before walking toward his senior, You Qing pauses in front of Du Sheng. He stops for a brief moment and says: “Du Sheng, now you can only tell the truth. Was your brother’s death related to you?”

After leaving this question, You Qing doesn’t wait for an answer and walks directly toward Bai Yu. Bai Yu grabs his wrist without a second’s delay, and they both follow Qing Heng.

Behind them, lady Du watches her son, whose expression grows more disturbed. Her heart skips a beat in fear. Under the truth spell, Du Sheng cannot avoid answering, he must respond. Yet her son, biting his lip so hard it bleeds, refuses to speak.

“Sheng’er…” Lady Du’s voice trembles as a chill runs down her spine. 

“Your brother’s death has nothing to do with you… Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Du Sheng bites down harder, but no words escape his lips. An elder steps forward from behind, picking Du Sheng up. 

“Sheng’er is the most gifted child in our royal family for cultivation.”

He says: “Qing Heng has destroyed Sheng’er, and in doing so, has destroyed the hope of our royal family. I will not let this matter go.”

The elder carries Du Sheng away without even glancing at lady Du, who remains frozen in place, her expression goes blank. To him, lady Du’s questioning was pointless. Between a dead, frail child and a living, extraordinarily talented one, the royal family knows which one is more valuable.

As Du Sheng is carried away, lady Du slowly rises, her eyes reddened with unshed tears. The pain in her heart is something no one can understand.

Far away, above the clouds, Qing Heng understands the pain that Ming Qiao is going through. Though the little one has buried his face, his small body still trembles in agony.

Qing Heng channels his energy to soothe the meridians in Ming Qiao’s body, all while searching for the best hidden location to expel the poison from him.

After searching for a while, Qing Heng chooses a secluded valley he has visited before. Though it lacks much spiritual energy, it does have a natural medicinal furnace. Qing Heng plans to use the furnace to help Ming Qiao expel the poison.

“Mother, Qiao Qiao still feels like throwing up.”

Ming Qiao, nestled in his mother’s arms, loosens his grip on her clothes. His little face, covered with blood, is frowning in pain.

Qing Heng lands and gently rubs his back, soothing him with a calm voice, “Alright, if you need to throw up, then do it. Soon, we’ll get all the poison out.”

Though Ming Qiao says he wants to vomit, he covers his mouth with his small hand, refusing to let it out. Qing Heng furrows his brow, puzzled as to why the little one is holding back.

It’s only when Ming Qiao turns his head away and finally vomits on the ground that Qing Heng realizes—The little one didn’t want to dirty his clothes.

“Qiao Qiao.”

Qing Heng’s normally cold and distant heart is overwhelmed with a deep sense of tenderness for this small child. In a low voice, he reassures him over and over, “Our Qiao Qiao will be fine soon.”

“Mother, Qiao Qiao is okay.”

After vomiting blood, Ming Qiao sees his mother’s worry and gently tugs his fingers, softly comforting him in return, “Don’t worry, mother. Qiao Qiao won’t die.”

The two, one big and one small, comfort each other. In the end, Qing Heng’s eyes redden slightly, and he plants a gentle kiss on the little one’s forehead.

“Let’s go to the medicinal furnace.”

“Okay!”

Their figures disappear from the spot. Meanwhile, sitting on a sturdy branch of a large tree nearby, a young man dressed in black watches them leave, a piece of wild grass hanging from the corner of his mouth. The man’s gaze remains fixed in the direction Qing Heng has gone.

———————————————

Author’s Note:

Wu Ye: Oh, does the Immortal General have a child now?