The murderous aura within the manor was so thick you could cut it with a knife.
After Xiao Xue spat out a mouthful of blood, she lost consciousness and was carried back to the room by Xie Yuan without delay. Yi Xin immediately examined his apprentice sister, disregarding the fact that he, too, was injured.
"What's going on?" Xie Shan asked worriedly.
During their brief exchange none of her strikes reached its intended target and her inability to land a solid blow was what sparked her battle intent, in the end. But regardless of how hard she tried to pierce through Xiao Xue's defenses, Xie Shan's efforts were fruitless. How come Xiao Xue looks severely injured and on the brink of death? She didn't hit her, not once!
Noticing Xie Yuan's murderous glare and Yi Xin's hostile attitude, Zhang Lao hurriedly came forward to briefly explain Xiao Xue's situation to Xie Shan.
Though Xie Shan did not hurt Xiao Xue it is true that she wantonly attacked and engaged her in combat. The reaction of the two men was to be expected, given that they've been toiling daily to nurse her back to health. Even he, Zhang Lao, was a bit upset at what happened.
But Xiao Xue's current condition cannot be blamed solely on Xie Shan. Everyone knows Xiao Xue's current state is extremely fragile. It is unfortunate that Xie Shan appeared during this time, under such difficult circumstances, and created a commotion without thought for the consequences.
Due to their worry and fear for Xiao Xue's worsening condition, those around her were mainly looking for someone to blame and vent their anger on. Xie Shan was not the main culprit but she, unknowingly, contributed to the fact.
But there is no use in blaming and pointing fingers at anyone. For now, all they could do was hope that Xiao Xue's condition is not as bad as it appears.
After feeding Xiao Xue an elixir and performing acupuncture, Yi Xin straightened his back and with a grave expression solemnly said, "Apprentice sister is poisoned."
Everyone within the room sucked in a mouthful of breath. Poisoned? This was beyond what they expected. The manor has been tightly guarded since their arrival. Only someone with great ability, like Xie Shan, could penetrate its current defenses. How could someone slip in and poison Xiao Xue without any of them noticing?
Without a word, Xie Yuan moved towards Xie Shan, killing intent was flashing in his amethyst eyes. Alarmed, Zhang Lao immediately got in between the two and pushed Xie Shan back, receiving Xie Yuan's ruthless strike.
"Young lord, please calm yourself!" Zhang Lao implored as he continued to block Xie Yuan's assault.
Yan Hao and He Heng also moved to prevent the siblings from hurting each other. The Master and Mistress would not take it lightly if the two fought and sustained heavy injuries due to a misunderstanding.
Even if the incident is not her fault, Xiao Xue would surely be blamed. The Master and Mistress would surely not look kindly at Xiao Xue if such a hapless situation occurs. This would certainly create a rift between the young lord and his family. This is not a situation they, as loyal subordinates, would want to see.
Xie Yuan snarled in fury and continued to attack, trying hard to breach Zhang Lao's defense to reach Xie Shan. At the moment, he doesn't care if Xie Shan was the culprit or not. Her heedless behavior contributed to the current circumstances and if anything untoward happens to Xiao Xue, he would not be able to forgive her!
Xie Shan was alarmed that Xie Yuan actually raised his hands with the intent to injure. If Zhang Lao moved a breath later, she would not have been able to avoid the sudden strike and the blow could have severely injured her.
"I did not poison her!" Xie Shan screamed at her unreasonable little brother. She could understand why Xie Yuan would want to attack her but she was unreconciled! The fact that her stupid brother believes she, Xie Shan, could do something so sinister as poisoning his wife left a bad taste in her mouth.
It is true that she wanted to test Xiao Xue's skills and exchange a few pointers. But Xie Shan never thought of fatally injuring Xiao Xue or had designs about taking her life. Besides, Xie Shan does not use poison. She abhors the vile stuff and believes it's beneath her, as a martial practitioner, to employ such an underhanded tactic during a fair fight.
"It's not her!" Yi Xin interjected.
It would have been easy to blame Xie Shan but Yi Xin was not like Xie Yuan, who's easily swayed by emotions when it involved Xiao Xue. Yes, Xie Shan's whip left marks and bruises on Xiao Xue's arm but none of those wounds were poisoned. They were superficial wounds that would heal within a few days.
During his battle with Xie Shan, Yi Xin noticed that the whip she used was infused and controlled by spiritual energy. Though the whip is fire attributed, Xie Shan did not use any form of elemental attack. All in all, aside from being a high tier spiritual weapon, the whip was quite ordinary.
There was no way Xie Shan could have poisoned Xiao Xue using her spiritual weapon during their short battle and there was not enough time for her to employ other means that Yi Xin or Xiao Xue would not notice.
Yi Xin wanted to explain further but instead he cursed under his breath and sat down without another word. After swallowing two distinctly dark-colored pills, Yi Xin circulated his spiritual energy faster in order to forcefully purge the poison from his system. It appears he was also affected.
Before the antidote took effect, Yi Xin's face was flushed, his eyes were dilated and his breath was heavy. Sweat covered his brow and drenched his robes. His body temperature was far from normal. If he was not well versed in the arts of medicine, Yi Xin would have succumbed to the strong effects of the drug.
After circulating his spiritual energy, Yi Xin pointedly struck specific acupoints and viciously hit his chest. He instantly coughed out green stained blood that gave off a foul scent. After swallowing a white- colored pill, Yi Xin meditated until his pallor looked almost normal.
"The drug used on apprentice sister was not meant to take her life." Yi Xin started to explain as the others gawked at him after witnessing his bewildering actions. "Usually, this type of medicine is not considered poison. But because apprentice sister has Body Eroding Poison in her system, the main components of the two drugs clashed and stimulated another reaction similar to being poisoned."
"You said Xue Xue was poisoned!" Xie Shan snapped irritably. Due to the man's misleading words her little brother attacked her without thought. Xie Shan was eternally pissed. Xie Yuan wouldn't have reacted so strongly if Yi Xin did not utter those words. How could a grown man be so careless with what he says? "What exactly is it if it's not poison?" She snorted haughtily.
Yi Xin stared at Xie Shan oddly for a few breaths before turning his head away. "Eternal Spring Bliss…" He answered, the tips of his ears and the back of his neck were, curiously, flushed deep crimson.
Xie Yuan froze while Zhang Lao and the others coughed awkwardly. Everyone lived and experienced the vices of the mundane world. Because men usually have less filters, although they have not seen the effect or personally used the drug, they know what it was and could gauge its effects.
"So what exactly is Eternal Spring Bliss? If it's not poison then why did it cause Xue Xue to have such a violent reaction?" Xie Shan, who felt left out and did not understand why the others were acting strangely, asked.
Xie Yuan opened his mouth but faltered and unconsciously frowned. Without another thought, he proceeded to ignore his older sister. Aside from Xiao Xue's wellbeing, he did not care for anything else. He silently handed over the task of explaining to Xie Shan, on what exactly Eternal Spring Bliss, to the others.
Zhang Lao was old but he would not dare to talk about this sort of stuff in front of the young miss. The two guards within the room were around Xie Shan's age but they, too, would not dare. So the three pointedly glared at Yi Xin. He's a physician by trade, a man second. They stared at him, wordlessly ordering the young man to explain the intricacies of Eternal Spring Bliss to Xie Shan without offending her feminine sensibilities.
Yi Xin wanted to curse the group but had no choice. In terms of strength, he's considered the weakest of the lot and could only yield to their silent demand. From Xie Shan's impatient look and cynical eyes, Yi Xin guessed she would not take it kindly if he did not explain in detail or at least in terms that she would understand. But how could he explain such a thing to a maiden who was neither his sister nor his wife?
Yi Xin sighed in resignation and braced himself. Instead of going around in circles, he decided to take the direct route and swiftly get it over with. He is a physician after all, there was no harm in educating Xie Shan.
"It's an aphrodisiac." Yi Xin stated flatly, awaiting Xie Shan's reaction.
Xie Shan frowned. She slowly lifted her hand and smacked Yi Xin on the face before flashing out of the room.
Yi Xin stared dumbly as Xie Shan ran out of the room, absentmindedly massaging his stinging cheek. Why did the barbaric woman hit him? She wanted to know what Eternal Spring Bliss was and he answered her. What was she dissatisfied about?
What Yi Xin failed to understand is that Xie Shan had never experienced the vulgarities of the world. Although Xie Shan occasionally travels between realms, in order to train, Xie Shan is often accompanied by caretakers and does not mingle with strangers or people with questionable backgrounds. And though she interacts with others, Xie Shan is more focused in learning and acquiring martial arts techniques and skills.
In short, Xie Shan is completely oblivious to the most common things in life. In a sense, she could be described as a sheltered young miss from a big clan. Innocent and untried.
In addition, Yi Xin forgot the strange look he gave Xie Shan when he uttered 'Eternal Spring Bliss'. No matter how oblivious Xie Shan was, once she heard the word 'aphrodisiac' and recalled that odd look combined with Yi Xin's flushed face, she could guess his thoughts during that peculiar moment.
In truth, Yi Xin should be grateful that Xie Shan experienced a moment of fragility. And during that rare moment, she only slapped his cheek instead of whipping him to death!
But Yi Xin had no time to worry about Xie Shan's thoughts nor care about her fragile sensibilities, at the moment. The most pressing matter is Xiao Xue's current condition.
Eternal Spring Bliss is often used by courtesans and prostitutes to arouse and help relieve their clients' inhibitions. It is a tasteless and scentless common medicine used purely for pleasure.
Normally, a small dose is needed in order for the drug to work. But from the effects that Yi Xin felt, the person most probably poured an entire bottle in the pot of tea. Yi Xin only consumed a cup but if he had not been quick to act and purged the poison, immediately after he felt its initial effects, it would have damaged his foundation.
Since young, Yi Xin has been soaked in medicinal baths and fed rare herbs that built his immunity to poisons. From what he understood, Xiao Xue, to some extent, also has immunity due to her regular consumption of dragon grass and similar rare herbs. An aphrodisiac is not considered a poison, merely a stimulant. But having such an excessive amount could be dangerous even for strong cultivators.
Yi Xin stared at Xiao Xue's inert form and was suddenly lost in thought.
Xiao Xue was supposed to be alone in the courtyard. Aside from the servants guarding the place, no one was there. Yi Xin's appearance was purely coincidental. If not for Yi Sheng's letter, containing valuable news, Yi Xin wouldn't have been at the courtyard at that time. If the drug took effect while Xiao Xue was alone, with no one to help her, the consequences might have been severe.
Setting aside the fact that the Body Eroding Poison and Eternal Spring Bliss wreaked havoc in her already weakened system, the amorous effects of Eternal Spring Spring also encompass a powerful hallucinogenic effect. This effect could have caused Xiao Xue to do something that would completely ruin her.
Yi Xin's frown deepened as his eyes flashed with cruel light.
The person who laced the pot of tea with Eternal Spring Bliss was not murderous, true. But whoever the person was, they were extremely malicious and immoral to devise such a nasty ploy to destroy Xiao Xue.
Such a vile schemer cannot be allowed to exist and become a more troublesome existence in the future.