Chapter 85: The Ancestor’s Belated Rebellion (12)

It was already loaded in, and she couldn’t withdraw it, so there was no choice but to draw the card. Lou Xingluo had noticed for a while that this young girl’s expressions changed with remarkable vividness—now gloomy, now furious, and now, as she drew her cards in utter sorrow, she looked crestfallen and aggrieved.

Lou Xingluo couldn’t quite decipher what was on her mind.

The dejected girl, wallowing in misery, began to draw cards. The words on the card seemed to mock her, each one twisting the knife a little deeper.

Was this really what people did? Was it?

What on earth were those dogged developers thinking? Was torturing players their ultimate goal? This wretched game was doomed!

As Ling Qiong muttered and cursed, a faint golden light flickered in the card pool, and a card slowly turned over.

—Golden Breeze and Jade Dew: Seeking the Light Butterfly

The card depicted several porcelain bottles arranged on the corner of a table, a woman seated in a chair, only half her body visible, the rest of the objects blurred away. Ling Qiong stared at the revealed figure for a few seconds; the clothes looked oddly familiar.

Light Butterfly... Butterfly... was the child poisoned?

A flash of realization struck Ling Qiong—was it that Butterfly Girl?

“Little Ancestor!!”

Jiang He burst out from the thicket with several others. Seeing that their charge was safe and sound, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

“You scared us half to death.”

“You didn’t run into any danger, did you?”

The group closed in, peppering Ling Qiong with questions one after another.

Startled by their sudden appearance, Ling Qiong quickly closed the index, “Where did you all go? Why didn’t you keep up with me?”

Everyone fell silent.

They had only looked away for a moment, and she vanished. And now she was blaming them?

The ancestor could never be wrong, so it must be their fault.

“It was our mistake,” Jiang He signaled for everyone to quiet down. “As long as you’re safe, I’ll summon the rest of the disciples back immediately.”

Jiang He fired a signal flare and only then noticed the unfamiliar young man standing nearby.

The youth’s looks were strikingly beautiful; just by standing there, he seemed to outshine the entire landscape.

Where had their ancestor found such a handsome boy?

“Little Ancestor, this is...?”

“Oh, I saved him,” Ling Qiong replied, feigning ignorance though she knew his name. “What was your name again?”

“Lou Xingluo.” The youth’s lips curled in a polite arc.

“Lou?” Jiang He looked him up and down. “Are you the young master of Vankong City?”

Lou Xingluo pressed his lips together and denied it, “I’m not.”

Jiang He was momentarily speechless. The surname Lou was rare on the continent; most with that name hailed from Vankong City. And the young master of Vankong City was said to be named Lou Xingluo.

Seeing Jiang He’s confusion, Lou Xingluo clarified, “I’m no longer the young master.”

“So you are indeed from Vankong City?”

Lou Xingluo nodded slightly.

Jiang He’s expression remained polite as she pulled Ling Qiong aside. “Little Ancestor, did you truly save this man?”

“Yes.”

“What are you planning to do with him?”

“He’s been poisoned... Right, aren’t you skilled in medicine? Take a look at him.”

To actually detoxify him, she’d probably need the card she’d just drawn. But for now, Jiang He should be able to stabilize his condition.

If an NPC could be used, why not use them? After all, it didn’t cost anything.

Jiang He took a deep breath. “Little Ancestor, do you know who he is?”

It had only been a night of disconnection. How had their ancestor managed to bring back Lou Xingluo?!

Ling Qiong puffed her cheeks. “Lou Xingluo, didn’t he just say so himself?”

Jiang He quickly gave Ling Qiong a rundown of Vankong City’s situation.

The city lord favored his youngest son, a well-known fact. The eldest son was out of favor, and now their ancestor had saved him, and he claimed he was no longer the young master. Who knew what sordid messes lay behind that?

Given their precarious position, they couldn’t afford to meddle in someone else’s affairs.

“But we can’t just leave him to die, can we?” Ling Qiong blinked. “Don’t say so much for now—just check on him. It’d be a waste if he died after I saved him.”

She dragged Jiang He over to Lou Xingluo.

“If my identity causes you trouble,” Lou Xingluo said, “I can leave on my own. I won’t drag you down.”

Inside Lou Xingluo’s sleeve, the ink serpent rolled its eyes. Ugh! Pretentious! Disgusting!

Lou Xingluo pinched the snake’s neck expressionlessly.

The serpent’s eyes rolled back even further, almost expiring on the spot.

Only then did it remember, belatedly, that it was now contracted to this pretentious man. Every thought it had, he could sense.

Ling Qiong gave Lou Xingluo a meaningful glance for two seconds, then suddenly smiled with innocent sweetness. “No burden at all. Let Jiang He check you first. If you left and something happened, wouldn’t my rescue be in vain?”

This was the second time Lou Xingluo had heard the name “Jiang He.” The first time, he hadn’t caught it clearly enough to confirm. But now...

He was almost certain these people were from Mount Yuelu Manor.

But why did Jiang He call her “Little Ancestor”?

Jiang He, unable to argue with Ling Qiong, sighed and went to examine Lou Xingluo.

His wound had not festered, but the poison was untouched. Jiang He studied it for a long while but couldn’t identify the toxin. He’d never encountered anything like it before.

Without recognition, there was no way to cure it.

After a brief check, Jiang He went to Ling Qiong. “Little Ancestor, did you use your spiritual power to suppress it?”

“Yes. Was that wrong?”

It was her only choice at the time—just like they wrote in the stories! She’d tried it on a whim, and it had actually worked.

Daddy really is a genius! Hee hee...

“You did the right thing, or else he’d be dead,” Jiang He replied. “But I can’t cure it—only delay the effects for now.”

Ling Qiong had expected as much. Otherwise, her hard-earned resources would have been wasted!

“To detoxify him, you’ll either have to find the one who administered the poison, or go to Butterfly Mountain.”

Jiang He wasn’t very skilled with poisons, but those at Butterfly Mountain specialized in them. They could cure ninety-nine percent of the world’s toxins.

Ling Qiong froze. Mountain? Had she misunderstood?

Jiang He continued, “The Butterfly Girl we saw at Tianqing Sect earlier is the next master of Butterfly Mountain. You could try seeking her help as well.”

He hesitated, worry in his voice. “Little Ancestor, given our situation, we can’t wander about. We need to regroup with the elders as soon as possible.”

“What’s to fear? If they can’t find me, they won’t act rashly.” Ling Qiong glanced over at Lou Xingluo, a smirk on her lips. “Let’s just cure him first.”

You really aren’t worried at all!

Lou Xingluo fastened his trousers and waited for Jiang He to return. “How is my injury?”

“Why would the young master suffer such a severe poisoning?”

Lou Xingluo’s pale lips moved. “I was fighting someone and accidentally got caught. I didn’t expect it to be poisoned.”

As he spoke, his eyes dropped slightly, his profile tense as if suppressing something.

“I see,” said Jiang He, uncertain whether to believe him, and relayed his earlier conclusions to Lou Xingluo.