Chapter 17: I'm a Divine Doctor, Do You Believe It?
Xiao Che was very clear on whether Xia Qingyue was truly at the Initial Xuan Realm, Level 10, but Xiao Yulong naturally had no idea. Xia Qingyue was genuinely angered; that last strike had used at least seventy percent of her profound force. Looking at the fallen Xiao Yulong, she withdrew her palm and said indifferently, "It seems Young Master Xiao is not very skilled at sparring. Please leave."
Xiao Yulong, lying on the ground, was completely dazed... He had thought that with his Xuan Entry Realm, Level 3 profound force, toying with Xia Qingyue would be child's play. He never expected that in a single exchange, before he could even react to what happened, he was already lying on the ground in a sorry state. He opened his eyes wide and saw two bloody front teeth lying on the ground before him.
Xiao Yulong quickly scrambled to his feet, his face twitching. He knew exactly how pathetic he looked right now. As the eldest young master of the Xiao Sect, he had never been so humiliated in his entire life... especially in front of the woman he most admired and desired. But the young master was still the young master; he forcefully swallowed the bloody saliva in his mouth and even managed to put on a gentle and elegant smile: "Miss Xia's Initial Xuan Realm, Level 10 profound force truly lives up to its reputation. I was a bit careless with that casual probing just now. So this time, Miss Xia, you should be careful."
With two front teeth missing, Xiao Yulong's speech was whistling through the gap. After speaking, he raised both hands and mobilized all his profound force... He naively believed that his embarrassing loss was entirely due to his casual attack while Xia Qingyue had struck with full force. How could he, with his Xuan Entry Realm, Level 3 profound force, possibly fail to handle Xia Qingyue, who was only at Initial Xuan Realm, Level 10?
Xiao Yulong stepped forward, took three missteps, then thrust both hands out, aiming to grab Xia Qingyue's arm. His actions not only disgusted her but also exhausted her patience. She swung her right arm abruptly; with her red sleeve flying, a profound force tinged with coldness fiercely slapped across Xiao Yulong's face.
That profound force did not carry the Ice Cloud Art, but it was still far beyond what Xiao Yulong could withstand.
"Bang!" Xiao Yulong's right cheek caved in. He flew backward, spinning like a whipped top at least seven or eight times in the air before crashing heavily outside the courtyard. Three more bloody teeth fell one after another, two of them landing directly on his face.
"The sparring is over. Don't bother seeing me out." Xia Qingyue looked straight ahead, her voice as icy as an immortal's.
Xiao Yulong's entire right cheek was bright red, as if stained with blood. Now, even if he were a fool, he would understand that his Xuan Entry Realm, Level 3 profound force was nothing in front of Xia Qingyue. He stood up, clutching his throbbing right cheek, glanced at her with some fear, gasped for air, and without saying another word, stumbled away.
Xiao Yulong made his way to the Medicine Hall. Just as he was about to enter, he saw Xiao Che walking out, holding a medicine pot in his left hand and a bundle in his right. Seeing Xiao Yulong, Xiao Che immediately greeted him with great enthusiasm: "Brother Yulong, what brings you here? Oh dear! Brother Yulong, your face... This... What happened?"
Seeing Xiao Che, Xiao Yulong gritted his teeth, snorted coldly, and rushed straight into the Medicine Hall. Soon, the shocked and flustered voice of Xiao Gu, the chief pharmacist, came from inside: "Young Master... This... Who had the audacity to do this to you!"
"It's nothing... I accidentally fell while training in the back mountain..." Xiao Yulong's voice clearly revealed his pain. Of course, he was too ashamed to admit that his current state was because he had harassed Xia Qingyue and she had taught him a lesson.
"And you call this nothing?! Your cheekbone is fractured to a considerable degree, five teeth are knocked out, and three more are at least half broken... These won't grow back..."
Xiao Che hadn't gone far, but the words reaching his ears sent a chill down his spine.
This woman... She's so ruthless!
The Heart-Destroying Powder that poisoned him was ninety percent likely from Xiao Yulong. He had originally wanted to use Xia Qingyue's hand to give him a small lesson... But this wasn't a lesson; it was a beating to death!
Thinking about how he had used his grandfather as an excuse to hold her hand this morning, Xiao Che couldn't help but shudder.
When he returned to his small courtyard, Xia Qingyue was standing silently in the yard. Seeing him come back, she said flatly, "Xiao Yulong came."
"Ah, yeah, I know. I just saw him at the Medicine Hall." Xiao Che cautiously glanced at Xia Qingyue's expression and spoke very carefully.
Xia Qingyue ignored him, slightly closed her eyes, and a layer of cold aura gathered around her.
"Qingyue, my wife, can I ask you a question?" Xiao Che took a small step forward and spoke.
"?" Xia Qingyue remained motionless.
"Just what level is your profound force?" To be able to turn Xiao Yulong into such a miserable mess, she had to be at least Xuan Entry Realm, Level 5! A sixteen-year-old at Xuan Entry Realm, Level 5... If that got out, Liuyun City would be in an uproar.
Xia Qingyue still showed no reaction, no sign of answering him.
Ignored, Xiao Che looked frustrated. From the way she looked, she seemed to be silently cultivating the Bing Yun Fairy Palace's exclusive technique, the Ice Cloud Art. He said no more, put his things on the ground, leaned back, crossed his arms, and quietly watched the tranquil Xia Qingyue.
A full quarter of an hour passed like that.
In the past, when Xia Qingyue practiced the Ice Cloud Art in her boudoir, aside from her master occasionally guiding her, she was always alone with no interruptions... let alone being stared at by a man.
Although she stood with her eyes closed, focusing her mind, and circulating the Ice Cloud Art throughout her body, she could still feel Xiao Che standing there watching her, watching continuously, without looking away for even a moment. His piercing gaze swept over every part of her body, making it impossible for her to fully calm down. She felt extremely uncomfortable all over... After all, she was still only a sixteen-year-old girl; expecting her to maintain a heart as still as water was a bit too much.
After a full quarter of an hour, Xiao Che was still standing there, staring straight at her. Xia Qingyue could no longer bear it. She opened her beautiful eyes, glanced sideways, and said coldly, "Why are you staring at me like that!"
"I'm waiting for you to talk to me first," Xiao Che said innocently.
"..." For a moment, Xia Qingyue felt the urge to commit murder.
"Ahem, actually, I have something very important to tell you. I was afraid of disturbing your training, so I had to wait," Xiao Che straightened up, his face full of sincerity.
"...What is it?" Xia Qingyue suppressed her anger.
"Well, it's like this." Xiao Che's expression turned serious. He stepped forward, walked up to Xia Qingyue, and spoke eloquently: "This morning, when I held your hand... Hey, hey! Don't attack! I'm talking about a serious matter, a serious matter!" Seeing the murderous intent flash in Xia Qingyue's eyes, Xiao Che quickly stepped back several paces and became alert... Xiao Yulong's miserable state was a bloody lesson! Thankfully, Xia Qingyue didn't actually attack. Xiao Che breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "When I held your hand, I happened to check your pulse and found it very problematic. Extremely problematic."
His words didn't cause even the slightest ripple in Xia Qingyue's gaze... She simply didn't believe him.
Although she did feel him secretly touching her wrist when he held her hand this morning, he was a weakling from the Xiao family, known throughout Liuyun City. What did he know about pulse diagnosis?
But Xiao Che's next words caused Xia Qingyue's heart to tremble slightly.
"Every day at the third hour of the early morning, do you wake up from your dreams? And for about two quarters of an hour after waking up, your entire body is ice-cold, and your limbs ache?"
Xia Qingyue's gaze flickered. She subconsciously asked, "How do you know?"
Xiao Che continued, "Also, since you started cultivating the Ice Cloud Art, every time your profound force breaks through, for the next two or three days, do you feel cold all over, your limbs ache, you can't eat, and you can't sleep at night?"
Xia Qingyue's eyes wavered violently again... because Xiao Che had been exactly right, down to the smallest detail.
"And also..." Xiao Che moved his feet, walking toward the courtyard gate until half his body was hidden behind it, then said seriously, "Last time... um... ah... was your monthly cycle about seven or eight days late?"
Xia Qingyue: "!#￥%..."
Not sensing any murderous intent from Xia Qingyue, Xiao Che cautiously walked back from the gate: "Do you believe me now?"
"How do you know?" Xia Qingyue frowned slightly.
"From your pulse!"
"You can read pulses?"
"What if I told you I'm a divine doctor? Would you believe me?" Xiao Che said with a sincere face.
"If you want to joke, go find your little aunt," Xia Qingyue said indifferently, looking away.
Xiao Che, of course, didn't expect Xia Qingyue to believe him. If she actually did, that would be the real surprise: "These are all serious symptoms. Don't you want to know how to treat them?"
"No need," Xia Qingyue said coldly. "The Ice Cloud Art is the exclusive profound art of the Bing Yun Fairy Palace, with endless mysteries. When one first practices it, the body finds it difficult to adapt to the cold, and there will be more or less certain negative reactions. This is common knowledge in the Bing Yun Fairy Palace, known to all senior and junior sisters, and even the masters and grandmasters. Once the Ice Cloud Art reaches a certain level, these negative reactions will naturally disappear."
"Mm, mm, you're not wrong." Xiao Che nodded in deep agreement, then chuckled and said, "However, I also understand a bit now why one must renounce emotions and desires upon entering the Bing Yun Fairy Palace... Because even if the women of the Bing Yun Fairy Palace take a husband, they simply cannot bear children. That would be a huge blow to the reputation of the Bing Yun Fairy Palace if it got out, so it's better to just cut off the disciples' path to finding a man and thus keep this rather disgraceful secret hidden forever."
Xia Qingyue's willow-shaped eyebrows shot up sharply, and her gaze turned icy cold. For the first time, she felt genuine anger toward Xiao Che: "Shut up! I can tolerate your nonsense... but I will never allow you to insult my sect! Say one more word like that, and I will never forgive you!"
Earlier, Xiao Che had looked cautious and timid, but now he showed no fear at all. Instead, he smiled faintly and said leisurely, "I know very well whether I spoke wrongly. I can also tell you this: the stronger the profound force, the longer one's lifespan. But from your pulse, I can say with absolute certainty that, at the same level of profound force, the lifespan of people from your Bing Yun Fairy Palace is shorter by nearly a third, or even more!"
"Am I right or wrong?"
Xiao Che's words struck like a thunderclap beside Xia Qingyue's ear, causing her beautiful pupils to contract for an instant.