Chapter 017
Chapter 17: Shared Life and Death Talisman
Shi Zi Chu put away the ice silkworm silk and looked at Ye He Qi, whose eyes gleamed with probing curiosity. She spoke first, “The cold jade cup is only effective with spiritual water. Clan Chief Ye, do you seek to increase your spiritual power, or do you need the poison antidote?”
“Antidote.”
When facing someone like Shi Zi Chu, sharp and meticulous, there was no need to hide anything—nor could he.
Shi Zi Chu tapped her cheek thoughtfully, then asked, “If I help Clan Chief Ye with the antidote, will the cold jade cup be mine?”
As the clan chief of the Ye clan, Ye He Qi lacked resources to increase his spiritual power. Aside from the antidote, the cold jade cup was of little use to him.
“Agreed.” Ye He Qi spoke without hesitation.
Getting the answer she sought, Shi Zi Chu stepped forward. “Extend your hand.”
When Ye He Qi, seated to the side, extended his arm, Shi Zi Chu gently placed her hand on his wrist, taking the traditional pulse-reading method.
Seeing her concentrate on the pulse reading, Ye He Qi’s gaze sharpened with curiosity. He had never heard that Shi Zi Chu knew medicine.
“Hm…” Shi Zi Chu withdrew her hand, lost in thought. “This doesn’t seem like a mere poisoning. It’s more like gu venom.”
Gu venom?
“Shi Zi Chu, do you know that the gu master families of the cultivation world were wiped out decades ago?” Ye He Qi narrowed his peach blossom eyes and looked at her with an unreadable expression.
How could a young lady no older than twenty-six or seven diagnose gu venom so easily? Was she a descendant of a gu master?
“Mm?” Shi Zi Chu tilted her head, a puzzled look on her face. “Does this have anything to do with the possibility that you are poisoned by gu venom?”
“There were many gu master families in the cultivation world, but they were all wiped out in a single night,” Ye He Qi looked at her intently, his peach blossom eyes now much deeper, “This has nothing to do with me, but it may have something to do with you.”
Realization struck Shi Zi Chu, and with a helpless shrug, she replied, “I’m just an orphan.”
Really? An orphan who knew so much about gu venom?
Moreover, Ye Clans couldn’t trace her origins before the age of fourteen, which meant someone had erased her past.
What kind of past would be completely wiped away?
Ye He Qi smiled, but did not speak.
Shi Zi Chu rummaged through her snake bracelet, eventually pulling out a plain white porcelain vial. She removed the stopper and handed it to Ye He Qi.
Trusting her ability to take him along even in death, Ye He Qi leaned down to sniff it. The smell that wafted up was overwhelmingly foul, like rotting fish and shrimp.
“Such a stench.” Ye He Qi quickly recoiled, distancing himself from the vial. Was she playing tricks on him?
Shi Zi Chu put the vial away. “It really is gu venom. Describe the smell you’ve encountered.”
“Rotting fish and shrimp,” Ye He Qi said, his gaze still fixed on Shi Zi Chu. What was in that vial? How did she know he was poisoned by gu venom?
Shi Zi Chu packed away the vial and looked over at the baby swaddled on the side. “Clan Chief Ye should take the cold jade cup first, or I’ll start to suspect you’re trying an empty-handed white wolf scheme.”
Ye He Qi said nothing, simply rising and walking toward it.
Shi Zi Chu surveyed the collapsed, ruin-like courtyard around them. “Clan Chief Ye, how long does the Floating Flower Secret Realm remain open?”
“One month.”
Shi Zi Chu nodded.
About a quarter of an hour later, Ye He Qi’s gentle voice reached her ears. “Done.”
Shi Zi Chu turned and saw the lotus-petal-shaped jade cup, radiating cold air, floating above the swaddled baby.
She walked over to find that the cold jade cup was trapped in an array formation.
Under Ye He Qi’s watchful gaze, there was no way for her to forcibly seize the cold jade cup.
This man truly had more schemes than a sieve.
“A month should be enough for Daoist Shi to cure my gu venom,” Ye He Qi tapped the cold jade cup lightly, his brows slightly raised in a smile.
“Of course.” Shi Zi Chu smiled faintly.
Ye He Qi didn’t speak but pulled out a talisman.
Shi Zi Chu glanced at the runes on it. “A shared life and death talisman?”
As the name suggested, once activated, a shared life and death talisman bound two people’s fates. If one died, the other would die as well, but they would not share the same wounds.
Ye He Qi nodded. His demeanor was both gentle and noble, yet calm and unhurried. “Given my shallow understanding of Daoist Shi, this shared life and death talisman will help me better cooperate with you in curing the gu venom.”
Only by binding their lives together could he trust Shi Zi Chu with the antidote.
“The shared life and death talisman isn’t so easily undone,” Shi Zi Chu tapped the talisman on the table. “I’m only at the later stage of foundation establishment. Clan Chief Ye, are you sure you want to tie your life to mine?”
Ye He Qi mimicked her action and tapped the talisman. “Then Daoist Shi can require me to protect you. After all, if you die, I die too.”
In other words, if the gu venom wasn’t cured, or if something went wrong, Shi Zi Chu would die alongside him.
Shi Zi Chu let out a laugh.
In the current situation, forming a soul contract with Ye He Qi through the shared life and death talisman benefited her more.
She had no reason to refuse.
Two drops of blood fell onto the talisman, which immediately erupted in a crimson glow. It split into two, flying toward Shi Zi Chu and Ye He Qi.
Ye He Qi tilted his head, revealing the mark of the shared life and death talisman behind his ear. “Daoist Shi, feel free to verify.”
Shi Zi Chu glanced at the mark. It resembled an orchid in shape.
“Mutual respect,” Shi Zi Chu gently pushed her long hair aside, tilting her head to expose her own ear.
The blood-red orchid-shaped mark gleamed against her jade-like skin, strangely alluring.
Ye He Qi looked away, handing the cold jade cup to her. “How’s this for sincerity?”
Shi Zi Chu tossed the cold jade cup into her spatial storage ring.
Watching as Xue Gu—a small cat—kicked the cold jade cup into the spirit spring, a smile flickered in her eyes.
The next moment, Xue Gu was pulled out of the spatial storage ring and cradled in her arms. It purred softly, then flipped onto its back, offering its soft belly for Shi Zi Chu to scratch.
“I can’t cure it.” Shi Zi Chu raised her gaze to meet Ye He Qi’s, her tone gentler but still serious. “The gu worm is nearly one with you. If I try to force it out, it will cause irreversible damage.”
Ye He Qi fell silent for a moment before suddenly laughing. “Are you trying to do an empty-handed white wolf scheme?”
He had underestimated Shi Zi Chu.
“Why not say I’m having a moment of conscience?” Shi Zi Chu retorted.
Ye He Qi stared at her confidently unrepentant expression, almost laughing in frustration.
Should he thank her for her moment of conscience?
“I’m not a gu master, but I believe you can find one,” Shi Zi Chu smiled softly. “Clan Chief Ye, I’m doing this for your own good. I can cure the gu venom, but if I do, your cultivation will never improve again.”
She had originally planned to do this—if Ye He Qi were crippled, Chu Zhi Rou would lose a powerful supporter.
But now, she had changed her mind.
The shared life and death talisman was easy to form but hard to break. Ye He Qi had something she needed, and she had something he needed.
She would turn Chu Zhi Rou’s backer into her own.
Ye He Qi raised one brow slightly. “Logically speaking, it would be to your benefit if I were crippled.”
He was now very curious about what had made Shi Zi Chu change her mind. Was it just because he had given her the cold jade cup?
It couldn’t be that simple.
“Shared life and death talisman.” Shi Zi Chu touched the mark behind her ear. “We’re in the same boat. If you do well, so will I.”
Ye He Qi raised his brow. “Making deals with tigers for their skin.”
“You’re no different,” Shi Zi Chu smiled faintly.
Ye He Qi frowned slightly, but his expression remained as gentle as ever. His tone, though, was laced with a hint of reprimand. “Annoying.”
Shi Zi Chu laughed without denying it. “Let’s go, for training.”