Two hours later, on the way back to the hotel, Shi Jianming stared at the hospital examination reports, his eyes wide open.
He still looked disbelieving, "It's all better? You're not fooling me, are you? Is this stuff an immortal elixir?"
Cancer, the doctor had predicted he wouldn't live for three years.
Half a black pill solved it? What kind of pill was this?
But the results forced him to believe.
Halfway, he had asked Li Chonglou to detour to the hospital for a check-up, precisely to confirm if the medicine was real or fake.
Even with psychological preparation, the results still far exceeded his comprehension.
"It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it an immortal elixir," Li Chonglou replied. "In this world, there are many things you haven't seen or heard of. In business, you might be unique."
"But regarding our 5,000 years of Chinese history, you probably don't know much, do you?"
"There really are immortal elixirs?" Shi Jianming was even more bewildered.
Seeing his reaction, Li Chonglou smiled and said no more.
Upon returning to the hotel, Xiao Yun and the lame Shen Yishou were already waiting at the entrance.
However, Shen Yishou's current attire didn't resemble a fortune-teller at all, but rather a distinguished gentleman from a wealthy family.
He had his hair slicked back, wore a Tang suit, and leaned on a cane, his demeanor no weaker than Xiao Yun's.
It seemed that their sect's transformations were indeed incredibly varied.
If Shen Yishou had also disguised himself, he probably wouldn't have recognized him even if he stood before him.
Xiao Yun first had someone take Shi Jianming to his room to rest.
She herself accompanied Shen Yishou and Li Chonglou into a private room. When Li Chonglou pushed the Dust-Repelling Bead in front of Shen Yishou, a subtle change involuntarily appeared on his face.
"Finally found it... Kid, I admit you are truly extraordinary in antiques, no less than that old fellow Lin Zhendong!" Shen Yishou said, his face filled with excitement.
He had been searching for this Dust-Repelling Bead for over ten years.
The world only knew that the Dust-Repelling Bead could ward off dust or radiation, but they didn't know that this item was a sacred treasure to his sect.
However, these words were not to be spoken to outsiders.
As soon as he finished speaking, the door creaked open.
Lin Zhendong and Lin Ying entered.
With his hands behind his back, his eyes sharp, he looked at Shen Yishou and snorted, "Old man, who were you calling an old fellow?"
"Lin Zhendong? You... your martial arts have recovered?" Shen Yishou's eyebrows twitched wildly, his pupils contracting sharply, revealing disbelief. "Did you eat Qingyan Shi?"
Li Chonglou's heart was shaken.
He had to admire the lame man's sharp insight; he had detected his master's unusual condition upon their first meeting.
He could even deduce Qingyan Shi, how did he do it?
"How dare you call me an old fellow, you deserve a beating." Lin Zhendong didn't answer, deliberately putting on a stern face, "Where is what my disciple wants?"
Startled, Shen Yishou trembled all over and raised his hands in surrender, "I'm afraid of you. If I could defeat you, I'd have a spar with you."
Saying this, he tossed the cane in his hand into Lin Zhendong's.
"Master, I'll trouble you," Li Chonglou was not surprised.
Shen Yishou had mentioned it was a cane to him before. In their previous two meetings, although lame, he hadn't used a cane. Bringing this item this time clearly indicated it was the item for their transaction.
"I'll do my best," Lin Zhendong ignored Shen Yishou and sat down next to Li Chonglou.
Holding the cane in his left hand, he moved his right hand in a nine-palace pattern.
His expression gradually became solemn, his brows furrowed into a worried line.
Seeing him like this, Li Chonglou's heart tightened, and Lin Ying clenched her hands tightly.
She had rarely seen her father like this since childhood; he was usually aloof and dignified. Today, he seemed to be struggling.
"Master..." Li Chonglou also noticed something was wrong. Lin Zhendong's movements became faster and faster, so fast that even he couldn't see them clearly.
His face grew paler, pale as gold paper.
The entire private room fell silent.
Lin Zhendong seemed not to hear them, and his movements suddenly stopped.
*Puff!*
He spat out a mouthful of blood, and the worried lines on his brow gradually relaxed.
"Master, what's wrong?" Li Chonglou was terrified.
He never expected that deducing someone's location could make Lin Zhendong so exhausted that he vomited blood.
If anything happened to him, he would be primarily responsible.
"Little Junior Brother, don't worry, Dad is fine," Lin Ying comforted him, gently stroking Lin Zhendong's back to help him catch his breath.
"Heaven's secrets are hard to fathom, it shortens one's lifespan," Shen Yishou shook his head and sighed.
Among everyone present, only he and Lin Zhendong were skilled in prying into heavenly secrets, but he was slightly inferior to Meihua Yishu.
Even so, he rarely dared to calculate lightly, usually relying on his words to deceive people.
Let alone such a direct path of cultivation technique as Meihua Yishu.
"It's not as serious as you say," Lin Zhendong finally caught his breath and managed a slight smile. "Shortening lifespan is because your skills are not proficient; I'll just spit out a little blood."
"Chonglou, the person has been found."
Upon hearing this, Li Chonglou's eyes lit up, waiting for his master to continue.
"Hurry back to Qinzhou, or things might change!"
"Bring Shen Yishou along. If you want to see Tian Shan's disguise face-to-face, he's the one."
Lin Zhendong's words made Li Chonglou tremble with fear.
He knew exactly what these words meant.
Tian Shan had said he would deal with Jiang Yuxin within three days, and two days had already passed.
Therefore, when his master told him to return to Qinzhou, it meant that Tian Shan was in Qinzhou and might make a move at any time.
After all, Jiang Yuxin had Xu Lie by her side, and ordinary people could not get close to her. Only an expert in disguise like Tian Shan could.
It seemed that this time, he intended to act personally.
A cold glint flashed in Li Chonglou's eyes, and killing intent surged.
"Why should I help him? Tian Shan is my senior brother, after all," Shen Yishou said dismissively, wanting to bargain.
"Consider it a favor I owe you. Stop talking nonsense," Lin Zhendong coldly huffed.
"You said it yourself. Alright, let's go!" Shen Yishou's eyelids twitched frantically, and he agreed readily.
He had known Lin Zhendong for so many years, and he had never seen him owe anyone anything; it was always others who owed him. Being owed a favor by Lin Zhendong could save his life in a critical moment.
Furthermore, Nan Shan was his sworn enemy, and this leg had been broken by him.
While helping Li Chonglou, if he could capture him, it would be considered taking revenge.
Killing two birds with one stone.
"Chonglou, you go back first. Xiao Ying and I still have some matters to attend to and will follow shortly," Lin Zhendong said smilingly to his disciple.
"Alright!" Li Chonglou was worried about his wife and didn't think much of it.
He left in a hurry with Shen Yishou.
As soon as he left, Lin Zhendong's expression instantly darkened, and he spat out another mouthful of blood.
Xiao Yun's face changed drastically in fright, "Uncle Lin, I'll call a doctor for you..."
Before she could finish speaking, Lin Zhendong stopped her with a hand, "I'm fine, don't bother. I just need to adjust my breathing for a while."
"Dad..." Lin Ying's beautiful eyes were filled with worry.
Only she knew that her father was downplaying it; in reality, he was extremely weak at the moment.
How could heavenly secrets be probed by ordinary people? Shortening lifespan was nothing; to infer heavenly secrets, one had to align the breath of the internal organs with heaven and earth, but it caused immense damage to the body.
Finding an ordinary person was one thing, but finding a master like Tian Shan, who was elusive, was bound to come at a price.
"My life was saved by Chonglou. Never mind spitting a little blood, even losing ten years of lifespan, so what?"
Lin Zhendong wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and smiled with relief, "Let me sit here for two hours, and then we'll return to Qinzhou together!"
Hearing this, Lin Ying was slightly relieved, her beautiful eyes showing a flicker of concern, "I wonder if Little Junior Brother can succeed immediately..."