Woodenly, Long Que related, “At the time, we had all gone mad. Everyone had become more irritable and impatient, most of all Rong Xuan. He said that to accomplish something top-notch, we had to have top-notch bravery, and dare to walk the path that others dare not even imagine...at the time, Yu Zhui was already heavily pregnant. Although I had been affected by that wicked manual, I had not been affected to the extent that I would abandon my wife and child, so I was the first one to back out. This was a risky endeavour, so they let me oversee the ritual as support.”

He took a deep breath. “They chose a time, and sat in a circle. If they did not succeed, they would have sacrificed themselves for a higher cause. But unexpectedly, when it actually came down to it, apart from Rong Xuan, the others withdrew unanimously at the last moment.”

Ye Baiyi said frostily, “Others practice martial arts for no more than identity and status, or their ambition for accomplishments, and not for martial arts itself. It’s not worth so much risk. Only Rong Xuan, that rascal, is a real fool for martial arts. What is so unexpected about that?”

Long Que nodded, and said, “He severed his meridians and stopped his own heart. He still had a smile on his face, but had already stopped breathing. We held our breaths and waited for a very long time, then, we finally understood that he was wrong...we woke from a great, fantastical dream, and all of us, either standing or sitting, were dumbfounded. Though Madam Rong did not know any martial arts, she was from the Healers’ Valley and had saved innumerable lives. Naturally, she was unwilling to accept that her husband had died just like that. She calmed down, took out eighteen silver needles, and inserted them into Rong Xuan’s chest. For three whole shichen, she persisted, preserving a bit of warmth in his chest and, surprisingly, some shallow breathing. We all thought that he had lived, but he could not awaken. Clearly, he was comatose.”

“Tears rinsed Madam Rong’s face for three days. In the end, she decided to return to the Healers’ Valley to steal the Yin Yang Manual. She did not know martial arts, and it was a risky venture, so I accompanied her on the journey. Come to think of it, I personally brought that thing into this mortal world with my own hands.”

Wen Kexing suddenly looked at Zhou Zishu, lips tightening, and interrupted Long Que for the first time to ask, “That...Yin Yang Manual, can it really save the life of someone whose meridians have been severed?”