Chapter 48: Entwined Fragrant Silk

Dr. Mo suddenly recalled Han Li's insistence on keeping the door open when they first entered the room. It became clear that Han Li had already laid the groundwork for using reflected sunlight. He was astonished that someone so young could plan so meticulously, setting such a cunning and vicious chain of traps that an experienced person like himself had fallen into it, with seemingly no way out. Han Li's deep cunning was utterly inconsistent with his age and experience. Could he truly be a born genius, a prodigy reborn?

The more he pondered it, the more he was filled with dread, and cold sweat continuously dripped from his body.

After this setback, Dr. Mo’s caution and apprehension towards Han Li intensified. He faced Han Li warily, momentarily hesitant to make another move.

For some reason, Han Li simply stared back at Dr. Mo, showing no intent to attack. Both sides suddenly ceased their hostilities, locked in a silent standoff.

After a moment, amidst the awkward silence, Han Li suddenly spoke, uttering a sentence that left Dr. Mo dumbfounded and frozen on the spot.

"Old Mo, let's make peace. How about I surrender instead?"

After speaking, Han Li decisively tossed the weapon from his hand to the ground. He then flashed a smile, revealing a set of white teeth, and looked at Dr. Mo with the innocent, honest expression of a country boy.

"Surrender?"

Initially, Dr. Mo thought his ears were playing tricks on him, that he had misheard. But he quickly regained his composure, looked at the iron awl Han Li had discarded, and, not believing a word of it, retorted fiercely:

"What kind of trick are you playing? Don't think I'll believe your nonsense. If you wanted to surrender, you could have done it from the very beginning. Why wait until after a life-or-death struggle to pull a stunt like this?"

Han Li merely smiled back at Dr. Mo, remaining silent, as if tacitly acknowledging the accusation. The two once again fell into a tense standoff.

After a short while, Dr. Mo seemed to recall something incredibly amusing. He suddenly bent over, clutching his stomach with both hands, and burst into loud, uninhibited laughter, tears even spilling from the corners of his eyes.

"Haha! Ha! Haha! This is... this is truly amusing! I actually forgot something so important! To think I actually... actually fought you head-on!" Dr. Mo stammered, his words muffled by fits of laughter.

Han Li frowned for a moment, then relaxed nonchalantly. He glanced out the window, and the smile on his lips deepened. He then spoke unhurriedly:

"Old Mo, don't you think we've wasted enough time? It's time for this to end."

Dr. Mo paused for a moment, his laughter ceasing.

He slowly straightened up, his face hardening, and stared expressionlessly at Han Li. After a long pause, he replied in a cold, strained voice:

"I agree. It's time to end this."

Suddenly, both seemed to gain immense confidence, certain of victory, as if they had simultaneously discovered the trump card to subdue the other.

After a brief silence, Han Li was the first to speak, his voice calm. He was utterly confident in the leverage he held, believing it would force Dr. Mo to yield and abandon any further resistance.

"Old Mo, do you realize that your life is now in my hands?" Han Li's opening words immediately caused a stir.

"My life is in your hands?" Dr. Mo sneered, his face etched with disbelief.

"Don't you feel something unusual at your wound?"

"Nonsense! I saw clearly; your short sword had nothing on it..." Dr. Mo retorted, but halfway through his sentence, his expression drastically changed as he remembered that he had been wounded not by the short sword, but by the hidden pointed awl.

"It seems I don't need to say anything more; Old Mo already understands what I mean." Han Li grinned at him.

"Even if that's true, what then? Don't forget, I taught you everything you know about pharmacology. What poison could there be that I can't cure?" Dr. Mo's expression immediately returned to normal, and he spoke calmly.

"Heh heh! I forgot to mention, I coated my weapon with 'Entangling Fragrance Silk'."

"'Entangling Fragrance Silk'?" Dr. Mo gasped softly, clearly taken by surprise.

"Exactly. Old Mo, you must know how potent this substance is, right?" Han Li said with a slow, teasing tone.

"Nonsense! How could you have prepared such a poison? I explicitly never leaked a single bit of that formula!" Dr. Mo maintained a defiant front, seemingly disbelieving Han Li's words, but the strange sensation in his wound had already confirmed about eighty or ninety percent of it in his heart.

Seeing that Dr. Mo still refused to concede, Han Li sighed and proceeded to explain.

"Don't forget, your medical texts were completely open to me back then. This formula was tucked away in an obscure medical book; if I hadn't looked meticulously, I genuinely would have missed it."

Only then did Dr. Mo recall that when he first obtained that prescription, due to the sheer number of ingredients required and the complicated preparation steps, he had meticulously copied the method and necessary herbs onto a slip of paper. Fearing he might forget something later, he had casually tucked it into one of his books. Over time, with so many other events unfolding, he had completely forgotten about the note. He had never imagined it would now benefit Han Li and cause him such immense trouble.

"Let's sit down and discuss terms for a truce, shall we?" Han Li said confidently.

Dr. Mo snorted, ignoring Han Li, and desperately tried to recall the preparation method and effects of "Entangling Fragrance Silk."

The name "Entangling Fragrance Silk" didn't sound fearsome at all; in fact, it might even evoke romantic or sensual imagery. However, its medicinal potency was unbearable, akin to the intense longing of a lovesick woman, seeping into one's very bones.