Chapter 20: Awakening

Ning Changjiu closed the courtyard gate with his umbrella, secured the bolt, then looked at the white-robed woman lying on the ground.

Her body was drenched in blood, her sleeves shredded, and prominent sword marks marred her fair arms. She lay prostrate, her white robe spread out like a bird's slumped, open wings.

Her back was also crimson. The rain-soaked clothes were viscous and cold, clinging tightly to the wounds beneath her skin. Blood continuously seeped from beneath her, spreading with the rainwater, quickly dyeing the surrounding ground red.

Though severely wounded and unconscious, the woman was still breathing, her body exuding a sword energy that kept others at bay.

Ning Xiaoling hurried over with an umbrella. Amidst the pungent smell of blood, she quickly covered her nose and mouth, looking at the woman on the ground with a terrified expression, then at her senior brother questioningly.

Ning Changjiu touched a finger to the side of the woman's pale neck. Her body twitched slightly, the sword energy around her slowly dissipated, and she truly fell into a deep sleep.

The footsteps of guards outside were already audible. Ning Changjiu looked at his junior sister and said, "Carry her to the room gently, then boil a pot of hot water."

Looking at the woman lying like a corpse at the entrance, Ning Xiaoling said weakly, "Senior brother, didn't we say not to get too involved...?"

Seeing her senior brother's eyes on her, she ultimately didn't continue. She murmured "Oh," endured the pungent smell of blood, turned the woman over, and with one arm under her knees and the other around her shoulders, the girl pressed her lips together. With an unsteady gait, she carried her laboriously toward the room.

Ning Changjiu watched the girl's retreating figure and smiled faintly. Ning Xiaoling had been secretly practicing cultivation for a year; carrying an unconscious woman shouldn't be so difficult for her.

A knock sounded from the courtyard gate.

He composed himself, crouched down, and with his fingertip pointing to the ground, lightly drew a circle in the air.

The main gate opened. The lead guard, seeing the slender young man in a green robe, frowned. "Who are you? You look unfamiliar. How are you living in the prince's villa?"

Ning Changjiu bowed. "This humble Taoist was ordered to come here to exorcise evil and is now settled. What is your business, sir?"

The guard looked him up and down and sniffed. "So you are the young Taoist priest with extraordinary powers the prince spoke of?"

Ning Changjiu smiled. "You know of this humble Taoist, sir?"

The guard smiled and nodded, his gaze drifting to the ground in the courtyard behind him, scrutinizing it repeatedly. "May I ask, young Taoist priest, if you've seen anyone unusual pass by?"

"No, I haven't," Ning Changjiu paused slightly, then asked, puzzled. "Did something happen in the palace?"

The leader sneered. "You are clever, young Taoist, but be careful what you say."

Ning Changjiu said, "Thank you for the warning, sir. It's raining heavily today; would you like to come in for a cup of hot tea?"

The guard replied, "No need. We have important duties today. This city isn't peaceful. If you see anyone suspicious, young Taoist, report it immediately."

Ning Changjiu nodded.

Someone beside the guard captain said, "Aren't we going in to search?"

"No need. It wouldn't be good to disturb the Taoist priest's quiet cultivation." The man smiled and led his men away.

As he left, he was puzzled as to why the blood trail stopped abruptly there. He had just carefully examined the young man's clothes and the ground behind him; there wasn't a trace of blood. Even with heavy rain, it couldn't have washed away so cleanly. Could it be...

The guard captain's gaze fell upon the high courtyard wall. He thought, "Could it be that the person still had strength, jumped over the wall, and escaped that way? No wonder there was no blood on the ground."

Believing he had figured out the truth, he said in a low voice, "Come, let's check along this wall for any clues."

Ning Changjiu re-closed the gate. He gently lifted his sleeve, revealing a suspended blood bead in his palm. That small, extremely dark and heavy blood bead was formed by him using Taoist arts to condense and compress all the blood on the ground.

His gaze also turned to the courtyard wall. The blood bead, held between his clasped thumb and forefinger, shot out and rolled at an extremely fast speed along the tiles on the wall, leaving a long trail of blood.

Inside the room, Ning Xiaoling found a wooden board, covered it with a white cloth, and carefully placed the severely wounded woman on it.

The kettle was already set, but the water hadn't boiled yet.

Ning Changjiu folded his umbrella, returned indoors, and, looking at the severely wounded woman, his brows gradually furrowed.

Fortunately, her own cultivation was impressive; her breathing was now gradually becoming steady, but the bleeding hadn't fully stopped. Some wounds were too deep to heal quickly.

Ning Xiaoling looked at her worriedly and asked, puzzled, "Who exactly is this woman? Who wounded her like this?"

Ning Changjiu replied, "If I'm not mistaken, she's the female sword immortal who arrived in a palanquin today."

Ning Xiaoling gently covered her mouth, her expression shocked. She still remembered the astonishing sword strike that had flown like a rainbow from in front of the palace. She couldn't reconcile this severely injured woman with that awe-inspiring strike. Yet, this woman's figure was graceful and beautiful, and even in unconsciousness, her sword intent was extraordinary. Who else could she be but that white-robed female sword immortal?

She took a sharp breath. "Who could wound her so badly? Was it that strange bird on the imperial city?"

Ning Changjiu shook his head. "I don't know, but there's a terribly powerful monster in the city now."

Ning Xiaoling said, "Since this immortal sister isn't dead, that monster will surely pursue her. Should we... still save her?"

"Save her," Ning Changjiu said calmly. "Junior sister, go to Zhao Shisong's mansion and ask Tang Yu for some wound-healing and hemostatic medicine."

Ning Xiaoling pointed at the woman and said, "Her injuries are so severe; perhaps we should ask the prince to summon an imperial physician?"

Ning Changjiu shook his head. "No need to complicate things. Besides, an imperial physician might not be able to save her."

"Oh..." Ning Xiaoling reluctantly got up, picked up her umbrella, and walked out of the courtyard.

The water had boiled. Ning Changjiu took a thin white bedsheet, tore it into strips, and put them into the pot to boil for a while. Then he brought a washbasin, poured in hot water, and soaked a towel. He then carefully tore off her sword robe, which had lost all its spiritual energy. She had dozens of wounds, big and small, many of which had already scabbed over, while many others were still bleeding. Beneath a large gash in her back, the sword wound that had split her skin was so severe that bone was faintly visible beneath, making it extremely striking.

Much of the congealed blood had adhered tightly to her clothes, so Ning Changjiu had to carefully use a dagger to pick along the seams before gently tearing the fabric away.

The smell of blood grew stronger.

Ning Changjiu wrung out the towel and wiped her body.

"Sister Tang Yu wasn't there, so I asked the butler for some. I don't know if it will work," Ning Xiaoling said when she returned with the medicine. She happened to see this scene and paused mid-sentence. Looking at the fragments of clothing scattered on the floor and then at the blood-stained body, she swallowed and said, "Senior brother, for this kind of thing... perhaps I should do it?"

Ning Changjiu shook his head, simply holding out his hand. "The medicine."

As Ning Xiaoling handed over the medicine packet, she looked into his clear, serene eyes and suddenly felt a sense of her own impropriety.

Ning Changjiu took the medicine packet, opened it, and lightly sniffed it to confirm it was fine before evenly applying it to her more severely wounded areas. Even in her unconscious state, the woman still let out soft, natural moans of pain. If not for the mask covering her face, one would have seen her brows furrowing from the discomfort.

Ning Xiaoling squatted to the side, covering her nose and squinting as she watched Ning Changjiu apply medicine and bandage the woman. She had to admit that her senior brother's technique was impeccable. Especially when bandaging, the angle and spacing of the cloth strips were perfectly managed, and even the final knots were tied with just the right tension and a symmetrical beauty. She actually found it somewhat pleasing to the eye.

Ning Changjiu glanced at her. The girl paused slightly, then hummed, indicating a question.

Ning Changjiu sighed. "Go get some clean clothes."

Only then did Ning Xiaoling realize that although the woman was now wrapped in strips of cloth, she was still, more or less, naked.

The girl looked her over and, for some unknown reason, felt a surge of unidentifiable annoyance. She let out a soft huff and turned to search for clothes in the cabinet.

After everything was in order, Ning Changjiu lifted her and placed her on the bed.

Just as he was about to touch a finger to her neck to release her pressure points, Ning Xiaoling suddenly stopped him. "Wait."

Ning Changjiu asked, "What is it?"

Ning Xiaoling gave a sly smile and asked, "Senior brother, don't you want to see what this fairy looks like?"

Ning Changjiu replied, "Since she wore a mask, she clearly didn't wish for others to see her face. Why insist?"

When the woman opened her eyes, she instinctively touched her face, finding the touch of her fingers very soft.

She realized that her pure white, broken mask had been removed at some point and placed on a nearby table.

The woman was greatly alarmed. She quickly recalled what had happened before she lost consciousness. Although her head throbbed as if it would split, she gritted her teeth and pushed aside the brocade quilt covering her. She looked at her new clothes and the meticulously tied bandages, biting her lower lip gently.

"You're awake?" A voice asked, stating the obvious.