Chapter 805: Wei Changfeng's Daughter

After the society was established and all the various regulations, rules, and procedures were discussed and settled, it was almost dawn. The Suspended Society was a newly formed organization that did not require membership fees or academic credits. However, it boasted a strict organizational structure designed to generate significant benefits for the entire society once operational. Of course, these plans were still under discussion and had not yet fully materialized.

Zhang Xuan, not wanting to bother with the details, delegated the responsibility to Young Master Ruohuan, Luo Xuan, and others, then returned to the elite district. Upon returning to his residence, before he could even rest, he heard a knock at the door. An older student, who managed the elite district, stood outside.

"Teacher Zhang, someone asked to see you, so I brought him over!"

Zhang Xuan looked behind him and saw a stout man walking towards him. "Young Master!" the man exclaimed.

"Thank you for your trouble, senior!" Zhang Xuan said, recognizing Sun Qiang, and invited him into the courtyard.

"What happened?"

He had arranged for Sun Qiang and the others to stay in the courtyard a few days prior. Their sudden appearance now suggested something might have gone wrong.

"It's Pavilion Master Wei Changfeng," Sun Qiang explained. "He finished dealing with the Spiritual Material Pavilion and came to see you, Young Master."

"Looking for me? Didn't I instruct him to follow your arrangements? Is he being disobedient?" Zhang Xuan asked, frowning.

After he had caused a stir at the Spiritual Material Pavilion and subdued Wei Changfeng, he had told him to finish his duties and then report to Sun Qiang. Was he defying orders?

"No, it's just that he... insisted on seeing you, Young Master. I had no other choice but to come here," Sun Qiang replied. It was not easy to enter the Master Teacher Academy where the Young Master resided; even stating he needed to find someone involved considerable hassle.

"He insisted on seeing me?" Zhang Xuan questioned, a frown creasing his brow.

"Yes, he wouldn't say what it was about," Sun Qiang said with a wry smile. "He insisted he could only speak once he saw you, and I was at a loss."

"Well... alright then, let's go and see."

Knowing that a Saint realm expert like Wei Changfeng would make such a demand implied a matter of great importance. Zhang Xuan said no more and headed out of the academy with Sun Qiang. It didn't take long for them to reach the small courtyard where Sun Qiang and the others resided.

"Young Master!"

As soon as he arrived, Wei Changfeng immediately stepped forward to greet him. Having not seen him for several days, the Pavilion Master of the Spiritual Material Pavilion appeared to have aged considerably, with bloodshot eyes and an air of profound weariness.

"What... what happened to you?" Zhang Xuan asked, perplexed.

The man was a Saint realm expert, capable of living up to a thousand years. Unless he had done something detrimental to his life, he should not be aging this rapidly! His appearance suggested he had aged several years, likely meaning decades of his lifespan had been consumed.

*Thump!*

Without further explanation, Wei Changfeng's knees buckled, and he fell to the ground. "Please, Young Master, save my daughter! She... is dying!"

"Huh?" Zhang Xuan was taken aback.

He had previously deduced through the Library that Wei Changfeng was collecting treasures to save a loved one. Logically, with the spiritual essence of so many treasures, even a severe illness should be manageable. How could she be on the verge of death after just a few days? While treasures are inanimate, their spiritual essence can persist. Using this to sustain life should allow someone to last for years, even decades, as long as no major complications arise. Knowing this, he hadn't rushed to intervene, despite having subdued Wei Changfeng.

"I don't know either," Wei Changfeng said, his eyes red-rimmed. "She was fine, but two days ago her life force suddenly deteriorated, and the spiritual essence from the treasures became useless. Please, Young Master, you must help her!"

For so many years, he had done everything imaginable to keep his daughter alive. If she couldn't hold on, he felt he would no longer wish to live. This Young Master, who had discerned his condition at a glance and displayed numerous miraculous abilities, might truly be able to save his daughter. This was his last hope.

"Take me to see her!"

Knowing that mere words were insufficient and that he needed to see the situation firsthand to confirm, Zhang Xuan stated.

"I've already brought her here; she's in my room..." Wei Changfeng quickly indicated. Fearing that there wouldn't be enough time if the Young Master had to travel to see her, he had already brought his daughter to stay in his room.

"Understood." Zhang Xuan nodded and entered the room.

The small courtyard Sun Qiang had found contained only seven or eight rooms, none of which were spacious. Upon entering, Zhang Xuan found a slightly dim room, barely more than ten square meters. On one side of the room was a small wooden bed where a frail, pale girl, approximately fourteen or fifteen years old, lay motionless. Her hair was somewhat yellowish, and her eyes were tightly shut, indicating she was in a coma.

"She's very ill!"

Zhang Xuan's brows furrowed deeply. The girl before him was taking short, shallow breaths. Under the illumination of his Eye of Insight, her entire body's vitality was waning, and all the meridians within her body had lost their vigor. It seemed she could fall into an eternal sleep at any moment. No wonder Wei Changfeng was so anxious; this girl was indeed on the brink of death. Without immediate treatment, it was uncertain if she would even last until nightfall.

"Before, she could still speak clearly," Wei Changfeng explained, his voice filled with anxiety. "Whenever she couldn't bear it, consuming the spiritual essence of the treasures would sustain her for a while. But... two days ago, that spiritual essence stopped working, and she has been unconscious ever since, never waking up..."

"I see." Zhang Xuan nodded, examined her closely once more, and then shook his head in resignation. His understanding of medicine was only around the four-star level. Even with the Eye of Insight, he couldn't pinpoint the exact symptoms unless he could study further and gain more knowledge about various diseases. However, time was clearly of the essence. For now, he could only rely on the Library.

He extended his hand and placed it on her wrist. The girl's skin was cold, like ice. Focusing his mind, Zhang Xuan silently invoked. A book materialized. A cultivator in a coma, lacking subjective consciousness, was akin to a treasure; merely touching them could generate a corresponding book. He quickly opened the book.

"Wei Ruyan, from Qingyuan City, Innate Poison Body..."

The book's contents immediately imprinted themselves upon his mind.

"An Innate Poison Body? This girl possesses an innate constitution?" Zhang Xuan was astonished. Innate constitutions were exceedingly rare; he had only encountered Zhao Ya and Yuan Tao with such traits. He never imagined that this comatose girl, on the verge of death, would also possess one.

"An Innate Poison Body is suited for cultivating as a Poison Master, but in her current state... it's uncertain if she will even survive!" He shook his head.

While innate constitutions were powerful, before activation, their possessors were no different from ordinary people, subject to birth, old age, sickness, and death, and possessing no special abilities. This girl's constitution was clearly not activated, rendering it practically useless in her current condition. Back at the Poison Hall in the Red Lotus Mountain Range, he had read about such constitutions, but the descriptions were vague. Even he didn't know how to activate them or what effects activation would bring. Ignoring her constitution for the moment, he continued reading.

"...In the womb, her foundation was damaged by a Saint realm expert, causing injury to both her soul and body, resulting in a severe deficiency of spirit, soul, and vital essence. Disadvantages: ..."

"A deficiency of spirit, soul, and vital essence?" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows twitched. A deficiency of spirit, soul, and vital essence, as the name implies, means a significant impairment in one's mental faculties, spiritual energy, and physical vitality compared to an ordinary person. This usually stems from insufficient nourishment in the womb. Individuals with this condition typically lack the vital energy to sustain their physical bodies, making it difficult for them to survive, or even to be born, under normal circumstances.

Yet, the girl before him had not only been born successfully but had lived to this age... How was that possible?

"Ruyan's condition, by normal standards, would have made her birth impossible," Wei Changfeng explained, a sorrowful expression on his face as if recalling distant memories. "It was my wife who exhausted all her vital essence to save her life, allowing for a successful birth. But... she didn't survive. Ruyan embodies her life and hope; even if I die, I cannot let anything happen to her!"

Zhang Xuan nodded. He could understand Wei Changfeng's profound emotional state. His wife had expended all her vital essence, even dying, to ensure their daughter's survival. As a father, if he couldn't protect his daughter now, how could he face his deceased wife and family in the afterlife? Thus, for all these years, he had spared no expense, no matter how great the cost.

"Young Master, Ruyan... can she still be saved?" Having spoken, Wei Changfeng looked at him, his eyes filled with desperate worry.

"Nearly all her life force has been extinguished. Saving her... will be extremely difficult!" Zhang Xuan shook his head. After finishing Wei Ruyan's book, he found himself facing a truly challenging situation. This was no longer merely a deficiency of spirit, soul, and vital essence. Over the years, she had consumed too many powerful tonics, but her frail body was unable to absorb them, and her internal vitality had been almost completely depleted. Coupled with her weakened spirit and soul, she was, in essence, at her last breath. It was no wonder that even peak six-star physicians had been helpless, relying solely on the spiritual essence of treasures to prolong her life. Even Zhang Xuan, despite identifying the root cause and its flaws, was at a complete loss, feeling as if he were trying to bite a hedgehog—nowhere to begin.

"Please, Young Master, intervene! If Ruyan can be saved, I will gladly serve you as an ox or horse, no matter the cost!" Hearing that the Young Master had not outright refused, Wei Changfeng quickly added.

"Since you are loyal to me, I naturally won't decline if it's within my ability," Zhang Xuan stated. "However, she is not only physically weak, but her soul is also extremely frail. To treat her, she must first regain consciousness, and for that, her body needs to be much stronger..."

Zhang Xuan rubbed his forehead thoughtfully. The girl had fallen into a coma because her physical body could no longer sustain the functioning of her soul. Her body was now like a broken sack, incapable of containing her soul, which was like water. However... without a soul, and with the person unconscious, there was no way to treat her physical body. This was because replenishing qi and blood required the cooperation of the will; if the mind could not sustain it, the treatment would be ineffective. To strengthen the physical body, the soul needed to be conscious, and for the soul to be conscious, the physical body needed to provide support... Wei Ruyan's situation presented a paradoxical dilemma. Even he found it incredibly perplexing.

"So, what can be done?" Wei Changfeng asked, looking at Zhang Xuan. Having dealt with prolonged illness, Wei Changfeng worked with medicinal herbs daily. Although he had never been certified as a physician, his actual skill was on par with, if not superior to, some five-star and six-star physicians. He already understood his daughter's condition, even without the Young Master explaining it. Could it be that even the Young Master had no solution? Would he truly have to endure the pain of burying his own child?

"Don't panic just yet," Zhang Xuan said after a moment of thought. "I can try to find a way to keep her from dying... though it might not last long. The best approach would be to find a medicinal herb that can strengthen the soul. If we can find a way to nourish her soul with this herb and repair the damage, once she regains consciousness, the rest of the treatment will be much simpler!"