Yes, Lian Yunzhi did not give Mu Cheng the Immortal Pill.
Mu Cheng had healed on his own.
Last night, when the pain in his heart had reached its peak, he had indeed taken out that purple-gold Immortal Pill and prepared to feed it to Mu Cheng.
But before the Immortal Pill could touch Mu Cheng’s lips, Mu Cheng’s body trembled and went still.
His breathing stopped, his heart ceased beating… he seemed dead.
Lian Yunzhi froze.
He touched his own chest in a daze, sensing that the piercing pain was gradually fading until it vanished completely.
But just as he drifted in thought, realizing that his earlier premonition had been wrong and that Mu Cheng’s death would not take him with it, the “dead” Mu Cheng suddenly stirred.
His heart began to beat again, his breathing resumed, color returned to his pale cheeks, and his shattered Dantian mended at a visible speed.
…It was like a miracle, one that sent chills down the spine.
.
Lian Yunzhi lowered his gaze to the intact purple-gold “Immortal Pill” in his hand and sank into deep contemplation alone—
What exactly was going on with Mu Cheng?
Why had he been able to “die and come back to life” last night?
Was it his own doing? Or was it the “Immortal Pill” he had once consumed taking effect?
But was this Immortal Pill truly that miraculous? Could eating just one allow him to revive time and again?
The method to test it was simple enough. If Lian Yunzhi wounded himself now and took this “Immortal Pill,” he would know the truth. If it truly was that miraculous, using it early would not be a waste—he would gain an Immortal Body from then on.
But what if the answer was the former?
If Mu Cheng’s “revival” was due to his own abilities, and this Immortal Pill was not an Immortal Pill at all but a Poison Pill…
Lian Yunzhi let out a soft breath, closed the treasure box, and stored it back in his Storage Bracelet.
…Forget it.
No need to dwell.
If he ever faced mortal danger in the future, he would learn the truth when he used this “Immortal Pill.”
.
After sorting out his thoughts, Lian Yunzhi stepped out of the hot spring pool, dressed, and returned to his Cave Mansion.
Mu Cheng sat at Lian Yunzhi’s desk, drawing Talismans.
His strokes were slow but steady.
The Talisman Brush glided across the Talisman paper, Spiritual Ink manifesting at the tip. When Lian Yunzhi approached his side, he finished the final stroke and “looked” up at Lian Yunzhi.
“Master,” he called softly.
Lian Yunzhi noticed the sweat beading on his nose and asked, “Tiring?”
Mu Cheng replied, “It’s fine. My body just hasn’t fully recovered yet. In a couple of days, I can draw them effortlessly.”
Lian Yunzhi asked again, “Are your eyes better?”
Mu Cheng shook his head. “No, but I can see the flow of spiritual power.”
Lian Yunzhi nodded. “Pack up. We’re going out.”
Mu Cheng stood obediently. “Alright.”
Lian Yunzhi raised a brow. “You’re not going to ask where I’m taking you?”
Mu Cheng said, “Anywhere is fine.”
Lian Yunzhi teased him on purpose. “Even if I sell you off? The Mu Mansion is searching high and low for the assassin outside. Selling you might benefit the entire Lian Family.”
Mu Cheng’s expression didn’t change. “The Immortal Pill is more important than any benefit.”
In that instant, Lian Yunzhi understood the implication:
The Immortal Pill is more important than benefits.
I am more important than the Immortal Pill.
—I am very important.
Lian Yunzhi: “…”
Lian Yunzhi really wanted to reveal the truth, tell Mu Cheng he hadn’t fed him the Immortal Pill at all, and slap that smug look off his face.
But Lian Yunzhi held back.
Whether the miracle was the Immortal Pill or Mu Cheng’s body, he had no intention of telling him.
—If Mu Cheng learned he possessed an Immortal Body and tried to break the Beast Taming Contract or escape his role as a Human Cauldron by going all out, even dragging him down in a self-detonation, what then?
It was safest to keep the truth to himself.
.
Before heading out, Mu Cheng suggested Lian Yunzhi cast the Disguise Technique on his face.
The Disguise Technique was similar to the Invisibility Technique. Aside from the other half of the Soul Contract, anyone with lower cultivation than the caster would only see the false appearance.
As for those with higher cultivation than Lian Yunzhi, Mu Cheng assured him not to worry. “You are now at Foundation Establishment Peak, half-step Golden Core, and Xiaoze State has only three Golden Cores in total. One is Mu Kunrong, whom I gravely wounded yesterday—he surely won’t be going out anytime soon. The other two are his Golden Core Puppets…”
Mu Cheng paused, then continued, “Those two Golden Core Puppets were originally outsider cultivators. Half a year ago, at Mu Kunrong’s request, I captured them, and later he refined them into Puppets. They have no intelligence and only follow orders. They don’t usually roam outside, and I heavily injured them before leaving the Mu Family.”
