All Things Are Contracts

“The poison in his body is strange. It’s very potent yet controlled. To cure it, we’d need some spiritual herbs. I need to think carefully about possible substitutes,” Feng Xueqing said. She then took out several thick pharmacology texts from her spatial ring and began studying. Spiritual herbs common in the Myriad Spirits Realm didn’t exist in this world. As the saying goes, even a skilled cook can’t make a meal without rice. Feng Xueqing could only search for things to replace the ‘rice’.

“I’ll go check again,” Zhanyue said, leaving Feng Xueqing to her research. He went to General Yue’s side again, accompanied by the middle-aged man. He wanted to confirm one thing: whether General Yue’s problem could be solved through state reversal.

Coming out of the room, Zhanyue’s brow relaxed. The ‘poison’ hadn’t affected the soul, meaning it could be solved through state reversal. The cost would be a month of his lifespan, as General Yue had been poisoned a month ago. However, he couldn’t do this because curing General Yue was Feng Xueqing’s task. If he intervened, Feng Xueqing’s mission might fail directly.

“There’s indeed a strange power protecting him. What exactly is that power? Why does such power exist in this martial arts world where no one can cultivate immortality? Could it be that my understanding of this world is flawed?” Zhanyue was very puzzled. From his experiences in this world, there didn’t seem to be any magical powers. Even Eunuch Cao, the top expert in the imperial palace, was just a martial arts master, not yet entering the realm of the mystical.

The next day, Feng Xueqing produced a prescription.

“This prescription can’t cure the poison, but it can help the patient’s body recover somewhat. Let’s replenish his body’s nutrition first. As for the poison issue, I can’t solve it quickly. I need more time to research,” Feng Xueqing said, handing the prescription to the middle-aged man.

“Thank you, Dr. Feng,” the man showed a hint of gratitude before sending someone to prepare the medicine.

“How should we address you, sir?” Zhanyue asked, still unsure how to refer to the man before them.

“Call me Li Yunluo. I believe you’ve guessed that I’m General Yue’s deputy, and the person lying on the bed is indeed General Yue. The border situation is urgent now, and General Yue’s condition is a military secret. So I can’t let you leave and can only have you stay temporarily in the general’s mansion,” General Li explained.

“We understand that, but what about the border situation?” Zhanyue asked with some concern. “Haven’t you reported to the imperial court to have someone else take over?”

“Well…” General Li thought for a moment before telling the truth, “The Blue Hill Kingdom is afraid of General Yue and dares not easily launch an attack. As for the imperial court sending someone else to take over? I’m afraid no one else could command this army. If it were possible to replace him, General Yue would have been replaced long ago. After all, His Majesty has long been displeased with the general. It’s only due to the general’s reputation in the army that he dares not force the issue. Moreover, Blue Hill Kingdom is not weak, not something an ordinary person can contend with.”

“I see. Whoever poisoned General Yue must be no ordinary person,” Zhanyue sighed. The culprit was now untraceable, as it had happened a month ago.

Soon after, the medicinal decoction was ready. A soldier tasted it first, testing it for General Yue. Seeing he was fine, they dared to feed it to General Yue. After drinking the medicine, although he didn’t wake up, his complexion improved significantly.

Suddenly, another middle-aged general in armor entered. This general was burly, with a full beard, broad-shouldered and stout, with piercing eyes – clearly a formidable man. Behind him was a white-haired old man. The old man had white hair and a wrinkled face, hunched over and leaning on a bamboo staff with a gourd hanging from it. His clothes were tattered, looking as frail as a roadside beggar.

“General Zhang, what’s this?” General Li frowned at the old man behind the middle-aged general.

“I’m not the only one in the army concerned about General Yue’s safety. This is a divine doctor I invited from the Western Ridge,” said the bearded General Zhang, glancing at Feng Xueqing and Zhanyue. The room was already quite crowded with so many people.

“General Yue’s condition is a military secret, not to be casually disclosed. Where did you find this person?” General Li frowned deeply. General Zhang was of the same rank and one of the few who knew about General Yue’s situation.

“Rest assured, I wouldn’t bring someone here without being certain. Besides, haven’t you brought quite a few people yourself? What, are you the only one loyal to General Yue, while the rest of us are potential traitors?” General Zhang said disdainfully. He was just as loyal to General Yue, only he hadn’t been with the general as long as Li had. How dare he doubt him?

“That’s not what I meant. I naturally vetted the people I chose. Since you’ve already brought him, let him take a look,” General Li said helplessly, but with some hope. As long as General Yue could wake up, did it matter who cured him?

The old man walked to General Yue’s side, made a show of examining him, then frowned.

“Divine Doctor Bai, how is it?” General Zhang asked anxiously. If he could cure General Yue, it would be a great achievement, and his future status would surely surpass General Li’s.

“Oh my… this is troublesome. General Yue has been cursed,” the beggar-like old man said.

“Cursed?” Everyone was shocked.

Feng Xueqing and Zhanyue exchanged glances, unsure what this old man was up to.

“That’s right, he’s been cursed. If I’m not mistaken, it’s the Fox God’s curse,” Old Bai said.

“Fox God’s curse? What nonsense are you spouting?” General Li frowned deeply, regretting letting this old man try.

“Nonsense? I think Divine Doctor Bai makes sense. General Li, have you forgotten what General Yue did before he fell unconscious?” General Zhang seemed to have grasped something important.

“What did he do?” General Li thought back. “We were marching to the border when General Yue discovered that the local residents were all worshipping some Fox God temple, even offering children to feed foxes. General Yue was furious and led troops to destroy all the local Fox God temples. Since when did our Great Fortune Kingdom have such evil gods? It’s all because that sorcerer became the Imperial Advisor and bewitched His Majesty, allowing the Fox God religion to spread in our country, bringing disaster to the nation and people.”

“That’s it! It must be General Yue’s destruction of the Fox God temples that angered the Fox God, bringing down this curse,” General Zhang said.

“A curse?” Zhanyue had dealt with many curses before. This didn’t seem like a curse, and he trusted Feng Xueqing’s judgment. If she said it was poison, it should be poisoning.

“Do you have a way to wake General Yue?” General Zhang asked the old man beside him.

“Yes, but some preparations are needed,” Old Bai answered confidently.

“He dares to agree?” Zhanyue was surprised. This was a matter of national importance, not something to be promised lightly. Did he really have some means?

“What preparations are needed?” General Zhang asked.

“Since we’ve offended the Fox God, we must make amends. I need you to forge a pure gold statue of the Fox God, then set up an altar. Leave the rest to me,” Old Bai said.

“A golden Fox God statue? That’s doable, but it will take some time. Is human-height enough? Any larger, and it would be hard to find that much gold quickly,” General Zhang inquired.

“That’s enough, enough. It’s the thought that counts,” Old Bai said. “First, arrange a room for this old man. I need to prepare other things for the ritual.”

“Alright, come with me,” General Zhang led the old man out, not forgetting to give General Li a smug look.

“This… General Li, do you really believe General Yue is under some Fox God curse?” Zhanyue asked.

General Li frowned deeply and shook his head, “Of course I don’t believe it, but I can’t stop General Zhang from trying. It’s just casting a gold statue, we can accept that. I’m only worried about delaying the general’s treatment. Dr. Feng, please work harder to find a solution soon.”

“Alright,” Feng Xueqing nodded, also deep in thought. This new arrival, Old Bai, gave her an eerie feeling.

General Li then added, “The Fox God was originally a belief in the Blue Hill Kingdom. Our Great Fortune Kingdom didn’t believe in this originally. But ever since that sorcerer became the Imperial Advisor, everything changed. He bewitched His Majesty, allowing the Fox God religion to spread. Now there are many Fox God temples in our country. What use are these broken temples? It’s still up to us to protect the country. Believing in the Fox God didn’t prevent Wu South from suffering plague and famine.”

“It seems General Li doesn’t believe in any supernatural powers like the Fox God in this world,” Zhanyue observed.

“Of course I don’t. Previously, when marching in the wilderness with scarce provisions, my soldiers and I hunted many foxes and used fox meat as rations. We didn’t see any Fox God curse then,” General Li said.

Zhanyue sighed inwardly. He hadn’t believed either, but the poison in General Yue’s body was indeed strange, not a power belonging to this world.

Back in their room, Zhanyue and Feng Xueqing discussed the matter.

“If this old man is a fraud, he’s incredibly bold. If he can’t cure General Yue, he’ll lose his head. Or does he really have some ability?” Zhanyue wondered.

“Fox God? The dilapidated temple we stayed in before also enshrined a Fox God, right? I didn’t expect this world to have such a strange belief,” Feng Xueqing sighed.

Zhanyue remembered that the Heavenly Book Spirit’s true form was a nine-tailed celestial fox. Could this be her twisted sense of humor?

“If that old man really has some means, it’ll be trouble. You must cure General Yue before he does, as this is your task after all,” Zhanyue said. Although what Old Bai said seemed nonsensical, Zhanyue had a feeling that he might actually have a way to cure General Yue.

“Tonight, I’ll secretly go check,” Zhanyue decided.

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