Mortal Bones

Chapter 11: Gift of a Prescription, Xu Taiping Obtains the Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purifying Decoction

“Excellent.”

Fairy Lingyue offered Xu Taiping a faint, approving smile.

For some inexplicable reason, despite the boy before her being barely in his early teens, his mental fortitude felt firmer than that of most seasoned adults. It reminded her strongly of someone she had once known.

“Lean closer.”

Fairy Lingyue beckoned to him, curving a slender finger.

“What other instructions do you have, Fairy?”

Xu Taiping took a step forward, his eyes reflecting his mild confusion.

Tap.

In a flash, Fairy Lingyue extended a pale finger, pressing the tip lightly against Xu Taiping’s forehead.

Before Xu Taiping could even blink, a piercing, mint-like coolness drilled directly into his mind. Immediately after, the image of a pristine white parchment materialized in his sea of consciousness, densely packed with a medicinal prescription and the exact method for its decoction.

“The Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purifying Decoction? There truly is a prescription in this world capable of allowing a White Bone to cultivate.”

Tracing the profound effects detailed on the parchment, unbridled joy bloomed across Xu Taiping’s youthful face.

“Do not rejoice so quickly, little one. The formula for the Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purifying Decoction was originally designed to be paired with a supplementary medicinal bath. However, the spirit herbs required for that second formula are exorbitantly rare and precious; gifting it to you would be an exercise in futility. Consequently, without it, you will face severe hardships while soaking in the marrow-purifying bath.”

Fairy Lingyue’s words splashed over Xu Taiping’s excitement like a bucket of freezing water.

“What manner of hardship?”

Xu Taiping asked without missing a beat.

“Lacking the supplementary bath to temper the medicinal efficacy, soaking in the Bone Cleansing and Marrow Purifying Decoction will subject your entire body to unimaginable agony. It will feel akin to suffering a thousand agonizing cuts while having your very bones scraped clean.”

Fairy Lingyue warned, her expression turning grave.

“I do not fear pain.”

Xu Taiping fell silent in serious contemplation for a moment before shaking his head with absolute certainty.

Lingyue deeply wanted to retort that he had yet to taste such hellish torment, else his answer would not come so easily. Yet, looking into his steady eyes, the words caught in her throat.

“This Venerable One finds herself in a rather pleasant mood today. In addition to our agreed-upon prescription, I shall grant you one more boon.”

A sudden, brilliant smile graced Fairy Lingyue’s lips. She reached out her pale hand and gently curled her fingers inward.

In a heartbeat, Xu Taiping watched as silken ribbons of pure white light spiraled and condensed within her grasp. When she uncurled her fingers, three flawlessly translucent, crystalline beads lay resting upon her palm.

Yet, the very second those beads fully materialized, Xu Taiping sharply noticed that Fairy Lingyue’s ethereal form had grown perilously transparent.

Whoosh—!

Before Xu Taiping could even voice his concern, Fairy Lingyue abruptly threw her arm out, casting the three beads like shooting stars toward three separate corners of the medicinal garden.

The moment they landed, a low, melodic incantation slipped past Fairy Lingyue’s lips. Simultaneously, pale cyan light erupted from the three buried beads, intertwining and expanding to form a sprawling, esoteric runic array that blanketed the entire half-acre plot.

“This is the Small Three Talents Spirit Gathering Array. Though it pales in comparison to a true Spirit Gathering Array, it will ensure this meager half-acre yields triple its normal harvest over the coming year.”

Having exhausted her strength to establish the formation, Fairy Lingyue’s voice was laced with profound weakness.

“Triple the harvest?”

Shock and delight flashed across Xu Taiping’s face. Without a second thought, he dug into his robes, pulled out his four soybean-sized Spirit Crystals, and thrust them toward her.

“Fairy, please accept these four Spirit Crystals. My grandfather taught me that in any transaction, fairness is paramount. Otherwise, the relationship will never endure.”

Seeing the utter gravity on the young boy’s face, Fairy Lingyue couldn’t suppress a sudden giggle. However, she quickly composed herself, her expression returning to a serene mask of solemnity.

“Your grandfather’s wisdom rings true. A transaction must inherently be fair. However, you will desperately need every drop of Spiritual Qi within these crystals for your upcoming cultivation. Consider them a temporary loan from this Venerable One. When the Earth Treasury Fruit next bears a harvest, you may repay your debt.”

Weighing her logic carefully, Xu Taiping gave a firm nod. “Then, when I repay you, I must include interest. I will return five Spirit Crystals to you.”

“Very well, very well. We shall include the interest.”

Fairy Lingyue covered her mouth, her shoulders shaking with light, musical laughter.

But with that laughter, her phantom form flickered, fading another degree toward absolute transparency. The vibrant aura she once possessed had withered to a mere candle in the wind.

“Little Taiping, this Venerable One’s remnant soul has grown far too fragile. I must return to the Earth Treasury Fruit to enter a deep recuperation. It will be at least a month or two before I can manifest again. From this moment forth, the fate of this garden and your own cultivation rests entirely upon your own shoulders. Do not dare drag this Venerable One down with you; I am still relying on the Earth Treasury Fruit to one day reconstruct my true physical vessel.”

Fairy Lingyue delivered her parting instructions with a wry, teasing lilt to her voice.

“Rest easy, Fairy. My path of cultivation is my burden alone. I will absolutely not become dead weight to you.”

Xu Taiping met her fading eyes, his own burning with an unshakeable resolve.

“Wonderfully said. The Dao of Cultivation is a solitary journey. Along this endless, grueling path, others may lend a hand for a fleeting moment, but never for a lifetime. In the end, you must stand on your own two feet.”

Fairy Lingyue smiled with profound satisfaction before pointing a translucent finger at the withered beanstalk.

“Taiping, go inside the residence and fetch a shovel. Uproot this stalk, dig a fresh pit in the dead center of the garden, and bury it deep.”

“Understood.”

Xu Taiping nodded. Without wasting another breath, he spun on his heel and marched toward the courtyard house.

The very moment his back was turned, the gentle warmth vanished from Fairy Lingyue’s face, replaced instantly by an icy, razor-sharp killing intent. She whipped her head around to glare at the earthen courtyard wall behind her.

Lurking just over the rim of the wall, perfectly aligned with her vicious stare, a pair of eerie, phosphor-blue eyes were spying on the courtyard.

The moment she locked onto them, the glowing eyes widened in sheer terror. The voyeur scrambled frantically, tumbling backward off the wall in a desperate bid to escape.

Boom!

In that exact fraction of a second, Fairy Lingyue’s previously frail, flickering silhouette violently erupted into a localized hurricane. The fierce gale roared over the wall, forming a massive, invisible palm that viciously swatted the fleeing figure out of the air.

“Exalted Immortal, spare me! Spare my miserable life! I am but a lowly Chang Ghost, forced by the Tiger Lord of Green Peak Gorge to spy on this place!”

Before Fairy Lingyue could even materialize before it, a grotesque corpse fiend—its face an unnatural, iron-grey pallor and its rotting flesh sloughing off to reveal jagged white bones—smashed its head against the dirt in frantic, rapid kowtows.

“Serving as a tiger’s undead thrall to prey upon the innocent. Scum like you are truly the dregs of the world.”

Fairy Lingyue released a frigid snort. With a casual flick of her wrist, she unleashed a wave of kinetic force that brutally smashed the corpse fiend through the air once more. The terrifying, imperious aura radiating from her now was a night-and-day contrast to the gentle mentor who had just spoken with Xu Taiping.

Wait. My soul force is severely depleted. I am in no condition to face a true Tiger Demon right now. Eradicating this Chang Ghost will only sever its connection to its master, alerting the beast and inviting disaster upon our doorstep. I am better off weaving a Confusion Spell over its mind, sealing away its memories of this encounter. Once Taiping’s cultivation matures, I can dispatch him to hunt the beast down himself. It will serve as an excellent trial by fire.

Just as she gathered her remaining soul power to obliterate the Chang Ghost in a single strike, Fairy Lingyue froze. Lowering her hand, she muttered the scheme softly to herself. Slowly, a brilliantly wicked smile crept across her face.