Chapter 4813 — I Bow to You!

"Oh." Yang Qianxue gave him a puzzled look, but in the end did as she was told and extended both hands. Unlike her hideous, terrifying face, her hands were like ice and jade, utterly ethereal.

Wei Zhao reached out and pressed his palms to hers. Her touch was cool yet refreshing to the spirit—truly a woman of rare grace. But he had no intention of taking liberties. To heal her, he had to channel his all-purpose true qi into her, and that process could not be blocked by clothing. Palm-to-palm was the only way; after all, he could hardly ask Yang Qianxue to undress in front of him.

Through her palms, Yang Qianxue felt a warm current of true qi enter her body, rising along her extraordinary meridians to her face. Her cheeks began to itch and tingle, and she had to fight the urge to scratch them.

This went on for roughly half an hour, when Yang Qianxue suddenly sensed something trickling down her face. A closer look revealed it to be dark green venom, and she paled in sheer terror!

"Don't move. It'll be over soon," Wei Zhao said soothingly.

Yang Qianxue was still frightened, but at his words she managed to hold herself still, watching helplessly as the ghastly venom seeped from her cheeks drop by drop and fell to the floor.

The venom kept accumulating, and Yang Qianxue could not keep herself from trembling. This was the nightmare that visited her every time she closed her eyes. It was this venom that had all but shattered her mind, leaving her muddled and dazed all day long—there were even times when she had longed for death.

Another half hour passed, and at last no more venom flowed from her face. Yang Qianxue felt the itching and tingling on her cheeks grow more intense, and a sudden realization dawned on her, sending a thrill through her whole body. Could this be a sign that the wounds were healing?!

After what felt like an endless wait, Wei Zhao finally withdrew his true qi from Yang Qianxue's body. He turned, fetched a mirror, and handed it to her. "Take a look for yourself."

Trembling, Yang Qianxue took the mirror, yet for a long while dared not open her eyes. She had been through this once a month ago, and she did not want to go through it again. The feeling of having one's last hope dashed truly could break a person completely.

In the end, she forced her eyes open. Staring at the face in the mirror, reborn as though anew, she froze entirely.

"How is it?" Leng Rufeng, who had been pacing at the door like a headless fly for two full hours, rushed up to meet Wei Zhao as he emerged pale-faced. His usually expressionless face was now written all over with anxiety and dread.

"See for yourself." Wei Zhao waved a hand weakly. In truth, it was all an act put on for the other man's benefit—with the jade pendant constantly replenishing his true qi, he had expended hardly anything at all.

But once one puts on a show, one must see it through. Even if he had claimed to be Zhang Liju's closed-door disciple, a feat like this could hardly be accomplished with a mere wave of the hand. If there was no cost, he would have to fabricate one.

At the sight of Wei Zhao looking ready to collapse at any moment, Leng Rufeng's expression changed at once. He thought the treatment had failed and, shouting Qianxue's name, made to charge into the room—but before he could reach the door, Yang Qianxue stepped out ahead of him.

"Qianxue, you—" Leng Rufeng froze. Staring blankly at her beautiful face, smooth and radiant as of old, his expression turned in an instant to indescribable ecstasy. "Qianxue, you're cured!"

Seeing the renowned Cold-Faced Blade God capering about like a child, Wei Zhao and Ning Xuefei exchanged a knowing smile. Yang Qianxue, meanwhile, was moved to tears. She stepped forward and threw her arms tightly around Leng Rufeng—a thousand words could not match the eloquence of that embrace.

This period had been the darkest stretch of Yang Qianxue's life. She had lost so very much, and more than once had thought of ending it all. Yet compared with what she had lost, what she had gained was far more precious. True feeling reveals itself in adversity—she had found the man truly worthy of entrusting her whole life to.

"Are you all right?" Ning Xuefei's eyes reddened at the sight, but her greater concern was Wei Zhao's condition. His ashen face had fooled not only Leng Rufeng but her as well.

"I'm fine." Wei Zhao smiled faintly and gently drew Ning Xuefei into his arms. Truth be told, watching Leng Rufeng and Yang Qianxue had stirred something deep in him. He could not help thinking of his own host of bosom companions. Compared with Leng Rufeng, who had never left Yang Qianxue's side through good times and bad, he fell far, far short in that regard.

Just then, Leng Rufeng suddenly released Yang Qianxue and strode over to stand before Wei Zhao. To the astonishment of all present, he dropped to his knees with a thud.

That startled not only Wei Zhao and Ning Xuefei but Yang Qianxue as well. Leng Rufeng's pride was rooted deep in his very bones—apart from his master, there was no one in all the world who could make him kneel, no matter how great their strength or lofty their station. Yet today he had chosen of his own accord to kneel before Wei Zhao!

"Brother Leng, what are you doing?" Wei Zhao hurriedly reached out to raise him up. He had cured Yang Qianxue so that she would stay and protect Ning Xuefei—not so that anyone would kneel to him.

But Leng Rufeng pushed his hand aside and said gravely, "In all my life, Leng Rufeng has never bowed to anyone. But you—I bow to you! Brother Lin, your cultivation may be lower than mine, but your strength far surpasses it. I have never seen a prodigy like you. For this great kindness I have no way to repay you. From now on, you are my leader, and Miss Ning is my sister-in-law. Rest assured—until Miss Ning leaves Xiangyun Academy, I will remain here!"

Leng Rufeng had never been a man of many words, and this speech came abruptly enough. Yet everyone present knew his words were utterly sincere. Cold in face but warm at heart, he often seemed aloof and hard to approach, but anyone who knew him well understood that he was a man of genuine feeling through and through.

"The strong are honored"—those words were deeply ingrained in the hearts of all on Yunjie Island. Even a proud man like Leng Rufeng held them as inviolable law. And by any measure, Wei Zhao was without question a peerless powerhouse of his generation—at the very least, he undeniably had the potential to become one.

As for his cultivation level, with Wei Zhao's formidable potential, breaking through to the Mystic Ascension or even the Mountain-Opening stage was merely a matter of time. To a discerning eye like Leng Rufeng, that was no concern at all. Add to that the magnanimity and character Wei Zhao had displayed of late, and Leng Rufeng was won over in heart and soul.

"Brother Leng, please get up." Wei Zhao had never expected such a scene, and he breathed an inward sigh of relief as he hurriedly helped Leng Rufeng to his feet. Since Leng Rufeng had given no prior assurance that he would stay, Wei Zhao had assumed he would hesitate and waver—never had he imagined that this treatment would win him such a formidable henchman outright. (To be continued.)