Chapter 75: No Touching Allowed!

"Cough, cough, cough..."

As soon as Su Muqing heard her older sister coughing, she immediately became alert. She moved closer, asking, “Sis, are you feeling unwell again?”

“It’s nothing.” Su Muyu waved her hand dismissively. “It’s probably going to rain in the next couple of days. The air feels stuffy.”

“Hey!” Su Muqing kicked Lu Feng’s foot, her face proud and commanding. “You! Hurry and take a look at my sister.”

“Look where?” Lu Feng feigned ignorance, letting his eyes wander over Su Muyu’s delicate frame.

“You lecher, don’t look wherever you please!” Su Muqing’s brows shot upward in indignation.

With an indifferent “oh,” Lu Feng turned his head to pat the qilin’s massive head, tossing it a duck foot. The qilin crunched the duck foot to pieces and swallowed it in a few bites.

“Oh, please! Examine my sister!” Su Muqing snapped impatiently.

Lu Feng, still feeding the qilin, reached out a hand to take Su Muyu’s pulse.

Seeing this, Su Muqing slapped Lu Feng’s mischievous hand away, grumbling, “Don’t touch my sister’s hand! No touching!”

“This is just taking her pulse, all right? If you won’t let me observe, listen, inquire, or take her pulse, how am I supposed to examine her?” Lu Feng was exasperated with this jealous, proud girl—especially since her jealousy was for her own sister.

With arms crossed, Su Muqing glared at Lu Feng’s hand, determined not to let him touch anywhere else.

“Are you still taking the Minor Green Dragon Decoction?” Lu Feng asked after taking Su Muyu’s pulse.

“Yes, one dose every three days,” Su Muyu replied with a nod.

“Keep taking it for a while. Your body’s still too weak. The Southern Dipper Spirit Needle technique is too intense—I’m afraid you won’t be able to handle it.” Lu Feng thought for a moment, then continued, “If you really feel unwell, I can help smooth out your meridians and regulate your qi.”

But Su Muyu hadn’t heard the latter part of his sentence; her attention was wholly seized by the words “Southern Dipper Spirit Needle.”

“Southern Dipper Spirit Needle? Is that the acupuncture method mentioned in the ‘Meditation and Qi Refinement Inscription’ from the Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold?” Su Muyu’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“What’s the Meditation and Qi Refinement Inscription?” Su Muqing asked, puzzled.

Su Muyu explained delightfully, “It’s the Meditation and Qi Refinement Inscription written by our ancestral master, Sun Simiao. In the mortal world, he’s known as the King of Medicine, but he was actually a Daoist cultivator, known by the Daoist name Master Miaoying. The Meditation and Qi Refinement Inscription isn’t as famous as the Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold, but Father says it was actually our ancestor’s true labor of love.”

“I don’t really get it, but it sounds amazing,” Su Muqing said, blinking.

“Senior brother, is the Southern Dipper Spirit Needle related to the Meditation and Qi Refinement Inscription?” Su Muyu asked eagerly.

“It is connected,” Lu Feng nodded.

“Could you explain in detail?” Su Muyu scooted closer, pressing for more.

“The Spirit Needle is recorded in the secret version of the Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold, but you have to cultivate the Meditation and Qi Refinement Inscription before you can use it,” Lu Feng explained.

“Will I be able to learn it in the future?” Su Muyu asked enthusiastically.

“You’ll have to ask the old master at Cloud Mountain. Neither of you have formally entered the sect yet, so for now, it’s out of the question,” Lu Feng replied.

“So stingy!” Su Muqing pouted.

“I really wish I could catch a glimpse of the secret Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold,” Su Muyu sighed.

“Is the Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold really that great? I can look it up online any time—it’s not even rare,” Su Muqing grumbled, fiddling with her phone.

Su Muyu smiled. “Qing, you never care about our sect’s affairs. Our family’s Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold is different from the version out there. The common version only has the prescriptions, and is really just a fragment. Our ancestor earned his King of Medicine title with that fragment, but ours is the complete text. Still, Dad says the sect has an even more secret version, also called the Thousand Needle Method.”

“Sis, Dad must be pulling your leg. When I was little, he told me our ancestor’s palm strikes could move mountains and seas—obviously just a story for kids,” Su Muqing declared, unconvinced.

Still curious, Su Muyu turned to Lu Feng. “Does Cloud Mountain really have the secret Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold?”

“It does, but it’s a secret. You mustn’t spread it around,” Lu Feng confirmed with a nod.

“Senior brother, have you seen it?” Su Muyu pressed.

“I have.”

“What’s written inside?”

“It’s all acupuncture techniques, covering the wind-returning pathways of all twelve principal meridians.”

“Does it explain Burning Mountain Fire and Piercing Heaven Cool?” Among the techniques she knew, Burning Mountain Fire was already the most advanced.

“No,” Lu Feng shook his head.

“What a pity…” Su Muyu sighed softly.

But then Lu Feng added, “Burning Mountain Fire is Cloud Mountain’s introductory acupuncture technique. Only after mastering it can you see the secret text.”

Su Muyu’s eyes widened in shock. “Really? I thought only Elder Li knew how to use Burning Mountain Fire, and that it was nearly lost… Cough, cough, cough…” She became too excited and started coughing again.

Su Muqing quickly helped her sister steady her breathing. “Sis, are you all right?”

Su Muyu waved her hand. “I’m fine, just a bit out of breath.”

Lu Feng pressed a few points on her back, and her breathing eased considerably.

“Go decoct a dose of Minor Green Dragon Decoction,” Lu Feng instructed.

Su Muqing pointed at herself. “Me?”

“Who else?”

“Hmph! Fine, I’ll go, but you’d better not bully my sister.” Su Muqing grumbled as she hurried off to tell the maid to prepare the medicine.

...

Once her breathing calmed, Su Muyu leaned softly against Lu Feng, resting her head on his shoulder, her voice gentle. “Do I look especially awful when I’m sick?”

“Not at all.”

“I must look terrible, so frail and ill.”

“Even Xi Shi had asthma, and she was still one of the Four Beauties,” Lu Feng reassured her.

“But I must be more like the ugly one,” Su Muyu sighed.

“As long as you’re not a corpse, you’re fine,” Lu Feng joked.

A laugh bubbled from Su Muyu. “Do you really think my illness can be cured? Ever since I was little, Father took me all over the country, seeking out famous doctors. Sometimes, I feel like my illness is impossible to cure.”

“Don’t worry, if I say you’ll recover, you will,” Lu Feng comforted her.

“Thank you…” Su Muyu whispered. “Actually, I met you once when I was little.”

“What?” Lu Feng didn’t catch her words.

“Nothing,” Su Muyu shook her head.

“Sis… Sis… The medicine’s ready!” Su Muqing came dashing up the stairs.

Hearing her sister’s voice, Su Muyu sat up straight.

Su Muqing placed the medicine on the coffee table, having spilled a little in her haste. “Sis, hurry and drink it. I brought some rock sugar too—if it’s bitter, just suck on a piece.”