Chapter 107

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Chapter 107: Old Friend

Ji Yunhe stood on a piece of cloud inside the familiar setting, but this time she was not able to see the woman in white.

"Ning Xiyu?" She called her name and did not get a response.

She turned around to leave when a breeze blew gently past her ear. "My strength has been depleted."

All of the surrounding clouds faded and Ji Yunhe found herself standing in a void.

"His power was taken by Shunde. What comes next, you will need to handle by yourselves..."

The wind ruffled her hair and disappeared.

"My apologies..." The voice faded away.

Ji Yunhe lost her footing and fell.

She opened her eyes.

It took a while for her to realize that she had woken up from her dream. She rubbed her forehead and sat up, then a glass of water was handed to her. Ji Yunhe turned her head and froze.

"Snow... Snow March?"

Snow March smiled, "Have I been gone for too long? Did you forget about me? So heartless."

"..."

"It was Sister March who brought you guys back from the capital," Luo Jinsang said as she sat down next to Ji Yunhe's bed. "I was worried to death! After I returned to the north, I heard Shunde captured the fish before I even had a chance to get help. She brought you back while me and the monk were still busy making plans. I didn't get to do anything."

Ji Yunhe looked at Luo Jinsang. "Well, this matter has not yet ended, you will get your chance." Then she asked Snow March, "Didn't you go to the islands overseas? Why did you come back?"

"While there, I heard the jade phoenix had been captured, so I came back to save her… but I was too late."

Everyone in the room fell silent.

Luo Jinsang lowered her head onto the back of her hands on the table.

Ji Yunhe collected her emotions. "You wanted to save Qing Ji?"

She still remembered how Snow March's face was full of despair when she first saw Qing Ji, right after Li Shu's blood sacrifice. But now, she purposely rushed back from the oversea islands to save her...

"Qing Ji did nothing wrong. Li Shu released her and she carried me out of the Demon Valley, pretty much saving my life. I just wanted to return the favor... but I will have to owe her forever now."

"You owe her..." Luo Jinsang's muffled voice came from the table. "I owe her even more. I still owe her so much wine money…" She buried her face in her arms and cried.

Ji Yunhe did not know how to comfort her, she just sighed.

Then she suddenly saw a man standing in the corner of the room, and that man's appearance...

"Li Shu?" Ji Yunhe was shocked. His face and body was identical to the cat demon. She closed her eyes and rubbed her brow. "You sure this is not a dream…?"

Snow March said, "Not a dream, it is him."

Ji Yunhe then opened her eyes to take a good look at him. This Li Shu was very strange. His eyes only looked straight ahead and did not have the slightest bit of life. The body was also very stiff, like a fleshless, wooden man.

"He..." Ji Yunhe hesitated.

"He's not actually real," Snow March finished the words for her. "When I was overseas, I came upon an exotic plant called shewei. If you place someone's belongings on it and nourish it with some blood, it will grow into a form identical to that person."

Ji Yunhe smiled. "I've heard there're many rare and wondrous plants and herbs overseas, but I never imagined something like this."

"Mhm. He can walk and move, but he cannot speak or think," Snow March explained. "Although he is not the real Li Shu, he has been keeping me company for a long time. Sometimes it's hard to distinguish what's real anymore."

Ji Yunhe looked at her and thought of the Grand Master and Princess Shunde.

He had also been using Shunde as a spiritual support over the years, and look how he ended up… But this Li Shu would never turn into a Shunde, nor would Snow March ever turn into a Grand Master.

"What's real and what's fake will never be the same. It's fine to keep him if it makes you happy, but it's best that you maintain clarity and know the difference."

Ji Yunhe then looked around and asked, "Where is Changyi?"

The room fell silent again.

Seeing the hesitation on their faces, Ji Yunhe grew tense and sat up. "What happened to Changyi? You know how I am, if you have something to say, don't keep it from me."

Luo Jinsang answered nervously, "The fish is not doing very well… Baldy is still treating him..."

Ji Yunhe immediately hopped out of bed and ran outside, Luo Jinsang and Snow March followed. "Don't panic, his life is safe for now…" Snow March's voice did not reach her ears.

Ji Yunhe was already gone with the wind.

She stumbled all the way to Changyi's room and saw him sitting on the bed. Kongming had just finished his treatment and was now putting away his needles. Although Changyi's face was pale, his mind seemed alert.

When Ji Yunhe barged in, he and Kongming both looked at her at the same time.

The monk threw her a side eye and said, "This one sure recovers fast."

Ji Yunhe was in no mood to squabble with him. She walked straight to Changyi and looked at his pale face. "Do you still feel pain anywhere?" she asked while touching his head.

Changyi was still the same as before, nodding and answering honestly, "I still feel discomfort in my legs and feet, but they should be fine in a few days."

Ji Yunhe breathed a sigh of relief, but Kongming sitting on the other side said, "Whether you're fine or not in a few days is still too early to say. You have been overusing your magic way too much. Fish, I guarantee, if you had cast even one more spell, you would've been carried back as broken pieces of ice. You should consider yourself lucky that you can still sit here and talk right now."

Ji Yunhe felt very bad for Changyi, but before she could say more, someone outside reported that Lin Haoqing had arrived.

She and Changyi looked at each other.

Changyi nodded and said, "Bring him in."

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