Chapter 79: Silver Ointment and Magnolia

Near the underground stone chamber.

Under the moonlight, the night deepened.

There,

"It seems not today either."

"Any signs?"

"A brief sound of bones cracking was heard in the morning, but since then, it's been as quiet as a mouse."

"Hmm..."

At his brother's answer, Huayun, the branch master, let out a sigh.

It had been seven days since the Crown Prince of Tianhua Library entered the stone chamber. He had left a message saying it would take no more than three days, yet there was no sign of him.

Unable to wait for a report, Huayun came out himself this night, but he was starting to feel uneasy.

The Wall-Curving Pill is stocked in sufficient quantity for a month, but the problem isn't food. Could he be in an unexpected situation while forming the Three Evils? This worry came to mind.

On the other hand, he hesitated to go in and check.

If he was at a critical point, it would be best to avoid interfering as much as possible.

"Huff..."

Huayun sighed involuntarily.

'One worry is solved, and another fills the void. What was that sound of bones cracking...'

Four days ago, the Tianzhan Six Paths were resolved. He thought he had removed a thorn unexpectedly, but the Crown Prince, who seemed fine, ended up being troubled.

'What to do...'

Just as Huayun and Huqing were at a loss and pondering,

Rumble...

"Eh?"

"Huh?"

The stone door of the underground stone chamber opened.

Huayun and Huqing's expressions brightened.

"The Crown Prince is finally coming out..."

Before he could finish his sentence,

Whoosh~

A gust of wind blew towards the two. And suddenly, a young man stood calmly before their eyes.

"Eh..."

"C-Crown Prince?"

Huayun and Huqing's eyes widened in surprise.

Partly out of joy, they hadn't expected the Crown Prince of Tianhua Library to have such a wondrous technique. They thought it was just a gust of wind, but he was right in front of them in an instant.

The stone door had just opened.

Moreover, the stairs leading to the underground stone chamber were deep and spiral-shaped. Yet, the Crown Prince of Tianhua Library appeared in an instant, and right in front of them, his afterimage became clear as he smiled.

Startled, Huayun and Huqing took a few steps back.

Hou Gong greeted them with a gentle expression.

"I'm late. But why are the two of you here? Surely you weren't waiting for me?"

The delay was due to the establishment of the Five Fragrances of Tianxiang, which took a lot of time. Although the area where the Fragrances could be used was limited to the Two Fragrances of Tianxiang, the establishment up to the Five Fragrances was necessary, and he spent time to become proficient in using them. This was completed yesterday.

Today, he checked the achievements of his martial arts.

The function of Zugu, which is to change the bone structure, now shows almost instantaneous changes. The Three Great Protective Techniques—Zhanxue, Xu Yun, and Tongge—have also expanded their utility.

Zhanxue's gap between consciousness and action has disappeared, and the position of the meridians changes immediately upon thought. The darkening of the whites of the eyes, which used to appear as a sign, is now imperceptible to anyone.

Xu Yun's rebound and wind wings, combined with the fist techniques, can be used without strain. The function of Tongge, which transfers energy, has also improved significantly.

Moreover, the Ziling Eye, which allows him to see in the dark, has greatly improved, and with the increase in internal energy, his techniques and sword energy can be used and released without difficulty.

Although he hasn't yet practiced sword techniques with the new sword 'Ling,' this wasn't a major expectation.

"We haven't been waiting for long..."

Huayun and Huqing were still in a daze.

They had heard about the Crown Prince's martial prowess from the Tiankong Hall. The story of how he swiftly dealt with four top-level assassins alone.

Not only were his sword skills and techniques outstanding, but his flexibility in handling situations was also remarkable, according to the Tiankong Hall.

Still, they were skeptical.

After all, the source was the Tiankong Hall.

They thought there might be exaggerations or omissions and didn't fully trust it. But seeing his technique just now,

'The Tiankong Hall might not have expressed it properly.'

It seemed the Tiankong Hall had underestimated him.

Moreover, such martial prowess suggested that subduing the Tiankong Hall wasn't just a matter of capacity.

However, Huayun and Huqing soon realized something strange.

'Ah...'

'The Duoyang Chong must have failed, then?'

They felt a sense of disappointment, even though it wasn't their own matter.

"Crown Prince, did you fail to form the Three Evils?"

The place he stayed was the underground stone chamber.

For seven days.

Yet, there was no smell from the Crown Prince.

Of course, the stone chamber had ventilation.

But it was minimal.

Therefore, the stench of the Duoyang Chong should have permeated his body or clothes, but there was no smell, not even a hint of it.

Instead, a fresh scent of the forest wafted from him.

It seemed he hadn't even opened the box.

Still, there was something different about him.

His calm demeanor seemed even more serene, and the sharpness that used to be there had softened.

"Was the Duoyang Chong too much for you?"

The question came again.

"Hahaha!"

Hou Gong burst into laughter.

How could he not know the doubts in the minds of the two rabbits?

"What could a mere insect be too much for? If it were scary, that would be different. You two are making interesting remarks as soon as I come out."

Hou Gong brushed it off ambiguously.

There was no reason to explain the Three Evils or the Five Fragrances of Tianxiang in detail.

And most importantly,

'Troublesome.'

What he needed now was rest.

A warm bath and a good meal.

"Let's go. You must know what I need right now."

Hou Gong took a step forward.

Huayun and Huqing, who were dazed, hurriedly followed, complaining.

"C-Crown Prince! Where are you going? Did you succeed or fail?"

"Say something, please!"

***

The next morning.

Hou Gong sat across from Brother Rabbit.

He lifted his teacup to wet his throat and listened to the events that occurred while he was in the stone chamber.

The Tiankong Hall,

had been in a state of chaos from last night to this morning.

They were suffering from the aftereffects of the Lingyao Grass.

To soothe their mouths or stomachs, they had been drinking non-stop.

Of course, from Hou Gong's perspective, seven days should have been enough to recover, so he thought it was just an excuse to drink. But considering the Tiankong Hall's abnormal state, he let it be.

Huayun's story moved from the Lingyao Grass to the Tianzhan Six Paths. In the middle of it, an unexpected nickname popped up.

"Such... The Tianzhan Old Monster visited during that time?"

After hearing that the Tianzhan Old Monster came to the Medicine King Sect four days ago and took the Six Paths away.

Huayun blinked rapidly, dazed.

"Crown Prince, why..."

"Why do you ask?"

"You call the Tianzhan Patriarch the Tianzhan Old Monster?"

Of course, in private, even Yama could be called 'Yama the Bastard,' and Hou Gong could be called 'pig,' but Huayun had respectfully called him the Tianzhan Patriarch, and the response was 'Old Monster.'

The tone seemed familiar, as if it was nothing, which made Huayun curious. Moreover, there was a hint of regret at not seeing him.

"Ahem..."

Hou Gong let out a sigh.

He had never called him 'Patriarch,' so it just naturally came out. But upon reflection, Huayun had a reason to be curious.

Honestly, calling him 'Old Monster' was quite respectful. Originally, he would call him 'that guy' or 'you bastard.' But there was no way to explain that.

"You don't know much, Branch Master."

"Excuse me?"

"Doesn't 'Old Monster' sound stronger? I'm sure he would like it."

"..."

Huayun furrowed his brows, not understanding.

Hou Gong cleared his throat a few times and spoke.

"So... the Tianzhan Patriarch took the Six Paths away?"

"Yes. Given his extreme anger, I thought he would kill the Six Paths right there."

The Tianzhan Patriarch had been on a long trip to the East Sea.

By the time he returned, Anhui and Zhejiang had already been turned upside down. He came to the Medicine King Sect late, fuming and saying, "If Hou Gong is gone, I'll send you to him."

Huayun continued.

"Seeing his immense anger, I also felt that the Patriarch cherished the Six Paths dearly."

"That's how it is."

Hou Gong nodded.

He was concerned that the Tianzhan Old Monster might have had some issues or lost his mind, but it seemed he was fine, which was a relief.

Still, he felt a bit disappointed.

If he had come out earlier, he could have seen the Six Paths leave.

Unlike Taimei and the triplets, he hadn't had a calm conversation with Taide or Taiya.

'Some other time, I guess.'

As Hou Gong was calming himself,

"Before leaving, Taide left a strange message. He asked me to pass it on to you."

Hou Gong smiled faintly.

He already had a good idea of what it might be.

Taide may seem passionate, but he knows when to advance and when to stop. The fact that he stepped back during the conflict suggests that he recalled the words and promises they made when they first met as children.

He would probably say something like,

"I will visit Tianhua Library someday..."

To the same extent as Taimei, who kept the promise of the water technique,

He would probably say that he hopes to have a match and receive a gift.

"What did he say?"

"He said he won't let you off next time."

"..."

"He just held back because he thought of you. He said to be prepared and that he will tear you apart."

"..."

Hou Gong looked dejected, so Huayun quickly comforted him.

"Crown Prince, are you okay? Hehe... Don't take it to heart. What can young blood say?"

"..."

Hou Gong admitted to being emotional.

After all, whether it's reincarnation or resurrection, it's not easy to guess. It might just be a coincidence.

"But Crown Prince... I can't understand what Taide meant by thinking of you. Do you have any connection with Hou Gong?"

"No. He's just a very... excellent person..."

"I see."

Huayun had doubts but smiled and moved on.

"Crown Prince, are you going to the Nangong Family now?"

"I'm returning to Tianhua Library."

"Really? But the invitation list for this year's Tianlong Tournament..."

"I know. But is that a place for me?"

"You have more than enough qualifications."

Huayun said without hesitation.

Hou Gong smiled.

"I'm not going because I'm afraid."

"Ah!"

Huayun immediately understood.

The Tianlong Tournament is an event for the Ten Great Families.

Given the recent issues with the Ximen Family, the intentions behind this invitation were not entirely positive.

Of course, saying he was afraid was not sincere. Huayun understood that the Crown Prince just found it troublesome.

"Our sect will not forget the kindness of Tianhua Library and the Crown Prince. After today, the difficulties of Tianhua Library will be the difficulties of the Medicine King Sect, the enemies of Tianhua Library will be the enemies of the Medicine King Sect, and the friends of Tianhua Library will be the friends of the Medicine King Sect."

"Hmm, that's good."

Hou Gong was satisfied. Long Huayun also smiled.

Before leaving,

Hou Gong took a brief walk around the Medicine King Sect.

He touched a pine tree near the Silver Ointment Hall.

Using Tianxiang, he formed a magnolia scent on his fingertip and wrapped it in a layer of energy, allowing it to seep into the tree.

Long Yue had said,

- Hou Gong, I like the scent of magnolia. It makes me feel good.

- Why?

- It reminds me of Silver Ointment.

- Silver Ointment?

- My beloved.

- So the scent of magnolia reminds you of her?

- No.

- Then why?

- When I smell magnolia, she just comes to mind. I don't know why.

- What are you talking about?

- ...

'Take care, Long Yue.'

Hou Gong used Tianxiang.