Around one in the morning, Zhang San tiptoed into Ye Fan's house.
The process went as smoothly as he had predicted; he easily reached Ye Fan's bedside.
Looking at the sleeping Ye Fan, the assassin gently raised his right hand.
"Kid, die!"
A wisp of azure true qi silently moved towards Ye Fan's throat, about to end his life in the next second!
Suddenly!
A ball of golden light shot out from Ye Fan's chest!
The golden light instantly engulfed the azure true qi and continued towards Zhang San's chest at undiminished speed.
Everything happened too fast.
So fast that Zhang San had no time to react!
Zhang San was instantly sent flying back!
Just as he was about to hit the wall, he suddenly stopped.
A sliver of golden thread from the golden light quietly opened the window.
Then, it carried Zhang San out into the courtyard...
After the deed was done, that sliver of golden thread closed the window, secured the latch, and then dissipated...
Zhang San crashed heavily into the courtyard, but without a sound.
From when he made his move to when he was repelled, the entire process was incredibly quiet.
However, Zhang San felt absolutely terrible!
His entire body was burning with pain, as if all his bones were shattered!
His internal organs felt as if they had been hammered, as if they were turning into porridge!
His true qi had dispersed, leaving him unable to mobilize any of it.
Zhang San felt regret.
He had been careless!
He hadn't expected the target to have such a powerful protective treasure!
Fortunately, he hadn't woken the other person, so he hadn't completely exposed himself yet.
The assassination was impossible to continue; he needed to hurry back and heal.
Upon his return, he would have to tell his young master to be careful, as the target was far from as simple as he appeared.
Speaking of which, tonight wasn't a complete loss. At least he had discovered one of the target's trump cards.
This would surely earn him some points in his young master's eyes.
Zhang San struggled and pressed himself against the ground, trying to get up.
Unfortunately, he failed...
His injuries were far more severe than he had realized!
His right hand's bones were completely ruined from that single blow...
Zhang San panicked...
He desperately struggled to get up, but his left hand's bones were also ruined...
Zhang San no longer dared to move recklessly...
No, he had to find a way!
If he remained paralyzed like this, he would eventually be discovered!
But he couldn't move at all, how could he leave?
Just as he was in extreme distress, an old face appeared before him.
"Huh? Why is someone here?" the Second Elder asked, squatting down and looking at Zhang San, muttering to himself.
He had actually been on his way to the toilet, and as soon as he stepped out, he saw Zhang San lying on the ground.
"Are you here to see Ye Fan?" the Second Elder asked curiously. "Though you seem to be quite badly injured?"
As he spoke, he poked Zhang San's chest with his finger.
Zhang San winced in pain.
If he hadn't been unable to speak, he would have screamed long ago...
"Indeed, you are very badly injured..." the Second Elder continued to prod Zhang San's chest. "Your bones seem to be completely shattered, and your meridians are almost broken..."
Zhang San's face contorted into a series of comical expressions.
If he could have spoken, he would have cursed them out long ago!
Killing someone should be quick and clean.
Was this something a human would do?!
He hadn't expected to be exposed so quickly.
The other party was torturing him like this, likely to extract information.
Hmph!
I, Zhang San, am loyal to the Zhu family!
No matter how you torture me, I will not betray my young master!
"He's here to see Ye Fan with such serious injuries this late at night, he must have something very important to discuss."
The Second Elder, while poking Zhang San's chest haphazardly, mumbled:
"But Ye Fan is already asleep, and it doesn't seem right to disturb him."
Zhang San continued to make various facial expressions...
After a full five seconds of repeated thought, the Second Elder made a decision.
Ye Fan was his good friend, and one shouldn't disturb a good friend's sleep.
No matter how important the matter, it wasn't more important than sleep!
He would heal the person first, and then tell Ye Fan tomorrow after he had recovered.
The Second Elder grabbed the assassin's right arm and lifted him up.
"Crackle..." A faint sound was heard.
It sounded like something was breaking into pieces.
Perhaps the Second Elder was too eager to help and didn't notice, as he continued to drag Zhang San towards his own bedroom.
Zhang San was slightly taller than the Second Elder.
As the Second Elder supported him while walking, Zhang San's feet dragged along the ground.
"Crackle..."
Where the ground met his feet, more faint cracking sounds were heard...
And so, the Second Elder helped Zhang San back to his bedroom.
"Second Elder, this is?" Master Xie Yan asked curiously. "Eh? This person looks badly injured!"
"He must have come to see Ye Fan for some reason, but I don't think it's good to disturb Ye Fan's rest." The Second Elder placed Zhang San on the ground. "Let's heal him first."
"You're absolutely right!" Master Xie Yan agreed with a nod. "Let's heal him quickly. He can tell Ye Fan anything himself when he recovers."
Master Xie Yan squatted down and poked Zhang San's chest a few times with his finger. "His chest bones are likely completely shattered. He's really badly injured?!"
Master Xie Yan's tone was somewhat excited.
This could be considered an occupational hazard.
He got excited when he saw a patient.
Helping patients end their suffering was a great honor and pleasure for him.
He sought neither fame nor profit, truly a model of a physician!
However, when he got excited, the frequency of his eyeballs darting around increased...
Zhang San's face continued to cycle through various expressions.
Halfway through making a facial expression, he suddenly saw Master Xie Yan's left eyeball darting around wildly!
Zhang San was startled!
What kind of strange creature was this?
It scared me to death!
Being looked at by Master Xie Yan like this, Zhang San felt a chill run through him.
This wasn't a purely physical chill, but one from his very core!
Zhang San wanted to turn his head away, but he couldn't move at all...
"You don't need to be nervous," Master Xie Yan smiled faintly. "Although your injuries are indeed very severe, we can completely heal you, and you won't be in pain soon."
The Second Elder had told him that a kind smile could make patients feel at ease and relieve their tension.
In short, it was an effective way to build rapport with patients.
As he smiled, his mouth once again formed a lying 's' shape.
Seeing Master Xie Yan's eerie smile, Zhang San's scalp tingled...
He instinctively wanted to turn his head again, but suddenly remembered he couldn't.
He was forced to watch the frantically darting left eyeball.
And that strange mouth...
Afterward, Master Xie Yan continued to poke Zhang San all over his body haphazardly with his fingers.
After the examination, Master Xie Yan was secretly delighted.
The "Origin of Pills and Medicine" that the Second Elder had fished out of the outhouse was, strictly speaking, divided into two parts.
One part, "Pills," contained all the knowledge and formulas related to alchemy.
The other part, "Medicine," dealt with methods for treating illnesses and saving lives, as well as the properties and usage techniques of medicinal herbs.
Recently, when the two old men were studying the "Origin of Pills and Medicine," they happened upon a treatment method for bone fractures.
At the end, there was a note: This method is more effective when combined with acupuncture and cupping.
A diagram illustrating acupuncture and cupping was also provided.
Master Xie Yan exclaimed, "What a coincidence!"
"What is it?" the Second Elder asked.
"Earlier, didn't we see..." Master Xie Yan briefly explained.
The Second Elder was also overjoyed.
They had just read about it in a book, and now they encountered it in person.
This was truly fate!
Although Zhang San couldn't speak or move, he felt inexplicably uneasy seeing the two old men looking at him with such excitement.
He had a feeling that something very bad was about to happen to him...
Soon, his premonition became a reality...