Can't Be Cured

Yu Xiaogang was stunned for a moment, leaned in to take a look, and immediately became furious: "No, this is impossible! You're taking advantage of him while he's weak."

To Yu Xiaogang, what Zuzong was doing felt no different from what Qian Xunji had once done to him.

The others looked puzzled. Weren't they supposed to be helping Dai Mubai recover? Why was the master suddenly so angry?

Zuzong remained calm, holding Zhu Zhuqing's hand, and sneered: "Taking advantage of him? What do you mean by that? Zhuqing and I love each other and have known each other for many years. Besides, do you really think that guy, who ruined himself by visiting brothels, is worthy of Zhuqing? And earlier, you spoke of repaying evil with kindness. Well, let me ask you, how should one repay kindness? If we heal Dai Mubai today, won't he just cling to Zhuqing again later? You probably don't know, 'Master', but if I hadn't been there yesterday, Dai Mubai would've tried to assault Zhuqing!"

"I can testify! Yesterday, Dai Mubai really did try to attack Zhuqing!" Ning Rongrong squeezed through the crowd, raising her hand and shouting.

"I can testify too," Meng Yiran stepped forward. As a woman herself, she was deeply disgusted by Dai Mubai's behaviour. The idea of being harassed by such a man, who turns violent when rejected, was terrifying. 

She imagined if someone tried that with her, Tang San would surely stand up for her, right? Thinking this, Meng Yiran glanced at Tang San. With his girlfriend watching, Tang San could only sigh and step forward. "I can testify as well," he said.

"This..." Yu Xiaogang was left speechless.

Flender sighed. If Dai Mubai hadn't gone and ruined himself in a brothel, he could've at least claimed they were supervising his improvement. But now, if they still forced Zhu Zhuqing to stay in the engagement, they'd become the villains.

 Flender cared about his students, but Zhu Zhuqing was also his student. He couldn't be unfair, and Dai Mubai had brought this upon himself.

Flender said, "I'll go talk to him."

"No! This isn't fair!" came Dai Mubai's weak roar from behind the partition. His voice was feeble, clearly reflecting his deteriorating condition.

Yu Xiaogang, desperate to salvage the situation, ran to Ye Lingling and asked, "Miss Ye, could you please treat Mubai first? I'll owe you a personal favor."

Zuzong couldn't help but snicker to himself.

Ye Lingling, however, didn't care about any so-called "Master" and responded coldly, "I owe Zuzong a favor. If he hadn't asked me, I wouldn't have come at all."

Her words crushed Yu Xiaogang's last hope.

Behind the partition, Flender was patiently trying to reason with Dai Mubai.

"Mubai, think about it. If you don't sign, you'll lose your... well, your lower half. Even if you marry Zhuqing, what will happen? Will you two just be companions? I know a bit about the royal rules of the Star Luo Empire—losing your ability to have heirs means you're out of the game entirely!"

Dai Mubai trembled. Flender's words reminded him of his brother's ruthless methods. After all, he had fled to avoid assassination.

The truth was, Dai Mubai wasn't deeply in love with Zhu Zhuqing; he was mainly attracted to her beauty and the possibility of a spirit fusion. After weighing his options, he gritted his teeth and swallowed his pride, signing the contract to dissolve the engagement. 

At the same time, he silently vowed revenge on Zuzong and Zhu Zhuqing. One day, he would make them pay a hundredfold.

Dai Mubai said, "Fine, I'll sign."

Shortly after, Flender returned with the signed contract. Zuzong inspected it and nodded in satisfaction.

Flender sighed with relief and said, "Now, can we finally treat Mubai?"

Zuzong nodded, putting the contract into his system storage and said, "Yes, we can treat him. But let me make it clear, Lingling will do her best, but if it doesn't work, you can't blame her."

"Haha, no problem! If it doesn't work, it's Mubai's own fault," Flender laughed heartily, not taking Zuzong's warning seriously. He knew from Ning Rongrong how powerful the Nine Hearts Begonia healing ability was. If Lingling couldn't heal it, no one could.

Zuzong gestured to Ye Lingling, "Lingling, please begin."

Ye Lingling nodded.

Soon, a faint fragrance filled the air as a white light descended, taking the shape of flower petals that gently floated through the partition and landed on Dai Mubai. His body trembled, and his complexion visibly improved. To everyone's surprise, he even stood up.

"I'm fine! I'm fine! I have my strength back!" Dai Mubai emerged from behind the partition, shouting excitedly.

Flender smiled and thanked Ye Lingling, "Thank you so much, Miss Ye."

However, Ye Lingling shook her head and said coolly, "I only healed his loss of blood and energy. As for, uh... the other thing... it's completely necrotic. I can't sense any life in it. My Nine Hearts Begonia can heal, but it can't regenerate tissue, so..."

Her normally calm face reddened slightly as she hid behind Zuzong.

"Crack."

Everyone seemed to hear the sound of Dai Mubai's heart shattering.

Dai Mubai felt his body and realized that while his strength had returned, there was still no sensation below his waist.

"No! You're lying! You're lying!" His eyes turned bloodshot as he screamed at Ye Lingling, trying to lash out at her.

Zuzong's expression remained cold. Just as he was about to kick Dai Mubai, Flender moved first.

With a swift hand chop, Flender knocked Dai Mubai unconscious and sighed, "There's no other choice. Mubai's lower half is as good as dead flesh. Even Nine Hearts Begonia can't revive the dead. I should've realized this sooner."

He then turned to Tang San and said, "Xiao San, time to cut it off."

Tang San thought to himself, I have a few words for you, but I'm not sure if I should say them.

Half an hour later, under the supervision of "lead surgeon" Tang San and with Ye Lingling, the "top knife wound expert," assisting from outside, the surgery went smoothly. Dai Mubai wouldn't need months to recover like a eunuch in the imperial palace. He would be back on his feet soon, and it wouldn't affect his future cultivation.

Out of pity, and at Zuzong's suggestion, they preserved Dai Mubai's lower parts, ensuring that when he was buried one day, he would still be "whole."

After this incident, Flender issued a strict rule: aside from Ma Hongjun's special case, students were forbidden from visiting brothels while at the academy.

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