9 He Awakens

When Wang Jingyuan dragged the giant branch away and entered the cave, she was relieved to find that the man was still lying in the same position she had left him last night. He was still unconscious. Wang Jingyuan set the linen bag against the wall and walked over to inspect the man. He was still pale and unresponsive, but his breathing had steadied and was stronger than yesterday.

Relieved, Wang Jingyuan headed back outside to collect more kindling for the night. Thanks to the storm, there were plenty of fallen branches all around. She was able to bring back three armfuls of good firewood, which she stacked near the entrance of the cave. Then Wang Jingyuan took out the medicine and bandages she bought and got to work changing the bandages on the man.

"Senior [1], I'm back. I found a village at the foot of the mountain, and I was able to buy some food and more medicine for you." As she worked, Wang Jingyuan talked to the man. "I met a really nice auntie who helped me get everything I needed. I had to use two of your silver coins, though. I hope you don't mind."

Wang Jingyuan was pleased to see that most of the wounds had begun to form scabs. The Jin Chuang Yao was indeed good medicine. She took out the new vial she bought today and began to sprinkle more on the wounds. "You know what I found out today? The mountain we're on right now is called Xuanyan Mountain, and there's a Xuanyan sect that resides at the top. Apparently there were a lot of people with weapons who were searching the area yesterday. Are they looking for you?"

The new roll of bandages was so much better than the strips of cloth she used yesterday. Wang Jingyuan thought that she was doing a good job, given the fact that she didn't know how to properly tie a bandage and only knew basic first aid in the modern world. She used some of the bandages to strengthen the casts she made yesterday.

She kept chatting, as if the man could somehow hear her. "It's okay though. You're safe here. I don't think anyone comes on this side of the mountain, and they definitely won't be able to find this small cave within the forest. It took me forever to walk through the undergrowth today, so whoever is chasing you will also have a hard time. But I am curious: why are they chasing you?"

Of course, the man did not respond. Wang Jingyuan tied the last bandage and sighed. "There. All good. The doctor said that this was the best medicine he had for weapon-induced wounds. But even if they heal, you'll probably have scars because the wounds were so deep. It looks like your enemies really wanted you dead. What did you do to make them hate you this much?"

In the novels she read and the dramas she watched, people usually get hunted because they knew too much, or if they did something to upset powerful people, or if they were really, really evil. Wang Jingyuan sincerely hoped that she did not rescue a murderer or evil lord. Shaking her head, she sat down on the ground about a meter away and took out another bun to eat.

Wang Jingyuan was almost done with her third white radish bun of the day when she felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up. Someone was watching her. Her first instinct was to look towards the entrance of the cave, but all she saw was the late-afternoon sun casting its rays on the green grass and trees. A nervous feeling settled in her stomach. Slowly, Wang Jingyuan turned her head towards where the man laid.

Even though she tried to mentally prepare herself, Wang Jingyuan was still startled to see that his eyes were open and staring straight at her. She had never seen a pair of eyes emit such power and hostility. Subconsciously, she scooted back a few feet, suddenly frightened by the stranger in front of her.

"S-Senior, y-you're awake," Wang Jingyuan stammered. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Who are you?" His voice came out deep and raspy. He coughed, and winced as the motion tugged on his wounds.

"My name is Wang Jingyuan. I found you hurt and unconscious on the forest floor yesterday," Wang Jingyuan explained in a small voice. Now that the man was awake, he had a hostile aura that screamed Cross me and you shall die. Wang Jingyuan did not want to cross this man, even though he was half disabled. Plus, his sword was right there beside him, and she had no way of defending herself.

"If it's the secret scroll that you want, I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed." The man closed his eyes again. "I burnt it before I left the Hall of Flames."

Secret scroll? Hall of Flames? Wang Jingyuan frowned in confusion. "Senior, what secret scroll? I was passing through when I tripped over your arm and found you lying on the ground in a pool of blood."

The man gave a short bark of mirthless laughter. He opened his eyes and pinned Wang Jingyuan with his intense gaze. "Right now every sect in the martial arts world is hunting for me. Everyone is after the secret scroll. My entire Xuanyan Sect was killed for this. How do you expect me to believe you when you say you're not after it? How could you just be passing by on the night when all the sects attacked?"

Wang Jingyuan's mind spun with the new information. This man must be the chief of the Xuanyan Sect. He had a secret scroll, presumably about really advanced and coveted martial arts, that all the sects teamed up to seize. In the process, they slaughtered the entire Xuanyan Sect and heavily wounded the chief.

"I…Senior, I'm not a martial arts disciple. I just arrived here yesterday from faraway. I don't know anything that has happened, but I'm sorry to hear that your sect suffered such a tragedy," Wang Jingyuan said sincerely. "I know you have no reason to believe a stranger, but if I wanted to hurt you, I wouldn't have spent so much energy saving you."

The man glanced down at his bandaged body before his gaze flickered back to Wang Jingyuan. She had a point. He was heavily wounded, and treating all of the wounds would've taken immense time and effort. Even though he was unconscious, he remembered hearing a young voice speaking to him at times. He was in so much pain, but as the voice spoke, the pain gradually diminished and dulled. What's more, the girl genuinely seemed confused when he mentioned the secret scroll. She didn't even bat an eye when he brought up "Xuanyan Sect". Maybe she really was just an innocent passerby.

Wang Jingyuan noticed that the antagonism in the man's eyes lessened. "Senior, don't worry, no one can find you here. When I went down to the village earlier, I didn't see anyone who looked like they were from another sect searching the mountainside. You can stay here and recover."

The man let out a hmph. His eyes fell to the water canteen next to her. Wang Jingyuan followed his gaze and immediately offered it to him. "I didn't drink from this yet. You can have it."

With much difficulty, the man lifted his good arm and began to reach for the canteen. Wang Jingyuan uncapped the canteen and scooted closer to hand it to him. Suddenly, the man's arm shot out and his hand grabbed her wrist. She let out a yelp of surprise and almost dropped the canteen. "S-Senior, it's not poisoned or anything, I swear—"

"Shush. Stop moving." The man's grip was like steel. At his command, Wang Jingyuan stopped trying to pull her wrist from his hand. She watched nervously as the man…felt her pulse?

Finally, he let go of her wrist. Wang Jingyuan scrambled back to a safe distance again, staring at the man in alarm. He looked back at her, but the hostility in his eyes was gone. "You weren't lying. You have good potential to study martial arts, but you're not trained in it at all."

The man was testing if she had any internal forces [2] in order to verify if she was actually part of the martial arts sector or not. Wang Jingyuan breathed out a small sigh of relief. She was glad that this man no longer saw her as a threat. "Senior, would you still like some water?" She asked carefully.

"Yes. That would be nice," The man answered tiredly. "I'm sorry for my rudeness earlier. You rescued me, and I didn't even thank you."

"Oh, it's alright. I couldn't just leave you there after I found you." Wang Jingyuan walked closer to help the man sit up against the stone wall. He chugged the water down in a series of gulps. "I used two of your silver coins to buy some food and medicine. I think you have enough to buy supplies and stay here until you've recovered."

The man's expression turned grim. "Recover? I'm afraid I won't be able to."

"What? Why?" Wang Jingyuan didn't understand. "Your wounds have started to form scabs. Once you've healed enough, we can go down to the village and have the doctor take a look at your broken arm and leg, and then—"

"Miss Wang, thank you for treating all of my external wounds so nicely. But even if they heal, I won't be able to recover." The man looked down at his bandaged limbs. "I have suffered severe internal damage from Qingsha Sect's Eight Trigrams Soul-Extraction Palm, and it's fatal. I won't live past seven days."