Poison's Revelation

After reaching the village, Tang Wei turned to Mei Ling, "Are those for your father?" he asked gently.

Mei Ling's expression turned somber. "Yes," she replied, sadness evident in her voice.

"Has he shown any signs of improvement?" Tang Wei inquired.

Mei Ling shook her head. "He's still lying in bed. The doctors couldn't find the cause of his illness."

Tang Wei frowned. "What are his symptoms?"

"We don't know," Mei Ling said, her voice trembling. "The doctors are baffled."

Tang Wei looked thoughtful. "If you don't mind, I can take a look. My father was a doctor, and I learned a lot from him. I might be able to help."

Mei Ling hesitated for a moment but then nodded. "Alright, let's go."

They walked to Mei Ling's house, a small but tidy abode. Inside, Mei Ling's mother was gently cleaning her husband's body with a damp towel. The woman looked up as they entered, her eyes widening with concern.

"Mei Ling, you're back. Who is this beggar?" she asked, her tone wary.

"Mom," Mei Ling chided softly. "He's not a beggar. He's Chen, the one who saved me three years ago."

Recognition dawned on the mother's face. "Oh, that Chen. Thank you, Mr. Chen, for saving my daughter."

Tang Wei smiled politely. "It's alright. By the way, may I take a look at Mr. Mei? I have some knowledge of medicine."

Mei Ling's mother agreed, stepping aside. Tang Wei approached the bed where Mei Ling's father lay motionless. He examined the man closely, noting his pale complexion and shallow breathing. After a few minutes, Tang Wei's face grew pale, and he started sweating.

"Are you alright?" Mei Ling asked, worried.

"Mei Ling," Tang Wei began, his voice steady despite his inner turmoil, "before your father became unable to move, did he bleed from his nose or ears?"

Mei Ling's mother started to tear up. "Yes, before he became like this, he bled many times from his nose, and later, from his ears. How did you know that? Do you know what's wrong with him?"

Tang Wei's expression darkened. "I'm not completely sure yet, but I'm certain it's poison. I'll start extracting it now."

Tang Wei placed his hands on Mei Ling's father, focusing his Qi. The man's veins turned black, and he started to scream, black blood oozing from his nose and ears. A small, black pill of poison gathered in Tang Wei's palm. Mei Ling's father, though visibly more relaxed, remained unconscious, still unable to wake up from his exhausted state.

Tang Wei stepped back, sat cross-legged, and consumed the black poison pill. Mei Ling and her mother watched in shock as Tang Wei began to tremble, the poison spreading through his veins. In his mind, he recalled a memory from his childhood, when his father had given him a newly developed poison to consume and detoxify as part of his training. This poison was the same.

His body, accustomed to handling toxins, absorbed the poison without harm. He stored it within himself, his mind going blank for a moment. Mei Ling approached him, hearing him whisper, "Why is this poison here?"

Suddenly, a wave of killing intent radiated from Tang Wei, freezing Mei Ling and her mother in place. The hidden elder sensed the disturbance and rushed to the house. Arriving quickly, he saw Tang Wei consumed by rage and approached him, patting his head gently.

"Boy, stop now. It's dangerous for the girl and her mother," the elder said firmly.

Tang Wei snapped out of his rage, withdrawing his killing intent. The elder asked, "Why did you release such a killing intent here?"

Tang Wei whispered to the elder, "The poison that man who is laying on the bed suffered from is the Brain Dead Poison."

The elder recognized the poison developed by the head of the Tang Clan and whispered, "It must be the doing of the Iron Fist Clan. Let's talk later."

The elder then turned to Mei Ling and her mother. "I'm sorry for the late introduction. I'm this boy's grandfather. I apologize for scaring you."

Mei Ling's mother nodded slowly. "It's ok."

The elder approached Mei Ling's father, checking his condition with his Qi. He was amazed at how thoroughly Tang Wei had extracted the poison. "Your husband will be fine now," the elder said. "It will take him three to four days to wake up and another two to regain his strength."

Mei Ling and her mother couldn't hold back their tears, crying with relief. The elder turned to Tang Wei. "This boy must have used a lot of energy. I'll take him with me."

Tang Wei followed the elder silently. They walked to the elder's hidden dwelling, a secluded spot deep in the forest. Once inside, the elder turned to Tang Wei. "I thought it would take you more than five years to reach the peak martial artist, but here you are after just three years. Your father always said you were the greatest talent the Tang Clan had ever seen, and now I believe him."

Tang Wei felt a lump in his throat as the elder placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It must have been hard for you. Your father would be proud, watching you from heaven."

Tears welled up in Tang Wei's eyes. Bai Yan emerged from his clothes, hissing softly. Tang Wei patted the snake's head. "I'm okay."

The elder's eyes widened. "I thought this viper type was extinct."

"Viper? Extinct?" Tang Wei asked, confused.

"It's called the Heaven-Killing Viper," the elder explained. "It was supposed to have been extinct for 500 years. You've managed to tame it. Your trip must have been rewarding."

Tang Wei nodded, and the elder's expression grew serious. "Did you complete your poison training?"

Tang Wei smirked. "Of course."

"Then show me," the elder challenged.

Tang Wei concentrated, extracting one of his strongest poisons and shaping it into a pill. The elder was astonished. "Storing poison in the body requires hellish training, and for a new peak martial artist like you to use it so freely... I can't imagine what you went through."

The elder took the poison pill and consumed it, sitting cross-legged to detoxify it. Five hours later, he finished, looking at Tang Wei with admiration. "For a Transcendence martial artist like me to take five hours to detoxify this poison... If it were a peak martial artist, they might take 10 to 15 hours, if they could detoxify it at all. You've created a masterpiece."

Tang Wei laughed. "Don't misunderstand, elder. This was one of my strongest poisons, but not the strongest."

The elder looked skeptical. "Don't joke with me."

Tang Wei's expression turned serious. He spread his arms, releasing his strongest poison in a pill-like form and threw it against a wall. The wall melted instantly. Turning to the elder with a chilling smile, he asked, "How long will it take you to detoxify this?"

The killing intent enhanced by his Viper's Eyes skill made the elder sweat. "You monster," the elder muttered. "Why don't you just ask me how long I'd survive after being hit by that?"

After a tense moment, the elder continued, "If it were used with Tang Clan martial arts, most Transcendence martial artists wouldn't survive more than five hours, let alone detoxify it."

Tang Wei's smile faded, replaced by a fierce determination. "Then now we can start a war on them?"

The elder raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "Hold on there, young one. Before we launch into battle, you might want to consider taking a shower."