Within a hundred-mile radius of Qianyu City, the powers, large and small, were intricately intertwined. However, the Zhao family and three martial sects stood out as the strongest and most renowned.
These three sects, directly or indirectly, influenced the martial world for hundreds of miles. Their decrees sometimes held more sway than those of the county magistrate.
At this moment, Ji Yuan, with a long sword on his back and a medicine box slung over his shoulder, rushed along with Zhao Shengcai, whose face was etched with anxiety, from the Taoist temple.
Upon their arrival at the Zhao family mansion, the guards at the gate, upon seeing the two, immediately let them pass without a word, as if they had already received instructions from within.
Once inside the Zhao mansion, Ji Yuan noticed that the maids, servants, and others he encountered along the way were all visibly tense and anxious, with a hint of unease deep in their eyes.
On their way, Zhao Shengcai had informed him of the general situation: the Zhao family's most beloved youngest son had suddenly fallen into a coma while studying.
The Zhao family had also summoned physicians to examine him. After administering a few doses of medicine, the young master's condition not only failed to improve but his temperature even began to rise, and he often muttered in his sleep.
Occasionally, when he regained consciousness, he would abandon his usual quiet demeanor and throw a tantrum in his room, appearing as if possessed by an evil spirit.
In the end, the anxious Patriarch Zhao, unable to bear his son's suffering, immediately dispatched his servants to Xuantian Temple, urgently requesting Ji Yuan to the mansion.
After understanding the general situation, Ji Yuan suspected that the true purpose of the invitation was not merely to treat the young master's illness, but perhaps to have a contingency plan.
If it were indeed a case of demonic possession, Ji Yuan, as a registered Taoist priest of the Great Yu Dynasty, was proficient in such matters.
However, he hadn't expected the situation here to be far more serious than he had anticipated.
The Zhao family held the highest status and reputation in Qianyu City, with no one to rival them. Consequently, their mansion occupied a vast area.
A residence with three floors in the front and five in the back was a scale that even the county yamen did not possess.
Following Zhao Shengcai through numerous courtyards and meticulously designed waterscapes and pavilions, Ji Yuan soon arrived at the large courtyard deep within the mansion.
Around a dozen people were already gathered in the courtyard. There were young monks from Baiyun Temple, renowned physicians from the city, and several itinerant doctors.
In addition, there were many maids, guards, and household servants scattered around.
Upon seeing Zhao Shengcai, Patriarch Zhao's trusted servant, the expressions of those present immediately turned serious. However, when their gazes fell upon the young Taoist behind him, some couldn't help but frown.
They knew that Zhao Shengcai had been ordered by the Patriarch to invite a reclusive master capable of miraculous healing, or even resurrection. Yet, they hadn't expected the person brought back to be a young Taoist with a faded robe.
Only one or two of the city's renowned physicians and the young monk from Baiyun Temple were aware of this young Taoist's identity.
Just as a few of them were contemplating whether to step forward and greet him, an elderly steward with white hair hurried over.
He nodded at Zhao Shengcai, then cupped his hands in a salute, bowing deeply: "Please, young Taoist priest, save our young master!"
Ji Yuan quickly sidestepped to avoid the steward's bow, then helped him up, stating that he would do his best.
The old steward then took the young Taoist's hand and hurried towards the main chamber.
Upon entering the room, Ji Yuan's brow furrowed slightly. The air was thick with the pungent aroma of medicinal herbs, which was quite sharp.
With just a slight twitch of his nose, he identified all the herbs by their scent, and various corresponding prescriptions flashed through his mind.
A moment later, the young Taoist shook his head. Although he hadn't yet seen the young Zhao master, he had already guessed the boy's current condition. Having ingested so many different medicinal formulas indiscriminately, all of which were potent tonics.
Therefore, there were only two possible outcomes: either his body, unable to absorb the tonics, became even weaker, or there was no way to replenish his deficiency, leading to an excess of internal fire.
As expected, the little boy on the bed, about seven or eight years old, was in the latter state. He had a naturally strong constitution, and being force-fed a large quantity of potent tonics had led to an excess of vital energy and blood essence, nearly bursting his small body.
Seeing this, Ji Yuan disregarded formalities and quickly stepped forward to sit by the bedside. While taking the boy's pulse, he spoke softly, "Bring a silver vessel."
An elderly man in his sixties or seventies nodded and immediately dispatched a servant to fetch it.
"Young Taoist priest, may I ask how my son is?"
Patriarch Zhao gently waved his hand, signaling for the others in the room not to be anxious, and then asked in a low voice.
Hearing this, Ji Yuan pursed his lips, remaining silent as he focused on taking the boy's pulse. However, as time passed, his expression gradually turned grim.
After a long while, he slowly spoke, "The young master has likely been afflicted by evil energy, causing his mind to be in disarray. However, you have not treated the root cause, but instead administered too many tonics."
Potent tonics themselves posed no harm to the human body; ordinary people would welcome them daily.
But the young Zhao master, being pampered and accustomed to medicinal diets since childhood, was always attended by physicians who replenished his vital energy as needed.
As a result, his body was naturally abundant in essence, blood, and vital energy. At such a young age, he was already comparable to an ordinary strong adult in the secular world.
In this situation, suddenly ingesting another large dose of potent vital energy naturally led to an overdose, causing his internal essence, blood, and vital energy to ignite, burning within his body like an invisible fire.
If not discovered and treated promptly, he would at the very least be turned into a simpleton by the invisible fire, leaving him with a weak constitution and prone to illness for the rest of his life.
Upon hearing Ji Yuan's explanation, Patriarch Zhao immediately became anxious. Despite having weathered countless storms in his life, when it came to his late-life son, he found it difficult to maintain his composure.
"Please, young Taoist priest, save him. I will surely offer a generous reward!"
Patriarch Zhao was so agitated that he almost stood up to bow.
As he spoke, the servant who had left earlier returned, placing a silver basin beside the bed.
Ji Yuan glanced at the silver basin, nodded with slight satisfaction, then threw back the silk quilt and removed all the boy's clothing.
Having done so, he took out silver needles from his medicine box, heated them with a lamp, and began to insert them one by one into the boy's acupoints.
Each needle inserted consumed some of his vital energy. With his early Enlightenment realm, he couldn't even complete a full acupuncture session. Every seven or eight needles, he had to take a pill to supplement his energy.
With the aid of the pills, another half hour passed. A total of forty-nine silver needles were inserted into the boy's acupoints.
As the last needle was inserted, meridians began to appear on the boy's flushed skin. Something seemed to be rolling within them, causing the meridians to undulate unevenly.
Ji Yuan gestured with his eyes, and a servant immediately stepped forward, holding the silver basin.
He then placed one of the boy's hands on the silver basin, inserted silver needles into his five fingers, and quickly withdrew them.
Instantly, blood spurted from his five fingers, flowing into the silver basin.
The flowing blood emitted an extraordinary heat, and even from a distance, waves of warmth could be felt, making one imagine the torment the boy must have been enduring constantly.
"Stop giving him any more medicine. The young master's foundation is already strong, and there's no need to supplement his vital energy further."
As the blood drained, Ji Yuan instructed, while simultaneously withdrawing the silver needles from the boy's body.
In less than an hour, the boy, who had been in pain moments ago, was now sleeping soundly, wrapped in a silk quilt. After days of torment, he had finally found peace.
Patriarch Zhao nodded continuously, devoid of the imposing demeanor that commanded respect from both the righteous and wicked within hundreds of miles. He looked like an ordinary elderly father.
He glanced at the blood in the silver basin, where wisps of black energy were beginning to appear. His weather-beaten brow furrowed slightly.
"May I ask, young Taoist priest, has the evil energy within Yue Bai been completely eradicated?"
The Patriarch inquired softly, his posture remarkably humble.
He would, of course, treat any renowned physician with respect, but he would never be so cautious. After all, he was a figure whose actions could shake the entire region within hundreds of miles.
However, these titles and prestige held little significance for the young Taoist before him.
Not only was he a cultivator of exceptional talent, but he was also one of the few alchemists in the city. Both his alchemy and medical skills were considered top-notch, and he was a guest of honor among the sects.
Ji Yuan consumed several pills to recover his depleted vital energy. The entire ordeal had not only depleted a bottle and a half of pills but had also rendered his lunch useless, completely exhausting the little spiritual energy he had accumulated.
He exhaled, saying leisurely, "The evil energy within the young master has not yet been purged by this humble Taoist."
That evil energy was deeply rooted and extremely pure, unlike that of ordinary nascent malevolent spirits.
Only a ghost or spirit that had cultivated profound Taoist arts and possessed a cultivation method could condense such pure evil energy to erode the vital essence of living beings.
Thinking this, Ji Yuan's brow furrowed. The Zhao family was no ordinary household. Ordinary malevolent spirits and ghosts wouldn't even dare to approach this mansion, let alone infiltrate it.
To silently enter the Zhao mansion and implant evil energy into the young Zhao master's body suggested that the entity was at least a malevolent spirit in the late stage of Enlightenment.