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墨書 Inktalez
The shout from Master Xiao momentarily made me forget the pain, but as I regained my senses, a piercing ache shot through my left hand, and I couldn't help but start to struggle.
"Quick, hold him down!" Xiaorou's Master urged.
As soon as he said that, I knew I was in trouble. Master Xiao and Brother Zhou lunged at me like hungry wolves. Brother Zhou pinned my left hand down, while Master Xiao leaped onto my legs, pressing them down as if they were his sworn enemies. Xiaorou also took the opportunity to hold down my right hand.
Xiaorou's Master, whose surname was Li, looked like a kind old man in his black Tang suit, which made him seem even more approachable. He stood to my left and, after Master Xiao and the others had secured me, pulled out a towel and held it near my mouth. "Open your mouth and bite down. It will hurt a lot; you need to endure it." With that, he revealed a sharp, slender knife that looked quite peculiar—something I had never seen before.
His words startled me. What on earth was he planning to do? Would it really hurt that much? I glanced at my palm, which had gone from red to a deep blue-black as if poisoned. The discoloration had spread beyond my palm to my elbow. Wasn't it just poison? Why was it so severe? Did he really intend to amputate?
Thinking of this made me lose all composure. Struggling was futile; I quickly pleaded, "Master Li! Master Li! Wait! You can't amputate! Please don't cut off my limb! If you do that, it's all over! Isn't there another way? Master, please save me!" After saying this, I looked desperately at him, but he just smiled without saying a word. His expression only heightened my anxiety.
I turned to Master Xiao and said, "Master Xiao! Uncle Xiao! Please plead for me!" Master Xiao wore an infuriating grin and chuckled without responding. He wasn't particularly good-looking to begin with, but when he smiled like that, he looked utterly ridiculous.
I then glanced at Xiaorou, who chuckled and said, "Don't worry; he won't amputate. Master will force the poison out of your hand and then make a small incision to extract it."
"Oh, well then," I thought as I began to relax a bit. Without hesitation, I opened my mouth and bit down on the folded towel. It was better to endure one cut than to lose my hand entirely.
After biting the towel, I turned to watch Master Li's movements. He tapped several times around my elbow before using a thin string of unknown material to bind it tightly. Once secured, the pain in my body subsided significantly; however, the pain in my left hand intensified dramatically, causing me to tremble uncontrollably.
Once he finished binding me up, he gave me a thumbs-up gesture as if praising me. Inwardly, I thought this pain was bearable; there was no need to waste time complimenting me now. Just as I was feeling somewhat pleased with myself, he pressed his thumb firmly against the pulse point on my wrist—the spot where traditional Chinese medicine checks the pulse—creating a large white mark on my previously darkened hand. Instantly, the pain surged exponentially. I bit down hard on the towel and clenched my fists tightly while straightening my legs.
I had no idea what technique this was; Master Li's pressure nearly made me faint. All I could hear was the pounding of my heart in my ears as veins throbbed on my forehead. Within seconds, beads of sweat began pouring down from my brow.
It hurt so much that I couldn't find words to describe it; at that moment, I felt as if I were about to leave this world. Despair washed over me as I turned to look at Master Li one last time—at least I'd see him before dying.
He noticed the despair in my eyes and looked at me with concern; his chin trembled slightly as if feeling helpless.
Master Li continued his work without pause, pressing down on my left hand from palm to wrist and then along the forearm. Each press brought bone-deep pain that made me cry out uncontrollably.
The action continued for about three minutes, and I was nearly exhausted. The pain in my hand had lessened, as if it had gone numb. Master Li stopped what he was doing and took out a small bell, beginning to shake it beside me.
As the sound of the bell rang out, my blood seemed to flow faster, and I felt something moving beneath my skin. However, there were no visible signs from the outside. After shaking the bell for about ten seconds, Master Zhang quickly tossed it aside and said, "Xiao Liu, clench your fist tightly."
What a joke! I was on the verge of collapse; how could I muster the strength to clench my fist? My right hand was still somewhat functional, but my left hand had almost lost all sensation.
I gathered all my strength to focus on my left hand, but it was no use. I could barely manage to form a fist, but I couldn't exert any force.
Seeing that I was trying so hard but not achieving any results, Master Li turned to Master Xiao and said, "Kid, he's not stimulated enough; you need to step it up." Master Xiao replied groggily, "How do I step it up?"
"Just hit him with a punch! Hurry!" Master Li said quickly, sounding particularly anxious.
"Oh," Master Xiao finally understood the clear instruction. He released my legs, stood up, and swung his fist toward my abdomen.
With a thud in my head, he struck without holding back at all; his punch landed squarely on my abs. This finally made me submit. The pain was different this time—an intense pressure that felt deep and widespread. Was this guy insane? Overwhelmed by the pain, I instinctively kicked out and sent Master Xiao crashing to the ground. Fortunately, at that moment, he wasn't as big as he is now. It was easy to kick him.
Master Xiao learned firsthand what it meant when good intentions don't yield good results. His punch was indeed effective; as my hands instinctively clenched into fists, he also received a kick in return. At that moment, Master Li swiftly made a cut at the root of my left hand's index finger near the thumb. Since it wasn't handled properly at the time, I still have a scar on my hand.
After making the cut, Master Li pulled my hand and placed it over a small jar. Dark blood began to flow out—though there wasn't much of it.
As the blood dripped into the jar, the first few drops were black, but then they turned red. As it changed color, Master Li put away the jar and said to Xiaorou, "It's done; help him stop the bleeding and bandage it up."
Strangely enough, as soon as that black blood dripped out, I instantly felt a sense of relief throughout my body. The dark bruise on my left hand visibly receded at an astonishing speed. Within minutes, the color of my entire hand began to return to normal.
Xiaorou asked if I needed stitches. Seeing that the cut wasn't large, I declined and said it was fine to leave a scar.
Xiaorou chuckled and said that even if I wanted stitches, she wouldn't give them to me. She then took a piece of gauze and applied some unknown ointment on top of my wound before securing it with tape. The ointment was wonderful; once applied, there was no pain—only a refreshing sensation.
Although the poison had been removed, my body still felt weak after all the turmoil. My lips were pale, and there was little color left in my face. My master lifted my eyelid to take a look and then said, "It's nothing serious. Just rest a bit; everyone has been busy all night. I'll treat everyone to some late-night snacks."
As soon as I heard about the snacks, I immediately perked up and tried to get up. At that moment, Xiaorou pressed down on my shoulder and said, "Brother Liu, you can't eat anything yet; you have to wait for eight hours. Just rest here."
"Haha, serves you right for kicking me," Master Xiao chuckled, seemingly annoyed by my earlier action.
I shot him a glare and then relaxed my entire body, lying back on the bed while lamenting the unfairness of fate.
One by one, they left the room to eat. I watched as the lively room turned so quiet all of a sudden, feeling a bit melancholic inside. More importantly, I was really hungry; damn this cursed insect poison.
Cursing inwardly, I turned my head to look at my left hand and noticed a small jar on the bedside table. It was the jar that Master Li had used to collect my black blood. How could he have forgotten to take it away?
Inside the jar was the poison that Master Li had extracted from me, and the Insect of Sorcery should also be in there; I just didn't know if it was dead or not. I loathed that Insect of Sorcery and really wanted to grab it and burn it with fire.
Wait a minute, this jar looks somewhat familiar. I hadn't paid much attention earlier due to the pain, but now that I was feeling better, I started staring at it. No, the pattern on this jar seems familiar.
The first update of six o'clock is here.
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