Jiang Zhenxue temporarily settled down in Wu Zhen's ancestral home.
His physical condition remained extremely severe; he was rarely awake and spent most of his time in a deep slumber. It seemed that even his five senses were impaired to some extent, and he could not walk for long periods.
In other words, he couldn't leave this place for the time being.
When one is away from home, one's identity is whatever one claims it to be. Without blinking an eye, Wu Zhen told Jiang Zhenxue that she was the best doctor in Qingni Town and was very happy to help others, assuring him that he could stay and recover in peace.
Since there was no way to turn this immortal encounter into a corpse, she could only try to build a good relationship with him first.
To be fair, she wasn't completely lying to him. For a player, becoming the best doctor here would only take a little bit of time.
Jiang Zhenxue was a very obedient patient. Although he was suspected of hiding his true nature, at least his outward attitude was very gentle. The undeniable, otherworldly aura he had when she first met him was also slowly fading away.
Even though he still looked completely out of place in these surroundings.
Making her place look dull and dingy by contrast.
But the problem was, the player was by no means a reliable doctor.
For the past few days, Wu Zhen had been engaged in a battle of wits and courage with [Medical Skills].
No, rather, she hadn't even managed to unlock the [Medical Skills] skill bar yet.
Wu Zhen stared at the pile of completely off-track skills in her skill bar, such as [Poison Skills], [Alchemy], and [Gu Sorcery], and fell into deep thought.
Where exactly did things go wrong?
Her [Pharmacology] and [Reading] skills were almost at max level, yet she just couldn't unlock [Medical Skills]. Could there be some hidden condition?
Refusing to give up, Wu Zhen began studying acupuncture.
Great, the skill bar moved—
[Hidden Weapons] lv.1
Wu Zhen: ...
Wu Zhen was this close to tearing open her character's underlying code to see if there was a defect in some hidden attribute like [Intelligence].
However, even though she knew absolutely nothing about the medical arts of healing and saving lives, she could still fake it.
Without changing her expression, Wu Zhen took today's pharmaceutical practice to her only patient to test the medicine—no, to treat him.
She knew very well that Jiang Zhenxue's injuries could not be cured by ordinary medicine. She was only doing this to practice her medical skills while conveniently grinding some affection points. As for what kind of medicine she was brewing, that was none of anyone's business.
It wouldn't kill him, anyway...
Right?
Wu Zhen looked at the new event popping up in the event log.
[Jiang Zhenxue] received 1 point of poison damage.
[Jiang Zhenxue] HP -1
.
Wu Zhen stared at that line of [HP -1] in silence for a moment, then calmly looked away.
Meanwhile, her patient put down the medicine bowl without a change in expression and smiled. "Thank you for your trouble, Miss."
[Jiang Zhenxue]'s affection for you has increased.
[Jiang Zhenxue] current affection: 4
Wu Zhen: ...
The player's conscience suffered a slight twinge of guilt.
But she would continue tomorrow.
She didn't stay there for too long. Taking the medicine bowl, she prepared to return to the courtyard to continue grinding her skills. Right before stepping out the door, she heard a faint, low cough from behind.
Wu Zhen looked back, just in time to see the young man using his thumb to wipe away a trace of blood from the corner of his lips. His eyes were downcast, and his expression was peaceful.
Perhaps sensing her gaze, he turned his head, his eyes curving slightly as a very gentle and kind smile appeared on his snow-pale face.
Wu Zhen blinked.
The player was an absolute sucker for good looks. If she had installed a beautification mod for the NPCs before entering the game, she wouldn't have been too lazy to even greet the NPCs she met, leaving her affection list sparse. Fortunately, her reputation as the King of Fighters in Qingni Town preceded her, and getting low-price discounts from merchants was much easier to obtain than grinding affection.
So every time she saw Jiang Zhenxue, whose art style completely contrasted with his surroundings, her eyes couldn't help but linger for a moment or two.
But it was only for a moment.
Wu Zhen still couldn't forget her yet-to-be-born [Medical Skills].
The player was in a hurry. She looked away and considerately closed the door for the patient.
In the few steps it took to reach her newly opened small herb garden, Wu Zhen casually clicked on Jiang Zhenxue's status bar from the recently popped-up [Event] log.
She only saw four bright red words: [Severe Unhealed Injuries]
After all, it was an injury that could trap an immortal cultivator in the mortal realm.
But the specific nature of his injuries remained unknown, likely because some of her levels or stats hadn't met the requirements.
Wu Zhen then looked at the single-digit affection bar.
Sigh. I'll just give him some little trash items tomorrow.
Wu Zhen worked hard on her medical skills for a little while longer. After her [Poison Skills] successfully advanced to lv.3, she went to bed, her heart dead as ashes.
...
No, she couldn't sleep at all!
The player found it hard to accept. Anyway, she was in her own ancestral home, so even if she experienced a forced shutdown, she should be fine. She didn't believe that she couldn't unlock these medical skills!
She had a premonition that she was very close; the advantage was hers this time.
Two hours later.
Her fatigue level hit the max, and Wu Zhen underwent a forced shutdown on the spot.
It was already late at night. The courtyard suddenly became very quiet, and the sounds of flipping pages and grinding herbs disappeared.
A moment later, the door of the side wing was slowly pushed open, and a tall, slender figure stepped silently into the courtyard.
He didn't approach Wu Zhen, who was sleeping slumped over the desk. Stopping at a proper distance, he bent down and gently picked up the book that had slipped from the black-haired girl's hand onto the ground.
"Priceless Medical Cases"
Looking at the other books scattered on the desk, they were clearly related to medical skills as well.
Jiang Zhenxue closed the book.
His face still bore the pallor of his severe, unhealed injuries, but his eyes lacked the gentleness he displayed during the day. The mist-like gray mixed into his pupils now looked more like flowing quicksilver, carrying a coldness with a metallic quality.
Jiang Zhenxue's gaze fell upon the black-haired girl. He merely watched her, not revealing any of his thoughts.
He stood in silence for a while before looking away. Just as he turned around, preparing to leave, he suddenly stopped, turned back, and pulled out a moon-white outer robe out of thin air.
That outer robe seemed to be held up by something invisible as it gently draped over the black-haired girl.
...
It wasn't until the next morning that Wu Zhen woke up from her forced shutdown state.
It seemed to have rained last night. She smelled the fresh, unique scent of vegetation and damp earth that comes after a rain.
Oh no. Was she going to catch a cold?
The player didn't care about her physical condition, but being sick was a debuff that heavily affected efficiency. Moreover, her medical skills were still in a very weird stage, so she couldn't brew any medicine for herself.
She didn't want to poison herself to death just yet.
"...Huh?"
The player blinked in confusion.
She pulled at her sleeves and inspected them repeatedly, then touched her hair—it was very dry, with no sign of having been drenched in the rain.
Did the game glitch?
Wu Zhen scratched her head and opened the [Event] log.
A few lines of notifications lay quietly in the event log.
[Jiang Zhenxue]'s affection for you has increased.
[Jiang Zhenxue] current affection: 10
Wu Zhen was even more confused.
She hadn't done anything, right?
Wu Zhen continued scrolling up, and her gaze paused slightly.
[Jiang Zhenxue] draped the [Jade Feather Robe] over [Wu Zhen].
[Environment] Damp.
[Jiang Zhenxue] cast the [Water Repellent Spell] on [Wu Zhen].
Then, just before sunrise.
[Jiang Zhenxue] retrieved the [Jade Feather Robe].
The player glanced at the affection increase notification again and fell into deep thought.
She only did one thing when she was fast asleep.
And that was to indiscriminately attack all living creatures that came near.
Although the event log didn't show it, what if it was an attempted attack by her?
Could Jiang Zhenxue... have some sort of peculiar kink?
Wu Zhen was greatly shocked.
However, considering that Jiang Zhenxue had helped her avoid a negative status effect, Wu Zhen decided to treat her one and only patient a little better.
She carefully brewed a pot of qi and blood replenishing medicine, brought it to Jiang Zhenxue, and watched him drink it with full anticipation.
The next second.
[Jiang Zhenxue] took 100 points of poison damage
[Jiang Zhenxue] HP -100
Wu Zhen: "..."
The player suffered a heavy blow.
...How did the toxicity get even stronger?!
Jiang Zhenxue also seemed to fall silent this time.
Seeing the black-haired girl's expression look as if she had been struck by lightning, he held the bowl in silence for a moment. His other hand discreetly brushed past his lips—Wu Zhen acutely noticed him wiping away a trickle of bright red blood—before his eyes curved slightly, and he said softly and calmly, "Your medical skills are excellent, Miss. I am sure I will be fully recovered in no time."
[Jiang Zhenxue]'s affection for you has increased!
[Jiang Zhenxue] Current Affection: 14
Wu Zhen: ...Are you actually this gentle and kind-hearted?!
"Just call me Wu Zhen." Wu Zhen only just remembered that she had completely forgotten to tell Jiang Zhenxue her name. Her gaze shifted for a moment, and after confirming that he didn't seem to have any other discomfort, she slipped out the door feeling a little guilty.
"Alright... Miss Wu."
Wu Zhen glanced back.
The young man tilted his head slightly and returned her a smile.
.
Wu Zhen didn't often stay in the ancestral home.
Deep winter was almost over, and she was gradually getting back into her rhythm. Every day she had a planned schedule to follow, and she had also obtained a few more [Clues] to investigate further.
Her [Assets] also began to accumulate steadily once again.
It was worth mentioning that, not knowing the specific criteria for the asset tab, the player was shocked to see Jiang Zhenxue's name listed among her assets one day when she checked.
The player's eyes widened instantly.
She knew it! He was her [Glimmer of Immortal Destiny]!
The player was delighted. She finally stopped forgetting about him every few days and added Daily Dialogue/Daily Gifting to her schedule.
Clearing out the little pieces of junk from her inventory made traveling feel much lighter.
Jiang Zhenxue also went from being confused when he received a blade of grass the first time, to being able to politely accept whatever Wu Zhen pulled out and handed to him without batting an eye.
The player was deeply moved. After all, when she tried to trade these items to the traveling merchant, the merchant had rudely blurted out in shock, "What kind of garbage is this?" which severely hurt the feelings of the junk-collecting player.
In the small storage ring that was Jiang Zhenxue's only surviving possession, similar meaningless gifts began to pile up, gradually pushing his magical treasures and spirit stones to the side.
And Wu Zhen never asked where he kept the gifts.
She could only see what she wanted to see.
Jiang Zhenxue's gaze fell upon the black-haired girl who was happily building a snowman in the courtyard.
She caught his gaze with an almost acute sensitivity and turned her head. Her pale cheeks held a hint of color from her joy. Her eyes curved into crescents as she flashed a bright smile and waved vigorously at him.
"Do you want to come build a snowman together?"
—As for anything else, she couldn't care less.
