After rebirth, she discovered the space golden finger

Chapter 581 Zhen Wei

Besides Yin Yanyue and her junior sister, only Pei Yun attended Zhen Yao's wedding. The three of them boarded a flying magical artifact and headed towards Zilang City...

Yin Yanyue sighed and continued the previous topic: "...I didn't know about the grudges between Senior Sister Zhen and your friend before. Later, Senior Sister Zhen and her master, Elder Yu, used many connections to help him clear his name of colluding with the demon race and defecting from the sect. Senior Sister Zhen even pleaded with the sect leader and knelt outside the main hall for more than half a month before the higher-ups of the Xianlan Sect decided to reinvestigate the matter..."

Pei Yun showed a moved expression. This was the first time she had heard the inside story of this matter. Zhen Yao had never mentioned it to her, or even to Fu Lingchen.

It's easy to imagine that while she was silently giving to Fu Lingchen, all she got in return was his infidelity. This fact felt like a slap in the face.

Pei Yun said, "Fu Lingchen previously tried to stop Fellow Daoist Zhen from marrying Zhu Zhi, saying that Zhu Zhi was a ruthless and vicious person. But Fellow Daoist Zhen said that the Zhen family and the Zhu family needed to form a marriage alliance to consolidate the Zhen family's position among the aristocratic families. Fellow Daoist Yin, do you know anything about Zhu Zhi?"

Yin Yanyue frowned: "Senior Brother Zhu... I haven't had much contact with him, so I can't comment, but since Senior Sister Zhen is doing this for the family, it's not appropriate for us outsiders to interfere..."

Yin Yanyue initially invited Pei Yun because she genuinely wanted to take Fu Lingchen to see Zhen Yao. In case the two still had feelings for each other, she wanted to help Zhen Yao. But now that Pei Yun had said this, she felt that she had been a bit rash. She shouldn't have tried to interfere in someone else's marriage based on her own speculation.

She didn't interact much with Zhen Yao and Zhu Zhi within the sect. Firstly, there was a difference in their seniority, and secondly, Yin Yanyue's status in the sect was far higher than theirs. Yin Yanyue's faction was the direct line of the Xianlan Sect, belonging to the sect leader's lineage.

Leaving aside Zhen Yao, it's already good enough that someone like Zhu Zhi doesn't actively flatter Yin Yanyue, so why would he resort to underhanded tricks in front of her? Yin Yanyue naturally doesn't know the other party's true colors.

Pei Yun and Yin Yanyue are both very sensible people. Since Zhen Yao and Fu Lingchen have already made their choices, they naturally won't interfere in other people's affairs.

Yin Yanyue then changed the subject, saying, "...The joint competition of the five palaces' disciples has been announced. Has Fellow Daoist Pei registered?"

Pei Yun shook his head with a wry smile: "I've been busy these past few days and haven't had time to contact disciples from other temples. Registration requires forming a team first, and I haven't even finalized my selection yet! Luckily, there's a six-month registration period. I'll think about it after the wedding..."

After chatting for a while and exchanging cultivation tips, the two each chose a spot and began to cultivate cross-legged.

Yin Yanyue's flying artifact was a high-grade Earth-level artifact. Although it was not as good as Pei Yun's Vermilion Bird Puppet, its speed was not much different. After about ten days, it arrived at Zilang City.

Zilang City is one of the major cities under the jurisdiction of the Xianlan Sect. The city and a large area around it are controlled by several powerful families, and the city lord of Zilang City is elected by these families in rotation.

However, in recent years, due to the serious injury and retirement of the Zhen family patriarch, the Zhen family has become weak, and other major families have raised objections, wanting to remove the Zhen family from the rotation of city lords.

The position of city lord represents power and the allocation of resources. The city lord and these aristocratic families control the surrounding spiritual veins, mineral veins, the quotas for secret realms and spiritual mansions, as well as various profitable businesses. That is why the Zhen family is so eager to form a marriage alliance with the Zhu family.

The Zhu family held only a lower-middle position among these prominent families, so they had their own calculations regarding the marriage alliance proposed by the Zhen family. They believed that the benefits of the two families joining forces outweighed the drawbacks.

When Pei Yun and the other two arrived at the Zhen family home, there were still five days until the wedding. Zhen Yao was a little surprised to see Pei Yun, but she happily welcomed the three of them into the Zhen residence.

Pei Yun and the other two first went to pay their respects to Zhen Yao's parents, presented them with congratulatory gifts, and exchanged pleasantries for a while before Zhen Yao led them to her courtyard.

"...I didn't expect to run into you again so soon after our meeting at the Sword Debate Tournament. Thank you, Fellow Daoist Pei, for coming all this way to attend my wedding..." Zhen Yao said with a smile, leading the three of them through the garden's long corridor.

“It was a coincidence that I met Fellow Daoist Yin at the temple. Fellow Daoist Yin mentioned Fellow Daoist Zhen’s matter. I apologize for coming here so abruptly, Fellow Daoist Zhen…” Pei Yun did not mention Fu Lingchen, and the other party did not ask about Fu Lingchen.

"How could that be? I'm overjoyed that Fellow Daoist Pei, Junior Sister Yin, and Junior Sister Wang are attending my wedding..."

As Zhen Yao was speaking, a maid carrying medicine came towards them. Upon seeing Zhen Yao and the others, she quickly squatted down and bowed, saying, "Third Miss."

"Go ahead," Zhen Yao nodded to the maid, "Don't spill the medicine."

"Yes."

Pei Yun and the others looked back curiously at the maid's retreating figure. Wang Xiao, who was next to Yin Yanyue, couldn't help but ask, "Senior Sister Zhen, is someone in the manor sick?"

After she finished speaking, Yin Yanyue gave her a warning glance, but Zhen Yao smiled gently and said, "My grandfather has been seriously injured for many years and has not yet recovered, so he needs to take medicine every day."

Upon hearing this, Pei Yun unconsciously frowned slightly: "Has a doctor been called to come and see you?"

"Yes, not only all the physicians in Zilang City, but the Zhen family also invited Elder Zheng from the Pill God Hall to come and take a look. Elder Zheng sends over pills every now and then, which are taken daily in conjunction with the herbal decoctions..."

As Zhen Yao spoke, she noticed Pei Yun's unusual expression. Remembering that Pei Yun was an alchemist, she straightened her expression and asked, "Fellow Daoist Pei, is there a problem?"

"May I ask what injury your grandfather sustained?"

Zhen Yao stopped in her tracks: "To be honest, my grandfather went on a journey to prepare for his tribulation. He was injured by a powerful demon in a dangerous secret realm, and most of his dantian was destroyed... Fellow Daoist Pei, is there something wrong with this medicine?"

They all stopped and looked at Pei Yun with serious expressions.

“This… I think I just smelled a medicine called Shaozhu Powder in the herbal decoction.”

"What's the problem? Is it poison?" Wang Xiao asked.

"No, it's not poisonous in itself, but it shouldn't be taken with Qingmingzi, fern roots, or Kuiyanghua, as this can disrupt the flow of qi and blood, which won't benefit the treatment..."

"You mean you smelled these four herbs in the herbal soup just now?" Yin Yanyue asked.

Zhen Yao's expression changed. Without bothering to talk to the others, she hurriedly chased after the maid. Pei Yun and the other two also followed.

……

Pei Yun and his two companions hurriedly arrived at a courtyard, only to be stopped by the servants guarding the entrance. From inside the room came an anxious shout: "Don't drink!"

There was a commotion inside the room, and a moment later, Zhen Yao led Pei Yun and the other two into the room.

In the middle of the main hall sat an elderly man with white hair. Pei Yun noticed that his face was dark and his complexion was not good. He seemed to be forcing himself to sit in the chair.

“Grandfather, my friend is an alchemist. Although she is young, she is extremely talented in alchemy.” Zhen Yao pointed to Pei Yun while supporting the old man, and then pleaded with Pei Yun, “Fellow Daoist Pei, please take a look at my grandfather.”

Pei Yun met the old man's gaze. A glint of shrewdness shone in his cloudy eyes. She smiled calmly, not minding the old man's probing and questioning expression.

“Of course, no problem.” Pei Yun stepped forward. “Senior Zhen, I am an alchemist and also know a little about medicine. How about I take a look at you…”

"Thank you very much, young friend Pei." Zhen Wei stretched out a hand, released his consciousness, and allowed the other party's spiritual power to probe into his body.

Pei Yun placed her fingertips on his wrist, closed her eyes, and channeled her spiritual energy into his body.

Everyone else present remained silent, watching Pei Yun's actions with bated breath.

After a long while, Pei Yun opened his eyes and sighed softly, "Senior Zhen's injuries are too severe. His dantian is on the verge of collapse. It's already remarkable that he's managed to hold on until now. At most, his dantian will be completely shattered in three years..."

Once the dantian is shattered, lifespan comes to an end. This is far more serious than what happened to Fu Lingchen back then, so there is simply no time to start cultivating again.

"Fellow Daoist Pei, do you have any way to save my grandfather?" Zhen Yao asked, holding Pei Yun's hand with hope in her eyes.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a commotion arose outside the door, and a large group of the Zhen family strode in…