"Hmph, you have the nerve to say, asking what went wrong, and yet found no clues," Su Qingyu snorted coldly, turning her head away.
"But I really don’t know," Ye Shikai expressed helplessly. Indeed, this matter was too mysterious; whether electronic devices or Inner Strength, he couldn’t find any trace. There was fundamentally nothing wrong with his body, and the knife spirit in his brain had also been silent ever since the last confrontation with the orc leader, making Ye Shikai feel emptiness inside.
"Qingyu, I’ve been feeling a bit strange lately." Ye Shikai hesitated before finally revealing the recent events. Originally, he intended to keep this a secret from everyone, but given today’s incidents, it could no longer be concealed. On one hand, Ye Shikai was venting the secret burdening his heart, and on the other, he no longer wanted to hide it from Su Qingyu.
"Why are you only saying this now?" Su Qingyu said coldly, her tone full of reproach. Ye Shikai was concerned about Su Qingyu’s safety, and she equally cared about Ye Shikai’s health. Had he spoken earlier, perhaps today’s events wouldn’t have happened.
"We can still talk about it now," Ye Shikai said with an awkward smile.
"Husband, there’s something important I want to discuss with you," Su Qingyu said with a grave expression, hesitating for a long time before finally speaking.
"I... I want to start cultivating."
Ye Shikai nearly blurted out his response, feeling as if a bomb had exploded in his heart. He could let Su Qingyu enter the dark Underworld, but he would not let her be part of it. Cultivation was a boundary, a line that must not be crossed. If Su Pengzhan was here, he probably wouldn’t want Su Qingyu to cultivate either.
"Qingyu, I’ve told you before, cultivation isn’t something you should do," Ye Shikai refused coldly.
"But do you know how distraught I was when you were in trouble today," Su Qingyu’s anger erupted, more a kind of frustration and helplessness than actual rage.
"Even if you start cultivating now, you wouldn’t be much help to me. On the contrary, if you don’t cultivate, you can maintain the status quo. Qingyu, you don’t know the dangers of the Underworld, you can’t get involved," Ye Shikai continued, leaving no room for negotiation.
"What about Miss Ji, isn’t she also cultivating, why..."
"If possible, I’d rather she didn’t cultivate either," Ye Shikai’s expression suddenly changed when mentioning Ji Qian, his demeanor visibly shifting. "At least, she wouldn’t have had to go through so much with me."
In addition to needing a mentor, the most crucial aspect of cultivation is one’s innate talent. Ye Shikai had tested it before; although Su Qingyu had decent talent, it wasn’t exceptional, at most on par with Ji Qian’s. In Ye Shikai’s eyes, there are only three women with exceptional talent: the Elven Queen Mona, Xu Han from Hong Kong, and Chen Yuxin.
Thus, even if Su Qingyu were to really cultivate, she wouldn’t be able to help Ye Shikai much. Besides, considering the hardships Ji Qian endured during cultivation, even Ye Shikai found them terrifying. How could he let Su Qingyu go through such ordeals?
Ye Shikai would rather have his woman be an ordinary person than let her suffer like that.
"Qingyu, your talent is insufficient, no matter how hard you try, it’s useless." Ye Shikai sighed softly, comforting her, "I appreciate your intentions, but you should know, I don’t want you to encounter any danger."
"Then... is there no other way to enhance my aptitude?" Su Qingyu bit her lip, seemingly reluctant to give up, looking for another method.
"There is a way." Seeing Su Qingyu so determined, Ye Shikai did not deceive her, indeed, he knew of something that could change one’s aptitude.
"What is it?" Su Qingyu’s eyes lit up upon hearing this, Ye Shikai felt helpless, she still hadn’t given up on the path of cultivation.
"Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill." Ye Shikai spoke indifferently, "This is also something I heard from a master. The Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill can reset one’s talents, but they are extremely rare, not even available on the black market."
"Is it really not available?" Su Qingyu asked again, biting her lip, she must think that Ye Shikai was intentionally saying it’s unavailable to prevent her from cultivating.
"If you don’t believe me, you can ask others outside, they will tell you." Ye Shikai was speaking the truth, the Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill, a precious item, always priceless. Could those who possess such treasures be short of a little money? Good items are always kept for personal use.
"Alright then." Su Qingyu quietly noted the Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill and threw herself into Ye Shikai’s arms. The two felt each other’s warmth, Ye Shikai vaguely hearing the increasingly rapid beating of Su Qingyu’s heart.
................................
These days, Ye Shikai had been lying in the hospital bed, frankly, the "nameless sharp pains" had made him neurotic, counting down every day to the severe pain’s visitation. The feeling was indeed torturous; fortunately, the daily intense pain was gradually subsiding. Strangely, the location of the pain shifted every day, seemingly moving upwards.
"Brother, how are you feeling today?" Just then, Zi Yun came in with a pottery jar.
"Not too bad, nothing else after the intense pain," Ye Shikai replied indifferently.
"That’s good, drink this then." Zi Yun opened the jar lid, and an overwhelmingly foul smell immediately filled the room, even fouler than canned herring, nearly knocking Ye Shikai out.
"Brother, drink your medicine." Zi Yun naturally ladled out a bowl of the dark, oil-like herbal medicine, the stench unbearable. What shocked Ye Shikai even more was, could Zi Yun’s nose simply be for decoration? She acted as if everything was normal.
"What is this?" Ye Shikai instinctively turned his head, feeling a wave of nausea.
"It’s pain relief medicine, I just prepared it," Zi Yun directly held the bowl to Ye Shikai’s lips.
"I don’t want it, it’s so disgusting, I’d rather endure the pain," Ye Shikai quickly refused, preferring to bear the pain rather than the foul smell.
"Hmph, then I’ll have sister-in-law feed you," Zi Yun glared fiercely, then switched to a softer tone, "Don’t worry, this medicine isn’t bitter at all."
"Really?" Ye Shikai was skeptical, his lips slowly nearing the bowl, Zi Yun’s eyes brightened and she suddenly poured the medicine into his mouth.