Lao Tzu is Ji Gong

The Ice Soul Grass thrives in such harsh conditions, which is why it is such a rare and precious plant, with only one growing every few hundred years. And the highest mountain, even colder than the Arctic region—the Extreme Cold Mountain—is its habitat.

When Li Xiuchen arrived at the foot of the mountain, not to mention how rugged the mountain path was, just looking at the majestic snow-capped mountain and feeling the chill in his face made his body, which was warmed by spiritual energy, feel a bit cold. There was no other way but to walk up step by step!

The cold wind whistled past his ears, and snowflakes pelted his face. He rubbed his hands together, shivering, but didn't flinch. Thinking of Weiwei strengthened his resolve; even if he froze to death in this frigid place, unknown to anyone, he would never let her die because of his Gu worm flare-up!

He took his first step, two steps, three steps… His feet were no longer under his control; he only knew to move forward, there was no turning back. Even though he was numb with cold, he thought, "Just one more step! Just one more step! I'll get there eventually."

Half a day had passed, and Wenlong was still two days away from death. He had only covered a quarter of the journey. No! He had to quicken his pace! Although he was doing this for Wenlong, all he could think about was the image of Weiwei's Gu worm attacking. Even for the slightest chance of survival, he had to persevere.

As night fell, the temperature in the frigid mountain dropped by dozens of degrees. Li Xiuchen circulated all his spiritual energy to resist the extreme cold.

Even the Holy Buddha within him couldn't bear to watch any longer: "Xiu Chen, why do you make things difficult for yourself for a woman, wasting your spiritual energy just to save her? This extremely cold place is not something ordinary people can endure. Although the Ice Soul Grass is a rare item, it has always been on the ice mountain and no one dares to step into the extremely cold place to get it. Why don't we go back?"

Li Xiuchen's eyes dimmed as he silently replied, "Holy Buddha, you don't need to say anything more. Although I have no feelings for Weiwei, she is still a relative of my savior, Xiuchen. How can I sit idly by? This mere frigid place can't possibly trouble me, Li Xiuchen?"

Seeing that his mind was made up, the Holy Buddha stopped trying to persuade him and instead conjured up a pill and handed it to him: "This is the Fiery Pill, which can maintain your body temperature for three hours. Make good use of it. This is all I can do to help you."

Li Xiuchen took the pill and swallowed it in one gulp. He immediately felt a warm sensation flowing through his body. Noticing this, he quickened his pace, placing his hands in front of him to shield himself from the biting wind, and walked uphill step by step.

Finally, it was dawn the next day. The first rays of sunrise gradually appeared on the horizon, and the faint sunlight made his face appear even paler. The effects of the elixir had worn off, and there was still nearly a quarter of the journey left—almost there! He had to obtain the Ice Soul Grass before nightfall. The higher he climbed, the thinner the spiritual energy became, and the lower the temperature dropped. Li Xiuchen needed to circulate even more spiritual energy to maintain his body's balance.

Only a hair's breadth remained! The Ice Soul Grass was within reach, but his spiritual energy was completely depleted. He was suddenly thrown back several steps by the icy wind, and he focused his energy to control himself. He was now using his own body to resist the extreme cold, each step leaving a bloody footprint—a horrifying sight!

Finally! He reached the mountaintop through sheer willpower and obtained the Ice Soul Grass. Without a moment's rest, he hurriedly left the frigid land for Qinglong Town. Wenlong's life couldn't be delayed; he was only a little tired, but if he missed the appointed time, Wenlong would be doomed! He had to complete the mission and obtain the antidote.

He rode off at breakneck speed, drops of blood falling to the ground, leaving a trail of blood, but he paid no heed. There was no time to treat his wounds, no time to recuperate; he had to reach Qinglong Town before nightfall!

Inside the Qinglong Inn, "knock, knock, knock," Li Longcheng heard someone knocking on the door and immediately became alert: "Who is it!"

Li Xiuchen could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground, his body a bloody mess, his face unrecognizable. With his last ounce of strength, he weakly said, "Quick! Quick... boil this herb into a decoction and give it to him." After saying that, he lost consciousness due to excessive blood loss.

When Li Xiuchen woke up again, it was three days later. By then, Wen Long had fully recovered. He opened his eyes and found himself in an inn. He got up and realized that he was weak all over and his spiritual energy was exhausted. He probably wouldn't be able to fight for a long time and would have to rest and recover his spiritual energy slowly.

Thank goodness! He managed to save Wenlong at the last minute, and thankfully he didn't give up. Just then, Wenlong burst through the door and saw Li Xiuchen already awake and sitting by the bed. He hurriedly went up to thank him, saying, "Thank you for saving my life. Please stay and rest well; I will protect you!"

But Li Xiuchen waved his hand: "No need, I have important things to do, so I won't stay any longer. As for me saving you, you don't need to thank me. If you want to thank someone, thank your good brother Han Hu. It's just an exchange of conditions. The person I really saved isn't you. That's all."

Before Wenlong could stop him, he got up and, alone, exhausted and severely injured, headed to Tianwu Academy. He had to make sure Han Hu had obtained the antidote and that Weiwei had taken it safely, otherwise all his efforts would have been in vain.

When Weiwei learned that Wen Chong also did not know Li Xiuchen's whereabouts, she became even more worried.

Wen Chong was unaware of Weiwei's feelings, but Weiwei came to see him for the next two days. He assumed that she had discovered his strengths and changed her attitude towards him, so he tried to make Weiwei happy every day.

On this day, Weiwei planned to go find Wenchong. On the way, she encountered a local bully. The bully saw that Weiwei was beautiful and immediately became lustful, wanting to possess her.

The Little Tyrant stroked his chin and looked at Weiwei with a wicked smile. Suddenly, he waved his hand and ordered, "Brothers, let's go, let's go meet that pretty young lady." The Little Tyrant led his men toward Weiwei, but suddenly blocked her way. Weiwei looked up at them and decided to walk around them.

"Hey... little lady, where are you going? I'll take you there! Hehe!" The little tyrant blocked Weiwei's way and said in a sleazy tone.

Weiwei didn't answer and planned to leave quickly to find Wenchong, but he had no intention of letting her go.

"Young lady, don't rush off. You haven't answered your brother's question yet!" The little tyrant and his men blocked Weiwei's way again. Weiwei knew she would have a hard time getting away. She looked around and saw that everyone around her had their heads down and walked around them. They didn't want to get involved in this kind of thing at all, as if they were used to it.

"Do you have no respect for the law?" Vivi's beautiful eyes widened in anger as she glared at the other party.

"Oh dear! Is the young lady angry? Tsk tsk, she looks even more beautiful when she's angry, don't you guys think so?"

“Yes, yes!” the people around Xiaobawang chimed in. Xiaobawang completely ignored Weiwei’s words and continued to tease her.

Passersby all knew of this little tyrant's "reputation" and dared not provoke him, so no one dared to help Weiwei. Weiwei felt a little disheartened at this moment.

Just as Weiwei was about to take action and drive them away, Wenchong arrived.

"Stop! In broad daylight, how dare you bully a little girl? Where is your conscience?" Wen Chong rushed over and shielded Weiwei behind him, questioning the little tyrant opposite him.

"Conscience? Hahaha... Guys, that's hilarious. He's asking us if we have a conscience?" Little Tyrant laughed, and the people around him laughed along with him.

Suddenly, Little Tyrant stopped laughing and immediately ordered, "Brothers, go! Let this kid know if we have any conscience!" Hearing Little Tyrant's command, the group swarmed towards Wen Chong and Weiwei. However, Wen Chong was far stronger than them, and after a few dozen moves, he had them all down. Little Tyrant, realizing he'd messed with them, pointed at Wen Chong and his group, trembling, and said, "You...you just wait, I'm not someone to be trifled with." He then turned and ran. Seeing their leader flee, the others, ignoring their pain, scrambled to their feet and followed him.

"Weiwei, are you alright?" Wen Chong turned around and asked Weiwei with concern.

"I'm fine." Vivi shook her head and continued, "Why did you come to find me?"

“You came to see me at this time the past two days, but you haven’t come yet today. I was worried about you, so I came out to go to the academy to find you.” Wen Chong scratched his head and chuckled twice.

"Thank you so much, otherwise I wouldn't know how I would have gotten out of this situation today," Weiwei sincerely thanked Wenchong.

"Let's go, I'll treat you to dinner to calm your nerves," Wen Chong said, pulling Weiwei towards the restaurant. The two went upstairs, found a private room, ordered a few dishes, and Wen Chong also ordered a pot of wine.

The two chatted as they waited for the food to arrive. "Um... hasn't your friend Li Xiu come back yet?" Weiwei asked cautiously.

"Him?" Wen Chong was taken aback for a moment, then said, "No, why are you so concerned about him? You don't have a crush on him, do you?" Wen Chong said jokingly, his tone tinged with nervousness, as if he was worried that Weiwei might fall for Li Xiuchen.

"No way! Don't talk nonsense. I was just curious, so I asked you... Don't overthink it." Weiwei immediately denied it, a faint blush rising to the tips of her ears, but Wen Chong still noticed it.

"The finest pear blossom wine is here!" Just then, the waiter brought the wine over. "Please enjoy, gentlemen." With that, the waiter turned and left.

Feeling troubled, Wen Chong picked up the wine jug and started drinking, wondering why Weiwei liked Li Xiu. He was her friend, so what should she do?

"Wenchong, drink less alcohol," Weiwei advised, seeing Wenchong drinking like this.

"It's alright, Weiwei, you should have some too. This pear blossom wine won't make you drunk," Wen Chong said.

Seeing that her persuasion was useless, Weiwei didn't continue speaking or drink with Wenchong. Wenchong, seeing Weiwei's reaction, became even more agitated. Having nowhere to vent his frustration, he could only drink in silence.

As Wen Chong drank, he suddenly thought of his first meeting with Weiwei. Weiwei had always believed that Li Xiu was Li Xiuchen. Could it be that Weiwei hadn't mistaken him for someone else, but that Li Xiu had never told him his real name? Recalling Li Xiu's disappearance over the past two days, Wen Chong suddenly felt like he had figured something out. At this moment, Wen Chong couldn't wait to see Li Xiu and ask him everything.

Weiwei, who was sitting across from Li Xiuchen, was also worried about him, and the meal ended unhappily for the two of them. Weiwei knew that Wenchong liked her, but she liked Xiuchen and couldn't reciprocate his feelings, so she pretended not to know.

Li Xiuchen was unaware that Wen Chong had become suspicious of him. On the fourth day, before his spiritual power had recovered, he rushed to Tianwu Academy to meet up with Wen Chong.

When Li Xiuchen arrived at his residence and pushed open the door, he saw Wen Chong sitting silently at the table, his eyes vacant, and the tea in front of him had been poured out sometime earlier and was completely cold.

"Wenchong, I'm back." Li Xiuchen called out to Wenchong, but when he didn't respond, he went over and patted Wenchong's shoulder, asking with concern, "Wenchong, what's wrong?"

Sensing Li Xiuchen's presence, Wen Chong slowly raised his head and asked in a hoarse voice, "Should I call you Li Xiu, or Li Xiuchen?"

Li Xiuchen was taken aback for a moment, then regained his composure. "Wenchong, what are you talking about? I'm Li Xiu. Who is Li Xiuchen? I don't know this person." Li Xiuchen clearly hadn't expected Wenchong to ask him this, and intended to cover it up as he always had.

Wen Chong, who had been paying close attention to Li Xiuchen, naturally noticed Li Xiuchen's reaction, which further confirmed his guess.

Chapter 1268 A Calm Turmoil

When Wen Chong questioned Li Xiuchen about whether he was actually Li Xiu, Li Xiuchen's subtle movements were already obvious to Wen Chong. Having confirmed that Li Xiuchen had been hiding his identity, an enraged Wen Chong picked up a small teacup that had been sitting on the table for a long time and smashed it at Li Xiuchen's feet with a thud: "You, Li Xiuchen! No! Tell me, should I call you Li Xiuchen or Li Xiu now?! You've hidden yourself so well! I've been with you every day, and I never realized you were Li Xiu! Li Xiu is you, Li Xiuchen!"

Li Xiuchen, who rushed to Tianwu Academy to meet Wen Chong before his spirit had fully recovered on the fourth day, did not expect to be met with such questioning from Wen Chong and a series of attacks.

Seeing Wen Chong's current state, Li Xiuchen was at a loss: "Wen Chong, you've been drinking and are acting impulsively. Why don't you calm down first, and I'll let you know."

Wen Chong, who was in a fit of anger, wouldn't listen to Li Xiuchen: "Stop bringing up drinking! I'm very calm right now, not impulsive at all!"

“Li Xiuchen! I understand now! You never considered me a friend, never considered me a brother! Just because I'm a member of the Wen family, and you only have a business relationship with the Wen family! You're afraid I'm the thief who steals information! So, naturally, you wouldn't consider me a friend! It's ridiculous, I, Wen Chong, have treated you wholeheartedly, and in the end, all I deserve is your suspicion!”

Li Xiuchen understood that Wen Chong was furious at this moment, and no matter what he said, he would not listen.

Wen Chong's words, though sharp and pointed, were also heartfelt. Li Xiuchen felt a pang of unease, and his suspicions of Wen Chong lessened considerably. What a predicament! In this world, he had to be extremely cautious.

This meant that Wen Chong must be truly devoted to him. Li Xiuchen's trust in Wen Chong increased dramatically. Li Xiuchen thought: Since he's admitted it, there's no harm in telling him.

"Alright, Wen Chong! A real man should admit his mistakes. I did hide it from you, and I did suspect you. It was precisely because I suspected you that I hid it from you!"

Although he knew that Li Xiuchen was indeed Li Xiu, Wen Chong was still shocked when Li Xiuchen said it himself. His face flushed red (whether from drinking or from his recent outburst of anger, it was unclear). He stared wide-eyed, reached out and touched Li Xiuchen's face, pinching and kneading it! Seeing the contorted expression on Li Xiuchen's face, as if suddenly remembering that Li Xiuchen had lied to him and doubted him, he quickly withdrew his hand!

Seeing Wen Chong's approach, Li Xiuchen was both amused and exasperated.

"Wenchong, you look just like a timid young wife."

"Let me tell you, Li Xiuchen, I haven't forgiven you yet, so don't get cocky. Confess and you'll be treated leniently, resist and you'll be punished severely!" Wen Chong glared at Li Xiuchen, his face full of anger.

It seems there's no escaping it!

Li Xiuchen pulled Wen Chong to sit down on a stool, massaging his shoulders as he spoke: "That's right, I am Li Xiu, and also Li Xiuchen. You know it, so be it, but you must not go around gossiping. Knowing this is enough for you; knowing anything else won't do you any good. Don't hold a grudge from now on; just be normal."

Wen Chong, who wanted to ask more questions, glanced at Li Xiuchen's serious expression and gave up the idea, listening to Li Xiuchen continue.

"Regarding the suspicion I have about you, I hope you can understand. We are both sensible people. In this world, if you don't keep your guard up, you'll surely die a violent death."

After hearing Li Xiuchen's explanation, Wen Chong, who was not satisfied, was about to speak when Li Xiuchen stopped him.

"After today's turmoil, I, Li Xiuchen, will definitely treat you, Wen Chong, as one of my own! We will share the good times and the bad! But I, Li Xiuchen, am not one to force others to do things against their will. If you have even the slightest reluctance, I will certainly not force you to follow me."

Wen Chong, who was eager to follow Li Xiuchen, immediately stood up upon hearing Li Xiuchen's words and sincerely said to him, "I'm willing! I'm willing! I'm willing! Of course I'm willing!"

Looking at Wen Chong's confident expression, he said, "Are you sure? If you follow me, you will definitely encounter countless troubles, and even your life may be in danger! Of course, if you want to leave along the way, and your mind is made up, I will grant your wish."

Wen Chong said as if he had made up his mind: "I understand all the difficulties that will follow! I only hope that you, Li Xiuchen, will not abandon or despise me. I, Wen Chong, will follow you, Li Xiuchen!"

"Good brothers! We'll share the good times and the bad!" the two said in unison.

"By the way, how did you find out I'm Li Xiu?" Li Xiuchen looked at Wen Chong with a puzzled expression.

"Well, I figured this out by observing Weiwei's behavior..."

Speaking of Weiwei, Li Xiuchen remembered the Gu poison that had been afflicting her, and lost all interest in listening to Wen Chong's rambling.

Speaking of Han Hu, why hasn't he given me the antidote to the Gu poison in Jie Weiwei's body yet? I've already rescued Wenlong as promised; he has no reason to take on an enemy like me.

With that thought in mind, Xiu Chen put aside his doubts, chatted with Wen Chong for a while longer, and then returned to his residence.

Inside the Qinglong Town Inn, Wen Long, who was gradually recovering after eating the Ice Soul Grass that Li Xiuchen had almost risked his life to obtain in the extremely cold land, had a rosy complexion. It seems that Wen Long, who was already physically strong, absorbed the Ice Soul Grass very quickly!

"Hey! Han Hu! What are you doing?" Wen Long called out to Han Hu, who was sitting to the side with his back to him, lost in thought.

Han Hu was startled. He put down the prayer beads he had been playing with, stood up abruptly, and turned to Wen Long, saying, "Huh? What's wrong? Why are you up? Are you feeling better?"

"I'm almost recovered. What are you doing? By the way! What happened to me? Did I fall victim to some villain's scheme?" Full of doubt, Wen Long stared wide-eyed at Han Hu.

"You've been poisoned by the Heart-Burning Pill! This poison is extremely potent, and almost no one can cure it! Generally, if someone is poisoned by this, they will completely lose their mind and turn into a dried corpse within three days without an antidote, thus dying from the poison! It's a Gu poison that leaves people helpless and unable to predict its effects! You've been poisoned by this!" Han Hu frowned and became furious at the thought of Wen Long being poisoned!