Quinn Shepherd and the Poison Prince exchanged prescriptions seven or eight times, both growing increasingly frantic. It was their first time working together, so things inevitably went awry and their coordination was far from perfect.
On top of that, each was determined to outdo the other: Quinn boosted the tonic in the red pill he gave the Poison Prince not by thirty or fifty times, but nearly sixty, while the Poison Prince likewise increased the dosage of the toxic liquid he handed Quinn.
Both were testing each other's skills, but Emperor Evan and the Imperial Preceptor ended up suffering for it—tormented to the brink of death by these two, unable to move, struggle, or even cry for help.
Emperor Evan's body began to shrink. Soon he returned to normal size, but then kept shrinking until he was no bigger than a newborn infant.
"I really should've stationed executioners around the throne hall to chop down these two so-called divine physicians..." thought the emperor, buried in hair.
On the other side, the Imperial Preceptor's body was swelling up—and not just swelling; he could feel something sprouting from his rear, like a furry tail.
His armpits itched, and he felt new bones growing from his shoulders—crackling outward as if wings were about to sprout.
If he'd grown a pair of full-sized wings, that might've been fine, but they stopped after barely a foot and refused to grow further.
Their bodies alternated between freezing and burning; sometimes it felt like plunging into hell's blade mountain, other times like becoming a transcendent god—blissful comfort so extreme it was dangerous, as their souls began to dissolve.
Then came waves of pain from every part of their bodies, a thousand times worse than heartbreak; at times it was like being stabbed by countless needles, at others like soaking in a vat of unbearable vinegar.
In the throne hall, Quinn sat atop a carpet of hair, pen in hand, chin propped up, lost in thought.
Not far away, the Poison Prince paced anxiously, brows furrowed, constantly calculating how to treat the mess.
Both had hit a wall—Quinn raised his pen several times but couldn't write, and the Poison Prince kept picking up his brush only to put it back down again.
Outside the hall, Lynn Ling peeked in, saw their troubled faces, and whispered, "Cow-herd, how's it going?"
Before Quinn could answer, the Poison Prince snickered, "Aren't you the Sixth Princess?"
Lynn thought for a moment. "My brother's now the eldest prince, so I guess I really am sixth in line."
"The eldest prince—that's Yuxia Ling, the current Crown Prince."
The Poison Prince said stiffly, "Congratulations, Sixth Princess. At the rate this quack is treating your brother, he'll be emperor soon enough."
Lynn Ling jumped in fright, staring at Quinn with teary eyes and stammering, "Cow-herd, are you really going to kill my father with your treatment?"
"Don't worry, sis. He won't die."
Quinn comforted her, then sneered, "Before I kill the emperor with my treatment, the Preceptor will already be killed by this idiot's so-called cure. Without the Preceptor's support, even if your brother becomes emperor, he'll be overthrown in no time!"
Lynn was about to cry. "You two are just trying to scare me, aren't you?"
The Poison Prince jeered, "Sure, the Preceptor died at my hands, but it was your tonic that finished him off!"
Quinn shot back, "Maybe the emperor died from my treatment, but it was your poison that killed him. You won't walk out of this palace alive!"
The two glared at each other, sparks flying, wishing they could poison each other to death on the spot.
Lynn exploded, shouting, "If you two kill my father and the Preceptor, neither of you will leave here alive! Executioners! Where are the executioners?"
Emperor Evan and the Imperial Preceptor both breathed a sigh of relief, thinking, "At least Lynn (the Sixth Princess) has some sense. If these two keep fighting, we'll be dead for sure."
The imperial guards swarmed in, standing watch outside the hall.
Lynn, brimming with murderous intent, planted her hands on her hips and barked, "The executioners are right outside! You both have to listen to me! If you can't handle his tonic and you can't control his poison, then just swap! Ugly one, you treat my father. Cow-herd, you treat the Preceptor!"
Quinn stood up and looked at the Poison Prince, saying in a low voice, "Switch patients!"
The Poison Prince's eyes lit up. "You treat the Preceptor, I'll treat the emperor—maybe we'll get miraculous results!"
They immediately swapped patients and checked on Emperor Evan and the Imperial Preceptor's conditions.
After examining them, both let out a sigh of relief and exchanged glances.
Just moments earlier, Quinn had been about to run off to the Great Ruins with his Dragon-Qilin, while the Poison Prince was ready to sneak out of the palace and vanish—after all, the elite guards outside could barely stop them, and a single dose of poison would do the trick.
But after switching patients, they realized they were uniquely suited to clean up each other's mess, so there was no need to worry about fleeing for killing the emperor or the Preceptor.
Quinn and the Poison Prince each wrote out a new prescription and had the imperial physicians come in to fetch the herbs.
They both treated their patients with great care, constantly adjusting their prescriptions. After two or three days, the emperor's hair finally fell off, and the Preceptor's cocoon of silk retracted into his body.
The Preceptor's wounds steadily improved, the lingering power of the god's divine arts grew weaker, and he slowly regained a trace of his cultivation.
On the emperor's side, though his Divine Treasuries were still in ruins, the Poison Prince used countless poisonous insects and spiders to ferry vitality and qi, rebuilding the Treasuries. Meanwhile, the potent life force in Quinn's pills became self-repairing energy. It looked like things would be fine.
It was now just a matter of time before both of them made a full recovery.
Lynn called in a group of eunuchs to clean the palace. They carted away over ten loads of shed hair, plus a whole wagon full of discarded tails, wings, extra arms, and legs from the Preceptor.
"It's basically all fine now."
Quinn glanced at the Poison Prince, who happened to look back at him; both exchanged cold, mocking smiles. Lynn tensed as if facing enemies, quickly shouting, "No fighting!"
Quinn wrote out a prescription and handed it to the imperial physicians, then stretched and said with a laugh, "I'm done fighting him. After days treating the emperor and Preceptor, I'm exhausted—I'm heading back to rest."
The Poison Prince said darkly, "I'm wiped too—need to catch up on sleep. Leave the rest to those quacks at the door."
Lynn looked at the Poison Prince and said, "Cow-herd, I'll escort you back to the Imperial Academy."
Quinn hesitated, then shook his head. "No need, you haven't rested in days either."
Lynn insisted, "It's absolutely necessary!"
Seeing she wouldn't give up, Quinn could only nod. They waited a moment until the imperial physicians brought the medicine. The Poison Prince sniffed the air deeply, but after days of using hundreds of herbs, the palace was saturated with medicinal scents—he couldn't distinguish anything anymore.
Quinn took the medicine and headed out, Lynn hurried after him. The Poison Prince also left the hall, trailing behind them. When they reached the Jade Belt River in the palace, he suddenly jumped in with a splash and never resurfaced.
Lynn peered down and exclaimed, "He escaped underwater. Cow-herd, is he afraid of you?"
Quinn shook his head. "It's not me he's afraid of—it's the Dowager Empress."
Just as he finished speaking, the Jade Belt River suddenly rose into the air, water suspended like a giant silver serpent. Two palace maids carrying lanterns approached, shining their lights into the river; from the flames, countless sword-beams shot into the water.
"Reporting to the Dowager Empress, the target isn't in the river." The two maids put away their lanterns and bowed to a nearby tower.
Quinn and Lynn quickly looked up at the tower, where the Dowager Empress stood with several maids. She raised her hand gently, then lowered it.
The river water crashed down, filling the channel again.
Quinn bowed to the tower. The Dowager Empress smiled and asked, "Little divine physician, is the emperor cured?"
Quinn replied, "He still needs time to recover, but in a few years he'll be back to his peak."
The Dowager Empress nodded. "Lynn, take these two maids and escort our little divine physician."
Lynn smiled, "I was just planning to go back to the Academy with him."
The Dowager Empress entered the tower, while the two lantern-carrying palace maids followed Quinn and Lynn.
As they left the palace, Quinn suddenly stopped and said to the two maids, "You can go back now. We don't need you for the rest of the way."
The maids were identical twins, clever and quick-witted, and shook their heads in unison. "The Dowager Empress ordered us to escort the divine physician back to the Academy."
Quinn frowned slightly and said to Lynn, "Sis, you should go back with them."
Lynn shook her head. "With me by your side, the Poison Prince won't dare touch you."
Quinn sighed, "For us apothecaries, there's no one we wouldn't dare to poison. Usually, I only have to protect myself, but now I have to protect you all—I'm afraid it might be too much."
The twins giggled, "Divine physician, you're so funny! You're only at the Five Luminaries Realm, but the Poison Prince and we sisters are at the Seven Stars Realm. Besides, the Dowager Empress gave us treasures specifically to deal with the Poison Prince. With us around, if he tries anything, we'll take him down!"
Quinn shook his head and stopped trying to persuade them. "Apothecaries kill regardless of realm. You're too naive. I've poisoned several experts at the Celestial Being Realm myself, let alone the Poison Prince. If you insist on coming, just stay alert—I'm worried I won't be able to protect you."
The twins kept giggling.
The streets were crowded. The twins walked ahead and behind, carrying large lanterns that drew attention even in daylight, but their palace uniforms kept people from asking questions.
The Academy was far from the palace; they walked six or seven miles without incident. Quinn made medicine as he walked, using up all the herbs he carried. He reached into his Taotie pouch, and while only his arm and shoulder moved, no one could see his alchemical technique or what medicine he was making inside.
The twins were very alert, killing any flies or spiders that approached with sword-light from their lanterns, keeping everyone safe.
As they walked, a chilly wind suddenly blew. The twins immediately channeled their qi, and the lanterns' light flared, forming two large circles that shielded them from the wind.
One of the twins laughed, "Is that all the Poison Prince can do..." She hadn't finished when her face turned black and she collapsed. The other twin fell too, paralyzed.
Lynn was stunned, looking around anxiously. "Why are we okay...?"
Thud.
She fell backward.
After the three fell, several pitch-black tentacles emerged from the ground, covered in spikes. The tentacles pierced their calves, poisoning them.
Quinn flicked his fingers, making the tentacles writhe and dissolve into puddles. The ground shook, as if something huge was burrowing away below.
Quinn took out three spirit pills to suppress the poison and woke the three girls.
Suddenly, a muffled shout came from afar: "Did you give my precious bug a tonic?"
Boom!
The ground shook and cracked, houses collapsed, and a monstrous bug—over ten yards tall and thirty yards long, covered in tentacles—burst out from underground. It was the Poison Prince's bug king!
The Poison Prince had just summoned his bug king, but Quinn's tonic made it swell uncontrollably, so much so that he couldn't restrain it.
Now the Poison Prince was sprawled on the bug king's back, looking utterly miserable.
"Aren't you going to help?" Quinn said to the two palace maids.
The twins were still dazed, but at his words, they channeled all their qi into the lanterns. Sword-light shot out, piercing the bug king like a sieve!
The Poison Prince was struck by several sword-lights, then suddenly turned into a cloud of poisonous smoke and vanished underground.
The twins hurriedly shone their lanterns underground, making the earth transparent; their lanterns could see dozens of yards deep.
But the poison in the twins hadn't been cured yet—Quinn had only suppressed it. Soon they felt the toxins flaring up and dared not use their magic.
Quinn said, "No need to chase him. He's already suffered a loss. If you push him too hard, he might poison everyone in the capital. I'll cure your poison as soon as I can—if I'm late, it'll be too late."
Quinn took a drop of blood from each of the three; the blood was black. Though poisoned by the bug king, the toxins were different for each and needed separate cures.
On the way, Quinn cured each of them. When they returned to the scholars' quarters, the poison was mostly gone, but traces remained. All three girls were still groggy, and before reaching Quinn's room, they collapsed again.
Quinn frowned, dragged the three into his room, tossed Lynn and the twins onto his bed, then turned to close the door.
At the door, Dragon-Qilin said, "Rest assured, Master. I won't let anyone in! I know exactly what to do..."
"You did great."
Quinn gave an approving nod. He was truly exhausted after these days. He lay down between the three girls and quickly fell asleep. As he slept, he felt his nose itch—some girl's hair had gotten into his nostrils. Quinn brushed it away, accidentally knocking one of the girls off the bed.
——Just a timid question: Is four thousand words considered a long chapter? May I ask for monthly votes and recommendations?