Chapter 350: Mo Liansheng’s Death
Back then, Mo Liansheng saved the Son of Heaven and became a legend.
After Mo Liansheng was conferred the t.i.tle of Medical Sage, he became famous. Countless students became disciples of the Mo Family Medical School, and it was their lifelong honor to become Mo Liansheng’s disciple.
The Medicine King Valley had already become the number one valley in the world, with countless disciples.
Recently, Mo Liansheng had been troubled.
He had a total of three children in his life. His eldest son suddenly died five years ago, and his second daughter also died three years ago. When they died, they were only 25 years old.
Mo Liansheng knew that Nangong Xian’s curse was effective!
His youngest son was already twenty years old this year. Seeing that his youngest son would turn twenty-five in a few years, Mo Liansheng was extremely anxious.
Could it be that I could only let my youngest son kill me to break the curse?
In another five years, Mo Liansheng himself would only be fifty-two years old and not considered old. Mo Liansheng had been in the limelight for more than twenty years and had experienced both fame and fortune. How could he be willing to die!
Because of the curse, Mo Liansheng had been having a headache recently. At this moment, the butler strode over and said anxiously, “Mr. Mo! There’s someone outside the valley who wants to see you!”
Mo Liansheng didn’t even raise his head as he asked listlessly, “Who is it?” Every day, countless people would come to seek treatment, but Mo Liansheng didn’t care.
But the butler said, “The other party’s surname is Dugu.”
Dugu, there was only one family in this world!
Mo Liansheng was shocked.
He hurried out of the valley and saw the black shadow outside the Medicine Valley. Dugu Jie stood there alone, but he had the aura of an army!
Mo Liansheng suppressed his fear of the Emperor in his heart and quickly ran forward to kneel down in front of Dugu Jie. “Mo Liansheng greets the Emperor Emeritus. May you live for ten thousand years!”
Dugu Jie pulled out his sword, and a cold light flashed. “I came to see you because I have something to ask you.” Dugu Jie lifted Mo Liansheng’s chin with his sword and stared at him coldly.
Mo Liansheng felt the tip of the sword gently slide across his chin. He was so frightened that he almost peed, but he didn’t dare to resist.
“Go ahead, Your Majesty.”
Dugu Jie said in a low voice, “I heard that the blood of a magical beast can purify medicine and increase its medicinal effects. Its flesh and blood can cure tuberculosis patients. A magical beast is a treasure of heaven and earth. I believe that after it died, Mr. Mo must have kept its corpse.”
Mo Liansheng’s eyelids fluttered wildly. “...Your Majesty, I do have the corpse of the strange beast.”
Dugu Jie’s gaze turned even colder. “I want to see that strange beast. I want to see what it looks like!”
Mo Liansheng’s scalp went numb.
There was no such thing as a magical beast in this world. There was only the medicine man, Nangong Xian! Dugu Jie had pointed out that he wanted to see a magical beast, so he must have seen through my scheme back then.
He was here to settle scores with me!
“Why? Are you unwilling?” Seeing that Mo Liansheng had no reaction, Dugu Jie exerted force with his right hand and the tip of the sword pierced through the skin on Mo Liansheng’s chin.
The flesh on his chin was cut open and some blood flowed out. Mo Liansheng was in extreme pain, but he didn’t dare to make a sound. He even said respectfully, “Please calm down, Emperor Emeritus. I will bring Your Majesty there now!”
Hearing this, Dugu Jie retracted his sword and said coldly, “Get up and lead the way!”
Mo Liansheng hurriedly stood up and brought Dugu Jie into the Medicine King Valley. Without even bothering to treat the wound on his chin, he brought Dugu Jie towards the West Mountain.
Standing at the foot of the West Mountain, Mo Liansheng bent over and said to Dugu Jie, “In order to prevent the corpse of the strange beast from rotting, I’ve placed the corpse in the ice spring cave in the West Mountain. The road to the West Mountain is treacherous, so I hope Your Majesty will be careful and not fall.”
Dugu Jie shouted impatiently, “Lead the way!”
Mo Liansheng stopped talking.
On the way up the mountain, Mo Liansheng was so tired that he was panting heavily. He suddenly leaned against a big rock and pressed on his chest, raising his head to reveal his pale skin.
“Your Majesty, I have a heart disease. If I’m tired from hiking, I might get angina. Can you wait for a moment and allow me to take medicine?”
Seeing that his face was pale and he didn’t look like he was lying, Dugu Jie agreed.
Mo Liansheng took out a medicine bottle and took out a black round pill. He swallowed the pill in front of Dugu Jie before leading him to continue crawling forward.
The sun in this West Mountain was rather weak. It was almost dark and a thin layer of fog had formed. When the fog was thick, they could not even see the person in front of them clearly.
Dugu Jie stared at Mo Liansheng’s back view. He secretly opened a jade bottle in his sleeve. Immediately, a small soft bug crawled out and attached itself to Mo Liansheng’s body.
“Aiyo!” Mo Liansheng suddenly slapped his neck and said, “What bit me!” Mo Liansheng opened his palm, but there were no bugs or blood.
He scratched his neck and turned around to say to Dugu Jie, “Your Majesty, there are many bugs and snakes in the mountains. Your Majesty, don’t get bitten.”
“I have the body of a true dragon, why should I be afraid of snakes and insects?”
Upon hearing this, Mo Liansheng looked like he had eaten sh*t. He continued walking forward awkwardly.
Mo Liansheng brought Dugu Jie to a small hill. In front of Dugu Jie, he opened a stone door, revealing a dark pa.s.sageway.
The tunnel could accommodate two people at the same time. Light could be seen at the end of the tunnel. Clearly, it was outside.
Mo Liansheng made an inviting gesture and said, “Your Majesty, the ice spring is at the back mountain of the West Mountain. We just need to pa.s.s through this pa.s.sage.”
Dugu Jie nodded and pointed his sword at Mo Liansheng. “Lead the way.”
Mo Liansheng bent down and led the way. No one noticed the wicked smile on his lips. After a while, the two of them pa.s.sed through the pa.s.sage and stood on a small platform.
They were in a karst cave. At the top of the karst cave, there was a fifty to sixty feet long hole. The light came from that hole.
At the bottom of the cave was a pool of cold water. Water vapor rose from the surface of the water. In the middle of the cold mist was a bed of ice.
Vaguely, Dugu Jie saw a person lying on the ice bed. That person was wearing a red dress with a dragon-shaped jade pendant. Her long black hair was draped behind her head, and she looked serene.
Nangong Xian was still as beautiful as when she was young, but Dugu Jie was old.
Doctor Zhou was right. The magical beast was really Nangong Xian! Therefore, Nangong Xian was killed by Mo Liansheng!
“Xian’er...” Dugu Jie’s heart began to ache violently as a metallic taste gushed out of his throat. He knew that he was about to die.
Dugu Jie swallowed the mouthful of blood. He raised his sword and stabbed at Mo Liansheng.
Mo Liansheng was already prepared. The moment Dugu Jie drew his sword, he quickly jumped off the cliff.
However, he was not seeking his own death. There was an iron chain between the cliff and the ice bed. Mo Liansheng jumped down and grabbed the iron chain.
Floating in midair, Mo Liansheng looked up at the Emperor Emeritus, whose eyes were bloodshot, and asked with a smile, “Dugu Jie, as you can see, there are no strange beasts in this world! There is only Nangong Xian!”
“Mo, Lian, Sheng!” Dugu Jie raised his sword and was about to stab Mo Liansheng, but when he raised his arm, he realized that he was completely powerless.
Dugu Jie was a little surprised. “You poisoned me?” When did he poison me?
Dugu Jie knew that Mo Liansheng was despicable and sinister. Ever since he met Mo Liansheng, Dugu Jie had been guarding against his sneak attack and poisoning. Unexpectedly, he still fell for it!
Mo Liansheng smiled and said, “You’ve been poisoned. The miasma on the West Mountain is highly toxic! What I took in front of you was not a medicine for heart disease but an antidote! Very soon, you’ll lose all your strength and become mine!”
Mo Liansheng had been hanging on the metal chain the entire time. His body wasn’t strong, and he couldn’t hold on much longer.
Looking up at Dugu Jie, Mo Liansheng said, “Dugu Jie, you destroyed my sense of smell and taste back then! Today, I’ve finally gotten my revenge. I’m so happy!”
Hugging the metal chain tightly, Mo Liansheng asked Dugu Jie, “Dugu Jie, are you sad to know that Nangong Xian’s life was exchanged for yours?”
Dugu Jie felt as though he had been struck by lightning. His head started to spin and his legs were unsteady.
After finally figuring out the source of the ingredients for the Rejuvenation Pill, Dugu Jie was filled with regret. If he knew that his life was exchanged for Nangong Xian’s, Dugu Jie would rather die than live an ign.o.ble life!
Mo Liansheng looked at him calmly and said, “Your Majesty, General Nangong is waiting to reunite with you!”
Just then, someone pushed Dugu Jie from behind and he fell off the cliff. He landed in the cold lake and looked up to see a young man standing by the cliff.
This young man looked somewhat similar to Mo Liansheng when he was young. He should be Mo Liansheng’s child.
The man pulled Mo Liansheng up and asked with concern, “Father, are you alright?”
“I’m fine.”
Mo Liansheng looked down at the cold lake and said to Dugu Jie, “Goodbye, Emperor Emeritus!” Then, Mo Liansheng turned around and left with his son.
When Dugu Jie saw the stone door close, his expression did not change.
He had no intention of leaving since he had come here today. Dugu Jie’s body was already on the brink of death. He had held on to this broken body in order to find Nangong Xian’s corpse.
Now that he had seen Nangong Xian, Dugu Jie didn’t want to go anywhere.
Dugu Jie swam out of the cold lake and climbed onto the ice bed. Kneeling beside Nangong Xian, Dugu Jie stared at her face and couldn’t help but reach out to touch her face.
That cold touch made Dugu Jie’s heart ache.
“Xian’er...”
Dugu Jie shouted her name, but Nangong Xian would never respond to him.
Dugu Jie’s fingers trembled as he undid Nangong Xian’s clothes. He saw a hideous wound in the middle of Nangong Xian’s chest.
It was the surgical knife scar left behind by Mo Liansheng when he took out her heart!
Pfft...
Dugu Jie was so furious that he spat out a mouthful of blood!
He knelt on the ground and started to vomit non-stop. What he vomited was not food, but blood. The mouthfuls of blood that landed on the ice bed were extremely horrifying.
Dugu Jie felt cold and his body was in pain. It was as if a knife was stirring in his organs.
Dugu Jie had no more strength. He leaned against Nangong Xian’s side, took out the phoenix hairpin from his bosom, and inserted it into her body.
As his consciousness blurred, Dugu Jie seemed to have returned to the day he first met Nangong Xian.
... Young Master, you’re throwing yourself at me. Do you want to be in love with me forever? Or do you want to have a fling with me?
He leaned his head on Nangong Xian’s shoulder and placed his forehead beside her ear. He whispered softly, “Little General Nangong, I want to be with you forever...”
–
The next day, Mo Liansheng came to the Cold Pond of the West Mountain. There was no smile on his face when he saw the couple hugging each other.
His youngest son stood beside him and asked, “Father, how should we deal with the Emperor Emeritus’s corpse? If the Emperor discovers that the Emperor Emeritus has gone missing, he will definitely send people to investigate. I’ve investigated before, the Emperor Emeritus came from Jiangling. He should have seen Divine Doctor Zhou’s descendant before.”
“If His Majesty follows Doctor Zhou’s lead, he will soon find our Medicine G.o.d Valley Sect. Father, we must get rid of his body.”
Mo Liansheng muttered to himself for a moment before suddenly saying, “Build me a holy statue and hide the Emperor Emeritus!”
His youngest son was stunned for a moment before he smiled again. “Father, you’re so smart.”
After the holy statue was completed, Mo Liansheng and the child brought a few loyal servants to the West Mountain on a dark night. They wanted to move Dugu Jie out of the West Mountain and hide him in the holy statue
However, Dugu Jie hugged Nangong Xian too tightly before he died. They were actually unable to separate the two of them.
The youngest son frowned and looked speechlessly at the two people who were hugging each other on the ice bed. He wanted to cut off Dugu Jie’s hand with a saw! “Father, what should we do?”
Mo Liansheng stared at Nangong Xian’s face and suddenly recalled the scene when he was rescued by the little general Nangong at the Northern Wilderness Mountain. After so many years, when he recalled that scene again, Mo Liansheng was still moved by Nangong Xian’s natural appearance to save her.
After a long silence, Mo Liansheng said, “Move them away.”
The youngest son was shocked. “Father, Nangong Xian’s body is full of treasures. We can’t waste it!”
“I said, move them all away.”
Not daring to disobey his father’s orders, his youngest son could only bring his men to transport Nangong Xian and Dugu Jie’s corpses out of the cold lake and hide them in the holy statue in the dark...
Emperor Shengping had not received a letter from the Emperor Emeritus for a long time. He suspected that the Emperor Emeritus had been killed and ordered people to investigate this matter thoroughly in the entire country.
On the day that Mo Liansheng’s statue was constructed, someone from the Imperial Court came to search the Medicine King Valley, but they couldn’t find the Emperor Emeritus before leaving.
After sending off the people from the Imperial Court, Mo Liansheng suddenly pressed down on the stone lion in front of the Mo clan’s gate and started coughing.
His youngest son asked worriedly, “Father, are you feeling unwell again?”
In the year that the statue was built, Mo Liansheng’s body suddenly became weak and he often coughed. His bones felt like they were stuck to ice.
Recently, his hands and feet were not listening to him, and his organs were hurting for no reason. Sometimes, his head hurt so much that he wanted to hit the wall...
Mo Liansheng knew that he was sick, but he didn’t know what illness he was suffering from. He was a doctor himself and had encountered many difficult illnesses, but none of them were as tormenting as he was now.
If Doctor Zhou was here, he would definitely know what kind of illness Mo Liansheng was suffering from. Mo Liansheng wasn’t sick. He had been poisoned by a poisonous bug. This kind of poisonous bug would run amok in his body and everywhere it went was filled with poison.
In the beginning, Mo Liansheng would lose a lot of weight. Then, his bones would ache, and his organs would rot. When the organs inside rotted, the skin outside would also fester.
And this process would last for nearly ten years!
This kind of poisonous insect came from the Western Regions. When the Emperor Emeritus was young, he was afflicted with this kind of poison. Later on, after Doctor Zhou treated him, the poisonous insect was forced out, but the poison in the Emperor Emeritus’s body had never been removed.
Back then, Doctor Zhou had wanted to burn the poisonous bug to death, but the little prince, Dugu Jie, had used a jade bottle to keep the poisonous bug. No one knew why he kept the poisonous bug.
Who would have thought that he would secretly give the poisonous bug to Mo Liansheng!
Mo Liansheng shook his head and said, “I don’t think I’ll be able to recover...” Mo Liansheng couldn’t understand why he would fall ill.
Mo Liansheng’s words came true. Not only did his condition not get better, it got worse. In the past, his organ cramps would act up once every half a month, and the frequency of them would increase. From half a month to twelve days to five days...
In the fourth year after Dugu Jie’s death, Mo Liansheng had to taste the pain of his bones being gnawed on and his heart being stirred by a knife every night.
In the fifth year after Dugu Jie’s death, Mo Liansheng’s body started to have sores that were itching non-stop. Every hour, he would scratch an itch. The skin all over his body became b.u.mpy and full of sores.
Worried that Mo Liansheng’s illness would spread, the disciples in the valley didn’t dare to see Mo Liansheng. Mo Liansheng stayed in his house like a lonely old man for an entire day.
In the seventh year after Dugu Jie’s death, Mo Liansheng’s mind was in a mess and he started to hallucinate. He kept dreaming of Nangong Xian and Dugu Jie asking for his life in his dreams!
That year during the Zhongyuan Festival, Mo Liansheng was awakened by a nightmare in the middle of the night. He opened the door and ran out with his head in his hands.
He dashed into the pitch-black night and begged for mercy as he ran, “Your Majesty! Little General, let me go! I know my mistake! I know my mistake!”
“Ah...”
Mo Liansheng missed his footing and fell down the slope.
The next morning, a group of young men and women came to the herb field to pick herbs. They plucked the herbs that were as tall as rice and found Mo Liansheng’s corpse in the herb field.
The medical saint Mo Liansheng fell to his death in his own medicine field. He was naked when he died, and his body was covered in pus. His wounds were emitting a foul smell.
The stench was so strong that no one took the initiative to help Mo Liansheng to change into his graveclothes. Helpless, his youngest son could only get someone to pour kerosene beside Mo Liansheng’s corpse and cremate it...
The flames in the herb field illuminated half the sky red. The statue Mo Liansheng had made for himself still looked at everyone in front of the Shen Si Building with compa.s.sion...