Phoenix's Requiem Chapter 283: A Heart–Stealing Demon

After having lunch, Yun Moxiao brought Yun Ruoyan to the wandering physician's apothecary. 

“Old Zha said that the apothecary's by the west side of town,” Yun Moxiao remarked.

“The west side? But that's where Grandfather's apothecary is! I'm sure the two apothecaries can't be that far apart, so why haven't I ever seen it before?”

The western sector of the capital was less populated than average, and only an apothecary as large as her grandfather's could survive based on its reputation alone. Most of the smaller apothecaries or private practices were in the northern and southern sectors of the capital, where more residents inhabited.

“I'm not sure myself. I'm sure we'll find out once we get to the place, won't we?” Yun Moxiao replied. “That year, Old Zha would often head to the physician's apothecary to get treatments for Mother's illness, so he was very sure about the address.”

Travelling to the western sector of the capital took two hours by carriage, and they stopped by what seemed to be a dilapidated alleyway. Yun Ruoyan stepped out of the carriage to find the area deserted save for a few old, locked houses, the padlocks crusted over with a thick layer of rust. Clearly, they had remained uninhabited for quite some time.

“Brother, are you sure it's here?”

“Right here, without a doubt.” Yun Moxiao walked deeper into the alleyway. “Ruoyan, look!” 

Yun Moxiao stopped by a door and pointed at the wooden plaque on it. Yun Ruoyan walked up to him and glanced at the peeling paint.

“It's here?”

“That's what Old Zha said.” Yun Moxiao frowned.

“It looks as though quite a lot has happened in the last ten years…”

Their lead lost, the two siblings decided to poke around the Lin apothecary to see if they could find any information about this place. If that too failed, then they would ask about the rundown apothecary from the nearby residents. As long as it had once existed, and as long as that wandering physician was still alive, the siblings firmly believed that they would be able to find him.

With Lin Qingchen at Kongming Academy, Zhuo Lin'er was helping out in the apothecary.

“Young Master, Young Miss!” As soon as they walked into the apothecary, Zhong Bo walked up and greeted them earnestly. 

“No need for the courtesy, Zhong Bo,” Yun Moxiao quickly replied. Zhong Bo was the manager of the apothecary, and he was well respected by one and all. 

Yun Ruoyan glanced all around her. As usual, everything was neat and orderly. Her gaze lingered behind the medicine cabinets, where a young teenager she didn't recognize was in charge of filling the prescriptions that the senior physicians had written.

“Zhong Bo, what happened to that Che Mingchen?” Yun Ruoyan asked.

Che Mingchen was Ling Lan's brother, and it was Yun Ruoyan who had recommended him to the Lin apothecary. Before Yun Ruoyan entered Kongming Academy, she had seen him once filling the exact same role.

“Oh, you're talking about that Scholar Che? Ten days ago, he took part in the imperial examinations again—and he was finally chosen! He's home waiting for his official assignment now, I'm sure.” Zhong Bo chuckled.

Zhong Bo's words surprised her. With Xi Lan and Peony busy, Ling Lan was the main servant responsible for Yun Ruoyan's affairs, and they had spent a significant amount of time together these last few days. Why hadn't Ling Lan informed her about this? After mulling it over for a moment, she surmised that Ling Lan likely hadn't yet heard about the affair.

Zhong Bo then revealed to Yun Ruoyan that, after Lin Qingchen left for Kongming Academy, Lin Zainan would sometimes attend to matters at the apothecary himself. Upon seeing Che Mingchen's excellent handwriting, he had spoken with the man and gradually gotten to know his circumstances.

Given his talents, Lin Zainan had personally written to some court officials he knew, then urged Che Mingchen to continue down the path of scholarship. As expected, Che Mingchen was successful the next time he took the imperial examination.

“Young Miss, are you here to find Che Mingchen?” Zhong Bo asked.

“We're here for another reason, Zhong Bo. I have something to ask you—can we talk inside?”

Faced with the serious gazes of the two Yun siblings, Zhong Bo nodded and led them into the interior of the apothecary. After preparing some tea, he motioned for Yun Moxiao to begin his questioning.

“Zhong Bo, you've been working in this field for quite some time. Have you ever heard of Physician Ceng, from the Huichun Apothecary?” 

“Young Master, do you mean the apothecary that's one street down from us?”

Yun Ruoyan and Yun Moxiao exchanged a glance with each other, their eyes lighting up.

“Zhong Bo, are you familiar with him? Do you know where he is?” Yun Ruoyan asked.

“I'm not particularly familiar with him, but we work in the same profession, after all. Miss Yun, may I ask why you're looking for him?”

“Zhong Bo, we found out that the man responsible for treating our mother right before she passed was exactly this Physician Cheng, and we have a few questions for him regarding the situation,” Yun Moxiao jumped in.

“So he was the one who treated Miss Lin at the time!” Zhong Bo seemed a little surprised. “All I know is that he's particularly skilled at diseases pertaining to women. Three years ago, a king invited him to serve as his personal physician.”

“Who was it?” Yun Moxiao asked. “Was it a king from the Li kingdom?”

There were only two kings in the Li kingdom, the Slaughtering King Li Mo and the Farsighted King Li Sheng. If it were a king from another country, on the other hand…

“It was the Farsighted King, Li Sheng,” Zhong Bo replied. “Allegedly, he sent for Physician Ceng because his consort was infertile, and Physician Ceng has remained there ever since.”

As they walked back to their carriage, Yun Ruoyan began, “Brother, let me investigate the Farsighted King myself. If you go, you might arouse Father's suspicions. After all, Father's still having some trouble dealing with Rong Tianling in court, isn't he? He might need your assistance and presence.”

Yun Moxiao tapped a finger against his cheek. “I'm not comfortable leaving you alone.”

“I'm already an eighth-rank blademaster, Brother!” Yun Ruoyan deliberately raised her voice. “There aren't that many people who can overcome me in the Chenyuan continent. I'll just sneak into the Farsighted King's mansion and kidnap this Physician Cheng for questioning—I bet we'll be able to find out anything we want!”

Yun Moxiao couldn't help chuckling at his sister's macho act. “Alright. In that case, I'll leave matters to you. Sister.”

“Alright, I'll set off tomorrow,” Yun Ruoyan replied, her mind thinking of the records archive in the Farsighted King's mansion. Before the training session at Kongming Academy, Yun Ruoyan had learned from Wei Hai that the Farsighted King had kept records of her birth, which could possibly give her a clue as to her true identity, as well as of the mysterious Master Long.

Yun Ruoyan had intended on sneaking into the Farsighted King's archives at the time, but her plans were derailed because of the expedition to the alternate dimension. Then, after returning to the capital once more, Lin Zainan had summoned her and her brother to tell them about the shocking news that their mother might still be alive.

This was an excellent opportunity for her to accomplish both goals: to bring Physician Cheng back for questioning, as well as to study the records that the Farsighted King had kept of her and of this Master Long.

When Yun Ruoyan returned to the Yun manor, she set off almost immediately. Riding on a flamesteed, she rushed toward the Farsighted King's manor in the dark of night.

“Mistress, shouldn't you tell Li Mo about this?” Qiuqiu asked.

“I'm going to the Farsighted King's archives in order to discover the secret behind my birth, Qiuqiu, and I might finally solve the mysteries that have been plaguing me for so long! But I'm still unprepared to tell anyone about this, so it's better to act alone.”

The reason Yun Ruoyan had chosen to leave in the night was exactly to prevent Li Mo from finding out about her plans. Once he did so, she wouldn't be able to act alone. Before she left, she told her brother that, if Li Mo were to come back to find her, to tell him that she would return within three days due to an urgent matter.

At daybreak, Yun Ruoyan finally arrived at the Farsighted King's lands. She got off her horse before the city walls, only to find a long line snaking out the main gate. Guards stood in front of it, inspecting everyone trying to head inside.

She approached an elderly man with two baskets tied to a wooden pole he carried over his shoulder, clearly a farmer who was intending to enter the city to sell his produce.

“Uncle, may I ask what happened in this city? Why are there so many guards around?”

“Miss, you aren't from around here, are you?” The old farmer glanced at Yun Ruoyan's clothing and rare breed of horse.

“I came from the capital on official business,” Yun Ruoyan replied.

“No wonder.” The farmer stroked his beard. “We've had demon sightings over here in the city, you see, one that eviscerates its victims and eats up their hearts and livers. Quite a few poor victims have already been found dead in the city.”

“A demon in the city?” Yun Ruoyan frowned.

“Right. This demon only operates at night, and it only seems to act within the city,” the farmer continued. “However, no one who doesn't have any identification can stay in the city overnight, so they're suspecting that it somehow snuck in from outside. Now, everyone trying to enter the city is subject to a strict search.”

The farmer took a deep breath. “So far, the guards have found quite a few spirits and demons disguised as people, but the incidents in the city haven't stopped. Miss, if you don't have anything terribly urgent, I recommend you wait until the demon's caught before you return.”

“Thank you, Uncle! I won't keep you any longer.” Yun Ruoyan waved at the old man, who joined the line that was steadily growing longer.

Yun Ruoyan stood by the roadside, observing those who were lining up to enter the city. She infused her spiritual energy into her eyes, noting that essentially all the civilians doing so were ordinary folk without a shred of cultivation. A few among them were low-rank blademasters, and a rarer few seemed to have a trace of a weak demonic aura about them, though they were relatively harmless ones.

After observing the line a little longer, Yun Ruoyan also joined the line. Luckily, despite its length, it moved at a relatively rapid pace, and she got to the city gates within half an hour.

“Raise your hands,” the guard responsible for searching her instructed.

Yun Ruoyan acceded to the request, and the guard scanned her body with a mirror—one which could detect demons, but only relatively weak ones. After asking her a few rudimentary questions about the reason for her stay, she was let in without a fuss.

Yun Ruoyan's goal was to infiltrate the Farsighted King's manor at night, but it was only dawn. As a result, she wasn't in much of a rush. Instead, she began to follow a certain man through the crowds. He had been right in front of Yun Ruoyan, and she could sense a faint demonic air about him. 

Initially, Yun Ruoyan thought him merely a weak demon, but he actually wasn't detected by the inspection at the city gates. Her curiosity sparked, she began to follow behind him, wanting to see if he was the rumored demon who had gone around eviscerating people...

1. I am using “king” to refer to the emperor's brothers, which might otherwise be commonly referred to as princes. This has already been used implicitly in the appellations of Slaughtering King and Farsighted King. For this novel, “prince” will refer solely to the emperor's sons.

Chapter end