Chapter 15: The Old Man of Heaven Lake

With Mother Li no longer affecting their mood, and the anticipation of seeing Li Changsen, smiles returned to the faces of Jin Yue'e, Li Wuya, and the four siblings.

At this moment, people on the street were whispering about the dignitary who had entered the Queen Mother Temple.

"I wonder where that dignitary came from?"

"With such a grand procession, what are they doing in our backwater village?"

"What else could it be? They must be here for the Divine Physician."

Hearing the words "Divine Physician," Li Wuya perked up. Subconsciously letting go of Jin Yue'e, she crowded into the crowd and asked, "Divine Physician? What Divine Physician?"

Jin Yue'e quickly pulled her back, her expression stern. "We agreed before we left that you weren't allowed to run around. Wuya, if you do this again, I won't bring you with me next time."

Li Wuya hurriedly pleaded for mercy, "Mother, I was wrong. I was just curious about that Divine Physician."

Jin Yue'e huffed, her expression still displeased.

It took several more attempts of Li Wuya offering small, apologetic smiles before Jin Yue'e finally let her anger subside.

"Mother, is there really a Divine Physician?"

Jin Yue'e nodded. "Of course it's true. Your grandfather has even met him."

"Once, when your grandfather took your two uncles hunting in the Tianshan Mountains, he was bitten by a venomous snake. Fortunately, the Divine Physician happened to pass by and saved him in time. Otherwise, you wouldn't have a grandfather today."

Li Wuya asked, "It was just treating snake venom; how do they know he's a Divine Physician?"

Jin Yue'e shot her daughter a frustrated look. *Just treating snake venom?* Look at this girl, her claims were becoming increasingly audacious.

"The venom your grandfather was hit with was very unusual. In just a few breaths, his entire leg turned black, and he fell into a coma."

"After the Divine Physician appeared, he simply inserted a few needles into your grandfather's leg, and his leg visibly returned to normal."

"With such high medical skill, and that man having white hair and a youthful complexion—looking exactly like the legendary Old Man of the Heavenly Pool—who else could he be but a Divine Physician?"

Li Wuya's eyes lit up. "White hair and a youthful complexion... that does match the image of a Divine Physician. But Mother, what is this about the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool?"

Jin Yue'e explained, "It's related to the legends of the Tianshan Mountains."

"Legend has it that atop the Tianshan Mountains, there is a Heavenly Pool left by the Queen Mother. Not only is the area filled with rare flowers and medicinal herbs, but a Divine Physician with extraordinary skills also resides there."

"At first, everyone thought the Divine Physician was just a myth. That was until decades ago, when a great war broke out between Great Chu and Northern Yan. The commander of the three armies, General Xiahou, was ambushed and poisoned; he was on the verge of death."

"In that moment of crisis, a man in flowing white robes with white hair and a youthful complexion appeared outside the Great Chu military camp, calling himself the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool."

"On the second day of his arrival, the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool pulled General Xiahou back from the gates of hell and quickly cured him."

"With the commander out of danger, the morale of the Great Chu soldiers soared. Under General Xiahou's command, they defeated Northern Yan within a few months, and the border has been at peace ever since."

"Since then, Great Chu and Northern Yan have fought several more major battles. Every time a commanding general was gravely wounded, the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool would appear."

"From then on, the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool became a household name at the border."

"Do you know why that dignitary went to the Queen Mother Temple?"

"Because the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool comes and goes without a trace; it is almost impossible for people to find him. In the entire border region, the only chance to encounter him is at the Queen Mother Temple."

"The Old Man of the Heavenly Pool cares for the suffering of the people. When he has time, he descends the mountain to provide free medical consultations for the poor. Whenever he appears, it is inevitably at the Queen Mother Temple."

"Any patient treated by the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool, no matter how complex or incurable the ailment, is cured instantly."

"The title of Divine Physician is well-deserved!"

Li Wuya's eyes flickered. Setting aside the actual skill of the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool, this legendary reputation alone was very tempting.

In the eyes of ordinary people, wouldn't her healing ability be seen as divine magic?

For several years, she had been wondering what pretext to use to reveal her medical skills. Now, wasn't a perfect excuse being delivered right to her doorstep?

A Divine Physician, and one tied to myth and legend—then even if her medical skills were a bit extraordinary, people likely wouldn't suspect her.

"Mother, does the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool take disciples?"

Jin Yue'e looked bewildered, surprised by her daughter's sudden whim, but she replied, "It seems the Divine Physician has two disciples, but whether that is true or not, I don't know."

Li Wuya's eyes darted around. The Old Man of the Heavenly Pool was elusive; meeting him in person would likely be difficult. But if he had disciples, that would be fine. In the future, when she revealed her medical skills, she would simply claim to be a disciple of the Old Man of the Heavenly Pool.

With a source for the exposure of her healing ability, Li Wuya's mood improved even further, and her step became light.

However, not long after, Li Wuya suddenly stumbled.

"Walk properly. Don't go skipping about. We are out in public; if you trip while walking, people will laugh at you," Jin Yue'e said, pulling Li Wuya up.

Normally, Li Wuya would have used some charm to deflect the criticism, but this time, she was uncharacteristically silent.

Jin Yue'e assumed her daughter was sulking because she had been scolded, so she didn't take it to heart.

Seeing his little sister's grim face, Li Sanlang found it somewhat amusing. He reached out and rubbed the small tuft of hair on her head. "You little girl, your temper is getting bigger and bigger. You can't even take a few words from Mother anymore?"

Seeing Li Sanlang, Li Wuya quickly grabbed him, forcing him to bend down, and whispered in his ear, "Brother, someone is following us."

In the crowd about seven or eight meters away, two large men were staring at them with extremely sinister and hateful gazes.

Coming to Xining City to see Li Changsen, Li Wuya hadn't expected any danger, so she hadn't released her mental strength.

If she kept her mental strength active all the time, she wouldn't be able to endure it.

Therefore, she hadn't noticed anyone following them; it was only because the killing intent radiating from the two men was so thick that her naturally sensitive instincts picked up on the crisis.

Li Sanlang's expression changed. He instinctively moved to look back, but Li Wuya held him.

"Brother, don't look. They'll notice."

Those two were almost certainly Northern Yan people!

Li Wuya immediately thought of the group of Northern Yan people she had drugged at the post station. Aside from that incident, she couldn't think of anything else that would bring them such murderous intent.

The two men hadn't acted directly yet and were dressed as Great Chu civilians. It seemed they were spies from Northern Yan planted in Xining City.

Spies usually have missions and cannot be easily exposed.

But if they realized she had spotted them, they would certainly strike to kill.

Li Sanlang's face shifted through various expressions. "Wuya, are you sure someone is following us?"

Li Wuya nodded firmly, her face pale. "Brother, they are Northern Yan people." She had seen it—both men had a black wolf head tattoo on the back of their necks, the same pattern found on the three Northern Yan men she had killed at the post station.

Hearing this, Li Sanlang's face turned white instantly.

Li Wuya said in a low voice, "They are here for revenge." Many people knew about what happened at the post station in June; it wouldn't be hard for Northern Yan to find out.

Li Sanlang's heart raced. Even though he was terrified, he didn't forget to comfort his sister. "Wuya, don't be afraid. We'll be fine."

As he spoke, he looked toward the gates of the garrison hundreds of meters away.

"We're almost at the garrison. As long as we get close to the gates, the Northern Yan people won't dare to act."

Li Wuya looked that way as well. This was their only option.

The two Northern Yan men behind them were approaching quickly. There were many pedestrians on the street; if they killed them, they could quickly disappear into the crowd.

"Brother, in a moment, you go grab Qi-lang. I'll pretend to race him. You take Qi-lang and Second Sister and run, then I'll pull Mother to chase after you."

Li Sanlang nodded. He understood that they had to act as if they hadn't noticed they were being followed.

At that moment, Li Wuya called out to Li Qilang, "Qi-lang, we're almost at the garrison. Let's race to see who reaches the gate first!"

Li Qilang took the bait immediately. "You're on!"

Li Sanlang added, "Wuya is bullying Qi-lang again. You know he can't outrun you." With a smile, he reached out to grab Li Qilang. "Come, Brother will pull you along. You must win against Wuya today."

As soon as he spoke, he unceremoniously pulled Li Qilang and Li Erya and ran toward the garrison.

Li Wuya immediately shouted, "Mother, Brother and the others are bullying me! Quick, let's catch them!" Having said that, she also grabbed Jin Yue'e and started running.

Jin Yue'e felt somewhat helpless. With so many people on the street, the children couldn't leave her sight, so she had no choice but to run along with them.

The two Northern Yan men behind them noticed and immediately quickened their pace, breaking into a jog.

Seeing the two men getting closer and closer, Li Wuya grew anxious. Noticing the snow on the ground, she hurriedly tried to manipulate her mental strength to perform telekinesis.

At this moment, her mental strength was not yet capable of controlling objects, but she had no other choice. The garrison was still over two hundred meters away; if they were caught, they would all die.

Forcing her mental strength to control objects caused Li Wuya's face to turn deathly pale, and beads of sweat broke out on her forehead.

Just as she was about to reach her limit, two clumps of frozen snow were moved directly under the feet of the two Northern Yan men.

With two loud *thuds*, the two men fell face-first into the ground.

Instantly, the two men drew the attention of countless bystanders.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Li Wuya and the others sprinted toward the garrison.