Undying humans?
Long Feiye had naturally heard and even seen one, but Han Yunxi only knew them from rumors. Supposedly, these people were Poison Gu humans, originally used to raise poisons within their bodies. They were zombies that resembled normal humans, but they couldn’t die or age.
“Was it because of the Poison Gu humans?” Han Yunxi asked.
The sword sect master nodded and began to expound on the history of the medical academy and the Poison Sect. The academy had existed on the continent even before the time of the Great Qin Empires. It built its own city and exercised autonomy over its rule while creating a Medical Science Association with order and clauses to control all the doctors in the world. Because the academy held the beginnings of Cloud Realm’s medical community as the Medical City, an overwhelming number of doctors learned from their ranks. Thus, it gained nearly unanimous support from those physicians as soon as the association was established without much obstruction. After all, all doctors yearned for the association’s shelter and protection. By relying on their strength, they strove to advance in the medical arts and their own professional skills.
The Medical Science Association protected its doctors while simultaneously keeping them in check. In fact, it even controlled and manipulated them. Once the guild-like group grew to a certain point, unaffiliated doctors couldn’t compete with them at all. If they tried, they’d face rejection for their skills no matter where they went, checked and contained until they had no more means to continue.
There were plenty of South Ning doctors dissatisfied with the medical academy’s sanctions, but most of them were too afraid to express their anger.
“So, it’s better for the imperial court to exercise control over the military, agriculture, medicine, and waterworks. Things like that determine the livelihoods of the people. Otherwise, people from those trades will place pressure on the court.” She had long understood such principles, but she voiced them now for Long Feiye’s benefit. Cloud Realm Continent had a thriving commerce community, but its various nations only held power over its lands while treating such trades and industries lightly.
Long Feiye looked at her before nodding pensively.
The sword sect master only admired Han Yunxi all the more as he sighed internally. How great it would be if she wasn’t a daughter of the Poison Sect! He drank a cup of tea and continued to talk.
The Poison Sect used to be an important component of the medical academy, a specially created independent branch of poisons doctors with a long history of their own. The medical academy’s Poison Sect was known across Cloud Realm Continent as “the leader of ten thousand poisons.” Jun Yixie’s Hundred Poisons Sect, the Tang Clan’s poison branch, and other powers within the poison community all had poison skills that originated from this sect. Before its creation, Cloud Realm Continent’s sole understanding of “poison” stopped at snake venom. Ordinary treatment was used to deal with bites. But as medicine and poisons were of one family, and because more and more of the medical academy doctors were discovering cases of fatal poisoning by toxic plants, they began to study these toxic flora in earnest. Thus, the concept of “poisonous medicine” came into play.
Gradually, doctors discovered that many medicinal ingredients contained certain traces of toxins as well. If used unwisely or paired with the wrong ingredients, they could poison their patients or even take their lives. Besides that, other unknown plants with no medical properties were found to contain hypertoxic poisons; many animals were found to be poisonous too besides snakes. Thus, the medical academy specifically started up a separate branch of study called the Poison Sect. A group of doctors were assembled to dedicate their lives to study of poisons. After all, the medical academy was split between the two major factions of poisons and medicine. Any skills that couldn’t be used to save people, could kill people.
If doctors were the world’s scariest assassins, poison doctors were even more so. The Poison Sect’s poison arts began with creating antidotes to other poisons and curing poison victims. It had a strict prohibition on poisoning anything unless it was for the sake of creating an antidote. Still, even the strictest bans didn’t deter the rulebreakers. As the study of poisons progressed, its records filled the books. Gradually, outside forces worked their way in to win over the poisons doctors by various means to purchase poisons and poison prescriptions.
People died from greed, just as birds died from feed. Even the tightest regulations had no way to block every single person. Less than a decade after the Poison Sect was found, causes of death by poisoning skyrocketed across the continent. Because of this, the Poison Sect began to carefully monitor any information leaks from its ranks. Many poison doctors were exposed and subjected to death by torture as way to warn the monkey by killing the chicken. The Medical Sect began to dread the Poison Sect’s massive power and seized this chance to slander them left and right. In less than five years, the Medical and Poison Sects were as incompatible as fire and water. Since the Medical Sect controlled most of the authority within the academy, the Poison Sect began to secretly cultivate poison nurturers as an act of self defense.
At this point, Han Yunxi interjected, “Is it the same poison nurturers we have in the present?”
“Exactly so. Many poison experts know the craft, but it originated from the Poison Sect,” the sword sect master nodded. “Poison nurturers consist of the three levels of Poison Humans, Poison Corpses, and Poison Gu. 1 Poison Humans are the most common of the lot and no different from ordinary humans. Their lifespans are limited, but they have immunity against low-level poisons. Poison Corpses are like suicide soldiers, but with immunity against mid-level poisons. As for Poison Gu…”
Han Yunxi felt excited as the sword sect master trailed off. She had studied Poison Humans and Poison Corpses extensively from ancient books, but couldn’t find any mention of the Poison Gu. It seemed that the people of the past had deleted the information on purpose, leaving nothing but minor details behind.
“From what I understand, there are low, mid, and high-tier Poison Gu. Low level Gu come from plants, mid-level from bugs, and high-level from humans,” Han Yunxi said.
“Precisely,” the sword sect master smiled as he nodded. “You lass, you’ve even studied up the art of Poison Gu. Just how much have you mastered?”
“I know nothing about it. I just found out I was a Poison Sect descendant last year,” Han Yunxi glanced at Long Feiye to get his go ahead before going on to explain about her birth origins and connection with Medicine City’s Mu Clan.
“In other words, you don’t know who your father is?” the sword sect master was astonished. He thought that Long Feiye had allied with all the remnants of the Poison Sect already. Han Yunxi didn’t want to stay on this topic, being more interested in the Poison Gu.
“If I don’t study the poison nurturers, how am I supposed to cure poison gu in others?”
The sword sect master was stunned. “What, someone was poisoned with gu?”
Han Yunxi then told him about the matter with Long Tianmo’s stomach. It had swollen up without reason because Xi Yubo had planted poisonous gu inside. But after Long Tianmo fell into Jun Yixie’s hands, the latter removed the gu and replaced it with another poison to frame her as the culprit. The matter had caused a row at the medical academy, but the true cause of Long Tianmo’s swollen abdomen had never been revealed. Still, his illness was enough to prove that Xi Yubo, Luo Zuishan, and Jun Yixie all knew about the poison gu arts. Even Han Yunxi didn’t know the whole truth about the matter, while Long Feiye did.
The only reason his stomach had swelled up was because of the white robed man’s—Gu Beiyue’s—plot. He had told Xi Yubo to plant the gu, on the one hand to ascertain Gu Qishao’s identity, on the other to lure Han Yunxi into the Poison Sect’s Skypit.
Luo Zuishan didn’t understand the poison gu arts, but he was one of Gu Qishao’s people. Thus, Gu Qishao told him what was the matter to have him challenge Xi Yubo and expose him in public to humiliate the medical academy. Unfortunately, Jun Yixie got involved and ruined Gu Qishao’s scheme. Even so, Gu Beiyue was still able to lure Gu Qishao to Medical City and confirm that he was none other than its former fiendish genius, Little Qi.
Over the past few years, the medical academy had been constantly interrogating Xi Yubo and investigating Jun Yixie. But they never would have suspected Gu Beiyue and Gu Qishao to be the original instigators. Long Feiye remained silent without a word.
“I never thought people who know the poison gu arts still existed. Looks like the Medical Sect didn’t eliminate the Poison Sect completely in the past!” the sword sect master sighed.
“Just what happened back then?” Han Yunxi asked.
“It was the poison gu arts that made Medical City destroy the Poison Sect. Its highest stage–using humans as gu, could create Poison Gu humans that would neither age nor die.”
Han Yunxi quickly asked, “So they did make them?”
Long Feiye was curious about this as well. He knew that Gu Qishao had an undying body, but he wasn’t sure if the man ever aged. Gu Qishao had been expelled from Medical City at a young age for reasons unknown. It was also uncertain when he’d attained his immortal body.
“They didn’t,” the sword sect master was certain. “Using humans as gu was nothing more than a fanciful dream. Even the poison prescription needed for such a creation has never existed in the gu arts. All they have are records of plant and insect gu. Furthermore, the Medical Sect destroyed all records of the art once they eliminated the Poison Sect.”
Han Yunxi knitted her brows. “So the Poison Sect didn’t actually do anything terribly wrong, but was destroyed by the Medical Sect because of their aspirations?”
Only now did the sword sect master feel that Han Yunxi was truly a Poison Sect descendant. Before this, she was simply asking about its history like an outsider. After all, anyone who could make the poison beast submit had to be a blood descendant of the Poison Sect. Han Yunxi was supposed to be one of their own, so he couldn’t understand why she was so cool about her sect.
“This grandmaster only knows the generalities. I’m afraid only the medical academy knows exactly how they destroyed the sect, how many people they killed, and how many of its orphans escaped,” the sword sect master admitted. “After the Poison Sect’s destruction, the Medical Sect took control over all of Medical City and the medical academy.”
“We’ll get to the bottom of this one day!” Han Yunxi’s gaze carried traces of hatred. Both the sword sect master and Long Feiye assumed she wanted to seek revenge for the Poison Sect, but didn’t know her soul had no relations to them after transmigrating here. She was simply dissatisfied with the Medical Sect’s selfishness and greed as it discriminated against others.
The sword sect master didn’t speak much after that. He quickly arranged for a few of the Abstinence Courtyard disciples to come and help Long Feiye heal his wounds. Then he leaked the news that he’d pass on his leadership position to Long Feiye within the next three months and deal with Cang Qiuzi’s trial afterwards.
Cang Qiuzi had been stripped of his head elder position and command over his Courtyard. His martial arts had been crippled before he was locked in Celestial Dungeon. Long Feiye had injured him within an inch of his life as well, leaving him on his last legs even if he wasn’t dead. Granny You assumed temporary control of Lockheart Courtyard in his place. Everyone was guessing that Long Feiye would select a new leader to head Lockheart after he became sect leader. Thus, all of the various branch factions were expressing their utmost loyalty.
Things seemed to have turned for the better, but that very night Xu Donglin suddenly charged into the room with a letter held between his hands.
“Master, this subordinate deserves to die! This extremely urgent message came about eight to nine days ago…”
1. Poison Human/Corpse/Gu – these terms were first name-dropped back in Chapter 111.