"Greetings, Grand Elder Lan Shuyao. This little one has presumptuously come to try her best in aiding you. While I do not promise results, this junior will do her absolute best to ease your ailments."
Lan Shuyao couldn't help but look as the tall and voluptuous dragon woman bowed formally. Yasenia's presence and beauty were like a streak of color around a grey environment.
After being tied down to her bed for so long, walking around too sporadically, even the beautiful and exceptional land that surrounded her felt bland.
She had seen the trees wilt and grow, and she had seen snow and storms, but other than the change of seasons, most things remained the same.
As a Half-Step Transcendence Realm cultivator, Lan Shuyao would not be too affected by 2,000 years of confinement, even when she was sick during all that time. Nevertheless, before she healed and recovered her health, the tiredness and bad feelings dragged on, weighing on her.
Tatyana was incredibly beautiful and elegant as well, but the aura around her made it impossible for Lan Shuyao to enjoy that beauty without feeling her heart constrict.
Yasenia, on the other hand, was different. Her weaker cultivation and current soft look with the bun combined to create a vibrant palette, striking beauty, and a formal presence that would attract attention wherever she went.
Lan Shuyao's blue eyes, which were like the surface of an icy lake, cracked a little. Her stiffened lips arched very faintly as she tried not to sound like an emotionless puppet. "No need to be so formal and stiff. Come here first, and let me look at you closely."
When she said that, her voice was truly like a piece of cold ice touching the skin. Inside, she was somewhat worried that her tone would scare this gorgeous dragon girl. But contrary to her worries, the dragoness only blinked twice with some confusion before she nodded and walked towards her.
Lan Shuyao internally sighed in relief; she didn't want to scare this gorgeous girl. Once she arrived near her, a flowery and pleasant scent tickled her nose. The scent was different from the flower fragrance she had smelled during the last two millennia. It was soft and pleasant, making her eyes squint in delight.
Once Yasenia was close, Lan Shuyao looked up and felt amused. 'Truly, a dragon. It's impossible to ignore her curvy body when she is this close.'
Yasenia's large mountains were too prominent when she was this close, so Lan Shuyao patted the bed. "Sit."
Her tone, once more, was cutting and cold. By now, others would've been terrified. She had seen it happen far too often. Yet, to her surprise, Yasenia sat with an innocent expression, as if she were a newborn calf unafraid of the tiger.
Curious about her lack of adverse reaction, she asked. "Why don't you fear me?"
The dragoness tilted her head, some of her bun gently sliding to the side with the head movement. "You have no evil intent. Why should I fear you, senior?"
'Ah… right.' Lan Shuyao recalled. 'A dragon's ability to sense intent is among the best. Someone like this child must have those senses sharpened tremendously.'
The knowledge that her current attitude wouldn't affect the mood of this junior made Lan Shuyao relax a notch.
Meanwhile, behind them, all the Lan family members looked as if they were standing on top of pins and needles. Each time Lan Shuyao spoke, the juniors trembled, and the seniors were nervous.
It wasn't Lan Shuyao's fault, though. She had met plenty of fake people trying to make a quick profit during the last 2,000 years. When she did, her already foul mood would flare up, making her even more terrifying.
"Tell me, child." Lan Shuyao started, her face cold and her eyes fixed on Yasenia's warm golden eyes. "Do you think I can be cured?"
Yasenia saw Lan Shuyao extend her hand, and she understood that she was giving permission to take her pulse.
"I do not know if Lady Lan Shuyao can be cured…"
Yasenia reached out and gently grabbed her wrist, placing two fingers on it to read her pulse. 'Cold. Too cold. Not radiating cold as well, but coldness that wants to pierce and devour all heat around it.'
Lan Shuyao was slightly surprised at her unexpected comment, but she saw that Yasenia was not done talking, so she waited a bit longer. As she expected, after taking her pulse, Yasenia frowned lightly and continued.
"... But I promise I can at least make Lady Lan Shuyao feel better."
Lan Shuyao blinked and looked at the young dragon girl. Her golden eyes were sincere, carrying the warmth of the sun with them. She couldn't help but feel a trickle of that warmth penetrate her freezing body from her wrist, calming her always taut expression to a certain degree.
"Then… I'll be in your care, child."
Lan Shuyao smiled enough that the edge of her mouth tilted up. Her eyes were still cold, almost showing no emotion, but there was a very faint change.
Yasenia nodded readily and turned around to speak with the Lan Ancestor and the others. "From what I could detect with my first diagnosis, the main problem that Lady Lan Shuyao has is her overflowing Yin Energy. Yin Energy in excess is poisonous for the body, paralyzing bodily functions to the point of freezing the meridians and dantian. Once that happens, the chances of a total collapse are high. Nevertheless, from the medicinal herbs and pills I've felt swimming in her blood, I can tell that this is far from news to the elders."
Lan Yuancun, Shuyao, and Qingsu were surprised by the accuracy of the diagnosis at first glance. After all, Yasenia's time holding Lan Shuyao's wrist was not longer than 10 minutes.
The reason for her accuracy was not experience or knowledge; she was using her constitution as a measuring medium. With the absolute equalizer that [Celestial Yin and Yang Body] was, the dragoness could effortlessly detect anything related to them.
Ancestor Lan Yuancun rubbed his beard and nodded faintly. "That's a great assessment, child. Yes, as you've already sensed, we know most of the causes and effects of Little Shuyao's poison. Sadly, before we managed to detect it, Little Shuyao was heavily injured in battle. During the healing process, the poison not only clung to her flesh, bones, and viscera, but also to her soul. Expelling it the usual way would not even serve as a temporary fix."
Yasenia agreed with this. "From my shallow knowledge, poisons and venoms of the Transcendence Realm and above are semi-sentient, are they not? If you attack it, the poison will flare up as a result of resisting, damaging all her internal organs and also her soul in the process. Recovering from heavy soul damage will almost always leave sequelae, which would make her chances at crossing the Heavenly Tribulation slimmer."
Lan Shuyao's eyes flashed with appreciation. Yasenia was mostly right.
Lan Yuancun nodded. "As you've said, it's not that we can't heal her. We could detox her body and then nurse her back to health. The problem is that the Heavenly Tribulation is far too dangerous to cross due to the aftereffects. After all, as the ancients say, medicine is one part poison. The time she would need to meditate and recover from all of that is in the tens of thousands of years."
Yasenia nodded and pondered deeply while placing her fingers on Lan Shuyao's wrist. 'I see. I found it strange that they would even allow someone of my level to come close to her when there are Law Creator-level Alchemists and medical practitioners that can treat her. With their resources, inviting someone of that level is not out of the question, more so to heal the one that's closest to a breakthrough into the Seventh Realm.'
After that, Yasenia closed her eyes and guided Lan Shuyao to follow her breathing rhythm. Lan Shuyao didn't resist, allowing Yasenia to guide her, as she felt it was best.
Compared to other experts who visited her, Yasenia's methods could only be considered as crude and low-skilled. It was clear that she was not someone who focused on medicine or alchemy.
Regardless of that, the others didn't interrupt or disrupt her. They just looked on as Yasenia honestly worked in the way she thought was best.
As Yasenia went through a more thorough process to analyze everything she could in depth, Lan Yuancun glanced at Tatyana. "Senior, may I?"
Tatyana nodded, her eyes never leaving Yasenia's figure.
"While your daughter's methods are not exceptional, I can see that she has a talent for medicine. Have you thought about teaching her alchemy?"
Tatyana answered lightly. "She might have some talent, but compared to other professions, alchemy and medicine are truly not worth her time."
"I understand."
Since Tatyana said so, he didn't insist.
Meanwhile, Lan Shuyao grew increasingly amazed. Each time a few strands of Yasenia's energy entered from her wrist, her body would warm up very lightly. It was as if her dry meridians were finally being fed after starving for so long.
For a second, she even had an impulse to move closer and hug Yasenia's body to feel warmer. Still, the mind of a Half-Step Transcendence Realm cultivator was not as fragile. So, she reigned in her desires even before they manifested.
'This child is special.'
She could tell easily that among all the people she had ever encountered, Yasenia was unique.
After ten hours of probing, Yasenia finally stopped and breathed out a sigh. "Any more will be redundant for today."
Lan Shuyao smiled, her lips arching slightly more naturally, but still not reaching her eyes. "Are you tired, child?"
Yasenia chuckled and didn't hide it. "I won't deny it. Nevertheless, it was worth it. I couldn't even map out the start of the treatment process, but now I have a hint."
Lan Shuyao blinked slowly, her red hair falling over her shoulder. "How will you do it, then?"
Yasenia glanced at Lan Shuyao's waist and commented. "Starting from the place you were injured will help me attack the root of the problem better. I think that if I can debilitate it enough, the seniors of the Lan Family will be able to tackle it better. I am unsure if this is the path to the cure, but at least, it is a positive direction."
Lan Shuyao pondered, and seeing that Yasenia was about to leave, a touch of reluctance flashed in her heart. Not really wanting this beautiful streak of color to leave, she blurted out lightly. "Would you like to sleep here, child?"
Yasenia paused, glancing over with a puzzled expression. "Sleep here?"
Lan Shuyao nodded and spoke calmly. "Your warmth is pleasant. I can feel my body relaxing. Since you are here to ease my symptoms, this is also part of your duties, right?"
Speechless, the dragoness turned to look at Tatyana. The woman smirked and shrugged, leaving the decision up to her. She wouldn't mind being away from Yasenia for one night.
So, after thinking it over, Yasenia chose to stay. 'It might help, even if only a little bit.'
The preparation time would take slightly longer, so using all her resources was not something out of the question.
"Alright then. I'll stay here until I've finished treatment."
Lan Shuyao nodded, her cold face looking a touch happier.