Chapter 27: The Injury
"Your mother's condition is due to overexertion," Old Master Feng explained to Mo Hua. "She's been using spiritual energy for long periods to fuel the cooking fires, and the heat has damaged her heart and lungs. Now she's weak, coughing, and has difficulty breathing."
He continued, "When she was first brought in, she could barely breathe. I've refined some pills to temporarily relieve her symptoms, so there's no danger for now. But from here on, she'll need proper recovery. She mustn't use spiritual energy to fuel the fire anymore, and she can't keep working in the kitchen at the Dining Hall. If she keeps at it, her heart and lungs will collapse, and no medicine will help."
Mo Hua felt a chill just hearing this. He bowed deeply again. "Grandpa Feng, I'll remember your kindness always!"
Old Master Feng helped him up with a soft smile. "Healing the sick is the duty of an alchemist. No need to talk about kindness. You're still young, yet you speak so seriously. By the time you're able to repay me, I might already be buried underground."
Mo Hua finally let out a breath and smiled. "With a kind heart like yours, Grandpa Feng, you'll live for hundreds more years!"
Old Master Feng chuckled aloud. "You rascal, even as a child you've had a way with words."
Mo Hua couldn't help asking, "But my mother only worked four hours a day at the Dining Hall, and she was fine before. How did her condition worsen so suddenly?"
Old Master Feng replied, "I asked the kitchen staff. Apparently, since this year started, she's been working six hours a day instead of four. The longer she worked, the more easily her spiritual energy became depleted. Combined with the strain… naturally, her body couldn't take it."
"What about the Fire-Repelling Hairpin?"
"You mean the one she wears in her hair?" Old Master Feng stroked his beard and nodded. "That hairpin does help. But it's just an ordinary spiritual tool, ungraded, so its effectiveness is limited. Still, it did help—without it, her condition would be worse, and even if cured, her heart and lungs would likely suffer permanent damage."
Mo Hua felt a mix of relief and lingering fear. Then he asked about the cost of the treatment.
Old Master Feng said, "The manager from the Dining Hall came by earlier. They feel responsible for your mother's condition and agreed to cover all the costs for her medicine. You don't need to worry about that."
Then he leaned in and winked. "Since they're covering the cost, I won't hold back either. I'll use the best herbs to refine her pills and make sure she recovers properly."
Mo Hua finally relaxed and sincerely thanked him again, then asked quietly, "Can I go see her?"
Old Master Feng nodded. "Go ahead. She just laid down after taking her medicine. Keep your voice down."
The patient rooms in Xinglin Hall had been connected into one larger chamber with a few simple beds. Though plain, the room was clean and carried a faint scent of incense.
When Mo Hua saw Liu Ruhua, she was lying on the innermost bed, quietly sleeping. Her breathing was shallow, her face pale, and her expression weary.
Mo Hua pulled over a small stool and sat quietly beside her, staring at her face.
He remembered when he was born, his mother was still young—gentle, beautiful, and with a lovely smile.
And now, somehow ten years had gone by.
For cultivators, especially those with longer lifespans, ten years was nothing. Some didn't even change in appearance over that time.
But Liu Ruhua already looked worn out, with a few strands of white hair at her temples.
Mo Hua thought about how he was slowly growing up, while his parents were aging behind the scenes, without him realizing it. By the time he noticed, they were no longer the people frozen in his memory.
His heart ached, and his eyes grew misty.
Eventually, Liu Ruhua woke up and found Mo Hua resting beside her, his eyes red. Her heart warmed, but it also hurt.
She gently touched his head. "Why are you here? Shouldn't you be cultivating at the sect?"
Mo Hua silently looked at her. She smiled a bit awkwardly. "I'm fine, really. You don't have to worry."
"Old Master Feng said you've been working six hours a day in the kitchen."
"Six hours is nothing. Look at the neighbors—many of them have even harder jobs. Your father goes out hunting monsters and sometimes doesn't sleep for days. Everyone's like that..."
Mo Hua shook his head. "But you're not in good health. You can't compare yourself to them. Is it because we don't have enough spirit stones at home?"
Liu Ruhua sighed lightly. "It's not that we lack spirit stones. But you're about to learn a cultivation technique, right? A low-tier mid-grade one costs over two hundred spirit stones. I just wanted to save more so you can choose a better one."
Mo Hua blinked, surprised. "But I never said anything about the technique. How did you know?"
Liu Ruhua rubbed his head again. "Silly child. How could your mother not know? You didn't say anything because you're thoughtful. But your father and I—how could we not plan for you? We're just Qi Refining cultivators ourselves. We can't give you the best, but we'll do what we can to give you something better."
Mo Hua's nose turned sore. Then he pulled out a storage pouch and said,
"Mom, I can earn money myself. I've already made 180 spirit stones!"
Now she was the one stunned. Her lips parted slightly, and after a moment she asked,
"How did you earn that much…?"
Mo Hua perked up. "I've been drawing formation diagrams for people!"
"That shop on North Street—Youyuan Zhai?"
"Yeah!"
Then Mo Hua froze. "Wait… how do you know about that?"
Liu Ruhua chuckled. "Your father told me. The day he saw you bring home so many spirit stones, he got suspicious—thought someone might be tricking you—so he followed you to that store. Asked the manager a few things. Turns out you weren't the one being tricked. That manager was! And suddenly, you had an 'older brother' I didn't even know about…"
Mo Hua's jaw dropped. He thought he'd hidden everything, but it turns out—he hid nothing at all. He didn't even know when his dad had followed him there…
Liu Ruhua gently touched his cheek and smiled. "When you were little, you were so small and skinny, I always worried someone would bully you—or that you wouldn't be able to survive in this world. But now, you've already earned so many spirit stones at such a young age. Your mother can finally relax."
"But you should save those spirit stones. It may seem like a lot now, but when your cultivation grows, or you find a Dao companion, or have children, you'll need way more. Better to save up now so you're not scrambling later."
Mo Hua shook his head. "Mom, I'll definitely earn much more in the future. You don't have to worry about that. What matters now is your health. Don't stress about anything else."
Liu Ruhua looked at Mo Hua warmly, wanting to say more, but a sudden cough interrupted her. Mo Hua quickly stopped her from speaking and gently urged her to rest.
(End of Chapter)