70: Chapter 70 Demons

The Li Family's eldest Young Master actually had a Gu inside him?!

After refining the Thousand Tribulations Nirvana Gu, Jiang Hanzhou himself had developed a kind of deep-seated connection with the Dao of Gu, making him exceptionally sensitive to the Aura of Gu insects.

He had previously only guessed that Li Jingming might have been afflicted by a strange poison, sorcery, or invaded by some alien power, but he never expected that in this wealthy inner residence in Donghai Prefecture, far from Three Rivers Estuary and seemingly peaceful, he would encounter "Gu" once again!

Moreover, this Gu was hidden extremely deep, its Aura peculiar, seemingly intertwined with Li Jingming's own vitality and blood. If not for the fact that he carried the Thousand Tribulations Nirvana Gu seed and possessed perception far keener than ordinary people, he would likely have been unable to catch that fleeting, faint resonance from behind the room door and across a distance.

"No wonder those physicians couldn't figure out the reason; at most, they felt some 'foreign substance' or a 'sense of a living thing'..."

Jiang Hanzhou felt a sudden realization, followed by a trace of gravity.

The Dao of Gu is treacherous, with countless varieties and various effects.

What kind of Gu was Li Jingming afflicted with?

Why would he be afflicted with Gu?

Could it be that people from the Ten Thousand Gu Sect... have appeared in Donghai Prefecture?

As he was secretly pondering, the Li Residence's Old Butler had already called the next person according to the name list: "Please welcome Daoist Master Guo, Guo Yanlin."

From the crowd, a Daoist priest, approximately fifty years old, wearing a washed-out cyan Daoist robe, a square cloth cap, and with a lean and refined face, stepped out in response.

He carried an old medicine chest slung across his back, held a horsetail whisk, and his steps were composed and his expression calm, standing in stark contrast to the surrounding atmosphere of nervousness and frustration.

During the previous introductions, Jiang Hanzhou remembered that this man claimed to be a wandering Daoist priest passing through Donghai Prefecture, possessing slight knowledge of medicine and divination; he hadn't expected him to be invited by the Li Family as well.

Judging by his demeanor, he did not look like an ordinary charlatan, but he had not attracted much attention either.

Guo Yanlin nodded to the Old Butler, performed a Daoist salute in the direction of Li Chongshan, then pushed open the door to the quiet room and walked inside.

This time, the silence inside lasted a bit longer.

Just as everyone thought that this wandering Daoist priest would also return without success, or perhaps even meet with misfortune—

"Creak," the door opened again.

It was not Guo Yanlin who came out, but a pretty maid who had been standing inside the room earlier.

Her face was filled with panic, and she walked quickly to Li Chongshan's side, whispering a few urgent words.

Li Chongshan's face, originally as gloomy as iron, changed abruptly. His red beard and hair moved without wind, and the heavy, mountain-like Aura around him surged violently, causing the blood and Qi of everyone in the courtyard to stagnate!

"What?!" Li Chongshan let out a low shout. Without further hesitation, his figure moved, and he swept into the quiet room like a red streak of lightning!

This sudden change caught everyone in the courtyard off guard, and they looked at each other, curiosity quickly overcoming their fear of Li Chongshan's might.

"What happened?"

"Could Daoist Master Guo have discovered something?"

"The Head of the Li Family went in personally!"

The buzzing of discussion rose, and many people stretched their necks to peer inside.

Seeing this, the Old Butler hesitated for a moment. Seeing that the Head of the Li Family had no intention of stopping them, he gestured to several high-status physicians and several core members of the Li Family, saying in a low voice: "Everyone, if you are interested, you may follow me inside to take a look, but please be sure to remain quiet."

Once these words were spoken, the crowd, already unable to restrain themselves, immediately surged forward.

Jiang Hanzhou felt a stir in his heart and followed the crowd, entering the quiet room without drawing attention to himself.

The inner chamber of the quiet room was spacious and elegantly furnished, but at this moment, it was permeated with a heavy medicinal smell and an indescribable, cold Aura.

On a large carved bed lay a young man with a pale face and purple lips; it was none other than the Li Family's eldest Young Master, Li Jingming.

His eyes were tightly shut, his breathing weak and erratic. Even in his coma, his brows were tightly locked, as if enduring immense pain.

In front of the bed, Daoist Master Guo Yanlin was sitting on a stool, one hand resting on Li Jingming's wrist, his eyes slightly closed, as if carefully sensing something.

Li Chongshan stood by his side, his red eyes fixed intently on Guo Yanlin's face. The terrifying Aura that had erupted just a moment ago had been forcibly suppressed by him, but his clenched fists and slightly heaving chest showed the extreme lack of calm within his heart.

The surging crowd immediately packed the small inner chamber, but everyone held their breath and focused, not daring to make any loud noises.

A moment later, Guo Yanlin slowly opened his eyes and released his hand from taking the pulse.

"Daoist Master Guo!" Li Chongshan immediately stepped forward, his voice carrying a trace of imperceptible urgency, "Earlier, the maid said that you seem to have made a discovery?"

Guo Yanlin's gaze swept over Li Chongshan, then looked at the crowd squeezed into the room with varied expressions, sighed softly, and nodded.

"Head of the Li Family," his voice was calm but every word was clear, "Your son's condition is indeed not an ordinary illness or evil spirit."

He paused, and under the gaze of Li Chongshan, which had suddenly become as sharp as a knife, he slowly spat out the word that made Jiang Hanzhou's heart tremble slightly:

"Inside his body... there is Gu."

"Gu?!" Li Chongshan's pupils shrank, the Qi around his body became unstable again, and the temperature in the room seemed to rise a few degrees.

The other physicians were in an uproar, whispering to each other, their faces filled with disbelief.

Although Donghai Prefecture is by the sea and occasionally has strange items from overseas, "Gu" is something that circulates more in the legends of the southwestern borderlands; the vast majority of people present had only heard of it, never seen it in person.

"Correct, it is Gu." Guo Yanlin affirmed, though his brows furrowed slightly, "Moreover, this Gu is lurking at the intersection of your son's heart meridian and blood, deeply intertwined with his vitality. Judging from its dormant state and its subtle influence on the host's blood and Qi... it has existed for at least half a year."

"At least half a year?!" Li Chongshan's expression changed again, and his eyes instantly flashed with shock, anger, heartache, and a trace of icy killing intent.

This meant that his son had been afflicted with Gu by someone without anyone knowing at least half a year ago!

And his dignified Li Family had been completely unaware!

He suppressed his churning emotions, took a deep breath, and asked in a deep voice: "Since Daoist Master Guo can tell it is Gu, I wonder if there is a solution? Whatever medicine or artifacts are needed, the Li Family will certainly do everything to find them!"

However, facing Li Chongshan's urgent gaze, Guo Yanlin slowly shook his head.

This action made Li Chongshan's heart sink suddenly.

"Head of the Li Family, please calm down." Guo Yanlin's voice remained steady but carried a trace of gravity, "Gu is not the root cause of your son's coma."

"What?" Li Chongshan was stunned.

Not only him, but everyone in the room also revealed expressions of confusion.

Since it is Gu, why is it not the root cause?

Guo Yanlin's gaze fell back on the unconscious Li Jingming's face, and he slowly said: "This Gu has been lurking for a long time, and although it has been slowly eroding the host's Foundation, it should have originally been in a relatively 'balanced' dormant state, not enough to suddenly erupt and cause such a serious coma and decline of blood and Qi."

He raised his eyes, looked at Li Chongshan, and said clearly, word by word:

"The real problem is that some kind of extremely ferocious and filthy 'external object' has recently invaded your son's body and... detonated this lurking Gu."

"External object? Detonated?" Li Chongshan's brows were tightly locked.

"Correct." Guo Yanlin nodded, his gaze sweeping over the shocked, curious, and confused faces in the room, finally settling on Li Jingming's pale face. His voice was not loud, but it seemed to carry thousands of jun of weight, crashing into everyone's heart:

"And this 'external object' that detonated the Gu insect..."

He paused, seemingly deliberating his words, or perhaps confirming his judgment, and then, enunciating each word, he spat out:

"Is the blood of a Monster."