Cyclebreaker: Rise of the Martial Emperor

Chapter 23 – Severed Fire Yang Meridian

"Grade-Three Pill, Ice Spirit Pill?"

The shopkeeper of the pill shop was slightly taken aback, then said, "Miss, our shop only has Grade-Two Pills at most. Grade-Three Pills are only available at the Formation Master Guild."

Upon hearing this, Lu Mengyao's face showed a look of disappointment, and she turned to leave.

However, just as she took two steps, her body swayed and she suddenly collapsed.

"Teacher Lu!"

Luo Xiu dashed forward, catching Lu Mengyao as she fell into his arms. Her soft body rested against him, and the sight of her cleavage made his heart race.

But Luo Xiu noticed that Teacher Lu's face and neck were flushed red, and her skin was burning hot.

The shopkeeper was also startled, and many curious eyes from the surroundings turned their way.

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At that moment, Lu Mengyao's eyelids fluttered as she slowly opened her eyes and recognized Luo Xiu.

Realizing she was in Luo Xiu's arms, she struggled to stand up.

However, she felt weak all over, with a burning sensation spreading from her heart, causing her consciousness to become increasingly blurred.

"Luo Xiu, take me away," Lu Mengyao said, struggling to maintain her consciousness, placing her hopes on the only trustworthy student beside her.

Luo Xiu nodded, lifting Lu Mengyao in his arms, and asked, "Teacher Lu, where to?"

In such an embarrassing position, Lu Mengyao felt both ashamed and angry, thinking that Luo Xiu was taking advantage of her.

But her consciousness was fading, and she had no choice but to trust him.

"To my place."

"Alright!"

Under the gaze of curious onlookers, Luo Xiu carried Lu Mengyao away quickly, heading towards her residence in Qingyun City under her guidance.

"That girl's all red, could she have been drugged?"

"Who is that guy? Quite the lucky encounter."

Along the way, some scoundrels pointed and whispered, making Lu Mengyao feel even more humiliated.

Hearing such comments, Luo Xiu felt helpless. If he weren't carrying Teacher Lu, he would have taught those gossiping fools a lesson.

Lu Mengyao's residence was a quaint courtyard in Qingyun City.

In a simple, clean room, Luo Xiu placed Lu Mengyao on the bed, noticing the redness on her body gradually fading.

On the way, Luo Xiu had also checked her vital meridians, discovering a scorching aura surging from her heart meridian, causing her current condition.

Luo Xiu remembered noticing something amiss in Teacher Lu's heart meridian three months ago. The heart meridian is the most critical life gate in the human body, and any issue there could be life-threatening.

As the scorching aura gradually dissipated, Lu Mengyao's hazy consciousness slowly cleared.

Seeing Luo Xiu standing by the bed, she frowned slightly and sat up.

Finding her clothes intact, she breathed a sigh of relief, her biggest worry being that her student might take advantage of her unconsciousness.

"Thank you, Luo Xiu," she said weakly with a smile.

"No need to thank me, Teacher Lu. It's what I should do," Luo Xiu replied. Seeing Teacher Lu's vulnerable state, he couldn't help but ask, "What happened earlier, Teacher Lu?"

Lu Mengyao glanced at Luo Xiu, sighed softly, knowing her own body well. Without any surprises, she feared she wouldn't survive this year.

She was born with the Severed Fire Yang Meridian, suffering the agony of burning heart every seven days, relying on ice attribute pills to suppress it since childhood.

But recently, her stock of Ice Spirit Pills had been depleted, and the Severed Fire Yang Meridian flared up.

Lu Mengyao knew that the Ice Spirit Pill's suppression was weakening, and even with it, she might only live a couple more years before her life would end.

However, sensing Luo Xiu's concern, she said, "I have a special constitution, so this happens every few days."

"Teacher Lu, may I take a look? Maybe I can help," Luo Xiu suddenly suggested.

"You?" Lu Mengyao was taken aback, recalling the scene of Luo Xiu carrying her, her face instantly turning cold.

"You can't cure my illness, no need for your help," Lu Mengyao replied coldly, suspecting Luo Xiu might have ulterior motives.

Noticing Lu Mengyao's change in attitude, Luo Xiu understood her misunderstanding and couldn't help but smile wryly, "Teacher Lu, you might have misunderstood me. If I wanted to take advantage, I could have done so on the way."

"So, you did have that thought?" Lu Mengyao retorted coldly.

Hearing this, Luo Xiu felt embarrassed. Teacher Lu's alluring figure and fair skin indeed stirred his thoughts.

Seeing Luo Xiu's silence, Lu Mengyao was more convinced of his intentions, her expression turning colder, "You can leave now!"

Luo Xiu was at a loss, wanting to help her but being mistaken for a scoundrel.

He didn't want to leave a bad impression on Teacher Lu, so he said, "Teacher Lu, your problem is with your heart meridian, am I right?"

Lu Mengyao's frosty expression faltered, showing surprise, "How do you know?"

Though her consciousness was blurred earlier, she was sure Luo Xiu hadn't used inner qi to examine her body. How did he know it was her heart meridian?

"I know a bit of medicine. When you had your episode earlier, I noticed a scorching aura emanating from your heart meridian," Luo Xiu explained confidently.

He had observed Teacher Lu's vital meridians, not in detail, but enough to confirm the issue was with her heart meridian.

Of course, a closer look would confirm the exact problem, but staring at her chest would be impolite and easily misunderstood.

"If you can see something, do you really have a way to treat it?" Lu Mengyao asked, skeptical.

The Severed Fire Yang Meridian could stump even a Spirit Refining Realm Martial Grandmaster. She doubted Luo Xiu could cure her, but a small part of her hoped, despite knowing it was unrealistic.

Luo Xiu nodded, "I can roughly confirm the issue is with your heart meridian, but I need to examine it closely to see if I can help."

Luo Xiu wasn't entirely confident, so he didn't want to make any promises.

"Alright, you can take a look, but no inappropriate touching," Lu Mengyao agreed.

Luo Xiu was speechless but understood Teacher Lu's caution. With her captivating beauty, any normal man would struggle to resist.

He stepped closer, sitting on the bed's edge. The proximity allowed him to catch a faint fragrance from her, quickening his heartbeat.

Placing two fingers on Lu Mengyao's wrist pulse gate, Luo Xiu pretended to take her pulse, while a thread of inner qi entered her body, following her vital meridians towards her heart meridian.

Many alchemists had checked her pulse before, and Lu Mengyao could tell Luo Xiu's actions were unprofessional, making her doubt his medical skills.

Martial artists often learned some medicine due to frequent injuries from training or battles, especially alchemists who were skilled in medicine.

The Severed Fire Yang Meridian could stump even a Spirit Refining Realm Martial Grandmaster, and Luo Xiu was just a Body Refining Martial Apprentice. Lu Mengyao felt she might be grasping at straws, with little hope.

Unaware of his clumsy pulse-taking, Luo Xiu's inner qi quickly traveled through her meridians and acupoints, reaching her heart meridian.

The heart meridian is a martial artist's life gate, extremely fragile, and any issue could be fatal.

Luo Xiu focused intently on Lu Mengyao's left chest heart area, observing the detailed condition of her heart meridian through her vital meridians.

He saw that Lu Mengyao's heart meridian differed from other meridians, glowing with a crimson flame, as if a fire lay dormant, ready to unleash immense power.

Near the heart meridian, Luo Xiu sensed a trace of cold aura, likely from the ice attribute pills Teacher Lu had taken to suppress the heart meridian's fire.

Feeling Luo Xiu's gaze on her chest, Lu Mengyao felt uneasy, about to scold him when Luo Xiu suddenly closed his eyes, seemingly deep in thought.

Moments later, Luo Xiu opened his eyes, "Teacher Lu, your heart meridian harbors a mass of scorching fire aura. I can't guarantee a cure, but I can try."

"You..." Lu Mengyao didn't believe a Body Refining Martial Apprentice like Luo Xiu could cure her, about to speak when she felt a surge of pure inner qi entering her body through Luo Xiu's fingers on her pulse gate.

"This is..." She sensed the inner qi brimming with vital force, soothing her as it traveled through her meridians and acupoints.

Soon, the vital inner qi reached her heart meridian, astonishing Lu Mengyao as the usually painful heart meridian felt incredibly comfortable, making her close her eyes to savor the unprecedented relief.

In Lu Mengyao's heart meridian, Luo Xiu infused vital force transformed from his inner qi into her vital meridians.

"Buzz!"

A violent fluctuation erupted, the scorching aura in Lu Mengyao's heart meridian's dormant fire seemed drawn, slowly shifting within her heart meridian.

As the fire shifted, Lu Mengyao's body reacted, trembling slightly.

At that moment, Luo Xiu sensed a tremor from the Life and Death Pearl within his soul, and the Life and Death Extremes Qi in his body began to operate autonomously.

"What's happening?" Luo Xiu's expression changed as the Life and Death Extremes Qi seemed to draw the scorching fire aura from Lu Mengyao's heart meridian through their contact.

"So hot..."

As more fire aura was absorbed, Luo Xiu felt unbearably hot, sweating profusely.

Time passed, and over an hour later, Luo Xiu's clothes were soaked with sweat, his skin flushed as if roasted by fire.

Lu Mengyao was in a similar state, the scorching aura waking her from the comfortable state, her white dress soaked and clinging to her skin, outlining her perfect curves.

Her eyes filled with surprise and shock, she looked at the flushed young man before her, amazed at how Luo Xiu managed to draw out the fire yang force from her Severed Fire Yang Meridian.

If the fire yang force in the Severed Fire Yang Meridian could be absorbed and dissipated, Lu Mengyao knew she could escape its torment.

However, the fire yang force grew stronger with a martial artist's power, and with her Qi Sea Realm cultivation unable to suppress it, how could Luo Xiu, a Body Refining Martial Apprentice, endure it?

At this moment, Luo Xiu was in a dilemma, his inner qi operating autonomously beyond control, reaching its limit as more fire yang force was absorbed, nearly exceeding his body's capacity.

Just as Luo Xiu felt he couldn't endure any longer, his consciousness blurred, plunging into darkness.