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墨書 Inktalez
"How did you end up like this?"
The big man helped me sit down on a nearby wooden plank, concern etched on his face.
I felt particularly embarrassed as I looked at him. "I'm sorry, I hit you earlier."
"It's fine. But first, what exactly happened?"
A loud growl from my stomach broke the night's silence, "Grrr..."
In an instant, my face turned red with embarrassment as I glanced at the big man.
"Gu Yanxi, why do you always look so disheveled when I see you?"
With that, he stood up and walked outside.
Seeing him felt like reuniting with family, bringing me a sense of calm that I couldn't quite explain.
After a short while, he returned, holding a bowl of fragrant noodles.
He grinned widely as he placed the bowl on the table and then came over to gently pat my back.
"Go ahead and eat; it's hot."
His soft words made my eyes well up with tears.
Bowing my head, I picked up the noodles and finished them in just a few bites.
The big man had seen me like this before, so he didn't seem surprised at all.
Resting his chin on one hand propped against the table, he watched me intently. "Are you full? Do you want me to make you another bowl?"
"There's no need, no need. It's not good to eat too much at once," I said, considering the child inside me. I dared not eat more, just a bowl of noodles to warm my stomach first.
Thinking about my current situation, I couldn't help but feel a bit choked up, my eyes reddening as I looked at him. "Big Man, can I ask you for a favor?"
"Just speak your mind. As long as you don't cry," he replied.
"Big Man, can I stay here for a while?"
He glanced at me, looking slightly troubled. "I have no problem with that, but I'm not sure about the Island Master."
"Where is the Island Master? Can I go meet the Island Master?"
I understood the dilemma he faced; after all, it was the Island Master who held the authority here, not him.
"The Island Master isn't on the island right now. Let me see if I can get in touch with the Island Master and ask about the situation. Don't worry; I'm sure the Island Master will take you in," he reassured me.
I looked at him gratefully and said, "Thank—"
Before I could finish my thanks, I suddenly collapsed onto the floor, crying out loudly, "Oh no!"
"What happened? What's going on?"
The Big Man rushed around me in a panic, sweating profusely.
The sharp pain radiating through my body made me feel extremely uncomfortable. It felt as if someone was continuously pressing a burning cigarette against my skin, and the sensation coursed through me.
I clutched my belly to protect the child inside and rolled on the ground to alleviate the pain, unable to utter a single word.
"What happened to you?"
The big man shouted anxiously at me, and I could only weakly respond, "It hurts, my whole body hurts."
In my pain, he lifted the hem of my clothing and gasped.
"You've been poisoned."
Poisoned. Yes, I had been bitten by those venomous centipedes in the Tomb. I hadn't thought much of it at the time; could it be that the poison was now taking effect?
My head felt a bit dizzy as I rolled up my sleeve to check. I remembered that this arm had been bitten twice.
The two bite marks were swollen to the size of eggs, a sickly green color, covered with blood vessels resembling spider webs, looking particularly frightening.
"Big man, I was bitten by a centipede."
He seemed to understand instantly. "I have some ointment here that should help; I'll go get it for you."
He stood up, but I mustered the last bit of my strength to pull him back.
"No, big man."
His face twisted in worry as he anxiously patted my hand.
"You're in this state; what do you have to lose? Just wait here; I'll get you the medicine."
"Big man, it's not that. I'm worried about the baby inside me."
I knew how poisonous centipedes could be, and the usual method to counteract their venom was to use an even more toxic substance to combat it.
The child inside me is already in danger; I don't want anything to happen to him.
The big man slapped his own forehead. "Look at my terrible memory! How could I forget this? Now that we can't use medicine, what should we do? Can you endure it?"
I didn't know either. The poison from the centipede had to be released first. "Big man, can you get me a clean knife?"
He looked at me warily. "What are you planning to do?"
"Don't worry, I won't harm myself. I just want to cut open the wounds where I've been bitten so that the poisonous blood can flow out more easily."
"Alright, I have a clean knife on me. Here you go."
With that, he pulled a knife from his belongings.
The silver blade arced through the air, reminding me of my Shiro.
That Devouring Blade was given to me by him; now it was back in his hands, so I suppose it counts as returning it.
"Yan Xi, what are you dazed about? Are you scared?"
His voice pulled me out of my reverie. Gritting my teeth, I took the knife from his hand and aimed it at the two cuts on my arm.
"Big man, give me a towel."
I instructed him to fetch a towel and bit down on it to stifle any sounds.
There were a total of twenty-one wounds, each cut twice, making sixty-four cuts in total.
Jin Ping, this is what you owe me.
One day, I will make sure to collect double.
The last wound was cut away, and my entire body was in disarray, blood continuously seeping out. The blood that flowed was a strange color; although it still hurt terribly, I could feel that I was getting a little better.
Weak and powerless, I leaned against the table leg, gripping the knife tighter and tighter in my hand. All the strength I had left was fueled by the hatred Jin Ping had instilled in me. I waited for the moment when I would become strong enough to make her taste this kind of pain.
“There’s a Sulfur Spring on the island that can help with the poison in your body, but it will hurt a bit. Do you want to go?” The big man asked, looking down at me for my opinion.
I weakly lifted my head to glance at him. Pain was not a problem; the more it hurt, the better. Pain could help me forget some things, and it could make me hate Jin Ping even more.
“I’m determined: take me there. I’m not afraid of pain,” I said firmly.
The big man picked me up and covered me with his clothes. I leaned weakly against his shoulder; I remembered everyone who had treated me well. As for those who wanted to harm me, they should wait.
He took me to the hot spring pool located inside a nearby cave. As we reached the entrance of the cave, I caught a whiff of the strong sulfur smell emanating from within; it was particularly pungent, and the closer we got, the more my wounds throbbed.
Gently, he placed me into the Sulfur Pool. The warm water instantly began to eat away at my skin.
“Ah,”
A cry escaped my lips, as if I wanted to shout out all the pain from my mouth. The Sulfur Water felt like chili pepper juice splashed onto an open wound, stinging and unbearable.
The big man beside me comforted me, "Hold on, if it hurts, just shout. This water is good for your body and won't harm the child inside you."
I nodded in agreement.
"Yan Xi, I'm going outside. I won't go far; I'll be right here. If you need anything, just call out and I'll hear you."
"I've laid out clean clothes for you. Change into them once you're done soaking, okay?"
He sounded like a nagging mother, constantly reminding me, which warmed my ears and eased my stomach.
As I quietly soaked in the pool, I reflected on everything that had happened. It felt like a dream. The child in my belly was already over five months old, and I needed to stay on the island for more than four months before I could leave.
I had no idea how much the outside world had changed, but those thoughts were not my concern. I had to learn from the book my grandfather left behind and settle any debts of vengeance.
The pain in my body gradually faded away; perhaps I had reached a point of numbness.
Just as I was about to drift off to sleep, a shadow suddenly appeared in the pool. "Who?" I called out in a low voice, and the figure paused.
When the shadow turned around, I was startled again. Every time I saw the Island Master’s face, it terrified me; his mask was too frightening.
I tried to speak to him, "Island Master, the big man said you weren't on the island; you just returned."
I can't express how grateful I am that I was too lazy to take off my clothes earlier and instead soaked them in the water.
He kept swimming closer to me, and I pressed myself tightly against the wall, unsure of his intentions.
Slowly, he drew nearer, until his face was right in front of mine.
I swallowed hard and nervously asked, "Island Master, what do you want?"
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