~~~

The Punishment Hall was a medium-sized, one-story building with a single basement level.

In spite of the name, nothing particularly terrible happened there. It was just a building with dozens of holding cells where disciples who had broken the rules of the Xiao Sect were sent to. As far as punishments went, it was a light one. The punished disciple just had to stay in a cell for a day or more depending on the offense.

Those who were wise used the time to focus on their cultivation.

Of course, that was not an option available to Liu Jianguo.

He and Li had been locked up in two small, adjacent cells located in the basement. Each only had a pile of hay with a blanket on top where one could sleep on. There were no windows of any kind, so the only light came from the dim candles outside the cells.

By Liu Jianguo’s estimate, over half a day had passed since they were brought in.

Naturally, rather than being worried about himself, Liu Jianguo was worried about his son who he had left with Old Man Gao. Since he had first held Liu Jin in his arms, this was the longest Liu Jianguo had ever been away from him. It was a situation the doctor was not accustomed to, and it was not one he liked one bit.

Certainly, he had left the old couple with strict instructions on what to do, but still!

What would happen if his son woke up crying in the middle of the night and he wasn’t there!

What if his son got sick? Old Man Gao lacked knowledge of the healing arts. Liu Jianguo frowned as dozens of different scenarios flashed through his mind, ranging from somewhat possible to profoundly unlikely, yet his mind took each of those scenarios with utmost seriousness.

“I wish to apologize.”

The doctor blinked as Li’s voice drew him out of his increasingly fantastical worries. He looked to his side, which was a useless gesture as the walls of his cell blocked his view of Li.

“I do not recall you having done anything that requires an apology.”

Li’s laughter filled the empty place. It was tinged with bitterness.

“Doctor Liu, I see your sense of humor is as good as always, but please, now is not the time for it. There is no denying it was this stupid disciple who pleaded for you to come here. If it weren’t for me, you’d be with your son. I… I knew there was always a possibility of things ending this way, but I truly believed everything would work out.”

The regret in his voice was easy to hear, and from one point of view, it was almost easy to agree with him. However…

“Contrary to what you may think, I do not make it a habit of joking,” Liu Jianguo replied, sitting on the pile of hay and leaning against the wall. “You are young, and that you think you can claim responsibility for my actions shows it all too clearly. I am here because I chose to be here. Nothing more. Nothing less.”

“But I insisted so many times!”

“You did,” Liu Jianguo agreed without a trace of heat or an ounce of bitterness in his voice. “You constantly pestered me about it. It was quite annoying.”

“Then you can see-”

“But,” the doctor said, softly but firmly, “I did not choose to go with you so that you may stop pestering me. You explained your reasoning to me, and I agreed with it. That is all there is to it. You didn’t force me to come. I am here of my own free will. There is no need for you to feel guilty about the choices I made.”

It was almost funny. If someone had talked to him like this in the past, then maybe things wouldn’t have gone the way they did.

However, Liu Jianguo had no time to entertain what-ifs. Not anymore.

“As expected, Doctor Liu is truly an amazing man,” Li said after a while. “No wonder the Heavens made Doctor Liu unable to use Qi. It’d be the height of unfairness for a man to have both power and wisdom in such measures.”

Liu Jianguo laughed.

He couldn’t help it. He laughed long and hard. The sound echoed across the empty cells.

“Doctor Liu?”

“Forgive me,” he said, still laughing and wiping a tear from his eye. “It’s just… I wasn’t expecting you to say something like that. Power in exchange for wisdom? Is that how you see it?”

Li might be more right than he’d ever know.

“Amusing,” the doctor said. “Life truly is amusing.”

“Well, well,” someone said. “I see you two are having fun. Don’t you know this is supposed to be a place of punishment? At the very least, you’re supposed to pretend to be penitent. The Elders do so love that.”

“Young Master Xiao Nan!”

Liu Jianguo’s eyebrows rose as he saw the young boy walk in front of his cell. He was carrying a tray of food.

“Greetings,” Liu Jianguo said, inclining his head. “I must admit my surprise. I did not think we were worthy of being visited by a person of your esteem.”

“You aren’t,” Xiao Nan replied without hesitation. “However, like you, I am being punished.”

As he spoke, he set the tray down and opened the lock. The plate with food was pushed in a second later.

“As I’m sure you know, even weak cultivators can go a day or two without food just fine,” Xiao Nan explained, making no effort to close the gate. He didn’t need to. There was nothing Liu Jianguo could do to escape with Xiao Nan in the way. “Except in the cases of disciples who have misbehaved enough to be here for weeks or months, there is really no need to bring food here. However, you’re a cripple, and thus, need food to survive.”

“I am aware of that.”

“Usually, we’d have a servant bring you food, but Uncle and the Elders are angry with me,” Xiao Nan said, shrugging as if the matter didn’t concern him. “Hence, your meal is now being served by this Xiao Nan. Please, do enjoy the absurdity of our positions.”

“You have this one’s deepest thanks,” Liu Jianguo said, bowing as he picked up his plate and started eating. Rice and meat with some spices. Probably nothing fancy by the standards of the Xiao Sect, but a good meal was a good meal.

Rather than leaving now that his task was done, Xiao Nan stayed there with his arms crossed, leaning against the wall. The weight of his presence was enough to silence Li, but Liu Jianguo just ate in tranquility.

Minutes passed by in silence. Still, Xiao Nan did not move from his place. After a while, he spoke.

“Were you telling the truth?”

Liu Jianguo paused mid-bite and looked at the child. “If the Young Master of the Xiao Sect is asking me if I told the truth about Patriarch Zheng’s condition, the answer is yes. If he asks me if I was telling the truth about the way to cure him, then the answer is also yes.”

Xiao Nan’s eyes narrowed. “And how do I know you aren’t lying?”

“Doctor Liu would never-”

“Quiet!” A single hissed word was enough to stop Li from talking. Xiao Nan’s eyes never strayed from Liu Jianguo. “I’ll ask again. How do I know you aren’t lying?”

“You don’t,” Liu Jianguo replied.

“Huh?”

“Short of allowing me to heal your uncle, I do not think there is a simple way for me to convince you,” Liu Jianguo explained. “It is not wrong for you to be suspicious of me. I am, after all, a cripple. For me to have knowledge beyond the greatest doctors of this city is a laughable thought. It should be far easier for you to believe that I’m merely a charlatan that wishes to avoid death.”

“You know,” Xiao Nan said, his left eye twitching. “You aren’t supposed to just admit something like that. You’re supposed to grovel and beg for the opportunity to prove yourself to me.”

“If I begged and groveled, you’d see me as too desperate to be trusted,” the doctor pointed out calmly. “Make no mistake. I do not wish to die, and I believe earning your trust would help me stay alive. However, I don’t think there is a simple way for you to suddenly trust me. I can heal your uncle. That much is true, but to you, I might as well be saying I am the general of a great army or the prince of a foreign country.”

Xiao Nan sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“I don’t have time for this. I really don’t have time for this.” The child paced around the cell, but still, he made no move to leave it. He thinned his lips and clenched his fists. “None of this would be happening if Uncle just asked help from the other Sects! He and the Elders are just being obtuse!”

The child breathed heavily after the shout left his lips. Liu Jianguo observed his angry face carefully.

“I cannot claim to know everything,” he said, “but I believe Patriarch Xiao Zheng made the right choice in that matter.”

Xiao Nan stilled. Slowly, his head turned towards Liu Jianguo.

“Oh? Is there something you wish to say?”

“If you would allow this one the presumptuousness of sharing his thoughts, I believe it is easy to understand Xiao Zheng’s reasoning.”

Xiao Nan angrily waved a hand in his direction. “Out with it then!”

“The Patriarch of a Sect is someone who must ensure the safety and continuity of the entire Sect, not just that of his own life. If Patriarch Xiao Zheng has not asked for help, it is because he fears doing so would expose the Xiao Sect to great danger.”

Xiao Nan looked like he wanted to interrupt but stopped himself. Liu Jianguo nodded approvingly.

“You must understand, Young Master, that the relationships between Sects are never horizontal. They are, fundamentally, relationships of superiority and inferiority. I am sure it is the same in Eastern Port City. Numerous factions are subordinate to the Xiao Sect. Is that not so?”

“Of course!" Xiao Nan said impatiently. “All factions in the city are affiliated either with the Yun Sect or with us. What does that have to do with anything?” He suddenly frowned. “Wait… are you perhaps suggesting…?”

“It is so, Young Master,” Liu Jianguo said, nodding. “The Xiao Sect may have the position of superiority in all its relationships within the confines of Eastern Port City, but that does not hold true for the relationship it has with Sects outside the city. For example, the Divine Frozen Palace and the Eternal Raging Valley."

Even though he couldn’t see him, Liu Jianguo felt Li’s flinch the moment he uttered those names. Xiao Nan’s face darkened.

“To think you even know those names. You are awfully well-informed for a cripple.”

“This is nothing, Young Master. Out of the four main Sects in the empire, those two are the ones whose territories are closest to this area. Knowing their names is as natural as knowing the sun and the moon,” Liu Jianguo replied. “Regardless, it cannot be denied the relationship between the Xiao Sect and those two Sects is not one in which the Xiao Sect is in a position of superiority. Young Master, when you speak of asking help from outside Sects, you mean them, do you not?”

It was the only thing that made sense. There were no other Sects guaranteed to have the resources to discern Xiao Zheng’s malady and cure it.

“So what if they are?” Xiao Nan asked, defensively. “What is the problem with that?”

“The problem is the difference in power is too big,” Liu Jianguo replied. “Young Master, the strongest person in the Xiao Sect is Patriarch Xiao Zheng. In the entirety of Eastern Port City, he is the only one in the Emperor Realm. However, if you leave this city, you will find there are many other cultivators in the Emperor Realm. In places like the Divine Frozen Palace or the Eternal Raging Valley, this holds especially true.”

Liu Jianguo wouldn’t be surprised if there were at least a dozen people in the Emperor Realm in each of those Sects. The Xiao Sect simply couldn’t be compared to it.

“Fine then! Let’s say you’re right,” Xiao Nan said, angry and moving closer to Liu Jianguo. “What’s the problem with asking them for help?”

“Doing so would place the Xiao Sect in an irredeemable debt, Young Master,” Liu Jianguo replied, meeting the child’s eyes with a steady gaze. “For the Xiao Sect to have a relationship with either of the two Sects, it must carefully manage its position of inferiority. If the Xiao Sect shows too much weakness, it’d be of no use to them. If the Xiao Sect, places itself too much in their debt, it would slowly get taken over until it stops being the Xiao Sect. Young Master has probably never given much thought to these things, but for a cripple like me, it’s nothing but common sense. After all, I am someone who will always be in a position of inferiority. If I do not manage it right, I’ll incur debts I cannot pay.”

“And you’re saying saving Uncle’s life will incur such a debt?”

“At the very least, this one can say Patriarch Xiao Zheng and the Elders certainly believe so,” Liu Jianguo replied. “Asking help from a larger Sect could very well save Patriarch Xiao Zheng’s life, but in saving his life, they could end up placing the Xiao Sect completely under another Sect’s control.”

“If you are right,” Xiao Nan said, frowning. “Why did no one say something like that to me?”

“I imagine it is because no one wants to admit to being weak,” Liu Jianguo said, bowing his head. “It is not a pleasant experience. They do not wish to burden Young Master with that knowledge.”

“Burden, you say?” Xiao Nan chuckled bitterly. “I just feel like a fool now.”

“My apologies.”

Xiao Nan did not reply immediately. He stayed there for a while, silent and thoughtful.

“Hey!” Xiao Nan’s blue eyes peered into his red ones. “If you had those ingredients, could you heal uncle?”

“I have said it many times, and I’ll say it again, yes.”

“I see.”

With one last look at him, Xiao Nan left and closed the door behind him.

~~~

It was late at night when Liu Jianguo woke up after feeling someone opening his cell.

“Get up,” the unmistakable voice of Xiao Nan said. “I’ll have you prove your words.”

“Young Master Xiao Nan,” Liu Jianguo said, rising with grace that should not belong to someone whose sleep had just been interrupted. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

Unlike in his previous visit, Xiao Nan was dressed in dark clothes. He had a sack of cloth in his hands, which he quickly put down.

“I brought what you need.”

Liu Jianguo’s eyes widened.

Oh dear.

“Are those-”

“Three phoenix feathers, Dragon Blood Flower, and Sweeping Flame Lotus,” Xiao Nan said, taking the ingredients out of the sack one by one. “You said this was what you need, didn’t you? Well then, start preparing. I even brought the Powdered Moon Grass and Blue Spirit Root. We don’t have much time until the guards realize someone broke into the storage. Once the Elders notice what was stolen, they’ll know to come here.”

This child had stolen from his own Sect.

This child had broken into the storage and taken the ingredients he had listed the other day. Audacious didn’t begin to cover it. Liu Jianguo would have smiled if he wasn’t aware of how precarious this made his situation. There was no time for hesitation now. He needed to prepare the medicine as fast as possible.

“Very well, but I’ll also need-”

“I brought a furnace,” Xiao Nan said, anticipating his words. He took a small ornate furnace out of the bag as well. “This is what our doctors use. I’m not sure if it’ll do but…”

“It will do,” Liu Jianguo said, recognizing the quality of the item. “It is not ideal, but for our purposes, this is good enough.”

As he spoke, Liu Jianguo was already preparing everything. He placed the ingredients in order and started heating up the furnace. If he had his Qi, it’d be much easier, but he’d have to make do. With mortar and pestle, he ground the Dragon Blood Flower and the Sweeping Flame Lotus. He focused on his work, slowly losing sight of even the room around him.

Once he was satisfied with the result, he started placing the ingredients inside the furnace.

“You’re only putting in two phoenix feathers,” Xiao Nan observed.

“The last one must be added later,” he said. “We need to wait until the smoke turns purple.”

Then it would be time. However, for now, all he could do was wait and hope no one intruded.

One breath. Five breaths. Fifty breaths. Time stretched as the vapor changed from gray to orange and finally to purple.

“It’s purple. Add it.”

“Patience. I’ll need your help for this part,” Liu Jianguo said, carefully fanning the flame. “I’ll need you to pull me out the moment I add the last feather.”

“Wait, what does that mean?”

As Liu Jianguo threw the feather not with the other ingredients but into the fire, Xiao Nan’s eyes widened. The child quickly grabbed Liu Jianguo and pulled him out of the room. Not even a second later, flames exploded all around the furnace, reducing everything in Liu Jianguo’s cell to ashes and even melting the bars.

The fire lasted only for an instant, yet its heat warmed the entire floor.

“Are you crazy?” Xiao Nan shouted. “Who places a phoenix feather right in the fire?!”

“It was the only way the fire would reach the temperature required to properly refine the medicine. The end result would have been substandard otherwise,” Liu Jianguo explained, not looking particularly worried that he came a second away from being burned alive. “Thankfully, it worked as expected.”

Xiao Nan’s face turned hopeful.

“Then it is…?”

Liu Jianguo nodded. “It is done. The pill your Uncle needs is finished.”

It was at that moment that the guards rushed in.

~~~