Chapter Twenty-Four: The Body as a Furnace, Pure Yang Like Fire

A wound on his arm had turned black, with faint dark lines creeping toward his heart—the bandit's hidden weapon was clearly laced with a deadly poison that kills upon contact with blood!

Though Xu Boqing’s body had lapsed into unconsciousness, his mind remained inexplicably lucid. He felt like an outsider, perceiving his own physical state in a strange and unfathomable way…

Hot! Burning!

He could distinctly feel that once the poison invaded his body, it seemed to trigger some special mechanism within him…

His body now resembled a great furnace, within which blazed boundless pure yang fire, seemingly able to smelt anything!

In this furnace, wisps of black vapor constantly emerged. Yet as soon as they appeared, the flames within would refine them until nothing remained. Some of the black vapors, once consumed, even left behind tiny sparks of light, which then fused into his body…

Perhaps it was just his imagination, but after those sparks merged with him, the pure yang flames within the furnace seemed to burn a little brighter.

Was this the “body as a furnace” effect of the Pure Yang Constitution?

Was the black vapor the deadly poison?

And what were those sparks of light?

At that moment, the black vapor diminished, and his mind grew clearer; he could vaguely sense the world outside and even catch fragments of their conversation about the “Ginseng King Pill”…

Then he felt something strange in his throat, washed down with water into his stomach—surely this was the “Ginseng King Pill” they’d mentioned?

He could feel the pill dissolve in the pure yang fire of his inner furnace, transforming into bursts of luminescence that merged with him, making the flames burn even stronger.

Could these sparks be the essence of the medicine?

But the poison produced them as well—how could that be?

Medicine and poison are two sides of the same coin; some deadly poisons serve as medicinal ingredients, while some wholesome medicines can be blended into toxins…

Perhaps that was the explanation…

So his great furnace could refine any “foreign energy” that invaded his body, discarding the dross and absorbing the essence?

A body like a furnace, warding off a hundred evils…

Was this the true use of the Pure Yang Constitution?

Xu Boqing had a faint realization. After careful sensing, he discovered that those sparks could serve not only as fuel to strengthen the pure yang flames but could also be drawn upon at will—even to heal the wound on his arm!

But after considering a while, he chose not to heal his arm, nor did he wake despite being able to.

He decided to sleep for a while.

After half a month of training, a good rest would restore his spirit...

…

Within the Empress Dowager’s palace.

A group of eunuchs and maids exchanged uncertain glances. Even after taking the so-called “Ginseng King Pill,” famed as a miracle cure that restores souls, the little eunuch had only lost his fever and was no longer burning up as before.

Yet he remained unconscious, showing no signs of waking.

The Empress Dowager herself knitted her brows. But seeing that the wound on the "little eunuch's" arm no longer oozed black blood, and his complexion had improved, she said nothing more.

After a while.

Chief Steward Huang returned with a grim expression, carrying the corpse of Cui Feng, whose skull had been half-crushed. He had not yet had time to bow.

The Empress Dowager waved her hand, kindly asking, “No need for formalities, Chief Steward. Were you injured while killing the bandit?”

Back in the day, Huang Xingxian had been Emperor Shengyuan’s chief attendant, overseeing his daily life—one of the emperor’s most trusted men.

When the emperor sought immortality and Empress Qian’s remonstrations proved futile, leading to her death in protest, Huang had witnessed it all in anguish.

Yet as the emperor’s attendant, there was nothing he could do…

Before his death, Emperor Shengyuan finally realized his errors, sighing to Huang like any ordinary man: “My old friend, I know I have been foolish and incompetent all my life—unworthy of my people, my nation, and most of all, Empress Qian.”

But by then, Empress Qian had been dead for years, so the emperor passed his remorse to Empress Chen, who had only been empress for a couple of years.

After all, he knew that Empress Chen, still in her youth, would spend the rest of her life widowed in the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility—a fate no less pitiable than that of Empress Qian.

Thus, like entrusting an orphan, the emperor charged Huang with caring for Empress Chen, telling him not to mind courtly conventions so long as imperial dignity wasn’t compromised—the meaning was clear.

Huang had wept bitterly, vowing never to let Empress Chen suffer the slightest wrong…

With the new emperor’s accession, the former empress became Empress Dowager, and the emperor’s old attendants naturally withdrew from the center of power.

Huang played his part, requesting to serve as Chief Steward in the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility.

Over more than a decade together, the Empress Dowager could tell that Huang cared for her like a true elder, his devotion pure and untainted.

Anything she wished for, he would obtain.

“Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty,” Huang replied, relaxing. “That bandit’s martial arts were formidable, and his methods exceedingly vicious, but fortunately this old servant’s skills proved superior.”

“So long as you are unharmed,” the Empress Dowager said.

“Your Majesty, what should be done with this bandit’s corpse?”

“Handle it as you see fit,” the Empress Dowager nodded, unconcerned with the dead man. Instead, she pointed meaningfully at the unconscious Xu Boqing lying on the phoenix bed. “The bandit’s weapon was laced with deadly poison. This ‘little eunuch’ was wounded while shielding me. I have already given him the ‘Ginseng King Pill.’ Though the poison seems no longer to be spreading and the fever has subsided, he has not awakened. Do you know why?”

Huang tossed the corpse outside for two elderly eunuchs to carry away, then approached the phoenix bed to inspect Xu Boqing’s wound and take his pulse.

“How strange… how very strange…”

The more Huang examined him, the deeper his frown grew. Seeing the Empress Dowager’s confusion, he explained, “This boy’s pulse is steady and strong, nothing like one who has suffered grave injury.”

The Empress Dowager nodded. “A steady, strong pulse—perhaps the ‘Ginseng King Pill’ worked?”

Could that pill really have such an effect? Huang paused, thinking he’d been away from the center of power for over a decade; perhaps the pill had been improved by some master since then…

Still, it was good news.

He nodded. “It must be thanks to Your Majesty’s ‘Ginseng King Pill.’ I also checked his internal organs with my inner energy—there is no sign of residual poison, so it seems the toxins have been completely purged.”

He paused, then continued, “As for why he remains unconscious, this old servant cannot yet find the cause. If Your Majesty pleases, have him sent to my quarters, and I will use my inner energy to help restore him to health as soon as possible.”

The Empress Dowager nodded. “This little eunuch, despite his high fever, risked his life to protect me—such devotion moves me deeply. I must trouble you, Chief Steward.”

“Your Majesty is too kind…”

Huang’s eyes flickered with meaning as he added, “In truth, I was able to arrive so quickly to your rescue mainly because of this boy—he deserves nine-tenths of the credit. I never imagined he’d have the courage to follow me here.”

“Oh?” The Empress Dowager’s curiosity was piqued. “Tell me, Chief Steward, how did he earn so much credit?”

“At once, Your Majesty.”

Huang recounted the incident of Xu Boqing’s warning in rough outline, drawing repeated nods from the Empress Dowager, who praised the boy’s cleverness…