Soulbound: Chronicles Of A Shadow Assassin-Chapter 30: Poisoned [I]

Mingyu’s eyes fluttered open, and he was met with an unfamiliar celling. He sat up abruptly on the bed he was lying on, alarm flashing across his face as he scanned his surroundings.

"You are in Jinxing." Jiang Yichen’s low and calm voice caught Mingyu’s attention.

Mingyu turned his head and saw Jiang Yichen sitting on a bed that was just a little distance from his.

"This is Master Zhang’s infirmary in Jinxing." Jiang Yichen clarified when he saw the confusion on Mingyu’s face. "Thanks to you, I was allowed into Jinxing despite being forbidden."

Mingyu slowly remembered the events that ensued before he lost consciousness, and Jiang Yichen’s explanations was suddenly unimportant.

"Where’s my sword?" Mingyu asked as he sprang up from the bed.

Jiang Yichen didn’t even need to answer as Mingyu immediately spotted his sword which was beside Jiang Yichen on the bed. Quickly picking it up, he tried to unsheathe it, but to his dismay, it was stuck once again.

Mingyu’s brows furrowed in confusion, a frown settling on his face. "B-but I unsheathed it earlier... or was it all a dream?"

"It wasn’t a dream." Jiang Yichen spoke up when he saw Mingyu looking like he was going to descend into madness. "I saw it with my own eyes. But then, once you collapsed, Moon Shadow went right back into its scabbard."

Mingyu’s eyes lit up, his exhaustion momentarily forgotten. "Is that so?" he asked, his voice filled with relief. He was extremely glad to hear that it had all been real, and not just a figment of his imagination.

But his enthusiasm was short-lived, as his thoughts spiraled back to the mysterious loss of his powers. His shoulders slumped, and his expression turned puzzled. "But why did I lose my powers again?" he asked, his brow furrowed in concern.

Jiang Yichen also thought about it, and said, "I think you were able to regain it, thanks to the massive spiritual power contained in the Lake."

Mingyu’s eyes widened in realization. "That’s right!" He exclaimed, "I regained my powers when I was deep in the lake... I have to go back there." He said, almost rushing out of the infirmary if not for Jiang Yichen’s next words.

"Then what? Are you going to live underwater like a fish until your powers return?" Jiang Yichen teased, indirectly calling Mingyu dumb.

Mingyu turned back to look at Jiang Yichen, glaring daggers at him. He wanted to refute Jiang Yichen’s words, but he knew they were nothing but the truth. He was indeed planning to stay underwater until his powers returned.

"Do you remember what the experience was like when you regained your powers?" Jiang Yichen asked.

Mingyu let himself get immersed in his memories as he narrated his ordeal. "When I was underwater, I felt a strange surge within me–which I ignored by the way, as all I was thinking about was how it would feel to die by drowning. That must have been when my powers returned."

A glint of conflicting emotions flickered through Jiang Yichen’s eyes. His voice was barely above a whisper as he asked, "So you were really going to end your life?" His words hung in the air, heavy with emotion.

Mingyu, oblivious to the intense gaze Jiang Yichen was directing at him, was too caught up in his own thoughts. He was busy trying to piece everything together, and his mind was racing with so many theories.

"That’s it!" Mingyu exclaimed as he thought of a possible solution. "All I need is someone as powerful as the Crystal Cove Lake to help me push out the power within me."

Jiang Yichen massaged the skin between his brows. "Are you going to begin searching for a master too?" He asked incredulously. "Do you even think there’s anyone that powerful to begin with? And even if there was, would they even help you? You are Mingyu, a wanted assassin, and a Transmigrator."

Mingyu deflated like a balloon. His hopes were immediately crushed by Jiang Yichen’s brutal, but factual words.

....

"Jiang Yichen is at the infirmary?" Master Zhang asked in surprise as one of the physicians working at the infirmary came to report Jiang Yichen’s presence to him at his quarters, where he was busy playing Xiangqi board game with Lin Xiaoyan.

"Yes, my lord." The physician answered, "He came with his unconscious manservant saying that he was in dire need of care, so we let him in."

Lin Xiaoyan’s eyes remained fixed on the game board, his fingers poised over the pieces as he contemplated his next move. "His manservant, huh?" he asked, his voice detached, though a hint of curiosity crept into his tone. "How bad is his condition, that Yichen deemed it fit to come all the way here?"

"It wasn’t a life-threatening injury, but rather... a peculiar circumstance." The physician said, "According to my estimates, he should be regaining consciousness around this time."

"You may leave." Master Zhang excused the physician.

....

It was nighttime and Mingyu was sitting outside of the infirmary, all by himself, enjoying the view of the night sky and the refreshing breeze that blew against him. Beside him, was a small stool where two cups had been placed.

"There you are." Jiang Yichen said as he came out of the infirmary and saw Mingyu sitting outside. "It takes more than one person to have a tea party." He joked when he saw the two cups of ’tea’ on the stool. He then sat beside Mingyu, with the stool in their middle.

"I’ve only heard of how the Zhang family’s infirmary is one of the best in Huayang, but today, I’ve confirmed it myself." Mingyu spoke in a telltale tone.

Jiang Yichen, while listening, picked up the cup that was closest to him and drank from it, his eyes never leaving the liquid as he savored the taste.

"It has all sorts of medicinal herbs... and poisonous ones too." Mingyu glanced at Jiang Yichen when he said the second half of the his statement.