Chapter 186
Chapter 186
On the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, the Crystal Orchid was finally brought back. Uncle Huo wrote a prescription, and the Flower Gu inside Tang Ao was cured almost immediately.
That was why Tang Tang had still been in high spirits when we video-called on Lunar New Year’s Day.
But that very night, Tang Xun collapsed.
Tang Tang had been exhausted lately from caring for Tang Xun and searching for someone who could save her. She rarely checked her phone, which was why she had missed my message.
For all Tang Ao’s pride, he had always been a loyal and humble younger brother in front of Tang Xun.
Now that Tang Xun had gotten into trouble because of him, Tang Ao was utterly crushed.
Once I understood the full story, I said, “Take me to see Aunt Tang first. We can figure out what to do after I’ve examined her.”
Tang Tang nodded. “All right.”
Li Qingying and I went upstairs first, while Liu Junyan and Hui Moqiong stayed in the living room to speak with Tang Ao and learn more about the painting and the circumstances surrounding his Gu affliction.
Tang Tang pushed open Tang Xun’s bedroom door, and a bone-chilling wave of cold immediately swept over us.
Although the New Year had only just passed and the weather was still cold, it should not have been this bitterly frigid.
I frowned at once.
Tang Xun’s room was spacious, but simply furnished.
Only a single bedside lamp was on. Tang Xun lay deeply asleep on the enormous bed, completely motionless.
As Tang Tang led us over, she said, “You don’t have to be so careful. Ordinary noises won’t wake Auntie.”
With that, she pulled back Tang Xun’s blanket and lifted the hem of her shirt from her lower back.
Tang Xun spent most of the year traveling, and she was also a trained martial artist. Her waist was slim yet powerful, and her figure was incredible.
But now, an enormous black butterfly mark covered nearly her entire lower back. Under the lamplight, the butterfly’s dark surface seemed to shimmer with an iridescent rainbow sheen.
“What a beautiful, iridescent shade of black,” Li Qingying murmured in amazement.
It truly was breathtaking.
But sometimes, the more beautiful something was, the more dangerous it could be.
Tang Xun had not gotten this black butterfly tattooed. It had suddenly appeared on her lower back by itself, which was far too bizarre.
Tang Tang said sorrowfully, “At first, it was only the size of a fingernail. Auntie noticed it while she was showering, but before she could get someone to examine it, it grew more than ten times larger overnight. That was also when she fell unconscious.”
My brows drew together. “Aunt Tang hasn’t woken up at all since the night of Lunar New Year’s Day?”
“No,” Tang Tang replied. “Uncle Huo came and took her pulse. It was steady and strong, nothing like that of someone who was ill, but no matter what we do, we can’t wake her. It’s as though Auntie has fallen into an endless dream.”
Her vital signs were normal, yet she could not wake up. What was going on?
Uncle Huo’s medical expertise was beyond question. If even he could not wake Tang Xun, most hospitals would undoubtedly be helpless as well.
“I looked through a lot of material and discreetly sounded out my advisor. In the end, I found one possible answer concerning this butterfly, though I’m not entirely certain,” Tang Tang continued. “If I’m not mistaken, this should be a Ghost King Butterfly.”
“Ghost King Butterfly?” I asked, puzzled. “I’ve only heard of the Ghost-Face Butterfly.”
The so-called Ghost-Face Butterfly was a species with a marking on its head that resembled a ghostly face. It was completely different from the butterfly on Aunt Tang’s lower back.
Tang Tang shook her head. “I’d never heard of it before either. My advisor said he once read a similar account in an Unofficial History of Tomb Raiding. During the Tang Dynasty, a Gold-Touching Captain was exploring an ancient tomb when a black butterfly shimmering with iridescent light landed on his shoulder.
“Not long after the Gold-Touching Captain returned home, he died despite never falling ill. After his death, a butterfly mark identical to that black butterfly appeared on his corpse.”
“According to Unofficial History, the Ghost King Butterfly was formed from the resentment of the Ghost King. A Gold-Touching Captain disturbed the tomb of the Ghost King and was afflicted by the Curse, setting everything that followed into motion.”
At first glance, this tale of Tomb Raiding from Unofficial History did bear a striking resemblance to what had happened to Aunt Tang.
Aunt Tang had collected the Crystal Orchid from an ancient tomb. Who had been buried there?
Could the tomb’s owner also have had some connection to a Ghost King?
Could the Ghost King Butterfly itself be the so-called Curse of the Ghost King?
It sounded absurd, but the more I thought about it, the more everything somehow seemed to fit.
Tang Tang continued, “My advisor said he’ll keep searching through ancient texts for any records of the Ghost King Butterfly. He’ll also ask his friends who specialize in this field, but so far, he hasn’t found anything.”
After hearing Tang Tang out, none of us knew what to say.
She had already done everything she possibly could.
Yet it had accomplished next to nothing.
Amid the silence, Tang Tang suddenly murmured something under her breath.
Her voice was barely audible, but I still heard her.
She said, “Xiao Jiu, if we run out of options, could we pawn this Ghost King Butterfly to the Pawnshop to save my aunt’s life?”
I knew exactly how Tang Tang felt at that moment.
The woman lying on that bed was the aunt she loved most — the aunt who had always doted on her.
Tang Xun was the bedrock of the Tang Family. As long as she was around, the Tang Family had nothing to fear.
But now that she had fallen, the Tang Family…
As for me, Tang Xun had saved me multiple times and had always treated me well. She was also an old friend of Fengwu.
No matter how I looked at it, I couldn’t stand by and do nothing.
The problem was, even if I forced myself to accept this deal, how was I supposed to remove the Ghost King Butterfly from Tang Xun?
Even if I cut away the layer of skin on the lower back of Tang Xun, would that truly eradicate the Ghost King Butterfly Mark from her body?
What if I removed one layer, only for another to grow back?
I raised a hand and pinched the bridge of my nose hard. Just as I was about to say something to Tang Tang, there was a sudden movement from the bed.
Tang Xun twisted restlessly. Her right hand moved weakly from side to side, and her lips fluttered. Only when I leaned closer did I hear her faint cries.
“Don’t touch me! Stay away from me!”
She seemed to be arguing with someone in her dream. She wanted to fight back, but her body seemed pinned down, leaving even the movement of her hand severely restricted.
As she struggled, the Ghost King Butterfly on her lower back seemed to awaken as well. It visibly expanded before our eyes.
The sight was horrifying.
It was our first time witnessing it, but Tang Tang had clearly seen it happen many times before.
Her eyes grew even redder. “My advisor believes that once the Ghost King Butterfly covers my aunt’s entire lower back, it may form a chrysalis. When it emerges from the chrysalis again, the Ghost King Butterfly will finally leave her body.
“The moment the Ghost King Butterfly leaves, my aunt… will probably leave this world with it.”
I instinctively glanced at the lower back of Tang Xun again. The Ghost King Butterfly was already on the verge of covering it completely.
If the advisor’s theory was correct, the Ghost King Butterfly might form its chrysalis tonight!
Today was the fifth day of the Lunar New Year. From the first appearance of the Ghost King Butterfly until the formation of its chrysalis, exactly seven days would have passed.
Then how long would it take to emerge from the chrysalis?
Could that also take only seven days?
We were running out of time…