"Yun Ting, is your Senior Martial Uncle truly beyond help?"
Chang Wu De, standing to the side, though he had anticipated this, still found it difficult to accept.
"Dad..."
Duan Ying Ying went over and sobbed, collapsing onto Duan Wu Yu.
Yang Jing Yi, standing nearby, silently shed tears...
"Impossible, Master, how could Master be beyond help..."
Li Zi Hang, his voice choked with tears, shook his head in disbelief. Xu Ling Wei's eyes widened, and she stepped forward to sternly question Wan Yun Ting, "Didn't you say that as long as the Phoenix Tail Grass was found, you could save my Master? Why isn't it working now?"
"Because you were a step too late!"
Elder Mr. Wu, standing nearby, looked at Wu Wei Zi, who was trembling slightly, and sighed, "It's a pity. If only you had returned a day earlier, there might have been a sliver of hope to save Abbot Duan's life..."
Xu Ling Wei's eyes reddened. Seeing Wan Yun Ting remain silent, she gritted her teeth and angrily said, "Speak!"
Wan Yun Ting's expression was filled with pain and helplessness. He looked at Xu Ling Wei and Li Zi Hang, as well as Chang Wu De and the tearful Yang Jing Yi beside him, and sighed, "Elder Mr. Wu is right. We indeed returned a day late. Just one day..."
"But you said there were still ten days!" Wu Wei Zi's voice trembled.
"Yes, we've only been gone and returned for about five or six days. How could he be beyond help?" Li Zi Hang exclaimed emotionally, shouting at Wan Yun Ting.
Wan Yun Ting looked at them and said, "At the time, I estimated that Senior Martial Uncle could hold on for about ten days, but I didn't expect his latent illness to worsen so quickly. Even with the Phoenix Tail Grass now, I can't cure him."
"Alas, I've been by Abbot Duan's side during this time and have thought of ways to extend his life. His internal organs were poisoned by the Thunder God Vine, and coupled with the worsening of his latent illness, let alone you being a day late, even if you had returned a day earlier, it would have been very difficult to extend Abbot Duan's life." Elder Mr. Wu's old face was full of regret. He said to Yang Jing Yi, "Madam Duan, please forgive my inability. Please accept my condolences."
Yang Jing Yi shook her head slightly, tears continuously falling. She was so overcome with emotion that she couldn't speak, but she didn't blame Elder Mr. Wu or Wan Yun Ting for returning late.
"Is this... is this fate?"
Wu Wei Zi looked up, his old face filled with sorrow. A tear rolled down from the corner of his eye...
"Master..."
Hearing that his Master was truly going to die, Li Zi Hang was heartbroken. He and Xu Ling Wei knelt by the bedside. Duan Ying Ying, still cradling her father, had cried herself into a mess, wailing, "Daddy, I don't want you to die, I don't want you to die, boohoo..."
Duan Wu Yu, already at his last breath, used his remaining strength to lift his left hand and place it on his daughter's head, stroking her hair with his final tenderness. His darkened lips trembled, seeming to want to say something, but ultimately, he closed his eyes in resignation...
"Daddy..."
Sensing the end of her father's life, Duan Ying Ying let out a heart-wrenching cry...
"Senior Brother..."
Chang Wu De and Wu Wei Zi also wept tears of sorrow. Feeling that their Senior Brother Duan Wu Yu's life had reached its end, their hearts were filled with immense grief...
"Master..."
Li Zi Hang and Xu Ling Wei, kneeling before the bed, along with disciples like Qi Wu, cried out one after another...
Wan Yun Ting was also filled with sadness. Although he hadn't been at the Wu Liang Daoist Temple for long after returning with Chang Wu De, and hadn't spent much time with Duan Wu Yu, he was still an elder. Now that he couldn't save his life, Wan Yun Ting felt terrible.
Even if he had found the Phoenix Tail Grass and returned a day earlier, perhaps he could have extended his life...
Standing at the doorway of the room, Zhou Ruo Xi and Jiang Ting Xia saw that Abbot Duan had truly passed away, and the two martial sisters couldn't help but shed tears...
For a moment, the entire room was filled with sobbing and a pervasive atmosphere of grief...
At the main entrance of the courtyard, a young disciple heard the crying from the room inside and knew what had happened. He took out his phone and secretly sent a message: "Abbot is dead!"
On Chaoyang Road, within Beijing's Fourth Ring Road, stood a large mansion. This was a high official's residence from ancient times, but the plaque hanging above the main entrance now read: Sima Mansion!
"What, truly?"
In a luxurious living room within the mansion, there was a large bed crafted from Huai wood, adorned with exquisite carved patterns, clearly indicating its immense value.
Sima Bo Yong was leaning against the headboard, covered by a quilt. A beautiful woman in a black qipao sat by the bedside, holding a bowl of medicinal soup that she hadn't finished. Her beautiful face, though the woman was over forty, was exceptionally well-maintained, resembling a young woman in her twenties or thirties. Her dignified and virtuous demeanor clearly showed she was not from an ordinary family. She was Sima Bo Yong's seventh wife!
That's right, Sima Bo Yong had seven wives. His first wife was married when he had just arrived in the capital, and she gave birth to Sima Wen Tang and Sima Hong Yun. However, after Sima Bo Yong successfully became the foremost figure in Beijing's traditional Chinese medicine circles and even the chairman of the Chinese Medicine Association.
After achieving success, he rapidly became arrogant and sought out countless women for his pleasure. Consequently, his wife was dissatisfied and eventually separated from him, though not divorced, merely separated.
Without his wife by his side, Sima Bo Yong became even more unrestrained, finding many beautiful women in Beijing to become his concubines. The beautiful woman beside him now, Chen Qiu Yun, was a daughter of the Chen family, one of Beijing's five great families!
However, Chen Qiu Yun had experienced a failed marriage in her youth and had suffered a serious illness a few years prior. It was precisely then that Sima Bo Yong had gone to treat her and cure her. It was at that time that Chen Qiu Yun, in gratitude, voluntarily came to Sima Bo Yong's side.
In reality, however, Chen Qiu Yun was merely a pawn of the Chen family and Sima Bo Yong's close ties. After all, for a woman like her who had gone through a divorce, she held no status within the family and could not be used for marriage alliances with other prominent families. Therefore, the Chen family, seeing Sima Bo Yong's affection, simply gave Chen Qiu Yun to him.
Chen Qiu Yun felt grateful to Sima Bo Yong for curing her illness and agreed to her family's decision to be with him. However, she naturally could not fall in love with Sima Bo Yong, and even after coming to his home, Chen Qiu Yun never allowed him to touch her.
Sima Bo Yong didn't force her to do anything; he simply kept her confined at home, treating her as a pet songbird to admire.
However, Sima Bo Yong's small, triangular eyes were now wide open as he looked at Wei Ping, who had entered to report, and said disbelievingly, "Duan Wu Yu is truly dead?"
"Yes, Uncle Martial Nephew."
Wei Ping nodded and said, "A disciple from the Daoist temple just sent me a message saying my Master has passed away. They were all crying, so it should be true."
"Hahaha..."
Upon hearing this news, Sima Bo Yong couldn't help but burst into laughter. Only Chen Qiu Yun, sitting by the bedside, looked at him calmly, maintaining a silent state, neither speaking nor smiling.
"Good, excellent."
Sima Bo Yong was overjoyed. He truly hadn't expected Duan Wu Yu to die.
"I heard that Wan Yun Ting and the others found the Phoenix Tail Grass, but it was still a step too late. My Master was at his last breath, beyond recovery." Wei Ping nodded.
Although he had betrayed his sect and followed Sima Bo Yong, Wei Ping still held some affection for Duan Wu Yu. At the very least, he had educated him and personally taught him martial arts. It was only later that Sima Bo Yong returned to the sect and used money to completely sway Wei Ping.
Now, hearing the news of his Master's passing, Wei Ping felt very sad, but he dared not show it in front of Sima Bo Yong.
"It's just a pity that brat managed to return alive!"
Sima Bo Yong narrowed his small eyes. He hadn't asked Chen Qiu Yun to leave, showing considerable trust in his wife. He snorted, "I really don't know what Lei Lao Hu and the others were doing. They were sent to kill Wan Yun Ting's group, yet they still managed to return alive."
He had been recuperating in the capital for several days, so he was unaware of the details and progression of Lei Lao Hu's pursuit of Wan Yun Ting and Wu Wei Zi.
Wei Ping said, "According to our people at the Daoist temple, it was my Master's wife who requested help from the Director of the Public Security Bureau in the county town, Qu Guang Rong, to reinforce Wan Yun Ting and Wu Wei Zi!"
"Qu Guang Rong, is he also one of your disciples, Duan Wu Yu?" Sima Bo Yong asked enticingly, as if he had seen that Qu Guang Rong before.
"Yes, he is actually my eldest Senior Brother!"
Wei Ping nodded and said, "However, Qu Guang Rong left the sect and descended the mountain a long time ago. He served in the army before, and after retiring, he worked as a police officer in Bu Xi Da County town until he became the Director. But Qu Guang Rong is indeed a cultivator at the initial stage of the Martial Dao Dan Jin realm!"
Sima Bo Yong waved his hand and said, "Forget it. Although Lei Lao Hu and the others failed to kill that brat, now that Duan Wu Yu is dead, it somewhat soothes my hatred."
Thinking back to when he was struck by Grandmaster's palm within the sect, Sima Bo Yong remembered it vividly. Now, hearing of Duan Wu Yu's death, he felt slightly better.
"I wonder who will inherit the position of Abbot next in the Daoist temple!" Wei Ping raised an eyebrow and asked.
As a result, Sima Bo Yong felt annoyed and displeased upon hearing this. He angrily exclaimed, "Who else could it be? It must be that old bastard Chang Wu De. Damn it, working for others, it enrages me, cough cough..."
"Uncle Martial Nephew, don't get agitated..."
Wei Ping quickly pacified him. Chen Qiu Yun, sitting beside him, moved closer and gently stroked Sima Bo Yong's chest with her small hand. He waved his hand, gritted his teeth, and said, "I'm just not reconciled..."