“Oh? Do I recognize you?”

Hui smiled to himself. Speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao shall appear. He turned and bowed to Han Qin. “Benefactor! I didn’t get the chance to thank you properly yesterday for saving my life. My name is Xie Hao. Consider me your servant.”

“No, no, that’s not necessary. Ah, you can call me Han Qin,” Han Qin replied.

He looked Hui up and down, and a prickly sensation assaulted Hui’s skin. He’s examining me with his qi, isn’t he? Good thing I’m still repressing my cultivation.

A second later, Han Qin frowned slightly. “No… discomfort from yesterday, I hope?”

Beaming, Hui shook his head. “None! My thanks. If sir physician hadn’t come along when you did…” Ha! Probing to see if the sword qi is eating at me, huh? Too bad, it’s already dispelled! Or… so he’ll think. I bet he’s cursing that Ying Min girl for having such weak sword qi right now. I’ll let him think that for now. It doesn’t harm me any.

He bowed to Han Qin. “If I recall, sir invited me to the manor. Please excuse this servant for acting on my own. However, as a fellow physician, I wanted to consult with you about Fu Liyu’s state as soon as possible.”

Han Qin’s eyes narrowed subtly. He gave Hui an intense stare, then smiled slowly. “I see. You must be a talented physician.”

Hui waved his hands. “No, no. Only a little talent. I’ve been able to see internal energy since I was young, but no more than that.”

“Really? A unique talent in of itself. May I have a look?” Han Qin asked, stepping closer.

Hui hesitated. Refuse? It’ll be easiest to refuse. But that’ll be suspicious. He’ll wonder why a mere mortal with a little bit of qi manipulation refused the chance to get examined by a great ‘immortal’ doctor. After all, I’m a mortal! I should be overawed that an immortal has deigned to talk to me!

But I… I’m not a mortal. If he’s actually skilled, actually a physician, there’s a chance he can see that I’m repressing my cultivation. If nothing else, it should be suspicious how pure and well-structured my body is. No mortal should have cleansed flesh and neat meridians, and my qi has almost certainly seeped into my body at some level. Again, if he’s skilled, he’ll be able to sense that.

Besides, besides, I nearly forgot the most important part! My body is far from mortal. It’s plant. Plant! Not flesh and blood at all! I’m a clone, not a human. No! I can’t let him examine my body.

But what do I do? Is there an excuse I can make? What can I do, what can I do…

Wait! The plant art. Reverse it! Use it to make my body human. Human… and polluted! Intentionally create a flawed body of flesh. Can I do it? Is it possible?

… it’s worth a try!

Hui closed his eyes and circulated the plant transformation art in reverse, picturing flesh in his mind at the same time. The art began to seep into his body, and he felt himself transform.

Although this all takes some time to describe, it happened in an instant. As the sensation of heat and flowing blood rushed through Hui, he looked up at Han Qin and smiled. “Please, go ahead.”

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

The technique finished. All of Hui became ordinary, polluted flesh and blood, except for his eyes, which he left pure and unchanged, except for swapping them to flesh. After all, I’m supposed to be able to see qi. I might as well give him an explanation for that while I'm at it.

Han Qin reached out. His fingers tapped Hui’s forehead. He frowned for a moment, then lowered his hand and stepped back. A professional smile appeared on his face, though, more tellingly, his entire body relaxed. “My friend, you shouldn’t call it a small talent. That is a rare ability indeed. Have you ever considered stepping upon the path of cultivation?”

“I’m happy making my living as a small physician,” Hui deferred, bowing again. He released the art, returning his clone body to its usual plantlike state. If I followed Han Qin on the path of cultivation, I’m afraid he’d lead me directly off a cliff!

Han Qin nodded, taking a step back. He gestured onward. “Shall we?”

“About Fu Liyu—” Hui started.

Han Qin lifted his hand. “Let us speak in confidence, alone.”

Ha! As expected, he doesn’t want anyone to know about the seal inside her. I thought so, but still… Hui nodded earnestly, looking Han Qin in the eyes. “Of course. We must respect her privacy.”

Han Qin smiled.

“Er, what about me?” Ying Lin asked, pointing at herself.

Oh, right! Ying Lin. Hui turned to her and nodded. “Ying Lin, you found that spirit herb. Perhaps the physician can identify it?”

“A spirit herb?” Han Qin tipped his head curiously and held his hands out expectantly.

“Right!” Ying Lin dug in her bag and pulled out the herb, soil and all. She handed it gently to Han Qin.

Han Qin stared at the block of earth in his hands. He pulled one hand away and shook it, disgust written over his features. “Er… why the… dirt?”

Ying Lin nodded. She grinned, proud of herself. “I don’t know how to properly harvest herbs, so I figured… I wouldn’t harvest it! That way, you immortals can properly harvest the herb instead!”

Han Qin stared. He licked his lips, then looked at the spirit herb dangling from his hand. Decisively, he tossed it into the air, then made a blade with his hand. Slashing at the herb’s base, he snatched the sprout out of the air and let the roots fall to the ground. “This is Blue Ice Grass. Its roots are useless, but the leaves can be used in potions. This particular herb isn’t difficult to harvest. Next time you encounter it, slice it quickly at the base of the roots.”

“Thank you for the lesson, immortal!” Ying Lin said, excited.

Han Qin snorted. He looked at Hui. “Is she yours?”

Hui bowed. “She’s a servant, a lowly servant like myself. Ying Lin, now that you’ve delivered the spirit herb, why don’t you head back? It will take me a while to examine Fu Liyu.”

Ying Lin hesitated. She looked at him, her eyes burning. “You won’t forget?”

“No, no. I’ll be sure to recommend you, and mention the spirit herb you found to Fu Liyu as well,” Hui said, smiling. She’s come far enough. I know that even Han Qin won’t spare her a second glance, despite her incredible talent. I should pass her a few small skills and techniques so she can step into cultivation, if she’s interested. Any real sect would be salivating over a talent like hers. Only this small clan would dare be thoughtless enough to ignore her!

Besides… I get the feeling Han Qin might not let me out alive, once I tell him what I’ve seen. That’s fine for me, but I can’t fake someone else’s death if they go for beheading or anything that does serious physical damage. If Ying Lin doesn’t overhear anything about Fu Liyu’s condition, though, and remains a mere lowly servant, they ought to forget she was even here.

Hui hesitated, then lifted Zhubi off his neck and handed him to Ying Lin. “My snake is tired. Take him home.”

Ying Lin blinked. Zhubi lifted off her hands and leaned toward Hui, letting out a nervous hiss.

Be a good boy, go with Ying Lin. I’m going somewhere dangerous. Hui smiled and shook his head.

Zhubi curled in on himself, tilting his head. After a second, he lowered his head and closed his eyes, understanding.

Ying Lin stared at him for a few more moments, then nodded and hurried off through the manor. She vanished quickly out of sight around the edge of the buildings, and Hui breathed a quiet sigh of relief. She brought me Zhubi, after all, and hasn’t done anything to harm anyone. I don’t want to see her come to any harm. Getting her out of here before Han Qin’s next move gets a load off my shoulders.

Han Qin nodded at Hui and gestured him on with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Come along, come along.”

Hui smiled back. This man is absolutely going to kill me. Blithely, he followed along after Han Qin, winding ever deeper into the compound.