Chapter 26: A Small Test

After dinner, Lin Mu cleared the table. Holding a towel, he returned to the sofa.

“Alright, you’ve soaked long enough. I’ll help disperse the bruising. The pain should go away soon.”

Luo Bingyun nodded gently, a hint of bashfulness flashing across her face. In all her years, no man had ever touched her feet. She never imagined her first time would be under these circumstances.

Her feet, usually pale and delicate like fine jade, were now covered in scattered patches of purple and blue bruising, large and small.

Lin Mu gently dried her feet with the towel. His fingers pressed softly with just the right amount of strength, drawing a low hum of comfort from Luo Bingyun.

As his fingers worked over a wider area, the bruises gradually faded. In less than twenty minutes, they were almost invisible.

When Lin Mu touched her right ankle, Luo Bingyun instinctively pulled back. Clearly, her ankle bone was twisted. After gently massaging all around it, Lin Mu suddenly applied pressure with his right hand.

A soft pop sounded. The sprained joint was instantly realigned.

The sudden sharp pain made Luo Bingyun cry out. But then her face brightened. She twisted her ankle back and forth. The pain had completely vanished.

“You’re really amazing! Are you one of those legendary bone setters?” Luo Bingyun stared at her restored pale feet, asking in delighted surprise.

“Of course not,” Lin Mu shook his head with a smile. “I just picked up a little knowledge. I’m still a student, at Donghai University over there.” He picked up the basin and carried it into the bathroom.

“Can I take a shower here?” Luo Bingyun stood up barefoot, took two steps, and asked shyly. Showering at someone else’s place was a first for her. She’d only ever used hotels before.

“Of course.” Lin Mu nodded, eyeing her rumpled clothes, clearly unwearable. He went into his room, rummaged around, and came out with one of his own button-up shirts.

“I live here alone, so I don’t have any other clothes. This will have to do.”

“Okay… thank you.” Luo Bingyun’s face flushed crimson as she took the shirt from him. She turned and dashed into the bathroom, the door slamming shut behind her with a bang.

Lin Mu opened his mouth to say something else, but Luo Bingyun had already disappeared inside. He shook his head faintly, a wry smile touching his lips. He got a pair of slippers and placed them outside the bathroom door.

“I left slippers outside. Be careful, it might be slippery when you come out.”

After this reminder, Lin Mu turned and went back to his room. He took out the medicinal herbs and began studying them intently. Even though they shared similar medicinal qualities, he still needed to carefully consider exactly how to refine them.

At some point, Luo Bingyun, freshly showered, emerged from the bathroom. She stood at the doorway to Lin Mu’s room, watching him sit cross-legged on the floor, deeply absorbed in his pile of strange ingredients.

Her cloud-like dark hair was loose, her eyes bright as stars. Free of makeup, she looked even more beautiful – a kind of natural beauty.

She was wearing only Lin Mu’s shirt. Given her smaller frame, it was almost long enough to be a dress. Her full chest pushed firmly against the fabric. It was obvious it would take more than one hand to fully hold.

Her legs were long and pale, perfectly proportioned to her upper body. Had Lin Mu known more about Earthly beauty standards, he might have recognized it as the legendary ‘Golden Ratio’.

She stood in the doorway for a while, but Lin Mu showed no sign of noticing her presence. Sighing softly, Luo Bingyun walked over to him and sat down beside him, legs folded to one side.

Lin Mu really had been lost in thought. He only noticed Luo Bingyun when she sat down next to him. Glancing sideways, his eyes widened in sudden appreciation.

“Truly beautiful!” Three simple words, yet they conveyed his immediate, genuine impression.

No woman dislikes being admired by a man. Luo Bingyun was no exception. His utterly impressed expression pleased her.

“What are all these?” she asked curiously, picking up a particularly dark and yellowish piece to examine closely.

“All are Chinese medicinal herbs. For compounding remedies,” Lin Mu explained.

“Chinese medicine? You’re going to eat these?” Surprise flickered across Luo Bingyun’s face.

She naturally knew of Huaxia’s traditional medicine. But Lin Mu looked perfectly healthy, not sick at all. It puzzled her.

“Yeah, there are some problems with my condition,” Lin Mu smiled faintly. “It needs long-term care. There’s no choice but to use Chinese medicine.”

“I know some very skilled doctors. They’re really quite powerful. Would you like me to introduce you to them?” Luo Bingyun offered tentatively.

“Western medicine already ran tests. They couldn’t find anything wrong,” Lin Mu shook his head slightly, a trace of bitterness appearing on his face. “Using Chinese medicine to slowly restore balance… it’s not something that can be fixed in a day or two.”

Luo Bingyun was utterly exhausted by then. After chatting with Lin Mu for a while, she started feeling sleepy, stifling a few yawns behind her hand.

“Go to bed if you’re sleepy,” Lin Mu said. “The room next door has bedding. We can sort everything else tomorrow when you wake up.”

At his suggestion, Luo Bingyun readily took the opportunity. She stood up and headed to the adjacent guest room, leaving the door slightly ajar. She seemed to trust Lin Mu implicitly, unafraid of any unwanted behavior.

Lin Mu returned his focus to the problem of combining the herbs. Refining elixirs couldn’t be rushed. Hasty attempts just wasted ingredients, leaving nothing but useless dregs.

Early the next morning, Lin Mu got up, washed, and noticed Luo Bingyun was still asleep in bed, deep in slumber. Not wanting to disturb her, he cooked two simple dishes, left a note, and headed out.

A strange kind of trust seemed to exist between them. Though not overly familiar, they felt like long-separated friends, with a restrained closeness in their unfamiliarity.

He spent the day attending classes at school, only returning home in the evening.

As soon as he stepped through the door, he saw two pairs of slippers neatly placed at the entrance. Luo Bingyun’s high-heeled shoes were gone – she’d clearly left.

Staring at the slippers, Lin Mu felt momentarily dazed. Suddenly, he caught a faint scent of something fragrant. Following the smell into the kitchen, he found five prepared Western-style dishes waiting on the table, including a huge lobster.

Beneath the platters was a note bearing elegant handwriting:

“Lin Mu, I’ve left. There’s a mountain of work waiting at the company. I cooked a few dishes for you – hope you like them! Remember to call and tell me! Keep in touch!”

Below her name was a phone number, followed by a cute little smiley face.

Warmth unexpectedly spread through Lin Mu as he read the note. Setting aside everything else, he sat right down at the table and began enjoying the meal.

To his surprise, Luo Bingyun, born to a world-class wealthy family, possessed truly outstanding culinary skills.

Even with his picky palate, Lin Mu couldn’t find fault. And this was with the food slightly cooled! Freshly made, it must have been extraordinarily delicious.

After savoring the delicious meal, Lin Mu pushed his plate away, perfectly content. Rising, he pulled a small bronze cauldron from a high cupboard.

This cauldron was specially commissioned for refining elixirs.

Having thoroughly pondered the process, Lin Mu now felt confident he could successfully make the pills. While unsure of the resulting elixir’s potency, he believed failure could at least be avoided.

He retrieved the cleaned herbs and prepared them meticulously with tools. Then, placing the entire bronze cauldron onto the gas stove burner.

He heated the cauldron until it glowed faintly red. Lin Mu then carefully added measured amounts of different herbs in sequence, continually stirring with chopsticks. Finally, he placed the lid on the cauldron and turned the flame down low to simmer.

Almost six hours later, Lin Mu turned off the gas. He waited another ten minutes before lifting the lid.

An intense, pure fragrance instantly filled the entire kitchen. Breathing it in, Lin Mu smiled, wiping the sweat from his forehead. He knew the elixir had been successfully formed.

Carefully, he scooped out the layer of thick, mud-like substance at the bottom. Lacking Spiritual Power to manipulate it, the final step – shaping the true elixir pills – had to be done by hand.

He kneaded the medicinal paste, rolling it patiently into tiny black pills. He was happily surprised to count thirty of them.

This medicine, adapted from ‘Tempered Bone Pills’, had its potency drastically weakened due to ingredient substitutions. Nonetheless, for Lin Mu’s current needs, it was quite suitable. It would at least significantly accelerate his body’s strengthening.

After storing the pills, Lin Mu immediately swallowed one to test what potency remained.

An hour later, he opened his eyes, satisfied. While slightly weaker than perfect, given the current constraints, it was a very good result.

He decided he’d need to pay more attention to news and sources regarding medicinal plants from now on. Still lost in this thought, Lin Mu got up, took a refreshing shower, and returned to his room feeling invigorated.

Meanwhile, far on the other side of Earth, in the United States, the sun was still shining brightly that morning. In the heart of Manhattan, New York City, within a towering skyscraper…

“Garbage! My daughter was assaulted! She almost died! And this is how you protect her?!” A middle-aged man of imposing presence slammed his palm heavily on the table, eyes blazing with fury.

“Our deepest apologies, Mr. Luo,” a man in a black suit immediately stood up and bowed deeply. “This failure is ours.”

“However, we have identified the attackers and those who hired them. Here is the file, Mr. Luo.” He placed documents on the table.

Luo Huafu barely glanced at the papers. His gaze narrowed intently on the man opposite him. “More than that… I’m more interested in what happened to my daughter that night.”

The man in the suit produced another folder, handing it over respectfully. “Rest assured, Mr. Luo. We’ve investigated thoroughly. We have details on the young man involved… his entire history from birth.”