MJWCATFPITWOC Chapter 68

Chapter 68: The Prescription

The wooden door hadn’t been opened in years. This time, as it moved, it emitted several ear-piercing “creaks,” which were particularly loud in the night, causing Shen Yucheng’s forehead to sweat. He and Mo Yifeng quickly slipped inside, afraid of being discovered.

Mo Yifeng smoothly slid the horizontal bar to lock the door, while Shen Yucheng scanned the surroundings.

The medical clinic was circular overall. The walls were covered with medicine cabinets, each labeled with the name of the medicine and the corresponding ailment, neatly arranged. It was clear that Liu Mingzhen was a meticulous and organized person.

Several sheets of draft paper were scattered on the large wooden table in the center. Shen Yucheng lightly rubbed the tabletop with his fingertip, and then pinched his fingers together. The thick layer of dust instantly turned into powder.

“This place should have been sealed off after Liu Mingzhen left,” Shen Yucheng said in a low voice.

Mo Yifeng looked around, his brow furrowed slightly, “And the Liu family should have come to search it. It seems we guessed right. Their target is what Liu Mingzhen was researching back then.”

The two began searching for useful clues. While searching, Shen Yucheng lamented that although the medical clinic had been disturbed, the medicinal materials were still carefully preserved, and each compartment was clearly labeled.

After a moment, Mo Yifeng suddenly said, “Come over and take a look at this.”

Shen Yucheng took the draft paper he handed over and found it densely covered with the names of medicinal materials. Although he wasn’t a doctor, he had traveled extensively over the years and knew a thing or two about medicinal materials. Looking closer, his brow furrowed instantly, “This…”

[Angelica dahurica, Cyperus rotundus, Thousand-year ginseng, Ambergris, Ganoderma lucidum, Saffron, Cordyceps sinensis, Hedyotis diffusa…]

“You see it too, right?” Mo Yifeng pointed to the medicinal materials on the paper, “Although the Liu family is a medical family, they mainly treat ordinary people. The medicines in this prescription are all expensive and rare treasures. Not to mention ordinary people, even members of prominent families couldn’t obtain these medicinal materials in a short period of time.”

Shen Yucheng nodded, “And this prescription is very strange. Expensive medicinal materials are one thing, but this is all about a large number of preservative medicinal materials… What kind of disease requires so many preservatives?”

For whom was Liu Mingzhen’s prescription intended?

However, before he could delve deeper, a burst of hurried footsteps came from outside the door, along with several deep voices calling out—

“Quick, open the door!”

Shen Yucheng: “?!”

The space in the medical clinic was limited. Once the door was opened, light would inevitably shine in, and hiding in the dark compartment of the ceiling wasn’t realistic. Moreover, he couldn’t use his [Penetration] ability in front of Mo Yifeng. Now, he was truly in a dilemma.

As the old wooden door was pushed open, screams echoed throughout the entire medical clinic. Moonlight streamed in, and Shen Yucheng’s peripheral vision caught a glimpse of a compartment under the medicine cabinet that wasn’t labeled. Based on his understanding of Liu Mingzhen’s personality—

Without time to think, Shen Yucheng gritted his teeth, grabbed Mo Yifeng, and directly squeezed inside.

Taking a gamble!

Just as the two had hidden themselves, several people stepped in, their shoes making “Tat” sounds on the wooden floor.

Through the changes in light on the floor, Shen Yucheng estimated that there were at least five people who had entered. So late at night, why would they suddenly come to this medical clinic that had been sealed off for many years…

Suddenly, he remembered that the family head had said during the day that he would be discussing matters with other senior uncles. Could it be that they had new plans?

For example, re-investigating the medical clinic.

The next moment, someone outside spoke, crushing Shen Yucheng’s last ray of hope.

“Start searching! Before dawn, turn this place upside down!”

Shen Yucheng cursed inwardly. Now it was going to be difficult, they had to hide until dawn, but only if—they weren’t discovered.

However, the place they were hiding wasn’t ideal. The bottom compartment of the cabinet wasn’t very deep, and if the people outside were careful, they could easily discover the anomaly here.

Moreover, this cabinet was excessively narrow. Two big men like him and Mo Yifeng were squeezed inside, knees touching knees, their breaths mingling together. The slightest movement would cause them to bump into each other.

Monitoring the situation outside, Shen Yucheng asked in a low voice, “What do we do now?”

In the darkness, he could feel Mo Yifeng’s breath lightly brushing against his ear, causing a burst of tingling.

In his urgency, he hadn’t discussed it with Mo Yifeng before dragging him in. Now he belatedly realized the problem—this posture, this distance, was far too intimate!

He held his breath, waiting for the other’s response, but Mo Yifeng remained silent.

—That’s not right, Mo Yifeng’s breathing seemed to be getting heavier?

Shen Yucheng’s heart tightened, worried that something might be wrong with the other, and he subconsciously turned his head to check.

“Mmm!”

His lips brushed against something soft.

Shen Yucheng froze instantly, his mind blank, and goosebumps “Swish” rushed all over his body.

This, this… what is this?!

He subconsciously wanted to move his elbow, but he bumped into something hard again. Then his legs got stuck and he couldn’t move.

He tried to retract his foot, but found that his leg was just between Mo Yifeng’s waist. With this movement, the other grunted, his voice low and hoarse, making his ears burn.

Shen Yucheng: “…”

This, this posture seems a little bad?!

He didn’t dare to breathe loudly, stiffly maintaining this awkward position.

At this moment, a voice suddenly sounded outside—

“Hey, did you guys search the cabinets?”

“Not yet.”

“Then I’ll do it.”

The conversation reached the bottom of the cabinet, and Shen Yucheng’s heart skipped a beat. He swallowed hard.

The people outside were starting to search the cabinets!

His palms and soles were covered in sweat, and he nervously grabbed Mo Yifeng’s thigh, suppressing his breathing.

The people outside quickly arrived at the cabinet where they were hiding. Shen Yucheng was alarmed and leaned unconsciously towards Mo Yifeng, trying to cover the other with his body.

Mo Yifeng raised his eyes slightly, feeling Shen Yucheng’s movement, his eyes were dark and unclear.

If it were anyone else, who dared to stick so close to him, they would have been kicked out long ago. But… this time he didn’t feel repulsed?

He quietly stared at Shen Yucheng’s trembling eyelashes, and for some reason, a malicious thought arose in his heart.

He reached out his hand as if possessed, and touched Shen Yucheng’s face.

Shen Yucheng: “???”

What is this guy doing?!

Is this the time to do this kind of thing?!

Before he could protest, Mo Yifeng suddenly moved, his back hitting something, and the bottom of the cabinet tilted to the left—

The two of them, along with the cabinet, rolled down!

Shen Yucheng: “!!!”

He was just about to scream, when Mo Yifeng covered his mouth, and he subconsciously covered the other’s mouth.

—The cabinet door happened to be opened at this moment.

The people outside glanced at it. It was empty, “There’s nothing here either.”

.

The two rolled into a dark space. Shen Yucheng only felt pain all over his body. He lay on the ground for a long time, before struggling to get up.

“…Adult?” he tentatively called out, his voice echoing in the space.

This place… is so big that it can produce echoes?

He then flicked his fingers and condensed a ball of light, instantly illuminating the surroundings—

What came into view was a huge stone cave.

He was just about to turn around to shine the light behind him, but as he turned, he directly crashed into something soft and hard.

“Hiss…” Shen Yucheng winced in pain. He was just about to back away when a force suddenly tightly encircled his waist, preventing him from moving.

He suddenly raised his head and met a pair of dark, deep eyes, staring straight at him, making his back tingle.

“What… are you doing?”

Mo Yifeng stared at him, his eyes dark, with an indescribable sense of oppression.

Shen Yucheng was about to struggle, to give the other a punch, when Mo Yifeng’s hand suddenly loosened.

Shen Yucheng was about to say something, when the light from the light ball rose to the top of the cave, and the scene of the entire stone cave finally became clearly visible—

In front of them, there were three long wooden boxes.

Seeing this, Shen Yucheng’s heart skipped a beat, and he inexplicably had a bad premonition. This scene reminded him of when he saw Liu Mingzhen’s coffin in the secret realm.

The two walked closer step by step. Shen Yucheng held his breath and looked inside the wooden boxes—

Fortunately, they were empty.

The hanging heart finally settled down.

Mo Yifeng reached in, his brow furrowed slightly, “Someone was in here before, and for quite a long time.”

Shen Yucheng walked closer to take a closer look. Sure enough, the color of the wood inside the box was different from the outside, caused by something being pressed on it for a long time.

He scanned them one by one, and when his gaze landed on the last coffin, his heart suddenly sank.

He was sure that the three coffins contained Liu Mingzhen’s wife and children.

One was the size of an adult, and the other two were the size of children.

Shen Yucheng frowned tightly and said in a low voice, “Moreover, this is Liu Mingzhen’s medical clinic, and only he himself knows about this secret passage.”

Mo Yifeng touched the stone wall, “But where are their bodies?”

It shouldn’t have been done by the Liu family, judging by their actions just now, they didn’t know about the stone cave.

…

The stone cave suddenly became silent. Shen Yucheng’s gaze fell on the coffins, and his voice was so low that it could hardly be heard, “Bai Guchen…”

This name was the only answer he could think of right now. After Liu Mingzhen disappeared from the Liu family, the last time he appeared, the person beside him was Bai Guchen. And in that secret realm, Liu Mingzhen was already lying in a coffin, Bai Guchen couldn’t have been completely unrelated to this.

But before he could think deeply, his collar was suddenly grabbed, his throat tightened, and when he looked up, he met Mo Yifeng’s sharp gaze.

“Why do you know this name!” Mo Yifeng’s tone was angry, his eyes terrifyingly gloomy.

Shen Yucheng then realized that he had been careless, and had accidentally said Bai Guchen’s name.

For Mo Yifeng, this name was an existence that absolutely could not be touched. And his current identity was just an ordinary disciple of the Dingxu Sect, and he shouldn’t have known this name at all…

Shen Yucheng was grabbed by the collar, speechless, and now he didn’t know how to explain it.

Mo Yifeng’s knuckles turned white, and he lifted Shen Yucheng up, “If you don’t tell me, do you want to die here?”

Shen Yucheng suddenly felt a powerful and suppressed pressure enveloping the entire stone cave, making him feel cold all over. He endured the discomfort and quickly turned his mind, finally squeezing out a sentence, “I just said dust! These coffins have been here for so long, but there isn’t a speck of dust! It’s really strange!”

He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Mo Yifeng’s eyes were slightly red.

Mo Yifeng’s fingers tightened and loosened, and after a moment of silence, his tone suddenly lowered, “…Is that so?”

Shen Yucheng was put down, staggered, and breathed a sigh of relief.

Just now, he just casually mentioned a name, and Mo Yifeng’s reaction was so intense, there must be a problem.

After leaving here, he must investigate thoroughly.

After taking a breather, they began searching the stone cave. But there was nothing here except for a few coffins, it was eerily empty.

But Shen Yucheng didn’t think that Liu Mingzhen had painstakingly dug out this secret passage just to place a few corpses…

Corpses?

A flash of inspiration flashed in his mind, and his eyes suddenly widened, “That’s not right! Why isn’t there a smell of corpses?!”

Shen Yucheng suddenly realized that since the three corpses had been placed here for a long time, there should have been a stench, but after entering the stone cave for so long, there was no smell at all.

As soon as the words fell, Mo Yifeng’s expression changed. He frowned, carefully sniffed the air, and said in a deep voice, “It’s faint… but there is the smell of herbs and spices in the stone cave. It should be the residual smell after using ginseng and ambergris for a long time. It’s just that the smell is too light, and I didn’t notice it just now.”

Shen Yucheng recalled the prescription he had found in the secret passage before, which recorded all the preservatives…

His heart trembled violently.

The use of these medicinal materials, could it be…

Mo Yifeng also thought of this, “The reason why the corpse needs to be preserved so hard after death…”

The two looked at each other, and both saw the same horror in each other’s eyes.

A terrible idea gradually took shape in Shen Yucheng’s mind.

Decades ago, after Liu Mingzhen’s wife and children passed away, he locked himself in the medical clinic for a long time—

During this period, he had been trying to make a prescription that could revive his wife and children.