What?!
Less than seven days to live?!
Zhao Yun's face turned pale with shock. He snapped sharply:
"Ye Qiu, do you know what you're saying? Speak nonsense again, and you'll regret it!"
"Silence!"
The Dragon King glared up at Zhao Yun, then turned to Ye Qiu.
"Zhao Yun has a short temper. Pay him no mind. You just said I have less than seven days. Does that mean you've found the cause of my illness?"
"Yes," Ye Qiu nodded.
"What is it?" Zhao Yun demanded. In his mind, if so many famous doctors couldn't figure it out, what could Ye Qiu possibly see?
Ye Qiu replied: "If I'm not mistaken, Dragon King… you've been poisoned by an extremely rare toxin."
At these words, the Dragon King's expression shifted slightly.
Zhao Yun froze, then exclaimed in disbelief: "Ye Qiu — how could you possibly tell?"
Ye Qiu said: "This kind of strange poison is extremely rare. It comes from the Miaojiang region. The world calls it Gu poison."
This time, even the Dragon King could no longer remain calm.
"I truly chose the right person. So many medical experts found nothing, yet you saw I was poisoned with Gu after only a short examination. Impressive for one so young."
He pressed on: "What else have you seen?"
Ye Qiu spoke seriously: "Dragon King, I have a few questions for you. I hope you will answer truthfully."
"Very well. Ask."
"After you were infected, you showed no symptoms at first. They only began half a year later. Is that correct?"
"Yes. No signs at all in the beginning. After six months, I suffered unbearable stomach pain during the day — yet hospitals found nothing wrong."
Ye Qiu nodded. "Gu poison is no ordinary toxin. It is a mysterious occult art. The Yaozhou Annals records: 'The Yi people raise Gu; their arts are secret, unknown to others.' Gu poison usually hides in the bloodstream, so ordinary medical tests cannot detect it."
"You're exactly right. Zhao Yun took me to countless hospitals, and none found a thing."
Ye Qiu continued: "The Gu lay dormant for half a year before symptoms appeared. At first, the pain came during the day. Later, it shifted to nighttime. Correct?"
"Yes!"
"After that, you began to feel an extreme chill, as if you were trapped in an ice cellar. Is that right?"
"Yes!" the Dragon King said. "Even in the hottest summer, I had to sit by a fire and sleep under thick quilts."
"This went on for three years. Then your condition reversed completely — you became unbearably sensitive to heat. Correct?"
"Yes!" The Dragon King nodded heavily. "In the depths of winter, with heavy snow outside, I wore short sleeves and blew a fan indoors and still felt scorching hot."
"Later, your body gradually became half-cold and half-hot, just as it is now. I suspect this change happened less than two weeks ago. Am I right?"
"Yes!"
"From the first stomach pain until now, the ache has never gone away — especially in the past year, it has become extremely regular. It strikes precisely at midnight every night and stops at six in the morning. The pain feels like ten thousand ants gnawing at your heart, and nothing can ease it. Correct?"
"Yes, yes, yes! Everything you say is true!"
By now, Ye Qiu was certain what kind of Gu the Dragon King had.
"Little Ye, do you have more questions?"
"No more questions. But I have one small request. I need you to cooperate."
"What request?"
"Take off your shirt."
"What?!" The Dragon King stared at Ye Qiu, his eyes strange.
Seeing his look, Ye Qiu knew the old man had misunderstood. He quickly explained:
"It's not what you think. I need to see your back to confirm the Gu poison."
"I see!" The Dragon King laughed and pulled off his shirt.
Ye Qiu walked behind him, glanced down, and gasped. He muttered to himself:
"Just as I expected."
The Dragon King's back was split sharply down the middle.
One half was dark red, as if seared by fire.
The other was unnaturally pale, as if frozen in a freezer.
Where the two sides met, a one-inch-long vein bulged purple, like two small snakes coiled together, exuding a cold, sinister aura.
"Ye Qiu, what exactly do you see?" Zhao Yun couldn't help asking.
Ye Qiu's expression turned grave.
"I can now say with absolute certainty: the Dragon King has been infected with Yin-Yang Snake Gu."
"You can even tell which Gu it is?!"
The Dragon King was utterly shocked.
Over the years, he had consulted countless doctors, including several world-famous masters. Not one had even realized he was poisoned with Gu.
Yet Ye Qiu not only saw the poison instantly but also named the exact type.
Could this kid be a medical genius?
Little did the Dragon King know that Ye Qiu's diagnosis came entirely from the inheritance in his mind.
The legacy of the Ye Clan ancestor was vast and profound. While thinking earlier, Ye Qiu had been searching for records matching the Dragon King's symptoms.
Finally, he found the Yin-Yang Snake Gu.
To be certain, he asked the Dragon King questions and examined the veins on his back, confirming the diagnosis beyond doubt.
Yin-Yang Snake Gu was an extremely vicious curse.
Victims did not die quickly — at first, they showed no signs at all. The Gu usually lay dormant for six months before symptoms appeared.
Then it slowly tormented its host.
First the unbearable cold, then scorching heat. Finally, the poison destroyed the body's Yin-Yang balance, leaving half the body freezing and half burning, with constant stomach pain that made life a living hell.
Ye Qiu could not imagine how the Dragon King had endured it all these years.
He felt genuine sympathy. "These years must have been torture for you."
"Tell me about it. Nine years. Every time the poison flared, the pain was unbearable, with no cure in sight. It was worse than death." The Dragon King smiled faintly. "But I endured it all the same."
Ye Qiu admired him. "Your willpower is incredible. Most people wouldn't have lasted three years."
"I've practiced martial arts since I was a child. My body is stronger than most."
He looked at Ye Qiu hopefully. "Little Ye, if you can identify the Yin-Yang Snake Gu… does that mean you can cure me?"
Ye Qiu smiled bitterly. "You overestimate me. Yin-Yang Snake Gu is no ordinary poison. Curing it is nearly impossible."
"Truly no way?" The Dragon King refused to give up.
Ye Qiu thought for a moment. "There is a way… but…"
"But what?"