After Redeeming the Villain, I Was Obliterated by the System - Chapter 25

A numb, stinging sensation spread across Lin Sui’s chest. Any movement brought a searing pain that made it difficult to tell exactly where the agony originated. Regardless, his entire chest was hurting. Was he dreaming again?

That damn system. He still had two unfinished missions, yet it kept piling on new ones. What did it take him for? Even a corporate slave needs a break! And what was this about helping the villain neutralize poison? Who would be daring enough to poison the villain anyway?

Besides, he was not a medical cultivator; how was he supposed to know how to detoxify someone? The elixirs his senior brother gave him were specifically tailored for his own unique constitution; to anyone else, they were nothing more than sugar pills.

“Shizun,” the villain’s voice whispered, sounding as if he were pressing his lips right against Lin Sui’s ear.

Warm breath brushed against the tip of his ear, and Lin Sui’s heart tightened. Was he back in his original body next to the villain? Or had his other shell failed to maintain itself, causing him to transform back into his true self right in front of the villain?

[Ahem, Host, you must have faith in this system’s capabilities. Unless your soul dissipates, that shell will not disappear, no matter how many holes are poked in it.]

The system’s voice was no longer a cold, mechanical notification. It sat in Lin Sui’s mind, casually cracking melon seeds.

[Of course, any holes poked into that body are experienced by your true self. After all, that shell is just a proxy. You did not think you could use a fake body to absorb damage without consequences, did you? There is no such thing as a free lunch.]

Lin Sui was used to the system’s attitude. Right now, he only wanted to go home. He finally understood why his younger sister returned from her office every day full of resentment. This was the bitterness of being manipulated by a superior! The worst part was that he had nowhere to vent it.

Xiao Qingyan watched the person on the bed, noting the slight twitch of the eyelids. He summoned a demonic whip and bound those wrists, which looked as though they would snap with a gentle tug, over the youth’s head, tethering them to the wooden crossbar of the bed.

Lin Sui did not dare open his eyes. Feeling his hands bound above his head made him incredibly nervous. What was this villain planning to do? His long eyelashes trembled with anxiety.

System, how am I supposed to save the villain?

The system replied: [Oh, Host, you do not need to do anything. Just open your eyes and hand over the usage rights of your body to the villain!]

What did “handing over usage rights” mean? What was the villain going to do with his body? Suck his blood? His blood was not some universal antidote!

“Shizun, why are you silent now that you are awake? Is it that you do not welcome your disciple?” Xiao Qingyan pinched Lin Sui’s chin and fed him another elixir.

The pill brought a sweetness to his mouth, reminiscent of the orange flavored gummies from his modern life. It was refreshing, tart, and sweet, making him instinctively want more. Lin Sui opened his eyes and reached for the storage bag at the head of the bed, only to remember his hands were tied. He felt a surge of annoyance and a strong urge to beat the villain up.

However, he kept his expression neutral, trying his best to act the part of a good master, even as he mentally stabbed a voodoo doll of Xiao Qingyan a thousand times. Once the mission was over and he was free of the system, he would definitely run a sword through the villain!

“Yan er, why did you bind my hands?”

“Is that the first thing Shizun wants to ask me upon waking?” Xiao Qingyan had fed Lin Sui nearly half a bottle of elixirs.

The person on the bed finally had some color in his face, though it looked more like the flush of anger. Xiao Qingyan had once overheard Senior Uncle Mo mention that Shizun’s body was very weak. While a normal cultivator might need only one healing pill for an injury, Shizun was different; half a bottle might not even suffice. It was truly a burden on Senior Uncle Mo to exhaust his efforts crafting pills for such a broken body.

He offered another pill, and the person on the bed obediently opened his mouth. Inevitably, Xiao Qingyan’s finger was brushed by the tip of the youth’s tongue. A strange sensation traveled from his fingertip straight to his heart.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

He could hear his own heart racing. Xiao Qingyan quickly withdrew his finger as the suppressed, wicked fire within him flared up again. Looking at the frail person on the bed who seemed as though he would shatter with a touch, Xiao Qingyan ignored everything else. He pried open those pink lips and forced the rest of the elixirs down his throat.

Lin Sui’s azure pupils shook with shock. He tried to spit them out, but his mouth was held shut. The pills slowly dissolved. Mo Bai’s repeated warnings echoed in his ears.

“Little Junior Brother, you can take half a bottle of this medicine at most. Do not take more, or your body might not be able to handle it.”

“Also, those painkilling pills, do not eat them like candy just because you can. While they will not harm you, if you take too many, they will eventually stop working.”

The original soul might have been disobedient regarding his meditation, but he always listened to his senior brothers. Thus, when Xiao Qingyan fed him the remaining half bottle of healing pills, he resisted.

“Shizun.”

Lin Sui could not see Xiao Qingyan’s expression or his movements. When the hand covering his mouth was removed, he turned his head, trying to induce vomiting. But once those pills entered his system, there was no way to get them out. The medicine Senior Brother Mo crafted was potent, designed to keep him alive at all costs. Usually, after taking a healing pill, he had to take half a bottle of painkillers to manage the side effects.

The elixirs took effect almost instantly. Because he had taken a double dose meant for two separate treatments, his meridians began to burn under the strain. His blood felt scalding, and his abdomen grew even hotter, like water coming to a boil.

“Painkillers. Senior Brother, give me the painkillers.” Lin Sui’s eyes filled with a layer of mist. His bound hands rubbed against the wood as he struggled to break free. He felt as if he were turning into a pillar of fire.

The pills contained Fire Spirit Grass specifically meant to suppress his Cold Poison. With a double dose, his meridians felt as though they were being incinerated. A pair of hands, even hotter than his own, moved onto his chest. He wanted to push them away.

It hurt. It hurt so much.

Unable to get the painkillers, he could only use his meager spiritual energy to combat the Fire Spirit Grass in his system. To make matters worse, the villain had climbed onto his bed, and the villain’s body was even hotter than his. It felt like molten lava was about to bake him dry.

“Shizun, your disciple is so hot, so uncomfortable. I need Shizun to help me.” Xiao Qingyan’s hot breath fanned against Lin Sui’s chest like a heatwave.

The spiritual energy was completely wiped out by the fire energy, but the silver lining was that the excess medicine was also neutralized. Lin Sui breathed a sigh of relief. But before he could finish that breath, the system notification chimed.

[Host, please detoxify the villain.]

Wait, his hands were tied; what was he supposed to use to detoxify him? His mouth?

“Yan er, your master has a Cold Spring. Release your master’s hands. Go there, soak for a while and you will not be hot anymore.”

Lin Sui shifted his body, trying his best not to touch the villain, but the villain was like a piece of adhesive tape; once he stuck, he would not be shaken off.

“Shizun will surely help his disciple, right? After all, the poison in my body was administered by Shizun.” Xiao Qingyan turned and pinned Lin Sui’s flailing waist, his eyes shining with the light of a predator watching its prey.

Lin Sui was confused again. When had he ever poisoned the villain? He had been unconscious ever since he blocked that attack. When would he have had the time to administer poison?

“Your master did not”

The last word was cut off as his mouth was blocked. Lin Sui’s eyes flew wide open.