Chapter 186 - Asking For Help

Madam Zhong asked one of the servants from the kitchen to take over for a while and hurriedly brought Jing Yi home. She looked at his face, again and again, and tried to gauge how he was feeling. She was really worried.

It wasn't a secret that Qiu Ling was madly in love with Jing Yi. If it had been Jing Yi that had been unconscious for two weeks without any sign of waking up, that man would have done everything he could to help him while fretting the whole time. If Jing Yi wouldn't wake up, he might just close his eyes with him.

But even though her son hadn't said that he loved Qiu Ling, she could still see that it was the same the other way around. Jing Yi felt for Qiu Ling just the way that man felt for him, he was just unable to name that feeling or even clearly describe it. But he was young, so that was to be expected.

She only feared that seeing Qiu Ling like this might actually let her son realize how much he truly loved him. What then? What if that self-proclaimed son-in-law of hers never woke up again and made her son unhappy before they had even had the opportunity to get together?

Madam Zhong hesitated in front of the door and took a trembling breath. Qiu Ling, you better wake up. My son has already returned. You wouldn't want him to suffer because of you, would you?

She pushed the door open but, of course, Qiu Ling was still unconscious. Nothing had changed from when she left this morning. Madam Zhong sighed and stepped to the side to let her son in.

Jing Yi hesitated. He saw Qiu Ling lying there, motionless, and his heart couldn't help but thump in fear. "What … What's with him? Why is he …"

Madam Zhong lowered her head. She still remembered Qiu Ling's plea. As much as she wanted to tell her son what had happened, she didn't dare to. "I also don't know. He arrived here and then collapsed. It's a good thing he was still able to make his way over."

Jing Yi finally couldn't hold back anymore. He ran over and fell to his knees in front of the bed. Then he reached out and took Qiu Ling's hand. It was cold. "He … He's not … dead, is he?"

Madam Zhong shook her head. "I don't think so. He's breathing and his heart is still beating. But he hasn't woken up for two weeks already. I don't know what to do." She sighed. "There was even someone from the Yun Zou Sect that came by. He's still staying here in case it gets worse. He took a look at Qiu Ling but also couldn't do anything. He said … He said Qiu Ling would have to pass this on his own."

Jing Yi bit his lower lip. He had been right. Why did he have to be right?! He wanted to be wrong. He wanted to be mistaken so badly that it hurt.

He lowered his head until his forehead lay on the bed. Tears silently trickled down his cheeks.

Madam Zhong went over and patted his back. "He's so strong. He'll certainly wake up again. Just give him a bit of time."

Jing Yi pulled himself together for his mother and nodded.

"Alright. I'll leave you two alone and go back to the teahouse. I'll be back in the evening."

"Yes."

The door closed and the room was plunged into silence. Jing Yi gripped Qiu Ling's hand tighter. "Qiu Ling … What has happened to you? Was this really because you tried to stop the whirlwind? Can that be? So … this is my fault? Because you wanted to help me … because I urged you … you became like this?" He lifted his head and peered into Qiu Ling's face.

The man in front of him was still as handsome as ever but with him lying there so motionless this sight wasn't as moving anymore. Jing Yi's heart didn't beat faster like it did normally but tightened instead. It really hurt seeing Qiu Ling like this.

"I wanted to tell you about everything that happened while I was alone. I … I thought so much about you. If you asked me if I wanted to marry you now … I would probably say yes."

He looked at Qiu Ling's eyes, half hoping that they would open and that he would say something shameless like 'You've promised so you'll really have to marry me now', but, of course, this was an extravagant hope. Nothing happened. Only silence greeted him.

Jing Yi bedded his head next to Qiu Ling again and just stared blankly. What could have happened? His mother certainly would have noticed had Qiu Ling been injured and if it was some inner injury, then that person from the Yun Zou Sect should have found out about it.

Right! Jing Yi sat up straight and then hurried out of the room. He didn't know where his mother had housed that person or who it was but he had no other choice. He ran around looking for clues where to find that person and finally halted in front of a small room. It hadn't been occupied back then when he left for the Yun Zou Sect but there was obviously someone living there now.

He knocked and cleared his throat. "Excuse me? Are you … the person from the Yun Zou Sect?"

Inside, Yu Jin opened his eyes. Ah, it seems like he has returned. He still didn't get up, though. "I am. My name is Yu Jin. What may I do for you?"

"I … I'm Zhong Jing Yi. I just came back and … I heard you had a look at how Qiu Ling is doing. Is that right?"

"I did."

"Then … you really don't know what to do?"

"That is indeed the case."

Jing Yi sighed. "I see …" He bit his lower lip again but contrary to his mother two weeks ago he didn't give up as easily. "Do you have any idea what could have caused this?"

Yu Jin looked at the door and finally stood up. He went over, opened the door for Jing Yi and motioned inside. "Why don't you sit down, Junior Martial Brother Zhong?"

Jing Yi nodded with a hopeful smile and hurriedly sat down. Maybe this person could really help him? He didn't know many people in the sect and he couldn't remember ever hearing of someone called Yu Jin but there was the blue cloud pattern on his sleeves so he had to be an inner sect disciple. He should know a lot about cultivation.

"I'm afraid I can't really answer your questions. I was unable to find out what exactly caused Senior Martial Brother Qiu to become like this. If I knew, I might be able to help him."

"I see. Then what should we do? My mother said it's already been two weeks. We can't just wait, can we?"

"I'm afraid that will be the only thing we can do. He's already in this condition. Even though I couldn't find the cause, I still think it is something internal."

"Internal?"

Yu Jin lowered his gaze. "You're an outer sect disciple. You probably don't know much about cultivation, do you?"

Jing Yi shook his head.

"Let me say it like this: Sometimes, things can go wrong with somebody's cultivation. That is what we call a Qi deviation."

"And you think Qiu Ling has encountered something like that?"

"Maybe. It could also be an inner demon. Actually, that is something quite similar. In fact, in a lot of cases, an inner demon will lead to a Qi deviation."

"I don't think I understand."

Yu Jin nodded. "To put it simply: An inner demon is something that haunts us. It can originate from a lot of things. Regrets, old memories, things we want to attain but are unable to … There are hundreds if not thousands of possibilities. But most of them have to do with our inner thoughts and emotions. That is why a good cultivator should be able to shut his emotions out. You can't become too attached to persons or things if you want to become a good cultivator."

Jing Yi stared at him silently. Not becoming attached to people or things? Only then … Did that mean … he shouldn't feel the way he did for Qiu Ling? Would he be unable to become a cultivator if he continued to be with him? That couldn't be, could it?

Yu Jin seemed to see that Jing Yi had lost focus but he didn't say anything to it. "Anyway, the inner demons have in common that they can only be solved by the person that acquired them. If somebody else is close enough to them that they can circumvent their guard, then they may be able to penetrate into their inner self and help. But that is nearly impossible and even if one manages to do so, it is extremely dangerous for both people."

"So there is really nothing we can do?"

Yu Jin nodded. "I'm afraid that is the case."

Jing Yi nodded. "Then … I'm sorry that I've disturbed you."

"It's alright. You're merely worried about a friend. I'm sure Senior Martial Brother Qiu would be happy if he knew how much you cared about him."

Jing Yi smiled slightly. Certainly. Qiu Ling had done so much to gain his affection, after all. And now, something like this had happened.

Jing Yi bid his farewell from Yu Jin and returned to Qiu Ling's room. Looking at his face, he couldn't help but wonder if Qiu Ling trusted him enough to let him try to enter his inner self. Maybe he would be able to help him?