His Excellency: The Untamed

17. Another Curse

In two months, all of his body had recovered except three parts. His skull and the gradually forming layers, his left arm where the pieces were still getting used to one another, and his left leg, recovering just as slowly as the left arm. His ribs and organs had healed, both shoulders in better shape than two months ago, and his hip bone, which had been worse for wear was as good as knew.

He could raise himself to sit with the help of one arm and leg. Maybe he could hobble around if he tried hard enough but he dared not stand up, lest his weak body succumbs to the floor.

He exercised his joints every day so as not to have them numb from all the lying down.

But, all this, he had not told Lan Zhan or the boys. Lan Zhan still helped him sit even if he held himself in the sitting position. When he wanted a change of scenery, Lan Zhan still carried him around their small backyard. He enjoyed it too much but that wasn't his reason to stay silent. At first, he didn't want Lan Zhan to see the pain but now he wanted to surprise Lan Zhan.

Lan Zhan knew the speed of his body's recovery but his strength could only be restored with golden core unlocking. He had been practicing that in small amounts but he had still not ventured into the difficult part of the practice.

For this, he needed physical strength. Though was no longer looking like a corpse, he looked extremely malnutrition. He could only eat some soupy solids now. He tried swallowing a vegetable they hadn't been able to puree. But he ended up purging everything right by the dinner table.

He did not try that again, sticking to Lan Zhan's food regime strictly.

Now that he was close to the three-month mark, he decided it was time to surprise Lan Zhan. He looked at the necromancer mark Lan Zhan had drawn up for him. Hearing steps outside he lowered the wards.

Sizhui came in to collect their plates, "Master Wei. Hangunag Jun said we can start on some light digestive food first."

"Good. Good. Sizhui, leave that. Come here."

Sizhui, who knew how much Senior Wei cribbed about the food, was surprised at the dismissive response. Could he be any more indifferent? Curious, he walked over. Master Wei was leaning over a paper, turning it round and round. It looked the same from every angle.

"what is this?"

"Darkest cultivation of all. You don't want to know. Just help me with something."

He waited. After Senior Wei folded the paper in two and tucked it within his robes, he spoke.

"Next time you go to Cloud Recess, ask ZeWu Jun to pick a Couple Lan ribbons for us."

Sizhui smiled so wide that his cheeks would burst. Wei Ying laughed at Sizhui's excitement. It was contagious.

"Go on." The kid nodded and rushed off; once without the dishes and then came back to pick them up looking embarrassed. Wei Ying just laughed. Had he known then, he would have asked for a whole bundle of ribbons.

Many days passed and Wei Ying decided it was time to progress his healing.

After lunch, he raised himself with the help of his right arm and took a half-sitting position, one leg cross-legged while the broken one laying sideways at an odd angle. He slid back, lining his back to the wall, and closed his eyes.

The resentment in his body often seemed to have a mind of its own but he knew it worked just like a golden core, thriving in his body. Earlier it had been an acquired skill, the energy he called to himself from outside but now, it lived in his body, a part of him.

He called it forward from within, leaving only a thin layer around the golden core. The energy snaked around in his left side, between the cracks of many pieces that were held together. All the chips moved around their energy and realigned to fit one another perfectly but there were more problems. Some of them tore through his muscles, and all the bones started to set in their right place.