Mo Dao Zu Shi: Astray

Ashes, Part Two

Pan Wukun was surprised that she still even had awareness, a sense of being.

She should be dead.

But she couldn't be dead. There was a faint throbbing pain in her chest where Wei Wuxian stabbed her.

Or perhaps she was a ghost now, doomed to suffer from the pain of her fatal injury for eternity.

Pan Wukun couldn't see anything. Then she realized everything was dark because her eyes were closed.

She slowly blinked her eyes open.

Someone leaned over Pan Wukun. "Pan Chun! You're awake!"

As Pan Wukun's eyes adjusted, she made out who it was. "...Kang Chen."

She slowly sat up and looked down at her chest, which was covered in bandages.

Why was it that people kept finding out she was a woman through medical emergencies? She really needed to stop getting into near-death situations.

Kang Xieren bowed his head. "Forgive me. I had to view your chest to sew the wound shut."

Pan Wukun sighed. "No, it's fine. I understand."

Pan Wukun was grateful Kang Xieren didn't treat her any differently after finding out his rival was a woman.

Kang Xieren pointed at the spot where Wei Wuxian stabbed her. "Your shoulder wound. It was quite deep so it's going to scar. I managed to sew the hole shut after mending your skin. I transferred some of my spiritual energy to you to help accelerate the healing."

Pan Wukun was grateful Kang Xieren managed to save her. But one thing still confused her. "How did you even find me, Kang Chen?"

"I was traveling around the area when the battle broke out. It's hard to miss a bloody battlefield. I surveyed the area to see if anyone needed help. I noticed you amongst the carnage. You were extremely close to death."

Pan Wukun thought that was an extreme stroke of good fortune, perhaps to make up for the bad luck of almost being killed by Wei Wuxian?

Wei Wuxian...

Pan Wukun remembered his vengeful red eyes and shuddered, clutching her shoulder.

She looked at the healing patch of skin on her shoulder. "Damn. You treated it well, Kang Chen."

Kang Chen smiled with pride. "My former master taught me everything with her medical expertise. She is even skilled enough to perform eye transplants."

Pan Wukun was impressed.

Ah. The wonders of surgical cultivation.

"Thank you, Kang Chen. You saved my life."

"Heh. Can't have you dying before our rematch!"

Kang Xieren pointed at Weifeng, which he leaned against the wall. "I also retrieved the sword that impaled your shoulder. You gripped it quite tightly when I tried to take it away from you. That's not your sword. What happened to Yuyun?"

Kang Xieren saw Pan Wukun's face contort with pain.

Pan Wukun needed to open up to someone about her grief. Since Kang Xieren saved her life, he earned her trust. She laid a gentle hand on Weifeng. "My older brother...Pan Heng. He died to save me."

Kang Xieren was sympathetic. "...I'm sorry."

Pan Wukun released a trembling sigh. "As for Yuyun...it got confiscated by the QishanWen sect."

Kang Xieren pointed at the pile of Pan Wukun's bloody QishanWen sect robes in the corner. "Was the QishanWen sect punishing you for insubordination as a new member?"