Chapter 78: A NIGHTMARE GU

Li Yan walked toward the Apothecary Department late that night, following the familiar path beneath the pale moonlight while the entire sect remained unusually quiet.

Most of the disciples had already returned to their residences, and the lively sounds that filled the sect during the day had completely disappeared.

The only sounds accompanying Li Yan were his own footsteps and the occasional rustling of leaves stirred by the night breeze, but he continued walking without hesitation, he had already decided that he needed to see his master and being alone wouldn’t stop him.

When he reached the manor, Li Yan stepped up to the door and knocked several times. He waited for a response, but the manor remained quiet, so he raised his hand and knocked again with slightly more urgency. After a short while, the door finally opened, revealing Anyu, who looked somewhat surprised to see Li Yan standing outside at such a late hour.

"Li Yan, is there something wrong? It is quite late..."

"I know... Can I see my master? It is urgent..."

Anyu immediately nodded and stepped aside to let him enter, choosing not to ask any further questions after hearing the urgency in Li Yan’s voice.

He closed the door behind him and led Li Yan farther into the manor, where the quiet atmosphere made it clear that everyone should have been asleep by then. However, when they reached the courtyard, Li Yan saw Fu Hanzheng sitting beneath the moonlight with a cup of tea resting in his hand.

Fu Hanzheng noticed his disciple approaching and calmly placed his cup aside before standing up. The moment his gaze settled properly on Li Yan, however, his expression changed, and the relaxed look he had worn while enjoying his tea disappeared completely.

His eyes narrowed as he examined Li Yan from head to toe, and the more carefully he looked, the darker his expression became.

Fu Hanzheng immediately noticed the Gu poison covering his disciple’s body. The strange energy was difficult for an ordinary cultivator to detect, but to someone with Fu Hanzheng’s knowledge of Gu, its presence was unmistakable.

He could not understand what kind of trouble his disciple had managed to get himself involved in this time, but whoever had done this had clearly targeted Li Yan.

"Master, I am burdened by horrible nightmares. I cannot seem to fall asleep..."

Fu Hanzheng’s expression became more serious as he examined the Gu poison more closely. The symptoms Li Yan described, combined with the strange Gu energy lingering around him, allowed him to identify the culprit almost immediately.

A Nightmare Gu had attached itself to his disciple, forcing him to experience terrifying dreams whenever he attempted to sleep.

"Follow me."

Fu Hanzheng turned and led Li Yan into his room without wasting any time. Once they entered, he pointed toward the bed and looked at his disciple with an expression that left little room for argument.

"Remove your shoes and get on the bed."

Li Yan glanced at the bed before looking back at his master with some hesitation. Although he had come here because he needed help, lying down on a senior’s bed still felt disrespectful to him, especially when Fu Hanzheng was his master rather than someone he could casually treat like an ordinary friend.

"Master, is it not disrespectful for me to lie down on your bed?"

Fu Hanzheng looked at him for a moment before shaking his head. "You are my disciple, so there is nothing disrespectful about you resting on my bed. Stop worrying about such things and get comfortable."

Li Yan obediently removed his shoes and climbed onto the bed while Fu Hanzheng went to prepare the remedy. L

His master moved quickly as he selected the necessary ingredients, processed them, and combined them into a simple medicinal mixture that could help suppress the effects of the Nightmare Gu.

Li Yan watched quietly from the bed until Fu Hanzheng returned with the prepared remedy and handed it to him.

"Drink this."

Li Yan accepted the bowl and took a cautious sip, but the bitter taste immediately made him wrinkle his nose. Fu Hanzheng noticed his reaction and gave him a faintly amused look before explaining that the remedy was somewhat bitter and promising to have Anyu bring him some rice cakes afterward.

Li Yan nodded and obediently finished the medicine, enduring the unpleasant taste until there was nothing left in the bowl.

Anyu soon brought the rice cakes as promised, and Li Yan quietly ate them while Fu Hanzheng remained nearby. Once he had finished, Fu Hanzheng took the empty bowl and gently pulled the blanket over him, carefully tucking it around Li Yan so that he was properly covered.

His movements were patient and gentle, and there was a quiet familiarity in the way he cared for his disciple that made the entire situation feel less frightening.

"Now sleep," Fu Hanzheng said calmly. "As long as you are here, you won’t have any nightmares."

Li Yan wanted to believe his master’s reassurance, but the memory of what had happened whenever he closed his eyes remained too vivid.

He tried to settle down and relax, yet his body remained tense beneath the blanket, and the fear of seeing that terrifying version of Hu Bai again prevented him from allowing himself to fall asleep.

Fu Hanzheng noticed that Li Yan was still struggling, so he sat beside the bed and reached out to hold his disciple’s hand. The simple warmth of his palm gradually eased some of the tension in Li Yan’s fingers, and Fu Hanzheng maintained the reassuring grip instead of urging him to force himself to sleep.

"If you sleep and you still have a nightmare, as long as we hold hands, I’ll be able to enter your dream and defeat the nightmare for you," Fu Hanzheng told him gently. "You don’t have to worry. I’ll always be by your side."

Li Yan looked at his master’s hand holding his own and slowly relaxed. He still felt frightened by the thought of sleeping, but knowing that Fu Hanzheng would be there if another nightmare appeared made the fear considerably easier to bear.

For the first time since the nightmares began, Li Yan felt that he did not have to face them alone, and the reassurance of having someone powerful beside him gradually allowed his exhaustion to overcome his fear.

Li Yan tightened his fingers slightly around Fu Hanzheng’s hand before closing his eyes again. This time, he did not force himself to remain awake, and with his master’s hand firmly holding his own, he finally allowed sleep to take him.

After Li Yan’s breathing gradually became slow and steady, Fu Hanzheng’s gentle expression disappeared.

The warmth that had filled his eyes while comforting his disciple was replaced by a cold and dangerous look, and his gaze shifted toward the doorway as his thoughts returned to the Nightmare Gu attached to Li Yan.

"Anyu."

Anyu immediately appeared at the doorway after hearing his name.

"Head to Yanyan’s residence and get that Nightmare Gu for me. I want it back alive..."