The First Summoner - Chapter 9

“All right.” Shen Tianhao exhaled, reassured.

Shen Yan remained perfectly calm.

Physician Huang, however, could not.

By now, she had noticed something different about Shen Yan. The girl was no longer wearing that foolish, vacant smile. Her eyes held the awareness of an ordinary person.

“You…”

Physician Huang stopped herself.

Shen Yan lowered her gaze and murmured, almost as if speaking to herself, “Close your eyes. Don’t look at me.”

Inside the spatial domain, Feng Xingyao heard her and gave a soft laugh. The sound was indescribably lazy and unhurried.

He had no particular interest in her body.

Feng Xingyao closed his eyes.

Physician Huang froze, thinking Shen Yan had spoken to her. After a moment’s hesitation, she assumed the girl was embarrassed.

But another question mattered more.

“Yanyan, have you regained your senses?”

“Yes.”

Shen Yan looked up at the simply dressed woman before her, who appeared to be in her thirties. Unlike the rest of the Shen family, there was no disgust or disdain in her expression. Only concern.

Physician Huang was one of Nanxiao Kingdom’s physicians and had once been praised as a medical genius. She had saved many lives, and her sincerity was genuine. She had also known the original Shen Yan since childhood.

Whenever the girl fell ill or suffered an injury, Shen Tianhao sent for Physician Huang to care for her.

In all of Nanxiao Kingdom, she was the only person who had never scorned or despised the original Shen Yan.

At Shen Yan’s clear answer, Physician Huang’s eyes brightened. She stepped closer, hope in her voice.

“Yanyan, do you still remember Aunt Huang?”

“I do.” Shen Yan nodded.

“That’s wonderful…” Physician Huang smiled.

The smile quickly stiffened.

She remembered Yanyan’s situation. The girl could neither cultivate nor awaken summoning power. The people of Nanxiao Kingdom rejected her—some even hated her.

Regaining her senses might not be a blessing.

The more clearly she understood, the more cruel words would hurt.

“You poor child. And how did you end up covered in blood and wounds?” Physician Huang stroked her head with affection.

Then she reached to help remove Shen Yan’s clothes.

Unaccustomed to such closeness, Shen Yan raised an arm to stop her.

“I’ll do it myself.”

At that moment, Lingyuan staggered to her feet. Clutching her wound, she shot Shen Yan a venomous glare before calling out pitifully.

“Physician Huang, Young Miss injured me. Could you look at my wounds first?”

Physician Huang glanced back at the maid, coldness entering her eyes.

“Young Master Shen summoned this physician to treat Young Miss Shen Yan. He did not hire me for you.”

She had both seen and heard what happened. This maid had called Yanyan an idiot and openly tried to slap her.

A mere servant had dared raise a hand against her mistress.

And now she wanted treatment?

She could dream.

Lingyuan’s breath caught. Frightened by Physician Huang’s status, she hurriedly dropped to her knees.

Physicians were exceedingly rare on this continent, and alchemists rarer still. Neither could be casually offended.

“Get out,” Physician Huang said coldly.

Lingyuan lowered her head. Ignoring her injuries, she opened the door and stumbled from the room.

The moment she stepped outside, Shen Tianhao seized her.

He frowned. “What happened in there just now?”

Lingyuan put on an aggrieved expression. “Young Master, Young Miss suddenly went mad. She kicked me into the dressing table. The bronze mirror shattered and cut a gash across my back.”

Shen Tianhao’s face darkened until it seemed almost black.

“Are you certain you aren’t lying?”

In the past, he might have believed such words.

But things were different now. Yan’er would never go mad without reason.

Lingyuan’s heart tightened, and panic flashed across her face.

Before she could explain, Shen Tianhao spoke again.

“Guards! Drag her away and give her thirty lashes. If she survives, bring her back and let Young Miss Yan decide what to do with her.”

Lingyuan’s eyes widened in terror. She dropped to her knees.

“Young Master, what did this servant do wrong?”

Shen Tianhao stared at her sharply. “Ask yourself.”

“I… I…”

Guilt robbed Lingyuan of her voice.

Her face soon went white with fear. She begged for mercy again and again, but the guards dragged her away without pity.

The more Shen Tianhao considered the matter, the more horrifying it became.

His eyes darkened.

Anyone and everyone had been able to bully his daughter.

Sooner or later, he would make them all pay.

Then another thought occurred to him.

Rather than keep Yan’er under his protection forever, it would be better for her to become strong herself. She had just said that she wanted to cultivate.

The Blood-Devouring Pearl…

Yan’er claimed she could cultivate if she found one.

Whether or not it was true, he had to try.

But a Blood-Devouring Pearl was an exceedingly rare spiritual treasure. Finding one would be anything but easy.

Resolve entered Shen Tianhao’s eyes.

Whatever the odds, action came first.

…

Half an hour later, medicine had been applied to every wound on Shen Yan’s body, and she was fully bandaged.

Physician Huang’s face looked grim. Whip marks covered almost every inch of the girl. Without proper treatment, they would leave scars.

A single second-grade Skin-Restoring Pill would heal them without a trace.

“Yanyan, who did this to you?”

“Shen Xue,” Shen Yan answered truthfully.

Physician Huang looked stunned.

“How could…”

Shen Yan did not explain further.

In the eyes of everyone in Nanxiao Kingdom, Shen Xue was kind, gentle, and powerful.

When Shen Yan refused to say more, Physician Huang remained shaken. Doubt toward Shen Xue began to take root in her heart.

“If only we had a second-grade Skin-Restoring Pill,” she said regretfully. “Your wounds would heal without leaving scars. Unfortunately, there is only one second-grade alchemist in all of Nanxiao Kingdom, and he serves the royal family exclusively.”

Shen Yan searched the memories in her mind.

Strength reigned supreme on Guiyuan Continent, but the world also held many professions: physicians, alchemists, artifact refiners, rune masters, Summoners, beast tamers, spirit-plant masters, and more.

The Shen family was a clan of Summoners.

A Summoner formed a contract with beasts, demons, or even stranger and more powerful entities from otherworldly realms.

Under the contract, the Summoner fed the summoned beast with blood. In return, it lent the Summoner its strength in battle.

The two could also grow stronger together.

The azure wolf Shen Xue summoned today had come from one such realm.

Another realm…

No one seemed to know what kind of world lay on the other side.

Shen Yan found herself curious.