Chapter 27: The Mysterious Pill and the New Skill of X-ray Vision

Jiang Cheng never imagined that a woman named Chen Tong could be so sinister. To steal another person's fortune—such a malicious act was truly beyond the pale. And she was supposed to be Wen Yao’s close friend! Disgusting! What kind of person was she?

Though Jiang Cheng wasn't entirely certain about the nature of the black stone, the fact that it was being used to plunder Wen Yao’s fortune was now laid bare. As for how such a method was achieved, Jiang Cheng couldn't fathom it. Dragon Kingdom’s five-thousand-year culture was vast and profound; its boundless landscape was filled with hidden talents and extraordinary individuals. Just because he didn't understand it didn't mean others couldn't do it. The world was full of things beyond his current comprehension, and his current abilities were nowhere near enough to explain them all.

Naturally, Jiang Cheng wouldn't explain any of this to Wen Yao; telling her would sound too fantastical, perhaps even eerie. It defied common sense. However, Jiang Cheng didn't feel he was overthinking it. After all, the fact that his own eyes had developed supernatural abilities had already occurred—nothing could surprise him anymore.

After pondering for a moment, Jiang Cheng smiled at Wen Yao. "Wen Yao, this stone of yours looks quite nice. Would you be willing to sell it to me?"

Wen Yao touched the black stone around her neck, eyed the somewhat unusual Jiang Cheng with a strange look, and grinned. "What are you talking about? Look at our relationship! If you like it, I'll just give it to you!"

With that, Wen Yao took off the black stone and handed it to Jiang Cheng with a smile. Jiang Cheng didn't stand on ceremony and took it. The moment the stone touched his hand, his scalp tingled, and a chill surged from the soles of his feet, rushing up his spine toward his crown.

But just as that icy sensation reached his brain, a surge of warmth erupted within his mind, instantly suppressing the chill. Immediately after, Jiang Cheng saw thin wisps of green energy that had been creeping from his palm into his arm being forced out. Then, from out of nowhere, a golden orb of light appeared, violently driving the green mist into the black stone and forming a golden shield-like barrier on its surface.

Jiang Cheng watched in stunned silence, secretly marveling. He discovered that the green mist seemed to have a life of its own, attacking the golden shield like a frantic little serpent. But that thin layer of golden light was as impenetrable as an iron wall; all the green mist’s offensives dissolved into nothingness, as if falling into an abyss. A few seconds later, the green mist withered like a plant deprived of water, losing all vitality. Finally, everything returned to peace, and the green mist dissipated into nothing under the consumption of the golden shield's energy.

The process took a while to describe, but it happened in a flash, ending in just a few breaths. Watching this strange scene, Jiang Cheng couldn't help but gasp. "What... what exactly is this golden orb? It’s incredibly ferocious!"

What Jiang Cheng didn't know was that the golden orb had actually emanated from his own eyes. It had happened so quickly and vanished so abruptly that he hadn't noticed. However, with the green mist gone, Jiang Cheng felt a secret sense of relief.

He scrutinized the black stone in his hand. It was the size of a small pebble with a peculiar surface marked by over a dozen pale red patterns; had his vision not been extraordinary, he would never have noticed them. Though he didn't know what those pale red patterns were, they looked quite extraordinary. As he stared at the stone, a number suddenly appeared in his vision: 3,800,000.

Jiang Cheng was secretly shocked. This stone was worth 3.8 million? What kind of stone was this? This was quite an unexpected windfall! However, now that the green mist was gone, the stone no longer posed any negative effects. He put the stone around his own neck and looked at Wen Yao carefully. Sure enough, a faint red glow had begun to emerge from between Wen Yao’s brows.

The sensation made Jiang Cheng feel quite comfortable. He knew this must be Wen Yao’s fortune returning. This young girl had no idea that she might be on the verge of becoming famous soon. But Jiang Cheng didn't care about that.

***

Whether Wen Yao became famous or not, Jiang Cheng’s attitude toward her wouldn't change, nor would hers toward him. But the moment Wen Yao looked at Jiang Cheng, she suddenly froze and shrieked, "Cheng, Cheng-zi! Your eyes—your eyes are bleeding!"

"What?" Jiang Cheng hurriedly touched his cheeks and felt a wet, warm sensation. He looked down at his hand—it was stained bright red. He was bleeding! Shocked, he rushed to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. What he saw terrified him. Two lines of fresh, red tears were flowing slowly from the corners of his eyes. It was eerie and horrifying!

Immediately after, his eyes began to sting as if pierced by needles, causing his entire face to twist in pain. How could he explain this? Was it a side effect of overusing his eyes? The thought sent a chill down his spine. Would he go blind?

After a long while, the stinging pain finally subsided, and Jiang Cheng exhaled in relief. Ignoring his inner turmoil, he washed away the blood with cold water and observed himself for a while. He wasn't bleeding anymore, and there was no pain or itching. Only his eyes remained bloodshot, the whites covered in a dense web of red capillaries. It looked quite ferocious.

"Cheng-zi, Cheng-zi, are you okay?" Wen Yao was pounding on the door, her voice filled with urgency.

Jiang Cheng sniffled, looked at his reflection in the mirror, and, satisfied that there was nothing else unusual, opened the door and gave Wen Yao a gentle smile. "Don't worry, I'm fine!"

Wen Yao clearly didn't believe him, grabbing his head to inspect his eyes closely. "Are you really okay? You were bleeding so much just a moment ago!"

"And now?"

Wen Yao scrutinized his eyes and found that, aside from being bloodshot, they seemed fine and weren't bleeding anymore. She was filled with questions.

"Alright, let's have breakfast," Jiang Cheng said, patting her shoulder and walking straight to the dining table.

Two bowls of millet porridge, a plate of pickles, and some fried eggs were set out. Jiang Cheng began to eat without a word. Wen Yao sat across from him, looking suspicious. "Cheng-zi, are you too weak? You really should take some Liuwei Dihuang pills to build yourself up!"

Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes at her and retorted, "I say, Wen Yao, you’re quite something! Keeping Liuwei Dihuang pills in the house? Tell me, did you find some boy toy outside and now you're feeling weak?"

"Get lost! What boy toy? Didn't you buy those pills?"

"I bought them? How could I possibly buy those? My health is perfectly fine!"

"Didn't you leave them at my door? It’s just the two of us in this house; if you didn't buy them, did I? Cheng-zi, just admit you're weak! I won't make fun of you—there's no need to hide it. I suggest you find an old traditional doctor to get yourself tuned up; you can't keep bleeding like this!" Wen Yao giggled.

Jiang Cheng was bewildered. "I left them at your door?"

"Yes! Look, this courier box. I didn't buy anything, so if it wasn't you, who was it?" Seeming determined to make him admit it, she grabbed a courier box from the shoe rack and handed it to him.

Jiang Cheng took one look and realized it was the very box he had casually left at her door. Suddenly, he shifted his gaze to the bottle of "Liuwei Dihuang pills" that had been sitting quietly on the tea table, his brow furrowing. He put down his utensils, walked to the table, and picked up the small medicine bottle.

The exterior looked no different from any standard bottle of pills. After a moment of hesitation, he unscrewed the cap. As he opened it, his brow knit together tightly.

Inside the bottle, there were no small black pills like those sold on the market. Instead, there was a single, large black sphere—shaped exactly like the "all-purpose tonic pills" from television shows. It was dark brown, round, and the size of a quail egg. What on earth was this?

"Wait! What is this?" Jiang Cheng suddenly noticed many tiny points of light on the surface of the black pill. He focused his vision and looked closely, realizing that the tiny lights were actually words: "After your eyes bleed, eat this pill. I will come to find you in three months."

Seeing this, Jiang Cheng could no longer remain calm. It was her—the woman in red! No one else could possibly know about his eyes. But who was this woman in red? What was her objective? He suddenly remembered the object she had shoved into his mouth during the car accident. Was it this kind of pill?

She told him to eat this after his eyes bled, which meant she had known all along that there would be side effects from using his eyes too frequently. What was her purpose in giving him these miraculous eyes? Should he eat this pill? If he didn't, would there be other side effects? This time it was bleeding, but what about next time? Would he go blind, or die?

Jiang Cheng was torn. But then, a thought occurred to him: she said she would come back in three months and told him to eat the pill. That meant the pill was likely safe. Otherwise, if he died, who would she find in three months? His eye ability was given to him by that woman; if she wanted to kill him, she could have done it that night. There was no need for all this effort.

After a moment of contemplation, Jiang Cheng gritted his teeth, picked up the pill, and swallowed it in one gulp.

Wen Yao watched his behavior, completely baffled. He just swallowed such a huge pill raw? Wasn't he afraid of choking? And when did the Jiuzhitang pharmacy start making Liuwei Dihuang pills this big? Was it some kind of super-strengthened version?

"I say, Cheng-zi, even if you are weak, you don't have to be this desperate!"

Jiang Cheng ignored her, sitting on the sofa with his eyes closed, feeling for changes in his body. But after a long while, aside from a warm sensation in his abdomen, nothing seemed to have changed. Jiang Cheng opened his eyes abruptly, a look of suspicion on his face.

Just as he looked at Wen Yao, a sudden rush of heat surged to his head, and a nosebleed sprayed out. "So big! So white!"

Jiang Cheng’s blood boiled, and he was struck with shock. Of course, it wasn't the pill causing this; it was that he realized Wen Yao in front of him was now completely naked. A wave of heat and agitation washed over him, and his nosebleed gushed out involuntarily.

He had developed X-ray vision!