CHAPTER 40 — The Night of the Matriarch's Collapse
The Mu family estate was shrouded in a suffocating kind of silence—thick, motionless, and unsettling. The towering gates, always guarded by uniformed men, seemed heavier than usual, as though weighed down by the tension gathering inside the mansion.
Inside, chaos reigned.
Doctors rushed back and forth through the grand hall, carrying medical kits, whispering urgently among themselves. Old Madam Mu lay pale and motionless on the antique chaise, breaths shallow, skin cold. Mu Weiya stood by her mother-in-law's side, hands trembling despite her composure.
"Why are none of you able to stabilize her?" she snapped at the specialists. "You are all top-tier professionals, yet you're telling me you can't save her?"
The lead specialist lowered his head.
"Madam… her condition is beyond what modern medicine can reverse. Only the Heavenly Art lineage could attempt to save her, but…"
"But our family's master healer rejected us," Mu Dongling finished grimly.
Across the room, Mu Sinlan wrung her hands anxiously.
"We need the master's apprentice," she whispered. "Everyone says the apprentice's skill is even sharper than the teacher's…"
Mu Xichen's voice cut sharply through the panic.
"And where do you expect us to find this apprentice?"
"Twelve years, and no one has ever seen the apprentice's face."
Every head bowed in defeat.
Except one.
Mu Lingchen wasn't even in the hall.
He was upstairs, sitting on the edge of the bed, holding the trembling boy curled desperately against him.
Mu Rui pressed his tear-stained face to his father's chest.
"Daddy… great-grandma is dying…"
Mu Lingchen closed his eyes.
His entire body felt like a stretched wire.
Every breath hurt.
His thoughts spiraled back to the one person he never planned to rely on.
The only person the master himself had ever taken in.
Shi Yunxi.
The moment the memory hit him, he stood.
He didn't wait for backup.
He didn't call his assistant.
He didn't tell his family.
He simply scooped Mu Rui into his arms and walked out of the mansion.
His sister shouted after him, "Lingchen?! Where are you going?!"
He didn't answer.
His pace only quickened.
He had no proof.
No confirmation.
Only a terrifying instinct.
But tonight—
Instinct was enough.
Outside Shi Yunxi's Apartment
The hallway was dim and quiet when Yunxi opened the door, her hair unbound, her clothes soft and casual—ready to put the children to bed.
What she saw on the threshold stunned her.
Mu Lingchen.
Exhausted.
Eyes bloodshot.
Holding a crying Mu Rui in his arms.
His voice—usually sharp, cold, and precise—was now raw.
"Shi Yunxi…"
He swallowed, breath unsteady.
"Please."
Yunxi froze.
Her gaze shifted to the trembling child reaching toward her.
"Mama… please save great-grandma…"
Her heart broke instantly.
She stepped forward instinctively and wrapped Mu Rui into her arms.
"RuiRui… don't cry. Mama's here."
His small fingers buried themselves into her clothes.
Mu Lingchen watched the scene, chest tightening, something painfully human cracking inside him.
Yunxi finally raised her eyes to him.
"What happened?"
He inhaled shakily.
"Old Madam Mu is dying."
His voice dropped, almost pleading.
"Yunxi… please save her. I know what you are."
Her breath stopped.
They stared at each other in heavy silence.
Mu Lingchen continued, voice cracking again.
"Please. Have mercy on my family… and on the great-grandmother of your—"
He stopped himself.
She stiffened.
For a long moment, neither moved.
Finally—
Yunxi closed her eyes.
"Give me ten minutes."
And Mu Lingchen—Mu family's iron-blooded heir who bowed to no one—exhaled shakily in relief.
Back at the Mu Mansion
When Yunxi entered the hall, every member of the family froze.
Mu Dongling stepped forward.
"Who is this—"
Mu Lingchen's voice sliced through him.
"She's the one who will save Grandmother."
Gasps.
Mu Weiya instantly looked Yunxi up and down—beautiful, calm, wearing no badge or healer's emblem.
"You're the apprentice?!"
Yunxi didn't respond.
She knelt beside the matriarch, placing her fingers gently against her pulse.
Her expression shifted—serious, focused, sharp.
"She's fading fast," Yunxi murmured. "I need silence."
No one dared speak.
Mu Rui clung to Mu Lingchen's pant leg, peeking anxiously.
Yunxi began working—fast, precise, her movements a blur of practiced skill.
The Mu family watched, stunned, almost afraid.
For the first time in years—
the apprentice of the legendary master was right before their eyes.
And she was saving their matriarch.
Thirty Minutes Later
Old Madam Mu inhaled sharply—
a full breath, strong and steady.
Her eyelids fluttered open faintly.
Mu Weiya gasped.
"Mother?!"
Mu Dongling froze.
"It… worked?"
Mu Lingchen closed his eyes, tension draining from him.
Mu Rui ran to Yunxi.
"Mama did it! Mama saved great-grandma!"
Yunxi exhaled softly, brushing the boy's hair.
But before anything else could be said—
Her phone buzzed.
A message from the Shi family.
A threat.
A photo of her two children leaving kindergarten.
Her breath iced over.
Someone was watching her.
Someone knew her secret.
And tonight—
she was done being hunted.