Chapter Thirty-Four: The Crazy Prescription

Within the Origin Sect's mountain gate, there was a special type of flying boat for disciples with lower cultivation. The flying boats were crafted from spirit wood that was over a hundred years old and naturally possessed a trace of spiritual energy. They ranged from several zhang to dozens of zhang in length and could accommodate anywhere from a dozen to nearly a thousand people. Operated by specialized disciples, they made regular round trips between various fixed points within the mountain gate, facilitating travel and errands for disciples with weaker cultivation.

Early in the morning, Qingchu, holding a thick stack of papers covered in writing, scurried to the nearest flying boat station to Lin Xiao's residence at 'Encrusted Spirit Lake.' She managed to catch the first flying boat heading to Origin Sect's Medicine Mountain, twelve hundred li away. The disciple piloting the flying boat started it precisely on time, soaring eastward at an extremely high speed.

The flying boat was incredibly fast, and in less than two sticks of incense, it landed at a courtyard built before a vast expanse of mountains. Qingchu carefully thanked the piloting disciple, who had Golden Core Stage cultivation, and clutching the stack of papers, she walked along the edge of the courtyard, step by step, towards the Great Hall located to the north of the courtyard.

This courtyard perfectly blocked the only mountain valley passage leading to the mountains behind it. The courtyard had two sections, front and back, and occupied about ten mu of land. The Great Hall in the center had eighteen halls arranged in a line. Teams of young men and women, dressed in blue coarse cloth robes and carrying medicine hoes on their backs, were converging from all directions. Led by some Daoists dressed in green robes, they passed through this courtyard and entered the mountains along the valley behind.

Yao'er, with her head lowered, scurried through the courtyard like a little mouse, trying her best not to attract anyone's attention. She curled her body, walking slowly, almost shrinking into a ball of flesh. She crept along the base of the wall, step by cautious step.

High above, Lin Xiao, treading on a streak of red light, watched Qingchu walk through the courtyard so cautiously with a blank expression. A strange, uncomfortable feeling arose within him for no apparent reason.

The destruction of the Great Luo Pill Dao and Yao'er's death had crushed Lin Xiao's heart into a barren desert. However, he was still an eighteen-year-old young man, and human emotions were not so easily extinguished. The appearance of the pitiable Qingchu was like a tiny seed falling into Lin Xiao's desolate heart, bringing him a sliver of vitality that was incredibly precious to him now. Lin Xiao didn't have any unusual feelings for Qingchu; he simply saw her as someone he needed to protect, much like the little dog he once owned.

To Lin Xiao now, Qingchu was a spiritual anchor, preventing his mind from completely collapsing. At the very least, she allowed him to retain the emotions that a living person should have.

Qingchu peeked around from the foot of the steps in front of the Great Hall in the center of the courtyard for a while. Then, she cautiously, like a little mouse stealing rice, tiptoed up the steps and quickly dashed towards the third hall on the right. However, she had only run about two zhang when several green shadows shot out from the side. A small hand suddenly grabbed Qingchu's shoulder, flinging her high into the air like a scarecrow. After swinging in an arc, she was slammed heavily onto the ground.

"Ah!" Qingchu let out a small scream. Being flung into the air and then dropped heavily on the ground, Qingchu felt a throbbing pain in both her legs, her lower body going numb. She instinctively clutched the papers in her hands and bowed repeatedly with her head down, saying, "Senior Sister Xiu, Senior Sister Ya, Senior Sister Jie, Senior Brother Xiong, Senior Brother Ying, good morning!"

A beautiful girl in a green Daoist robe, with features as exquisite as a painting but with an arrogant pride in the corners of her eyes and brows, lazily raised her hand, gently smoothed her temples, and said coldly, "Little Qingchu, why didn't you come to my room to help me clean yesterday? Hmm? I haven't seen you from yesterday afternoon until now. Where did you go playing?"

Another girl with thick eyebrows and a face as rough as a man's forcefully grabbed Qingchu's shoulder and berated her loudly, "You ugly little Qingchu! You didn't help me weed the medicinal fields yesterday, which caused me to be scolded by the Uncle-Master! Tell me, is it unfair for me to throw you down like this today?"

A third girl, who appeared timid and as fragile as a willow in the wind, slowly extended her finger and gently pinched Qingchu's earlobe, twisting it. She chuckled, "Qingchu, Qingchu, how did your courage suddenly grow? Tsk tsk, Senior Sister Jie asked you to help wash her Daoist robe, and you dared to forget?"

Besides these three girls, the other two handsome youths in green Daoist robes stood with their arms crossed, watching Qingchu with cold sneers. After a while, one of the youths sneered, "Ugly creature, Princess Xiu, County Princess Jie, and Miss Ya were all very angry yesterday! You tell us, how should you be punished this time?"

The other youth chuckled sinisterly, "Should we whip you three times, or..." The youth reached out and tilted Qingchu's chin, turning her right cheek towards him. Looking at Qingchu's right cheek alone, she was truly a pretty and adorable little beauty! The youth swallowed hard, a flash of lustful smile crossing his face. He chuckled softly, "Or, tsk tsk, actually, just looking at this half of your face, you are quite a lovable little beauty! Anyway, your aptitude isn't enough, so you can't possibly be taught advanced Daoist techniques. Your virgin body..."

"Hmm?" Princess Xiu snorted, glared at the youth, and suddenly slapped Qingchu across the face, making her stumble and fall to the ground in disarray. Princess Xiu haughtily raised her head, looking at Qingchu from the corner of her eye, and sneered, "Little slut, learning to seduce people so quickly? Look at what you look like! Hmph, you're not getting off easy today. What are you holding in your arms? Hmm? You disappeared all day yesterday, and you were busy with these things?"

Miss Ya, who was as rough as a man, grabbed the thick stack of papers Qingchu was tightly holding and forcefully snatched them away. She cackled as she flipped through the papers. Seeing that they were densely filled with the names of various medicinal herbs and the quantities of those herbs, she casually threw the papers away and slowly stepped on Qingchu's delicate white palm.

The sole of her foot gradually applied pressure, and Miss Ya cackled, "Little slut, Princess Xiu said you wouldn't get off easy today! Heh heh! You snuck out to play yesterday and accidentally fell from the rocks and broke your arm. See, Senior Sister Ya thought of everything for you, didn't she? Heh heh, do you want one arm broken, or two?"

Qingchu, who had been too terrified to make a sound for a long time, burst into tears. Feeling the pain in her arm, Qingchu sobbed and said, "Wuwu, I didn't go out to play, it was, it was Patriarch Yi Yi who sent someone to take me away, wuwu, Patriarch Yi Yi wanted me to do something."

Upon hearing the name of Daoist Yi Yi, the steward of Origin Sect's internal affairs, the three girls and two boys were all startled. Princess Xiu's face twitched, and she shouted, "Nonsense! What kind of person is Patriarch Yi Yi? Would he send someone to find a useless little girl like you? Utter nonsense! Ya, break both her arms and one leg, and make her lie in bed for a few days. Let's see if she dares to speak again! Hmph, Patriarch Yi Yi? Even with my status as a princess, it's as difficult as climbing to heaven to meet Patriarch Yi Yi, let alone you, an ugly creature!"

Miss Ya grinned excitedly, her foot about to stomp down and break Qingchu's arm.

Lin Xiao, riding a sword light, slowly descended from the sky, landing right behind Miss Ya. Lin Xiao weakly said in his hoarse, unpleasant voice, "I can attest that Qingchu is telling the truth. Senior Yi Yi did indeed send her to do something. This is not a lie."

The young men and women turned around, looking at Lin Xiao in surprise. They had not seen Lin Xiao descend on his sword, so they all continued to sweep their disdainful, arrogant, and unfriendly gazes over Lin Xiao. The delicate and frail County Princess Jie glanced at Lin Xiao timidly and said in a low voice, "Where did this lowly creature come from, daring to speak before us? Do you know who we are? And what are you? To testify for this little ugly creature?"

Having suffered the calamity of his sect being destroyed twice in succession, Lin Xiao's temperament had changed drastically. Although he hadn't become a bloodthirsty killing demon, his disposition had become extremely cold, almost unapproachable. Hearing County Princess Jie's words, Lin Xiao simply said indifferently, "I am no one. I am testifying for Qingchu because what she said is true. Who are you? I don't care!" His right palm shot out as fast as lightning. Five green shadows flashed, and with several crisp sounds, the three girls and two boys cried out in pain and were simultaneously sent flying.

Although Lin Xiao's cultivation had decreased by more than half, he had still formed a Golden Core, and his physical body, having been tempered by heavenly fire, was much stronger than ordinary cultivators. With a slight wave of his hand, he could exert hundreds of jin of force. Moreover, he had used his full strength to deliver these slaps, each with over a thousand jin of force!

One princess, one county princess, one young lady, and two attendant young men – all five of them simultaneously opened their mouths, big and small, spitting out over thirty pieces of shattered jade. Their teeth had been knocked out by Lin Xiao's slaps, and blood gushed from their broken gums like a spring, dripping down the corners of their mouths. Lin Xiao had used too much force; not only were their teeth knocked out, but even their cheekbones had developed cracks, and their faces rapidly began to swell.

The three girls and two boys screamed in pain on the ground, but because their jaws had been cracked open by Lin Xiao, they couldn't even open their mouths to cry out. Ultimately, their screams could only escape through their nostrils, turning into grunts like those of wild boars in a frenzy.

With a gentle sweep of his sleeve, a soft wave of energy rolled up the scattered papers on the ground, neatly flying them back into his hand. Lin Xiao grabbed Qingchu by the shoulder, pulling the still-sobbing girl up from the ground, and gently patted her head, "You seemed very scared when you left, so Brother Lin followed to see what was going on."

Qingchu quickly wiped her face with her sleeve, drying the tears. She blinked rapidly, forcing the tears in her eyes to dry. She sobbed softly but forced a smile, looking at Lin Xiao and saying, "Brother Lin, the Consecrated One~ Hmm, Brother Lin, thank, thank you! But, they are all~" Qingchu fearfully extended her small hands, her two hands tightly gripping Lin Xiao's robe.

"Princess? County Princess?" Lin Xiao's expression was blank as he tugged at the corner of his mouth and said indifferently, "Even her father, the Princess's father, so what? I daresay my head is worth more than the heads of her entire royal family combined." Having experienced consecutive major disasters, Lin Xiao's personality had not only changed but his perspective on things had also begun to shift.

No one could say for sure whether this change was good or bad, but at least for Lin Xiao, after this strange transformation, his chances of surviving in the cultivation world had greatly increased.

"Oh?" Qingchu stared blankly at Lin Xiao, not daring to reply. Qingchu couldn't understand why Brother Lin's head alone was worth more than the heads of Princess Xiu's entire family combined. After all, Princess Xiu was the emperor of the Qi Dynasty's most beloved youngest princess. The entire royal family of the Qi Dynasty, if all together, might number in the hundreds of thousands, right?

What was Brother Lin's head made of? How could his head alone be worth more than the heads of hundreds of thousands of people combined?

Lin Xiao took Qingchu's hand and walked towards the third hall on the right. Lin Xiao couldn't be bothered to look at whoever was lying on the ground. He strode forward on his own, his foot casually stepping on Princess Xiu's face, then on County Princess Jie's chest, and he also kicked the cruel Miss Ya, knocking her unconscious.

As for the two attendant young men, Senior Brother Xiong and Senior Brother Ying? Lin Xiao didn't need to do anything further. When he was slapping them earlier, he had paid special attention to these two. Half of their cranial bones were shattered. Even with spirit pills to heal them, they wouldn't be able to get up for at least half a year. Their lewd words had thoroughly enraged Lin Xiao. Lin Xiao had exercised great restraint to not kill them.

Inside the third hall, an old man in green, who was Uncle Li, mentioned by Qingchu, took the papers from Lin Xiao and began to flip through them slowly.

Gradually, Uncle Li's smiling face froze. He stared blankly at Qingchu, then foolishly at Lin Xiao, and asked in surprise, "Qingchu, you said just now, he is?"

In front of Uncle Li, Qingchu was clearly much more relaxed and at ease. A truly happy smile appeared on her timid little face. She chuckled softly and said, "Brother Lin, he is the sect's newly appointed Consecrated One!"

Lin Xiao silently took out a token carved from purple jade from his sleeve. This was the Consecration Token that Yi Yi had given to Qingchu yesterday to hand over to him.

Uncle Li's face twitched. He gave Lin Xiao a dry smile and a bow, asking somewhat bewilderedly, "This old man, Li Le, the fifth steward of Medicine Mountain, greets the Consecrated One. However, although the medicines listed on the Consecrated One's order are not precious, the quantities are truly a bit daunting. May I ask what the Consecrated One needs so many medicinal materials for?"

"The quantities are daunting?" Lin Xiao casually picked up a piece of paper, pointed at the 'Licorice, one million jin' written on it, and frowned, "Are these quantities daunting?"

Li Le chuckled dryly, "Licorice isn't worth much, but one million jin... even for medicinal preparations, that's enough for how many people to eat and drink? Moreover, among the medicinal orders you've listed, the smallest quantity, 'Purple Heart Grass,' requires one hundred thousand jin. This, this is..." Li Le glanced again at the Consecration Token in Lin Xiao's hand. That's right, he wasn't mistaken. It was indeed a Consecration Token issued by the Profound Sect. With this token, he could mobilize a portion of Origin Sect's resources and manpower. But the medicinal order Lin Xiao had written was truly too daunting.

Three thousand seven hundred and ninety-eight commonly used medicinal herbs, with the smallest quantity being one hundred thousand jin! Heavens, what was he trying to do?

Lin Xiao shook his head slightly and said indifferently, "Prepare the medicinal materials for me. I will explain this matter to Daoist Yi Yi."

After speaking, Lin Xiao casually tossed the Consecration Token in front of Li Le and turned to pull Qingchu out of the hall. He said lightly, "I want to use these medicinal materials to refine pills and get some practice. Moving so many medicinal materials must be troublesome for you, so use my Consecration Token."

"Refine pills? Get some practice?" Li Le almost fainted from shock at Lin Xiao's words.

What kind of monstrous Consecrated One came from which sect? So many medicinal materials, just for practice?

Li Le shook his head, picked up the token, and carefully tucked it into his embrace.

He watched Lin Xiao pull Qingchu out of the hall, his face gradually showing a look of doting affection. Qingchu might have found a good master! (To be continued)