"Is there really no way to cure Serpent Heart Poison? Not even the biggest Treasure Pavilion in Spirit Rhino City?"
"I don't know. The things at Treasure Pavilion are all too expensive. You saw how the Lin family treated me after I was crippled."
"Lin Taiheng wishes I were dead. How could he possibly take out money to buy me an antidote?"
Lin Yue said with a bitter smile.
"Damn Lin Taiheng! Third Uncle, don't worry. I'll go check Treasure Pavilion."
Lin Bai said.
Treasure Pavilion was the largest trading house in Spirit Rhino City.
There were also many Treasure Pavilion branches throughout the Divine Martial Nation.
Although it was nearly midnight, Treasure Pavilion was still packed to the brim.
The martial arts tournament and disciple recruitment would begin tomorrow, so many martial artists wanted to buy powerful martial techniques and weapons to prepare for it.
"Young hero, I'm Aileen, a maid of Treasure Pavilion. May I ask if there's anything I can help you with?" Just after Lin Bai entered Treasure Pavilion, a maid approached him with a springlike smile.
"I'd like to ask whether Treasure Pavilion has an antidote for Serpent Heart Poison." Lin Bai asked bluntly.
"Serpent Heart Poison? One of the Five Venoms Sect's three great poisons?" Aileen asked curiously.
"It should be." Lin Bai wasn't certain.
If Lin Yue hadn't mentioned Serpent Heart Poison today, Lin Bai wouldn't have known there was such a poison at all.
"I'm sorry, young hero, but Serpent Heart Poison is one of the Five Venoms Sect's three great poisons. When the Five Venoms Sect was destroyed, its antidote was destroyed along with it."
"Treasure Pavilion did have one in its collection before, but it has already been sold."
Aileen shook her head.
"So that's how it is." Lin Bai spoke somewhat dejectedly.
"Then, young hero, do you need anything else? Treasure Pavilion has weapons, martial techniques, and spirit medicines." Aileen asked.
Lin Bai shook his head in disappointment.
Even Treasure Pavilion doesn't have an antidote for Serpent Heart Poison. It seems I'll have to wait until I join one of the Four Great Sects before finding a way to cure Third Uncle's poison.
Lin Bai thought this to himself.
"Big brother, are you looking for an antidote to Serpent Heart Poison?" Just as Lin Bai was feeling dispirited, a timid voice came from behind him.
Lin Bai turned around in surprise and saw a scrawny youth looking at him with timid eyes.
"Yes." Lin Bai nodded.
"I have an antidote for Serpent Heart Poison." The youth rummaged through the cloth bag slung across his body, took out a battered wooden box made of yellow wood, and handed it to Lin Bai.
Lin Bai accepted it and took a look. Inside were two black pills. They looked unappealing, but they did indeed carry a trace of medicinal fragrance.
"How much are you selling these pills for?" Lin Bai asked.
"I don't want money, but I want a weapon. That one." The youth pointed, leading Lin Bai's gaze to a rusted sword hanging on the wall of Treasure Pavilion.
A rusted sword?
"How much is this sword?" Lin Bai asked Aileen.
"This sword was hard-won. When Treasure Pavilion acquired it, we spent a thousand spirit stones."
"So if young hero wants to buy it, your offer cannot be lower than a thousand spirit stones." Aileen smiled lightly.
"A thousand spirit stones..." When Lin Bai heard this, he cursed inwardly. This damn broken sword is worth a thousand spirit stones?
Spirit stones were the currency used in transactions between martial artists.
Spirit stones were naturally formed ores containing powerful spiritual energy within them.
Martial artists could directly use the spiritual energy within spirit stones to cultivate, so spirit stones circulated widely throughout the Martial World.
When he heard the price of a thousand spirit stones, Lin Bai hesitated.
Putting aside the fact that a thousand spirit stones meant little to Lin Bai, the antidote still needed to be examined carefully.
"Little brother, how do I know whether your antidote is real or fake?" Lin Bai stared at the youth before him.
The youth wore tattered hemp clothes covered in patches. His hair was disheveled, and his face was grimy, making him look like a little beggar. Yet his lively, limpid eyes shone like the brightest stars in the night sky.
"I-I have no way to prove it, but it really is an antidote." The youth spoke timidly.
"Where did you get the antidote?" Lin Bai asked.
"I refined it myself." The youth answered each question plainly.
"You refined it yourself?" Lin Bai asked in astonishment.
After hearing this, Lin Bai became even less willing to buy it.
"Yes." The youth nodded innocently.
After hesitating for a while, Lin Bai asked, "Why do you want to buy that rusted sword?"
"Because it belongs to me. A bandit stole it a few days ago." The youth said.
"Big brother, if you don't believe me, you can take the antidote first. Once you swallow it, you'll see an improvement within an hour, but completely purging the poison will still take a day."
The youth continued, "If you're worried, I can go with you. If I've harmed you, you can kill me."
Hearing this, Lin Bai agreed at once.
"All right."
"Come with me. If it really can cure the poison, I'll help you buy that iron sword back. If you're lying to me, I'll kill you immediately."
Lin Bai took the youth and hurried straight to Lin Yue's residence.
"Lin Bai, who is this boy?" Lin Yue asked curiously when he saw a well-behaved little boy follow Lin Bai back.
"This youth says he has an antidote for Serpent Heart Poison. I'm not familiar with pharmacology, so I brought him back for Third Uncle to examine." As he spoke, Lin Bai took a battered wooden box from his clothes.
Lin Yue accepted the box, opened it, and examined it carefully.
After a long while, Lin Yue looked at the youth in astonishment. "Where did you get these pills?"
"I refined them myself!" the youth said as before.
"What's wrong, Third Uncle? Is there a problem with the pills?" Lin Bai asked nervously.
"There's no problem, no problem at all. Not only is there no problem, they're actually superior-grade antidotes."
"I was merely astonished that a youth could refine such excellent pills."
Lin Yue gave the youth a deep look.
"Third Uncle, since you say the antidote is real, swallow it and see. The youth says there'll be an improvement within an hour, and the poison can be completely eliminated within a day." Lin Bai said excitedly.
"All right." Lin Yue's face glowed as he swallowed one of the antidotes.
The Serpent Heart Poison that had tormented Lin Yue for more than twenty years could actually be purged today. Wouldn't that be like giving Lin Yue a second life?
Most importantly, once Lin Yue was cured, he would be able to resume cultivation and search for his wife and child.
After being a cripple for twenty years, he was finally going to break free.
An hour later, Lin Yue opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of pitch-black blood.
Lin Bai tensed, thinking something had gone wrong.
But after spitting out the foul blood, Lin Yue threw his head back and laughed. "Hahaha! Serpent Heart Poison, I'm finally going to break free of you!"
"Lin Bai, don't panic. I've already begun expelling the poison, but it'll still take a day to purge it completely."
Seeing Lin Bai so nervous that he even looked ready to draw his sword and kill the youth, Lin Yue immediately spoke to reassure him.
"That's good." Hearing Lin Yue's voice, Lin Bai let out a sigh of relief.
"The poison in your family member has already been cured. Shouldn't you help me buy that sword now?" The youth looked at Lin Bai innocently.
"All right."
Lin Bai smiled and returned to Treasure Pavilion with the youth.