Inside a guest room at the Spiritual Medicine estate.
The sky outside had only just begun to brighten when Han Zheng opened his eyes from cultivation.
After spending 50 points of Satiety cultivating yesterday, he had not gone to sleep. Instead, he had continued cultivating until dawn.
What made the Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill more exquisite than the Iron Elephant Skill was that it allowed one to enter deep cultivation.
His body would unconsciously circulate inner force, while his mind could rest in a half-asleep, half-awake state.
Thus, Han Zheng would even be able to cultivate while sleeping in the future.
Though the progress would certainly not match cultivation in a normal state, it could still increase his speed considerably.
Han Zheng summoned the panel and looked over his attributes.
Name: Han Zheng Cultivation: Houtian Meridian Opening Realm (Opened 220 Acupoints, eight meridians.) Martial Arts and Cultivation Methods: Houtian Realm "Iron Elephant Skill" at perfection, Houtian Realm "Vajra Fist" at perfection. Innate Realm "Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill" proficiency 15%, Innate Realm "Vajra Demon Subduing Seal" proficiency 10%
Current State: Pain Insensitivity, abundant qi and blood
Yesterday evening, Han Zheng had cultivated twice within the Gluttonous Crucible. Together with the improvement brought by the Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill, he had directly opened one hundred Acupoints and three meridians, causing his strength to surge dramatically.
And it was not merely his cultivation. The increase in his combat strength was even more obvious.
Han Zheng was now confident that he could fight that Pig Demon alone once more and kill it head-on.
As soon as he stepped out of the guest room, the fresh fragrance of medicinal herbs filled Han Zheng's nostrils.
The estate was not large, with only ten rooms. Previously, only twenty Shenghe Hall attendants and one pharmacist had remained behind to tend the Spiritual Medicine here.
"Brother Han, you're up early. Let's have breakfast together."
Li Feng emerged from another guest room.
The two arrived at the dining hall, where quite a few attendants had already finished eating and gone to gather and harvest the Spiritual Medicine.
Li Sancheng and the others were still sleeping like logs. After all, they had just gone through a fierce battle, so it was understandable.
"Huh? Breakfast is this lavish?"
Three dishes and one soup sat in large barrels in the dining hall: braised pork, chicken stewed with potatoes, scrambled eggs, and a huge basin of pork rib soup. The staples were white-flour steamed buns and rice.
They were actually all meat dishes. The only green thing was the chopped scallions floating atop the pork rib soup.
One had to know that soaring grain prices had become extremely severe in Black Stone County due to the food shortage.
Ordinary families could not even afford black rye buns anymore, much less meat like this.
Many people even disregarded the dangers outside the city and went out to dig wild vegetables just for a bite to eat.
Even when Han Zheng occasionally improved his meals, he did not dare eat this well.
"It's the last day, after all. Once these attendants finish harvesting the Spiritual Medicine, they'll return to Black Stone County with us, so they slaughtered all the pigs and chickens they had raised."
Han Zheng asked in surprise, "Shenghe Hall only plants one batch of Spiritual Medicine? They won't plant any more later?"
Li Feng happily took a sip of pork rib soup and said, "Of course they will, but they have to wait half a year until the spiritual energy in this land recovers.
"Spiritual Medicine is precious precisely because its growing conditions are so harsh.
"It must be planted in a place with clear mountains and limpid waters, rich spiritual energy, and no contamination from turbid qi.
"Furthermore, after one batch of Spiritual Medicine is planted, the land needs time to recover and gather spiritual energy again.
"Otherwise, if they plant a second batch immediately, all that grows will be defective goods, and the spiritual fields may even be ruined.
"It was not easy for the Chief Shopkeeper to find such spiritual fields, so naturally he had to treat them with care.
"Still, these attendants usually ate fairly well. The Chief Shopkeeper had not treated them poorly.
"This spiritual field estate was in the middle of nowhere, as though cut off from the world.
"They had to stay here for half a year, so naturally they could not be left hungry. The supplies provided were quite ample."
Only after Han Zheng had finished eating did Li Sancheng and the others arrive at the dining hall. Their eyes turned red the moment they saw the braised pork.
They continued eating, while Han Zheng went to find Steward Chen and urged him to harvest the Spiritual Medicine quickly and set out as soon as possible.
Behind the estate lay roughly ten mu of medicinal fields. The Shenghe Hall attendants were carefully picking the herbs.
A single piece of Spiritual Medicine was worth more than their yearly wages. They did not dare damage any of it.
When Steward Chen saw Han Zheng approach, he merely snorted and did not even greet him.
He had not forgotten how Han Zheng had humiliated him yesterday!
Han Zheng had actually made him beg before he was willing to deal with the Pig Demon.
Even before Chen Baiqing, he had never been so low and servile!
"Steward Chen, how much longer will it take to finish harvesting the Spiritual Medicine?"
"About a day. We'll leave tomorrow morning."
Steward Chen answered flatly.
Han Zheng frowned slightly. "That's too slow. Can't you have them speed up and finish within half a day?
"This estate is less than a hundred li from where we killed the Pig Demon. That Pig Demon had parents.
"We could reach this estate from there in one night. Do you think the Pig Demons would be slower than us?
"Once they follow our trail here, we may be facing two even more powerful adult Pig Demons!"
With Han Zheng's current cultivation, he was confident he could kill a Pig Demon of that previous strength head-on.
But against two, Han Zheng had no such confidence. Moreover, the Pig Demon's parents would certainly be stronger than it was.
Most Demons did not need cultivation. They relied on their innate racial talents.
Thus, the longer a Demon lived, the more powerful it became—unless it grew so old that its lifespan reached its limit, its qi and blood declined, and its strength weakened.
That Pig Demon's mother could still give it a younger brother. She clearly did not look as though her qi and blood had declined.
"Impossible!"
Steward Chen sneered. "Do you think harvesting Spiritual Medicine is like pulling radishes at home, one with every tug?
"This is meticulous work. If they go too fast, who can guarantee the quality of the Spiritual Medicine?
"Besides, it's a hundred li away. How could the Pig Demons possibly catch up?
"They're Pig Demons, not Dog Demons!
"And Han Zheng, you'd better understand your own place!
"You people are merely guards hired by Shenghe Hall. To put it bluntly, you're Escorts.
"I am the manager of the caravan. Since when was it your turn to point fingers and tell us when to leave?"
Only when faced with the Pig Demon's threat had Steward Chen humbled himself before Han Zheng.
Now that they had arrived at the estate, Han Zheng still wanted to give orders? He truly did not know the immensity of heaven and earth!
Han Zheng sneered and did not waste any more words on Steward Chen. He turned and left.
That old bastard only remembered the food, not the beating. Han Zheng did not know why Chen Baiqing had made him a steward.
Watching Han Zheng leave, Steward Chen's lips curled in disdain.
A lowly martial artist from a Martial Arts Academy, destined to spend his life as someone else's guard or escort—did he really think himself some great figure?
Han Zheng returned to the guest rooms and knocked on Li Feng's door.
"Brother Han, is something the matter?"
Li Feng was reading inside.
He had come to assess the quality of the Spiritual Medicine. It would only be his turn to work after the herbs were harvested.
"Pharmacist Li, based on your experience, how long would it take to harvest the spiritual fields in this estate?"
Li Feng thought for a moment. "Whether it's the estate attendants from before or the people we brought, all of them are experienced hands. Half a day should be enough. Give me another half hour to assess the Spiritual Medicine, and that should be about it."
Han Zheng sneered. "But Steward Chen said it would take a full day and night, and that we could not leave until tomorrow morning."
Li Feng seemed to realize something and shook his head. "If Steward Chen said it, then that's normal. Half a day is enough to harvest the Spiritual Medicine, but he has private matters to attend to."
"Private matters? What private matters?"
Li Feng shut the guest room door and lowered his voice. "Brother Han, we've gone through hardship together, so I trust you. But after hearing this, do not spread it around.
"Actually, the Spiritual Medicine could be harvested even faster. Last night, I told Steward Chen that they could harvest while I assessed the herbs at the same time.
"That would speed things up, but Steward Chen refused. He insisted that I wait for his notice before assessing the Spiritual Medicine.
"So I suspect Steward Chen insists on delaying here simply because he wants to line his own pockets by falsifying the accounts.
"Even the same Spiritual Medicine comes in different grades. The price difference between top-grade and low-grade Spiritual Medicine can be more than tenfold.
"For instance, the estate may produce one hundred jin of top-grade Spiritual Medicine, but Steward Chen reports only sixty jin, classifying the top-grade goods as mid-grade or even low-grade.
"Then, after returning to Shenghe Hall, he sells these nominally 'mid-grade' herbs at top-grade prices while recording only mid-grade prices in the books. The profits from that back and forth are astonishing."
Han Zheng asked in surprise, "That old bastard is being this excessive, and the Chief Shopkeeper does nothing? Since you know, why don't you report it?"
Li Feng shook his head. "Steward Chen's surname is Chen. He's the Chief Shopkeeper's distant elder uncle—a relative.
"We are outsiders in the end. If we speak too much and fail to catch enough evidence, only to get bitten back, wouldn't we be the unlucky ones?
"And Brother Han, do you know why Steward Chen insisted on having his own nephew escort the caravan?
"It was because he needed to falsify accounts and conceal the grades of Spiritual Medicine. Too many people meant too many eyes, making it difficult to act, so he wanted to replace them with his own people.
"Truthfully, I did not even want to come on this trip. But the Chief Shopkeeper insisted that I come, and I had no way to refuse."
"It's fine if that old Chen wants to make money, but if we let him delay like this, we'll all die!"
Han Zheng sneered.
"Brother Han, why do you say that?"
Li Feng was taken aback.
"This estate is less than a hundred li from where we killed the Pig Demon. Once the Pig Demon's parents find its corpse, they can easily follow the traces to this estate.
"Pharmacist Li, you saw how difficult it was for us to kill that Pig Demon.
"If one Pig Demon was already so troublesome, who could stop two?"
Li Feng was greatly alarmed. "Is that truly so?"
Han Zheng said gravely, "Demons are not wild beasts. They possess intelligence, a desire for vengeance, and even greater cruelty.
"They will not foolishly stay in one place, waiting by a tree stump for rabbits to crash into it. They will range a hundred li to hunt!"
After hearing Han Zheng's words, Li Feng's expression also turned grim.
Li Feng could not be bothered with Steward Chen's embezzlement, but Steward Chen's delay might get them killed by Demons. He could no longer sit still.
"Pharmacist Li, your relationship with Steward Chen isn't very good, is it?"
Han Zheng suddenly asked.
Li Feng nodded, unsurprised that Han Zheng had noticed.
Throughout the journey, he had barely exchanged a few words with Steward Chen. Instead, he had befriended Han Zheng, making it clear that he and Steward Chen were not on the same road.
"The Chief Shopkeeper is about to retire, but his son is not skilled at running a pharmacy. So they will certainly have to choose another Chief Shopkeeper to take charge of Shenghe Hall.
"I am qualified, and I want to compete for that position.
"Steward Chen's son is also a Senior Pharmacist at Shenghe Hall, and he has his eye on the position as well.
"He wants to help his own son take office. It would be stranger if he looked favorably upon me."
Han Zheng narrowed his eyes. "Pharmacist Li, you must know that he who strikes first gains the advantage, while he who strikes later suffers disaster.
"He is the Chief Shopkeeper's relative, and he has such a father who knows how to rake in money. What do you have to compete with him?
"Better to seize this opportunity. Let's join hands, subdue Chen Moshan, catch him with the stolen goods and the culprit both present, then bring him back for the Chief Shopkeeper to deal with."