16 (Thanks to Alliance Leader Chen Feng Cuo Yu)

Luckily, their luck was not bad. Before long, they ran into Xiao Qingying, who had also come over because of the signal flare.

She did not seem to be injured. A trace of bewilderment still lingered on her face, as if she had no idea what had happened.

Just now, before she had even managed to see clearly, Chen Wuyou had dragged her away.

Only after they had gone far away did she have the chance to come back.

Once she learned what had happened, Xiao Qingying's little mouth fell open in shock.

"Mountain bandits appeared!? And they attacked Zhang Rongfang?"

Zhang Rongfang was her follower. In other words, if she had walked any slower just now, she might have been the one attacked.

On the way back to the village.

"Are you all right, Zhang Rongfang?" She hurried over. After hesitating for a moment, she still asked with concern.

At heart, she was not a bad person. She was merely somewhat willful, but her heart was still kind.

Otherwise, she would not have helped Zhang Rongfang back then.

"Thank you for your concern, Senior Sister. I'm fine. This blood was splashed from someone else; it isn't mine." Zhang Rongfang showed an "moved" expression and hurriedly saluted.

"It's good that you're fine. After all, you were hurt because of me. If something had really happened..." Xiao Qingying did not continue. Worry showed on her pretty face.

"Rest assured, Senior Sister. I'm a Martial Cultivator now, after all. I'm not that fragile." Zhang Rongfang spoke earnestly.

"That's good."

Xiao Qingying still wanted to ask something, but seeing the exhaustion on Zhang Rongfang's face, she held herself back and said no more.

The group returned to the village.

Under the strange stares of the others, Zhang Rongfang returned to the village house where he was staying and changed out of his clothes.

He admitted to killing the man with the trap, but as for the other man, he flatly said he did not know what had happened.

Yang Xuanchao had also judged that the man's death had nothing to do with him. After all, according to Zhang Rongfang, he had only been practicing martial arts for a short time.

The dead man had clearly been beaten to death by someone whose strength and martial arts far surpassed Zhang Rongfang's.

According to Yang Xuanchao's judgment, that person should have been muscular and powerfully built.

Such a person's martial arts had at least several years of training behind them. The likeliest candidate was Chen Wuyou.

Afterward, Yang Xuanchao had no time to concern himself with anything else, because during the search, he discovered even more mountain bandits hiding in the mountains.

The two sides clashed on a small scale.

He personally entered the fray, killed several men, and drove back the mountain bandits. But an arrow from a crossbow pierced his shoulder, leaving him badly wounded as well.

The enemy actually had crossbows!

This instantly shifted Yang Xuanchao's attention away from the few doubts surrounding Zhang Rongfang, and he quickly sent people toward Huaxin County to request reinforcements.

When the time came, the four members of Qinghe Temple returned alone along the Official Road, rotating with the other factions.

...Huaxin County's urban district.

Li Family Pharmacy.

At dusk, Old Man Li was inside the pharmacy weighing the newly delivered medicinal herbs. Holding a small balance scale, he carefully placed bits of Tongyuan Grass onto it, then leaned close and used his more-than-eight-hundred-degree nearsighted eyes to note the markings.

"Shopkeeper!" A voice suddenly slipped in from outside the store, startling Old Man Li so badly that his hand shook and he nearly spilled the Tongyuan Grass onto the floor.

"Who is it!?" He set down the scale irritably and looked toward the entrance.

Outside the somewhat dim doorway, a young man dressed in a dark blue Daoist robe strode quickly inside.

"Shopkeeper, I haven't been feeling very well lately. Do you have any formulas that greatly replenish qi and blood? Give me some. Money is no issue!"

The young man swept out a hand, sounding extremely generous.

"..." Old Man Li rubbed his aching eyes and squinted at the visitor.

The young man wore a Daoist robe, and a Qinghe Temple waist token hung at his waist. He appeared to be a Daoist from Qinghe Temple.

"A formula to greatly replenish qi and blood?" Old Man Li was somewhat puzzled.

The other man had a rosy complexion, a sturdy build, evenly proportioned and powerful limbs, and a voice brimming with vigor. His qi and blood were abundant.

"Daoist, your qi and blood are stronger than those of ordinary laborers. Where exactly are you deficient? Tonics must not be taken recklessly. Take too much, and you'll fall ill instead." In his Ningzhou accent, Old Man Li offered kind advice.

The Daoist patted his chest.

"Boss, don't be fooled by how loud I speak. I feel weak. I only look rosy because I just ate something that replenishes qi and blood. Once I stop taking it, it won't work nearly as well."

Old Man Li shook his head. He was only a shopkeeper. Since the customer wanted it, as long as it was not poison strictly prohibited by the Government Office, he could buy whatever tonics he liked.

Perhaps the man looked healthy but had some unspeakable hidden ailment?

At that thought, Old Man Li could not help lowering his gaze toward the other man's lower body, his expression turning strange.

Zhang Rongfang paid him no mind. Right now, he was immersed in the harvest from earlier.

From the money pouches on those two mountain bandits, he had forcibly fished out five taels in silver notes.

That was five taels!

In Huaxin County, five taels could buy more than one shi of brown rice. Converted into the units of his Previous Life, that was around one hundred and fifty jin.

Even for Zhang Rongfang, it was no small income. Especially after being punished with two months without his stipend, he cherished this hard-won money all the more.

His previous money had all gone toward gifts and greasing palms. The money he had painstakingly accumulated this time was savings he could truly spend as he wished.

"For strong tonics, we have Eight Treasures Soup and Ten Tonics Decoction. Which do you want? You can also choose the age of the herbs inside. But anything over ten years old is very expensive, so let me warn you first."

Old Man Li rummaged around and happened to find several medicine packets left over from previous regular customers. They had all been wrapped in advance, each paper packet neat and tidy.

They were perfect to sell to this Daoist.

"Eight Treasures Soup? What are the eight treasures?" Zhang Rongfang felt it sounded somewhat familiar. In his Previous Life, he seemed to have heard of this formula as well.

"It is made by combining Four Gentlemen Decoction and Four Substances Decoction," Old Man Li briefly explained.

"It contains Ginseng, Poria, White Atractylodes, Licorice, Prepared Rehmannia, White Peony Root, Angelica, and Sichuan Lovage.

"It is mainly used for symptoms such as deficiency of both qi and blood, a sallow complexion, weakness throughout the body, dizziness and blurred vision, and poor appetite."

Old Man Li looked at the Daoist's somewhat muscular arms and rosy complexion, then did not continue.

"Can this greatly replenish someone?" Zhang Rongfang asked.

"Yes, it mainly replenishes qi. It is suitable for people who exercise little and have weak spleens and stomachs," Old Man Li said.

"I'm exactly someone who exercises little and has a weak spleen and stomach." Delight appeared on Zhang Rongfang's face.

"..." Seeing the banknote that the other man slapped onto the counter, Old Man Li chose not to waste any more words.

"But do you have something that simply replenishes blood?" Zhang Rongfang asked again. He felt that what his Attribute Special Ability needed might only be blood, not qi.

"Then you should simply buy Four Substances Decoction. But..." Old Man Li still wanted to say something.

"Then that's the one! How much for one dose? How long can one dose last?" Zhang Rongfang waved a hand and interrupted him.

"One tael per dose. One dose can be taken twice; by the third time, its efficacy will be much weaker. How you take it depends on your condition. Of course, these herbs are all poor in age. If you want better-aged herbs, you'll need to pay more."

"Give me five doses! If the effects are good, I'll come back for more!"

Very soon, Zhang Rongfang hurried away carrying five doses of Four Substances Decoction. Old Man Li remained behind the counter, wanting to speak but stopping himself.

What he had actually wanted to say was that Four Substances Decoction was generally used by women to nourish blood and regulate menstruation, so it was also commonly called Women's Friend Soup. Zhang Rongfang left the pharmacy carrying the cloth bag in his hand, feeling refreshed.

Five taels in silver notes were equivalent to the total of his stipend for two months. Unfortunately, after this time, it would be hard to find such an opportunity again.

For many wealthy households, five taels was no more than the price of a set of clothes, but for someone like him with no source of income, it was a considerable sum.

He strode quickly through Huaxin County, occasionally crossing small stone arch bridges.

The streets were packed with passersby.

Quite a few had pale skin, similar to the Europeans he had seen in his Previous Life. There were also Black People passing by now and then, while the most numerous were people with yellow skin.

But unlike Tianyin County, even the passersby dressed as farmers here were not sallow and emaciated. From time to time, people gathered around square wooden platforms, shouting and cheering loudly.

Clang.

Suddenly, a gong sounded in the distance.

"His Majesty decrees: troops shall be sent against Min Country. Those willing to enlist voluntarily may collect compensatory supplies at the yamen."

"His Majesty decrees: troops shall be sent against Min Country..."

Amid the repeated gongs, a small squad of officers wearing Iron Conical Hats slowly passed along the side of the street.

These officers wore gray cloth uniforms and leather belts, with long sabers at their waists. Most carried bows and arrows on their backs.

The leader at the front even wore a protective black Iron Mask. A wolf pattern was carved into it.

Zhang Rongfang paused briefly and watched the squad of officers pass.

Seeing the surrounding civilians avoid them as though they were snakes and scorpions, he seemed to understand why so many people were willing to squeeze their way into the Daoist Sect and Buddhist School, even if they had to sharpen their heads into needles.

Great Ling exhausted its soldiers in constant warfare, waging invasions against other countries and regions year after year.

Whenever there was war, whether they won or lost, there would inevitably be casualties. Great Ling's military might was astonishing and swept all before it, but that did not mean it could conquer other lands without losses.

Beyond that, uprisings erupted in various places from time to time, and they also required large numbers of troops to suppress.

Under such circumstances, being a soldier was truly a miserable job. Once one left home, one might never return again, perhaps dying on some nameless battlefield.

Zhang Rongfang's heart felt heavy. Then he suddenly thought of this body's Previous Body.

The Previous Body's Elder Sister had, in order to help the Previous Body avoid military service and to ensure that the siblings would no longer suffer bullying, deliberately plotted to seduce a powerful noble.

Because she came from a Confucian Household and had a family tradition of learning, her bearing far surpassed that of ordinary women. Unexpectedly, she had actually succeeded in the end.

Unfortunately, they were separated now.

But perhaps that was for the best. If they had not been separated, he truly would not know how to disguise the Previous Body's personality and other traits.

With that, he stopped thinking and hurried back toward Qinghe Temple with the medicine packets.

It was only because they had returned from their external patrol these past few days that Xiao Qingying had temporarily settled down.

Because she had secretly met with Chen Wuyou, Xiao Rong had punished her by making her recite scriptures and reflect on her mistakes in the Spirit Official Hall. She was not allowed to go anywhere.

Only then did Zhang Rongfang have time to move about freely, though he still had to hurry back before dark.

Because Xiao Qingying's rest time every day began one hour before nightfall.

He carried the medicine packets all the way back. From Huaxin County to Qinghe Temple, a one-way trip took one shichen on foot.

By the time he returned to his room and began preparing to brew the medicine, it was already dark.

First, he went to the dining hall with Xiao Qingying to eat. After seeing the woman back to her room to rest,

he then went alone to the Back Mountain, set out the medicine pot he had bought, stuffed in the herbs, added water, piled on firewood, and lit the fire.

Half a shichen later, Zhang Rongfang lifted a bowl of pitch-black medicinal soup, smelling the rich medicinal scent within.

I hope this works.

He felt that relying on eating to accumulate Attribute Points was simply too slow.

If he could carve out a path of accelerating it through medicine, perhaps the road ahead would become much easier.

He sloshed the medicinal soup in the wooden bowl, blew on it, and slowly took small sip after small sip.