Does This Thing Have Poison (Thanks to Tong Tang for the Alliance Leader)

"Talking nonsense. I knew at a glance this had nothing to do with Langya Academy. I just don't know who did it." The Black Goat stuck out its tongue, its mouth charred black. After the surface char fell off, blisters had already formed.

"Then I don't know. From Da Gan in the southeast of the Wasteland to Northwest Liang Mountain in the north, and Great Zhen to the north, Great Li to the northeast, all around the Wasteland, there are people like this, and not a small number of them. Plus, the great upheaval in the Wasteland a few months ago, with the great sun in the sky, anyone could be coming here now."

The black-robed figure indicated that the matter was unsolvable and could not be traced.

Before, everyone had a tacit understanding and rarely came to the Wasteland. Now, hey, you have to be careful not to bump into people when you walk.

"Let's hurry up and go. We're too close to the mine here, and we'll be discovered easily."

"Those shepherds are dead, what about the sheep? And what about this year's Jinlan Ore?" the Black Goat asked resentfully, spitting out blood from its ruptured blisters.

It spun around a few times on the spot and came to the mountain hollow where the flock used to shelter from the wind. It nudged the snow on the ground with its head, constantly chewing on everything left on the ground. After a moment, it raised its head and looked at the mountain range where the Jinlan Mine was located, its eyes full of confusion.

"Who did this? They killed the shepherds, saved the sheep, and then sent the flock to the mine? Are they sick?"

"Let's go. We've lingered here too long, and you've already left traces. If we don't leave, we'll leave more. I don't want to be hunted by Langya Academy's hounds. Since the flock went to the mine, we can find a way to get information from those sheep later."

The black-robed figure looked at the vomit on the ground, waved his hand, rolled up his wide sleeves, stirred up the wind and snow, ground the filth to pieces, and blew it away. Without waiting for the Black Goat to reply, he picked up the Black Goat and rushed into the sky with his feet like the wind.

Less than two hours after the black-robed figure and the Black Goat left, the dark clouds in the sky rolled apart to both sides, and a Flying Boat flew out from within.

The Flying Boat was entirely black, as if made of metal, but without the slightest reflection. It was over a hundred zhang long, and its interior was difficult to see. Only at the bow was there a large banner with the words "Langya" written on it.

As the Flying Boat descended from the clouds, a figure rushed out and fell rapidly. It stopped abruptly three feet above the ground.

The person who arrived was dressed in a cyan long gown, with a fair, beardless face and a dignified square jaw. He stood in the air, his eyes shining with divine light, scanning his surroundings.

Under the snow, a bone fragment no bigger than a fingernail lid automatically jumped out and suspended in mid-air. Under the gaze of his eyes, it immediately emitted a wisp of black smoke.

Seeing this, the burly man immediately sneered.

"Black Goat? Why are these scums everywhere, like cockroaches, impossible to kill."

He looked up again at the faintly visible mountain range ahead. The burly man's figure flickered, and a layer of light haloed around his cyan gown, enveloping him and transforming into a streak of light, heading straight for the mountain range where the Jinlan Mine was located.

He arrived at the entrance of the mine and stopped, frowning slightly.

The left hillside, in his eyes, seemed to be covered by a thin layer of gray mist. The divine light in his eyes surged. The more he tried to see clearly, the denser the mist became. Instead, when he dispersed the divine light in his eyes, he could see clearly.

"When did such a bizarre domain appear here?"

Looking to the right, in the locust tree forest, the yin energy was dense, and the deathly aura and vitality were strangely intertwined, indistinguishable from each other.

The steaming yin energy dispersed, but it subtly formed a whole, as if it could condense into a single force in an instant.

This forest was also extremely strange, with the two places being adjacent without any gap, which was even stranger.

Just as the burly man was about to take a step, a voice sounded in his ear.

"Zhiqiu, Langya Academy has an agreement with people not to enter Jinlan. Don't give them any reason to criticize. Besides, the main business is important."

The burly man retracted his foot, turned, and bowed to the Flying Boat in the sky.

"Mu Zhiqiu admits his mistake. I beg your pardon, sir."

After the burly man finished speaking, he immediately shot up into the sky and returned to the Flying Boat.

The Flying Boat broke through the clouds and disappeared again.

Yu Ziqing had no idea that the outside world was in turmoil. He was very happy.

He thought that the strange mushrooms with umbrella-like caps that could grow up to a zhang wide were too large, and their stalks had become woody, so eating them would be like chewing wood. Who knew that the taste was unexpectedly good? The texture was like shiitake mushrooms, but not as dense and tender, and also like dried tofu, but slightly more delicate than dried tofu.

Moreover, judging from Yu Ziqing's contact when processing the ingredients, this thing was extremely nutritious, with fat, protein, and starch, all the necessary components. He just didn't know how this thing grew.

Following the village's usual rough cooking experience, Yu Ziqing took a large pot, added enough clear water, and stewed it over low heat for an hour. The chopped mushrooms did not stew into mush in the pot. They tasted like perfectly braised pork, the soup was like honey, naturally clinging to the spoon, with a natural salty taste in the fresh aroma, so no salt was needed.

Coupled with the natural sense of satisfaction brought by the mixture of fat, protein, and starch, it was simply unparalleled.

Of course, whether it tasted good or not was not important; being able to eat one's fill was important.

For the first time in months, he could eat his fill. This most basic sense of satisfaction could not be compared to eating any delicacy.

Guaranteed to eat his fill, a privilege of the cook, no need to steal food.

It was at this time that Yu Ziqing finally understood why they had asked him several times what he could do.

Considering the unfortunate fellow in front who was starved to death and executed for stealing raw meat, Yu Ziqing immediately understood that in this place, being a chef was definitely the best job.

The village chief agreeing to let him be a cook was a great favor.

It could even be said to be too much of a favor.

Ever since he went down into a cave with Er Han, and only in the area where they harvested fungi, they encountered a giant beast and a hungry ghost, Yu Ziqing understood that the dangers faced by those who went underground to mine would be much greater than he had imagined.

Besides guarding against dangers like cave-ins, they might also encounter other anomalous beings.

A cook was definitely one of the safest people in the village.

Given that he was a scrawny weakling, and the village chief, who looked like he needed support to walk, could crush him with one hand, he posed no threat. Only then would the village chief dare to give him such preferential treatment without asking too many questions?

It definitely wasn't for that reason.

Yu Ziqing wanted to figure it out, but being able to eat his fill was too wonderful, so he decided not to cause any more trouble for now.

After finishing up in the kitchen and helping everyone else get their meals, Yu Ziqing, whose mouth was already watering uncontrollably, returned to his earthen dwelling with two large bowls of mushroom soup.

Old Yang was still asleep. The injury from that blow was more serious than he had anticipated.

"Old Yang, wake up, it's time to eat."

After a long while, Old Yang weakly turned his head. He took one look and immediately scrambled up from the pile of straw, shaking his head as he spoke.

"This Jinlan Mushroom is a good thing. It only grows where Jinlan Ore is found. If it's harvested and left for three days, it will rot. Within those three days, every night that passes, its value will drop by a grade. I've only heard of, but never seen, mushrooms harvested on the same day."

After his usual explanation to Yu Ziqing, Old Yang said no more and buried his head in the wooden bowl, devouring the meat and soup in one go without even lifting his head.

"Old Yang, with your physique, after starving for so long, aren't you afraid of bursting your stomach by eating so much at once?" Yu Ziqing was genuinely concerned.

"I'm not afraid. I have four stomachs now."

Yu Ziqing was speechless, unsure how to retort.

He looked at his own wooden bowl and pushed it towards Old Yang.

"If you haven't eaten enough and aren't afraid of bursting your stomach, keep eating. I'll get more after you're done. At least as a cook, I get all I can eat. Er Han caught a giant worm today, so there should still be mushroom soup."

"Never mind, my body can't handle too much right now. You eat."

Yu Ziqing no longer insisted. He cupped his wooden bowl in his hands, slurping the thick soup along the rim. Just one mouthful of the warm soup seemed to bring him back to life from a near-death state. Warmth slowly rose from his abdomen, spreading to every limb and bone. His blood vessels, frozen for months, felt like they were reawakening.

"Hiss... Hah..."

Once the hunger subsided, the savory, salty flavors and the meaty texture began to dominate his senses.

Yu Ziqing suppressed the urge to devour everything, chewing slowly and sipping the soup, constantly gauging the capacity of his stomach. He took a full incense's worth of time to finish the bowl, consuming it all, dregs and soup included.

He set down the wooden bowl and lay back in the straw. Feeling the heat continuously spreading from his abdomen, an indescribable sense of satisfaction and pleasure surged into his heart with unstoppable force, occupying every corner.

In both his lives, this was the first time Yu Ziqing had ever felt this way.

"It seems you've truly never experienced hunger before," Old Yang said, curling his hooves beneath him and lying in the straw. He looked at Yu Ziqing with curiosity, the light in his eyes appearing to be the first time he was seriously recalling Yu Ziqing's words.

"Yes, I've never truly known what hunger is," Yu Ziqing replied softly, lying there with his eyes closed.

Silence fell between them as they both enjoyed the pleasure of lying down after a satisfying meal.

A moment later, Old Yang yawned.

"Eat your fill while you're here. Once you leave, you won't be able to.

Jinlan Mushrooms are rare and gentle tonics. Only fresh ones are effective. According to Da Gan's classification, this is a fourth-grade Spiritual Medicine. It's non-toxic when fresh, and even those with weak constitutions can eat it with confidence. It's best when paired with health-preserving methods."

"So, it's poisonous when it's not fresh?" Yu Ziqing asked, full of curiosity.

Old Yang lifted his eyelids and looked at Yu Ziqing with a hint of surprise.

"What isn't poisonous? Under the heavens, for humans, everything within sight contains toxicity. It's just that the amount of poison is minuscule and can be ignored. Even water, if consumed in excess, can cause poisoning."

"Can I make some? How effective is it? If I can, I'll make some for self-defense." Yu Ziqing didn't care about the details; all he could think about was self-defense.

His abilities were strong, capable of deciding life and death with a single strike, but the wind-up was excessively long. He had imagined countless scenarios where he'd be cut down by enemy blades before he could even draw his sword.

Seeing Yu Ziqing's firm resolve, Old Yang didn't hesitate and directly stated, "For fresh Jinlan Mushrooms, scrape off one-tenth from the top of the cap and half of the outer skin from the root of the same stalk. Steam and sun-dry it nine times in the same proportion, then grind it into powder. This will create a highly effective Spirit-Confusing Medicine that can disrupt a person's five senses. It's best consumed orally, inhaled secondarily, and introduced into the seven orifices thirdly. Consuming half a fen will disrupt a person's five senses for ten days."

Yu Ziqing was greatly shocked. After listening, he immediately got up and turned to leave.

Remembering the vast patches of Jinlan Mushrooms in the underground space, he thought, If I don't find a way to get a sack of this for self-defense, am I even human?

This is like an ultimate, enhanced version of lime powder!