Avoiding Disaster

You Xuehan, codenamed Tangyuan, is a scholar by profession, what Pro State calls a literary scholar.

Logically speaking, Tangyuan would not usually get involved in dealing with such relatively primitive Strange Monsters, because these Strange Monsters do not understand human language and have no knowledge of human culture, and most of the techniques of scholars are ineffective against them.

But this was an unexpected situation, and apart from "Chuunibyou" and "Light Bulb", she arrived the fastest.

There are two most suitable techniques for dealing with this silkworm.

The first is Word Attack, which are what Pro State calls "A Word Worth a Thousand Gold."

This "domesticated silkworm" is illiterate, but that does not diminish the value of its A Word Worth a Thousand Gold. This technique utilizes the power of words and the cultivator to inflict heavy damage on the enemy.

For example, if you write the word "broken" on a silkworm, if your cultivation level is high enough, the silkworm will be broken into pieces on the spot.

This is the best choice for Wenxiu to deal with the original Strange Monsters, so why doesn't Tangyuan use it?

"A Word Worth a Thousand Gold of gold" represents a level six skill, while Tangyuan) only possesses a level four cultivation.

These four levels of cultivation were achieved through drugs and training using technology from Outer State; Tangyuan's practical combat experience was quite limited.

Secondly, there are Word Entity, which is what Pro State refers to as "Ink Counting and Line Following".

This is the fourth level of the Wenxiu skill, Tangyuan can use.

This technique also utilizes the power of words and cultivators to materialize Word Entity and fight against enemies.

However, this technique is not a good choice under the current circumstances.

The materialized text transformed into hundreds or thousands of warriors, indiscriminately attacking everyone present.

The silkworm has thick skin and can withstand the attack, but the "Light Bulb" is not so tough. A "knife" character transformed into a short knife that flew over. The "Light Bulb" is slippery and can still maneuver for a moment.

When the character "fire" transformed into a ball of flame and flew over, the Light Bulb became frightened and immediately abandoned its plan to rescue Qin Minghui, fleeing directly out of the technique's range.

He escaped. What will happen to Qin Minghui?

Qin Minghui wasn't the worst off; the worst off were the two children, who didn't even know the most basic safety precautions.

Tangyuan found a way out between the lines and escaped from the words.

She also considered that others would be affected, so she didn't go too far, and she is currently facing a dilemma.

Should we save Qin Minghui first or the two children first?

While hesitating, Qin Minghui took advantage of the silkworms resisting the attack of the characters to escape and pounce on the two children, shielding them with his body.

He has not yet escaped the control of the technique.

Several lines of text began to attack Qin Minghui, leaving Qin Minghui battered and bruised.

Upon seeing this, Tangyuan quickly dispelled the technique.

But she didn't expect that this was also a foolish move.

Previously, he hadn't used much force, and the silkworm hadn't been seriously injured. But now that the technique had been dispelled, the enraged silkworm charged at Qin Minghui once more.

At this moment, Tangyuan couldn't think of a solution.

In the critical moment, Big Head rushed into the factory and punched the silkworm over.

The silkworm wriggled and struggled on the ground, trying to get up, Big Head kicked it again, breaking its fangs.

Taking advantage of the silkworm's inability to resist, Big Head took a syringe from his waist, pierced the silkworm's skin, and injected the medicine into it.

The silkworm struggled for a moment, then lay still on the ground.

Tangyuan quickly called an ambulance and took Qin Minghui and the two children to the hospital.

Qin Minghui suffered many injuries, but fortunately none of them were life-threatening. After his wounds were treated and he was put on a pain pump, he quickly fell asleep.

The next morning, Big Head and Light Bulb went back to the bureau to write a report, while Tangyuan stayed at the hospital to take care of Qin Minghui.

Chen Changrui arrived at the hospital and breathed a sigh of relief upon learning that Qin Minghui was doing well.

According to the bureau's regulations, Qin Minghui was staying in a single ward. Taking advantage of the fact that there was no one else in the room, Chen Changrui chatted with Tangyuan for a few minutes.

"Tangyuan, Chuunibyou, and Light Bulb are newcomers, so I won't talk about them. How many years have you been in the bureau?"

Tangyuan lowered her head and said, "Ten years."

"If I remember correctly, you became Dark Energy User when you were eight years old."

Tangyuan nodded.

"I remember your dad even found you a mentor in the bureau to teach you the training techniques of a polymath. You're really talented; you've reached the fourth level at such a young age."

Tangyuan bit her lip and remained silent.

Chen Changrui glanced at Qin Minghui: "Chuunibyou and Light Bulb are both newcomers, I won't comment on them. You've been in the bureau for ten years, with the skills of a fourth-level officer, and you've accomplished this mission like this?"

Tangyuan's face turned bright red.

Chen Changrui sighed and said, "This isn't your fault, it's my fault. I didn't give you enough experience."

You're not the only one in our team in this situation. Last time on the mission, Glasses and Candy also made a complete mess of things.

When faced with slightly more difficult missions, the ones who can handle tough battles are all the veteran members like Big Head. If these veterans can no longer fight, I don't know what our Public Security Team will be able to do in the future.

As they were talking, Qin Minghui woke up.

"I'll go get some hot water." Tangyuan, who was originally too ashamed to sit still, made an excuse to leave the ward.

Chen Changrui looked at Qin Minghui and said, "Little Qin, well done, you didn't embarrass me. I'll ask the bureau for an award for you tomorrow."

Qin Minghui shook his head. "Team Leader, I heard what you just said. We didn't do a good job on this mission."

Chen Changrui smiled and said, "You did a great job."

"Bad is bad, everyone is the same. I've looked back on the whole process, and we've made quite a few mistakes."

"Don't think about that. You're a newbie, and this is your first time dealing with Strange Monsters. You've done quite well."

"What's the name of that Strange Monsters?"

"Name..." Chen Changrui thought for a moment, "According to our naming convention, it should be Lepidopteran Primitive Variant Creature."

"What's the name of Pro State?"

"You know about Pro State too?"

"I've heard you mention it before; you said it's a place where you can truly develop your skills."

Chen Changrui smiled and said, "In Pro State, this Strange Monsters is called the domestic silkworm."

"Judging from the name, it seems like it's not highly regarded."

"Take it seriously? How can I explain that to you?" Chen Changrui said with a wry smile.

"In Pro State, there is a special place called Newland. There, any hunter can easily kill a silkworm, but because there is nothing of value on the silkworm, the hunters don't bother with them."

Qin Minghui listened intently. "So, does that mean Pro State is very powerful?"

Chen Changrui shook his head. "The people of Pro State are tough, but Pro State is not powerful. You'll understand once you've been there."

Ma Wu stared into Aqin's eyes for a long time.

Yesterday, we removed the root of love from Huo Ling's eyes, Huo Ling quickly returned to normal.

The root of love in Aqin's eyes was something she couldn't remove no matter what she did; it was like a soft thorn that was difficult to pull out.

Fortunately, Ah Aqin had sobered up a bit. Ma Wu told her not to go to the movies anymore, and Aqin Ma Wu to him. She obediently stayed at the newspaper office for one night.

When they looked again the next morning, the affection in Aqin's eyes had vanished.

When asked about the movie "Blood Blade Detective" again, Aqin didn't have any special feelings.

"It's just something new to see; it's not that great."

Huo Ling also agreed, "I watch movies for the excitement, but this movie wasn't really that exciting. However, it did convey a lot of profound truths."

Ma Wu found it increasingly strange.

Is he just overthinking things?

Could it be that these two women were really just looking for something new?

He had Bai Qiusheng obtain Travel Permit and buy a train ticket, preparing to go to Belt Ridge.

Huo Ling was displeased. "Fifth Son, what are you going there for? Aren't the two of us enough?"

Aqin also advised from the side, "You've just been promoted, you need to be careful about what you do."

Ma Wu looked at the bloodstains on the handkerchief; they were left by Huo Ling.

Is this really just a matter of love?

Perhaps only she can verify it.

At Medicine King Gully Station, Li Banfeng got off the train and inquired about the Carriage Driver with the steamer in the square in front of the station.

Since it's a rare opportunity to come all this way, if I can run into him, I'd be happy to ask him about the seventh level of the technique.

An experienced Carriage Driver, who knew the one with the steamboat well, said, "That brother went home yesterday afternoon, saying he was going to avoid disaster. He even told me to go home and hide there too."

How could I hide? If I don't work for even a day, I can't survive; my whole family is waiting to eat.

Seeking refuge?

This Carriage Driver is a big shot in the Travel Cultivator, and his ability to Auspiciousness and Avoiding Calamity is not to be underestimated. If he says he wants to avoid disaster, then something must be wrong.

What could it be?

Li Banfeng tightened his guard and, instead of taking a rickshaw, went directly to Inner Gully.

Inner Gully felt so familiar. This was Li Banfeng's first stop in Pro State, especially Pailou Street, where he was very familiar with every shop, including the Xianle Dance Hall that he had blown up.

The dance hall has been renovated, and the facade is almost the same as before. I heard it's still Jiang Xiang Gang's business.

How about we blow it up again?

Let's talk about it another day.

Go find Steward Feng first.

When Li Banfeng arrived at Feng's General Store, the store was closed.

Where have you gone off to have fun again? Isn't Chunsheng here either?

The Yu Family Cloth Shop next door was also closed.

What's going on?

Just as Li Banfeng was about to ask someone, he suddenly felt someone approaching from behind.

He turned around abruptly and saw a tall, thin figure saying to him, "You're back without even letting me know?"

Qiu Zhiheng was overjoyed to run into him on the street.

Perhaps out of habit, Li Banfeng didn't say much, and Qiu Zhiheng didn't ask any questions. He simply took Li Banfeng to Qiu Family Business's Pharmacy: "Let's go home and have dinner."

Upon arriving at the pharmacy, Qiu Zhiheng introduced her to Li Qi, and only then did her sister-in-law realize that this man was Li Qi.

The sister-in-law was also very happy and cooked for the two of them herself.

The pharmacy business was booming. After years of hard work and struggle, Qiu Zhiheng finally had his own business and ran it with great care.

The sister-in-law prepared a table of food and drinks. After the two had a few drinks, Qiu Zhiheng said, "Take a look at the account book later and calculate the Bonus Money."

It was clearly stated at the beginning that Li Banfeng would provide the money, Qiu Zhiheng would provide the labor, and the profits would be split 50/50. When it came time to divide the profits, Qiu Zhiheng would definitely not let Li Banfeng suffer a loss.

Li Banfeng waved his hand and said, "You can use my Bonus Money for now, let's expand the business."

I came here to find Steward Feng of Feng's General Store. Do you know where he is?

The sister-in-law said from the side, "He said he went to avoid disaster and told us it would be best to close our business for the next couple of days."

Why is Steward Feng also avoiding disaster?

What exactly is going on?

Qiu Zhiheng said, "Our business has just opened, how can we just close down? I suspect that Jiang Xiang Gang is coming to cause trouble. I want to see what tricks they can pull here."

Is it really Jiang Xiang Gang?

It's perfectly reasonable for Steward Feng to avoid Jiang Xiang Gang.

Why did the Carriage Driver avoid Jiang Xiang Gang?

Is there something else going on here?

Just then, Qiu Zhiheng's son ran in, blushing and smiling, "Sister Cao Ye is here."

Cao Ye?

Which Cao Ye?

When Li Banfeng went outside, he saw that it really was the same Cao Ye he had met on Bitter Mist Mountain.

Cao Ye, her eyes red, stood at the entrance of the medicine shop, a carriage parked behind her.

Beside the carriage stood a man, around sixty years old, wearing a short jacket, with his hair parted, and a deep smile on his face. He spoke to Cao Ye in an elder's tone:

"I'm going to say something, and you might not like it, but what's the point of doing this kind of work? How much money can you make delivering medicinal herbs?"

You still want to open a pharmacy? You still want to do big business? Do you even have the skills? Do you think you're destined for it?

Cao Ye began to sob upon hearing this.

That can't be right.

On Bitter Mist Mountain, Cao Ye had risked its life; surely it wouldn't shed tears over a few words from this old man?

Who is this old man to her?

Li Banfeng was still observing the situation when he saw his sister-in-law rush outside, grab Cao Ye, and enter the medicine shop.

Qiu Zhiheng said to the customers in the pharmacy, "I'm sorry, everyone, our shop is closed now. Please come again another day?"

The customers were very dissatisfied. What time is it? How can they close so suddenly?

Qiu Zhiheng didn't explain, saw all the guests off, and immediately closed the door.

Li Banfeng asked, "Brother Qiu, what happened?"

Qiu Zhiheng frowned. "It's been too long since I've been to Medicine King Gully, and I'm out of touch with everyone."

His sister-in-law chimed in, "Nonsense! Steward Feng told you to go and avoid trouble, but you wouldn't listen!"

Qiu Zhiheng was very annoyed. "He didn't explain himself clearly. I thought he had an enemy, but who knew this thing would come!"

Just then, the old man shouted from outside the door, "What does this mean? You're closing down just because I'm here? Is this how you do business?"

"I'm going to say something, and you might not like to hear it, but if your pharmacy treats its customers like this, it's definitely not going to do well in the future!"

Qiu Zhiheng gritted his teeth and said, "What bad luck!"

Li Banfeng asked, "What exactly does this person do?"

"This is a slacker!"

PS: What kind of Daoist sect is the Sangxiu? Why does everyone avoid it?