A stretch of deep mountains.
From within the clouds, a streak of black light suddenly descended.
Aaron put away the 'Iron Leaf Boat,' unfurled his movement technique, and sped toward one of his medicinal herb gardens like an ordinary martial arts master.
Whenever he acted in the mundane world, he was always careful to disguise himself as a Transformation Force martial artist.
Yet when he reached several thatched huts in the mountains, his brow furrowed.
There was no sign of human habitation there!
Only upon drawing close did he discover several corpses inside the huts, where the stench was overwhelming.
On the wall beside the bodies were blackish-brown filthy scrawls, and it went without asking whom they cursed.
Aaron sighed and went to the medicinal field he had opened up behind the huts. Sure enough, not a single grain had been harvested, and the field was overgrown with weeds.
They must have seen that the spirit herbs had failed to sprout for so long... feared my punishment, and dreaded the agony of the Five Insect Heart-Eating Pill, so in their despair, they could only kill themselves...
Aaron shrugged. "Am I that kind of person? Then again... it seems a band of mountain bandits was working here. No wonder they always saw things in the worst possible light... Those honest herb farmers from before—even when they tended the spirit herbs to death, I barely punished them at all! I even gave them money!"
Every so often, he would inspect his many small herb gardens and bring antidotes to delay the effects of the Five Insect Heart-Eating Pill.
But alas...
Other than a scant few locations, his grand plan of growing herbs had failed across the board!
Aaron was utterly speechless.
Even when picking random deep mountains and ancient forests, he had