Earthlight

The ointment provided by Elder Wu was indeed effective. Over the past few days, Qin Fang had applied it to his sunburned skin daily; it felt cool, smooth, and refreshing upon contact, and after just a few days, the condition of his sun-damaged skin had improved significantly.

Although there was still a long way to go before his skin could be called "fair," at least the dead skin had shed completely... and full recovery was only a matter of time.

One should not underestimate skin issues.

While the people in this world generally had rougher skin, the extensive sunburns sustained by a refugee exposed to the sun for several months were vastly different from the skin of an ordinary person weathered over many years.

This was one of the key reasons why Qin Fang carried such a heavy "refugee stench."

Once his skin issues were resolved, that "refugee stench" would not be so pronounced.

When he finally stepped out, he shouldn't be immediately identified as a refugee.

Just like that, more than ten days flashed by.

During this time, Elder Wu never returned, as if he had forgotten about Qin Fang.

Qin Fang was not in a hurry. He hadn't stepped out of the courtyard gate once in these ten days, spending his time throwing darts in the yard.

The wounds on his waist and shoulders had clearly recovered significantly during this period... the wounds were starting to itch, the scabs were beginning to fall off, and he could barely feel any pain unless he pressed down hard.

As for the soles of his feet, thick calluses had long since formed, and they no longer hurt at all.

...To have such injuries fully healed in about twenty days showed that the black ointment was astonishingly effective.

Elder Wu's medical skills were evident.

It was no wonder he held such a transcendent status in True Martial County.

For over ten days, with no one to talk to, Qin Fang could not get any news from the outside world and did not know the aftermath of the refugee uprising.

He was still somewhat concerned... had those refugees attacked the towns and markets around True Martial County? Or had they already been suppressed?

...With such a large-scale refugee riot, the Great Yu imperial court could not possibly ignore it, right?

Since the local authorities in True Martial could not suppress the riot, they would certainly send troops from elsewhere to quell it.

However, in the end, he didn't dwell on it.

It had nothing to do with him anyway.

He should focus on recovering his health first.

He was still drifting like duckweed, relying entirely on Elder Wu's charity to survive, and truly had no energy to think about anything else.

Just like that, in the blink of an eye, he had lived in this courtyard for half a month.

He was sleeping one day when a sudden, thunderous boom jolted Qin Fang awake. The entire room shook violently, and roof tiles were rattled loose, crashing to the ground with a clatter.

An earthquake?

Qin Fang was startled; he immediately scrambled up and rushed out of the house.

Then he froze, staring in astonishment at the distant horizon...

It was the dead of night, yet the distant sky was suffused with a crimson glow, as if the entire firmament were burning.

The rumbling sound came from the direction of that red radiance, shaking the very ground beneath his feet.

Qin Fang was clearly not the only one awakened; faint cries of alarm drifted from outside.

"Wh-what's happening?"

"The sky is on fire!"

"Did the earth dragon turn over?"

This quiet alley was naturally not home to just Qin Fang; other families lived here as well, though Qin Fang had never stepped out since arriving and thus did not know his neighbors.

But the celestial anomaly had stirred everyone, and the wailing of children—clearly terrified by the rolling thunder—could be heard.

Is that earthquake light?

Qin Fang frowned as he watched the crimson horizon.

He naturally knew that when a major earthquake occurred, such phenomena could appear; this light was known as "seismic light" or "earth light."

It seems there was a massive earthquake over there... Qin Fang thought to himself.

But earthquake lights usually only lasted for a few seconds, yet this crimson anomaly persisted for dozens of breaths before gradually subsiding. The rumbling also faded, and calm returned.

Qin Fang observed for a while longer, and seeing that there were truly no further anomalies, he let out a soft breath. He turned around, only to find himself at a loss for whether to laugh or cry...

Great. The few tiles left on his roof had been shaken off; he could probably observe the stars from inside his room now...

Shaking his head, Qin Fang returned to his room and went back to sleep.

"Elder Wu, there's a child over there who also hit his head; please take a look."

Before dawn had even broken, Spring Return Hall was already a hive of activity.

In the clinic, Elder Wu was bandaging the head of a patient. Hearing the apprentice's voice, he turned his head to see a couple rushing in anxiously, carrying a wailing child.

Elder Wu gave a few instructions to the patient and walked over.

"Elder Wu, please take a look."

"The earth dragon turned over last night, and a roof tile fell down, hitting him right on the head."

The couple explained the cause of the injury anxiously.

"Don't worry, let me take a look first."

Elder Wu calmed them down with a steady voice. He examined the child's injury; it was actually not serious, just a small gash on the head. Because there was a lot of blood and the child had been crying incessantly, it looked quite severe.

After checking, Elder Wu said, "It's nothing major. Just apply some medicine and it will be fine."

He walked to the side, found some ointment, and treated the child's wound.

The surrounding crowd was noisy.

"The earth dragon turning over has injured quite a few people."

"We're lucky; it must have been quite far from here. If it had been any closer, many would likely have died."

"Looking at the direction, it seems to be towards Stone Bay..."

"I heard that group of rebel refugees headed toward Stone Bay. Could they have happened to be right where the earth dragon turned over?"

"If that's the case, then Heaven has truly opened its eyes! It would be best if those scumbags all died!"

"A bunch of black-hearted scum. True Martial County saved them, and not only are they ungrateful, but they also bite the hand that feeds them... My great-uncle was killed by those rioters during that refugee uprising! My niece, who wasn't even ten years old, was... damn it!"

Someone spoke with a grief-stricken expression, unable to continue.

Many people wore expressions of hatred.

The refugee uprising was not just a simple matter of looting and pillaging.

Many things that angered both gods and men had occurred.

...The negative emotions that had built up over many days erupted all at once. What cruel acts wouldn't those refugees, who had even tasted human blood, be capable of?

It was no wonder these people hated the refugees so much.

Elder Wu stayed busy until noon before the number of injured finally dwindled...

Yesterday, when the earth dragon turned over, many people were injured by items falling from high places in their homes, though fortunately, none were very serious.

Elder Wu took a breather, thought for a moment, and then headed out the door.

"Elder Wu."

"Elder Wu."

He encountered many apprentices from Spring Return Hall on the road, all of whom greeted him respectfully.

Elder Wu nodded calmly, made his way out of Spring Return Hall, and went to a nearby grocery store.

"Elder Wu."

A simple-looking youth sitting on a flatbed cart at the entrance quickly bowed respectfully upon seeing Elder Wu.

Elder Wu nodded: "Come with me in a while."

"You got it!" the youth replied quickly.

Elder Wu walked into the grocery store. Shortly after, other shop assistants came out, loaded some items onto the cart, and the simple-looking youth followed behind Elder Wu.

Passing a butcher shop, Elder Wu paused, then walked inside.

A short while later, ten catties of pork were added to the cart, and Elder Wu led the youth into a quiet alley.

Outside a dilapidated small courtyard, Elder Wu raised his hand to knock on the door.

Suddenly, he heard a soft "whoosh" from inside, followed by a crisp "thud."

Elder Wu froze for a moment, then narrowed his eyes and waited at the door for a short while.

Then, a few more soft "whoosh" sounds came from the courtyard, followed by crisp "thud" sounds like darts hitting a wooden board.

This is...

The sound of hidden weapons?

Elder Wu narrowed his eyes and knocked on the door.

Shortly after, the door opened, and Qin Fang appeared before him.

Seeing Elder Wu, his eyes brightened slightly, and he smiled.

"Elder Wu."

Elder Wu nodded and walked into the courtyard. At a glance, he saw a wooden board standing at the edge of the yard with a target painted on it.

At this moment, four throwing darts were neatly embedded in the bullseye.