Into the Mountains to Train

Into the Mountains to Train

"Yunbi, you're back at last! Hurry and check on your younger brother. He's having another episode." Lian Yunbi's mother sat by the bed, wiping away tears without pause.

In **, a thin boy who looked about ten lay in **. His whole body was bright red and burning hot to the touch, yet not a drop of sweat beaded on his skin. It was as if a ball of fire were burning inside him. The boy gritted his teeth fiercely in **, refusing to make a sound.

"Big sister, I feel awful. Untie me. I need to scratch." The boy saw Lian Yunbi and could no longer hold back. He pleaded with her. His body was covered in raw, torn marks from scratching, and his hands and feet were bound. In **, he couldn't move. They had tied him up to keep him from scratching.

Lian Yunbi's tears spilled out in an instant.

"Be good, little brother. You can't scratch. Just hold on a little longer. It'll pass soon." Lian Yunbi spoke through her tears. All she could do was watch; she couldn't touch her little brother. At a time like this, helping him scratch would only make things worse.

"Big sister, I feel awful." The boy's lips quivered, as if he were about to cry.

Lian Yunbi's mother was already weeping beside them, her face streaming with tears. "My poor child, why must you suffer so much?"

"Mother, where's Father?"

"Your father went to Luowang Prefecture to ask for a Cold-Clearing Pill. He hasn't returned yet."

Even by fast horse, the round trip between Luowang Prefecture and Mengyin City took four or five days.

Lian Yunbi clenched her teeth. "We can't wait any longer. Mother, look after little brother. I'm going to find an Ice Cold Pangolin!"

Lian Yunbi knew that only the blood of an Ice Cold Pangolin could ease her little brother's symptoms now.

With that, Lian Yunbi turned and left.

"Yunbi, you can't go into the mountains! It's dangerous up there now." Her mother shouted after her, trying to stop her daughter, but Lian Yunbi had already rushed out and didn't listen.

"Brother Zhang, I've got things moving. The Detoxification and Marrow Cleansing Pill will soon be known to every household! Plenty of people have already come to buy it, but we only have a little over two hundred pills. That definitely won't be enough."

Wang Pengyu looked at the two hundred or so pills in his hands, his face twisted with indecision. He was so excited he could barely wait.

Once word spread about the Detoxification and Marrow Cleansing Pill, the name of the Wang Family Pharmacy would resound throughout Mengyin City.

"Fifty pills weren't enough to make it known to every household. I gave you these two hundred to use for publicity, too." Zhang He smiled faintly. "Once these two hundred have been sold, people will really know the name of the Detoxification and Marrow Cleansing Pill. Don't worry. I'll go back and find my teacher now, and we'll make more pills together. As soon as they're ready, I'll bring them over."

"Teacher?" A look of confirmation flashed through Wang Pengyu's eyes. Zhang He really did have a formidable teacher!

"Keep promoting them for the next few days. I'll be off." Zhang He left the Five Poison Beads behind and departed the Wang Family Pharmacy.

At the Zhao Family estate, Zhao Feng wore a gloomy expression.

"From what you've described, that Zhang He only looks impressive. He isn't actually that strong. If he'd truly cultivated True Qi and reached the seventh level, he wouldn't have needed to dodge when he fought you."

A middle-aged man held a teacup as he analyzed the situation for Zhao Feng. His eyes gleamed with shrewdness. He was Zhao Feng's father, Zhao Zhiben.

"That shows Zhang He has some kind of limitation. That's why he had to trade blows with you, taking a punch so he'd have a chance to attack."

"So if I fight him head-on, he won't be a match for me at all?" A fierce glint flashed in Zhao Feng's eyes. His ears were still ringing.

"But he certainly won't just stand there and let you hit him!" Father Zhao shook his head. "Still, I think this is a good warning for you. Before, you never applied yourself fully when you trained. You thought you could win by relying on brute strength when fighting others. This should have taught you a lesson, right?"

"So what? I'll get my revenge! How dare a lowly commoner's son pick a fight with me!" Zhao Feng's face twisted with savagery.

To his surprise, Father Zhao praised him. "Good. That's the kind of spirit you need—never be afraid to lose. The Great Yang Pill will arrive in a few days. I begged your maternal uncle for it. Once you take it and cultivate a True Qi Seed, you'll have a much better chance."

"Really?" Zhao Feng's face lit up with delight. "Once I cultivate a True Qi Seed, I'll rank in the top three among the Martial Children! I'm sure to do well in the Martial Child Assessment."

"Haha, don't worry. If you do well in the Martial Child Assessment, your maternal uncle will arrange a good position for you." Father Zhao laughed. "Oh, and spend more time with that girl from the Lian Family. If you do well in the assessment, I'll have the standing to go ask for her hand for you."

"Really?" Zhao Feng's eyes lit up, but he quickly grew dejected. "That woman won't listen to reason. I don't dare try anymore."

"She only beat you once, and now you've lost your nerve? You have to get closer to her. Winning over the Lian Family would do wonders for our Zhao Family's future." Father Zhao scolded him. "Besides, marriage has always been decided by the parents and arranged by the matchmaker. If Lian Yunbi's father gives his word, how could she object?"

So the boy Lian Yunbi had beaten down back then was Zhao Feng!

Hearing his father say this, Zhao Feng could only nod. Of course he wanted to get closer to the goddess Lian, but she was a rose with thorns...

Meanwhile, at the Wang Family estate.

After hearing Wang Fengjie's account, the two middle-aged men in the hall fell silent. Wang Fengjie felt the pressure as he looked at his uncle's stern, unsmiling face.

"You may leave," Wang Renjie, the second younger brother of Wang Renxiong, told Wang Fengjie.

"Yes, Father." Wang Fengjie immediately breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew. He had said all he needed to say. The adults could make the decision now.

"Elder brother, it's been so many years. Sister-in-law has suffered so much out there..." Wang Renjie, the second younger brother of Wang Renxiong, spoke slowly, trying to persuade him. "From what we've heard, A-He isn't useless after all. You should let bygones be bygones and bring them back."

"Enough. That wretched woman dared to leave with nothing all those years ago. She can't expect to come back so easily!" Wang Renxiong said coldly.

"Elder brother, this isn't the time to be angry. The family competition is coming soon. If A-He really can help the family, as A-Jie says..."

Wang Renjie pleaded with him, trying to reason with him.

"Enough! I have things to take care of. You may leave." Wang Renxiong frowned slightly and cut him off.

Wang Renjie gave a bitter smile and had no choice but to leave. This was a good chance to bring his sister-in-law back. He knew how much she had suffered all these years, so he was determined to help her.

He would go find the family elders and try to persuade his elder brother! Wang Renjie didn't give up. Instead, he turned to seek help from the older members of the family.

Zhang He had no idea so many people were already watching him. He was walking through the mountains with a basket on his back. The trees on West Mountain were thick with foliage; life was at its most vigorous.

After climbing a small hill, Zhang He stopped and looked behind him. Mengyin City lay in the distance, little more than a vague outline. Mist drifted among the mountains, giving the landscape a dreamlike air.

He took a deep breath. The fresh mountain air made him feel refreshed.

"I can start looking for poisonous plants here." Zhang He had entered the mountains to find medicinal herbs that could temper his body.

He set down his basket and took out a sharp cleaver. He'd bought it from a blacksmith before leaving the city. Then he took out several packets of medicine, each containing poison specially prepared to ward off wild beasts. He'd bought some harmless herbs in the city and concocted the mixtures himself.

Zhang He was highly skilled in the art of poison. He could turn harmless things poisonous, and even neutralize highly toxic substances.

He tucked the packets into his belt. Once he was ready, he began his search for poisonous herbs in earnest.

Zhang He had been in the mountains for two days. When thirsty, he drank from mountain streams; when hungry, he ate wild fruit. At night, he slept in the trees. He'd been safe so far, and because he knew the properties of poisonous herbs well, finding them hadn't been too difficult.

But to Zhang He's disappointment, there weren't many poisonous herbs around. In two days, he'd found only five kinds he could use.

Even so, he made full use of the five.

Using Rejuvenation True Qi, he slowly drew the poisonous substances into his body. Then he circulated his energy in reverse and used the poison to temper his body.

In just two days, Zhang He had reached the Skin Tempering Realm. That was already a remarkable improvement, but he wasn't satisfied.

"Farther in lies the deep mountains. Going alone will be dangerous." Zhang He looked ahead. Deeper in, there would surely be more poisonous herbs, but with his current cultivation, going alone could put him in danger.

But he was even less willing to turn back just like that!

"Fortune favors the bold! I've found nothing useful out here. Only farther in might have what I need."

Zhang He gritted his teeth and decided to press deeper into the mountains. As long as he stayed cautious and fled the moment he encountered a powerful beast, he thought he could avoid any serious trouble.

The deep mountains were completely different from the outer slopes. The terrain was more treacherous, and trees blotted out the sky. A damp, rotten stench hung everywhere. Fallen leaves covered the ground, not yet fully decayed; underfoot, they felt soft and spongy.

Wild beasts howled in the distance now and then, making Zhang He tense. He climbed the vines, slowly making his way up the slope.

Then a familiar cluster of little yellow flowers appeared in his field of vision.

"Mad Heart Grass!"

Zhang He's eyes lit up. This was an essential ingredient for making Berserk Potion! He couldn't believe he'd found some here. Berserk Potion could accelerate the flow of True Qi and was especially useful in a fight. It was absolutely invaluable! He hurried over to pick it.

But the cluster of Mad Heart Grass suddenly moved.

A fox with yellow-and-black fur emerged from beneath it. Its eyes were blood-red as it stared fiercely at Zhang He.

"Could this be the legendary Mad Heart Fox?" A chill ran through Zhang He. In his memories, the Mad Heart Fox was a terrifying demon beast. Anyone bitten by it would be poisoned by its demonic venom, lose their sanity, and attack every living thing in sight until they finally collapsed from exhaustion and died!

"Demonic venom..." Zhang He's heart suddenly stirred.

The Mad Heart Fox lunged at him. Zhang He drew his cleaver and immediately tried to block it. But the fox was astonishingly fast. With a zigzagging leap, it easily darted around to Zhang He's feet. It roared and sank its teeth deep into his leg.

After biting him, the fox immediately slipped into the undergrowth and fled.

Zhang He felt a burning pain in his leg. He knew this was bad: the Mad Heart Fox's demonic venom was taking effect. He immediately climbed to a relatively level spot and examined his injury.

In just a short while, Zhang He felt as if his head were splitting and his mouth and throat had gone parched. It was as if a ball of fire were raging inside him.