002 Reforging the Five Poison Beads (Revised)

To the southwest of Mengyin City lies the rolling Malian Mountain. It is the height of midsummer, and the mountain is lush and verdant.

A youth carrying a bamboo basket is currently climbing the slopes of Malian Mountain.

If I want to neutralize the residual toxins in my body within a short time without leaving any lasting damage, I must fight poison with poison. This Malian Mountain is thick with vegetation; there must be plenty of venomous insects here.

This is Zhang He. He has come to Malian Mountain without a moment's rest, all to find a cure for his mother. His mother's body is frail; if the virulent poison within her is not neutralized quickly, it will leave behind permanent complications.

Finally reaching the mountainside, Zhang He checks his bearings and heads toward the shaded side of the mountain. The mountain is swarming with mosquitoes in the summer, and having set off in such a rush, Zhang He did not have time to prepare properly. By now, his head is covered in welts. His arms and other areas are crisscrossed with red marks from sharp, vining plants. As sweat breaks out, he feels a stinging itch.

"Hmm, this spot is level and sits in the shade of the mountain. The yin energy is heavy—this is the place." Zhang He takes off his basket, from which a clattering sound emerges.

He clears a patch of ground in front of him to make it level, then takes a live rooster and a sharp knife from his basket. With a swift motion, he slits the rooster's throat, letting the blood drip to draw a circle around the clearing, leaving only a small gap.

He then takes out an earthen jar and pours a bit of pale yellow powder, drawing another circle along the edge of the chicken blood. These items are medicinal ingredients he bought in the city and refined himself. He hadn't expected the medicinal herbs here to be so abundant, though the ones he needs must be gathered personally on the mountain.

"Though my cultivation is ruined, my knowledge remains. I haven't used this 'Poison Summoning Technique' in so long that I'm a bit rusty. I wonder if it will still be effective."

This Poison Summoning Technique was a basic introductory skill he learned back in the Tang Sect. Having not used it for ages, he feels a bit clumsy as he brings it to mind.

Zhang He squats within the circle, lights a torch, and slowly burns the pale yellow powder. Yellow smoke drifts out, carrying a foul, fishy stench that is almost nauseating.

Zhang He burns the powder while keeping a close watch on his surroundings.

The yellow smoke is heavy, hanging in the air without dispersing, and slowly drifts into the damp grass.

A rustling sound emerges from the surrounding vegetation.

"Good, it still works!" Zhang He cannot help but feel a surge of joy. At this moment, one can see many colorful, venomous insects crawling toward him from all directions.

Anyone else would be horrified to see so many venomous creatures, but Zhang He finds them strangely familiar.

Zhang He takes out the prepared earthen jar and uses long chopsticks to pick up the insects one by one, dropping them inside. He selects only five specific types of venomous insects, ignoring all others.

Only when the jar is completely full does Zhang He withdraw his spiritual sense. Without his summons, the insects immediately scatter.

"The five elements of venomous insects are gathered. The rest is simple. I brought the supplementary herbs with me, so I can refine the Five Poison Beads directly!"

Zhang He seals the jar tightly and places the torch beneath it to heat it.

Crackle, pop.

Violent movements come from within. The insects are sensing danger and struggling.

A moment later, the insects inside stop struggling. After waiting a while longer, he opens the jar. The insects have vanished, replaced by a layer of black-red powder that emits a strange, lingering fragrance.

Zhang He nods in satisfaction. From his basket, he takes out several herbs he had prepared—some bought in the city, others gathered on the way up the mountain. He crushes the herbs, mixes them with the black-red powder from the jar, and rolls them into black-red beads the size of soybeans, which emit a peculiar scent.

This is what Zhang He intended to make: the "Five Poison Beads." The beads have a mild toxicity; if ingested, they do not harm the body but are quickly expelled. When encountering other toxins, the Five Poison Beads can encapsulate them and carry them out of the body together.

Fighting poison with poison—the Five Poison Beads are an antidote.

"I thought it would take at least two or three days to gather the insects and make the beads, but I didn't expect there to be so many here. It only took a day!" Zhang He packs his things into the basket, which still contains several other herbs for future use.

Zhang He begins his descent.

On the way, Zhang He is soon shocked.

"The medicinal herbs here are actually this abundant..."

When climbing up, Zhang He was focused solely on hunting insects to refine the beads and paid no attention to the roadside. Now that the beads are finished, his mood is light, and as he descends, he has the leisure to admire the scenery, immediately discovering a startling sight.

He starts by finding a few herbs and thinks he has struck gold, but as he continues down, he discovers many useful herbs growing wild like common weeds all over the mountain.

After picking several more herbs, a gleam appears in Zhang He's eyes.

"These herbs are essential for concocting low-level body-tempering agents. As long as I find a few more supplementary ingredients, I can brew them!"

Zhang He slows his pace, intentionally taking a longer route down the mountain to search for the remaining herbs. By the time he reaches the foot of the mountain, the sky is nearing dusk, and the sun has already set.

Just as he turns a corner, he hears a voice ahead.

"Young brother, please, come give us a hand! My young master has fallen suddenly ill, and our carriage has broken down. I beg you to help me carry him back; I will reward you handsomely."

A voice thick with tears comes from ahead. A middle-aged man is guarding a luxurious carriage that has tipped over by the side of the road; a wheel has fallen off. A youth in brocade robes lies on the ground, unconscious. The man watches the youth, not daring to step away for even a second.

"Fallen suddenly ill?" Zhang He walks over and suddenly sees that the youth's face is black, and his breath carries a foul, rotting stench. It is exactly the same as the symptoms his mother suffered.

Could he have been bitten by that strange venomous insect? Zhang He feels a jolt. He quickly leans down and sees a bite mark on the back of the youth's hand. It is just as he thought!

"Your young master has been bitten by a venomous insect." Zhang He's heart stirs. He isn't certain of the efficacy of the Five Poison Beads he just refined; this is the perfect chance to test the medicine on this fellow.

"Venomous insect?" The chubby middle-aged servant's eyes light up. He slaps his thigh and cries, "That seems to be it! The young master was fine just a moment ago, and then he let out a cry. Young brother, please, help me carry him back, and we will surely reward you well."

"We are over thirty miles from Mengyin City. If we carry him back, your young master will likely be dead long ago," Zhang He says sharply. He takes a few of the newly made Five Poison Beads from his basket. "This pill can cure a hundred poisons. Have him take this first and see; I expect there will be a reaction within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea."

Seeing the middle-aged man hesitate, Zhang He says nothing, reaches out to take the beads back, and says coldly, "Ungrateful!"

The middle-aged man is suddenly anxious. He quickly grabs Zhang He and forces a smile: "Young brother, how many of these pills should he take?"

Zhang He's expression softens slightly; he cannot be bothered to waste more breath on this fellow. "One at a time. If there's no reaction in half a cup of tea, give him another."

The middle-aged man knows he cannot hesitate any longer. He has no choice but to treat the dying horse as if it were alive and feeds one pill to the youth.

Zhang He watched from the side, and just as he had expected, it took only a moment before a low rumble erupted from the young man's stomach. Visible to the naked eye, the youth's previously blackened complexion rapidly flushed with color, and his eyelids began to flutter, on the verge of opening, while the rumbling in his belly grew increasingly thunderous.

"Once he wakes up and finishes purging his bowels, he will feel much better. If he still feels unwell, have him take another one." Knowing that his Five Poison Beads had taken effect, Zhang He did not linger and quickened his pace toward the city.

The middle-aged man shouted loudly from behind, but Zhang He paid him no mind. Occupied with tending to the youth, the middle-aged man was unable to break away and could only watch as Zhang He walked further and further into the distance.

"I let our savior leave! When the Young Master wakes up, he will surely punish me!" The middle-aged man wore a look of utter misery.