A Bountiful Harvest

"You are quite tenacious, to still be alive." Seeing Sun Shaochuan's weakened state, Zhang He breathed a sigh of relief. Sun Shaochuan had completely lost his ability to fight and was no longer a threat.

"I am an inner-sect disciple of the True Martial Academy and a member of the Northern Border Kingdom's royal family. As long as you save me, I can grant you endless wealth and glory! I can even promise you three conditions." Sun Shaochuan had been struck by the Soul-Bewildering Guide and was originally limp, but after being slashed by Wu Xuan, the loss of blood had purged a portion of the toxin from his body. Being naturally robust, he had managed to regain consciousness.

"True Martial Academy?" Zhang He frowned upon hearing this. He only knew that Medicine King Valley was not to be trifled with, but he hadn't expected these two to be from the True Martial Academy. The True Martial Academy was renowned; it was the largest academy in the Northwest Empire, filled with countless elite disciples. Anyone who emerged from the True Martial Academy would go on to become a powerful minister or a great general of the Northwest Empire!

The Western Chu Kingdom where Zhang He resided was merely a second-rate nation, a vassal state of the Northwest Empire. Throughout the entire Northwest Empire, the True Martial Academy was the holy land that all young talents yearned for, because entering it meant one was destined for future success!

Sun Shaochuan believed that upon hearing his promise, the other party would surely be tempted.

"Promise me three conditions? You certainly have a big mouth, worthy of someone from the True Martial Academy. Unfortunately, I am just an ordinary person, and I cannot afford to provoke people from the True Martial Academy. Keeping you alive is a hidden danger to me!" A cold light flashed in Zhang He's eyes, and without hesitation, he stepped forward to deliver a finishing blow.

Sun Shaochuan died with his eyes wide open, unable to believe that after hearing his identity and the promised rewards, the other party was not only unmoved but had struck to kill.

Confirming that all three were thoroughly dead, Zhang He finally relaxed.

"Among these three, two are from the True Martial Academy, and one is a disciple of Medicine King Valley. Neither side is someone I can afford to offend. I never expected that coming to gather herbs today would lead to such a mess!" Looking at the three corpses, Zhang He knew he had to dispose of them properly, leaving no traces behind.

"These three fellows should have quite a few good things on them." Recalling what they had been fighting over, Zhang He felt a stir in his heart and proceeded to search their bodies.

"This bag is strange." Zhang He looked at the bag in his hand. It had been taken from Sun Shaochuan, though it originally belonged to Wang Jian. The bag was about the size of a palm, black, heavy in his hand, and radiated a chill, as if woven from metallic threads with a faint, dull glow upon it.

"They were fighting over this pouch earlier." Zhang He pondered briefly, opened the pouch, and poured out its contents. He wanted to see exactly what was inside.

Clatter.

The items from the bag fell to the ground, immediately piling up into a small hill. Zhang He felt a biting chill wash over him, causing him to shiver involuntarily. He widened his eyes, staring at the mound before him, and couldn't help but gape: "The legendary Universe Bag!"

A palm-sized pouch contained items that stood a full person's height! Zhang He immediately recalled stories he had heard at the Martial Child Academy, among which were mentions of the Universe Bag. Although the bag looked small, it could hold a vast amount of items.

This pouch was a treasure!

Zhang He gripped the Universe Bag tightly, looking at the pile of items before him: a massive piece of hide bound by several black tendons, along with four sharp claws, all of which immediately emitted a bloody stench. Most importantly, the cold air radiating from them made Zhang He's heart tremble. He had already guessed what this pile of items was.

"This must be the remains of the Cold Flood Dragon; these are all incredibly rare materials!" Looking at the pile, Zhang He immediately recognized the uses for several items. The hide could be used to craft protective armor, the black tendons could be used to make bows or long-whip weapons, and the claws could be used to craft gauntlets using their sharp talons.

"I've really struck gold! These are from a fourth-level demonic beast!" Zhang He suddenly felt the Rejuvenation True Qi within his body stir restlessly. His heart skipped a beat; this meant there was something highly toxic nearby. Suddenly, Zhang He spotted two blood-red beads the size of quail eggs pressed beneath the hide.

Zhang He leaned in, and his Rejuvenation True Qi sent a strong reaction. A wave of cold emanated from them. These two blood-red beads were highly toxic!

"Could this be the poison core of the Cold Flood Dragon?" Zhang He was overjoyed. He wasn't afraid of poison; channeling his Rejuvenation True Qi to wrap around his hands, he picked up the two poison cores. They were ice-cold to the touch, and his Rejuvenation True Qi surged in response.

"This is the true treasure for me!" Zhang He was delighted. These two poison cores were immensely toxic; if he could refine the toxins within them, his cultivation would surely advance by leaps and bounds. Zhang He immediately put the two poison cores away. He looked at the mountain of materials, wanting to put them back, but such a large pile simply wouldn't fit.

"They say the Universe Bag requires a drop of blood to recognize its master. Now that its owner is dead, it belongs to me." Zhang He slapped his forehead, remembering this detail. Gritting his teeth, he pricked his finger and dripped a few drops of blood onto the Universe Bag. Immediately, visible to the naked eye, the blood droplets were absorbed into the bag.

Zhang He instantly felt a strange sensation pass into his heart. He now had a connection with the Universe Bag in his hand; he could control it.

"It really works. It seems the things those people bragged about weren't without basis." Zhang He was overjoyed. He opened the Universe Bag, focused his mind on the pile of items, and they instantly vanished. Zhang He could clearly feel that the bag was now filled to the brim.

"This Universe Bag can only hold about three or four cubic feet of items at most. Phew, now that this bag is in my hands—wealth should not be flaunted, especially since this thing belonged to someone else. I must be cautious!" Zhang He tucked the Universe Bag close to his body. He then searched Sun Shaochuan's body, finding a few medicine pouches and an identity jade token, but nothing else.

Zhang He searched Wu Xuan's body as well and surprisingly found another Universe Bag. However, this one had a character embroidered on it: "Medicine." Zhang He opened this bag and poured out its contents.

Wu Xuan's Universe Bag was very cluttered, containing various bottles and jars, several wrapped animal skins, and even some medicinal herbs. Zhang He's gaze swept over them, and he suddenly widened his eyes.

"Blood-Draining Vine!" Among the pile of herbs, Zhang He spotted a flash of red. He looked closely and was immediately overjoyed. Truly, one finds what one is looking for without even trying! Only then did he notice the other herbs, and he couldn't help but be shocked—this kid was also a poison user!

Because all those herbs were poisonous!

"That's right, Wu Xuan is a disciple of Medicine King Valley; he likely specializes in poisons..." Zhang He's gaze fell upon another pile of items: a set of alchemy tools. "It's good to be wealthy; having a Universe Bag means one can carry alchemy tools everywhere and refine medicine at any time. How convenient."

Zhang He did not stand on ceremony and immediately claimed all these items for himself. These things were all incredibly useful to him.

"Corpse-Dissolving Powder?" Zhang He suddenly noticed a few tightly wrapped bottles among Wu Xuan's belongings. Opening one, he saw the name written on it.

"Corpse-Dissolving Powder, could it be used to..." Zhang He's heart stirred. He opened the bottle and dripped a few drops onto the corpses of Wang Jian and Sun Shaochuan in the pit. Immediately, a pungent odor rose from below, and visible to the naked eye, the two corpses began to melt rapidly. The sight made Zhang He's heart race with fear.

"This stuff is truly a supreme product for destroying evidence! Since Wu Xuan kept this on him, he must have committed murder and robbery many times!" Zhang He immediately threw Wu Xuan's corpse into the pit as well. After a few more drops of the Corpse-Dissolving Powder, the three corpses quickly dissolved into pools of blood.

After finishing all this, Zhang He filled in the pit and tidied the surrounding area to make it look more natural.

"It rains a lot in summer; one night of rain and there won't be a trace left here. As long as I don't say anything, no one will ever know what happened today." Having finished everything and ensuring there were no issues, Zhang He shouldered his herb basket and left the area. He now had the two main ingredients, the Blood-Draining Vine and the Ghost Thunder Needle Grass; the remaining supplementary herbs would be easy to acquire.

Two days later, at the Wang Family Pharmacy.

"You finally appeared! Our Detoxification and Beauty Pill is so popular that it's selling like crazy. Every day, the pharmacy receives inquiries from countless people. It's not just those bitten by Corpse Poison Beetles; the wealthy ladies who love beauty have heard of the pill's effects and are buying it like mad! We're almost out of stock!" Seeing Zhang He appear, Wang Pengyu was overjoyed but also complained.

Zhang He had been missing for many days, and the pharmacy's supply had suffered.

Zhang He smiled slightly and immediately took out four large jars from his basket. They were filled with the Five Poison Beads he had refined on the mountain, at least five thousand of them: "I went to gather herbs these past few days and put in a lot of effort to refine these. Now that there is enough stock, you can sell them with peace of mind."

Seeing so many pills, Wang Pengyu was both shocked and delighted, immediately arranging for staff to go out and post notices.

"Our Wang Family Pharmacy is now a hit in Mengyin City; there is almost no one who doesn't know about us. All of this is thanks to you." Wang Pengyu couldn't stop smiling. He had opened up the situation here, and the family's upper management had seen it all. He had heard internal news that he would receive a generous reward at the annual meeting.

As he spoke, Wang Pengyu suddenly remembered something. He went to retrieve a sealed box and handed it to Zhang He: "This was brought by Master Lu. He originally wanted to give it to you personally, but since you weren't here, he left it with me. By the way, I heard you had some trouble at the Martial Child Academy. Do you need my help? Ha, actually, as long as you reveal your identity as an Iron-Rank Pharmacist, the head of the Martial Child Academy will surely welcome you with open arms and wouldn't dare to show the slightest disrespect."