第25章 我先封死药仓

Gu Qinghe helped Sun Erhe back onto the wooden stool.

"Which old warehouse?"

"Ding Sancang, on the western slope of Medicine Peak. It used to be where we dried medicinal dregs, but it's been abandoned for seven or eight years."

Sun Erhe wiped the tears from his face and recounted what had happened.

Three days ago, while he was driving the corpse cart past Medicine Peak, someone threw a wooden tiger into the cart. It was a toy he had carved for his youngest son with his own hands.

That night, a Grey Feather Paper Crane flew into his home with a note tucked inside.

If he wanted his wife and children to live, he was to go to Law Enforcement Peak and transport Zhao Chong away.

The other party even made him go to the outskirts of Ding Sancang to see for himself. His wife and three children were all tied up inside the warehouse, surrounded by piles of kerosene. If he dared to report it, all four of them would die.

"After I transported Zhao Chong away, they told me to wait for news. I wasn't allowed to touch the medicine list either."

Sun Erhe grabbed Li Sanshun's sleeve.

"I beg you, save them."

"How many people are in the warehouse?"

"There were four when I went. Two were wearing Medicine Peak servant robes, and the other two were masked."

"What about the entrances and exits?"

"There are front and back doors. Under the north wall, there's also a drainage ditch for medicinal waste that leads into the warehouse. The opening is very narrow, and they've blocked it with wooden boards."

Gu Qinghe called the four law enforcement disciples she had brought back from North Mountain into the side hall.

Zhao Chong remained where he was, with the Spirit Locking Array fully activated. Zhao Rui led the men to guard the door, and all food, drink, and medicine were inspected by both of them before being sent inside.

She did not notify Medicine Peak.

If there were truly guards in the old warehouse, the hostages would be killed the moment Medicine Peak received word.

Sun Erhe wanted to follow, but as soon as he stood up, his injured leg gave out.

Li Sanshun pressed him back onto the stool.

"You won't be able to run if you go. Describe your wife and children's appearances clearly."

"My wife's surname is He, and a small piece of her left ear is missing. My eldest son is twelve, the second is eight, and the youngest is only five."

Sun Erhe pulled a blood-stained piece of cloth from his chest.

"This was torn from my eldest son's clothes."

Li Sanshun took the cloth and followed Gu Qinghe out of the side hall.

The six of them did not take the main path of Medicine Peak; they bypassed two medicinal fields and crept toward Ding Sancang from below the western slope.

The warehouse was built halfway up the hillside, its outer walls shedding layers of mud. A cart covered with a tarpaulin was parked in the courtyard, and the wheel tracks were still fresh.

Someone was preparing to move the hostages.

Gu Qinghe raised a hand to stop the group, dispatching two disciples to guard the path down the mountain while the rest hugged the north wall.

The drainage ditch was hidden behind withered grass, with three wooden boards nailed over the opening. A thin thread was tied between the boards, the end connected to a copper bell inside the warehouse.

Forcing it open would surely alert the people inside.

Li Sanshun leaned close to the ditch opening and took a sniff.

The bitter scent of medicinal dregs was mixed with Soul-Calming Powder, kerosene, and pine resin. There was also the smell of freshly burned paper ash inside the warehouse.

[Low-grade wood spiritual energy detected.]
[Life energy increased by 0.2 points.]
[Residual aura of Soul-Calming Powder detected; elimination complete.]

The Soul-Calming Powder was still potent; the hostages should not be awake.

He pulled out a short sword and hooked the thin thread through the gap in the wooden boards. Gu Qinghe took hold of the thread, and another disciple supported the copper bell.

The boards were removed one by one.

The ditch was filled with medicinal mud, wide enough for only one person to crawl through. Li Sanshun crawled in first, with Gu Qinghe following close behind.

Inside the warehouse stood a dozen rows of old wooden racks. On the floor were four burlap sacks, two of which had already been moved onto the cart. The remaining two were leaning against kerosene barrels, with children's hair visible at the openings.

Three kidnappers were busy packing.

"The paper crane has urged us twice already, what are you dawdling for?"

"This woman woke up and bit me just now."

"Feed them all a bowl of Soul-Calming Soup, and we'll deal with them after we leave Medicine Peak."

One kidnapper picked up a medicine bowl and walked toward the sacks.

Li Sanshun flicked his hand.

A gust of wind struck the bottom of the bowl, splashing the medicinal soup all over the kidnapper's face.

"Who's there!"

Gu Qinghe rushed out from behind a wooden rack, her short sword pinning one man's neck. The two law enforcement disciples who had followed her sealed the back door.

The remaining two men each grabbed a sack.

Li Sanshun stomped on the ground.

Clods of earth flipped up from the brick seams, catching one man's ankle. He fell beside a kerosene barrel, and before he could crawl up, Li Sanshun had already pinned his neck.

The other man pulled out a dagger and dragged the youngest child in front of him as a shield.

"Let us go, or I'll slit his throat first!"

The child had been drugged with Soul-Calming Powder; his head hung on the kidnapper's shoulder, and he couldn't wake up at all.

Gu Qinghe did not approach.

The kidnapper dragged the child toward the front door, the dagger already pressed against his neck.

Li Sanshun kicked over a medicine basket nearby.

Dried medicinal dregs scattered across the floor.

The kidnapper lowered his head to avoid them, and Li Sanshun flicked a pebble with his finger.

Snap!

The pebble struck the man's wrist, and the dagger fell to the ground.

Gu Qinghe took two strides forward, thrusting her sword through his shoulder and snatching the child back.

Suddenly, the sound of horses came from outside the front door.

The law enforcement disciple guarding the path down the mountain issued a warning.

There were others coming to assist!

Li Sanshun rushed out of the warehouse door, only to see two men in black riding toward them. Upon seeing the law enforcement disciples standing outside the warehouse, they immediately turned their horses around.

A rope of water coiled around the front horse's legs.

Man and horse tumbled into the dirt ditch together.

The other man threw a Fire Talisman, intending to ignite Ding Sancang.

The moment the Fire Talisman flew out, Gu Qinghe's short sword pinned it to the ground. Li Sanshun reached the intersection, a gust of wind slamming into the horse's back. The man in black rolled off the saddle and tried to swallow poison, but the law enforcement disciple dislocated his jaw first.

Five kidnappers, not one escaped.

All four sacks inside the warehouse were untied.

Madam He protected her three children, her wrists already raw from the ropes. She had been given one less bowl of Soul-Calming Soup than the children and had woken up twice, only to be knocked unconscious each time.

Gu Qinghe gave them Detoxification Pills and inspected the kerosene in the warehouse.

An ignition talisman was stuck to the roof beam, needing only a sliver of spiritual energy to activate. If they had encountered pursuers during the transfer, the guards could have burned the warehouse to destroy the evidence at any moment.

Li Sanshun found half a packet of Breath-Closing Powder under the cart.

The pharmacy mark on the paper packet had been scraped off, leaving only half of the character "Outer."

When they returned to Law Enforcement Peak, Sun Erhe didn't even take his wooden staff, dragging his injured leg toward his wife and children. The youngest child had just woken up and was clinging to his neck, crying incessantly.

Sun Erhe handed the child to his wife and turned to kneel before Gu Qinghe.

"The medicine list is yours."

In the evidence room, the left rear wheel axle of the seventh corpse cart was placed on the table.

Gu Qinghe broke the wax seal in front of the three law enforcement disciples. Sun Erhe took a thin iron rod, probed the end of the axle, and hooked out a roll of oilcloth.

Inside the oilcloth was an old medicine list.

The list contained seventeen medicinal ingredients, including Essence-Nourishing Soup, Pulse-Warming Powder, and Stalactite Powder. Next to the monthly dosage, each item was marked with a "fifteen."

The date of the medicine collection was exactly twenty-one years ago.

The collector's column was blank, and the seal was stamped with half a White Cicada Wing.

Gu Qinghe sealed the medicine list into an Evidence Bag and took out the Breath-Closing Powder found in the warehouse.

"We have the medicine list, and the people are saved. But the five men we caught were only working for money; none of them have ever seen Mr. Bai."

Li Sanshun pinched the paper packet of Breath-Closing Powder.

"Whether they've seen him or not doesn't matter. Someone knows where this packet of medicine came from."

"The mark has already been scraped off."

"Then we'll help him add one back."

Gu Qinghe looked at him.

Li Sanshun placed the paper packet back on the table.

"Spread the word that the Breath-Closing Powder came from the outer sect pharmacy, and that the ledger will be delivered to the Law Enforcement Hall tomorrow morning."

Gu Qinghe immediately understood his plan.

"You want the person who handled it to go back and clear the records themselves?"

Li Sanshun tapped the Evidence Bag.

"Whoever dares to sneak into the storeroom tonight is the mole we're looking for."