Golden Crow Grass

Ji Wenyue stared at the drawing for a long while before saying, "I remember now. This is Golden Crow Grass. I've seen it in an ancient family recipe.

Golden Crow Grass is a fire-element, yang herb with extremely potent medicinal properties. It cannot be consumed directly. It needs to be refined with the heart of an Ice Rabbit to neutralize its properties before it can be taken. The resulting medicinal soup is called Golden Crow Returning Origin Soup.

Even so, after its properties are neutralized, the Golden Crow Returning Origin Soup still requires at least a Seventh-Rank Great Martial Master to consume it. Otherwise, the medicinal power is too overwhelming, and instead of providing nourishment, it will cause harm."

"Even after neutralizing its properties, it still requires at least a Seventh-Rank Great Martial Master to consume? It seems this Golden Crow Returning Origin Soup is truly a potent tonic and must be very precious," Xia Daoming said.

"Naturally. According to the ancient recipe, if a Great Martial Master cultivates to the peak of the Seventh Rank and consumes this balanced medicinal soup, there's a significant chance they can break through to open their eighth meridian and become an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master. For an Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master, consuming it has a great nourishing effect that boosts their cultivation," Ji Wenyue explained.

Hearing this, Xia Daoming felt both surprised and delighted. He quickly asked, "What is an Ice Rabbit, and where can I find one?"

Xia Daoming is currently only a Fifth-Rank Great Martial Master. Ji Wenyue didn't suspect anything and replied without hesitation, "Young Ice Rabbits are generally mid-tier Rank 1 Demonic Beasts. After they mature, they can reach high-tier Rank 1. In Mangzhou Prefecture, a large portion of Demonic Beasts live in the Vast Mountain Range, and Ice Rabbits are no exception.

If you were to use young Ice Rabbits to refine the medicinal soup with Golden Crow Grass, you would need at least ten. If they are adult ones, three would be sufficient."

Xia Daoming secretly let out a cold breath upon hearing this.

He was no longer the naive young man who had just ventured out. He understood the power of Demonic Beasts and the dangers of the Vast Mountain Range.

The Blood Feather Eagle he encountered in Crimson Flame Valley last time was only a low-tier Rank 1 Demonic Beast, with combat power equivalent to a Third or Fourth-Rank Martial Master.

When severely injured, it would instinctively release feather arrows.

A mid-tier Rank 1 Demonic Beast is equivalent to a Fifth or Sixth-Rank Great Martial Master, while a high-tier Rank 1 is equivalent to a Seventh or Eighth-Rank Great Martial Master.

Rank 2 Demonic Beasts are at the Grandmaster level.

A young Ice Rabbit is already as formidable as a Fifth or Sixth-Rank Great Martial Master. To hunt at least ten of them deep within the Vast Mountain Range made Xia Daoming's scalp tingle just thinking about it.

It seems I'll have to store this Golden Crow Grass for now. The priority is to find a way to purchase some high-quality medicinal pills elsewhere to complete my Ninth Level Meridian Strengthening and break through to Sixth-Rank Great Martial Master as soon as possible, Xia Daoming thought to himself.

Afterward, Xia Daoming specifically asked Ji Wenyue about precious medicinal herbs, pills, and other related knowledge.

These were Ji Wenyue's areas of expertise, and since Xia Daoming was asking, she explained everything without reservation, even drawing several diagrams for him.

The diagrams depicted precious medicinal herbs that could greatly benefit even Great Martial Masters and Grandmasters.

These herbs were extremely rare. In Mangzhou Prefecture, they generally grew deep within the Vast Mountain Range. Even though the Ji Family was a major merchant of medicinal herbs, they did not have them in their collection.

Ji Wenyue had only seen them mentioned in some ancient medicinal texts preserved by her family.

Xia Daoming carefully put away the diagrams one by one. Later, unable to resist Ji Wenyue's persistent pleading and charming persistence, he reluctantly accepted the package she had brought.

Night fell.

In the study room in the backyard of the Xia residence.

Xia Daoming opened the package Ji Wenyue had given him and found that it contained not only five thousand taels of silver notes but also medicinal pills worth at least eight thousand taels.

Excluding the cultivation technique secret diagrams and the Golden Crow Grass, and factoring in the medicinal pills, I now have approximately seventy thousand taels in liquid assets. Money only truly serves its purpose when spent. It seems I need to embark on a long journey soon. Xia Daoming looked at the money and pills before him and decided to travel far away in the near future.

However, plans do not always go as expected.

Originally, his plan was to accompany Zhuo Xingji on a few long-distance escorts. This would allow him to broaden his horizons, buy medicinal pills, and earn money – a triple benefit.

But early this morning, he had raided Wu Yueli's treasury and made a fortune. In the evening, Ji Wenyue had given him a substantial amount.

Therefore, the small sums from the Xingyou Escort Agency seemed insignificant to Xia Daoming now.

Furthermore, traveling with the escort agency required adhering to their schedule and ensuring the destination was suitable.

Xia Daoming, however, was somewhat impatient.

The next day.

At Drunken Cloud Tower, in the Yun Gui private room on the third floor.

Because Xia Daoming was planning a long journey, he specially hosted a banquet for his fellow disciples.

"That's strange. It's already this late, why hasn't Junior Sister Liu arrived yet?" Yu Chi Xiao frowned slightly.

"I've already sent someone to hurry her along. She should be here soon," Jiao Yongbao replied.

Before Jiao Yongbao could finish speaking, the door to the private room was suddenly pushed open, and a waiter rushed in.

"Master, something has happened at Jade Flower Pavilion!" the waiter said breathlessly.

"What happened?" everyone's expressions changed, and they blurted out the question.

"Apparently, Shi Yingdeng of the Shi Family demanded that Miss Wanqing accompany him to bed, and a conflict ensued." the waiter explained.

As soon as the waiter spoke, everyone's faces showed anger, including Xia Daoming.

Just three months ago, Shi Yingdeng had colluded with Xu Shisen to severely injure Gu Ren, crippling his martial path. Liang Jingtang, considering the strength of the Hidden Dragon Martial Arts School and the overall situation, had ultimately swallowed his anger and suppressed the incident.

To think that only three months after Gu Ren's incident, Shi Yingdeng would come looking for trouble again.

"Bang!" Yu Chi Xiao slammed the table and stood up, his hair and beard bristling. "That son of a bitch, Shi Yingdeng is going too far! Let's go to Jade Flower Pavilion!"

With that, Yu Chi Xiao was already the first to storm out of the room.

Zhuo Xingji, Jiao Yongbao, and Xia Daoming naturally followed him out.

As they exited the door, Jiao Yongbao specifically instructed the waiter.

The shop assistant received the instructions and dashed off towards the Hidden Dragon Martial Arts School.

The four of them hurried along and soon arrived at the Jade Flower Pavilion.

The Jade Flower Pavilion, usually bustling with song and dance, was unusually quiet today.

A group of women, all pale-faced and anxious, were gathered in the front courtyard, peering towards the back with worry, but none dared to enter.

This was because four burly men stood before the moon-shaped gate to the back courtyard.

"Instructor Yuchi, Escort Zhuo, Boss Jiao, Instructor Xia, you're here! Please hurry and save Sister Qiang and Miss Wanqing!" As soon as Yuchi Gong and the other three stepped into the front courtyard, the group of women, seeing them as saviors, swarmed forward, tears streaming down their faces.

"Where are they?" Yuchi Gong asked.

"In the back courtyard," one of the women replied.

With that, the women automatically cleared a path.

Yuchi Gong and the other three headed straight for the back courtyard.

"Halt! Young Master Xu is inside enjoying himself, do not disturb him!" a man in a green tight-fitting outfit, with a two-winged black tiger emblem embroidered on his sleeves, blocked their path.

"Young Master Xu? Which Young Master Xu?" Yuchi Gong's expression changed drastically as anger flared, a hint of hesitation in his eyes.

"Young Master Xu Shisen!" the Xu Family retainer replied.

"It's Xu Shisen again!" Yuchi Gong's face turned ashen, his fists clenched, veins throbbing on his forehead.

"Enough, all of you, stand down. Wait until my young master finishes playing..." The Xu Family retainer, seeing Yuchi Gong's furious but hesitant demeanor, couldn't help but sneer contemptuously.

"Playing your head! Get lost!" Before the Xu Family retainer could finish speaking, Yuchi Gong could no longer suppress his rage. With a roar, he unleashed his Dragon Claw, lunging towards the retainer's chest.

"How dare you!"

The retainer, a Fourth-Rank Martial Master, his expression shifted slightly upon seeing Yuchi Gong attack. He let out an angry shout, raising his Tiger Palm to strike Yuchi Gong's Dragon Claw.

But Yuchi Gong's wrist was as agile as a snake. At the moment of impact, it twisted like a serpent, evading the Tiger Palm. The Dragon Claw landed with a "snap" on the retainer's arm, followed by a fierce pull and flick. The retainer lost his footing and was flung backward, crashing to the ground.

As Yuchi Gong made his move, Zhuo Xingji, Jiao Yongbao, and Xia Daoming had already charged like flood dragons entering the river, rushing towards the other three retainers.

A dragon can be great or small, can ascend or hide; when great, it summons clouds and mist, when small, it conceals its form; when ascending, it soars between the heavens and earth, when hiding, it lurks within the waves.

The Hidden Dragon is half-snake, half-dragon, possessing some dragon attributes, hence it is also called a flood dragon.

This was Xia Daoming's second time observing the Mysterious Divine Rhyme Diagram of the Hidden Dragon, and he had already comprehended the seventh and eighth layers of the Snake-Dragon Transformation technique. It was merely that his internal energy had not yet reached that level.

The eighth-layer technique contained the secret of the flood dragon's concealment.

Of course, this concealment was not like the legendary true dragons, which could alter their true forms. It referred to concealing and altering one's blood essence, internal energy, and aura.

If Xia Daoming were to suppress most of his cultivation and employ this technique, he could conceal and alter a portion of his blood essence, internal energy, and aura, making his cultivation level appear one or two ranks lower than it truly was. It would likely require a Grandmaster realm to discern the truth.

The highest cultivation among these four gatekeepers was only Fourth-Rank Martial Master; the other three were merely Third-Rank. Xia Daoming didn't need to exert his full strength against them; a slight circulation of internal energy would suffice. Therefore, even though Zhuo Xingji and Yuchi Xiao were Fifth-Rank Great Martial Masters, they could not detect that he was already a Fifth-Rank Great Martial Master due to his deliberate concealment.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

As soon as Zhuo Xingji and the other two made their moves, they knocked down and sent the remaining three flying.

"No! You beast, let go of me!"

"Ah, how dare you bite me!"

"Slap!"

As the four of them burst into the back courtyard, they heard the sounds of men and women cursing, clothes being torn, and slaps coming from the innermost room.

"Damn it!"

Yuchi Xiao's fury erupted, and he rushed directly towards the room.

"Bang!"

Yuchi Xiao kicked the door open.

Inside the room, a man in brocade robes, who had been attempting to tear off Liu Xiaoqiang's clothes, let go and slowly turned around.

Liu Xiaoqiang seized the opportunity to pull her clothes together, covering her exposed skin, and quickly retreated behind Yuchi Xiao. Her once captivating peach blossom eyes stared at the man in brocade robes with humiliation and grief.

"What is it, Yuchi Xiao? Are you planning to fight me?" the man in brocade robes sneered, a dismissive smile playing on his lips. He unhurriedly tidied his clothes as he walked towards Yuchi Xiao.

Yuchi Xiao clenched and then relaxed his fists, his steps unconsciously retreating into the courtyard.

The man in brocade robes slowly walked out of the room.

At this moment, the door to an adjacent room opened.

Miss Wanqing, her clothes disheveled, tears streaming down her face, ran out from within.

Following closely behind Miss Wanqing, a man with a large mole on his right jaw emerged. He stood with the man in brocade robes in the corridor, looking provocatively at Yuchi Xiao and the others.

"It's rare for Young Master Xu to be in the mood to seek pleasure at the Jade Flower Pavilion today. Liu Xiaoqiang, why must you spoil the mood? And even implicate Yuchi Xiao and the others? Do you also want them to suffer the same fate as Gu Ren?" the mole-faced man said mockingly.

Liu Xiaoqiang, protected in the center by Yuchi Xiao and the other three, felt a sense of security. However, upon hearing the mole-faced man's words, her face instantly turned pale.

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