Pills

The water babbled!

Before long, everyone had gathered beside the waterfall, which was only about a foot wide.

"Give me that bucket!" Boss Zhang barked at He Pingsheng, then snatched the bucket away and went to the water himself, filling it halfway.

Boss Zhang laboriously carried the water over to the woman in green, then beamed ingratiatingly. "My lady, please take a look!"

"Mm!"

The woman in green nodded, scooped up some water with her hand, and brought it to her mouth.

Her brows knitted.

"Second Senior Sister, how is it?" the woman in pink asked as she approached.

Before the woman in green could answer, the woman in pink also scooped up some water and tasted it. She instantly flew into a rage. "You've polluted the entire water source... you brat, you deserve to die..."

Her almond-shaped eyes glared at He Pingsheng.

But the woman in green shook her head. "Not necessarily. This is running water. Even if he contaminated some of it, how could it have completely lost its original taste?"

"I'd say there's most likely a problem upstream!"

"Come!"

The woman in green gave a sharp command. Magic power suddenly surged from her body as she performed an Immortal Art that He Pingsheng could not comprehend. A stream of water flew out of the waterfall and landed squarely in her snow-white hand.

The woman in green promptly brought the water to her mouth.

The woman in pink asked, "Senior Sister, how is it?"

The woman in green shook her head. "This water is wrong. Its taste is worlds apart from before. I'm afraid the problem lies at the source!"

"The source?"

The woman in pink raised her head, following the waterfall upward with her gaze.

At the very top, where the water came from, stood the highest stretch of mountain ridge behind Bamboo Peak.

The cliffs here were sheer and precipitous; ordinary disciples had no way to climb them.

A servant like He Pingsheng could never hope to reach the summit in his entire life.

So, in a sense, the change in the water quality probably really had nothing whatsoever to do with He Pingsheng.

The woman in pink knew perfectly well that she had blamed the wrong person.

But as an exalted Inner Disciple, how could someone of her noble standing apologize to a "lowly" Servant Disciple? Instead, she turned her head, shot He Pingsheng a vicious look, and gave a cold snort.

"You're responsible for carrying the water. You should have informed me the moment its quality changed. You cannot escape blame for this!"

She had to find some pretext, didn't she?

But the woman in green spared the woman in pink no dignity at all. Looking at He Pingsheng, she sighed. "It wasn't his fault to begin with. Enough, Junior Sister. Let's report this to Master and have someone else investigate!"

"What is your name?"

The woman in green looked at He Pingsheng.

He Pingsheng cupped his hands. "In answer to my lady, this humble boy is He Pingsheng!"

"This incident probably has nothing to do with you. My junior sister wrongly blamed you!" The woman in green extended her delicate hand and offered He Pingsheng a snow-white porcelain bottle. "There are two [Golden Bone Pills] inside. Take one, and your injuries will heal completely within three days!"

"The remaining pill is compensation for you!"

He Pingsheng felt uneasy, unsure whether he should accept or refuse.

But the woman in green had already tucked the porcelain bottle into his arms.

"Senior Sister..." The woman in pink beside her looked thoroughly unwilling. "He's just a lowly servant. Why apologize to him? If he dies, he dies. Does our Bamboo Peak care about one or two servants?"

"Junior Sister, you mustn't say that!"

"I've heard Master say that even mortals cannot be killed indiscriminately. Otherwise, you become entangled in karma, which will hinder your future cultivation. I'm doing this for your own good!"

Their voices grew fainter and fainter.

He Pingsheng raised his head and found that the two women had already walked far away.

Phew...

He breathed a sigh of relief.

Beside him, Boss Zhang also breathed a sigh of relief.

Quite a few of the people around them eyed the porcelain bottle in He Pingsheng's hands like hungry tigers.

Frightened, He Pingsheng hurriedly tightened his grip on it.

"All of you... get the fuck out of here..."

Boss Zhang swept his large hand outward.

The others were so frightened that they scattered in an instant.

Only He Pingsheng and Boss Zhang remained beside the vast Mountain Spring.

"Little He..." Boss Zhang put on a smiling face. "What I said just now was all for those ladies up above to hear. Don't take it seriously. Could I really beat you to death?"

"Our Bamboo Peak is a place that respects the rules!"

He Pingsheng said nothing. He did not know how to respond to Boss Zhang.

Because just moments ago, he had truly sensed murderous intent coming from Boss Zhang.

"By giving you that beating, I actually saved you!"

Boss Zhang continued looking at He Pingsheng with a broad smile. "Think about it... if I hadn't hit you, wouldn't that lady have done it herself? Her sword was already pointed at you!"

"If I acted, the worst you'd get was a beating, some bleeding from your nose and mouth, and a few superficial injuries!"

"But if I hadn't acted, once that lady made her move, she would have cleaved you apart with a single stroke. You'd be a cold corpse by now!"

"No... two halves of a cold corpse, I should say!"

He Pingsheng shuddered involuntarily.

Although Boss Zhang was twisting reason to suit himself, what he said was true. Had that woman struck, He Pingsheng might really have lost his life.

Of course, that did not mean Boss Zhang had acted out of kindness.

"So, Little He!" Boss Zhang said shamelessly. "I saved your life!"

"You can't leave a life-saving debt unpaid, can you?"

As he spoke, his gaze drifted toward He Pingsheng's arms, fixing on the white porcelain bottle.

Only then did He Pingsheng finally understand. This bastard wants my pills?

"Boss Zhang!" He Pingsheng said. "I'm injured... I need these pills to recover!"

"Otherwise, I won't be able to finish my tasks over the next few days!"

"Heh..." Boss Zhang chuckled. "Don't you have two?"

"How about this... give me one!"

"Use the remaining one to heal your injuries!"

"And another thing!" Boss Zhang continued. "Starting tomorrow, I'll give you an easier job. I'll have someone else carry the water!"

"How does that sound?"

He Pingsheng began weighing his options.

First of all, refusing probably wasn't an option.

If he refused, this bastard would keep coveting his possession, and there would be plenty of suffering in store for him.

Secondly!

If he gave it up, he could at least get something in return.

Fine... a wise man knows which way the wind blows. I'm not being a coward, just making a small compromise!

"All right!" He Pingsheng said. "I hope you keep your word, Boss Zhang, and give me an easier job tomorrow!"

He opened the porcelain bottle, took out a red pill, and offered it to Boss Zhang.

Boss Zhang did not take it. Instead, he jutted his lips toward the bottle. "I want the one with the bottle!"

Put plainly, the bastard wanted to take the bottle too.

Fine...

He Pingsheng was not about to quibble over that. He gave Boss Zhang the bottle as well!

Boss Zhang took the bottle, opened it, and glanced inside. "That's right. It's a First-Rank Golden Bone Pill!"

"Boy, I'm in a good mood today, so I'll teach you something!"

"See the markings on this pill?"

"Those are called pill marks. One pill mark means the pill is low-grade, two means middle-grade, and three means high-grade!"

"I'm off!"

Boss Zhang tucked the white porcelain bottle into his robes, then left, looking thoroughly pleased with himself.