Marrow Extraction Pill
Han Li had traveled a good distance from the cliff, yet he could still faintly hear them shouting. He had no intention of concerning himself further with how they ultimately settled the dispute between Wang Dapang and Zhang Changgui.
Whenever he pictured Jin Dongbao standing there in a daze, he could hardly keep from bursting out laughing. He felt so lighthearted now, and the gloom he had felt in the valley was gone.
He emerged from the pine forest and headed somewhere more remote. After walking aimlessly for a while, he came upon a narrow little stream.
Han Li looked up at the blazing sun, then down at the clear water flowing slowly through the stream. Washing himself in the stream seemed like a good idea.
As he bent down and slipped his hands into the cool water, a series of pained groans came from upstream.
Han Li was surprised that someone else was in such a remote place.
He followed the groans upstream and found someone dressed in the clothes of an inner disciple lying face down beside the stream. His body was twitching incessantly, and his limbs were trembling without pause.
Han Li saw at a glance that the disciple was suffering from an acute illness. If no one helped him soon, his life might be in danger.
He dashed over, pulled a sandalwood box from his robes, and opened it. Taking out a series of gleaming silver needles, he swiftly and deftly inserted them into the acupoints on the man's back.
He quickly finished with the acupoints on the man's back and turned him over, preparing to needle the points on his chest.
As the man's face came into view, Han Li sucked in a breath. This man on the brink of death was none other than Senior Brother Li, who had just displayed his might on the cliff.
Han Li froze for a moment, then took another careful look at the face he had seen not long ago.
Senior Brother Li no longer looked anything like the valiant, invincible figure who had so effortlessly defeated his opponents. His once cold face was contorted with pain, and white foam streamed from the corners of his mouth. Clearly, the pain had already driven him out of his senses.
Han Li regained his composure and pondered briefly. Then his hands suddenly moved like flowing water, inserting silver needles all over Senior Brother Li's body. He placed dozens of needles in rapid succession. After inserting the last one, Han Li wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead and let out a long breath. Even for him, this silver-needle emergency treatment was no small strain.
Once Senior Brother Li's entire body was covered in the glittering needles, he finally woke and regained his senses.
"You are..." He struggled to say something, but lacked the strength to get the rest of the words out.
"I'm from Divine Hand Valley. Don't speak anymore; regain your strength first. I can only revive you for the moment. Your illness is very strange, and I think only Doctor Mo can save you. Unfortunately, he isn't on the mountain right now." Han Li checked Senior Brother Li's pulse and frowned.
"Medicine... on..." Senior Brother Li's face grew anxious. His lips trembled as he tried to raise an arm and say something, but he failed.
"You have medicine for your illness on you?" Han Li immediately grasped what he meant and asked, guessing at the answer.
"Mm..." Seeing that Han Li understood him, Senior Brother Li relaxed his expression and nodded with difficulty.
Han Li did not stand on ceremony. He searched Senior Brother Li and found many miscellaneous items, among which he picked out a small white jade bottle. The bottle was so valuable and so well sealed that it had to be what he was looking for.
He picked up the bottle and looked back at Senior Brother Li. Sure enough, his face was full of delight, and he was blinking frantically.
Han Li opened the bottle. Unexpectedly, no medicinal fragrance wafted out. Instead, a strong, foul stench rushed into his face.
The moment Han Li smelled it, his expression turned ugly. He carefully tipped a pink pill out of the bottle. It was plump and pink and so pretty, yet it gave off such a revolting smell. It was hard to believe.
"Is this the pill?" Han Li's expression had returned to calm.
Senior Brother Li was too anxious to speak now and could only blink.
"Marrow Extraction Pill, refined from twenty-three rare ingredients, including helan, scorpion-tail flower, and century-old blue ant eggs... Once complete, it is pink in appearance and has a strange, foul odor. Taking it can greatly overdraw the body's potential, using the taker's future lifespan to increase their present abilities. Am I right about all of that?"
Han Li looked coldly at Senior Brother Li and spoke those words one by one, in a tone that brooked no doubt.
At Han Li's words, Senior Brother Li's face immediately turned pale and bloodless, and a look of panic appeared on it.
"Once you've taken this medicine, you have to take it again at regular intervals, and endure the inhuman agony of having your sinews pulled and your marrow sucked out. If you don't take it, you'll be paralyzed at best and lose your life at worst. Even if you take it on time every time, you'll certainly die within ten years of the first dose, having overdrawn your life." Han Li did not stop, but continued speaking.
"Don't tell me the pill in my hand isn't a Marrow Extraction Pill." Han Li paused as he spoke.
By now, Senior Brother Li's face wore the despair of someone whose deepest secret had been exposed, but his eyes still showed utter astonishment, as though he could hardly have imagined it.
"Are you wondering how I could recognize such a rare pill?" Han Li saw the question in his mind, then changed the subject and began speaking about himself.
"It's simple, really. I've taken one of these pills too."
Han Li's words struck like thunder, leaving Senior Brother Li completely stunned. But then a look of disbelief appeared on his face.
"The way I took it was different from yours. I took only one pill in all, and I divided it into ten portions and took them in ten doses, using it each time as a medicinal catalyst for other medicines. So it had no side effects that harmed my body. Because the pill's appearance was so different from the smell it gave off, it left a very deep impression on me. I had always thought that, apart from the pill I took, no one else in the world would actually take this secret medicine. I never expected there to be someone right here in our sect."
After saying all this, Han Li looked at Senior Brother Li with a gaze that seemed to hold both admiration and pity.
Unwilling to meet Han Li's gaze, Senior Brother Li gently closed his eyes. Only the uneven rise and fall of his chest showed how turbulent his feelings were.
"You've been taking this medicine for several years now, haven't you? If you stop taking these pills now, I can ask Doctor Mo to prepare another secret medicine for you. Though it can't restore your full lifespan, it can still let you live another twenty or thirty years. But you won't be able to keep your martial arts. If you continue taking the pills, judging by today's attack, you'll live another five or six years at most. Of course, during those years your martial arts will improve faster and faster, far faster than they are improving now. Since you dared to take this secret medicine, I expect you're a resolute and decisive man. You can make up your own mind about your body. Will you take this pill or throw it away?"