"Zhu Zhuangshi, this is the only way I can take you. Ahead lies the area where those strange snakes roam. Be careful, those snakes are poisonous from head to toe, even their flesh is highly toxic. Never touch them!"
"May I ask what you need this strange snake for, brave man?"
In a forest south of Xiangyang, a hunter stopped and pointed to the mountains ahead, speaking to a burly man behind him. His expression showed obvious apprehension, clearly indicating that what lay ahead was not a safe place, and he was also somewhat puzzled.
This strong man surnamed Zhu was indeed strange. As soon as he arrived at their village, he inquired about any strange snakes nearby and offered ten taels of silver as a reward.
If he hadn't ventured deep into this area before, he wouldn't have been able to earn those ten taels of silver.
However, this was already his limit. If he were to encounter that kind of strange snake, he would surely die given his skills.
"It's nothing to tell you, but my master obtained an ancient prescription for curing athlete's foot, which requires the venom of this kind of snake as a medicinal ingredient. He even offered a high price of one thousand taels of silver. Otherwise, I wouldn't have come here to take this risk to catch the snake."
The burly man replied with a smile. This man was none other than Wang Hao, who had disguised himself using the Thousand Faces Divine Technique. He was still using the same alias as Zhu Yanzu, which made him look nine-tenths like the generation's male god Wu Yanzu.
He didn't want to reveal his whereabouts, after all, he had just ruined a major Confucian School plan, and given their power, they must have already obtained his information, and might have even sent some experts to hunt him down.
Therefore, it is necessary to conceal one's identity.
"Is it really worth paying a thousand taels of silver for just athlete's foot?"
The middle-aged hunter was stunned and couldn't understand the thoughts of those wealthy men who were willing to pay a thousand taels of silver just to get a medicinal ingredient for a mere case of athlete's foot.
You can only say they're definitely rich!
He was no stranger to athlete's foot; in fact, he had it himself.
Since he had to hunt in the mountains and forests, he wrapped his feet and calves tightly with thick animal hides to avoid being injured by poisonous snakes and other creatures hiding in the grass. Over time, he developed athlete's foot.
Aside from being a bit pungent, there's nothing wrong with it!
Is it really necessary for a grown man to be so delicate?
"It's not for my master, it's for my young lady. My young lady is getting married soon, and her husband's family is quite domineering, which is why my master and young lady are getting anxious."
With a helpless shrug, Wang Hao continued to lie through his teeth.
He wouldn't underestimate the wisdom of the ancients. Perhaps this hunter hadn't read many books, but he was certainly not lacking in cleverness. Who knew what the other party might discover and then sell the information, potentially attracting some important figure and causing him trouble?
"Uh... then we really need to get treatment as soon as possible!"
The hunter was taken aback, then nodded in agreement.
It's no big deal for a grown man to get athlete's foot, but it's a different story for a young woman, especially one about to get married and whose husband's family is quite powerful.
If you get dumped, that would be a huge problem!
It's certainly worth spending thousands of taels of silver on this, but these days, how can those young ladies from wealthy families, who rarely leave their homes, get athlete's foot?
"That's enough for now. I'll handle the rest. You can go back now."
Wang Hao tightened the large bamboo basket on his back, waved to the hunter, and signaled that he could leave.
"Brave warrior, be careful!"
After giving Wang Hao another warning, the hunter quickly turned back.
It's getting late, and we must head back as soon as possible; otherwise, being left in the mountains after dark would be quite dangerous.
Watching the hunter's figure disappear into the woods, Wang Hao tightened the large bamboo basket on his back and took out a five-foot-long greatsword from it.
"Fine, I'll just have to make do!"
Wang Hao glanced at the greatsword, which wasn't much different from the previous Shameless Greatsword, sighed, and had no choice but to continue using it.
This was specially made by a blacksmith shop he had previously hired, and its style was exactly the same as the original Shameless Greatsword.
He originally wanted to create a higher quality one, but the blacksmith's tools were of limited quality, and in the end he could only forge Thousand-Forged Refined Steel, which was on the same level as the original Shameless Greatsword.
Although this level of weaponry is somewhat outdated and risks breaking, it is sufficient for the time being.
As long as I don't encounter a seasoned powerhouse like High Person Linghui, who possesses both inner and outer cultivation and profound skills, I can still use this new Shameless Greatsword to fight head-on without any problem.
Not to mention...
Wang Hao touched the special belt around his waist, inside which was sealed the Ziwei Soft Sword. This belt was a specially made soft scabbard, so that outsiders could not detect anything unusual when the Ziwei Soft Sword was hidden inside.
Although he still finds it difficult to wield the Ziwei Soft Sword, a top-tier divine weapon, he can already use it for a short while, making it perfect as a trump card!
Prepared, Wang Hao strode into the mountainous area ahead. Not long after he started walking, a Big Dog, as tall as a man, ran out from the woods on the side. It was Wangcai, who had been hiding there.
Along the way, Wang Hao specifically instructed Wangcai to hide to avoid revealing their whereabouts, since Wangcai's size, like his, was too conspicuous.
Fortunately, the environment was better in ancient times, with trees and bushes everywhere. Almost all cities and villages were surrounded by mountains and forests, unlike the barren landscape of modern times.
Hidden in the mountains and forests, Wangcai followed Wang Hao south for over a thousand miles without being discovered.
Hurriedly entering the mountains and forests, Wang Hao chose a good spot as his camp, put down the large bamboo basket on his back, and took out the supplies he had bought before entering the mountains.
Even with the help of the blood of the Pusi Qu Snake, the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art cannot be mastered in a short time, so he was prepared for a protracted battle.
Instead of immediately searching for the Pusi Qu Snake, Wang Hao first used his Shameless Greatsword to cut down a large number of trees, preparing to build a treehouse on several tall trees.
After all, there are countless poisonous insects and ferocious beasts in the mountains and forests. Although he was not afraid, he did not want to be bothered by them, so it was necessary to build a treehouse at a high place.
He didn't bother searching for the former residence of Dugu Qiubai, as depicted in Old Master Jin's novels. Firstly, the area was too vast and difficult to locate, and secondly, even if he did find it, it wouldn't be of much significance.
Centuries have passed, and who knows what Dugu Qiubai's former residence looks like now? Even if any treasures remain, they probably wouldn't have survived the test of time.
It was already dawn when the treehouse was built. Wang Hao meditated and rested briefly inside, then, wielding the Shameless Greatsword, he officially began searching for the Pusi Qu Snake, with Wangcai following closely behind.
Perhaps because they were no longer suppressed by the giant eagle Dugu Qiubai, the Pusi Qu Snake, without their natural enemies, began to multiply wildly. Before long, Wang Hao had killed several Pusi Qu Snake.
He originally intended to keep these Pusi Qu Snake and only use their crest blood for training, but these Pusi Qu Snake were unusually ferocious and violent, and he couldn't subdue them at all. Helpless, Wang Hao had no choice but to kill them.
After bringing several long Pusi Qu Snake back to the camp, Wang Hao began to process them.
Although he mainly needs snake crest blood, he will not give up snake meat and snake blood.
Snake crest blood is a type of snake blood, so naturally blood from other parts of the body also has some of the effects of snake crest blood, at most just weaker.
But there's just too much blood in other parts of the body!
Together, they are enough to be equivalent to the effects of one dose of snake crest blood. Therefore, eating a whole Pusi Qu Snake is equivalent to obtaining two doses of snake crest blood, and the snake meat can also be used to satisfy hunger.
As for the poison the hunter mentioned, Wang Hao didn't take it to heart at all, because that kind of poison was a special substance that could help cultivate the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art.
As long as one cultivates the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art, this poison can be completely refined, preventing it from harming one.
"The blood of the Pusi Qu Snake is indeed potent. Just one dose of its crest blood has such a noticeable effect; perhaps one hundred Pusi Qu Snake would be enough to cultivate the first level of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art!"
After swallowing a portion of snake crest blood, Wang Hao began to circulate his internal energy according to the methods of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art, stimulating and tempering his muscles, bones, and flesh.
Originally known for its slow cultivation speed Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art's speed increased countless times with the blessing of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art's Blood, allowing Wang Hao to make significant progress in his cultivation.
He now finally understood why the Pusi Qu Snake had become extinct in Tianzhu; its effects were simply too powerful.
With enough Pusi Qu Snake as a supply, one can master the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art Upper Chapter within six months and become a Peak Super-First-Rate expert.
Even because the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art is an external martial art, it allows practitioners to directly confront masters at the Grandmaster Realm level.
Faced with such temptation, it would be strange if those Tianzhu didn't resort to ruthless tactics.
Wang Hao was practicing his skills peacefully, unaware that the outside world had already been thrown into chaos because of him.
First, 9527 secretly escorted the ledger back to the capital and handed it over to Zhao Fengxue. Zhao Fengxue then met directly with the head of the Eastern Depot with Lu Weilou, and in the end, they even alarmed the Da Ming Emperor, Great Emperor Mingde.
Emperor Mingde was furious after reading the accounts and immediately ordered the Eastern Depot to take full control of the matter, arrest all the key criminals, and have the authority to execute first and report later.
Then a bloody storm ensued, with not only the imperial court being ravaged by killings, but also many people being implicated in local affairs, and the prisons of various government offices were almost overflowing.
It even spread to the martial arts world, with many small sects being wiped out overnight.
The Eastern Depot certainly stole the show this time, but they also knew how to exercise restraint. Although they executed many officials, they did not touch the foundation of Confucian School.
After all, Confucian School is now an unparalleled behemoth, and even the Da Ming imperial family is wary of it, let alone their mere Eastern Depot.
If the Confucian School were truly angered, a few old monsters at the level of Xiantian Grandmaster might emerge and take a stroll through the Eastern Depot, and the Eastern Depot would become nothing more than dust in history.
Although it did not cause any serious damage, the incident still resulted in significant losses for the Confucian School. More importantly, the other side had irrefutable evidence and was in the right, leaving the Confucian school without a suitable excuse to retaliate.
This made them hate the Da Ming imperial family, the Eastern Depot, and Wang Hao even more!
With their Confucian School background, they naturally obtained detailed information about Wang Hao immediately and even dispatched experts to investigate and kill him.
Unfortunately, Wang Hao was currently cultivating his martial arts in the deep mountains, and he had also disguised himself when he went south, leaving no trace. No matter how hard they searched, they couldn't find a single clue.