Chapter 456 - Chapter 456: 456 (2/2)

“This guy comes here every day to swindle people, who knows how many have been tricked by him, yet the elder of the mountain does nothing, letting him act recklessly here!”

Chen Yu glanced sidelong; most people in this small town weren’t very wealthy, and many could barely scrape by with the money they earned.

The Xuanqing Sect seemed indifferent to this place, as if leaving the town to fend for itself.

Although he didn’t quite understand, Chen Yu felt he still needed to intervene now that he had stumbled upon the situation.

After analysis, the system discovered that the pills laid out in front of the fake Taoist were all made from leftover medicine dregs.

While they wouldn’t cause harm if ingested, they also had no effect whatsoever.

Chen Yu didn’t bother with niceties and went straight over, but as he approached, an elderly person suddenly collapsed to the ground with violent convulsions.

The startled charlatan gaped as the elderly man chewed on the pill he had just handed out.

“Everyone saw him, he must have had some illness the moment he stuffed the pill into his mouth!”

This explanation was very far-fetched, and not something most people would believe, especially since the old man had already swallowed most of the pill—it couldn’t possibly be unrelated.

Chen Yu sighed helplessly, advanced, and grabbed the old man’s pulse, discerning that the spasms were due to a medical stress reaction from the medication.

He pressed a few acupoints on the man’s body, tapped them gently, and soon eased the spasms.

Then he walked straight up to the fake Taoist.

“Where exactly did you come from, and why are you impersonating a Taoist from Tianhu Mountain?”

The charlatan paused for a moment, then stood up and adopted the air of a profound and accomplished person.

“I am a disciple of Heavenly Master Long Tian; how could I be an impostor? Young man, do not spout nonsense.”

Chen Yu scoffed, reached out, and grabbed the charlatan’s shoulder.

“Since you claim to be a disciple of Heavenly Master Long Tian, you must be skilled in medicine. Why not have us both examine a patient, and test our skills?”

As he spoke, two people hobbled their way over.

They appeared to be a couple, covered in strange pustules from head to toe.

It seemed they had come here to buy some medicine.

Chen Yu immediately went up to check their pulses and found that both of their bodily functions were in severe disarray, with a small tumor even forming at their hearts.

He was suddenly puzzled; the foothills of Tianhu Mountain were akin to a paradisiacal land, where the air and water were many times cleaner than elsewhere. How could tumors possibly develop?

As he was lost in thought, the fake Taoist suddenly stepped forward and grabbed one of their pulses.

“I thought it was some serious illness, but it turns out to be nothing more than the ’black soybean disease’ here! A little medication is all that’s needed to heal.”

The charlatan carelessly pulled out a packet of pills from inside his robe and stuffed it into their hands.

Chen Yu’s pupils dilated; such myocardial tumors were extremely dangerous, no matter where they occurred. Yet, to this man, they seemed insignificant.

Just as Chen Yu was about to take back the medicine, the couple, as if they had received some divine boon, frantically stuffed the pills into their mouths, then knelt on the ground and kowtowed in thanks.

The crowd gathered around sang praises to the charlatan, claiming he had saved lives from imminent danger.

Liu Zhongxiang hurriedly stepped forward to pull Chen Yu away from the throng.

“Mr. Chen, this is no place to stay for long. Come with me first, and we can discuss this later.”

Chen Yu was somewhat helpless; he simply could not grasp what exactly was going on with this small town.

Why was someone using the name of a Taoist from Tianhu Mountain to swindle here? And why did it seem as if the Heavenly Master atop the mountain turned a blind eye?

Moreover, the physical state of the townspeople contrasted starkly with that of the Taoists of the mountain, as if these people were deliberately left to endure trials and tribulations.