Chapter: 830 (1/2)
AST 830 – Bone Softening Powder, Hu Yuanqing
Qing Shui wasn’t particularly concerned when the Cui brothers left. They weren’t strong enough to cause him any kind of trouble, so he didn’t have anything to worry about.
Tiger Stream Valley!
This area was surrounded by steep, mountain rock walls and there was only one exit that lead to the outside world. The place seemed like a giant open-air premise but the air felt a bit suffocating in it.
The grasses on the ground were dense which filled the entire valley with a pleasant smell of fresh green grass. It had been an exhausting and speedy journey for the past few days, so this change of beautiful scenery was a good chance to sit back and relax for a while.
Qing Shui glanced at Long Lingyun and Qi Gang – they appeared to be as the same as before even after what they had been through. Just then, he wondered what kind of impressions they had on the Cui brothers but he figured that they kept the brothers around because they were still useful. The reason he was curious was because awhile ago, the brothers looked down on his abilities.
“Qing Shui, are you selling the herb you required or are you collecting it for a mission? Or maybe you are collecting the herb to refine medicine?” When Long Lingyun finally had some spare time, she sat beside Qing Shui with a smile and asked him questions.
“I am going to use the herb to refine medicine.” Qing Shui told the truth. Lying was unneccessary at this point.
“So you are an alchemist.” Long Lingyun wasn’t surprised. Even though alchemists were widely respected by the public, most Xiantian alchemists wouldn’t be highly regarded in the eyes of Martial Saint warriors. However, no one would dare to underestimate them just in case a Xiantian alchemists had some secret recipes that could overlook most powerful recipes. If a Xiantian alchemist had managed to refine such medicinal pills, then the Martial Saints could benefit hugely from the alchemist’s effort.
So in most circumstances, any alchemists – including Xiantian alchemists – would be respected regardless. Alchemists were strangely known to be popular with both the public and martial warriors.
“I think so!” Qing Shui said in a flat tone as he smiled at Long Lingyun.
“What do you mean ‘I think so’? It’s either a yes or a no.” Long Lingyun chided angrily.
“It’s a yes.” Qing Shui replied.
“What kind of medicinal herb you need? Tell me, maybe I can help you find it. And if I can’t, then you can try the Cloud Auction House to ask for it. Oh right, why didn’t you go to the Cloud Auction House to post it as a mission?” Long Lingyun spoke in a moderate pace, yet with some sort of rhythm. She had a mellow voice that sounded pleasant.
“That is an option. Well, what I need is a Sky Penetrating Grass of more than 5,000 years old.” Qing Shui chuckled.
“5,000 years above…..” Long Lingyun skipped the part about the herb’s name when she heard the words ‘5,000 years’. Whatever herb it was, 5,000 years was a ridiculously long time.
Qing Shui looked at the shocked expression on Long Lingyun’s face. Even Qi Gang and Qian Mo were shocked at well. Despite not being an alchemist themselves, they still had a bit of knowledge about medicinal herbs, especially when it came down to the age of the herbs. Those 5,000 years old herbs were extremely valuable, so they knew these precious herbs were not something that a Xiantian alchemist could use to concoct a medicinal pill with.
“Can you even use a 5,000 years old herb to concoct medicinal pills?” Long Lingyun glistened with curiosity when she asked Qing Shui.
“I think I can. But I haven’t use it before.” Qing Shui replied with a smile.
Long Lingyun pouted her lips and remained silent. Qing Shui’s words had the ability to get on her nerves easily. She initially thought she had met a low-profile man of superior talent but reality wasn’t as straightforward as she had thought.
Just then, the Cui brothers came back with two musk deers that were already skinned and cleaned properly, including the inner organs. They greeted everyone and began to start a fire to roast the deer meat.
Within a few minutes, a fragrant smell of cooked meat travelled through the air. When the meat had turned to a subtle yellow color, the Cui brothers took out some condiments and salt then marinated the meat before they continued the roasting process.
After a while, the meat’s fragrance became stronger and richer, which had caused everyone to salivate. However, Qing Shui could sense something odd in the fragrance. His intuition told him that there was something wrong with the roasted meat.
The Cui brothers took the roasted meat and gave them to Long Lingyun and Qian Mo first. Both the ladies picked the lower joint of the legs, while Qi Gang tore off the loin of the meat for himself.
When it was Qing Shui’s turn to pick, he chose the two front legs without hesitation and began to eat. When he tasted the meat, he knew something was wrong – it was tasteless and unpalatable, as if something had disturbed its taste. Luckily, Qing Shui’s Nature Energy had an extraordinary ability that could release an astonishing energy throughout his body and began to cleanse the odd substance from his system.
The Cui brothers also ate the meat but only after they saw everyone took a bite first. They seemed relieved when they had affirmed that everyone had consumed the meat.
Qing Shui could understand why the Cui brothers were able to consume the tainted meat – they must have consumed some sort of antidote beforehand. Long Lingyun and Qi Gang didn’t seem to show any kind of reaction, and Qing Shui was unsure what kind of drug the Cui brothers had used, so he decided to wait patiently and observe the situation closely.
Ultimately, he wasn’t worried. The ‘poison’ inside his body had already been countered by his self-generating Nature Energy. All he had to do now was to observe what the Cui brothers would do next.
After the time to burn an incense stick had passed, Qian Mo decided to wash her hands at a nearby lake. But when she had tried to stand up, she realized her body was devoid of energy as her bones began to feel weak. Then immediately, she dropped to the ground, unable to move her muscles.
“Ah, why do I feel so weak!?” Qian Mo shouted in panic as she laid on the ground. She was the youngest in the group, after all.
Long Lingyun and Qi Gang were startled by Qian Mo’s cry and immediately stood up to help her. But they sat back down soon after that, clearly weakened by the poison in the meat. Qing Shui, on the other hand, remained motionless. This drug must be outrageous if an Elementary Martial Saint was affected as well.
“Hahaha!”
At that moment, Cui Hao let out a roaring laughter. A gloating smile was plastered openly on his face.