Li Yunquan’s face suddenly showed a startled expression.
While he carefully pondered and recalled things, he discovered a clue.
During the pill battle finals, there were a total of eight people from Pill Heart Sect participating in the pill battles. Seven among them were rather strong, and they had all been arranged around Gu Zuo, Xu Lingxiu, and Xin Bailin. As for these three people, they were hotly anticipated to seize the crown.
Sure enough, the following matters were just as expected. Xin Bailin and Xu Lingxiu directly eliminated more than half of the pharmacists surrounding them. Meanwhile, Gu Zuo was even more ridiculous. Each and every pharmacist who was close to him basically had their cauldrons exploded and their pills wasted!
As a result, those seven rather strong individuals had bad luck and were completely wiped out. On the contrary, a young and slightly weaker disciple whose identity in Pill Heart Sect was quite high was able to smoothly protect himself because he wasn’t close to the three people.
Merely, his performance really wasn’t worth mentioning.
Pill Heart Sect had crafty plots and machinations, wanting to pressure Qingyun Sect and Danyun City simultaneously. If Pill Heart Sect had employed upright and just methods when competing in the pill battles with them, Danyun City and Qingyun Sect wouldn’t have backed away from the challenge. However, since they chose to use that treacherous scheme, Danyun City and Qingyun Sect teamed up, which wasn’t that easy to deal with.
With only the barest changes to the seating order, Pill Heart Sect was firmly trampled upon.
Xu Lingxiu said: “However, this is a small punishment. In the future, we’ll give them a proper visit! How respected is my Qingyun Sect? Those clowns absolutely can’t wantonly provoke it!”
Li Yunquan was naturally very reverent towards his own Sect. Hearing what was said, he agreed: “Junior Sect Brother Xu’s words are justified. The insignificant Pill Heart Sect truly doesn’t amount to anything.”
The subject of this talk was over, and the two didn’t spend too many thoughts on the matter of Pill Heart Sect. If it wasn’t for Pill Heart Sect’s excessive actions, with Qingyun Sect’s style, it really wouldn’t have paid much attention to them. The pharmacists on the continent were indeed worthy of admiration, but once the pharmacists of certain organizations surpassed those of certain medicine refining sects and that organization’s martial strength shocked the world, those so-called medicine refining sects could only lower their heads in acknowledgement. They weren’t capable of competing with those organizations.
Soon after, Li Yunquan opened his mouth with some hesitation: “Junior Sect Brother Xu, do you have any opinions on...Junior Sect Brother Gu’s Spirit Devouring Pill?”
Xu Lingxiu paused. After that, he sneered and said: “What opinions could I have? Junior Sect Brother Gu’s pill prescription naturally belongs to Junior Sect Brother Gu. The glory he has won is both his and my Qingyun Sect’s glory.”
Li Yunquan hesitated even more: “But...Junior Sect Brother Xu’s way of thinking might not be the same as other people.” He saw that Xu Lingxiu hadn’t interrupted his words, and continued speaking, “The Spirit Devouring Pill Refining Method really is extraordinary. If one learns that method of pill refining, perhaps top grade medicinal pills for the Xiantian Realm won’t be random miracles anymore.”
The corner of Xu Lingxiu’s mouth curled: “Oh?” All of a sudden, he looked at Li Yunquan, “Leaving aside how other people think, what about your thoughts, Senior Sect Brother Li? Do you want this method of pill refining?”
When Li Yunquan heard this, his forehead immediately broke out in a cold sweat.
Although he was considered Xu Lingxiu’s senior sect brother and his current strength was higher than Xu Lingxiu’s, he didn’t dare mention where he was better than Xu Lingxiu. His identity and position couldn’t compare to that of Xu Lingxiu. He knew that Xu Lingxiu’s relationship with Gu Zuo was pretty good, and now it sounded like Xu Lingxiu’s tone was a little discontented. It was only natural that he was somewhat aghast for fear that he was misunderstood.
Hence, Li Yunquan hastily waved his hands: “No, no, no—” He stopped, “I won’t keep it from Junior Sect Brother Xu. It would be a lie if I said that I don’t want it, but we’re all fellow disciples. Even though I want it, I definitely wouldn’t secretly plan on seizing it. I’m only thinking that such a pill refining method would certainly attract the attention of many powers. I’m afraid that not even Danyun City wouldn’t be tempted. No matter how we think about it, we should at least first protect Junior Sect Brother Gu from being hoodwinked by outsiders.”
Xu Lingxiu’s complexion loosened a little bit: “I understand your meaning, but the Spirit Devouring Pill Refining Method is Junior Sect Brother Gu’s fortuitous encounter. He has the final say in how things are handled. If Danyun City gets in touch with him to provide great benefits, why should you and I make him give it up? Moreover, if this method is successful, the best medicinal pills of an organization would increase by a grade. The organization could nurture even more talents and core forces. Whether it’s Danyun City or our Sect, they’ll both certainly want to obtain it. Neither will relinquish it.”
Li Yunquan sighed: “Then, Junior Sect Brother Xu’s intent is?”
Xu Lingxiu said: “Junior Sect Brother Gu really isn’t the sort of person who won’t listen to reason. If Danyun City wants to contact him, you and I will watch over things for him. And if the Sect wants to obtain his method... It will pay handsomely for it.”
Li Yunquan startled: “If this prescription is monopolized, it will be a hen that lays an unending stream of golden eggs... Junior Sect Brother Gu, how could he be willing to share it with others?”
Xu Lingxiu listened up to here and his expression became a little unsightly: “Although I didn’t want to mention this matter, if it’s to accumulate capital for his “young master”, I’m afraid Junior Sect Brother Gu, that obstinate fellow, won’t be stingy with this. What’s more, even if we make an exchange for that method, the acquired top grade medicinal pills will be supplied to very few people. This won’t affect the position of the one whom Junior Sect Brother Gu follows. Naturally, it’s also unimportant. Moreover, from what I can see, the ambitions of that young master... Humph.”
Li Yunquan had long known that Gu Zuo wasn’t a member of the Pharmacist Hall. He also knew that he was only a nominal disciple. However, he didn’t anticipate that, considering Gu Zuo’s natural talents, he was hell-bent on following another person.
In a split second, he was a little curious: “What kind of a person is the one Junior Sect Brother Gu follows?”
Xu Lingxiu was somewhat out of sorts: “A person you’d loathe just by looking at him.”
Speaking up to here, he pursed his lips: “...But he definitely isn’t an idiot.”
Upon seeing Xu Lingxiu acting this way, Li Yunquan didn’t dare to continue questioning closely. He just slowly revealed a smiling expression.
The one who could make his Junior Sect Brother Xu give such an assessment...was certainly extraordinary.
Gu Zuo’s harvests on the fourth floor were very large.
As mentioned previously, the initial prices of the medicinal ingredients here started at ten thousand gold. Each one was very costly, but Gu Zuo still possessed two million in golden banknotes. Basically, he wasn’t afraid that he couldn’t afford it.
One needed to know that right now wasn’t like when he initially accumulated capital and did his best to save money. The current situation was where it was easy to obtain ten million golden banknotes, but it was hard to find top-notch medicinal ingredients.
Gu Zuo was ambitious and exuberant, too. He wanted to buy everything that could be bought in this place!
At this time, his first glance had settled upon a shoot of ten-thousand year old ginseng.
Everyone knew that ginseng, this type of thing, was very precious to ordinary people. But to martial artists, it was considered a medicinal ingredient that was relatively easy to obtain. In addition, it wasn’t that fussy about the environment it grew in. There weren’t any problems in wanting to plant it by oneself. As for the point of difficulty, it didn’t rest with the ginseng itself. Rather, it rested with its years of existence.
Hence, ginseng that broke a hundred years could be used by martial artists. Ginseng that broke a thousand years was considered precious. And ginseng that broke ten thousand years could be said to be a rare sight.
Gu Zuo asked for the price. This ten-thousand year old ginseng wasn’t the cheapest. One shoot cost more than ten thousand gold. As for the specific price, one still needed to look at its weight.
Fifty-eight thousand gold was immediately spent.
Young Lass Xixi: “...”
Okay, every time this sir saw a medicinal ingredient he liked, he’d certainly clean them out... She finally understood why Bing Jin had hinted like that.
After the ten-thousand year old ginsengs were purchased, Gu Zuo renewed his search.
To be honest, the medicinal properties of the medicinal ingredients here were indeed very exaggerated. Sometimes, even though they were partitioned, one could still see the fullness of the ingredients’ color and luster. It was as if the ingredients were emitting a dense medicinal fragrance at all times.
Gu Zuo was dazzled. One moment, he felt this one was good. The next moment, he felt that one was wonderful. And the moment after that, he felt that there were lots of things that he wanted! Ultimately, these feelings all transformed into regret.
Sure enough, the reputations of Danyun City and the Myriad Medicine Tower were well-deserved!
Afterwards, Gu Zuo wasn’t concerned about anything else. Although he wanted all of the medicinal ingredients in this tower, he still picked out what his dear big brother might need in the future. As for the ones he liked even more, he started ruthlessly buying all of them, even the rarer ones. The ones that could be bought out were all bought. The ones that couldn’t be bought out had the best of them selected.
In the eyes of other people, this really could be said to be a “black heart and poisonous hand”. He didn’t give any of the pharmacists coming afterwards a way out... But! He had money.
Having money meant buying good medicine!
After making such purchases again and again, Gu Zuo was reluctantly choosing between the final two pieces of medicinal ingredients. He compared them several times, but in the end, he used his remaining hundred thousand gold to buy a Nine-Leaves Lotus. The one left over was a Five-Colored Snake Gall. It could only be abandoned by him. After all, although both of them were very good, the former was even rarer. On the contrary, perhaps one could still hunt down and kill the latter. Hunting it was just relatively challenging...
Once he heaved a sigh, Gu Zuo lingered in the tower for a moment before begrudgingly exiting.
This time, he didn’t dare to turn his head around lest he was unwilling to leave.
Currently, of the golden banknotes in Gu Zuo’s possession, only a thousand gold remained.
What could this thousand gold buy?
This wasn’t considered small to ordinary martial artists, but to Gu Zuo, this was probably nothing.
Gu Zuo carried the medicinal ingredients he received earlier as he walked out the Myriad Medicine Tower. When Gu Zuo raised his head, he saw Dragon One waiting by the entrance.
As Gu Zuo’s personal bodyguard, he’d been following after Gu Zuo all along. Only, because he was a martial artist and not a pharmacist, he had no way of entering the Myriad Medicine Tower, and could only wait outside the entrance.
As a Tianlong Guard who’d been following Gongyi Tianheng for a long time and was adept at discerning a person’s body language, Dragon One discovered that Gu Zuo’s expression was off the instant he came out.
This appeared like... Ah, a miserable look.
Dragon One’s following and managing was Tianheng’s arrangement. And how could Tianheng’s plan simply allow him to protect Gu Zuo while Gu Zuo handled such trifling matters?
Thus, Dragon One, who’d similarly embraced the mission of “keeping Ah Zuo free from worries”, started to resolve this difficult situation for his family’s young master, Gongyi Tianheng — Yes, Tianheng — He said: “Pharmacist Gu, could it be possible that this trip hasn’t run smoothly?”
Gu Zuo stared blankly.
Whether Dragon One or Dragon Two, both Tianlong Guards were complete mysteries. How could this enigma suddenly become concerned about him? But on second thought, he knew that this was his dear big brother’s arrangement. He honestly said to Dragon One: “It’s not that it didn’t go smoothly. Rather...”
Ah, it was a little embarrassing to mention.
Dragon One naturally continued to inquire: “Pharmacist Gu?”
Gu Zuo was a bit uncomfortable: “...I don’t have enough golden banknotes.”
Dragon One: “...”
Gu Zuo snapped out of it, and also felt that this matter was quite ridiculous. He said with embarrassment: “I was too greedy. Because I saw such good medicinal ingredients, I wanted to buy them all up. But since the Myriad Medicine Tower is so big and there are so many medicinal ingredients, after buying a few, I couldn’t buy the rest.”
Dragon One understood. He didn’t speak too much and immediately grabbed for something in his sleeve. After that, there was a stack of golden banknotes in his hand. On his body, he also carried a Fangcun Cloth.
Gu Zuo shook his head: “It’s not easy for you to save up some money. I won’t call on you to borrow it...”
Dragon One’s expression was very serious: “These are the golden banknotes that the young master handed over to this subordinate prior to our departure. The young master instructed this subordinate that, if Pharmacist Gu doesn’t have enough golden banknotes, I will take it out for Pharmacist Gu to purchase the medicinal ingredients he wants.”
Gu Zuo blanked: “Big brother instructed that?”
There were lots of medicinal ingredients in Danyun City, but because Qingyun Sect’s ingredients were also never in short supply, he didn’t undertake the mission to purchase bulk ingredients. Previously, he purchased huge quantities of ingredients purely because he wanted to get more to save his big brother and himself a bit of trouble.
However, he didn’t expect that his big brother would actually... Gu Zuo’s heart couldn’t help warming up from this.
Dragon One said: “The young master has long known Pharmacist Gu’s preferences.”
Gu Zuo: “...”
So, his big brother had long anticipated that he wouldn’t have enough money from his shopping spree?
As before with great dedication, Dragon One handed it over with both hands.
Because it was the golden banknotes given by his dear big brother, Gu Zuo also didn’t have any conflicts. As he took it, he asked: “How many golden banknotes did big brother bring?”
Dragon One had a solemn face: “Three million in golden banknotes.”
Gu Zuo stiffened. His head swiveled with a cracking sound: “How many?”
Dragon One: “Three million.”
Gu Zuo: “I can use it all?”
Dragon One: “All of it has been given to Pharmacist Gu to control.”
Gu Zuo took a deep breath.
Then, in other words, this was the equivalent of him spending only half of his money! Previously, there were quite a few medicinal ingredients that he fancied but had no way to purchase. Now that he had money, he could buy them! He certainly couldn’t miss this opportunity!
Soon, he made his decision. Gu Zuo immediately said: “Hand over all the golden banknotes you have.”
Dragon One also didn’t hesitate in the slightest. He took out the rest of the golden banknotes from the Fangcun Cloth, and gave it all to Gu Zuo.
Gu Zuo grabbed the golden banknotes, turned his head, and swiftly rushed back into the Myriad Medicine Tower.
No matter! In any case, it was the money owed to his big brother. After he went back, he would just refine medicine!
The fourth floor’s medicinal ingredients! He, Gu Zuo, had arrived!
In the tower, the attendant Bing Jin watched Gu Zuo leave and return. After discovering that Gu Zuo had rushed upstairs like a whirlwind, his face couldn’t help revealing a stupefied expression.
Whatever. He and these wealthy pharmacists were people of different worlds...
As for Dragon One, after Gu Zuo’s fleeting silhouette disappeared, his whole figure stretched taut. Once more, he waited outside of the Myriad Medicine Tower.
At this moment, he was like an ageless pillar, standing tall and upright in that one spot.
He waited for the return of that person whom his young master needed to protect.
One hour later.
Gu Zuo walked out with a satisfied look on his face.
Spending money was really refreshing!
Previously, the ones he fancied were top-notch medicinal ingredients. With the strong financial backing of three million in golden banknotes, he took away at least one stalk of all the medicinal herbs that he admired on the fourth floor. Very quickly, he padded that deep storage space of his, which seemed like it went on forever without limit.
In this way, Gu Zuo’s mood improved by more than just a little bit. One should know that he thought he was going to miss out on a lot of medicinal ingredients just then. But it was different now. His stockpile was plentiful!
Even though he owed his big brother a huge debt, he wouldn’t hesitate to do it again!
Upon seeing Dragon One, Gu Zuo said to him in gratitude: “Fortunately, I have you. If not, I would’ve certainly lost hope.”
Dragon One said in a respectful voice: “Everything is within the young master’s forethoughts and considerations.”
Gu Zuo nodded his head, showing a great, big smile: “Right. The one I’m most thankful for is still big brother!”
At this time, Gu Zuo finally discovered that his stomach was a little hungry.
This wasn’t strange. He came over in the early morning to purchase medicinal ingredients, and he’d been buying buying buying the whole time. When did Gu Zuo have the time to eat? Currently, the lunch period had long passed, and even now, everyone should’ve been eating dinner. It was inevitable that his stomach rumbled in hunger.
Although the remaining money was just a few thousand gold, there was no problem if one wanted to eat a couple meals.
Gu Zuo was unconcerned about anything else. He led Dragon One to first fill their bellies.
Once he filled his stomach, he wanted to return to the City Lord’s Mansion to look at the mission rewards...
When Gu Zuo returned to the City Lord’s Mansion, the color of the sky had already darkened a bit.
Just as he entered the courtyard, he saw Xu Lingxiu and Li Yunquan sitting over there like they’d been waiting for him for a long time.
When Li Yunquan saw that Gu Zuo had returned, he smiled and said: “Ah, Junior Sect Brother Gu went to the Myriad Medicine Tower. Your harvest has indeed been rather bountiful.”
Gu Zuo lightly coughed: “Indeed. I bought some things I liked...”
The corner of Xu Lingxiu’s mouth pulled up: “Bought some? I heard that you nearly emptied the entire inventory of that Myriad Medicine Tower!”
Gu Zuo forced a smile: “How could I have that ability? The inventory of that Myriad Medicine Tower shouldn’t be that small, right?”
Xu Lingxiu glanced at him, and didn’t mock him again.
At this time, Gu Zuo realized that his display in the Myriad Medicine Tower couldn’t have been concealed from Xu Lingxiu and the others. Moreover, the people of the City Lord’s Mansion probably knew, too.
Li Yunquan’s bearing was very good: “Junior Sect Brother Gu, if you don’t have enough of something, you can talk to us. We’ll naturally support Junior Sect Brother Gu.”
Xu Lingxiu didn’t say anything, which was considered his tacit approval.
Although Gu Zuo didn’t intend on owing the two of them any favors, he still nodded his head: “In that case, many thanks to my senior sect brothers.”
After that, Xu Lingxiu and Li Yunquan unexpectedly said nothing else. Xu Lingxiu only gestured with his hand and let Gu Zuo in.
Gu Zuo wasn’t able to make sense of the matter. Could it be that these two were waiting for him? If they were waiting for him, they wouldn’t have simply said a few words and let things go, right? Or were they just waiting in order to tell him that he could borrow money from them?
But since these two had nothing else to say, Gu Zuo also didn’t put too much thought into it. He simply led Dragon One back to his own room.
Outside, Xu Lingxiu curled his lips: “That Gongyi Tianheng is quite considerate to Junior Sect Brother Gu.”
Li Yunquan smiled awkwardly, and said: “Are we not going to speak to Junior Sect Brother Gu about guarding against the matter of Danyun City’s talks?”
Xu Lingxiu coldly said: “It’s inappropriate for you and I to bring up this matter. To avoid making Junior Sect Brother Gu uncomfortable, it’s better to let Danyun City bring it up themselves.”
Li Yunquan thought that this was reasonable. Hence, he was no longer tangled up about this problem.
Sure enough, on the next day, someone from the City Lord’s Mansion dropped by with an invitation. They wanted to invite Gu Zuo to a banquet, saying that there was an important matter to discuss.
Last night, Gu Zuo’s consciousness had immersed itself in the storage space, admiring the endless top-notch medicinal ingredients the whole time. For a moment, he didn’t understand clearly. Why was only he alone invited this time around? Under the suspicions in his heart, he naturally asked about it.
The one who came to invite Gu Zuo was also a familiar person. In addition, it was Xin Qiu, who sparred with Gu Zuo that day in a pill battle. It was probably because they were people close to the same age. As a result, he was made to get into contact with Gu Zuo and to let Gu Zuo feel more at ease.
Gu Zuo turned his head and looked at Xu Lingxiu: “This...”
Xu Lingxiu saw Gu Zuo acting this way. His complexion, which always appeared arrogant, relaxed a bit: “Don’t think too much about it. Follow him and you’ll know. Just take care of yourself, and don’t make any careless promises!”
These few words didn’t appear happy, and also seemed like a warning. In a split second, Gu Zuo was even less clear about the situation.
But since Xu Lingxiu allowed him, a single person, to go, that should’ve meant that there wasn’t any danger. Thus, Gu Zuo didn’t worry about it, and followed Xin Qiu out.
— In any case, no matter what, wouldn’t he find out after going?
Xin Qiu led Gu Zuo, and arrived at a relatively private side room. The room was still very big, and there were quite a few people in it. There was a rich medicinal fragrance on their bodies. It looked like they were all pharmacists whose levels of mastery weren’t low.
City Lord Xin was here. Xin Bailin was also here. But unexpectedly, after delivering Gu Zuo, Xin Qiu went out by himself and closed the door.
Gu Zuo looked at this wide expanse of pharmacists who were older than him, a bit dumbfounded. However, through the good and the bad, he was also someone who’d seen the greater aspects of society. After composing himself, he followed Xin Bailin’s indications and sat in a seat that was just slightly separated from them.
At first, this meeting seemed a bit like two armies facing off against one another. However, because the other side didn’t deliberately release any pressure and the numerous pharmacists scattered around were rather casual, Gu Zuo didn’t feel uncomfortable.
En, it only felt a little strange and unfamiliar.
Gu Zuo was the younger generation. He opened his mouth first: “Honorable seniors, the reason why this younger generation was called over is...”
This didn’t look like he was attending a banquet!
City Lord Xin revealed an amiable smile: “We invited Junior Gu to come. It’s just a small assembly, and we’ll also set up a small feast to entertain the youngest recipient of a gold slip. However...”
With rapt attention, Gu Zuo realized that this was the important point.
City Lord Xin said: “However, before that, there’s still a matter that we’d like to discuss with Junior Gu.” Speaking up to here, he paused, “It concerns...this junior’s method of refining medicine.”
T/N: Thanks for the corrections, Charysa.
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