Under the setting sun, the street became quiet.
Li Jun looked up at the golden evening glow and asked, "Brother Huang, could that Benefactor be someone close to us?"
Huang Zidong thought for a moment and teased with a smile, "Maybe it's you, little Benefactor."
Li Jun's eyes curved into a smile: "Me? I have no noble air about me. However, you and Grandpa Pan are my Benefactors."
Huang Zidong heard this, shook his head, and his tone suddenly became more serious: "A Benefactor isn't always someone who lends you a hand, but someone who helps you see clearly the path you must walk."
Li Jun was stunned by the words and was about to ask something else, but he noticed Huang Zidong had stopped speaking, gazing silently at the horizon.
"Brother Huang, perhaps your Benefactor really was the Immortal you met in your childhood..."
As they walked, night fell, stars began to appear, and the two walked on the outskirts of the city where the road gradually grew dim.
The surroundings were unusually quiet, with hardly any insect sounds.
Li Jun suddenly stopped, catching sight of several flickering Dark Shadows in the Forest ahead with his peripheral vision. His expression changed slightly, and he lightly tugged on Brother Huang's sleeve, whispering, "Brother Huang, there are people ahead."
Huang Zidong's expression sharpened, and he immediately stopped walking, his eyes wary: "Don't move, let's see first."
The two quickly retreated half a step, hiding in the shadows by the roadside.
Under the moonlight, those Dark Shadows slowly emerged from the woods. The person leading them stood tall, a sneer on his face—it was Gu Labei from Thousand Herbs Hall. Seeing that Huang Zidong had spotted him and was hiding, he also revealed himself directly.
"Huang Zidong, you really know how to pick a spot to run into me."
Huang Zidong's face darkened. He handed the Profound Ice Vine to Li Jun, then stepped out and said coldly, "You, the dignified Gu Labei, resorting to hiding in the woods for an ambush? Has Thousand Herbs Hall fallen to this level?"
Gu Labei's smile did not diminish, but his tone was as cold as frost: "Stop the nonsense. That Profound Ice Vine—you had better hand it over obediently, lest you suffer unnecessarily."
Huang Zidong's gaze turned cold, and his voice struck the ground with forceful anger:
"Hmph, Thousand Herbs Hall is too much of a rule-breaker! My Medicinal Cuisine Workshop reserved this Profound Ice Vine half a month ago. Are you trying to snatch it now by interfering? Do you really think Medicinal Cuisine Workshop has no one?"
Gu Labei gently rubbed his hands, but his tone carried a chill: "Huang Zidong, I'll say it one more time. This Profound Ice Vine is something Venerable Simu specifically requested. If you don't give it up, I must take it. If you are sensible and hand it over, Venerable Simu might even speak well of you later."
"Don't try to scare me with Venerable Simu!" Huang Zidong's voice rose, and he took a fierce step forward, his aura sharp. "I will not hand it over. If you make a move, I'll report you to the authorities!"
A cold glint flashed in Gu Labei's eyes. Before he could speak, the young man behind him sneered, "Huang Zidong, be sensible. If your workshop cooperates, you won't lose face."
"Cooperate?" Huang Zidong's gaze was sharp as a knife. "The rule is first come, first served, and trust is paramount. You want the Profound Ice Vine? Fine—you can borrow it from our Workshop Master later. Don't cause trouble here!"
Before his words finished, he grabbed Li Jun and turned to dash away.
Gu Labei's face instantly turned cold, and he shouted fiercely, "Don't let them run! Stop him! Huang Zidong—I'll teach you a lesson myself!"
Several burly men heard the command and lunged forward, iron rods whistling through the air, creating an atmosphere instantly thick with hostility!
Huang Zidong had only taken two steps when his foot suddenly slipped, tripping over a protruding flagstone and falling to the ground!
He rolled to evade, drew a spare black iron short club from between his legs, shouted coldly, and smashed it toward the charging strongman!
"Get lost! Whoever tries to steal this Profound Ice Vine, I'll smash their head!"
Club shadows danced wildly; he struck fiercely and accurately, forcing the two strongmen charging at the front to retreat repeatedly, unable to hold their ground.
Seeing the unfavorable situation, Li Jun shrank his small body, agile as a cat, slipped under the legs of one strongman, and darted into the nearby Forest!
His heart pounded like thunder, but his eyes were exceptionally clear. Relying on the skills he honed in the Forest as a child, he weaved and leaped, with several strongmen chasing him breathlessly behind.
"Stop! You little brat, don't run!"
"If you can outrun me, you've got a long life ahead—huh? Where did he go?"
Just as the strongman roared in anger, Li Jun suddenly used leverage to leap onto a thick branch of a large tree, hiding motionless among the leaves.
The two strongmen ran too fast, missing his hiding spot, and crashed wildly through the woods like unleashed dogs.
Once those people had run far away, Li Jun quietly flipped down to the ground. His small face was covered in sweat, but he gritted his teeth, not daring to rest, and sprinted back toward the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop.
Running wildly the whole way, he rushed straight outside the workshop gate, placed his hands on his hips, and shouted:
"Robbery! Thousand Herbs Hall is openly stealing Medicinal Materials—Brother Huang is surrounded!"
The Guard, Wang Wu, heard this, drew his long saber, and cursed loudly upon hearing the noise: "Who has the gall?!"
He rushed to the entrance and, seeing Li Jun panting heavily, quickly grabbed him: "Explain clearly!"
"Brother Huang is surrounded! They want to steal the Profound Ice Vine!" Li Jun's small face was flushed red with exertion. He hurriedly pulled a cloth bundle from his chest: "Brother Huang told me to keep this safe; he's still outside holding off the Thousand Herbs Hall people!"
Wang Wu's face darkened. He took the Profound Ice Vine, turned, and roared, "Chen Ju! Take the Medicinal Materials to the Storeroom, get the men, quickly!"
After speaking, he held a rusty long saber and turned to roar at the Guards at the entrance:
"Stop dawdling! This is open daylight robbery. If our Medicinal Cuisine Workshop doesn't beat them up, how will we maintain our standing?"
As soon as the words fell, the workshop instantly became lively. Several Guards gritted their teeth, swung their sleeves, and rushed out, each holding a weapon—a Sickle, an iron bar, a fire hook—none holding back.
"Go!"
The group rushed out of the workshop gate like a dark current, aggressively heading toward the site of the conflict.
Seeing this scene, Li Jun felt a surge of excitement and wanted to rush out too, but Wang Wu grabbed him.
"You little ancestor! Do you think you're a trained fighter? Stay here obediently and wait for us to bring you news when we return!"
Li Jun looked unconvinced, pouted, and muttered, "But I'm also part of the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop—"
"If you keep nagging, I'll tie you to a post with a rope!" Wang Wu said through gritted teeth, leaving this threat before leading the group and disappearing into the night.
The workshop gate slammed shut with a "boom." The sounds of fighting outside had not yet faded, but Li Jun could only stand by the threshold, gazing at the alley where the lights flickered, his heart filled with equal parts anxiety and strange excitement.
"Will they... start fighting?"
He couldn't help but stand on his tiptoes. Even though he couldn't see anything, he still craned his neck to look outside.
In his mind, Huang Zidong's stubborn tone—"Even if an Immortal came, I wouldn't give it up"—unconsciously echoed, and he bit his lip.
Not long after, the news spread, and Xiao Mingqing also rushed out of the workshop gate with his men, leaving only one Apprentice behind to watch Li Jun inside.
The Apprentice, holding a wooden stick, sighed when he saw Li Jun's eager expression: "Don't be impulsive, okay? If I happen to fall asleep later, you are not allowed to sneak out."
Li Jun pouted: "How would I dare..."
But in reality, he was already calculating whether he should sneak out the back door to watch the excitement.
Late at night, the main door of the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop was suddenly pushed open, and a thick smell of blood rushed in.
Wang Wu rushed in carrying Huang Zidong on his back, his forehead dripping with sweat, his clothes stained beyond recognition with blood and mud.
Huang Zidong was wrapped in a robe, only his face visible—pale as paper, with bloodstains at the corner of his mouth, already unconscious.
Li Jun rushed forward immediately: "Brother Huang?! What happened to him!"
"Quiet!" Wang Wu said in a deep voice, his tone hoarse but filled with anger. "Hurry and call Zhu Qin and the others! He's still alive, quickly!"
A group of apothecaries rushed over upon hearing the call—some brought a stretcher, some carried needle cases, and some had already lit oil lamps. They nervously carried Huang Zidong into the back room.
Wang Wu recounted that when they arrived at the scene, Huang Zidong was leaning against a broken water vat, covered in injuries, his arm broken, and blood pooling on the ground.
If several passing strongmen hadn't intervened in time to subdue Gu Labei and his group, he might not have even kept his life.
"Those few strongmen had good skills," Wang Wu said quietly, his brow tightly furrowed. "They left as soon as the fight was over; we didn't even have time to thank them."
"Who were they?" Li Jun asked.
"No one knows." Wang Wu shook his head. "Those who 'saved people as if saving a fire' didn't sound like ordinary passersby; they sounded more like—martial artists."
For the next few days, the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop returned to peace. Although Huang Zidong was conscious, he was wrapped in bandages lying on the sickbed, unable to move.
After sorting the Medicinal Materials as usual every day, Li Jun often snuck over to visit Huang Zidong.
"Hey, Li Jun, he can't eat the pastries you bring right now, so why do you come every day?" Zhu Qin pouted, muttering while changing Huang Zidong's dressing.
"I'm just checking in. If he doesn't eat them, I'll eat them for him." Li Jun looked at the fully bandaged Huang Zidong, holding the pastries, their fragrance filling the air with a faint sweetness.
Zhu Qin rolled his eyes: "Eat them if you want, but don't stand too close; the sweetness is making his wounds ache."
Li Jun gave a simple smile and stepped back a few paces: "Okay, Uncle Zhu, you're so mean."