"One pill every morning for seven days. Crush and burn this medicinal herb; it will help him recover faster." Xu Wencen took out the medicinal ingredient and gave his instructions.
"Thank you, Physician. Please accept this medical fee."
Seeing their leader's condition improve, the men around him were in excellent spirits. Their cold killing intent had vanished entirely. Xu Wencen did not dare accept the fee and repeatedly waved it away.
In the end, unable to resist Shao Rong's insistence, he tentatively accepted one silver tael. Their smiles broadened, and they stopped pressing him to take the rest.
Lu Zhiyuan watched with a chill in his heart. Fortunately, Xu Wencen understood how to deal with people. Had he accepted the full fee, they might both have lost their heads.
These men seemed generous and forthright, but how could they really give their money away so readily? Calling it a medical fee changed nothing.
They left the room and went to the main hall, where Du Zheng lay unconscious on the floor.
"He tried to escape. The brothers caught him and broke one of his legs," someone beside Shao Rong said.
Shao Rong's brows twitched slightly. He regarded them with a faint, ambiguous smile before cupping his hands. "Our brothers didn't know their own strength and injured him. Shall we give your companion some silver for treatment back home?"
"No, no! We wouldn't dare!"
Xu Wencen hurriedly waved his hands and glanced at Lu Zhiyuan. Taking the hint, Lu Zhiyuan went forward, hoisted Du Zheng onto his back, and quickly left the courtyard.
"Should we follow them and kill them?" someone suggested.
"Forget it. They did save quite a few of our men, and our boss's injuries are stable. Their lives can serve as the medical fee." With a cold laugh, Shao Rong headed for the rear courtyard.
After running a while with Du Zheng on his back, Lu Zhiyuan began to pant. His cultivation had steadily improved, but Clinging Blight left his stamina only a little better than an ordinary person's.
Running while carrying someone was truly taxing.
"Keep running, before they change their minds."
Xu Wencen was breathless as well, but dared not stop. He was terrified that the men would come after them.
Du Zheng was already quite capable. He had seized a chance to escape while Shao Rong was gone, yet still been caught. That showed how many skilled men had been among them.
Even if Lu Zhiyuan had put his various contingency plans into action, his chances would probably have been grim.
In less than fifteen minutes, they reached the foot of the city walls. He Bingchuan and the others were startled to see them, especially Du Zheng's miserable state.
"What happened?" Tao Yinglan frowned deeply at his broken leg. Even with treatment, he would never walk normally on it again.
"We ran into a den of bandits. Ah, well..."
Only now did Xu Wencen finally relax. He recounted everything that had happened, leaving his listeners increasingly alarmed.
Had he been less skilled in medicine, had they lacked Healing Pills, or had he been a little greedier, they might now be dead.
"Those bandits are brazen! I'll report them to the county office and have them hunted down!"
Tao Yinglan spoke sharply, then turned toward the city. He Bingchuan hurried after her and whispered a few words at her side. Her expression shifted. She said nothing and kept walking.
Lu Zhiyuan took several deep breaths. He suspected that nothing would ultimately come of this. The county office would not concern itself with events outside Stillshade, and the Tao clan would probably act as though nothing had happened.
No one had died. Didn't that mean everything was fine?
As he expected, the Tao clan kept quiet. It merely gave each of the three some silver in consolation.
Du Zheng received a little more. He had broken a leg, after all.
Lu Zhiyuan received ten-odd silver taels. Word that he could brew Healing Pills also spread through the clinic.
Jia Shiheng was deeply gratified. He even invited Lu Zhiyuan home and shared a few cups of wine with him.
Healing Pills were somewhat harder to brew than Blood Vitality Pills. Brewing them independently only ten-odd days after obtaining the formula showed his aptitude for alchemy.
It also silenced those who had thought he could brew only Blood Vitality Pills and would fail as soon as he tried another kind of pill.
"Master Jia, do you have the formula for Herbal Restoration Pills?" Lu Zhiyuan asked quietly.
Herbal Restoration Pills were an advanced version of Blood Vitality Pills, with a stronger effect on cultivation. They were also more expensive. Usually, only martial artists at the Flesh Tempering stage would spend that much on cultivation pills.
He had thought his cultivation with Blood Vitality Pills was already fairly fast. But danger could strike at any time in this world, and he wanted to advance faster. This story is hosted at novelping.com.
Even members of ordinary great clans would not usually be so extravagant as to use Herbal Restoration Pills at the Skin Tempering stage. He could brew them himself, however, so affordability was not a problem.
As with Blood Vitality Pills, he could simply keep some of what he brewed for himself.
"The formula for Herbal Restoration Pills can't be shared without the Tao clan's permission."
Jia Shiheng shook his head, picked up a chicken foot with his chopsticks, and popped it into his mouth.
"How could I obtain their permission?" Lu Zhiyuan pressed. Even with his current income, buying Herbal Restoration Pills for cultivation would probably leave him spending more than he earned.
"Marry into the clan."
Jia Shiheng gave him an amused look. "You've missed your chance, though. The Tao clan's daughters are all married. Besides marrying into the clan, there's another way: render them a service."
"Please advise me, Master Jia." Lu Zhiyuan cupped his hands.
"Your aptitude is excellent, and the Tao clan can see it too. I'll ask for you tomorrow and let you know."
After several rounds of wine, Jia Shiheng was slumped over the table, snoring in his sleep. Lu Zhiyuan returned to his courtyard and wiped his longsword.
Besides Herbal Restoration Pills, he wanted stronger martial arts. Jia Shiheng had told him, however, that Clearwind Sword Art and Windborne Method were the best techniques available to outsiders serving the Tao clan.
Stronger techniques were reserved for clan members, including men who married into it. Without that status, even meritorious service would not grant access to the clan's inherited techniques.
"Great clans and schools like Highpeak Martial School keep their advanced techniques hidden. I'm fine at the Skin Tempering stage, but at Flesh Tempering, the Windborne Breathing Method will surely become less effective. Greenpeak Sword Art won't keep up forever either."
He murmured to himself, looking at his panel as an idea slowly formed.
The panel could simplify techniques, and techniques practiced to Perfected proficiency could be fused. If he could not obtain advanced martial arts, why not practice more basic techniques and fuse them? Surely that would produce a change.
Enough small improvements could eventually make a fundamental difference. Why lower himself to beg? He could forge his own path in martial arts.