Qing Jun's tense shoulders suddenly slumped, like a kitten whose bones had been removed.
She didn't cry at this moment.
She had cried fiercely earlier, presumably blaming herself for her clumsiness and failing to pour the poisoned tea while that old beast was heavily injured.
"Master, don't you mind the dirty tea?"
The little girl's throat was tight, her eyes glancing towards the bottom of the window frame, searching for words.
Her skinny body arched up slightly, the collar of her coarse cloth clothes slipped down, revealing several purple bruises on her collarbone, like they had been pinched by iron pliers.
But in comparison, the sight of one of her stick-thin legs being smashed and leaving skin and flesh turned inside out to the point of bleeding was truly heartbreaking.
Chen Ye didn't respond, retrieving the medicine jar hidden beneath the bed from his predecessor, the ointment having already solidified, but ultimately it was the legendary Spiritual Medicine.
He had to scrape it with his nails for a long time before he managed to break off a piece, then mixed it with rainwater in his palm to form a paste.
As soon as the ointment touched the wound, Qing Jun trembled like a sieve, stubbornly biting her lower lip without making a sound.
"Bear with it."
He tore his own inner garment to use as a bandage, moving clumsily like he was wrapping a dumpling.
The little girl suddenly grabbed his wrist and asked in a low voice, "Master, are you going to sell me for wine money?"
The question lingered lightly in the air, as if she was talking about someone else's business.
Chen Ye's hand shook, recalling that the predecessor indeed had such a thought.
Recently, a group of demon cultivators had infiltrated Yunxi District, and the predecessor secretly made contact with them.
Demon cultivators were in need of medicine people, and a prime young girl could be exchanged for three Spirit Stones.
Raindrops seeped down through the leaky roof onto his neck, and Chen Ye glanced at the crooked copper mirror on the wooden shelf.
The person in the mirror had a sallow complexion, dark circles under his eyes, hair messy like a bird's nest, looking precisely like a tuberculosis ghost.
Yet those sharp eyebrow ridges and chiselled jawline still vaguely hinted at his youthful handsomeness.
True enough, with some tidying up, he could still pass for a dashing uncle.
But this Chen Ye looked remarkably similar to his former appearance, just older and more haggard...
"Why would I sell you?" He forced a smile more unsightly than crying, "To keep you as my housekeeper."
"Oh..."
The little girl replied with a voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz, her eyelashes fluttering, uncertain whether she believed him or not.
She glanced at the ointment in Chen Ye's palm.
Chen Ye sighed softly.
This ointment was refined from First Tier Spirit Grass, effective in activating blood and clearing stasis, and mending bones and tendons.
In the precarious Cultivation Realm, the importance of healing Spiritual Medicine was self-evident, cherished beyond measure by the predecessor.
Yet now, it was being used on this little girl.
It was bound to make the little girl let her imagination run wild.
"Bang bang bang! Open the door! Quickly open the door!"
The rickety door was suddenly pounded, clattering wildly, causing Qing Jun to clench her fists abruptly, her small frame quivering.
Chen Ye frowned, letting go of the little girl's reed-like thin leg, stepping forward to open the door.
A burly, dark old man stood at the door, looking like a piece of black charcoal at first glance, his expression indistinguishable in the night.
The Dark Old Man's raincoat was open, his sweat-soaked undershirt unable to contain his muscular form, exuding a strong smell of rain:
"Brother Chen! Please, I count on you, my Cyan Luo Grass is about to perish!"
He stomped anxiously, the mud splashed up by his straw sandals landing on Chen Ye's pants.
With such words, Chen Ye's head pounded as more memories surfaced.
That's right, the predecessor was good-for-nothing, but he still had the skill to live as a loser.
He was adept at Spirit Plant Technique.
Nicely put, he was a Spirit Plant Master; less nicely put, he was a Medicinal Farmer.
Chen Ye seemed to see a glimmer of hope for future survival and sincerely breathed a sigh of relief.
He bared his teeth, enduring a headache as he rummaged for an oily and shiny leather bag, giving Qing Jun a command:
"Stay here and don't run around, Master will be back soon."
The little girl also quietly let out a sigh of relief, fearing it was the person come to buy her.
A while ago, the predecessor, under the influence of alcohol, had inadvertently mentioned selling her to someone as a Tripod Furnace.
The little girl, driven by desperation, thus attempted the risky act of poisoning the predecessor.
Late at night, amid thunder and heavy rain, unknown birds screeched hoarsely.
The road here was intricate, densely packed with low self-built houses, filthy and chaotic.
Through those dark windows, Chen Ye suspected countless eyes were discreetly watching him from within, sending chills all over him.
He trudged through the mud, the raincoat of the Dark Old Man ahead rustling loudly, following closely, fearing he might accidentally lose him.
The cold wind penetrated the seams of his clothes. Chen Ye wrapped tighter the dirty jacket on his chest, his fingers unconsciously stroking the small Jade Saber in the cloth bag.
In the deep of night, looking at the unfamiliar surroundings, the negative emotions suddenly burst forth.
A sense of sourness swelled in Chen Ye's heart.
The ordinary, peaceful days of his past life were gone forever...
He felt like he was exiled by the world, left lonely in this Cultivation Realm, with a situation that was a tangled mess.
Like a kite with a broken string, drifting down into this world that devours without spitting out the bones.
"Creak——"
The Dark Old Man hurriedly took Chen Ye into his courtyard.
Compared to this place, Chen Ye's shack-like broken house was unbearable to look at.
Although the Dark Old Man's home was cramped, at least the tiles were intact, and a vibrant vegetable patch grew beside the fence, full of life.
"Mother! Open the door! Show Brother Chen the Cyan Luo Grass!"
Granny Li, who was at home, heard the call, wiped her hands on her apron, and quickly went into the courtyard.
Upon seeing Chen Ye, Granny Li immediately furrowed her brow: "This is a sin! Gen, are you trying to shorten your mother's life by bringing this plague into our home?"
She glanced at the injuries on Chen Ye's body and let out a cold laugh.
This scoundrel, who knows who he offended again, deserved the beating!
Everyone nearby knew there was a good-for-nothing at the Fourth-Layer of Qi Cultivation here.
This person was peculiar; in his prime of age, and in the Middle Period of Qi Refining, proficient in the Spirit Plant Technique.
He was considered a standout talent in the slums, but he didn't work hard and instead wasted away in idleness.
Bullying his two young apprentices all day long, truly inhumane!
The only praiseworthy thing was the scoundrel's thick skin; he ignored whatever insults others hurled at him.
Chen Ye forced a smile, only to receive a scornful look from the old woman, who shoved the Cyan Luo Grass to the Dark Old Man before walking away, cursing.
"That's just my mother's temper..." The Dark Old Man scratched his head awkwardly.
Chen Ye didn't mind but instead admired the old woman greatly.
He remembered from Xu Qingjun's memories that this old woman often looked after them.
When the sisters were starving, gnawing on wall plaster, it was this sharp-tongued woman who secretly slipped them food.
Such kindness was quite rare in this man-eating Cultivation Realm.
Chen Ye squatted down, observing the Cyan Luo Grass drooping with shriveled leaves, its once verdant foliage now covered with ash-brown spots, as if scorched by a flame.
"Brother Chen, what's wrong with the Cyan Luo Grass?"
The Dark Old Man squatted down as well, his tone anxious.
In Chen Ye's memory, the Dark Old Man was called Li Dageng, a First Tier Body Cultivator at the Third-Layer of Qi Cultivation, who needed the Cyan Luo Grass to advance his cultivation.
No wonder he was so anxious.
The Dark Old Man was actually not that old, just over thirty, but this field of a low-tier body cultivator was the most grueling, full of hard work, making him look aged. He appeared more like a tenant farmer over fifty.
Chen Ye pinched off a diseased leaf, crumbling it between his fingers and, by the light of the Dark Old Man's oil paper lantern, saw tiny, shiny insect eggs within the fragmented leaf.
The memories of his former life surged in his mind, prompting him to speak out: "It's the Soul-Devouring Midge! These eggs hatch in water in three days, stirring during rainy days."
The Dark Old Man sighed: "What should we do now! Brother Chen, I beg for your help!"
Chen Ye didn't reply, taking the small Jade Saber from the cloth bag and pressing it against the protruding veins on the underside of the leaf.
His former life's knowledge of this pest also came with a solution.
Disease Removal Saber Technique!
He held his breath, somewhat tense.
But at the moment the blade descended, his heart was as calm as still water.
The former self had performed the Disease Removal Saber Technique countless times; for this body, the spells had become instinctual.
The Jade Saber emitted a faint azure glow, as the blade tip accurately severed the diseased plant's aerial roots, causing sesame-sized black insects to fall into the soil.
The Dark Old Man widened his eyes: "Brother Chen, your technique..."
Chen Ye didn't lift his head, his face suddenly froze.
In his vision, a panel silently emerged.
[Name: Chen Ye]
[Life: 40/62]
[Spiritual Root: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth]
[Realm: Fourth-Layer of Qi Cultivation]
[Cultivation Technique: Evergreen Technique Minor Achievement: 10/100]
[Skills: Disease Removal Saber Technique Great Success: 150/200; Bone-Scraping Whip Minor Achievement: 30/100;]