Chapter 13: Wiping the Long Sword

“One pill every morning for seven days. Crush this herb and ignite it; it will help the injured recover faster,” Song Miao said as he took out the medicinal herbs and gave his instructions.

“Thank you, Doctor. This is the consultation fee; please, do accept it!”

The men surrounding them, seeing their leader’s condition improving, were in high spirits, the sinister murderous intent from moments ago completely vanished. Song Miao dared not accept their money and waved his hands repeatedly.

In the end, unable to resist Jian Liang’s persistence, Song Miao tentatively accepted one tael of silver. The smiles on the faces of the men around them grew even wider, and they no longer forced Song Miao to accept the rest of the fee.

Chen Fei watched from the side, a chill running through his heart. It was only because Song Miao understood the ways of the world; had he truly accepted all the money, both of their heads might not have remained on their shoulders.

These men appeared generous, but how could they truly give money away so easily? Even if it was a consultation fee, it was the same.

Walking out of the room and into the main hall, they found Pu Liao lying unconscious on the ground.

“This guy tried to run earlier, so the brothers caught him and broke one of his legs,” someone said beside Jian Liang.

Jian Liang’s brows twitched. He looked at Chen Fei and Song Miao with a half-smile, then cupped his hands and said, “My brothers don’t know their own strength and hurt him. How about I give you some silver so this brother can go back and get proper treatment?”

“No, no, we wouldn’t dare!”

Song Miao hurriedly waved his hands. He glanced at Chen Fei, who understood the signal. Chen Fei stepped forward, hoisted Pu Liao onto his back, and quickly left the courtyard.

“Should we chase them and kill them?” someone suggested.

“Forget it. They did save many of our men, and the boss’s condition is stable now. Their lives can be considered the consultation fee,” Jian Liang said with a cold smile, turning toward the backyard.

Chen Fei ran for a while with Pu Liao on his back and couldn't help but pant. Although his cultivation had been steadily improving recently, his physical stamina was only slightly better than an ordinary person’s.

Running while carrying a person was truly becoming too much to bear.

“Run faster, lest they change their minds.”

Song Miao was also gasping for air beside him, but he didn't dare stop to rest, fearing those men might chase after them.

Chen Fei nodded, the sense of urgency regarding his own strength tightening in his heart. They were truly lucky today; otherwise, one wrong step would have meant they were done for.

Pu Liao’s strength was not weak, yet he had been caught while trying to escape during Jian Liang’s absence. One could only imagine how many experts were among those men.

Even if he had implemented the various contingency plans he had prepared earlier, the chances of survival would have been slim.

Less than a quarter of an hour later, the two ran back to the city walls. Cui Sanjie and the others were startled to see Chen Fei and his companion, especially given Pu Liao’s miserable state.

“What happened!” Zhang Sinan frowned as he looked at Pu Liao’s broken leg. Even if it were treated, he would never walk normally again.

“Ran into a nest of mountain bandits, sigh…”

Upon arriving, Song Miao finally let out a sigh of relief and recounted everything that had happened. As he spoke, those around them listened with trepidation.

One could imagine that if Song Miao’s medical skills had been worse, if he hadn't had the healing pill, or if he had been greedy for money, they would likely be headless by now.

“Those bandits have some nerve! I’m going to report this to the county magistrate and have them hunted down!”

Zhang Sinan shouted coldly and turned to walk toward the county office. Cui Sanjie quickly stepped forward and whispered a few words in Zhang Sinan’s ear. Zhang Sinan’s expression shifted; he said nothing more and simply continued walking forward.

Chen Fei took a few deep breaths. He figured this matter would likely end up being swept under the rug. The county office wouldn't care about affairs outside of Pingyin County, and the Zhang family would most likely treat it as if it had never happened.

As long as no one died, wasn't it fine?

The matter unfolded exactly as Chen Fei had expected. The Zhang family did not make a scene, merely compensating the three of them with some silver afterward as a gesture of sympathy.

Pu Liao received a larger sum, given that he had lost a leg.

Chen Fei received over a dozen taels of silver, and the fact that he could refine healing pills spread throughout the medical clinic.

Zeng Defang was deeply gratified, even inviting Chen Fei to his home to share a few drinks.

Healing pills were slightly more difficult to refine than Blood-Qi pills. The fact that Chen Fei could refine them on his own just ten days after receiving the formula showed his talent for alchemy.

It also dispelled the notion held by some that Chen Fei could only refine Blood-Qi pills and would be exposed as a fraud if he tried anything else.

“Old Zeng, do you have the formula for the Grass-Return Pill?” Chen Fei asked in a low voice.

The Grass-Return Pill was an advanced version of the Blood-Qi pill, possessing a stronger effect on cultivation. Naturally, it was also more expensive; only martial artists at the Meat-Refining stage would be willing to spend money on such pills for training.

Chen Fei had felt his progress with the Blood-Qi pills was fast enough, but this world was too dangerous. He didn't know when disaster might strike, and he hoped to increase his cultivation speed even further.

Using Grass-Return pills for training was a luxury that even those in ordinary noble families wouldn't indulge in while at the Skin-Refining stage. But since Chen Fei could refine them himself, the issue of affordability didn't exist.

Just like with the Blood-Qi pills, he could simply refine them and keep a portion for his own use.

“The Grass-Return Pill? That cannot be passed on without the Zhang family’s permission.”

Zeng Defang shook his head, picked up a chicken foot, and tossed it into his mouth.

“How can I get the Zhang family to agree?” Chen Fei pressed. At his current rate of earning, if he had to buy the pills himself, he would likely end up in debt.

“Marry into the family.”

Zeng Defang smiled at Chen Fei and said, “But you’ve missed your chance; the Zhang family’s daughters are all married off. However, besides marrying in, there is another way: perform a great service for the Zhang family.”

“Please, Old Zeng, enlighten me.” Chen Fei cupped his hands.

“Your talent is good, and the Zhang family sees it. I’ll ask for you tomorrow and let you know then.”

After three rounds of drinks, Zeng Defang fell asleep at the table. Chen Fei returned to his courtyard and wiped his long sword.

Beyond the Grass-Return Pill, Chen Fei also wanted stronger martial arts techniques. But based on what he had learned from Zeng Defang, the Breeze Sword and Wind-Suspension Force were the best techniques an outsider could obtain from the Zhang family.

Stronger techniques were only passed down within the Zhang family, or one had to marry into the family to become one of them. Otherwise, even with meritorious service, one could not obtain the family’s core techniques.

“Every noble family, or places like the Jishan Martial Arts Hall, hide their profound techniques. I’m fine at the Skin-Refining stage for now, but once I reach the Meat-Refining stage, the effects of the Wind-Suspension Breathing Technique will inevitably diminish, and the Green Mountain Sword I use for combat will certainly fall behind!”

Chen Fei muttered to himself, looking at his panel. An idea slowly emerged in his mind.

The panel could simplify techniques, and techniques cultivated to the Great Perfection stage could be fused. Since he couldn't obtain profound martial arts, why not cultivate several basic techniques and fuse them together? That would surely bring about change.

From quantitative change to qualitative change—why bow and beg others? Chen Fei could absolutely carve out his own path in martial arts.