Chapter 31: First Encounter with the Little Fairy Doctor
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Chapter 31: First Meeting with the Little Fairy Doctor
Qingshan Town was also known as Beast Town. Because it bordered the Magical Beast Mountain Range, mercenaries who lived by the edge of the blade wandered through the town year-round. They gathered in groups and formed factions, spitting as they talked in the streets. Their topics were invariably the same: sleep with the most beautiful women, drink the strongest liquor, and kill the most vicious magical beasts.
As noon approached, the blazing sun hung overhead. A young man entered through the town gate. Because he wore a half-face mask, it was impossible to tell his exact age, but his fair chin revealed that he was still very young—a mere boy.
The youth wore a black silk robe and carried a strange longsword on his back. Though the blade itself could not be seen, the hilt alone was enough to show that it was no ordinary weapon. His half-face mask concealed his features, yet the sharp lines of his chin hinted at an extraordinarily handsome appearance. He strolled along the bluestone streets, glancing from side to side as though searching for something.
Xiao Se, masked and carrying a demonic sword as he wandered through the streets, naturally attracted no small amount of attention. He paid it no heed, however. After crossing two streets, he finally arrived at his first destination: the Thousand Medicine Hall.
The spacious shop was filled with a strange medicinal fragrance that refreshed the spirit the moment one breathed it in.
Seeing Xiao Se enter, the young attendant, who had been eating lunch, set down his bowl and chopsticks and came forward to greet him with a professional smile.
“Good sir, what might you require?”
Xiao Se took a light sniff of the medicinal scent and said indifferently, “Which section has blood lotus essence?”
At the mention of blood lotus essence, the young attendant curled his lips disdainfully and pointed toward a corner of the shop.
“Blood lotus essence is a low-grade medicinal herb. One hundred gold coins apiece. Go pick them yourself.”
With that, he turned back to the counter and resumed his meal.
Xiao Se nodded slightly. He did not care about the attendant’s contemptuous attitude. He simply walked over to the corner and began selecting the herbs himself. With no one bothering him, he found the peace rather convenient.
His gaze swept repeatedly across the mountain of blood lotus essence. The result left him deeply disappointed. Clearly, he did not possess the same luck as the chosen son of destiny from the original story, Xiao Yan, who had casually found a piece of blood lotus essence.
Just as he was preparing to choose two pieces at random and be done with it, a clear and melodious voice drifted down from the second floor of the Thousand Medicine Hall.
“Ah Gui, I’ll be going to the Magical Beast Mountain Range with the herb-gathering team this afternoon. Please collect the medicinal herbs drying in the rear courtyard for me.”
Xiao Se turned toward the voice, and a charming young woman entered his view.
She was an exceptionally beautiful girl dressed in a pale green, close-fitting waist-cinching gown. Her temperament was fresh and refined, untouched by worldly dust. With a faint smile upon her cheeks, she gave off a pure and ethereal impression.
In terms of beauty, she might have fallen slightly short of Long Kui and Xun Er. Yet her willow waist, bound by a green sash, was the slenderest Xiao Se had ever seen. Even Lan Kui, the petite and delicate true form of Long Kui, could not compare. It was so narrow that one could barely encircle it with both hands, creating a breathtaking impression. She seemed as though a strong breeze might snap her in two.
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“Leave it to me, Little Fairy Doctor.” The young attendant who had previously served Xiao Se thumped his chest confidently.
“Mm.” The girl whom the attendant had called the Little Fairy Doctor nodded slightly and walked out of the shop.
Staring blankly at the graceful figure departing, Xiao Se rubbed his chin. An idea immediately took shape in his mind. He promptly selected several pieces of blood lotus essence with decent quality and carried them to the counter. As he paid, he asked, “Brother, may I ask something? I just heard that young lady say the herb-gathering team will be going into the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Do all your medicinal herbs come from there?”
The young attendant accepted the large bag of gold coins from Xiao Se. When he noticed the storage ring on Xiao Se’s hand, the disdain in his expression finally faded somewhat.
“Mm. The Magical Beast Mountain Range has an abundance of medicinal resources. Every so often, the Thousand Medicine Hall spends a great deal of money recruiting mercenaries to serve as escorts while we gather herbs there. We’ll be setting out in half an hour. I imagine they’ve probably begun assembling by now. The meeting place is at the town gate.”
Xiao Se nodded slightly and stored the blood lotus essence in his storage ring. He left the pharmacy and headed straight for the town gate.
Even from a distance, he could hear a commotion.
A middle-aged man beat a gong and shouted loudly, “The Thousand Medicine Hall is entering the Magical Beast Mountain Range to gather herbs! We’re recruiting fifty mercenaries at the strength of two-star Battle Practitioners or above. Five hundred gold coins per person. First come, first served!”
Most of the mercenaries gathered around paid no attention to the middle-aged man’s shouting. Five hundred gold coins to risk their lives in the Magical Beast Mountain Range? Did he think he was handing out alms?
Seeing that no one moved, the middle-aged man narrowed his eyes and added, “The Little Fairy Doctor will be accompanying us this time as well.”
At the mention of the Little Fairy Doctor, the mercenaries who had remained unmoved exchanged glances. Those who believed themselves qualified rushed toward the middle-aged man in a frenzy.
Watching the suddenly surging crowd, Xiao Se chuckled softly. It seemed that even four years ahead of schedule, the Little Fairy Doctor’s reputation in Qingshan Town still inspired an overwhelming response. He immediately forced his way into the crowd as well.
The fifty places were fought over so fiercely that the mercenaries nearly tore one another apart. Some even came close to throwing punches in their eagerness to register. However, thanks to the evasive nature of his Ethereal Smoke Step, Xiao Se still managed to slip to the very front.
“The final place.” The middle-aged man rapped his gong and smiled at the crowd jostling shoulder to shoulder.
“Count me in!”
The masked youth’s somewhat hurried voice rang out before him.
The middle-aged man stared blankly at the masked youth, who was not particularly tall, then frowned and gave an awkward laugh.
“Young brother, our conditions require a strength of at least a two-star Battle Practitioner. You look no older than fifteen or sixteen. Are you sure you qualify?”
He placed particular emphasis on the youth’s age. In his eyes, the boy was probably a young master from some clan who had put on a mask to conceal his identity and sneaked out on his own. The Thousand Medicine Hall had no desire to act as a nursemaid. If anything happened, it might cause no end of trouble.
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“Boy, have you even been weaned yet? Sneaking out like a grown man? Be careful, or your parents will spank you.”
“Boy, if you know what’s good for you, get out of the way. Don’t waste this lord’s time.”
With the final place about to be taken, several mercenaries who had been drawn by the Little Fairy Doctor’s reputation began cursing angrily.
Xiao Se ignored them. He walked toward a nearby tree as thick as a man’s calf, raised his right leg, and covered it in yellow battle qi.
“Sky-Splitting Leg!”
With a furious roar in his heart, Xiao Se swept his right leg across with tremendous force. It tore through the air with a piercing whistle and struck the tree.
Crack!
The tree snapped in response. The severed section of the trunk flew more than thirty feet away and skidded across the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
“With strength like this, would I be qualified to join the herb-gathering team?”
Xiao Se brushed off the nonexistent dust from his hands and smiled at the middle-aged man, who had long since been rendered speechless with astonishment.
“Of course, of course! Young brother, that is some impressive legwork. A blow like that would force even a three-star Battle Practitioner to avoid its edge.”
The middle-aged man nodded in amazement. He took out a bag of gold coins and smiled.
“The final place is yours. Here are two hundred and fifty gold coins. You’ll receive the rest after you return.”
“That’s fine.”
Xiao Se casually accepted the coins and stepped aside. His purpose was merely to use the herb-gathering team to locate the cliff from the original story, while also seeing whether he could form a friendship with the Little Fairy Doctor. He did not care how much the reward was.
End of Chapter