Chapter 22: Frightened and Calm

Han Li watched the rabbit in front of him continue to grow larger and swell.

He sensed something was wrong. Suddenly remembering something crucial, he abruptly threw the porcelain bowl he was holding, now perceiving it as a venomous object, into the nearby medicinal field. He then turned and ran, not stopping until he was dozens of meters away from the rabbit.

Just as he was about to turn back, two explosions, almost simultaneous, rang out one after the other. Han Li shivered involuntarily. When he turned to look, he saw that both rabbits had indeed burst apart, torn into several pieces, their flesh and blood splattering across the ground. Two craters now marked the spots where the rabbits had been tied, surrounded by scattered rabbit remains, blood, and chunks of flesh—a truly gruesome sight.

Han Li let out a long breath and sank to the ground. If he hadn't reacted quickly enough, he would have been caught in the rabbits' explosions. While he might not have suffered severe injuries, being drenched in rabbit blood and fleshy bits would certainly not have been a pleasant experience.

Once his initial shock subsided, Han Li stood up and walked closer to the craters.

He surveyed the gruesome scene, then glanced at the porcelain bowl shattered into pieces in the medicinal field. He was speechless.

Han Li had initially hoped to discover some miraculous elixir from the green liquid, but he never imagined it would be such a terrifying substance. A poison was one thing, but this made rabbits die so horribly! He vowed never to touch this stuff again; it was simply too frightening! Han Li was no stranger to deadly poisons; under Doctor Mo's guidance over the years, he had encountered many venoms that killed instantly, yet none caused such a horrifying death.

Fortunately, Han Li possessed strong psychological resilience. He managed to remain calm for a while longer in such an environment before finally deciding to leave.

It was almost noon, and he needed to deliver the prepared secret medicine to Senior Brother Li. All the aftermath here could wait until after he had delivered the medicine.

With this thought in mind, Han Li didn't spare another glance at the explosion site, leaving all the trouble for later. He returned to his dwelling, rested for a bit, then took the medicine and headed for the entrance of Divine Hand Valley.

Han Li was punctual, arriving at the valley entrance exactly at noon. Li Feiyu, however, appeared to have been waiting there anxiously for some time.

He was alone at the valley exit, dressed in a white brocade robe, but still carrying on his back the long saber that had left a deep impression on Han Li. When Han Li arrived, Li Feiyu had a slightly anxious expression, eagerly looking towards the valley.

When he saw Han Li approaching, he finally dropped his anxious expression. His lips curled slightly, and a smile appeared on his face.

"Junior Brother Han, you're truly punctual!" Li Feiyu said, half-joking, half-complaining. "You said noon, and you arrived exactly at noon. I've been waiting for over an hour!"

"My apologies," Han Li replied, half-truthfully. "I spent too much time preparing the medicine yesterday and went to bed very late. So I woke up a bit late this morning. By the time I finished handling everything, it was exactly noon."

"Junior Brother Han, the medicine... is it ready?" Senior Brother Li was flustered by his eagerness, even stuttering slightly.

Han Li didn't answer Senior Brother Li's question directly. Instead, he smiled calmly, slowly took a palm-sized medicine packet from his inner pocket, and with a flick of his wrist, tossed it to Li Feiyu.

"Before taking the Marrow-Extracting Pill each time, first mix one spoonful of the powder from this packet with cool boiled water and drink it. That will alleviate your pain."

"Thank you, Junior Brother Han! Thank you, Junior Brother Han!" Senior Brother Li was overjoyed. Even a slight reduction in pain would be a huge blessing for him. The agony of taking the Marrow-Extracting Pill truly made him tremble. He had taken many painkillers before, but none had worked. Since Junior Brother Han knew all the characteristics of the Marrow-Extracting Pill and had even taken it himself, perhaps his medicine truly would work.

"Don't rush to thank me yet," Han Li said frankly. "It's not too late to thank me after the medicine proves effective. Also, this is only a year's supply. I've used up all the medicinal ingredients I had on hand, so once I gather enough, I'll prepare more for you."

"It's fine, isn't this a year's supply? That's temporarily enough," said Senior Brother Li. Having obtained what he wanted, his expression returned to normal, and he no longer feigned anything. "Regardless of whether this medicine works, I, Li Feiyu, truly appreciate Junior Brother Han's kindness." He straightforwardly acknowledged that he now owed Han Li another significant favor.

Han Li smiled slightly, said nothing more, and proactively bid Senior Brother Li farewell to return.

Holding the secret medicine, Li Feiyu also wanted to rush back to test its efficacy, so he didn't try to detain Han Li. The two bid each other farewell and parted ways.

After returning to the valley, Han Li first went to the medicinal garden to clean up. He swept all the rabbit remains, blood-stained soil, and broken bowl pieces into the craters, then filled and leveled the two impromptu craters with soil. The area now looked no different from before the experiment.

Han Li satisfactorily dusted off his hands and looked around to see if he had missed anything.

When his gaze fell upon where the porcelain bowl had shattered, he couldn't help but ponder.

He remembered clearly that when he threw the bowl, the diluted liquid inside had spilled onto a small patch of medicinal herbs, drenching several plants there. This made him hesitate. Would these herbs also become poisonous after absorbing that liquid? And if a person consumed them, would they suffer the same fate as the rabbits? Should he clear these potentially toxic herbs right now? A series of such questions suddenly flooded Han Li's mind.

Han Li pondered for a long time but decided to wait and see. He would observe them for a while longer, treating it as another small experiment. If the herbs indeed became poisonous within a few days, it wouldn't be too late to clear them then.

After making up his mind and seeing there was nothing else to do, he went back to the stone chamber to cultivate. He hoped to achieve further breakthroughs building upon his recent progress in cultivation.

Han Li no longer concerned himself with the specific use of the incantation. Cultivating it had become an instinctive reaction for him; if he didn't, he wouldn't know what to do with himself on the mountain. Pursuing a higher level of cultivation with this incantation had become his sole objective in life.

After an afternoon of focused cultivation, Han Li frustratingly realized that he was indeed not a genius. Although he felt he was only a hair's breadth away from breaking through to the fourth level, he still made no progress whatsoever. His afternoon of hard practice was in vain.

It seemed he couldn't advance without the external aid of medicine. Otherwise, he might remain stuck at the third level forever, unable to progress further.

Han Li began to hope that Doctor Mo would return soon and be fortunate enough to find enough medicinal ingredients to help him break through his current predicament.