Chapter 66: Whose Medicine Is the Best?

Li Banfeng changed into a guard’s uniform and quietly entered the pharmacy. Shelves were stacked high with various medicinal ingredients.

He didn't recognize any of the medicinal ingredients or prepared medicines. The large sacks of herbs probably weren't worth much, so Li Banfeng left them. The bottles and jars, however, likely contained valuable items, so Li Banfeng made trip after trip, moving all of them into his portable dwelling.

A wooden box was locked, suggesting its contents were the most valuable, so Li Banfeng took that too.

Seeing the pile of things Li Banfeng brought back, the gramophone scoffed, letting out a puff of steam.

After clearing out the pharmacy, Li Banfeng went to the front counter. From there, he found 83,218 yuan in cash and 126 silver dollars, which he also put into his portable dwelling.

With most of the items collected, Li Banfeng returned to the Watermelon Men's room. He picked up some more watermelon pulp, swallowed it, and then dragged a sack out from a corner of the room.

The sack contained brown granules with a pungent, fishy odor.

This was the Watermelon Men's fertilizer. Li Banfeng didn't know its origin but understood its purpose.

He fed the fertilizer to the Watermelon Men. The originally dull figures' eyes widened, and they became menacing.

Li Banfeng, inside and out, smelled of watermelon, so the Watermelon Men recognized him as one of their own.

With a single command from Li Banfeng: "Kill!"

Over twenty Watermelon Men marched out of the room in perfect formation and entered the courtyard.

A dozen or so guards at the pharmacy were asleep in a side room. With a crash, the door burst open, and over twenty Watermelon Men walked in.

A guard rubbed his eyes, saw the group of Watermelon Men enter the room, and shouted, "Oh no, quick—"

He only managed to utter those three words before a Watermelon Man chopped off his head with a blade.

The other guards woke up in alarm. The timid ones, who didn't understand what was happening, were immediately cut down by the Watermelon Men.

The brave ones grabbed their weapons and fought back, but the Watermelon Men felt no pain and no fear. The guards were no match, and after only a few exchanges, they all fell beneath the blades.

The two smartest guards immediately jumped out of a window and shouted, "Chief Guard, something's wrong!"

In the backyard, the Chief Guard, Song Baiming, heard the commotion. He instructed two first-level martial cultivators, "Stay here in the backyard, don't go anywhere!"

Having said that, Song Baiming rushed into the front courtyard. He had intended to confront the intruders and assess the situation.

But when he saw Watermelon Men everywhere in the courtyard, Song Baiming's brows furrowed instantly.

How could these things have gone rogue?

For Watermelon Men to attack people, two prerequisites were needed.

First, they had to consume fertilizer.

Second, someone had to eat a special watermelon, perspire, and then issue commands to them.

These Watermelon Men were supposed to be under strict guard, so this situation should have been impossible.

There was no point in overthinking. Song Baiming called a guard: "Go get a watermelon."

The guard had barely run two steps when a Watermelon Man stabbed him in the chest with a blade.

Seeing this, Song Baiming himself rushed towards the pharmacy, intending to get a watermelon.

The Watermelon Men, killing anyone they saw, surrounded Song Baiming in the center of the courtyard.

In his desperation, Song Baiming suddenly bent forward. His arms instantly bulged, tearing through his clothes.

From shoulder to fingertip, both arms were covered in a hard shell. His hands swelled further, his original five fingers transforming into two, resembling a pair of large pincers. With one clamp, he snapped off a Watermelon Man's head.

Watermelon pulp spilled out. Song Baiming picked up the pulp, intending to put it into his mouth.

But he wasn't fast enough; with the addition of the armor, he was even slower.

The headless Watermelon Man continued to fight Song Baiming, swinging its machete. Song Baiming's pincers swung up and down, hacking the Watermelon Men into a mess of pulp and rinds on the ground.

This person... looked like a crab.

So-called "Body Cultivators" seemed to possess biomimetic characteristics.

Li Banfeng didn't delay. While Song Baiming was preoccupied, he climbed onto the roof of the backyard building.

Geng Zhiwei stood in the center of the courtyard, angrily scolding the guards: "Who the hell let the watermelons out? I'll skin him alive today!"

Two martial cultivators urged Geng Zhiwei to return indoors: "Young Master, please go back quickly. The courtyard is dangerous."

"What's there to be afraid of! Just bring a watermelon here, and they'll all stop with one shout. I'm telling you, I bought these at a great price. I won't mind if one or two are damaged, but if they're all destroyed, you'll see how I deal with you."

A guard ran to the front courtyard pharmacy to get a watermelon.

The beautiful Third Concubine, wearing a small blue brocade jacket, walked out of the room, took Geng Zhiwei's arm, and said coquettishly, "Master, please return to your room quickly. This servant is scared."

The Third Concubine was truly terrified; her body trembled, her conscience trembled along with it, and even her ample bosom shook.

Geng Zhiwei pushed the Third Concubine away and shouted at the guard, "Have you brought the watermelon yet? How long are you going to dilly-dally?"

This was the Watermelon Men's weakness: as long as someone ate a watermelon and sweated, they could command the Watermelon Men.

Given this situation, Geng Zhiwei would soon be able to eat a watermelon and quickly gain control of the Watermelon Men.

However, Li Banfeng's purpose for coming this time was not merely to take pills, nor just to take money, and certainly not just to cause a commotion with the Watermelon Men.

He intended to do something big!

He could accomplish this great deed himself, but to finish it completely in a short time, it would be best to get some help.

To achieve something, one must invest.

To achieve something great, one must invest heavily!

Li Banfeng, still perched on the roof beam, struck a match and lit the joss paper in his hand.

A strong smell of alcohol wafted over, and Li Banfeng heard the voice of Old Mister Yao:

"What do you want me to do? Surely you don't want me to kill someone, do you? That wouldn't be appropriate for my status."

This was within Li Banfeng's expectations, as Old Mister Yao had said he couldn't do things inappropriate for his status.

"How could I trouble an esteemed elder like yourself with something like murder?"

"Then what is it? Treating illness or buying medicine? Other matters are out of the question."

Li Banfeng replied, "I want to buy medicine, some excellent medicated wine."

"Medicated wine?" The old man chuckled. "Strong or light?"

"Strong, the stronger the better."

"Are you drinking it alone?"

Li Banfeng estimated, "Enough for over a hundred people to drink."

"That much wine? I sell medicated wine, not poison. Are you sure about this?"

Li Banfeng answered firmly, "I'm sure. The wine for treating Little Fatty is the most suitable."

"Where do you intend to drink this wine?"

"Right here in this pharmacy."

The old man responded, "I have bottled wine and loose wine. The loose wine is stronger, but it's messy and hard to manage. Which kind do you want?"

"Loose, the looser the better. Ideally, you, esteemed elder, could spray it yourself."

The old man chuckled, "Besides the deposit, the wine will cost an extra 500,000. No bargaining. It must be consumed here in the pharmacy; you are not allowed to take it out."

Li Banfeng nodded, "Deal!"

As his words fell, the joss paper burned to ash.

Whoosh, a gust of wind.

An intense smell of alcohol instantly enveloped the entire pharmacy.

Old Mister Yao's voice echoed in his ear once more: "Remember, my medicine is the best in Yaowang Gorge, and it can only be used for treating illness."

Li Banfeng replied earnestly, "Don't worry, this is indeed for treating them."

"Hehehe!" After a bout of laughter, Old Mister Yao's voice vanished.

Li Banfeng took out the Blood-Infused Pendulum, unscrewed it, and sprayed out the residual oil.

He struck a match and tossed it onto the spray of oil.

A fiery serpent appeared in the night sky, and in the blink of an eye, the entire Geng Family Pharmacy was engulfed in flames.

Li Banfeng opened his portable dwelling and threw the key over the pharmacy's courtyard wall.

Sitting in the main room, Li Banfeng carefully pondered Old Mister Yao's words.

Old Mister Yao had said that if Li Banfeng was clever, he would naturally know his identity once the deal was struck.

Did Li Banfeng know now?

He did.

Old Mister Yao had said his medicine was the best in Yaowang Gorge.

Whose medicine was the best in Yaowang Gorge?

The Medicine King's, of course.

Outside Yaowang Gorge, the Medicine King couldn't exert his full power, but within Yaowang Gorge, he could be of help.

The Medicine King of Yaowang Gorge was a Wine Cultivator.

Surprised?

Li Banfeng had no time for surprise; he had other matters to attend to.

***

As the great fire spread, Young Master Geng Zhiwei could no longer remain calm. He rushed out of the room, stood in the courtyard, and yelled:

"What the hell are you all standing around for? Put out the fire, go put it out! I told you to store more water normally—what the hell have you been doing all this time?

You two, come with me into the room and move things out. First, the banknotes, then the silver dollars, and the calligraphy and paintings..."

Geng Zhiwei carried two boxes of banknotes, and the two martial cultivators each carried two boxes of silver dollars out of the room.

Geng Zhiwei called for others to take the calligraphy and paintings, but by then, the fire had already spread inside the house.

The guards didn't dare enter the house and fled towards the back door.

Geng Zhiwei roared, "You useless bunch, go get the elixirs first!"

He was about to go to the front courtyard to get the elixirs when he saw Watermelon Men marching in neat ranks into the backyard.

How did the Watermelon Men get in here?

Where was the Chief Guard, Song Baiming?

Song Baiming had fled.

One couldn't blame the Chief Guard for being disloyal; he was human and feared fire, but the Watermelon Men did not.

The fire grew fiercer, and more Watermelon Men appeared. The two martial cultivator guards quickly urged Geng Zhiwei, "Young Master, hurry and leave! If you don't go now, something terrible will happen!"

Geng Zhiwei gritted his teeth and dashed towards the back door, still carrying the money boxes.

The two martial cultivators followed closely. The Third Concubine, running slowly, stumbled and barely kept up.

Near the back door, the smoke was extremely thick, making it impossible for Geng Zhiwei to open his eyes. He stumbled over debris on the ground, almost falling.

A guard stepped forward, supporting Geng Zhiwei. "Young Master, follow me!"

Geng Zhiwei quickly followed the guard, while the two martial cultivator guards behind him grew angry.

Who the hell was this guy?

How utterly shameless!

They were almost out the door, and this guy was trying to steal credit?

Where was he when they were risking their lives to protect the Young Master?

The two martial cultivators immediately gave chase. After exiting the back door, they found that the Young Master's figure had suddenly vanished.

Oh no, that person was a trickster; he might not have been a guard!

"Young Master!" The two martial cultivators called out as they chased in the direction Geng Zhiwei had disappeared. After only two steps, everything suddenly went black.

Ding-a-ling.

Li Banfeng threw the key out.

Clang.

The door closed.

The guard who had just led Geng Zhiwei to escape was Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng had been wearing a guard's uniform the whole time, and House Cultivators were easily overlooked. Geng Zhiwei was already in a panic, and his eyes were irritated by smoke, so he didn't realize this "guard" was actually a stranger.

That's how Li Banfeng led Geng Zhiwei into his portable dwelling.

Geng Zhiwei groped around, shouting, "Where is this? What is this place?"

The two guards sensed Li Banfeng's presence but couldn't pinpoint his exact location. They cursed loudly, "Where did this scum come from? What illusion did you use? Get out here now, and I'll leave you a complete corpse!"

Li Banfeng sighed deeply, "I was afraid my wife would get too fat, so I only intended for her to eat one, but who knew three would show up."

He had indeed only intended to bring Geng Zhiwei in, but he didn't expect the two martial cultivators to be so loyal and follow them into his portable dwelling.

Hearing Li Banfeng's voice, the two martial cultivators pinpointed his location and charged, intending to fight him to the death.

But could they defeat Li Banfeng?

A first-level House Cultivator, within their own dwelling, could rival the combat strength of a second-level cultivator.

Moreover, his wife was still waiting for dinner.

Clatter-bang-bang~

The gongs and drums sounded.

Li Banfeng easily handled the two martial cultivators, not forgetting to instruct the gramophone, "My dear wife, the feast has begun. Eat slowly."

Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!

"My lord, I can't eat slowly! Don't mock your servant; your servant is truly hungry~"

PS: My wife is hungry, and Salad is also hungry. Please vote and leave comments!