Immortal Cultivation: Starting from a Pharmacy Apprentice

Chapter 302: Chapter 302: Encounter

"Be more attentive?"

"What’s there to be attentive about? I don’t have the energy for that!"

The yellow-robed old Daoist exclaimed with a sneer:

"Just get this kid into the inner sect as soon as possible. Once he’s in there, he’ll find his own path."

The long-bearded elder sighed.

"He’s such a promising prospect. The efficacy of that Pill was astonishing, and the control demonstrated was perfect—like the work of a master."

"It must be a powerful demonstration of his skill in the Alchemy Dao, a testament to the boy’s expertise."

"But not every disciple has a clear path. It’s best if we provide guidance..."

"I think that kid’s path is very clear!" the yellow-robed old Daoist interrupted.

"Just look at him. You can tell he isn’t overly ambitious and that he has his own plans."

"I like disciples like that. They’re low-maintenance! I already have a plan, so don’t you go meddling..."

...

Bai Mo watched for a long time until he saw Qin Zheng and the others reach a resting spot.

PHEW!

Only then did he let out a sigh of relief.

An Caiwei, who was beside him, lowered her voice.

"Bai Mo, why were you so worried?"

"Qin Zheng and his group just ran into some bad luck. They’ve been hunted this whole time without a moment’s rest."

She didn’t understand much about combat, but seeing Qin Zheng and the others repeatedly escape from danger, she knew they were far from incompetent.

But Bai Mo pointed out:

"Caiwei, you don’t understand."

"Many of the world’s opportunities come down to one thing—luck. If you’re short on it, I’m afraid you’ll never see them."

Seeing Bai Mo’s worried expression and hearing him sigh, An Caiwei grew suspicious.

"You’re speaking so seriously. Don’t tell me you’ve had some kind of great opportunity?"

"Is that how you acquired your mastery of the Alchemy Dao?"

Bai Mo immediately shook his head.

"How could that be? This is the result of my own hard work, accumulated over a long time!"

But then, he thought about the little things in his own journey and had to agree:

"Ever since I met Shui Ziming, many of the other disciples I’ve come across have treated me well."

"My path has been relatively smooth, much better than for so many other disciples. That in itself is better than any great opportunity."

An Caiwei rolled her eyes.

"If you didn’t have this talent for Alchemy, we’d see just how ’smooth’ your path would be..."

As she said this, she grew a little concerned.

"Those Pills you gave to Qin Zheng and the others... why didn’t you try to conceal their effects a little?"

"I’m afraid it will cause a lot of controversy."

She kept her voice very low.

"I’ve already prepared an excuse for you. You can just say that in the Secret Realm, you did whatever it took. That you were desperate in your pursuit of the Dao, and that using a few forbidden methods was perfectly understandable..."

Bai Mo was astonished.

"Caiwei, why would you think that?"

He recalled the rumors he’d occasionally overheard and explained:

"That Pill was the result of me using every skill I have."

"Although it can’t compare to a Lesser Creation Golden Core, the level of control required to make it has to be extremely precise."

There was still room to improve the Pill, but Bai Mo truly had no way to make it any better.

Not unless he could unravel the secrets of refining Qi into a Pill; only then could he think of a way to achieve an effect similar to summoning a deity.

An Caiwei was even more astonished. She pointed a finger toward the air, signaling for Bai Mo to look at the state Qin Zheng and the others were in.

"Really?"

"Of course." Bai Mo threw up his hands.

"If someone can afford the price, I’d be willing to sell this Pill."

"It’s just that once this Pill’s effects wear off, the user dies instantly. You’d better think it through before taking one."

An Caiwei watched as Jin, in the Secret Realm, tossed Pills that replenish qi and blood into his mouth like he was eating beans.

"Then they..."

"They can only hold on for a little while. Half a month at most. Then they’ll die for sure!"

Jin swallowed more than half the Pills in the vial and let out a satisfied burp.

The person next to him watched his intestines squirm and started laughing.

"You were this close to having your guts spill out. If that happened, you wouldn’t even be able to take these replenishing Pills."

"Everyone, make sure to protect your organs."

One disciple was frantically trying to sew his own intestines back together.

They were now in an underground palace, where large oil lamps on the walls were being lit one by one along their wicks.

Under the dim yellow light, Qin Zheng’s face was lost in thought as he stared at the Ghost Talisman-like paper in his hand.

As time passed, the pattern on it seemed to be changing.

After staring for a long time, a direction and a blurry scene inexplicably appeared in his mind.

It was a canyon.

To get this far, every single one of them had taken a Pill.

Knowing that he was running out of time and committed to the task entrusted to him, Qin Zheng felt a growing sense of urgency.

’Looking at Jin, it seems the more injured he gets, the more qi and blood he loses.’

Qin Zheng looked at Jin and said gravely:

"Jin, I’m afraid you don’t have much time left."

Jin froze for a second, then slowly nodded.

"If danger comes, I’ll be the first one to charge ahead."

"We’ll be relying on you, then."

"Don’t mention it."

They rested for a moment, straightened their tattered clothes as best they could, and started walking toward the exit of the underground palace.

The underground palace was enormous, divided into many great halls. It had once been the barracks for a band of strange subterranean people.

Before they even reached the surface, the group saw frost creeping along both walls of the passageway as they ascended the stairs.

Qin Zheng’s expression suddenly turned grim.

"Don’t make a sound!!"

In their current state, their bodies could no longer feel the biting chill they should have.

But seeing the white frost spread toward them, everyone knew something was wrong.

KACHA! CLANG! CLANG!

It was the sound of armor scraping.

They had heard stories like this before—of buried armies occasionally awakening to patrol their former territories, guided by the memories of their past lives.

They never thought they would be the ones to encounter it.

’In this long-abandoned underground palace, we just happened to run into them on their way back?’

Qin Zheng’s heart sank, wondering at the terrible coincidence.

Thinking about everything his group had been through, he began to seriously doubt whether he could actually complete his mission.

The light at the top of the passage grew dim.

A squad of armored, weapon-wielding soldiers marched down, coming face-to-face with Qin Zheng’s group, who were also in formation. Both sides came to a halt.

The soldiers wore helmets and armor, holding long halberds. After countless years, their once-full flesh had withered away.

Only the scars on their weapons and armor still spoke of their former ferocity.

An idea struck Qin Zheng. His expression remained placid as he slowly gave the opposing soldiers a slight nod.

Then, he led his own men and continued slowly up the stairs.

The stairs were wide, originally built to allow for charging chariots and horses.

But those formidable chariots, along with their warriors, had all been wiped out in clashes with Sect Disciples.

The armored soldiers stood silent for a moment, then suddenly began to move, brushing past Qin Zheng’s group and disappearing down the passage.

Qin Zheng’s expression remained unchanged.

He often walked the line between the living and the dead, and had seen many things ordinary people never would.

But these soldiers were different. They came from an extremely savage era, one where people were captured for sacrificial rites at the drop of a hat.

The aura they exuded was especially terrifying to someone as sensitive as him.

Fortunately, the vital spark in their flesh and blood was now gone. Otherwise, the others would have seen him drenched in a cold sweat.

The group didn’t dare speak until they were outside the underground palace and hurrying away.

Jin seemed lost in thought.

"Did you guys feel like that squad of ghost soldiers was in a real hurry?"

Now that he mentioned it, the others—who had been too relieved about their narrow escape to notice anything strange—thought about it carefully.

They immediately realized that the ghost soldiers’ pace had indeed seemed off.

"Who cares!"

They walked onward, only to come across a scene of carnage. The ghost soldiers’ armor was scattered all over the ground.

The smell of ancient decay filled the air.

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