Indeed, the matter of Gongyi Tianheng's abrupt emergence and his formidable martial strength interested a great many people. He obviously couldn't before, so how did he suddenly get better? Even within the span of just a few years, the Gongyi Clan had invited many high-level pharmacists to try and treat his illness. It was unfortunate that there was absolutely no effect. All of them said that he was incurable… How wondrous must that prescription that appeared be?
Many people made their conjectures. When even Gongyi Tianheng was capable of being cured, then many other illnesses that shared a resemblance could also be cured. If it was properly utilized, then the Gongyi Clan could ama.s.s huge profits!
Of course, what was more likely was that the Gongyi Clan would keep the prescription a secret and set it aside as the Clan's trump card.
The citizens of the imperial capital liked to discuss this kind of gossip the most.
And the imperial capital had great liberties when it came to expressing one's views. Everyone could gossip and nothing was off-limits.
Once Gu Zuo heard everything, he turned his head and softly asked: “Dragon Two, how does everyone know about this matter?”
Dragon Two was very experienced, and immediately understood the cause: “This matter is very big and isn't something that can be hidden from others. The Gongyi Clan has several spies from the other Clans and Families, so one could find out with just a few inquiries. However, may Pharmacist Gu be at ease. The young master has long made plans for these relationships.”
Gu Zuo felt relieved.
That prescription was something he took out to conceal the medicinal decoction. If his techniques were used to refine it, there would certainly be an abundance of benefits for the meridians. However, if one used the continent's techniques… He thought about it and supposed that they'd first refine those medicinal ingredients into a so-called potion. Then blend the potion into water to create a barrel of broth?
It seemed very ridiculous.
If such a thing was produced, the medicinal effects would be around ten to twenty percent. It was basically impossible to have any significant impact.
He cautiously reflected on this. One didn't need to mention the information leak. Even if the prescription was leaked, it wasn't likely to pose any problems… Merely, he didn't know if his big brother made a plan for this.
En, he could only wait for Tianheng's return to ask.
After thinking it over, Gu Zuo quietly asked: “Do you know who the spies in our Gongyi Clan are?”
Dragon Two softly replied: “The contacts [1] are known to us. Many provide information to outsiders, and these contacts are specifically used to convey information to the ears of other Clans. This is part of the tacit understanding between the Clans. The secret agents who actually do the investigating are people hidden within the Clan. Once these people discover something, it can be turned over to the contacts. However, there are inevitably going to be a small number of people who can't be found easily… This subordinate wouldn't know of the specific existences of such people.”
Gu Zuo satisfied his own appet.i.te for gossip, and was pleased.
After hearing that there wasn't anything unusual in the discussions below, he understood that the gossip of this city's martial artists were, for the most part, a pile of lies with low authenticity. Listening here and there confirmed that it was just boasting to the heavens. He stopped listening.
Gu Zuo concentrated on eating his meal and casually pondered how he'd go about cooking by himself…
After eating lunch, the two left the restaurant and returned to shop for medicinal herbs on the street.
Gu Zuo spent the whole afternoon going around the entire block.
This time, his luck was very good. In the corner of a medicine shop, he smoothly discovered a kind of herb that this continent hadn't heard of before. However, > had such a description: It was a medicinal herb used for refining the Xiantian Pill. Once Tianheng returned, Gu Zuo could immediately consult him over the blueprints and see if he would send his subordinates to find them.
Then, he found the necessary herbs for the Ageless Pill. After an examination, he discovered that among them were seven to eight kinds that were relatively rare. However, as far as the monstrous Gongyi Clan was concerned, it wouldn't be difficult to collect a certain amount.
This put Gu Zuo at ease.
After the entire shopping spree was over, Gu Zuo wanted to bring Dragon Two back.
That evening was naturally set aside for practice to consolidate his knowledge. His life was especially rich and full.
The next day, Gu Zuo still wanted to go out.
This time, the place he went to was a jungle in the nearby foothills. It was also a place to train oneself. However, because the topography wasn't as complex as the Stampeding Oxen Mountain Range, the wild beast species weren't as abundant. Thus, Gongyi Tianheng didn't choose this location previously. But as far as Gu Zuo was concerned, this place was still suitable.
Dragon Two knew that Gu Zuo's combat awareness was terrible. So he was even more vigilant as he followed along the entire journey.
However, as a Tianlong guardsman who completed extremely difficult missions and licked the blood off his blade, he greatly approved of Gu Zuo's way of handling things. Most of all, after he and Dragon One accepted the young master's confidentiality restrictions and found out some shocking secrets, they understood that Pharmacist Gu, who had extraordinary methods, could one day accompany the young master to even higher places. So since this was the case, Pharmacist Gu couldn't remain hiding behind the young master's back forever.
Dragon Two also clearly understood that the devoted and reliable Dragon One was the young master's most trusted aide. There were many things that the young master could only hand over to Dragon One to take care of. As for himself, he had many special skills. He was once Dragon One's a.s.sistant, but now he was practically gift-wrapped to Pharmacist Gu to become his all-around guardian.
When the young master wasn't present, he had to handle everything for Pharmacist Gu.
This was also the young master placing his trust in him.
Not long after, Dragon Two brought the disguised Gu Zuo to that jungle.
In order to hasten their journey, he informed Gu Zuo about the jungle's environment and other things he needed to pay attention to one by one. He also gave explanations for some common breeds of wild beast.
Gu Zuo's weak point was his inferior combat reactions, but he also had his strong points. To a large extent, it was basically that he didn't need to react with his body. His power lay in his mental reaction speed. After a thought, he could use the Spirit Piercing Needle!
Dragon Two especially focused on this aspect.
Gu Zuo knew that Dragon Two was wholeheartedly giving consideration to his own needs, so he listened to Dragon Two very earnestly.
The longer he stayed in this world, the more he realized… If he wanted to stay alive, it wasn't enough to just rely on his big brother's shelter. What he needed to do was quickly improve himself while he was still under his big brother's protection. He couldn't keep clinging to his big brother's leg. He would naturally receive protection while under his big brother's wings, but if there was an accident where he couldn't seek aid at the right time, he could stand up for himself until his big brother could come to protect him.
Having this kind of notion, Gu Zuo had an intense determination towards this endeavor — He wasn't an expert in martial arts, but he could use his zeal in medicine refinement to improve his martial strength!
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There were vines hanging down on both banks of a stream, where the tips of each vine fell into the water. It was very peaceful. Every time a cool breeze brushed past, the vines would automatically move and create ripples, which spread out in the water.
One of these vines was pulled by a person, who vigorously swung on the vine. Then, a strange fish jumped from the stream. Its body length was over three meters, and its big head was like a water jar. When it opened its mouth, it went to bite the person on the vine!
The youth hanging from the vine was motionless. While it soon appeared that the youth would be bitten by the strange fish, the fish abruptly froze halfway through its jump, and powerlessly fell back down.
A large section of the stream was dyed a dark red as the fish generated a huge splash.
Gu Zuo wiped away a cold sweat and heaved a huge sigh of relief.
He was scared to death!
At that moment, he really thought that he was going to be eaten by that strange fish. Even though it was he himself who suggested training his courage at close range, facing down that beast's b.l.o.o.d.y mouth still made a person's scalp go numb. A brave man couldn't say that he was scared.
Fortunately, Gu Zuo wasn't frightened to the point where his mind blanked out. Rather, his fright made him immediately use a silver drill.
In that instant, the drill pulverized the strange fish's skull.
Dragon Two also sighed in relief.
Gu Zuo was nervous, but in fact, he was even more nervous. He feared that a moment of inattention would've led to Gu Zuo becoming a mouthful of food for that fish. Even if he lost an arm or a leg, he would still have to face the consequences.
Luckily, nothing happened…
Gu Zuo swung on the vine and stably landed on the stream's sh.o.r.e. He felt as lithe as a bird. While he was unable to practice martial arts, ambient qi could still nurture his body. This was also considered a big benefit.
Dragon Two casually tore off a vine and cast it out. He used the vine to drag that strange fish from the stream and threw it ash.o.r.e. Afterwards, he maintained vigilance around Gu Zuo, watching him crouch next to the fish and slice its belly open.
Perhaps Gu Zuo was already used to it. Originally, he was prepared to level up his Spirit Piercing Needle, but after he entered this jungle, he first encountered the White-Armored Boar. The hardness of its hide couldn't be compared to armor plating. Beneath the armor, the meat of this wild beast was extremely delicious and tender.
After he used his Spirit Piercing Needle to get rid of this White-Armored Boar, he dissected it without much thought and extracted the best parts and directly collected it into his storage s.p.a.ce — Of course, because he frequently used his storage s.p.a.ce, he used a jade necklace to conceal his actions under Gongyi Tianheng's previous recommendation. Dragon Two also only thought that it was a storage device, and didn't have any suspicions about the other person.
Well, he had one or two.
Meanwhile, Gu Zuo simply felt that he had an occupational disease. In the first moments of encountering a wild beast, he'd a.n.a.lyze its body for parts that were known to be tasty. If it had any, he'd take them out. If it didn't have any, he'd take out the valuable parts and give them to Dragon Two.
— As the saying went, “A mosquito might be small, but it still had meat.” Those grade one and grade two wild beasts could be sold for a high price.
Afterwards, Gu Zuo gradually shifted from encountering wild beasts and thinking about dietary ingredients to taking the initiative to find the delicious ingredients that appeared here…which just so happened to belong to wild beasts. He wanted to hunt for those dietary ingredients.
Just like this strange fish. If it was a male fish, then its body contained a kind of protein paste [2] that was very tasty and fragrant. If it was a female fish, then the fish eggs were extremely delicious. They were all gourmet food ingredients.
Currently, after cutting it open, it turned out that this was a female fish.
Maybe it had just reached its sp.a.w.ning period. The eggs within the fish's abdomen had such savage nutritional requirements. Just as he opened the fish, its insides were packed with golden fish eggs. Each fish egg was exceptionally plump.
Gu Zuo kept staring at them, and he swallowed a mouthful of saliva.
He thought a little bit about eating them by himself… No, he would still stay and wait for his big brother to return to eat them together.
Never let it be said that the majestic imperial capital's five great young masters couldn't have such good things. Rather, this thing was the spoils of war from his first active hunt. It would always hold some special significance.
And things that held special significance should be shared between those who were close to one another.
Gu Zuo collected the fish eggs with a wave of his hand: “Dragon Two, we'll go to the next spot. We'll hunt a good piece of meat for big brother!”
Dragon Two had a trace of a smile in his eyes: “As you command, Pharmacist Gu.”
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[1] 明探子 - Ming (bright, public or open) tan zi (intelligence gatherer, spy). A person who works covertly, but whose ident.i.ty is known to both parties.
[2] 蛋白膏 - Dan bai (alb.u.min, protein) gao (ointment, paste).
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