After listening to Chen Li's explanation, Qin Yun realized how lucky he had just been!
This old man in black is a casual cultivator of elixirs. His martial arts skills are very average, and he is not good at swordsmanship. However, he is good at concealed weapons and raising worms, and he can often win by surprise when competing with his opponents.
These seventy-two golden needle bees are the trump card of the old man in black. Although they have not yet been tamed to their peak and strongest state, Chen Li once saw him release a swarm of bees to kill two powerful opponents.
However, the size and weight of the hive are not small, and it is inconvenient to carry them around. Therefore, after Chen Li gained the trust of the old man in black, he took on the task of carrying and feeding the hive.
Only the old man in black can control this nest of golden needle bees.
If the old man in black had not used a hidden weapon to sneak attack Qin Yun just now, but had directly released the Needle Bee, then Qin Yun would have been almost certain to die.
Arrogance and carelessness eventually became the death talisman of the old man in black, and was the fate he deserved for his many unjust deeds.
Fortunately, Qin Yun couldn't help but feel a little more grateful to Chen Li in his heart: "So, what are your plans in the future?"
Chen Li shook his head blankly. He avenged his enemy with his own hands. All the accumulated resentment in his heart dissipated. Instead, he felt empty and didn't know what to do.
"Then do you have any relatives?" Qin Yun asked again.
"Yes!" Chen Li was refreshed: "My uncle is in Lincheng, and my parents and I were on the way to Lincheng..."
As he spoke, he shed tears again.
"Okay, I'll take you to Lincheng!" Qin Yun patted his shoulder and comforted him: "Your uncle will be very happy if he sees you are still alive."
"Thank you, Brother Qin..." Chen Li wiped the tears on his face and handed the honeycomb in his hand to Qin Yun: "I gave this nest of golden needle bees to you. It's useless for me to keep it. It would be a pity to throw it away.
Got it!"
"I don't know how to fight insects!" Qin Yun smiled bitterly and shook his head.
The power of this swarm of golden needle bees is very tempting, but if you don't know how to control it and use it indiscriminately, you will definitely hurt yourself.
Besides, Qin Yun was devoted to practicing swordsmanship and had no great interest in raising slave insects.
"This is not a problem!" Chen Li said: "I know that the old thief kept books on refining elixirs and taming slave insects at home. Now that he is dead, I will take you to find it. It is only a day's journey from here!"
Qin Yun wanted to refuse, but Chen Li had good intentions, and he couldn't bear to hurt the other person's heart: "Okay, let me pick a few more green leaves and leave!"
Qin Yun searched a small part of this small valley, and there must be more than three green leaves. If he leaves now, he may not be able to find it again next time.
Of course Chen Li had no objection and instead helped him collect the herbs.
Chen Li didn't have martial arts and couldn't refine his Qi. He only learned some rudimentary martial arts. However, he learned a lot of methods of collecting and finding medicines from the old man in black.
The two of them started working together and searched the surrounding rock walls without spending too much time. They actually dug out forty or fifty green leaf grasses one after another. Among them, the oldest one was twenty-seven years old.
.
Herbs that are ten years old are considered to be of the highest quality, and herbs that are nearly thirty years old are definitely treasures. Bileaf grass is the main material of the Qi-Building Pill and an ingredient in many other elixirs. Herbs that are thirty years old are basically worthless if left out.
Qin Yun was of course extremely satisfied after excavating so many green leaves. He immediately packed his bags and left with Chen Li.
Under the leadership of Chen Li, the two traveled overnight and arrived at their destination in the afternoon of the next day.
The old man in black's lair is a small Taoist temple built next to the Manglong Mountains, hidden in the woods and very inconspicuous.
There was no one else in the Taoist temple. From the outside, it looked very dilapidated and there was no incense, but that was just to deceive others.
The real secret lies beneath the Taoist temple. The old man in black has opened several secret rooms underground to raise poisonous insects and refine elixirs.
And now the body of the old man in black is probably eaten clean by the wild beasts in Manglong Mountain. Naturally, all the things he accumulated throughout his life belong to Qin Yun and Chen Li.
On the bookshelf of one of the secret rooms, Chen Li found the secret book on raising the servant bees and some other alchemy books.
Qin Yun kept the alchemy book and some useful elixirs, but he did not take any of the other treasures such as gold and silver, and gave them all to Chen Li.
This wealth is enough to ensure that the other party will have a worry-free life in the future.
After dividing the spoils, Chen Li lit another fire and burned the Taoist temple to the ground, leaving him with too many painful memories.
In a small town ten miles away from the Taoist temple, the two parted ways.
Qin Yun originally wanted to escort Chen Li to Lincheng to join his relatives, but after asking around in the town, he found out that even taking a carriage to get there would take four or five days.
It takes more than ten days to go back and forth, and Qin Yun only has less than two days left for his family mission. The consequences of delaying his return for so long are really unpredictable.
Fortunately, Chen Li saw his difficulty and said that it was not a problem for him to hire a carriage to go back alone. Guiyang County was peaceful and there were no bandits, and it was safe to take the commercial road.
"If you encounter any difficulties in the future, you can come to Qianchao City to find me, and I will definitely try my best to help you!"
An apologetic Qin Yun solemnly made a promise to Chen Li.
"Thank you, Brother Qin, and take care of yourself too!"
The two waved goodbye, and Qin Yun watched the carriage carrying Chen Li disappear at the end of the road before setting off to return to Qianchao City.
…
Qianchao City, Muyang Road Foreign Affairs Hall, Yaori Tower.
Today is the last day for the new members of the clan to return from their missions. The halls on the first and second floors of the Yaori Building are extremely lively, with people coming in and out like crucian carp crossing the river.
The expressions of the disciples were different, some were triumphant and excited, while others were crestfallen and silent. Some of the disciples even had quarrels among themselves, but they were immediately suppressed by the stewards in the building.
Due to the shortage of materials in the elixir hall and the extremely high demand for Qi-Building Pills, the main hall recently released a large number of tasks to collect blue leaf grass. Most of the disciples in the hall, whether they are newcomers or old people, have received the same task.
But collecting blue leaf grass in Manglong Mountain is definitely not an easy task. The outer areas of the mountain range have long been picked, and the newcomers do not have enough strength to go deep into the mountain range.
They lack experience in collecting herbs. Many of their children grew up in wealthy families and have never done anything similar except practicing martial arts and swordsmanship. Many newcomers entered Manglong Mountain and came back with empty faces and empty hands.
But even if you don't pick a single green leaf grass, you have to go back to the hall to make an explanation, and the medicine box and medicine hoe must be returned.
As for the consequences of not completing the task, in addition to deducting the family's regular ration for the next month, an amount will be recorded in the personal diary.
For many newcomers, deducting the regular ration is okay, but leaving a stain on the notebook is embarrassing and humiliating, so there are smart people guarding the building and buying bileaf grass at high prices.
This is allowed by the rules. As long as the tasks assigned by the family are completed, the court officials will not care what means you use to achieve your goals.
It's just that there are very few people who can collect a lot of bileaf grass.
Qin Mingzhu stood at the corner of the corridor on the first floor of the Yaori Building, looking expectantly at the crowds of people coming in and out of the front door, with a look of disappointment on her pretty face from time to time.
There are many children from the Alchemy Hall who came here today, and many newcomers like Qin Mingyue also want to buy some green leaves to improve their experience in refining medicine.
Nowadays, the herbal medicine halls in the city are almost out of stock, and the prices of some of the only stocks are too high for them to bear.
"Mingzhu, so you are here, we are looking for you!"
A familiar voice came from behind. Qin Mingzhu turned around and saw her cousin Qin Haishan and a young man in white walking over.
Seeing the person coming, she frowned secretly and forced a smile: "Cousin, Brother Qin Jun, hello."
Qin Haishan chuckled and said: "Mingzhu, you came here to buy some green leaves? Brother Qin Jun said he could help you think of a solution!"
The young man in white smiled reservedly and looked at Qin Mingzhu with a very eager look: "The green leaf grass is in very short supply now. Since sister Mingzhu needs it, I have to find a few for you. I still have a few in the Foreign Affairs Hall.
To save face.”
This young man is Qin Jun, a disciple of the Xingtang. When the new disciples started, he once organized a gathering for the disciples from his hometown.
It was at that party that he fell in love with the gentle and beautiful Qin Mingzhu at a glance, and pursued her openly and secretly.
But Qin Mingzhu always treated him honestly: "Thank you, Brother Qin Jun, for your kindness, but I have another way."
A trace of annoyance flashed in Qin Jun's eyes, and then he smiled contemptuously: "Sister Mingzhu, I know you have asked Qin Yun for help, but do you think he can do it based on his ability?"
"Even if he was lucky enough to dig up a few plants, he didn't have enough to complete the task. How could he even give them to you? The people in the Foreign Affairs Hall almost got into a fight because of the green leaves they dug!"
Considering the danger of entering Manglong Mountain to collect herbs, most of the newcomers went in groups, but they underestimated the difficulty of this task, which resulted in many conflicts.
It would be okay if not a single plant was dug up, but some teams dug up several or more than a dozen plants, and how to distribute them became a big problem. Everyone wanted to get it, and naturally disputes arose.
"Mingzhu, why don't you listen to me!" Qin Haishan said in a deep voice: "Don't you know that Qin Yun has offended people in the clan, and there is no benefit in being close to him as a friend!"
It's okay that he didn't say these words, but when he said them, it aroused Qin Mingzhu's resentment: "Cousin, I don't make friends to get any benefits. I think brother Qin Yun is a very good person."
These few words made Qin Haishan's face turn red and blue, and he was choked to the point of being unable to speak.
Qin Jun smiled hypocritically and said: "Sister Mingzhu, you can't say that, Haishan is also for..."
He pretended to be a big brother and admonished Qin Mingzhu, but Qin Mingzhu turned back and looked at the door, her eyes suddenly lit up, and a moving look appeared on her pretty face!
