"You're lucky to be alive, Qingzi!"
"Is it dawn?"
Wang Liu had seen his fair share of the world.
"Uncle Wang, did you have a dream too?" Su Qing asked.
Wang Liu nodded. He gripped the tree trunk again, clamped his feet around it, and started to untie the clothes he'd used to strap himself in.
"Yeah. Dreamed of a beautiful woman... that figure... ah, forget it. What would a kid like you know about that kind of pleasure?"
"Qingzi, let's get down. If we don't, the chicken and rabbit won't keep for much longer."
"Yeah, Uncle Wang. I'm untying my clothes too."
The more force you used tying them, the more painful they were to untie.
It took Su Qing about ten minutes to get free.
It took Wang Liu about the same amount of time.
"That thing last night was the Deceitful Pig. We're no match for something like that," Wang Liu sighed, leading Su Qing down the mountain path.
To be honest, you'd definitely get lost wandering around these mountains if you weren't familiar with them.
"Huh? Uncle, if there are 'Deceitful' things, aren't there Daoists and Monks who come to subdue them?" Su Qing asked, confused.
"Heh, we're in the middle of nowhere. Where would we find Daoists and Monks? Instead of hoping for those fakes, you'd be better off practicing Martial Arts. I hear that a martial artist's qi and blood are so strong that ghosts and monsters might just steer clear of them."
"Then do you practice Martial Arts, Uncle?" Su Qing asked.
"Practice Martial Arts? Where am I supposed to find any Martial Arts to practice?" Wang Liu said, exasperated, slapping Su Qing on the back.
"Our village is too remote, Qingzi. If you get a chance to go to the county seat, you should. You're still young."
"You can practice Martial Arts in the county seat. They have martial arts schools there, and their gates are grand," Wang Liu said earnestly.
Su Qing was tempted. It was too hard to get anywhere in the village; it was far too isolated.
"Uncle, have you been to the county seat?" Su Qing asked.
"I have. It's a lot livelier than the village, but not as peaceful," Wang Liu nodded. He still preferred the village now because there wasn't as much conflict.
But there were still bullies. It was just that he, Wang Liu, was armed, so no one in the village dared to mess with him.
"Uncle, I want to go to the county seat," Su Qing said.
"Then go. It's a good thing if you can make a good life for yourself there. But if you're really going, you have to travel during the day. Set off at the crack of dawn and jog there. Our village has a road," Wang Liu said with a chuckle, encouraging Su Qing to go out and see the world.
Su Qing nodded. He'd sort out his affairs at home and head to the county seat within half a month. He wanted to learn Martial Arts.
His Synthesizer was his Golden Finger; he had to make the most of it.
Back in the village, Wang Liu whispered in Su Qing's ear, "When we get back, I'll prepare it. I'll give you half a chicken later to help you build up your strength."
"Okay, Uncle. Thank you," Su Qing said gratefully.
"It's nothing, nothing at all."
Wang Liu said cheerfully as the two of them headed back.
Wang Liu had said he would cut off half the chicken for Su Qing, but Su Qing wanted to go home first to process the herbs he had gathered.
Su Qing immediately took the nine qi-and-blood-replenishing herbs—even though some were the same type—and placed them all into the Synthesizer.
...
[Synthesis Successful: Great Replenishing Pill (A Top Grade qi-and-blood-replenishing pill. Even an elephant would grow restless after eating it...)]
[Synthesis Lv0 (7/100)]
"???"
Su Qing's face fell as he read the description. 'So, is this Great Replenishing Pill even useful for me?'
In one of the Synthesizer's slots, there was the Great Replenishing Pill.
Two prompts appeared in his mind: one was "Use Directly," and the other was "Extract."
After reading the description, Su Qing didn't dare use it directly.
That was a Great Replenishing Pill. Although he was currently weak and skinny, he didn't dare take something so potent.
'I can't use this right now.'
Su Qing silently commanded, 'Extract.'
A pale red Elixir, the size of a sweet dumpling, appeared in his hand. Its surface was perfectly smooth. Su Qing brought the Elixir to his nose and took a deep sniff, but he couldn't smell any fragrance.
Then he put it away.
He tucked it into the sackcloth pouch on his chest.
'There are also the poisons. I should at least try synthesizing them to see what they become.'
As soon as the thought occurred to him, he grabbed the poisons he had identified and placed them into his Synthesizer one by one.
'Synthesize.'
[Synthesis Successful: Small Poison Pill (An ordinary person will die within a quarter of an hour after consuming even a tiny bit.)]
[Synthesis Lv0 (8/100)]
The Synthesizer also displayed the "Use Directly" option, which scared him so much that he immediately extracted the pill.
The Small Poison Pill was off-white. Su Qing didn't dare sniff it. Instead, he went inside his house and found a piece of cloth to wrap it in. It was a poison, but also a useful item.
He had just put away his Small Poison Pill.
CRASH! The gate to Su Qing's courtyard was kicked open.
The groaning of the wooden gate was a sign it was on its last legs.
"Brother Zhang, that skinny pole is home, just like you said!"
A sycophantic voice called out.
Su Qing turned his head and saw Zhang Mazi, Liu Dan, and Guan Gousheng.
"What are you waiting for? Get him!"
Su Qing saw Liu Dan and Guan Gousheng rush forward to grab him.
Su Qing had just turned to run.
But just as the voice had said, he was just a "skinny pole." He was quickly pinned down with no chance to escape.
Su Qing immediately yelled, "Murder! Someone, help! They're trying to kill me!"
Su Qing's shouts were loud enough for all his neighbors to hear.
"Who the hell is trying to kill you, you bastard!"
"Shut up!"
Zhang Mazi grew flustered. He rushed forward and slapped Su Qing hard across the face.
SLAP!
Su Qing's left cheek burned with a fiery pain. His eyes widened as he stared at Zhang Mazi, and at Liu Dan and Guan Gousheng who were holding his arms.
"What!"
"Someone's being murdered in the village!"
"Which direction?"
Rustling sounds and footsteps came from outside Su Qing's house.
Since it was daytime, no one was particularly panicked.
Meanwhile, Wang Liu next door heard Su Qing's shouts. Without even taking a moment to rest, he grabbed a wood-chopping knife and charged into Su Qing's home.
As soon as he entered, Wang Liu saw Zhang Mazi, Guan Gousheng, and Liu Dan.
And Su Qing, pinned to the ground.
Wang Liu's arrival instantly drew the attention of Zhang Mazi, Liu Dan, and Guan Gousheng.
Liu Dan and Guan Gousheng were distracted for a moment, their grips loosening. Su Qing struggled free, scrambled to his feet, and immediately dashed toward his kitchen.
"Hey! Ptui! You three are the scum of this village, bullying Qingzi! Get lost! Or I'll teach you a lesson today."
Wang Liu's shout was powerful and full of energy.
It immediately drew Su Qing's neighbors over, carrying their own makeshift weapons. After all, if there were mountain bandits or robbers, they would at least be able to put up a fight together.
But when they saw it was just the three village loafers, they all started gossiping. "It's Zhang Mazi again. I told you he was no good. Looks like Village Chief Zhang's time is up; his son has completely ruined his reputation!"
"That's right. I heard someone in town say something... like father, like son."
"Exactly. I've never liked the look of that Zhang Mazi. And that Zhang Ersheng fellow, he gives me the creeps too."
The nearby aunties and elders had all come out.
No one ever thinks a bit of drama is too much trouble to watch.
Seeing so many villagers, Zhang Mazi's hatred for Su Qing reached its peak. But he didn't dare provoke the crowd's anger and scurried away in disgrace.