Chapter 330

Chapter 330 Angry Ginseng, Changes in the Mountains

The entrance to Jiuli Village was bustling with activity.

Upon hearing the news of Lu Qing and his companions’ return, all the villagers rushed out.

“Ah Qing and the others are back!”

“After not seeing you for a few months, Ah Qing seems to have changed a bit.”

“Xiao Yan has changed too, she’s grown up a bit.”

“What are those two horses? Why do they have horns on their heads?”

“Who is that girl? She’s so pretty.”

“We’ve never seen such a pretty girl in this area!”

…

The villagers were buzzing with discussion. Some were observing the changes in Lu Qing and his companions, while others were curious about the two dragon-blood horses.

Some were even surprised by Hu Zezhi’s appearance.

Amidst the chatter, Lu Qing approached Grandpa Zhang.

“Grandpa Zhang, I’m back.”

“I’m glad you’re back safely, I’m glad you’re back safely.”

Grandpa Zhang’s eyes welled up, his body trembling with excitement.

“Did you encounter any danger on this trip?”

“No, it was all safe. Master was watching over us, and we weren’t causing any trouble, so how could there be any danger?” Lu Qing smiled.

The old doctor standing nearby

said, “…But Uncle Zhang took it seriously. He quickly bowed to the old doctor and said,

“Thank you, old doctor, for taking care of Ah Qing and Xiao Yan along the way. Otherwise, Ah Qing, with his youthful energy, would have caused who knows what kind of trouble.”

The old doctor paused for a moment, then smiled. “You’re joking, old man Zhang. Ah Qing and Xiao Yan have been taking care of my daily needs and meals along the way. I, old man, haven’t done anything.”

“That’s Ah Qing’s duty as a disciple, it’s his duty.”

“Grandpa Zhang, let’s go into the village first,”

Lu Qing said, seeing that Uncle Zhang seemed to want to thank him more.

“Yes, I’m old and confused. You must be tired after such a long journey. Let’s go back to the village and rest first,”

Uncle Zhang said, patting his head.

“I’ll go take down the red ropes first.”

Lu Qing walked over to the letter tree and gently removed the three red ropes that had been tied to it when they set out.

The red ropes had turned a little white after months of wind and rain, but Lu Qing still solemnly placed them under the stone slab.

The villagers smiled at this scene.

Returning home, Lu Qing discovered that the weeds in the yard had been cleared clean.

The house was also spotless, not at all like it hadn’t been lived in for months.

It was even cleaner than when Lu Qing and Xiaoyan left.

Lu Qing knew that it must be Uncle Zhang and his men who came to clean every day to keep the house free of dust.

“Ah Qing, you just got back, so I’m afraid you haven’t had time to prepare food or anything like that. I’ll ask your Uncle Zhang to bring the others over later.”

Uncle Zhang looked around and said.

Lu Qing was about to speak when a sudden noise came from outside.

A voice shouted, “Young Master Lu, I’m here in the name of Master Ma to bring you some things.” “

Brother Xiaotian?”

Lu Qing walked out of the house and found that it was Xiaotian, whom he hadn’t seen for a long time. He was standing outside the yard with a few people, each carrying a load on his shoulder.

“Brother Xiaotian, are you from the market?”

“Yes, I just received a pigeon message from Master Ma, letting me know you’ve returned.

Master Ma asked me to bring some daily necessities to you and Old Doctor Chen,”

Xiaotian said respectfully.

“Master Ma is so thoughtful. Please bring the things in.”

Xiaotian, along with several of his men, brought in their loads.

There was everything you could need: rice, flour, meat, vegetables, fruits, even some daily toiletries.

“Young Master Lu, please see if anything is missing. I’ll have someone bring it right away.”

“No need. I think everything is pretty complete here. Thank you, Brother Xiaotian.”

Lu Qing took a look, seeing nothing missing, and nodded in thanks.

“In that case, I won’t bother Young Master Lu any more,”

Xiaotian asked. After a respectful bow, he led his men away.

Lu Qing shook his head.

Xiaotian seemed much more reserved this time.

He wondered what Master Ma had said to him in his letter.

“Grandpa Zhang, you see, I have enough food here, so I don’t need to trouble you.”

Lu Qing turned around and said with a smile.

Grandpa Zhang looked at the things on the ground and laughed: “You are so lucky, Ah Qing. People give gifts to you as soon as you come back.”

Grandpa Zhang has seen quite a few of that Xiaotian supervisor in the past two years.

Every once in a while, he would personally deliver some daily necessities to Lu Qing.

But I didn’t expect that he was so well-informed.

Lu Qing had just come back when he arrived.

“By the way, Grandpa Zhang, I just came back today and haven’t prepared anything yet. It’s not easy to keep everyone entertained.

Please tell everyone outside later. In a day or two, I will set up ten tables for a banquet to celebrate with everyone.”

“Okay, you have guests today, so I won’t bother you. You can greet the guests first.”

Grandpa Zhang did not dissuade him. He knew that the little money was nothing to Lu Qing.

After the villagers had left, Lu Qing told Hu Zezhi and his daughter, “The villagers were concerned about Xiaoyan and me, so they made a bit of a commotion. I’m sorry to have bothered you.”

“Not at all. The people here are so simple and honest, which is truly rare. Xiaolian and I are lucky to be able to settle here,”

Hu Laosan said quickly.

“By the way, before I came back, I told Elder Wei in advance that Uncle Hu and you could stay in the Wei family’s annex for the time being.

There are plenty of empty rooms there, and there are servants to look after you, so it won’t be a problem,” Lu Qing said.

“Then I’ll have to trouble you, Young Master Lu,” Hu Zezhi thanked him.

So Lu Qing took Hu Zezhi and his daughter to the Wei family’s annex.

After settling them in, he went to the small courtyard halfway up the mountain,

intending to help the master clean the house.

However, when he arrived, he found that the courtyard was also very clean.

He didn’t know whether it was the villagers’ work or Wei Shanhai, who often came to pick plum tea, who had sent people to clean it.

“Ah Qing, come here.”

At this time, the old doctor’s voice came from behind the house.

“What’s wrong, Master?”

Lu Qing walked to the back of the house and was about to ask, but suddenly he was stunned.

Next to the old doctor, there was a small garden surrounded by a fence, full of lush greenery, exuding a strong vitality.

It was the medicinal field they had opened up before.

“This medicinal field…”

Lu Qing walked closer and was a little surprised to see the many medicinal herbs growing very vigorously in the medicinal field.

However, it was only a few months later, but these medicinal herbs seemed to have been growing for ten years.

The medicinal power was full and it was completely usable.

More importantly, he also felt that the earth’s energy here was very rich.

It seemed as if the earth’s energy for miles around was constantly converging here.

There was even a vibrant vitality lurking underneath.

“That thousand-year-old ginseng didn’t escape?”

Lu Qing immediately recognized the source of that vitality and was immediately surprised.

Because that was the thousand-year-old ginseng that he had captured and that the old doctor had placed in the medicine field to help evacuate the earth’s energy.

It was the thousand-year-old ginseng that had developed intelligence. When they left the village and headed for Zhongzhou that day,

Lu Qing thought that by the time they returned, the thousand-year-old ginseng would have already escaped.

But he didn’t expect it to still be in the medicine field.

And judging from the current situation, it has been helping to manage and cultivate this medicine field with great care.

As if sensing the movement outside, the vitality that was originally dormant underneath suddenly changed.

It quietly floated up, and soon, a few leaves slowly emerged.

Seeing this, Lu Qing couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re so bold, aren’t you afraid of being caught again?”

With that remark, the leaves suddenly retreated into the ground.

But soon, the thousand-year-old ginseng plant seemed to sense something was amiss.

It suddenly emerged from the ground and approached the old doctor, revealing most of its plump body. Its leaves, like human arms, gestured excitedly, as if accusing something.

“This little creature seems to have become more intelligent?”

Lu Qing was surprised. Could it be affected by the resurgence of spiritual energy?

“Okay, okay, I know I broke my promise. I’ll make it up to you now,”

the old doctor apologized profusely. He pulled a jade bottle from his bosom and dripped a drop of milky white liquid onto the plant.

The liquid hit the plant, and the thousand-year-old ginseng stiffened, then slurped it up, absorbing it.

The leaves above it trembled, seemingly enjoying it.

The next moment, it vanished, burrowing underground to absorb the medicinal liquid.

It no longer cared to argue with the old doctor about his broken promise.

“Master, you’ve really invested a lot this time, giving it a full drop of Earth Vein Spirit Fluid,” Lu Qing said with a smile.

“Since it hasn’t left, it means it recognizes this place. It’s taken such good care of this medicinal field, so compensation is only right.”

The old doctor had made a promise with the ginseng when he first established the medicinal field.

If it would help to regulate the earth’s energy daily, he would give it a drop of medicinal liquid diluted with Earth Vein Spirit Fluid every three days.

Later, when they had to leave for Zhongzhou, this agreement was broken.

I had thought the thousand-year-old ginseng would leave, but it remained.

“Since it’s willing to stay, that’s perfect. I’ve returned this time and want to study the art of formations for a while.

I’ll see if I can use formations to gather earth and spiritual energy and cultivate a true spiritual medicine garden,”

Lu Qing said seriously.

This idea had been on his mind for a long time.

Now that the heavens and the earth were changing, spiritual energy was resurrecting, and all things in the world were entering a period of mysterious change.

With this gradual evolution, some magical beasts and medicinal herbs, only mentioned in ancient legends, might also appear in the days ahead.

But that was still too slow for Lu Qing.

So, he wanted to see if he could use his knowledge to cultivate a batch of magical herbs in advance, preempting the situation.

“That’s great! The world is undergoing tremendous changes, and epidemics are likely to undergo unpredictable changes.

If we can cultivate magical herbs, we won’t be helpless against those difficult diseases in the future,”

the old doctor exclaimed with delight.

As a compassionate doctor, he had always been concerned about the current changes in the world.

Lu Qing’s idea was a perfect opportunity for them to prepare for the future.

“And Master, tomorrow I want to go into the mountains to see what the situation is like.

Xiaoyan and the others will need your temporary care.”

“Okay, go ahead and be safe,”

the old doctor said solemnly.

He understood his disciples’ concerns.

While their journey to Zhongzhou had been extremely fruitful and offered them great opportunities,

it had also sown the seeds of trouble and offended many.

Needless to say, Xuankong Mountain is a sworn enemy.

And then there’s the Holy Mountain. Although it’s always been known for its impartiality,

people are selfish.

The Third Holy Lord was defeated by Lu Qing that day, before so many powerful warriors.

No one can guarantee he doesn’t harbor resentment.

Otherwise, the Holy Mountain wouldn’t have instructed the Tianji Tower Master to invite Lu Qing to the mountain when they left.

Furthermore, there’s the mysterious demon cultivator severely injured by Lu Qing, as well as the possible remnants of the Qi family.

These are all potential threats.

On their return trip, they rode their wind-controlling chariots, speeding at unparalleled speeds.

But there’s still a trace.

While others might not know their whereabouts for a while, if they were determined, there’s no telling whether they might find their way to Jiuli Village.

Therefore, caution is paramount.

“Disciple will be careful,” Lu Qing nodded.

The next day, Lu Qing took Xiaoyan to his parents’ grave to pay their respects, then took her and Xiaoli to a small courtyard halfway up the mountain, and then he went into the Shiwan Mountains alone.

Along the way, Lu Qing carefully sensed and observed the changes in the mountain.

Using both his spiritual senses and his supernatural powers, Lu Qing discovered that the mountain had indeed undergone significant changes.

First, the vegetation.

It was noticeably more thriving, especially the wood energy, which had become extremely rich.

A cultivator cultivating wood-type Qi or spiritual energy would likely see their cultivation progress significantly faster if they came to these deep mountains to cultivate.

Then there were the animals.

The mountain animals had also undergone significant changes, especially the poisonous insects and snakes. Not only had their temperaments become much more ferocious, but

the toxicity contained in their bodies had also increased significantly.

An ordinary person bitten here would likely die instantly.

Even a martial artist at the post-natal realm, if poisoned, would likely not survive long without prompt medical treatment.

“It seems we need to begin the defense of the village sooner rather than later.” Sensing

the changes in the mountain, Lu Qing felt a bit heavy.

The poisonous insects and snakes in the deep mountains posed no threat to him,

but to the villagers, they were a terrifying threat.

If you get bitten by accident, that would be a big problem.

Thinking in his heart, Lu Qing unknowingly came to a familiar place.

“The changes here are not that big.”

Looking at the gorgeous and charming valley with blooming flowers in front of him, Lu Qing smiled.

This time, in addition to wanting to check the situation in the mountain, the most important thing for him was to see if there were any changes in the Yuhua Cave.

Now it seems that the changes are not as big as he imagined. As

usual, after paying a little respect in front of Li Weitian’s tomb, Lu Qing crossed the waterfall and entered the belly of the mountain.

(End of this chapter)