Volume 1, Chapter 43 – Only In, No Out

The two black-armored soldiers didn’t bother to conceal themselves, going door to door along the market street to question people.

What they did was exactly the same as in the clinic. From infants still in swaddling clothes to youths of fifteen or sixteen—any child they saw, they questioned without missing a single one.

That stone slab emitted different lights whenever it made contact with different people’s palms.

Following along the whole way, Shi Lan saw a total of four colors of light: white, green, black, and red. The brightness and intensity of each color also differed. Only when the light turned black or red would the two soldiers carefully question the person and record detailed information.

When the light turned green, they merely wrote down a name and address; white light they didn’t even bother to ask about.

Shi Lan followed the two of them the whole morning, covering nearly half of Twin Moon City. After watching them disappear into the City Lord’s residence, she returned to the clinic.

The line in front of the clinic door was even longer than yesterday.

Shi Feng was still unconscious. Du Baisheng’s face was full of worry; whenever he was treating wounds, he kept spacing out. If Du Yue’er hadn’t been standing by to remind him, he would have kept making mistakes.

After checking on Shi Feng’s condition, Shi Lan once again left the clinic. By now she was starving.

She found a restaurant, ordered a big table full of meat dishes, and only after stuffing herself did she manage to ease her immediate crisis.

When it came time to pay, Shi Lan suddenly felt a stab in her heart—she seemed to be running low on money.

Leaving the restaurant, Shi Lan went back near the City Lord’s residence. After circling once around, she found a teahouse with a view of the residence’s main gate, ordered a pot of cooled tea, and sat down.

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Just after noon, the two black-armored soldiers once again walked out of the City Lord’s residence carrying the wooden box, starting the same routine as in the morning.

Shi Lan followed them until sunset, then went back to the clinic and helped Du Baisheng for a while.

After sending off the last patient, Du Baisheng hurriedly told Du Yue’er to shut the door and start packing their things.

“Grandfather, why? Are we going out on a house call?” Du Yue’er shut the door and asked in confusion.

Du Baisheng shook his head. “Not a house call—a long journey.”

The two black-armored soldiers who had come today had only made his already uneasy heart even more unsettled. He truly had no desire to linger in this troublesome place.

“There are demonic beasts active nearby. Neither of you walks the martial path. If you just head out like this, it’s far too dangerous,” Shi Lan tried to dissuade him.

Du Baisheng’s body halted, his already aged back seeming even more withered.

After a long silence, Du Baisheng slowly said, “But Twin Moon City… ultimately isn’t a place we can stay in for long…”

“There’s no need to rush. From what I can see, what the Demon-Suppressing Army did today may not necessarily be harmful to Miss Yue’er. Why not wait a few days? Let me first figure out what their intentions are, then decide what to do. How about that?”

Hearing this, Du Baisheng could only nod helplessly. “I’ll trouble you then.”

“Doctor Du, do you have any medicinal herbs here that replenish blood and qi? Something like blood ginseng?” Shi Lan asked.

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“Of course. What age does little brother want, and how much?” Du Baisheng nodded and walked toward the herb cabinet.

“A hundred-year-old root will do. The more, the better.”

Du Baisheng’s steps faltered. He turned around with a wry smile. “As for hundred-year blood ginseng, this little clinic truly doesn’t have any.”

“Then Golden Sun Grass? Or Red Star Vine, Bloodweb Fruit, those would work too.”

“Little brother, don’t joke. The things you’re naming are already considered spiritual materials for martial artists. How could a small clinic like mine possibly have them?”

Shi Lan caught that something was off. “These herbs are that valuable?”

“A hundred-year blood ginseng is worth at least several thousand taels of silver on the market, if you can even find one to buy. As for the others you mentioned like Golden Sun Grass and Red Star Vine, this old man doesn’t know them well, but I’d wager they’re only more expensive, not less. They’re not something ordinary families can afford.”

As he spoke, Du Baisheng couldn’t help sizing Shi Lan up twice. To open his mouth and ask straight for a hundred-year blood ginseng—there was no way he came from an ordinary family.

Shi Lan was a little dazed as she listened, her chest tightening as she recalled cultivating with medicinal herbs back at the Shi Residence.

You couldn’t even guarantee buying one for several thousand taels of silver, and she had just gulped it down in one go back then. How many taels of silver was that? That wasn’t taking medicine—that was burning money!

Thinking of how Shi Feng had once said those herbs weren’t much more expensive than radishes, it had probably just been perfunctory talk to brush her off.

Seeing her expression, Du Baisheng spoke up. “The oldest blood ginseng in this clinic is only thirty years. Aside from blood ginseng, there are also blood-tonifying herbs like angelica and astragalus. If little brother wants them, I can fetch some for you.”

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“No need, thank you.” Shi Lan shook her head, giving the unconscious Shi Feng on the bed a complicated look. Just how many favors did she owe…

Since she had eaten at noon, Shi Lan still skipped dinner. She merely asked Du Yue’er to use the thin tube with the funnel to feed Shi Feng a bowl of rice porridge.

After that, the few of them each washed up and went to bed.

……

Before dawn the next day, Shi Lan got up and left the clinic, heading straight for the front of the City Lord’s residence. She had to keep tailing them.

She didn’t have to wait long before the same two black-armored soldiers from yesterday emerged again. Besides the wooden box, they were also carrying a rolled-up sheet of xuan paper.

Shi Lan quickly followed. As they walked, the two black-armored soldiers began pasting the sheets up around the city. Each one was an announcement.

“A Talent Recruitment Board…”

Seeing the three large, eye-catching characters at the top, Shi Lan’s spirit lifted, and she read on.

“The City Lord plans to expand his private army. Tomorrow, a Talent Recruitment Platform will be set up before the City Lord’s residence. Those who pass the selection will be rewarded one hundred gold and may enter the City Lord’s residence…”

More and more people gradually gathered around each announcement. Most of them couldn’t read and had to ask a few scholar-looking types nearby to explain what was written. Once they understood, an uproar broke out.

“One hundred gold—that’s a thousand taels of silver! How long would it take to spend all that?”

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“If I could get into the City Lord’s residence, I’d never have to worry about anything again.”

“The City Lord’s residence really is loaded.”

“It’s not that easy to get your hands on that hundred gold. The City Lord’s residence is recruiting martial artists. What’s that got to do with us?”

……

Shi Lan pondered for a moment. This so-called private army of the City Lord’s residence was nothing but a front for the Demon-Suppressing Army.

If the Demon-Suppressing Army was recruiting, it was definitely to deal with demonic beasts. It seemed the situation around Twin Moon City was already quite bad…

After a bit of thought, Shi Lan didn’t continue to follow the two soldiers all over the city. Instead, she turned back to the clinic. Since the Demon-Suppressing Army was recruiting, she’d just go take a look tomorrow. If she could slip in, it probably wouldn’t be hard to gather information.

In the blink of an eye, it was noon again, and Shi Lan was once more feeling hungry. But the restaurant prices really made her ache for her dwindling purse.

After mulling it over for a long time, Shi Lan headed toward the city gate, planning to hunt some game nearby to fill her stomach.

When she reached the gate, however, she was stopped.

“Twin Moon City is now under lockdown. Only entry, no exit,” the black-armored soldier with a mask on his head said coldly.