The Elixir is for You, The Poison is for Me

#374 - Hanshanke

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In this past month, besides cultivation, the most important thing for Lu Jing was finding a way to curb the expansion of his secret power.

This matter was even more pressing for him than earning money, after all, there were still more than four months left until the final deadline for repaying the money, but becoming a Second Palace cultivator was already imminent.

Moreover, not being able to repay the money would at worst mean being caught by Chi to refine weapons together.

But becoming a Second Palace cultivator could potentially lead to a loss of life.

Lu Jing was naturally more concerned about this matter.

So he had been trying to find a solution during this time, asking Xuan Ji to help him search for relevant books in the library. In addition, he was also running around, subtly probing Ye Gongmei, Wu Han, and other seniors, hoping to find an answer.

However, his need was too unpopular, and the people he asked all said they had no clue.

Xuan Ji did find some records in ancient books of cultivators falling into bottlenecks, even regressing in strength, falling from the Third Palace back to the Second Palace, or even the First Palace.

However, after Lu Jing read them, he found that these methods either had a lot of randomness, making them difficult to replicate, or had very serious aftereffects.

For example, the old zombie at Heng Ji Coffin Shop was originally a fourth-rank inspector, a Third Palace cultivator, but now his cultivation was less than forty percent of what it used to be, and judging from his appearance, it would be difficult for him to improve in the future.

This state really made Lu Jing envious.

But no matter how envious he was, it was useless. This was something the old zombie exchanged for his life. Lu Jing only learned after asking Chen Bo that the old zombie was only just forty years old this year. Looking at him, Lu Jing had always thought he was already sixty or seventy years old.

This price was a bit too high.

So, after looking around, the most promising approach was still to start with elixirs.

Unfortunately, Ding Liu was an old fossil who believed that poison was harmful, so there was no way to get him to think of ways to research poison.

Lu Jing estimated that even if he put a flying sword to the old man's neck, he wouldn't agree.

So Lu Jing had been scratching his head anxiously during this time.

He had also thought about trying to find other people, but the instructor in charge of teaching alchemy at the academy explicitly told Lu Jing that he would not develop similar elixirs.

Firstly, this thing might become a disaster, and secondly, and most importantly, it had too few uses. Developing and refining a new elixir requires a lot of financial resources and mental energy.

The result of refining something that has no effect is the scene that every alchemist least wants to see.

In fact, Lu Jing could also understand his point of view.

This is just like those pharmaceutical factories in his previous life. They invest huge amounts of money to develop new drugs, and they definitely conduct market research beforehand. If it is a more popular disease with a high incidence rate, then the corresponding drugs will be more numerous and complete, and even some unscrupulous manufacturers can invent a concept out of thin air and then feed you medicine.

For example, the sub-health trend that was quite popular at the beginning of the century. Suddenly, hundreds of millions of people in China became sub-healthy overnight, and various drugs and health products emerged endlessly.

But if you encounter a rare disease, then there are often very few drugs to choose from. If you are unlucky enough to encounter a super rare disease that only a few hundred or even dozens of people in the world have ever had, it is normal to not find a specific medicine.

But understanding is understanding, Lu Jing, as a patient, must also find a way to save himself.

So this time he went to Mirror Lake Valley for this matter.

Lu Jing had learned from the Little Marquis the other day that there was actually another alchemist in Mirror Lake Valley.

However, it is said that that person is a pure hermit. Lu Jing previously thought that the old blind man and the green-shirted girl were already living isolated enough, and basically did not interact with people outside the valley.

But according to the Little Marquis, that guy named Han Shan Ke is really autistic.

Even few of the paper figures in the valley have spoken to him, and most people don't even know what he looks like.

The Little Marquis said that in these twelve years, she had only met that person three times.

Lu Jing asked, "What about before twelve years?"

The Little Marquis shook her head, "I don't know. He was already here before I came to Mirror Lake Valley twelve years ago. Hmm, Mr. Bamboo Staff seems to have said that that person came earlier than him."

"Okay, then he should be quite old."

"I don't know."

"Does he have any hobbies?"

"I don't know."

"… … … …"

"Wait, since he never shows his face, how does he live on weekdays?" Lu Jing thought of another question, "Vegetables, rice, these things… …"

"He grows them himself. Ah, I remember that the place he lives in has a medicinal field and a vegetable garden, but there will definitely be some other things he needs, such as clothes, paper, and pens. He can't grow all the medicinal materials for alchemy, so Ah Bao will help him bring back what he needs."

"Who is Ah Bao? Is he his medicine boy?"

"No, it's a wild boar he raised, but it's very smart. Once, the Drunkard said in front of it that he was going to carry it back to make a dish to go with wine, and it got angry and chased the Drunkard for an afternoon."

The above is all the information Lu Jing inquired about Han Shan Ke, and from this information, it is difficult for Lu Jing to judge what kind of person Han Shan Ke is.

If he wants to ask him to help refine a new elixir, what conditions should he use to impress him?

Perhaps the only thing that can make Lu Jing feel a little relieved is that Han Shan Ke is definitely not a divine doctor with a heart to help the world like Ding Liu, otherwise he would not be so completely hidden, so his attitude towards poison should not be as rigid as Ding Liu's, and seeing that he has not interacted with people for so many years, alchemy is obviously not for making money.

In any case, he has to try his luck.

So this day, after Lu Jing finished practicing his flying sword, he came to Mirror Lake Valley early. He first went to the old blind man to get the thirty white shells that the latter had promised him a month ago.

He thought that maybe this senior Han Shan Ke is also a card game enthusiast, although he had never asked the Little Marquis to draw Jueyi before.

But if he opens the door to a new world and awakens some hobbies, then Lu Jing can also seize the opportunity to exchange the remaining white shells with him and ask him to help refine elixirs.

While Lu Jing was thinking, he followed the Little Marquis's instructions and walked towards the depths of Mirror Lake Valley.

He originally thought that the green-shirted girl lived far enough, but after hearing the Little Marquis talk about Han Shan Ke's residence, Lu Jing realized that Mirror Lake Valley was actually so big.

Even with his Qinggong, he walked for a full half an hour before reaching the cliff on the east side, and then circled around the cliff for a long time before the scene in front of him suddenly opened up.

He saw a valley within a valley with beautiful mountains and rivers.