Chapter 156: The True God Appears 1
Translator: 549690339 |
The master and servant duo had just stepped out of Miaodan Pavilion’s main gate when they saw pedestrians hurrying along the street.
The sky was dark, with several black clouds floating overhead, pressing down upon the entirety of Black Tiger City.
“Master, it looks like it’s going to rain!”
Xiao Qing looked up at the sky with some concern.
“Rain is a good thing. I’ll arrange for your accommodation at the inn first, then come over to get you tomorrow.”
Qin Niu took her to an inn, booked a room, and bought her some food.
“Keep these two taels of silver on you—if you get hungry and want to buy some food, then buy it. Lock the doors and windows at night, and be safe.”
Giving her one tael of silver for pocket money at a time was enough to show Qin Niu’s affection for her.
Xiao Qing took the silver, silently watching Qin Niu leave.
Her eyes were full of reluctance.
And even a bit of fear that Qin Niu might not want her anymore.
“Master! Be safe! Xiao Qing will always wait here for you!”
In the end, she couldn’t help but shout at his retreating figure.
“All right!”
Qin Niu stopped in his tracks, waved at her, and signaled for her to go into her room.
Without lingering, he left the inn and quickened his steps towards Longwang Alley in the west of the city.
There were already flashes of lightning striking down from the sky, with thunder roaring.
It seemed like it was about to rain heavily soon.
Knocking on the courtyard gate, it was still the old man who answered.
Seeing Qin Niu return, the old man seemed not at all surprised.
At this moment, Qin Niu was already wearing the Insect Master’s robe, which similarly didn’t surprise the elder.
“When I treat this plant, I must not be disturbed, and I need to sit in an open area. May I do it in the front yard of the elder’s home?”
“If you cannot be disturbed, then go to the backyard! It’s quieter there. I often have people coming in and out of this front yard, which might distract you.”
The old man led him all the way to the backyard.
The place was overgrown with weeds and looked quite unkempt.
Probably, this old man was a lazy person, not bothering to clean his yard much.
“The rain is about to start, and the young man will get wet.”
“It’s okay.”
Qin Niu smiled.
He felt the kindly intentions emanating from the old man.
He practiced the Everlasting Spring Technique, which could only be cultivated under two conditions: either it was raining or there was a moon.
He had yet to grasp a third method of cultivation.
“Then I won’t disturb the young man any further. If you need anything, feel free to call for me inside the house.”
After saying that, the elder left him in the backyard and walked away.
Qin Niu found a suitable spot, cleared out a space, and then placed the plant, which had almost completely withered, in front of him.
The plant’s energy was extremely weak, emitting no medicinal aura.
It was an utterly ordinary plant; it was unclear why the old man spent so much money to save it.
The hundred taels of silver were very important to him, so he decided to earn them first.
The sky had already started to sprinkle intermittent drops of rain. He closed his eyes and began to cultivate the Everlasting Spring Technique.
It was just that his realm was still shallow, and he wasn’t proficient in using the power of the Everlasting Spring Technique. Otherwise, he should have been able to directly harness the technique’s power to treat the plant, without all this hassle.
As he continued his cultivation, wisps of the Everlasting Spring Technique’s power began to drift away.
They silently nourished the withered plant.
In the sky, the rain grew heavier.
Qin Niu’s cultivation efficiency of the Everlasting Spring Technique actually increased, absorbing a massive amount of the water essence and transforming it into the power of the technique.
Time ticked away.
About two hours later, he opened his eyes.
The plant, which had originally withered, had now regained its vitality.
The parts that had completely blackened could not be saved, but the other parts had turned green, and it was evident that new shoots were sprouting from the base of the leaves.
By now, the rain in the sky had started to weaken.
Qin Niu was drenched to the bone.
Carrying the pot with the plant, he went directly to find that old man.
“Elder, I have revived this plant for you. With proper care, it should quickly return to being lush and leafy.”
Qin Niu, holding that pot of flowers and plants, entered the room, and the old man leaned in closely for a careful look, then he also clicked his tongue in amazement.
“Young man, you have a remarkable ability, indeed possessing the power to revive the dead. Over there the fire has been lit, and I’ve prepared some braised meat, meat pies, and tea for your consumption. Feel free to help yourself. Now that it’s getting dark, you can stay in my house tonight and leave tomorrow. I need to step out for a while to deliver this pot of flowers to the master’s house, please excuse me.”
After speaking, the old man packed the pot of flowers and plants into a basket and carried it out of the door.
Suddenly, only Qin Niu was left alone in the room.
The old man didn’t seem to be afraid of thievery at all.
At first, Qin Niu thought the old man was just a fool with too much money, quite ordinary.
Now he realized that the man was not so simple.
From the old man’s words, he should just be a servant or something of the sort.
The pot of flowers and plants was not the old man’s, but belonged to someone else.
He took off his clothes, wrung them out, and then began to dry them by the fire.
The food prepared on the table seemed to have been hastily bought from a diner.
Under normal circumstances, an average person’s home is unlikely to make braised meat. Because the process is complicated and the technique involved is also quite high.
Ordinary farmwives simply can’t cook this dish well.
It seems that the old man had bought it for him on the spot.
“Such a thoughtful person!”
The meat pies still retained some warmth.
He was indeed a bit hungry, picked up a piece, and smelled the fragrant aroma.
He swallowed his saliva.
He didn’t immediately start eating but, like a magician, pulled out a bamboo tube and summoned a termite from within, feeding it a small piece of the meat pie.
Nothing unusual happened.
Then he felt confident enough to eat and drink liberally.
After he had eaten his fill and had enough to drink, a noise came from outside.
The courtyard door opened, and a carriage drove in.
It was just a very ordinary carriage, drawn by a yellow-maned horse.
Qin Niu closely watched the movement outside the house.
By then, the clouds had dispersed, and a few stars and a crescent moon appeared in the sky.
The weather in the sixth and seventh months can indeed change quickly.
Two people got out of the carriage.
One was the old man, acting as the coachman.
The other was a man in his thirties who emerged from the back of the carriage. He was clad in brocade, with an imposing appearance, a straight nose, and broad ears, clearly not an ordinary person.
These were the only two who came down from the carriage, with no one else.
“Where is the person?”
“He’s inside the house, warming himself by the fire.”
“You haven’t neglected the guest, have you?”
The middle-aged man continued to ask.
“I went out and bought braised meat and meat pies, and prepared tea for his consumption.”
The old man replied respectfully.
The two of them walked straight into the house.
“Young man, this is my master, and he is the true owner of that pot of flowers and plants.”
The old man, upon entering, introduced Qin Niu.
“Thank you for reviving my flowers and plants. I came here especially to express my gratitude,” the gentleman said, bowing to Qin Niu.
“You are too kind! To revive an ordinary plant and receive a reward of a hundred taels of silver made me especially curious. Does that plant hold any special significance for you?” Qin Niu pondered and could only think of this reason.
It might have been a gift from a friend, or perhaps a treasured object of his parents, and so on.
Otherwise, no one would be willing to spend such an unjust amount of money.
“That plant is actually of no particular significance to me, I purposely let it wither to find a true master of cultivation who can revive my other significant medicinal herb.”
This revelation from the man made Qin Niu’s eyes widen in surprise.
For just a medicinal herb, was it necessary to make things so complicated?
The people in the city were too roundabout.
“Master, you possess the ability to revive the dead. If you are willing to make a move and treat that medicinal herb for me, I am willing to reward you handsomely! Even if you can’t heal it, I will give you ten taels of silver for your troubles. If you can cure it, I am willing to pay a hundred gold.”
The man announced a shockingly generous reward.