bookpub Chapter 1 Medicine Man
Chapter 1 Medicine Man
"Brother, no..."
In the darkness, Luo Qingchen vaguely heard her younger sister's trembling voice filled with fear.
He opened his eyes.
My little sister, dressed in a gray dress, stood small in front of the bed, looking at him with tears streaming down her face.
"Brother, why did you cut off my head?"
His sister asked him, crying.
Luo Qingchen opened her mouth, wanting to speak, but couldn't say anything. Suddenly, her sister's head tilted to the side and fell off her neck.
A headless corpse stood before the bed, blood splattered on its face.
It was burning and stinging.
Luo woke up with a start in the early morning.
His sister's cries and questions still echoed clearly in his ears.
Outside the cave, it was already night, and all was quiet.
Only the howling of the night wind, like weeping and lamenting.
He slowly came to his senses, focused his gaze, and looked at his surroundings.
What I saw before me was a cave.
The ground was littered with stone chips, soil, withered leaves, and blackened bloodstains; weeds, moss, and mold grew in the crevices.
The rocks on the wall are of different colors and are covered with signs of weathering and erosion.
On the stone wall near the cave entrance, three bloody animal hides hung prominently, swaying gently in the night breeze.
Judging from the bloodstains, these three skins were clearly peeled off recently.
Deep inside the cave, the firelight flickered, sometimes bright and sometimes dim.
A nauseating, pungent odor drifted in with wisps of smoke.
Deep inside, there are several other caves, spacious and deep, interconnected, forming a dark and gloomy cavern.
This cave is located in the Black Prison Mountains, beneath the mountain where the Demon-Suppressing Sect is situated.
The Demon Extermination Sect is a renowned, or rather, infamous, cultivation sect in the Feather Kingdom. The entire sect cultivates with blood, and its disciples are known as "blood cultivators" or "demonic cultivators." The sect is considered by many to be the most evil and terrifying demonic sect in the Feather Kingdom.
His current identity is that of a "medicine man" in the Demon Extermination Sect.
It is said that any cultivation method of the Demon Extermination Sect, or even the techniques of alchemy and weapon crafting, requires the aid of blood.
Therefore, everyone in the Demon Control Sect, from the sect elders to the inner and outer disciples, raises their own medicine dolls.
Medicine patients usually need to provide fresh blood, and sometimes, they also need to provide flesh and blood, or even their entire body.
Even worse, they might have to provide their soul.
The drug user must give everything as long as the other party needs it.
Luo Qingchen became a drug user six days ago.
That night, monsters wreaked havoc, and the entire town of Qingshui was engulfed in flames and bloodshed, filled with screams, running, and desperate cries.
The dead bodies were piled up in the streets and alleys.
That same night, his family members lay in pools of blood, their eyes closed forever.
At that time, the people from the Demon Exorcism Sect were the first to arrive.
So he was brought here and became a medicine man for a disciple of the Demon Exorcism Sect.
Perhaps because he had seen too many dead people that night, he felt surprisingly calm as he looked at the three bloody animal skins hanging on the wall at the entrance of the cave.
"Maybe soon, I'll be hanging there too."
He thought to himself.
Just then, footsteps suddenly came from deep within the cave, heading towards this place.
The withered branches and stone chips on the ground made a soft "crunching" sound, which was particularly clear in the quiet night.
He held his breath and stared intently.
The dim light illuminated a strong figure; the contours of his face were not yet clear, but a voice came through: "Junior Brother Luo, you're awake?"
Zhang Dashan, reeking of blood, emerged from the darkness and sat down in the corner next to him. He first let out a long sigh before saying, "I'm exhausted. It was my first time helping my master deal with a corpse. Luckily, I didn't make any mistakes."
Luo Qingchen looked at the strong young man in front of her without saying a word.
Zhang Dashan looked at his face and asked, "What's wrong? Haven't you recovered yet?"
Luo Qingchen paused for a moment upon hearing this, then suddenly remembered something, lowered her head, and looked at her right wrist.
A scar was clearly visible there.
Six days ago, on his first night here, the Demon-Slaying Sect disciple whom he called "Master" slashed his wrist with a dagger and collected a large bowl of blood for his cultivation.
"Junior Brother Luo, your health is still not good."
Zhang Dashan rolled up his sleeves and extended his right wrist, revealing three scars, one of which was very fresh.
"Look at me, I've cut off more than you. Eat more meat, and you'll naturally make up for it."
As he spoke, he took out a piece of dried meat from his pocket and handed it to him with a gentle smile on his face.
"Thank you, senior brother."
Luo Qingchen did not refuse, took the jerky, and began to nibble on it.
I was really hungry; it felt like I'd been hungry for a long time.
This piece of jerky, which had no flavor and whose origin was unknown, was surprisingly sweet when bitten into.
Zhang Dashan stared at him for a few moments, then suddenly asked, "Junior Brother Luo, I heard you personally killed your sister and cut off her head, which is why Master took a liking to you and brought you back here?"
Luo Qingchen paused for a moment upon hearing this, but did not answer, continuing to silently chew the jerky in her mouth.
Zhang Dashan chuckled and patted him on the shoulder, saying, "I was just asking casually. We lowly people, born to be treated like cattle and horses, sometimes have no choice but to be ruthless in order to survive. I understand you."
Then he sighed deeply and said, "If there were any other choice, who would want to come here to be a medicine man? When we're alive, our bodies aren't our own. They can use our blood, flesh, and bones as they please, and slaughter us whenever they want. Even when we're dead, our corpses can't even be laid to rest. They're either dismembered to make medicine or turned into corpse slaves to be used by them. How tragic!"
Luo Qingchen paused for a moment, then asked, "Didn't they say that medicine people could also become disciples and enter sects to cultivate?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Dashan gave a wry smile and said, "Junior Brother Luo, do you also hold this hope?"
He shook his head and continued, "I'm not trying to discourage you, but it's true that medicine people can become disciples, and they can even obtain cultivation techniques without becoming disciples. However, succeeding in cultivating them is not easy. Out of a hundred medicine people, I'm afraid only one or two will succeed, or even none at all."
"Is it that difficult?"
Luo Qingchen frowned slightly.
Zhang Dashan sighed again and said, "It is indeed difficult. Think about it, as medicine people, we have to provide our master with fresh blood for cultivation every few days. Even with meat and medicine to replenish our bodies, they probably can't withstand it. And to cultivate, one must have a strong body. More importantly, our Demon-Slaying Sect's cultivation techniques all require the consumption of fresh blood. Do you think we ordinary people have that much blood? If we don't have enough blood and our bodies are weak, the techniques will be ineffective. How can we cultivate?"
Luo Qingchen looked at the wound on her right wrist and remained silent.
"Of course, if you have good cultivation talent, or a lot of money to buy blood-replenishing pills and food, or if you are very lucky and meet a senior to help you, you still have a chance."
Zhang Dashan seemed afraid that these words would extinguish the hope in his heart, so he added another sentence.
As the two were talking, a cold voice suddenly came from deep within the cave: "Junior Brother Luo, come in for a moment, Master wants to see you."
Luo Qingchen's heart skipped a beat, and she got up and walked inside.
Deep inside the cave, flames burned.
The dim firelight illuminated the darkness inside, casting two shadows of different heights on the wall.
Yang Ming, the second senior brother, was thin and small. He was bending down and picking up firewood piled up in the corner. His face was hidden in the shadows and could not be seen clearly.
It was he who called Luo Qingchen in just now.
Another figure, dressed in a green robe, sat motionless on a futon beside the fire, his eyes closed.
Judging from his appearance, he was only in his thirties, but his full head of gray hair made him look quite old.
This person was none other than Tian Feng, the master of the three.
Above the fire, a large pot was burning, the liquid inside boiling and bubbling, the pungent smell filling the entire cave.
"Master."
Luo Qingchen stepped forward, bowed and clasped her hands in a respectful manner to the person on the prayer mat.
Tian Feng slowly opened his eyes, glanced at him, and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "It seems you've recovered quite well. Come here, your master needs some more blood."
As he spoke, he picked up the dagger that was lying next to him.
Without hesitation, Luo Qingchen walked up to him like a puppet devoid of any emotion, knelt on the ground, stretched out her right hand, pulled up her sleeve, and revealed her scarred wrist.
No pharmaceutical professional dared to hesitate at this moment.
The hesitant drug users are now just skin and bones.
Tian Feng didn't say anything more. He lightly sliced open the flesh with the dagger in his hand.
Bright red blood immediately gushed out.
Tian Feng put down the dagger, picked up the large bowl on the ground with one hand, and grabbed his arm with the other. He pinched and released the acupoints with his thumb, and the blood gushed out rapidly.
Luo Qingchen's arm trembled slightly, whether from pain or fear, it was hard to tell.
Soon, the bowl was filled with blood.
Tian Feng loosened his grip, took out a bottle of medicine, poured some powder onto the wound, and then took out gauze and tightly wrapped the wound.
"Alright, go ahead."
After saying that, he tossed out a palm-sized piece of meat and said, "This is ginseng and venison. Eat it and get some rest to recover as soon as possible."
"Thank you, Master."
Despite the pain, Luo Qingchen picked up the ginseng and venison from the ground and stood up.
But as soon as he stood up, he suddenly felt dizzy and his body went limp. He staggered to the side and leaned against the wall.
Yang Ming, who was carrying firewood, didn't even glance at him.
Tian Feng picked up the large bowl of blood, got up and poured it into the pot, without looking at him again.
Luo Qingchen silently leaned against the wall, preparing to leave, when she suddenly looked at the figure in front of the fire and said, "Master, I want to go down the mountain tomorrow."
Tian Feng looked at him and asked, "What are you doing?"
Luo Qingchen respectfully said, "Tomorrow is the seventh day after my loved ones' death, and I wish to go and pay my respects to them."
Tian Feng frowned slightly, seemed to hesitate for a moment, and said coldly, "Remember to come back."
"Yes."
Luo Qingchen didn't disturb her any further, and slowly walked out, supporting herself against the wall.
"Junior Brother Luo, are you alright?"
Once outside, Zhang Dashan saw that his face was pale and his wrist was wrapped in gauze. He immediately guessed what had happened, and couldn't help but sigh and whisper, "Master is drawing blood so frequently, I don't know how much longer we can hold on."
"Junior Brother Luo, you should rest now. Master should be taking a medicinal bath soon, I need to go in and attend to him."
Zhang Dashan helped him to a corner and then hurriedly went inside.
The cave outside became quiet.
Luo Qingchen sat in a dark corner, leaning against the wall, with her eyes closed, breathing softly.
The pain in my wrist came in waves.
But at this moment, he felt no fear.
His gaze was fixed on the two health bars that had appeared inside his body and the text behind them.
[First health bar: 70%]
[Second health bar: 100%, Current level: Normal health, Next level: Gilded health]
An average person has only one blood bar. If blood loss exceeds 30%, there is a risk of shock, and if it exceeds 40% or 50%, there is a risk of death.
Even if he loses 100% of his blood, he still has a second health bar that can be replenished instantly.
Furthermore, the second health bar seems to be able to upgrade.
In the Demon-Slaying Sect, whether it's various cultivation techniques, breakthroughs, or weapon and pill refining, the freshest blood is needed.
Moreover, in many critical moments, only one's own blood is truly useful.
Therefore, this sect is very suitable for him.
However, he must become a true disciple of the Demon-Suppressing Sect as soon as possible, instead of a mere medicine man.
My head is still spinning.
However, in order not to be noticed, he did not choose to heal immediately.