In the small courtyard, the crow flapped its wings, looking left and right at Wuyun. Wuyun, having eaten and drunk its fill, tried to pounce on the crow, but each time the crow easily dodged it. The crow’s caws were full of mischief.

For some reason, Chen Ji suddenly felt that the crow and the cat, the young man and the old man, appeared extraordinarily harmonious and peaceful in this courtyard. And tonight was one of the few peaceful nights he had experienced since coming to this world. No one was plotting, no one was fighting. The mysterious veil of the world was finally slowly lifting before his eyes.

“Master,” Chen Ji asked the most perplexing question, “Do all officials need to kill like us…?”

Old Man Yao looked puzzled. “Kill what? Kill patients?”

“Huh?” Chen Ji was even more confused. “Master, how do you cultivate?”

Old Man Yao said lightly, “When I cure a patient, their ‘illness energy’ can be used by me.”

Chen Ji was astonished. The same cultivation path, yet the methods of cultivation were different? However, just as he thought of this, the crow stood on the apricot tree, its wings like fingers, cawing with laughter as it pointed at Chen Ji, almost falling off the branch from laughing so hard.

Chen Ji: “…Master, it’s no fun to lie!”

Old Man Yao sneered, “After all, you haven’t seen much of the world. You have a brain, but not much of one. And remember, this *jianghu* and the world are much harsher than you imagine. Aside from yourself and that civet cat, you can’t trust anyone.”

“You can’t be trusted either?”

“That’s right, I can’t be trusted either,” Old Man Yao said, shaking the leftover pastry crumbs from Wuyun into his mouth, not wasting a single bit. “Our cultivation path is the most clandestine in the world. Once it’s known, the Secret Intelligence Bureau will want to kill you, the Chief Judicial Bureau will want to kill you, Prince Jing will want to kill you, the Emperor will want to kill you, and all officials in the land will want to kill you. This path cannot be cultivated without a sharp mind.”

“Master, are there other officials cultivating this path of ours?” Chen Ji asked curiously.

Old Man Yao recalled, “I’ve killed a few, but I don’t know if I’ve eliminated them all.”

Chen Ji was speechless.

He finished chewing his biscuit, feeling a bit choked. He went to the kitchen to pour a glass of water, drank it, and then continued to ask, “Master, what is our cultivation path called?”

Old Man Yao stroked his beard. “I’ve answered enough questions. I don’t want to answer any more…” Before he could finish, Wuyun had already nuzzled its way into his arms, rubbing against him enthusiastically.

Old Man Yao thought for a moment and replied, “Some call it ‘Mountain Lord’.”

Chen Ji pondered, “Mountain Lord?”

“Others call it ‘Dragon Devourer’.”

Chen Ji instantly became solemn. “Mountain Lord” had a subtle meaning, but “Dragon Devourer” seemed to hit closer to the mark! He asked curiously, “Master, if you were to kill me, would it enhance your cultivation?”

“No,” Old Man Yao glanced at him. “However, if you kill me, you could accelerate your own cultivation. Why don’t you try?”

Chen Ji: “…Master, you don’t need to be so polite.”

Old Man Yao continued to explain, “If you were the only one cultivating ‘Mountain Lord’ in this world, your cultivation speed would be at one hundred percent. If there were two cultivators, your speed would be fifty percent. How about that? Does that make it more tempting for you?”

Chen Ji frowned and admitted frankly, “I imagine many people would be tempted.”

“That’s why all officials in this land do not take disciples unless absolutely necessary.”

“What constitutes ‘absolutely necessary’?”

“Either one is gravely wounded and near death, or on the verge of old age, or knows they no longer have hope of exploring the Great Dao,” Old Man Yao mused. “I’ve seen masters teach disciples, only for the disciples to want to kill their masters. I’ve seen fathers pass on their knowledge to sons, only for the sons to want to harm their fathers.”

Chen Ji detected the desolation in the old man’s tone. “Master, besides She Dengke and Liu Quxing, do I have any other fellow disciples?”

Old Man Yao sneered, “Yes, they died. I killed them.”

Chen Ji hesitated for a moment. “Do you have children?”

Old Man Yao was silent for a long time. “I already answered that. When you’ve lived long enough, you’ll understand a principle: don’t easily form attachments with people. Those are all destined for goodbyes and disappointments.”

At this moment, Chen Ji finally understood why Old Man Yao was so unsentimental. The indifference veiled stories that could not be explained in just a few words. Old Man Yao must have sincerely taught his son; otherwise, he could have waited until he was on his deathbed to impart the cultivation path. But it seemed Old Man Yao’s son harbored malicious intent. No wonder there were so few officials in this world; it was because all those who mastered the cultivation path would never easily pass it on and would even turn against each other. Not every son in the world wanted to harm his father, but there was no shortage of sons who did.

Chen Ji wondered, “Why then did you choose to take disciples, and three at once?”

Old Man Yao glanced at him, then looked at the crow still teasing Wuyun. “I have no master-disciple affection for you. I simply don’t want this cultivation path to end with me. So, don’t harbor too many hopes for me. You pay the tuition, I teach the skills; that’s all there is to it.”

Chen Ji felt that Old Man Yao’s stated reason wasn’t entirely sufficient, but he didn’t dwell on it. He merely said sincerely, “Although you might not believe me, I promise I won’t harm you…”

“Don’t speak too soon,” Old Man Yao scoffed. “I’ve told you everything you need to know. I told you these things so you wouldn’t die a bewildered death. As for what I can’t tell you yet, perhaps I’ll tell you some of it when I’m in a better mood.”

Chen Ji: “…When are you in a good mood?”

“Return my ginseng, and I’ll be in a better mood.”

Chen Ji quickly said, “Tomorrow when I wake up, I’ll go to the apothecary…”

Old Man Yao, hunched over, stopped at the main house’s doorway. The crow fluttered down onto his shoulder. “Don’t think too much. Since you’ve already started working for the Secret Intelligence Bureau, you’ve already stepped one foot into the *jianghu*. From now on, life and death are fated. Just don’t regret it.”

Chen Ji asked, “Master, what is *jianghu*?”

Old Man Yao said blandly, “*Jianghu*… it’s a place that’s the same day after day, with no novelty.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because human nature is also like that: day after day, with no novelty.”

Chen Ji suddenly asked, “Master, what kind of person is the Grand Secretary who manages the Secret Intelligence Bureau?”

“The most vicious person in the world. Otherwise, why would people privately call him ‘Poisonous Secretary’?” Old Man Yao pushed the door open and entered the house. “In the days to come, you’ll miss these good times before you knew him.”

Chen Ji looked at the old man and the crow on his shoulder, and it suddenly felt like he was seeing Wuyun and himself on Luocheng’s main street that night. Then, from inside the house, Old Man Yao suddenly began humming a strangely rhythmic song: “Law-abiding folk fret day by day, while tyrants sing joyfully night after night. Those who harm others for profit ride horses and mules, while the honest and fair starve. Building bridges and mending roads leads to blindness, while murder and arson produce many children. I asked the Buddha in the Western Heaven, and the Buddha said, ‘I’m helpless too…'”

Chen Ji returned to the house, lay flat on the communal bed with his arm as a pillow, the master’s hummed song echoing in his mind. Wuyun lay on his chest.

“Wuyun, don’t lie on my chest; I can’t sleep like this.”

Wuyun looked up at him. “If it wasn’t for me, would your master have told you all this? After performing such a great service, it’s perfectly reasonable for me to sleep on your head, isn’t it?”

Chen Ji was silent for a moment. “That makes sense!”

In the early morning, before the rooster crowed, Wuyun was nowhere to be seen. Chen Ji carried a shoulder pole to fill the water缸, then swept the courtyard clean. He saw the crow perched on an apricot tree branch, observing him, and smiled, offering a greeting. The crow merely gave him a sideways glance and continued to stand on the branch, sleeping.

Once everything was in order, Chen Ji put the Buddhist Abacus on his wrist, pocketed all his silver ingots, and went out.

The apothecaries were in the East Market, where merchants from north and south settled, scholars on their way to exams stopped, and officials on their way to appointments socialized. It was truly a hub of the world. However, they were all just transients in Luocheng, departing after the bustle subsided.

Starting from Taiping Medical Hall, Chen Ji walked for about an hour before he could just hear the lively sounds of the East Market. The brothels had already closed, but fishermen were just returning from the rivers, carrying basket after basket of fish traps ashore, while boat trackers carried ropes and walked towards the canal.

Chen Ji looked up, searching for signboards, and finally stopped at “Bailu Pavilion.” This was Luocheng’s largest apothecary; sixty percent of the city’s herbs relied on it for wholesale purchase and transportation from the northern and southern herb markets. This was also where Taiping Medical Hall usually purchased its medicinal ingredients, and all three fellow disciples had been here before.

Chen Ji stepped over the threshold, and a corpulent shopkeeper smilingly greeted him. “Oh, Doctor Chen, why have you graced us with your presence today? Didn’t my apprentice just deliver supplies to Taiping Medical Hall yesterday?”

Chen Ji responded with a smile, “Master sent me to look for some old ginseng roots. The Prince’s Manor needs them. Does Bailu Pavilion have any in stock right now?”

The shopkeeper looked troubled. “To tell Doctor Chen, these aged ginseng roots are quite expensive. We purchase them according to pre-ordered quantities. Your master only requested one per month, so we don’t have any extra to give to Taiping Medical Hall.”

Chen Ji turned to leave. “Then I’ll go inquire elsewhere.”

But the shopkeeper quickly pulled him back, a wide smile on his face. “Doctor Chen, you’re so impatient! Why don’t you let me finish? As luck would have it, a few ginseng roots ordered by Fangping Pharmacy yesterday haven’t been delivered yet. We are old friends with Imperial Physician Yao, so if the Prince’s Manor needs them, we can allocate them to you first.”

Chen Ji remained noncommittal. “Then bring them out for a look.”

“This way, please. All the valuable medicinal ingredients are in the backyard.”

The shopkeeper led Chen Ji towards the backyard of Bailu Pavilion, pushed open a wooden door to a storeroom, and said, “Please.”

After Chen Ji entered, he looked around at the dozen or so boxes of medicinal ingredients, only to hear the door close behind him. Strange, just looking at ginseng, why close the door!? Something’s wrong!

Chen Ji ducked and rolled forward. When he stood up again, he saw the shopkeeper brandishing a dagger and lunging straight at him, his expression exceptionally ferocious. However, Chen Ji, reacting later, moved faster, delivering a kick to the shopkeeper’s plump belly. The shopkeeper hadn’t expected Chen Ji to be faster than him, not only dodging the attack but also counterattacking instantly. After taking the kick, he stumbled backward and gasped, “Help me!”

Chen Ji was about to seize the opportunity to pursue and kill the shopkeeper, but he didn’t expect to hear the rush of wind behind him again. Someone darted out from behind the wooden boxes of medicinal ingredients, pressing a dagger against his neck from behind. This time, the opponent’s speed was so great that Chen Ji had only witnessed it with Lin Chaoqing, Yun Yang, and Jiao Tu. He had no time to react at all.

He felt the coldness of the dagger, the hairs on his neck instantly standing on end, yet he could only calmly retort, “What is the meaning of this?”

The person behind him calmly said, “You betrayed your surname, your identity, defected, and sold out Zhou Chengyi. Don’t you deserve to die?”

Chen Ji was speechless… What you fear, comes true!