Upon hearing the words “Hundred Herbs Hall,” everyone, including Jiang Yun, understood what was happening before their eyes.
The long queues that formed daily at the entrance of Duoyao Pavilion had naturally attracted the attention of other shops on Xiuyuan Street, especially a medicine shop named Hundred Herbs Hall.
There were not many medicine shops on Xiuyuan Street; besides Duoyao Pavilion, there were only two others, and they were much larger in scale than Duoyao Pavilion.
The largest of them was called Medicine God Zhai, owned by the Medicine God Sect.
Jiang Yun’s initial plan was to become a Shop assistant at Medicine God Zhai, as his Master had said that the Medicine God Sect could cure his Third Senior Brother’s poison. If he could infiltrate their medicine shop, he might be able to concoct an antidote. Unfortunately, they did not think highly of him.
The other medicine shop was Hundred Herbs Hall, opened by a Sect named Hundred Herbs Valley.
Although neither its Sect strength nor its achievements in Medicine Dao could compare to the Medicine God Sect, Hundred Herbs Valley had a very good relationship with the Luo Family.
Logically, the competition between these two medicine shops should have been fierce, but Hundred Herbs Hall was very clever. They primarily sold medicinal ingredients, and the Medicinal Pills they sold were mostly those not available at Medicine God Zhai. Coupled with the protection of the Luo Family, the local power, the relationship between the two medicine shops was quite harmonious.
Although Medicine God Zhai had noticed Jiang Yun’s practice of treating illnesses and detoxifying people for free, they did not take it to heart. As the strongest Medicine Dao Sect on Wushan Island, they were not at all worried that the small Duoyao Pavilion would steal their business.
However, Hundred Herbs Hall was different. After all, they could not be compared to Medicine God Zhai. The booming popularity of Duoyao Pavilion more or less affected their business, which led to the scene unfolding now.
Nevertheless, the name that Du Guirong announced indeed made many people secretly gasp.
One must know that the status of an Alchemist was extremely noble, and it was usually impossible for them to appear. Yet, now a Second-grade Alchemist had arrived.
The middle-aged man immediately showed a joyful expression and said, “So it is the Alchemist Great Master of Hundred Herbs Hall, Great Master Du!”
But then, the middle-aged man shook his head again and said, “But I do not have enough Spirit Stones on me. I am afraid I cannot afford your services, Old Sir!”
Du Guirong said coldly, “I am not here for Spirit Stones! I heard that a Divine Doctor appeared here, so I came to see. If he is truly a Divine Doctor, then so be it. But I am worried that some ignorant people, who pretend to know what they do not, are impersonating Divine Doctors here and ruining our reputation as healers and apothecaries!”
“Give me your hand!”
As he spoke, Du Guirong’s gaze remained fixed on Jiang Yun.
Xia Shi, who had always stayed behind the counter, several times could not help but want to rush forward, but he was firmly held back by Xia Zhongxing.
Xia Shi stomped his feet anxiously and said, “Father! Are you not going to help Brother Gu?”
Xia Zhongxing, however, said calmly, “Calm down, let us wait and see!”
By this point, Jiang Yun also knew what was going on, but he was too lazy to argue. He just stood there, watching the two of them.
Du Guirong had already grabbed the middle-aged man’s wrist. After only a few breaths, he suddenly turned his head and glared at Jiang Yun, saying, “What a quack! This person clearly has Corpse Grass Poison in his body, yet you said he was fine!”
Upon hearing this, everyone present showed surprise. The middle-aged man’s expression changed drastically as he said, “I knew I had poison in my body, and I had many people examine me, but they all said they could not detect it. I never expected it to be Corpse Grass Poison! Fortunately, I met Great Master Du. So, Great Master Du, can I still be saved?”
“If you met this Old Man, you can naturally be saved!”
Jiang Yun’s pupils constricted slightly. He also knew about Corpse Grass Poison; it was indeed very difficult to identify. But if the other party truly had it, it was impossible for him not to discover it.
Thinking of this, he took a step forward and once again grabbed the middle-aged man’s wrist. A stream of Spiritual Qi surged into the other party’s body, and his brows immediately furrowed.
There was indeed a trace of extremely subtle Corpse Grass Poison in the other party’s body.
Although Jiang Yun did not dare to call himself a Divine Doctor, he was quite confident in his special ability. He believed that he could not have been mistaken just now.
No poison just now, but poison now—there was only one possibility: this Corpse Grass Poison had just appeared!
Thinking of this, Jiang Yun suddenly looked up at Du Guirong and the middle-aged man. A cold light flashed in his eyes, but he silently released the wrist and stepped aside, saying, “This person indeed has Corpse Grass Poison in his body. My Medical Dao is not high, and I did not detect it just now. Since this Great Master Du can resolve it, then please, both of you, find another place to detoxify him!”
Although he knew exactly what was going on, Luo Family Old Ancestor’s birthday was less than three months away. By then, Jiang Yun would leave Duoyao Pavilion, so during this period, he did not want to needlessly stir up trouble.
“Change places!” Du Guirong sneered, “How can there be such a convenient thing? As a Second-grade Alchemist, how can I watch a quack like you deceive people here!”
“I do not know who taught you such half-baked medical skills that you dare to come out and impersonate a Divine Doctor! What you are doing, to put it nicely, is unethical; to put it harshly, it is harming lives for profit!”
“Let me tell you, unless you give us a satisfactory explanation today, otherwise, there is no need for this Duoyao Pavilion to continue existing in Nanxing City!”
Looking at the aggressive Du Guirong, how could Jiang Yun not understand the other party’s true intention? Although he indeed did not want to cause trouble, it did not mean he was afraid of it.
Moreover, today’s matter not only involved him but also Duoyao Pavilion, plus the other party’s disrespectful words towards his grandfather. Therefore, his eyes narrowed slightly, and a hint of ferocity quietly appeared in his eyes as he said, “Then, what kind of explanation do you want me to give you?”
“Return all the Spirit Stones you have defrauded these past few days, then sever one of your fingers, make a Dao Vow that you shall never touch Medicine Dao or Medical Dao in this life, and get out of Nanxing City, never to set foot in it again!”
Even to others, these words caused them to frown and shake their heads repeatedly, because such an explanation was too severe. Even if Jiang Yun were truly a swindler, he would not deserve such a severe punishment.
Jiang Yun wanted to burst out laughing even more after hearing this. This Du Guirong was merely a Second-grade Alchemist, yet he dared to speak so presumptuously and boastfully, wanting to punish him!
But just then, Xia Zhongxing, who had remained silent, suddenly stepped out and cupped his hands towards Du Guirong, saying, “Great Master Du, Brother Gu is still young, and it is normal for him to make some mistakes. Can you, for my sake, let this matter go? I will apologize to everyone on his behalf.”
Du Guirong said coldly, “Your Face? Xia Zhongxing, as a First-grade Alchemist, you saw this kid deceiving people, and not only did you not stop him, but you allowed him to treat illnesses and detoxify people in your shop. You are clearly colluding with him and working hand in glove! You have disgraced the Face of us Alchemists! And you still have the nerve to mention Face!”
Xia Zhongxing, not angry at all by Du Guirong’s cursing and accusations, said, “Then, Great Master Du, what will it take for you to let Brother Gu go?”
After sizing up Xia Zhongxing, a sinister smile suddenly flashed across Du Guirong’s Face as he said, “Since you want to stand up for him, I will give you a chance. As Alchemists, we will resolve this in the Alchemist’s way—a Pill Duel!”