Casting immortality in the furnace

Chapter 27 Gratitude

Sang Gu stared at Fan Zhou in shock, her expression even bordering on fear.

Even Sang Muya, who was on his back, trembled slightly in her voice: "So, Young Hero Fan came from Langdang Mountain?"

Fan Zhou was completely bewildered. "What's the problem?"

Sang Gu carefully examined him for a moment, then chose her words carefully:

"The area around Langdang Mountain was originally the territory of a White Tiger King. A few months ago, there were sudden tremors. We don't know what happened. We only heard that it was occupied by outside cultivators who are mining the mountain."

"Yes, the area around Langdang Mountain is now the territory of the Yue Kingdom's sword-making furnace, and they are currently developing a market town there," Fan Zhou nodded in agreement.

"The market...?" Sang Gu hesitated, looking puzzled.

Sang Muya explained in a low voice:

"The messenger from Black Wind Stronghold told us that those coming from Langdang Mountain are all evil outsiders, and told us not to go near there."

"They also said they would capture the people in the village and enslave them so they could mine and cut timber for them, and even use them to make all sorts of evil magical artifacts."

"That's true." Sanggu nodded in agreement.

"These are all slanders from Black Wind Stronghold! We, Sword Furnace, are a reputable and righteous sect of Yue Kingdom!" Fan Zhou said angrily.

The reason Black Wind Stronghold smears Sword Furnace and prevents surrounding villages from approaching Langdang Mountain is probably to prevent them from trading with Sword Furnace, fearing that these small villages might develop and break away from Black Wind Stronghold's control.

Seeing that Sang Gu still seemed somewhat skeptical, he thought for a moment and asked again:

"Does Black Wind Stronghold frequently capture people to be enslaved, forcing them to mine and cut down trees, and even using them to forge evil magical artifacts?"

Sang Gu nodded subconsciously, then looked enlightened:

"Oh! I get it, they're pinning their own bad deeds on other people!"

"That's it!" Fan Zhou nodded with satisfaction.

Fortunately, these mountain people aren't so stupid that they won't easily believe what others say.

Sang Gu smiled somewhat awkwardly, "It was my biased opinion that led me astray."

"Young brother, you were able to save Muya from danger, so you certainly wouldn't be that kind of person. Please, young friend, go upstairs and rest for a while."

He turned to the side and invited Fan Zhou upstairs.

Fan Zhou carried Sang Muya up the stairs and into the round wooden house.

The room was simply furnished, with the windows tightly closed. A small stove was simmering medicine, and a middle-aged man lay on a bed against the wall, covered with several animal pelts. A brazier burned beside the bed for warmth, and the pervasive smell of herbs suggested that his condition was not optimistic.

Fan Zhou helped Sang Muya sit down in a chair. Sang Muya looked at her father on the sickbed, her eyes reddening and swelling again.

With great difficulty, the white-haired Sang Gu bent down and first looked at Sang Muya's leg injury. Seeing that the wound had scabbed over, he felt relieved.

He took a blanket and covered Sangmuya with it, comforting her:

"Miya, don't worry, Laba will definitely be alright."

Sang Gu then brought over a chair for Fan Zhou to sit on, while he himself sat by the small stove watching the fire, his wrinkled face revealing undisguised exhaustion and lingering fear.

"This time, we really owe a debt of gratitude to Brother Fan. Laba only has one daughter like you. If anything had happened to you, how would Laba live?"

Sang Muya lowered her head and remained silent.

Sang Gu sighed and thanked Fan Zhou again:

"Brother Fan saved Muya, so he is our benefactor in Sangma Village. On behalf of the entire village, I thank you. If you need anything, we will do our best to help you."

Fan Zhou had originally intended to ask for a few large blood centipedes, but seeing the situation at Sang Muya's house, he abandoned the idea and simply said:

"Uncle Sang, I'd like to ask where the Blood Dragon Cave is located?"

Sang Gu stroked his beard thoughtfully and said, "Young brother, you want to catch the Blood Centipede, right?"

Fan Zhou nodded, "Yes, I want to catch some blood centipedes to make wine."

Sang Gu sighed, "Thirty li south of Sangma Village, there is a narrow path between two mountains, and at the end of that path lies the Blood Dragon Cave."

"That place is not a good place. Poisonous insects appear in spring and autumn, and miasma pervades in summer. In winter, blood centipedes hide deep in caves and slumber. If the old guys inside are awakened, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Sang Gu advised, "Young brother, if you want to catch the Blood Centipede, you can wait until spring. At that time, the Blood Centipedes will come out of the Blood Dragon Cave to hunt, and it will be easy to catch them by setting traps outside."

Fan Zhou nodded slightly; he wasn't one to ignore advice. He then asked:

"Uncle Sang, how do you catch blood centipedes? Do you have any tricks?"

He plans to learn more from the experience.

Sang Gu nodded and said, "Blood centipedes are cold in nature and especially like chicken blood. So when we catch blood centipedes, we use chicken blood mixed with wine as bait, which can spread the smell far and wide."

He then pointed to a section of shiny yellow bamboo tube by the wall and said:

"We dry bamboo and soak it in oil to make cages for catching centipedes."

"First, pour chicken blood wine into the bamboo tube, then use bamboo strips to wedge it in the middle. This way, the centipede can only smell the blood but can't drink it because the inner wall of the bamboo tube is slippery, and it can't escape. As long as you check it every hour, this trap can be used for several days."

Fan Zhou's eyes lit up; this method was much more convenient.

Indeed, the villagers' wisdom should not be underestimated.

Seeing that Fan Zhou was listening attentively, Sang Gu continued:

"Although blood centipede wine can enhance male virility, it inevitably contains some toxins. Drinking too much is bad for your health. We use rooster blood to soak the wine, which makes it more effective and less harmful to the body."

"You can do that?!"

Fan Zhou was overjoyed, never expecting to gain so much from this trip.

The two chatted for a few more minutes, and then the boy from Abang returned.

He was also holding a small bowl, which he handed to Sang Gu:

"Grandpa, the stir-fried Evodia rutaecarpa is ready."

Sang Gu's expression brightened, and he quickly poured the medicinal soup boiling on the stove into a bowl, dissolved the powder of Evodia rutaecarpa, and instructed Abang:

"Quickly, feed Laba the drink!"

Young Abang carefully carried the medicine to the bedside and fed it to the unconscious Sanlaba, spoonful by spoonful.

Everyone in the room watched nervously. Sang Muya even forced herself to walk to the bedside and softly called her father's name.

Fan Zhou was also watching from the side. He saw that Sanlaba was sweating profusely after drinking the medicine, and wisps of white steam rose from the top of his head. He knew that this was a sign that the cold in his body was dissipating to the surface.

After a while, the middle-aged man finally opened his eyes weakly, looked at the people in front of him with a dazed expression, and finally fixed his gaze on Sang Muya, and said with a bitter smile:

"Muya, I'm sorry to have worried you."

Sang Muya threw herself into her father's arms and burst into tears.

Sanggu wiped her eyes and exclaimed, "Laba, you gave birth to a wonderful girl."

Knowing that the father and daughter had something to say, he led Fan Zhou and Abang out of the wooden house.

We went outside.

Sang Gu said to Fan Zhou:

"Young brother, please come and sit in my home. I will have someone prepare wine and food to properly express my gratitude."

"Uncle Sang, I appreciate your kindness, but I have teachers waiting for me and dare not delay any longer."

Fan Zhou quickly waved his hand to refuse, knowing that the people here lived in poverty and he did not want to trouble them.

"That won't do." Sang Gu grabbed Fan Zhou's arm and said seriously:

"Although our Sangma Village is poor, there are no stingy or narrow-minded people. This time, young brother, you not only saved Muya, but also the village chief. If we don't express our gratitude properly, the gods will punish us."

"Since you don't have time to stay for drinks, young man, take your gifts and go home."

Sanggu then directly instructed Abang, "Go find your aunt and tell her to bring me the two old blood chickens I'm feeding. Go now!"

Abang responded and took off running. Fan Zhou couldn't stop him and said anxiously:

"Uncle Sang, how can this be!"

Sanggu chuckled as he looked at him. "Are two blood chickens more important than Muya and Laba's lives?"

Fan Zhou wanted to say something more, but then he heard Sang Muya's voice from behind him:

"Grandpa Sang is right. How can these external things compare to the life-saving grace?"

She limped down the stairs and handed a rectangular wooden box to Fan Zhou:

"Young Master Fan, here are some blood centipedes from my father's collection. Some of them are a foot long, and the rest are all over seven inches long. Please accept them."

Sang Gu laughed and said, "That's perfect. If you want to make medicinal wine, add some of my rooster's blood. It will make it even better."

Fan Zhou took the wooden box, opened it, and found that there were at least twenty or thirty dried blood centipedes, each seven inches long, and three of them that were noticeably longer.

Sang Muya spoke up before he could, saying, "Young Master Fan, if you don't accept it, you're looking down on the people of Sangma Village."

"Thank you both so much." Fan Zhou smiled wryly and accepted the wooden box into his pocket without further ado.

After a while, Abang also returned.

He was carrying two brightly colored old blood chickens, their breast feathers already turned golden. It was unknown how many years Sang Gu had raised them to grow to this size.

Fan Zhou accepted the blood chicken and thanked them again.

Sang Muya said to him, "Young Master Fan, you must come to the village again when you have time. My father would like to invite you for a drink to thank you in person."

"must."

Fan Zhou nodded solemnly, promising that he would definitely come again.

Finally, led by Abang, he walked out of the village.

Along the way, many villagers looked at him and waved to him to express their gratitude.

Fan Zhou followed Abang outside the village and quietly called out to him:

"Abang, these two big, bloody chickens must be Old Man Sang's treasures, right? Could you please take them back for me..."

Before he could finish speaking, Abang was so frightened that he ran back immediately, and only after running a distance did he turn back and shout:

"Brother Fan, please accept them all. My grandfather will kill me if I take them back!"

He ran back as soon as he finished speaking, afraid that Fan Zhou would return the things to him.

Fan Zhou stood there, sighed, and silently turned to walk back, determined to bring something for the villagers next time he came.