Lu Qing looked over and saw a group of people chatting in the distance.
Judging from their clothing, they should all be traveling merchants.
He was surprised that news from the Holy City had spread throughout the Central Plains so quickly.
However, when I think back to the jade pendant Lin Zhirui gave to his master, I feel I can understand.
With the revival of spiritual energy, many cultivation techniques have begun to gradually emerge.
Many major sects probably possess jade talismans for transmitting messages.
Even in the worst-case scenario, there are some unusual birds of prey that fly extremely fast and can quickly transmit information.
The white vortex above the sacred mountain that day was truly enormous and awe-inspiring.
It's normal that it spread throughout the entire Central Plains in such a short time.
He thought for a moment, then walked forward.
"Gentlemen, I am here to greet you."
The group, who were having a lively conversation, suddenly heard a gentle, melodious voice and paused for a moment before turning around.
Then, when they saw Lu Qing, they were all stunned.
At this time, Lu Qing, having survived the tribulation, entered the Innate Realm and began cultivating body techniques, becoming a true immortal cultivator.
Although he had completely concealed his aura, his extraordinary and refined temperament as a cultivator was still impossible to hide.
This immediately shook the minds of the merchants present.
Looking at Lu Qing's extraordinary demeanor, everyone immediately understood that his identity must be extraordinary.
They are either direct descendants of a powerful family or disciples of a sect.
They immediately returned the greeting, saying, "No, no, young master, we are very grateful."
"Gentlemen, I just overheard you discussing the strange phenomena in the Holy City, as well as the matter of the white wolf and the white elephant. I find it very interesting. May I ask you for more details?"
Lu Qing said very politely.
"Of course, please have a seat, young master."
Someone immediately offered their small stool to Lu Qing, inviting him to sit down.
Lu Qing did not refuse and sat down.
"What does the young master want to know?" someone asked.
"I heard about the Holy City when I came here."
But the white wolf and the white elephant that these two uncles mentioned are things I've never heard of before.
Could you two gentlemen please enlighten me in detail?
"So, young master wanted to know about the strange beasts."
"Indeed, I have always been interested in strange and unusual things happening in the world."
"Speaking of that white wolf, it's quite formidable..."
The merchant was eloquent and liked to show off, but now he saw a distinguished young nobleman asking him for advice.
His vanity kicked in immediately, and he launched into a long, rambling monologue.
"A few days ago, it was said that a white wolf appeared in the northern part of Zhongzhou."
This wolf was ten feet tall, entirely white, without a single stray hair.
Not only do they move like the wind at great speed, but they can also command wolf packs with measured advances and retreats, much like an army.
A few days ago, the white wolf led its pack to attack a small town to the north.
That was Guiyuan Sect's territory. Later, Guiyuan Sect dispatched many elders and elite disciples to besiege and suppress them.
Not only did they fail to capture the white wolf, but it also injured several elders and escaped easily.
Although they had already heard him explain it, everyone was still surprised to hear the details.
"As for the white elephant, I heard about it from the townspeople in a small town."
At this point, the merchant who had been to the south began to recount his story.
"The townspeople there said that a while ago, a giant white elephant appeared in the mountains."
The white elephant was incredibly tall, almost half the height of a small mountain.
Some people have witnessed it using its long trunk to easily shatter a boulder the size of a small mountain with a flick of its nose.
Fortunately, the white elephant was not violent and had no intention of harming anyone, thus saving the townsman from certain death.
"A white elephant as tall as half a small mountain, how tall must it be?!"
Upon hearing this, everyone was shocked once again.
It's hard to imagine just how huge that white elephant was.
Lu Qing fell into deep thought.
If what the two said is true, then it means that since the revival of spiritual energy, the changes in the world have been even more significant than he imagined.
The white wolf and white elephant mentioned by the merchants were clearly strange beasts born from the changes in the world.
It's unclear whether they are naturally born spirit beasts like Xiao Li, or {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} whether they suddenly mutated due to some other fortuitous encounter.
Thinking of this, Lu Qing smiled and said, "Thank you both for your guidance. By the way, I noticed that this uncle's legs seem to have some difficulty moving around?"
The person Lu Qing was referring to was the merchant who recounted the story of the white elephant.
He was a middle-aged man with some graying temples. He was taken aback at first, then his face showed surprise.
"How did you figure that out, young man? That's right. A few days ago, I was traveling in the wilderness when I was caught in a downpour that lasted for several days."
In my haste, I braved the rain and set off, enduring two days of downpour.
From then on, I had some problems with my legs.
The pain intensifies every night, but it is greatly relieved during the day.
I have seen doctors before, but none of them could cure me.
Fortunately, I can still manage to walk during the day; otherwise, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to continue this business.
"When you were caught in the rain that day, the cold air entered your body and accumulated in your feet, and you were unable to resolve it."
That's why the pain is unbearable every night.
Because the nighttime is when the air is coldest, it interacts with the coldness within your body, exacerbating the coldness there.
Lu Qing explained in detail.
At the same time, he also thought that the heavy rain that this person mentioned was probably the same cold rain that they encountered when they left Jiuli Village.
"Young master, do you know medicine?"
The merchant's eyes lit up when he saw that Lu Qing spoke eloquently.
"I know a little bit about medicine. If you don't mind, sir, how about I treat you? It would be a way of returning the favor you just gave me," Lu Qing said with a smile.
"Alright, alright, go ahead and treat me. Even if you make things worse, I won't blame you!" the merchant hurriedly replied.
"I wouldn't say I've cured bad people. Although I'm not very skilled, I've never tried to cure bad people before."
Lu Qing smiled and took out a needle pouch from his pocket.
"Please take off your shoes and roll up your trouser legs, sir."
The merchant hurriedly took off his shoes and socks, rolled up his trouser legs, and everyone gasped when they saw him.
The merchant's legs, below the knees, were a dark bluish-black.
Above the knees, there was a faint bluish-black tinge, making it look quite terrifying.
Even Lu Qing was slightly startled.
It wasn't the dark, bluish-green appearance that frightened them, but rather the sheer intensity of the chilling aura. An ordinary person would probably be unable to walk at all.
The merchant only showed slight discomfort.
You have to understand, he was just an ordinary person, only physically strong, not even a martial artist.
Even Lu Qing was somewhat impressed by this willpower.
"Uncle, I will use acupuncture to help you expel this cold evil energy."
It might be a little uncomfortable, please bear with it for a bit.
"It's alright, young master, please treat me as you see fit. How much pain can it be compared to how bad it is for me at night? As long as you don't cut off my leg, do whatever you want," the merchant said nonchalantly.
This shocked everyone who heard it.
I wonder how much pain this person endured to say such a thing.
Lu Qing nodded and took out several silver needles from his needle pouch.
They pricked the merchant's legs one by one.
He didn't insert the needles quickly, but his movements were as natural as flowing water.
Even those who don't understand medicine can see that this person has profound knowledge of acupuncture.
Needless to say, that merchant traveler was even more so.
Lu Qing had said that the acupuncture would be somewhat uncomfortable, and he had prepared himself mentally.
Even if it hurts a lot, you must grit your teeth and never scream.
As a result, he watched as the silver needles pierced his legs, but apart from the initial stinging pain, he felt nothing else.
That stinging pain was nothing compared to the torment he had suffered these past few days; it was utterly insignificant.
Although Lu Qing's needle insertion was not fast, it was extremely precise.
Before long, eighteen silver needles were inserted into each of the merchant's legs.
After inserting all the silver needles, Lu Qing gently flicked his wrist, releasing a wisp of spiritual energy that guided the needles.
Instantly, the thirty-six silver needles on the merchant's legs began to buzz and vibrate, emitting a brilliant silver light.
At this, the merchant's eyes widened in surprise.
He felt his legs were sore, numb, and swollen, as if countless hot air was coursing through them, making him extremely uncomfortable.
If he hadn't gritted his teeth in time, he probably would have screamed in pain long ago.
But to others, it's a completely different story.
As the silver light shimmered, they saw that the bluish-black color on the merchant's legs was being forced downwards little by little.
Finally, at the base of both big toes, two black bulges, each the size of a copper bean, converged.
The moment the bulge formed, Lu Qing produced another silver needle and quickly stabbed it into the bulge.
With two hissing sounds, two streams of black blood spurted out, fell to the ground, and emitted a bluish-black aura before disappearing into the sunlight.
As the two streams of black blood spurted out, the merchant who had been gritting his teeth and enduring the pain suddenly relaxed.
He looked completely relaxed, showing no sign of pain whatsoever.
Seeing that there was no longer any bluish-black discoloration on the merchant's legs, Lu Qing began to remove the needles.
He could remove the needle much faster than he could insert it.
In the blink of an eye, all the silver needles were put back into the needle pouch.
"Sir, why don't you try standing up and walking around a bit to see if you're alright?"
Without hesitation, the merchant stood up and began to walk barefoot on the ground.
Soon, a look of surprise appeared on his face.
My legs felt incredibly comfortable, and apart from a slight stinging sensation in my two big toes with wounds, I felt no discomfort whatsoever.
Compared to just now, it's a world of difference.
He disregarded everything else and immediately knelt down, kowtowing to Lu Qing.
"Thank you so much, young man, for saving my life!"
Lu Qing was startled and quickly helped him up: "Uncle, you're too kind. It's just a leg ailment that was treated. There's no need for such a big gesture."
With Lu Qing's cultivation level, the merchant was naturally unable to resist his strength and was gently helped up.
However, the gratitude on his face did not diminish.
Instead, with tears in her eyes, she poured out her grievances to Lu Qing.
"Young man, you don't know this, but since I got this leg pain, these days have been agonizing for me."
My legs start to hurt every night as darkness falls.
And as time went on, the pain gradually intensified.
By midnight, the pain was so intense that he felt like he was grinding his teeth to powder.
To be frank, sometimes when it hurts, I really want to take a knife and cut my leg off.
During this time, I saw quite a few doctors, but none of them could cure my leg.
Some doctors even said that my leg ailment was too strange, and that only martial artists at the Innate Realm might be able to cure it.
But I am just an ordinary merchant. What merit or ability do I have to get those high and mighty Innate Realm experts to heal my leg?
So these days, I've already given up.
After I get home, I'll make arrangements for my funeral and find a place to settle things.
"To avoid the pain becoming unbearable on that day, which would only add to the suffering."
Hearing the merchant's lament, everyone felt a pang of sorrow, but also a sense of unease.
I never imagined that the so-called chilling aura would be so terrifying.
This merchant seemed to be a man of strong character, yet he was tormented to the point of wanting to end his own life.
It's really hard to imagine just how terrifying that pain must be.
"That's why I said, young master, you saved my life."
At this point, Shang Lü wanted to kneel down and bow to Lu Qing again.
Now that Lu Qing was prepared, he wouldn't let him kneel again.
He gently stopped him, saying, "Young man, you're just doing your duty as a doctor. Uncle, there's no need for such formalities."
Seeing that he couldn't kneel down, the merchant realized that Lu Qing was no ordinary person and must be a powerful martial artist.
He immediately reached for his purse again: "Oh, right, young man, here's your consultation fee."
"No need, Uncle." Lu Qing shook his head and smiled again. "Consider this a thank you for telling me about the white elephant. It's not easy for anyone when you're away from home."
Besides, I didn't use any medicine, so there's no need for a consultation fee.
"Oh right, the city gates are about to open, and my companions are waiting for me. I have to go."
Having said that, he gave the merchants no further chance, and with a swift movement, he broke free of the crowd and headed towards the carriage.
Seeing his graceful movements, everyone admired him even more.
All they could do was watch with admiration as this extraordinary young man who had suddenly appeared left behind.
"Brother, were you treating that uncle just now?"
Seeing Lu Qing return, Xiao Yan asked obediently.
They all witnessed Lu Qing giving someone acupuncture.
“Yes, I was looking into some things and saw that the uncle seemed to have some difficulty walking, so I treated him while I was there,” Lu Qing nodded.
Upon hearing this, Hu Zezhi's eyes flashed with admiration.
In her eyes, Lu Qing had always been so helpful and kind, and his noble character was something she could hardly hope to emulate.
The old doctor's eyes showed approval.
He was most gratified that Lu Qing could not forget the heart of a doctor.
"By the way, Master, you must have heard what those two merchants were saying earlier, right?" Lu Qing asked.
The old doctor's expression also became more serious, and he nodded: "That's right, I heard it. I didn't expect so many strange beasts to appear outside."
