Chapter 151: Encountering Zheng Qian Again
The return of the Taiqing disciples caused a commotion at the harbor.
"Senior Brother, what happened to your arm?!"
"Junior Brother, where are the senior disciples that went spirit-slaying with you? Why haven't they returned?"
The disciples of all four divisions gathered to welcome the returning disciples, only to be taken aback by their sorry and haggard appearance. Ye Sanshui, as the original leader of the expedition, hurried toward the sect to provide a detailed accounting of events.
"Let's go!" Zhao Yuanjiao marched off.
Those in his retinue glanced awkwardly around as they saw him leave.
They bowed toward Xiao Nanfeng. "Senior Brother, we'll be heading off now. Please let us know if we can be of service."
Xiao Nanfeng nodded as they apologetically left, rushing off to catch up to Zhao Yuanjiao.
Ye Dafu frowned. "Zhao Yuanjiao's really bad with people, isn't he? Those not in the know might even think that you've bullied him, Senior Brother Xiao! You saved him, but he's still acting like that toward you—is he crazy?"
Xiao Nanfeng didn't mind. He looked at his familiar surroundings with a contented expression on his face.
"As for the rest of you, stop hanging around. If you have amputated or broken limbs, you'll have to use a 'limb regeneration pill' to restore those limbs. The longer you wait, the more difficult and arduous the recovery. Buy them now!" Xiao Nanfeng commanded.
The disciples nodded. "Thank you, Senior Brother."
The disciples rushed off toward an apothecary not too far away from the harbor. The other Taiqing disciples, seeing the scene, murmured and pointed at Xiao Nanfeng curiously. Only when others explained what had happened within the realm did they turn back to Xiao Nanfeng with shock on their faces.
"Boss, you're finally back!"
"Boss, thank goodness you're alright. I heard that almost half the expedition died!"
Ye Dafu's lackeys rushed over upon hearing the news that the expedition had returned.
"I'm talented beyond compare. How could anything have happened to me? I even broke through to Ascension," Ye Dafu bragged.
"You really are amazing, Boss!" Ye Dafu's lackeys murmured in admiration.
"Of course! I killed countless spirits within the hidden realm, including whole hives of wasps, and saved many common folk by doing so," Ye Dafu added, nodding sagely.
The disciples all around gave Ye Dafu a strange look as they heard his boasts.
"Boss, why are you with that brat, Nanfeng?"
"Boss, did you teach that brat a lesson?"
Ye Dafu's lackeys leaned in to hear the juicy gossip.
Ye Dafu's face stiffened. "What nonsense are you talking about? Call him Senior Brother Nanfeng. If any of you dare to disrespect him in the future, I'll give you a beating!"
"Boss, did he hypnotize you?"
"Boss, didn't you claim that you'd discriminate against him throughout the journey?"
Ye Dafu's lackeys didn't understand his sudden change of heart.
Ye Dafu: ...
He had no choice but to drag them to an isolated corner and explain things clearly to them. The lackeys returned with their eyes beaten black and blue.
"Senior Brother Nanfeng, I've explained everything to them. In the future, they'll treat you the same way they treat me. I swear they won't offend you again!" Ye Dafu proclaimed.
"Senior Brother Nanfeng, we apologize for our past misdeeds. Please forgive us," Ye Dafu's lackeys wheezed.
Ye Dafu's lackeys didn't get upset that Ye Dafu had gotten physical with them; rather, they believed that he was being serious, and indeed did improve their attitude toward Xiao Nanfeng tremendously.
Xiao Nanfeng glanced at Ye Dafu's lackeys strangely. Were they all masochists like he was? Did they all speak with their fists? Indeed, there was a reason they had become his lackeys...
"Half a year ago, I had a group of people come to live on a nearby island. Do you know where they're located?" Xiao Nanfeng asked the crowd.
"Senior Brother Nanfeng, is their leader a man named Zheng Qian?" one of Ye Dafu's lackeys asked.
"That's right." Xiao Nanfeng's eyes brightened.
Zheng Qian was one of the people he had rescued from the crow troops, a past scholar of the Taiwu Empire with tremendous talent at administration and accumulating wealth. Xiao Nanfeng needed talented people in his employ, and had offered Zheng Qian a ten-year position.
"I just saw him. He's at the apothecary up in front. He's made quite a few visits in order to buy a pill or another, but he hasn't been able to do so," one lackey reported.
"Is the pill particularly rare?" Xiao Nanfeng frowned.
"I'm not sure, but it looked as though someone was deliberately making life hard for him."
"Lead the way," Xiao Nanfeng commanded.
Ye Dafu and his lackeys nodded, bringing Xiao Nanfeng to the nearby apothecary. There was a group of disciples gathered outside the apothecary, the wounded and disabled ones that Xiao Nanfeng had sent to buy pills. They were arguing with the shopkeep in charge.
"Why won't you sell us any limb regeneration pills? We'll pay!"
"They're not Taiqing disciples, just a group of foreigners! Why would you prioritize selling the pills to them?"
"I demand a limb regeneration pill!"
The Taiqing disciples were making a big fuss.
"Seniors, it's not that I'm unwilling to sell them to you. These limb regeneration pills are particularly difficult to concoct, and I only have twenty in stock—all of which have been reserved. Won't you wait for the next batch?"
"The next batch? That's going to take more than a month! What if our injuries worsen and our limbs won't heal? Will you take responsibility?!"
Even so, the shopkeep was adamant and refused to budge.
Zheng Qian stood outside the apothecary, dressed in gray. He frowned at the spectacle outside, his face dark. He watched on coldly.
"Mr. Zheng, as you can see, these limb regeneration pills are in short supply. You won't be able to purchase any in this batch, and likely not the next batch as well." A man in purple was smiling at Zheng Qian.
Zheng Qian looked at the man without saying a word.
"I advise you to think things through carefully. There are some people you simply can't afford to offend. If you're willing to listen obediently, I'd happily hand you the limb regeneration pills you want—but if you continue to resist, then I suppose your friends and relatives will have to remain disabled for life. Will they know it's all your fault, I wonder?" The purple-robed man smiled.
Zheng Qian's expression darkened, but he spoke not a word. He turned away from the man and refused to interact with him.
Seeing Zheng Qian's indifferent response, the man frowned as well.
"Let me give you one final warning, then. If you remain as stubborn as you have been, it won't just be your friends and relatives who have missing limbs—you will too. I wonder if you'll be so prideful when your four limbs have been cut off?"
Zheng Qian glared at the purple-robed man. "Did your lot smash their limbs?"
"And here I thought you didn't know how to speak! So what if it was us? If you'd like to become disabled too, I can grant your wish." The purple-robed man gave him a malicious smile.
Zheng Qian was outraged, but he understood that the man was trying to provoke him to get him to strike first. Once he did that, he would lose all hope of establishing himself on Taiqing Island, and his opponent would be able to use it as an excuse to take him down.
Zheng Qian took a deep breath, reined in his anger, and marched off.
"Why are you leaving? Don't you want some limb regeneration pills? Let's talk terms, then!" The man in purple reached out to grab Zheng Qian.
Zheng Qian frowned. He felt as though he wouldn't be able to make it back to the island today.
Just then, a figure appeared by Zheng Qian's side and punched at the man's palm.
"What?" the man cried out. He was flung backwards and sent sprawling against the ground.
"Who did this?!" a group of cultivators in purple cried out in outrage, drawing their weapons.
Xiao Nanfeng had appeared by Zheng Qian's side.
"Benefactor?" Zheng Qian's eyes lit up.
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