16: Arrived home

After three more agonizing days in the dilapidated temple, relying on Doctor Chu's superb medical skills and Xiaochun's meticulous care, the wound on Qin Feng's back finally began to close and scab over. Although any significant movement still pulled painfully, he was at last able to barely get up and walk.

During these three days, the intelligence refreshed by the System each night was still predominantly white in quality. However, its content gave Qin Feng, lying injured on the pile of dry grass, a real eye-opener, allowing him to deeply appreciate the "human warmth and coldness" and the "grand ethical dramas" within Star South City.

[(White) Yesterday, Shopkeeper Zhou of the rice store in the east city and his younger brother got into a brawl in front of the ancestral hall over the inheritance of their family estate. His younger brother had his forehead split open by a stool.]

[(White) The youngest son, most doted upon by Merchant Wang of South Street, is actually the illegitimate child of his remarried wife and the accountant. Merchant Wang has recently grown suspicious and is secretly investigating.]

[(White) Blacksmith Zhang of the north city discovered yesterday that his wife was having an affair with the widowed Carpenter Liu next door. In a rage, he smashed Carpenter Liu's workshop. The three are currently being mediated at the Six Fan School, and the mediation nearly escalated into another fight on the spot.]

Looking at these vivid examples of "brotherly affection and respect," "fatherly kindness and filial piety," and "marital harmony," Qin Feng could only sigh silently in amazement. The drama of the mundane world was in no way inferior to the Jianghu of Martial Artists. Although this intelligence was of little major use, it did deepen his understanding of the city by another layer.

That afternoon, the sunlight was just right. Feeling some strength return, Qin Feng found an excuse to send Xiaochun to wash the bandages in a nearby stream. Once Xiaochun was far enough away, he took a deep breath, endured the pain from his wounds, and relying on the precise location long since imprinted in his memory from the golden intelligence, he shuffled step by step to the front of the broken temple's ruined shrine.

"Twenty-eight steps from the entrance, under the offering table facing the shrine..."

He crouched down and reached under the offering table, covered in dust and cobwebs, to feel around. Soon, his fingertip touched something cold, hard, and protruding. He pried at it forcefully, and a flat wooden box, about the size of a palm, covered in grime and almost blending with the color of the table's underside, was retrieved.

The wooden box felt heavy in his hand, its style ancient and simple, with no lock or latch. Qin Feng's heart pounded wildly. Suppressing the urge to open it immediately, he focused his will, and swiftly stored it into the System space.

The item was secured!

The entire process took only about ten breaths. He had just withdrawn his hand when Xiaochun returned with the washed bandages, noticing nothing amiss.

That same afternoon, after Doctor Chu confirmed that Qin Feng could withstand the jostling of travel, the three of them quietly left the dilapidated temple—a place that held memories of a life-and-death struggle and several days of recuperation—and returned to Star South City.

On the way back to the city, Qin Feng casually inquired with Doctor Chu about the "Jade Dew Ginseng Blood Pill."

Upon hearing this, Doctor Chu sighed and shook his head. "The Jade Dew Ginseng Blood Pill is a supreme Profound Rank Medium Grade healing medicine. The required ingredients are extremely precious, and the refining process is even more complex. I, this old man... alas, do not have any on hand at the moment. I'm afraid only the top-tier clinics in the prefectural capitals or within deep-rooted aristocratic families and Sects would have stock, and they usually do not sell it openly. But don't worry, I will keep an eye out for you. For your injury, ordinary medicine truly cannot eradicate the root cause."

Hearing that even Doctor Chu had no immediate solution, Qin Feng's heart sank a little, but it also made him realize just how difficult the path indicated by the yellow intelligence was. A Profound Rank Medium Grade Medicinal Pill was indeed not something easily obtained.

After escorting Qin Feng back to his simple rented room, Doctor Chu said to him solemnly, "Qin Feng, thanks to you this time, Xiaochun was able to return safely. Once your injuries have completely healed, I will formally accept you as my disciple and teach you the medical Dao and martial arts. At that time, you can move to live in the backyard of the clinic for easier learning and assistance. These next few days, you must rest well and recover from your injuries. Do not act recklessly again."

"Yes, Junior understands. Thank you, Senior!" Qin Feng responded eagerly, his heart stirred with excitement. Being able to become a disciple under Doctor Chu was undoubtedly the best choice available to him at the moment.

After seeing off Doctor Chu and Xiaochun, silence returned to the room. Qin Feng bolted the door and couldn't wait to immerse his consciousness into the System space.

The flat wooden box just retrieved from the broken temple was quietly floating within.

He focused his will, and the box appeared in his hand. Wiping away the grime on its surface revealed the wood's originally dark and subdued grain. The lid fit tightly, with no locking mechanism.

He took a deep breath and, filled with boundless anticipation, gently lifted the lid.

There were no dazzling rays of light, nor any strange, overwhelming fragrance.

Inside the box, a soft, dark red silk cloth was laid out. In the center of the silk lay a small sword.

The sword was no more than a foot long. Its entire body was a warm, silvery-white color, as if cast from some unknown metal, with smooth and elegant lines. The blade, guard, and hilt were seamlessly integrated, without any superfluous ornamentation, possessing only an extreme simplicity and coldness. It wasn't as chillingly sharp as the Azure Edge Sword, nor did it have any ostentatious aura. It simply lay there quietly, yet it naturally drew all attention, as if containing some indescribable rhythm.

Was this the silvery-white small sword referred to by the golden intelligence, the one that "seemed ordinary yet not ordinary, seemed a treasure yet not a treasure"?

Qin Feng carefully picked it up. It felt slightly heavy in his hand, its touch cool. He examined it closely, trying to find its extraordinary qualities.

However, no matter how he channeled his meager Qi and blood into it, or used his Mental Energy to sense it, the small sword remained completely unresponsive, just like an exquisitely crafted piece of ordinary iron ornamentation.

"A golden legend... what mystery does it hold?" Qin Feng rubbed the cool blade, his heart filled with curiosity and a desire to probe. He was certain the System would not act without purpose. The secret of this small sword might require a specific opportunity or method to be revealed.