Apothecary gazed at him through the bronze mask, his eyes deep and shadowed.
Quinn Shepherd felt uneasy—this request really was a bit shameless.
"A while back, Crippled Joe robbed a bunch of tombs and sent me piles of corpse-fiends. Thanks to those, and the structure of godly bodies, I’ve basically figured out everything. Even the Divine Treasuries—I’ve finished studying them, or I wouldn’t be able to teach others how to open them. But Medical Dao? I haven’t found it yet."
Apothecary drawled, "I can swap out someone’s brain, transplant a heart, even crack the hereditary secrets of Divine Treasuries and Heaven Palaces, and graft them into new bodies. But I still haven’t found where Medical Dao lives. Maybe in our line of work, there’s just no such thing as a true Medical Dao."
Quinn declared righteously, "A healer’s heart is benevolent—hanging up the medicine gourd to save the world, rescuing the common people from plague, nipping disaster and suffering in the bud—isn’t that Medical Dao?"
Apothecary snorted with laughter, "You talk a good game, brat, but you expect me to perfect Medical Dao? I was hoping you’d do it! Why don’t you hang up your gourd and treat me first! I worked myself to the bone raising you, counting on you to take care of me in old age, maybe invent a hundred Emperor’s Throne arts for me to choose from. But look at you—not working hard to honor us elders, just waiting for us old-timers to hand you ready-made arts!"
Quinn blushed and stammered, "Grandpa Apothecary isn’t old at all—compared to gods and demons, you’re still in your prime! Besides, everyone has their specialty. Grandpa Apothecary’s medical skills are unrivaled, his poison arts are second to none, and the title ‘Jade-Faced Poison King’ isn’t just for show. I’m barely second best—I wouldn’t dare steal your chance to be remembered in history."
Apothecary perked up at the mention of ‘fame in history,’ but then hesitated. "I’ve analyzed the body to the limit, but the Primordial Spirit still eludes me. The Primordial Spirit connects to the flow of yuanqi, which runs through flesh and spirit alike. Only by understanding that can I know if Medical Dao really exists."
Quinn’s words brimmed with persuasion: "Grandpa Apothecary, Dao is walked into existence! There was no Painting Dao, but Grandpa Deaf carved one out and became a grandmaster! There was no Sword Dao, but the Pioneer Emperor forged a path and contended with Heavenly Venerables! You too can blaze a trail for Medical Dao, become the Medical Dao Supreme, and be immortalized for generations!"
Apothecary was fired up by Quinn’s speech, but pondered, "Still, besides Primordial Spirit and yuanqi, I need to understand divine sense. It’s too hard—really too hard. Crippled Joe stole me plenty of corpse-fiends, so I can study flesh and Divine Treasuries, but corpse-fiends have no Primordial Spirit, and no divine sense..."
"Grandpa Apothecary needs a test subject who just can’t be killed, no matter what?" Quinn probed.
Apothecary nodded, "I thought about it—the best choice would be Aiden Starr. He’s tough enough to survive anything. But his divine sense isn’t all that sharp..."
He glanced at Shu Jun.
Quinn glanced at Shu Jun too.
Shu Jun cradled his tea, head hunched in the rocking chair, looking like a bald, dispirited vulture.
"His soul is too weak."
Apothecary shook his head, "I’ve already poisoned him to death twice just now—his soul flew off both times."
Shu Jun was moved to tears, sobbing so hard his tears splashed into his teacup.
Quinn grinned, "Don’t worry, Grandpa Apothecary. My Heavenly Demon Creation Art was taught by Granny Sue herself. With her here, Shu Jun’s soul won’t escape no matter how hard it tries."
Shu Jun glared fiercely.
Quinn pretended not to notice and coaxed, "Grandpa Apothecary, just think—where else could you find a Creator this strong, who’s just started training Divine Treasuries and Primordial Spirit? And he’s a Taikoo God-King! His divine sense rivals mine, his body’s even tougher, brimming with life force, and his soul’s growing up from scratch."
Apothecary’s eyes brightened behind the mask, nodding at Shu Jun again and again.
Shu Jun’s body trembled. His voice was hoarse: "My body isn’t strong enough, remember? You poisoned me to death twice!"
Apothecary replied coolly, "God-King, you may have opened the Spirit Embryo Treasury, but six Divine Treasuries are still sealed. Without me softening your flesh, you’ll never unlock the rest. Even if you leave with Quinn today, you’ll come crawling back to beg me sooner or later."
Shu Jun’s expression shifted—after a moment, he swallowed his grief and nodded.
Apothecary beamed at Quinn. "Medical Dao Supreme, immortalized in the annals of history?"
"Absolutely!" Quinn nodded vigorously.
Apothecary let out a long breath and glanced at Shu Jun, as if inspecting livestock—utterly satisfied.
Quinn found Granny Sue and said, "Granny, as the old saying goes, if the eldest doesn’t work hard..."
Quinn got a beating from Granny Sue—apparently, calling her ‘eldest’ stung, so she grabbed his ear and walloped him.
Deaf and Apothecary laughed about it for a long time.
But when Quinn Shepherd left, Granny Sue's eyes were red. She watched the Heavenly Dragon Imperial Palanquin roll out of sight, and stood there a long while before returning to Heavenly Saint Academy.
After the Heavenly Dragon Imperial Palanquin reached Goldenridge City, Quinn couldn't find Emperor Evan or the Imperial Preceptor White Jasper—he had no idea where they'd gone, so he hurried on to the capital.
Upon arrival, he went straight to see Village Chief; Mute Smith and Grandpa Blind were waiting at the Imperial Academy. Village Chief had threatened to scold him, but forgot all about it once Quinn started recounting his adventures in Heavenly Court, sighing in amazement.
“The Pioneer Emperor has already been here?”
Quinn was surprised. “I didn't meet him on the road. Where is he now?”
“That I don't know. The Pioneer Emperor taught me Sword Twenty—probably as thanks for learning Sword Fifteen to Nineteen from Everpeace.”
Village Chief was thrilled. “Meeting the pinnacle of swordsmanship has been my lifelong wish, and now it's fulfilled! Quinn, I'll teach you Sword Twenty—stay in the capital a few more days.”
Quinn hesitated, then nodded. “Dragon-Qilin, take the God-King to my manor for a few days. Dutian can come too.”
Dragon-Qilin led everyone to Quinn's Everpeace Capital residence, where a magnificent Origin-Root Tree grew—lush and radiant, its rays cascading down to shield the city, making it the most spectacular sight in the capital.