Chapter 21 The Thirst for Knowledge
That night, Xu Qing had a dream.
This was the first time in over six years that he had lived in such a luxurious house, the first time he had not felt the cold outside, and at the same time, it was a rare night of dreams.
In his dream, the world was not cruel, the sky had no deities, his parents were by his side, and he even had an elder brother.
And he went to school carefree with a group of playmates. After school, he returned to his warm home, had a hot dinner with his family and slept soundly.
It's just that the appearance of the relatives in the dream is somewhat vague.
He really wanted to see clearly, but there was always a cloud of mist hanging over him. It wasn't until dawn that Xu Qing, lying in bed, opened his eyes.
He looked at the roof, calmed down for a moment, as if he had completely woken up from a dream, and silently looked around...
In the room with grayish-black bricks and tiles, there were not only tables, chairs and a bed, but also a bathroom. The floor was still warm, a remnant of the heat from the stove last night.
On the ground, there is a cushion made of straw MATS, and beside it, there is an empty bookshelf.
It seemed simple, but in Xu Qing's heart, it was already very luxurious.
Xu Qing took a deep breath and walked towards the washroom. He carefully reached out his hand and placed it in the water. Watching his dirty hand gradually fade, he quickly lifted it up.
He lowered his head and gazed for a moment, wiped his body and dirtied it again. Then he looked up at himself in the mirror.
A loose fur coat, black but messy hair, a small face full of dirt, and those clear eyes.
Just as he was watching, as Xu Qing turned around and looked out of the window, the clarity in his eyes was replaced by coldness.
Outside the window, the wind and snow have stopped. The first sun is rising, and the sunlight is falling. This last snowfall of winter is gradually disappearing from the ground.
On the distant trees, as the snow marks melt, a green bud is blooming, as if telling everyone that spring... It has truly arrived.
Xu Qing walked out of the room and, as usual, glanced at Captain Lei's house. In the courtyard, there were more than ten wild dogs. They didn't even raise their heads, but just swept their tails on the ground as a greeting.
Something should be done. Xu Qing muttered to himself in his heart, a trace of determination showing in his eyes.
So he pushed open the courtyard gate and walked out. His target was very clear: it was the tent where the motorcade doctor was.
In the early morning, there weren't many scavengers in the camp.
As Xu Qing approached the convoy, the guards there all cast their gazes over him, and Xu Qing gradually heard the faint sound of reading coming from the doctor's tent.
After a moment's hesitation, Xu Qing stood silently outside the tent, waiting quietly.
The guards of the convoy around had a scrutinical look in their eyes. After observing for a while, most of them withdrew, but there were still a few who kept an eye on him.
Xu Qing didn't pay much attention to this, because as the sound of reading from inside the tent came out, gradually he became more and more absorbed in listening. At the same time, he also found that inside the tent, it was not just the sound of reading, but also included assessment.
"Jinniu Grass, also known as three-leaf pearl or Dispelling Cold grass, is the whole plant of the single-spike water centipede of the Cyperaceae family. It is a perennial herb that grows in the shade of forests on hillsides and in damp areas of the open fields. It is distributed in the southern parts of the southern Phoenix, Lingyou and Guangling States. It has the functions of promoting lung function and relieving cough, clearing heat and detoxifying, dispersing blood stasis and reducing swelling. It is highly effective in treating snakebites and injuries from falls and blows. Combined with..." "
The girl's voice, originally brimming with confidence, began to hesitate as she spoke.
What to cooperate with? Inside the tent, Master Bai's stern words seemed to carry an air of sternness.
"Combined with the spark of the rhinoceros, it is refined into medicine, borrowing Yang to transform Yin, and can form a single drop of the detoxifying liquid, which is one of the basic materials of the Great Transformation Pill." " The girl seemed a little scared and spoke much faster. After saying that, she let out a long sigh of relief.
Xu Qing was outside the tent, listening to these words and becoming even more serious.
"White Back Root, also known as... well, it is the root of the Euphorbiaceae plant, the white sorbus. It is slightly astringent and bitter. Its origin... is..." Then came the young man. As he spoke, he began to hesitate and stopped directly towards the end, clearly having forgotten.
Inside the tent, the boy sitting with the girl was now very nervous and anxious, but he just couldn't remember and looked at the girl for help.
The girl beside him clearly knew the answer, but just wouldn't remind him, leaving the boy with a sad face in the end.
At this moment, Master Bai in front of them turned his head to look outside the tent, and the guards beside them immediately gave instructions.
Master Bai thought for a moment, shook his head slightly, and then snorted coldly at the stammering young man.
"I will recite the Sutra of Plants and Trees ten times tonight!"
This time the young man was really about to cry, but he didn't dare to retort. He could only lower his head and wail in silence.
After evaluating the two apprentices, Master Bai calmly spoke and began today's lesson. His voice was a little louder and much clearer than usual.
The young man didn't notice, but the girl was meticulous and somewhat puzzled. She blinked her eyes and glanced outside the tent. Following her gaze, she could see a thin figure on the tent bathed in sunlight.
Outside the tent, Xu Qing listened even more attentively. Every word and every sentence that Master Bai said was firmly engraved in his heart, fearing to forget even the slightest bit, because knowledge was extremely precious and longed for to him.
Time passed slowly like this. On this day, Master Bai's lecture lasted nearly twice as long as before. It was not until the sun was high in the sky and scavengers began to wait outside the tent for medical treatment that Master Bai ended his lecture. His hoarse voice came out.
"Come in, young man outside."
Xu Qing gave a jolt and woke up from lingering satisfaction. He took a deep breath, carefully opening the tent door with a rather guilty heart. After walking in, he stood silently by the side, feeling rather uneasy.
Originally, he wouldn't have acted like this, but today he came for consultation and had been eavesdropping outside for a long time. The latter kind of behavior is very annoying in the slums.
As if sensing the young man's nervousness, Master Bai's voice slowed down and he spoke indifferently.
What's up?
As his words spread, the girl beside him curiously sized up Xu Qing.
She had some impression of the child in front of her. She remembered that a few days ago, he had come to see a doctor carrying an old man on his back.
"I have met Master Bai." Xu Qing lowered his head and, imitating the way Captain Lei had done before, bowed deeply to Master Bai.
Then, in a moment of hesitation, he said that he wanted to consult about the Tianming flower.
Having said that, Xu Qing took out the white pill from the leather bag and placed it in front of Master Bai.
The normal consultation fee was one white pill, but Xu Qing felt that since she had heard the other party's lecture, one white pill was not enough, and even if it was, it was still a bit short.
So he took out another ten spirit coins and placed them together with the white pills.
After doing all these, he finally settled down in his heart.
Master Bai gave Xu Qing a deep look and slowly spoke to the girl beside him.
"Tingyu, you answer."
The girl straightened her body, her expression serious, and spoke in a crisp voice.
"Heavenly Life Flower, also known as Life-prolonging Flame or Divine Grass, is a variant of the plant Compound Wood of the Theaceae family. According to records, there are 73 types of this variant, but only the first one can be used as medicine and can grow in any area within the restricted zone without any pattern and is extremely rare." "
"The skill can regenerate a severed limb, reignite a suspended life, and treat all diseases except injuries to the soul." " Saying that, the girl quickly picked up the book beside her, turned a few pages and revealed a page with a picture on it.
It looks like this.
The pattern depicts a plant that doesn't look particularly remarkable, except for the serrations along the edges of its leaves, which are somewhat distinct. Additionally, there is a strange symbol formed by a silk thread in the middle.
Xu Qing took a close look and, after keeping it in mind, bowed deeply to Master Bai and the girl, then turned and was about to leave.
Before leaving, a faint voice of Master Bai came from behind him.
This grass is hard to come by. It is often accompanied by powerful strange beasts. You should take care of yourself.
Upon hearing this, Xu Qing bowed again. After leaving the tent, he galloped rapidly within the camp.
After returning to his residence at the fastest speed, he immediately took out a bamboo strip from his leather bag and carved the destiny flower and totem described by the girl on it with an iron stick.
Then I thought for a moment and engraved down everything I had heard today as well.
Finally, looking at the bamboo strips densely filled with countless small characters, he felt very content and carefully stored them away as if they were treasures.
It would be great if I could still listen. Xu Qing murmured to himself and began to think about how he could continue listening. After a while, he gathered his mind and started to practice.
That night, Xu Qing waited for Lei Team to return from his trip and informed them that he was going to the restricted area. Lei Team, upon hearing this, hesitated to speak.
But in the end, he still nodded and shared his experience with Xu Qing.
Just like the elders at home watching their children go out, Captain Lei explained it in great detail.
It was not until nearly dawn that he finished speaking. After Xu Qing wrote everything down, Captain Lei gave him another leather bag, which contained various medicinal powders left by Luan Ya.
After understanding the specific function, Xu Qing took his leave from the camp at the moment the morning arrived. While speeding through the wilderness, it wasn't long before he reached the outside of the restricted area.
The moment he stepped into the boundary, the warmth of the outside sunlight was cut off, and a sense of coldness seeped into his entire body. Xu Qing narrowed his eyes, with a vigilant look, and his body turned into a remnant mark as he rushed straight towards the jungle.
With a few rises and falls, it vanished without a trace.
The second time Xu Qing stepped into the restricted jungle, his familiarity with this place was no longer the same as before.
The more so, the more cautious he became. While leaping forward, he also paid attention to the flowers and grass around him. Soon, he reached the place where the mud had been. Imitating Luanya's previous actions, he scooped up the mud and smeaded it on his body, then continued on his way.
Time passed, and soon the whole day went by.
This time on the trip, Xu Qing didn't encounter any fog. As for the powerful strange beasts, although they were there, they were all avoided as much as possible under Xu Qing's caution.
On the way, he also paid attention to the flowers and plants, looking for the destiny flower.
At this moment, he had arrived at the place where he had encountered the black-scaled Wolf. Looking around, he could still barely make out the arrangement at that time, but the ground was littered with Wolf corpses, most of which had now turned into rotten bones.
After carefully observing the decay on these corpses and finding no signs of biting but rather natural decay, Xu Qing heaved a sigh of relief in his heart.
This indicates that there is a high probability that no strange beasts have arrived here.
So he found an area nearby, planning to spend the night and continue his journey after dawn.
Soon, as night fell, the jungle was pitch-dark. Xu Qing hid in a tree crevice, looking in the direction of the Clover Canyon. Further away in that direction was a group of temples.
This time when he entered the restricted area, apart from looking for the Destiny Flower, he also had another idea, which was to find a stone to remove the scar for the little girl.
"Go and have a look." Xu Qing murmured.