Chapter 17: Knowledge Thirst

That night, Xu Qing had a dream.

This was the first time in over six years he had lived in such a luxurious house, the first time he hadn't felt the cold outside, and one of the rare nights he had dreamed at all.

In his dream, the world wasn't cruel, the sky didn't bear the mutilated face of a deity, and his parents were by his side, along with even an older brother.

He went to school carefree with a group of playmates, returned to a warm home after school, ate a hot dinner with his family, and slept soundly.

Only the faces of his family in the dream were somewhat blurry.

He longed to see them clearly, but a haze always enveloped them, until morning arrived and Xu Qing, lying on his bed, opened his eyes.

He gazed at the ceiling, taking a moment to fully awaken from the dream, silently observing his surroundings...

Inside the grey and black brick-tiled room, there were not only a table, chairs, and a bed, but also a washroom. The floor still radiated residual warmth from last night's stove.

On the floor, there was a straw mat cushion, and next to it, an empty bookshelf.

It seemed simple, but in Xu Qing's mind, it was already very luxurious.

Xu Qing took a deep breath and walked to the washroom. He carefully put his hand into the water, watched as the grime slowly dissolved, and then quickly pulled it out.

He looked down at it for a moment, wiped it on his clothes, then deliberately dirtied it again before looking up at himself in the mirror.

He wore a loose fur coat, had messy black hair, a small face covered in dirt, and a pair of clear, innocent eyes.

However, as he continued to look, and then turned to gaze out the window, the innocence in his eyes was replaced by indifference.

Outside the window, the wind and snow had ceased. The first rays of morning sun shone down, and the last snow of winter slowly disappeared from the ground.

On the distant trees, as the traces of snow melted, a hint of green budded, as if announcing to everyone that spring had truly arrived.

Xu Qing walked out of his room, glancing habitually at Captain Lei's dwelling. The more than ten wild dogs in the yard didn't even lift their heads, merely sweeping their tails across the ground as a greeting.

"I should do something," Xu Qing murmured to himself, a flicker of determination in his eyes.

He then pushed open the courtyard gate and stepped out, his destination clear: the tent of the caravan's healer.

In the early morning, there weren't many scavengers in the camp.

As Xu Qing approached the caravan, the guards there glanced at him. Xu Qing gradually heard faint sounds of reading coming from the healer's tent.

Hesitating for a moment, Xu Qing stood silently outside the tent, waiting quietly.

The caravan guards around him observed him with scrutiny; most looked away after a moment, but a few continued to watch him.

Xu Qing paid them no mind, because as the reading from the tent continued, he slowly became engrossed. He also realized that it wasn't just simple reading inside the tent, but also an assessment.

"Golden Button Grass, also known as Three-Leaf Pearl or Cold-Dispelling Grass, is the whole plant of the perennial herb Single-Spike Water Centipede from the sedge family. It grows on hillsides, in forests, and in damp open fields, distributed in Lingyou and Guangling prefectures in southern Nanhuang. Its efficacy includes promoting lung health and relieving coughs, clearing heat and detoxifying, dispelling blood stasis and reducing swelling. It has remarkable effects on snake bites and bruises, and when combined with..."

The girl's voice, initially full of confidence, began to falter as she spoke.

"Combined with what?" Master Bai's authoritative voice from inside the tent seemed to carry a hint of sternness.

"Combined with Rhino Fire Flower in medicinal refining, using Yang to transform Yin, it can form a drop of complete anti-toxin solution, and is one of the basic materials for the Grand Evolvement Pill." The girl seemed a little frightened, her speaking speed picking up significantly. She let out a long breath after finishing.

Outside the tent, Xu Qing listened to all this with increasing concentration.

"White-Backed Root, also known as... uh, is the root of the White Catalpa plant from the spurge family. It's slightly astringent and bitter, grows in... effective for treating the five internal organs..." Next was the boy, who hesitated as he spoke, then stopped altogether, having clearly forgotten.

Inside the tent, the boy sitting with the girl was now very nervous and anxious, but he couldn't recall the answer, looking at the girl for help.

The girl beside him clearly knew the answer, but she didn't offer a hint, leaving the boy with a tear-streaked face.

Meanwhile, Master Bai, who was in front of them, turned his head to glance outside the tent. A guard nearby immediately looked at him inquiringly.

Master Bai thought for a moment, shook his head slightly, then let out a cold snort at the stammering boy.

"Tonight, transcribe the Herbology Scripture ten times from memory!"

The boy truly looked like he was about to cry this time, but he dared not refute, so he just hung his head, moaning silently.

After testing his two apprentices, Master Bai calmly began to lecture on the day's lesson, his voice a little louder and much clearer than usual.

The boy didn't notice, but the girl, being more observant, looked perplexed. She blinked and glanced outside the tent. Following her gaze, one could see a small, thin figure silhouetted against the tent fabric by the sunlight.

Xu Qing, outside the tent, listened with even greater diligence. Every word and every sentence Master Bai uttered was firmly committed to his memory, as he feared forgetting even a bit. For him, knowledge was extremely precious and desired.

Time slowly passed, and Master Bai's lecture that day lasted nearly twice as long as usual. It wasn't until the sun was high and scavengers began waiting outside the tent for medical attention that Master Bai concluded his teaching, his hoarse voice emerging.

"Young man outside, come in."

Xu Qing jolted, awakening from his lingering absorption. He took a deep breath, feeling somewhat guilty, and cautiously opened the tent flap. After stepping inside, he stood quietly to the side, a little flustered.

He wouldn't normally be like this, but he had come today for a consultation and had also been secretly listening outside for a long time. Such behavior was generally frowned upon in the slum.

As if sensing the boy's nervousness, Master Bai softened his voice and spoke calmly.

"What is it?"

As he spoke, the girl beside him looked at Xu Qing with curiosity.

She had some impression of the child before her, remembering that a few days earlier he had carried an old man there for treatment.

"Greetings, Master Bai," Xu Qing said, bowing deeply to Master Bai, imitating Captain Lei's previous manner.

Then, with some hesitation, he stated his desire to inquire about the Fate Flower.

After speaking, Xu Qing took out five white pills from his leather pouch and placed them in front of Master Bai.

The normal consultation fee was one white pill, but Xu Qing felt that since he had listened to the master's lecture, one pill wouldn't be enough; even five might be too little.

So he took out ten spirit coins and placed them alongside the white pills.

Only after doing this did he feel a sense of calm.

Master Bai gave Xu Qing a profound look, then slowly spoke to the girl beside him.

"Tingyu, you answer."

The girl straightened her posture, her expression serious, and spoke clearly.

"The Fate Flower, also known as Life-Prolonging Flame or Divine Spirit Grass, is a variant of the Compound Wood plant from the Divine Nature family. Records indicate seventy-three such variants, but only the first type can be used medicinally. It can grow in any area within the forbidden zone, without a specific pattern, and its numbers are rare."

"Its efficacy includes limb regeneration, rekindling life, and healing all ailments except injuries to the divine soul." As she spoke, the girl quickly picked up a book nearby, flipped a few pages, and revealed a page with an illustration.

"This is what it looks like."

The illustration showed a seemingly ordinary flower and plant, distinguished only by the somewhat prominent serrations on the edges of its leaves, and a strange symbol formed by a thread-like pattern in the center.

Xu Qing observed it carefully, committing it to memory. He then bowed deeply to Master Bai and the girl, and turned to leave.

Before he left, Master Bai's faint voice came from behind him.

"This plant is found by chance, not sought after, and is often accompanied by powerful mutated beasts. Be careful."

Hearing this, Xu Qing bowed again. After leaving the tent, he hurried swiftly through the camp.

Returning to his dwelling as quickly as possible, he immediately took out a bamboo slip from his leather pouch and used an iron stylus to engrave the Fate Flower and the symbol described by the girl onto it.

Then, after some thought, he also engraved all the information he had heard that day.

Finally, he looked at the bamboo slip covered with countless tiny characters. He felt deeply satisfied, and carefully put it away as if it were a treasure.

"If only I could go listen again," Xu Qing murmured, beginning to ponder how he might continue to do so. After a while, he put those thoughts aside and began to cultivate.

That night, Xu Qing waited for Captain Lei to return from his outing. He informed Captain Lei that he intended to go to the forbidden zone. Upon hearing this, Captain Lei seemed to hesitate, as if he wanted to speak but stopped himself.

Ultimately, he nodded and shared his own experiences with Xu Qing.

Captain Lei spoke in great detail, much like an elder in a family watching their child depart.

He didn't finish until almost dawn. After Xu Qing had noted everything down, Captain Lei gave him another leather pouch containing various medicinal powders left by Luan Ya.

After understanding their specific uses, Xu Qing bade farewell and left the camp as dawn broke. Speeding across the wilderness, it wasn't long before he reached the edge of the forbidden zone.

The moment he stepped past the boundary, the warmth of the outside sunlight was cut off, and a chilling cold seeped into his entire body. Xu Qing narrowed his eyes, filled with vigilance, and his body became a blur as he shot straight into the jungle.

In a few bounds, he vanished without a trace.

This was Xu Qing's second time entering the forbidden zone jungle, and his familiarity with the area was different from before.

Yet, the more familiar he became, the more cautious he grew. As he leaped forward, he also paid attention to the surrounding plants. He soon reached the place where the mud pool was, and imitating Luan Ya's past actions, he scooped up the mud, smeared it on his body, and continued onward.

Time passed, and soon an entire day had gone by.

On this trip, Xu Qing didn't encounter any mist. As for powerful mutated beasts, while they were present, Xu Qing's caution allowed him to avoid them as much as possible.

Along the way, he also paid attention to plants, searching for the Fate Flower.

At this moment, he arrived at the spot where he had previously encountered the black-scaled wolves. Looking around, he could still faintly discern the former layout, but most of the wolf carcasses littering the ground had now decomposed into rotten bones.

After carefully examining the decay on the remaining carcasses and finding no signs of tearing, only natural decomposition, Xu Qing felt a wave of relief.

This indicated that it was highly probable no other mutated beasts had come to this spot.

So he found an area nearby, intending to spend the night there and continue his journey after dawn.

Soon, as night descended, the jungle became completely dark. Xu Qing hid within a tree crevice, gazing towards the Seven-Leaf Grass Canyon. Further in that direction lay the temple cluster.

This time, in addition to searching for the Fate Flower, he had another idea for entering the forbidden zone: to find a scar-removing stone for the little girl.

"I'll go see," Xu Qing murmured.