Tumor Sword Immortal

Chapter 219 The Origin of the Plague
About an incense stick's time has passed since Han Youzhi was kicked out by Pei Xia.

Pei Xia pushed open the lobby door and ran across the street in front of everyone, panting heavily.

Song Huan frowned and peered into the house. She saw that the villagers were still lying on their mats, none of them with any trace of vomit beside them, but…

Her clothes seem a bit more disheveled?

In a corner of the room, Song Huan saw the wooden bucket that Pei Xia had been carrying earlier; it was now empty, indicating that the medicine had indeed been given out.

How did this kid do it?
With a hint of curiosity, she glanced at Pei Xia suspiciously, then quickly went inside. Enduring the stench, she walked over to a villager and took his pulse to check him.

Upon hearing this, Song Huan no longer cared about the stench; her almond-shaped eyes widened in disbelief.

Tormented by the poison, the body's vitality, which had been on the verge of collapse, has now not only been fully restored but is even extremely strong.

The plague that had baffled both the sects and the imperial court had been almost completely eradicated; even searching with spiritual power could only find a few decaying remnants.

Even if the physical limits of mortals are not high, such efficacy is probably better than even rare-grade pills.
Turning her head once more to look at the young man outside, who was leaning against the wall and panting, Song Huan's expression had completely changed.

The antidote recipe is one thing, the world is full of wonders, but looking back at this young man's previous persistence and decisiveness, it seems especially valuable.

No, no, Song Huan, you must remain calm and collected. The one who can make the medicine effective is not necessarily an upright hero with a secret formula; he could also be a hidden evil cultivator who poisoned the medicine.

As the villagers' complexions gradually regained their color, Song Huan waved his hand, and his spiritual energy created a strong wind that blew open all the doors and windows of the hall, dispelling the lingering stench in the room.

Stepping out of the house, she instructed her two disciples to take care of the patient first. Then, she walked up to Pei Xia and solemnly performed a traditional martial arts salute: "Song Huan of the Golden Bell Sect thanks you for your generous act, young hero."

Pei Xia wasn't being rude, but after being scorned for half an hour, she really needed to catch her breath. She could only nod at her while leaning against the wall, unable to say a word.

It has to be Dugu Nong! If this guy really can't escape Wang Wanfeng in the future, he'll be more than capable of threatening the court as a "stinky deterrent" weapon in the Northern Barbarian Great Ling! More than capable!
Pei Xia was catching her breath when a disciple suddenly shouted from inside the house, "Uncle-Master, something's wrong!"

Pei Xia and Song Huan exchanged a glance and immediately rushed back into the house.

The closest one was the villager Song Huan had just examined; his complexion was gradually becoming rosy, indicating that he was improving.

But just then, he frowned slightly, as if some kind of discomfort was beginning to creep in again.

When Song Huan took the pulse, he found that the decaying plague had indeed been suppressed by the powerful medicine, but even if only a very small part remained, it still stubbornly lingered in the villager's body. Moreover, it seemed that the plague was operating in a certain way.

Pei Xia's feelings were more profound.

He clearly remembered that Dugu Nong had told him that this celestial elixir could heal bones, restore flesh, improve cultivation, and prolong life. Although it was not a panacea, it could be used to cure mortals with such power that it could make bricks fly.

Sure enough, this plague must have originated from a cultivator, and its subtle operating method seemed to achieve a special effect through some kind of fixed structure... It resembled magic, but it wasn't.

Like magic, it has mysterious effects, but it is also very crude and lacks a regular structure.

Pei Xia's first thought was that it was actually the fish-man inside the belly of the sea god.

Before the cavern in the Brain Mountain, Sai Jiu had told him that the Brain Mountain fishmen, because they had been bathed in spiritual energy for many years, not only had superior physical qualities, but some fishmen had even gained the means to perform witchcraft.

This unexpected event made everyone's relaxed mood tense up again.

However, seeing Pei Xia's equally thoughtful expression, Song Huan's trust in him increased even more.

Being cured is more reassuring than not being completely cured.

“As expected, we still need to find that evil cultivator who is causing trouble in the shadows,” Song Huan pressed his sword and looked at the others in the room. “My two junior disciples, you should…” His gaze turned to Pei Xia, and he realized that in all the rush, he hadn’t even exchanged names with her yet.

Pei Xia clasped her hands in a fist salute: "Pei Xia."

The name was spoken with little difference in dialect, and Han Youzhi heard it clearly. She looked at him with some surprise and whispered, "Didn't you say you knew more people in Dongzhou? Why are you using your real name instead?"

Pei Xia glanced at her sideways: "Because I used a pseudonym back then, you idiot."

The two were whispering to each other, and it was Song Huan's turn to not understand.

However, she didn't mind and continued, "My two junior disciples, you and Young Master Pei's companions stay here to look after the villagers. Young Master Pei and I will search around the village to see if we can find any trace of that demon."

"Yes, uncle!"

They were very cautious, even keeping Pei Xia by their side. After all, this man had the cultivation of a cauldron refiner, and if anything happened, their two junior disciples wouldn't be able to control him. Keeping him by their side was like having a hostage, in case his beautiful wife had other tricks up her sleeve.

Pei Xia readily agreed, and even pretended to instruct Han Youzhi to keep an eye on Lu Li.

His straightforward attitude made Song Huan trust him a little more.

Zhaojia is not large, but it is located in the mountains and forests, with complex terrain and occasional dangerous places. You can also see wooden signs erected in the village as a warning.

Because of the deep mountains and dense forests, although Song Huan had the cultivation level of a master, his movement techniques were not as exquisite as Pei Xia's, so he could not use them freely, which made it easier for Pei Xia to keep up with him.

The two circled the village twice, expanding their search area, but still found nothing.

At a pond outside the village, Song Huan suggested taking a break for a while.

Although the Kaifu Realm cultivator possesses a spiritual abode, traversing mountains and forests still relies more on physical strength. After several hours of continuous activity, Song Huan's forehead was covered in fine sweat.

Turning his head, he saw that Pei Xia's breathing was even, and her clothes were not disheveled. She seemed more composed than he was.

Pei Xia just smiled and said, "I grew up in the forest, so I'm quite familiar with this kind of environment."

Song Huan didn't delve into the matter further, nodded slightly, and turned to look at the pond in front of her.

A path leads from the pond to the village, and it is probably the main source of water besides the well.

However, due to the villagers contracting the disease, it seems to have been somewhat abandoned. The water is brownish-green and turbid, with unknown algae floating on the surface, and a lot of fallen leaves piled up on the side.

Song Huan remarked with emotion, "The small pond in the woods is indeed a beautiful sight."

But the more Pei Xia looked, the more she felt something was wrong: "Senior Song, aren't the ponds in our Little Chen Kingdom being abandoned a little too quickly?"

How long had it been since the government announced Zhao Jia's infection, and Song Huan was ordered to arrive in the village?

Moreover, the villagers did not completely lose their mobility on the first day of contracting the disease.

If you calculate it that way, it would only have taken ten days at most for this pond to become so abandoned.
Before Pei Xia and Song Huan could finish their explanation, the murky water surface began to ripple without any wind, and the thick seaweed started to roll.

Then, a bright red strip of meat burst out of the pond like a sword, stabbing straight at Song Huan!

(End of this chapter)