The Northern Song Dynasty returned south, seeking the truth of the Dao.

Although Wang Zhenhuan was startled, he remained calm. He did not turn around, but instead glanced down at his chest. Beneath the gray collar, the jade pendant was emitting a faint white light.

He immediately understood; it seemed the woman making the voice behind him was not a "person." Since she wasn't a "person," ordinary methods would certainly be useless against her.

Thinking this, Wang Huanzhen gripped his curved sword and simply turned around. He saw a beautiful woman in her thirties or forties, covering her mouth and staring at him with a dazed smile. Seeing him turn around, she gasped in surprise.

"Oh, young man, you are so handsome. I wonder if you are worthy of marriage? In these chaotic times, why don't you come with me to return to the mountains and live a carefree life?"

Wang Zhenhuan was nervous, but his expression remained unchanged. He looked at the beautiful woman and said with a smile, "So, Madam also knows that this is a chaotic world? Dynasties are changing, and demons are rampant. Madam, you are just a woman, you must be careful."

The beautiful woman was startled when Wang Zhenhuan revealed her identity. However, after examining him more closely, she found no trace of spiritual energy emanating from him.

But from this distance, before she even cast a spell, anyone who could see through her identity was definitely stronger than her. Her expression kept changing, her heart wavering. If she left now, she would be unwilling.

In this desolate wilderness, it's rare to encounter a healthy young man brimming with yang energy. She herself was born of yin energy, without a physical form. She maintained her shape by absorbing the yang energy of mortals.

Seeing that Wang Zhenhuan was looking at her without saying a word, she immediately came up with a plan to test him. She looked up and smiled, a little embarrassed, and said to Wang Zhenhuan.

"That's true. It's getting late. Since you... cough... brother, you don't seem inclined to return with me, then I'll take my leave first?"

Having said that, he bowed respectfully to Wang Zhenhuan, looking at him as he slowly backed away. Wang Zhenhuan, seeing this, was secretly delighted. He thought he had intimidated the monster.

Watching the beautiful woman gradually disappear into the woods, he breathed a sigh of relief. Turning around to dig out the tree root, he suddenly felt a cool breeze blow against his back, sending a chill down his spine.

The beautiful woman's voice rang in his ears again: "Young man, it's getting late. The way down the mountain is difficult. I grew up in the mountains and know the way well. Why don't I escort you?"

Wang Zhenhuan frowned, surprised that this demon was so persistent. He absolutely could not show weakness now, otherwise, if she saw through him and realized he was just an ordinary person, he would surely die.

So he planted his scimitar directly into the ground and said coldly, "You've come time and time again, yet you still won't leave. Do you think I, your Taoist priest, am good-tempered?" After saying that, he reached into his robes and groped for something.

Upon hearing Wang Zhenhuan directly point out her true form, the woman panicked and immediately considered retreating. She quickly fled from behind Wang Zhenhuan, offering a sheepish explanation as she did so.

"So you're a Taoist priest. I was impetuous and offended you. Please forgive me. I'll leave now..."

As he spoke, his voice gradually faded into the distance. Wang Zhenhuan was now bowing his head, clutching the wooden plaque of the Shangqing Dharma Assembly tightly in his hand. The characters on the plaque were all written with cinnabar.

He knew that cinnabar had the power to ward off evil spirits. This was the only way he could think of to subdue demons. He stood there for about fifteen minutes, and the cold feeling behind him had long since disappeared.

He turned around and looked at the empty forest. He squinted and said nothing. After digging out the huge tree root, he swayed and walked down the mountain.

In the nearby woods, the beautiful woman watched Wang Huanzhen descend the mountain with a solemn expression. She spat lightly and said, "What bad luck! It's rare to encounter someone with such abundant yang energy, and a Taoist priest at that!"

Having said that, it transformed into a gust of cold wind and disappeared into the forest. Wang Zhen's entire back was soaked with sweat, but he didn't know that the demon had already left, so he tried his best to act natural the whole way.

He breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the collapsed building. He hurried back to his room at the inn, where the family had already lit a fire. Seeing Wang Zhenhuan carrying a large tree root back, they all looked at him with suspicion.

The tree root was over four feet long, thick and sturdy. He saw the confusion in their eyes, but didn't explain. He simply put the root down and chopped it into several pieces with his machete.

He placed it next to the fire to roast, but the fire wasn't big, and it was burning horse dung. So after roasting it for a long time, the cut tree root didn't change color. Wang Zhen thought about it for a while.

They took the roots out from beside the fire, then dug a hole next to the fire with a machete. After putting the roots in, they covered the hole with the soil from under the embers, and then moved the fire onto the soil.

The family watched Wang Zhenhuan fiddling around, wanting to help but unable to get a hand in. Half an hour passed like this, during which Wang Zhenhuan didn't add any more horse manure to the fire.

After the flames died down, leaving only embers, Wang Zhenhuan used a stick to move the embers aside, then dug up the soil and unearthed the tree roots buried inside.

The tree roots were steaming hot, their outer skin charred black, but once peeled back, white flesh resembling *Ganoderma lucidum* was revealed. This steaming white flesh looked incredibly tempting.

The boy in the family couldn't help but swallow hard after seeing it. Wang Zhenhuan laughed and handed him the tree root. He kept a palm-sized piece for himself and gave the rest to them.

The tree root was enormous; each person received more than half a pound. The old man, holding the root, burst into tears. He rose to kneel before Wang Zhenhuan, but Wang Zhenhuan, seeing this, quickly stepped forward to help him up.

Making an elder kneel is said to shorten one's lifespan. After finally calming the family down, he peeled the tree root in his hand, gestured to them, and then took a bite himself.

This stuff is actually none other than kudzu root, which was called Xiabu or Gecao in ancient times. It is a traditional Chinese medicine that has been widely used since the Han Dynasty.

In the Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica, kudzu root is described as a medicine used to treat headaches, eliminate hunger, and aid digestion. These people, however, were seeing this for the first time.

The steamed kudzu root not only has a fragrant and enticing aroma, but it also has a soft and powdery texture, similar to kudzu root. After a careful initial taste, I started eating it in big mouthfuls.

Seeing the group wolfing down their food, Wang Zhen felt quite satisfied. Helping others was not just empty words. Just as he was watching them eat, he suddenly noticed that the boy was also staring at him.

When the boy saw Wang Huanzhen looking at him, his face turned red, and he quickly lowered his head...