A song from Chengdu revived a closed-down pub.

Su Fan ignored the voices from the outside world.

After getting off the plane, he went straight to Longhu Mountain.

As soon as they entered the mountain gate, they saw Huixin rushing out of the courtyard, calling out, "Junior Uncle, Junior Uncle!"

Su Fan reached out and patted his head, saying, "Have you been practicing diligently lately?"

Huixin stood up straight and patted her chest: "I'm very serious. Besides practicing my skills, I also help my master and uncles pick up their packages. They've had a lot of packages lately, so I have to run down the mountain every day."

Su Fan laughed: "You're really amazing, I'll give you a bonus later."

Huixin suddenly became shy, twisting her hands together, and her voice softened: "Junior Uncle... can I not eat the chicken leg?"

Su Fan was taken aback: "Why? Don't you love chicken legs the most?"

Huixin pouted: "I ate too many chicken legs, now even my burps smell like chicken poop."

Su Fan couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Just how many chicken legs did you eat?"

At this moment, Senior Brother Zhao Xiyan came over and said, "I originally promised him that he could eat two chicken legs a week, but he insisted on saving them up, saying that he wanted to eat his fill at once, and this is how it ended up."

Looking at Huixin's little face, Su Fan asked, "So, are you going to give up chicken legs from now on?"

Huixin shook her head and said seriously, "No need to quit. I've switched to eating mutton for a while now. Once my mouth is full of the smell of mutton, chicken legs will taste better."

Su Fan gave a thumbs up: "Okay, you win. I think you can just eat vegetables directly. After eating too many vegetables, your breath will taste like birds."

Huixin blinked, her face full of confusion: "Why does my breath taste like bird's breath after eating vegetables?"

Su Fan said in a serious tone, "Because if you eat vegetables all the time, your mouth will become so bland."

Zhao Xiyan, standing to the side, was speechless: "Alright, stop teasing him. Go see your master."

Su Fan left, leaving Hui Xin standing there alone, frowning and muttering to herself, "How about I don't eat meat for a week and try what bird tastes like?"

Su Fan entered his master's room and bowed respectfully.

Then he took out the wrapped century-old ginseng from his bag and handed it over: "Master, look at this, can it be used to make medicinal wine?"

Zhang Lingyuan took the ginseng, examined it for a while, and said, "This stuff isn't common. It's a bit of a waste for you to use it to make wine."

Su Fan then took out the ginseng root from the forest: "This one will be used to make wine, and the other one is for you."

Zhang Lingyuan looked at the ginseng root and nodded: "This can be used to make medicinal wine. I'll have your second senior brother get it for you later."

Then he handed the century-old ginseng back to Su Fan.

Su Fan didn't take it: "Master, you can keep this."

Zhang Lingyuan said, "You're really generous. Such good ginseng isn't something you can just buy with money. Tell me, how did you get it?"

So Su Fan recounted the whole story of how he and Hu Laowu exchanged songs for ginseng.

After listening, Zhang Lingyuan said, "Yes, you did the right thing. You didn't take it for nothing, so you haven't incurred any karmic debt."

Su Fan hurriedly asked, "Master, what do you mean?"

"This ginseng is like cause and effect. If you take it for free, or exchange it for something of unequal value, you will incur karmic debt."

Hearing his master say this, Su Fan suddenly realized why the old man looked disappointed when he offered to exchange a song for a trophy.

"Damn it, that guy set me up. Luckily, I don't have a habit of being greedy, otherwise I would have been tricked by him."

Zhang Lingyuan scoffed dismissively: "My disciple? He thinks he can outmaneuver him?"

Upon hearing this, Su Fan quickly asked, "Master, what will happen if I really take it for free?"

Zhang Lingyuan casually said, "What consequences could there be? If it's free, it's free."

Su Fan was stunned: "Didn't you say that we would incur karmic debts?"

Zhang Lingyuan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, "At worst, I'll just make a trip to the Northeast and settle things for you."

Su Fan pressed further, "Is this something that can be resolved so easily? What if Old Hu doesn't agree?"

Zhang Lingyuan put down his teacup and said calmly, "If he doesn't agree, I also know a little about kung fu."

Su Fan smiled and gave a thumbs up: "Master, you're amazing."

Zhang Lingyuan waved his hand: "Alright, go find your second senior brother and have him deal with this ginseng."

Su Fan said, "Alright, I'll give this ginseng root to my second senior brother, and I'll leave this one for you, Master."

Zhang Lingyuan said, "I only need two roots; you can give the rest to your second senior brother."

As he spoke, Zhang Lingyuan picked up the scissors and cut two tendrils off the century-old ginseng.

Then he handed the ginseng to Su Fan.

Su Fan didn't ask why; he knew that his master must have a reason for doing so.

He took the two ginseng roots and went to find his second senior brother, Xu Xingzhi.

When Xu Xingzhi saw the century-old ginseng, his eyes lit up with excitement: "Junior Brother, you managed to get your hands on this? You're amazing!"

So Su Fan recounted his story with Hu Laowu.

Upon hearing this, Xu Xingzhi's face darkened, and he snorted coldly, "That old fox still wants to make a move on you. When I get the chance, I'll teach him a lesson for you."

Su Fan quickly waved his hand: "Second Senior Brother, no need, no need. They at least gave me this ginseng."

Xu Xingzhi said matter-of-factly, "What do you mean he gave it to you? You exchanged it for a song! It was a fair trade, and neither of us owes the other anything."

"Alright, Second Brother, what you said makes a lot of sense."

Xu Xingzhi didn't continue the topic. He picked up the ginseng and examined it carefully, then asked, "Are you using this medicinal wine yourself, or is it for someone else?"

Su Fan said, "I wanted to give it to Aunt Liu..."

So, Su Fan told Liu Yi about her situation.

After listening, Xu Xingzhi nodded: "I understand. For Aunt Liu's condition, this wild ginseng is enough. That century-old ginseng is too strong; most people can't handle it."

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Second Senior Brother."

Xu Xingzhi asked, "So, what are you planning to do with this century-old ginseng?"

"I originally intended to offer this century-old ginseng to my master, but he only cut off two of its roots and gave the rest to me to give to you."

Xu Xingzhi looked at the ginseng and hesitated for a moment: "This is too precious."

Su Fan waved his hand: "We brothers don't need to talk about these things. Giving it to me is useless. Maybe I'll stew it as a radish someday."

Xu Xingzhi was amused by him and put away the ginseng: "Okay, then I'll take it and keep it here. You can come and get it anytime you need it in the future."

"Use it if you need to, don't save it for me. This thing can be used to its fullest potential when it's in your hands."

Xu Xingzhi patted him on the shoulder: "Thanks, junior brother."

"Alright, I'm going to find my fifth senior brother to choose an auspicious date."

……

Su Fan then went to see his fifth senior brother, Fan Xunsheng.

The so-called Five Arts of Xuanmen—mountain, medicine, fate, physiognomy, and divination—are also the directions of cultivation for Su Fan's five senior brothers.

Su Fan felt that these senior brothers each had their own strengths.

The fifth senior brother did a quick calculation and said, "Let's do it on the second day of the second lunar month, the day the dragon raises its head."

……