The Immortal of Plague begins by establishing the root of lung fire.

Song You clasped his hands together and pressed his back down: "Master took me in at the pharmacy, protecting me from the wind and rain. This is naturally a responsible act. I lost my parents when I was young, and Master treats me like a parent."

Song You mentally reviewed Jia Chunfang's behavior. The elders in this temple had suffered from the backlash of their illness for many years, and their mental state was no longer that of ordinary people. He had to follow the conversation to save his life.

The outer disciples around them all knelt on the bluestone slabs, their foreheads pressed against the ground, suppressing even their breathing to a minimum. The only sound in the inner hall was the gurgling of boiling water in the medicine furnace.

Jia Chunfang ignored Song You's flattery. His eyelids drooped, and the wrinkles on his face were squeezed together, revealing a sad expression. He took a couple of deep breaths: "But my master won't take responsibility."

Jia Chunfang continued talking to herself, her gaze not falling on anyone.

"Fifty years ago, Liu Xiang and I were in the same batch to plant our Dao roots. Out of hundreds of people, only the two of us survived. Later, we became disciples of the old man with consumption. The old man was biased and gave all the good things to Liu Xiang. I didn't complain. Liu Xiang was too thin back then, just skin and bones, and he would fall over if the wind blew him away. I was afraid that if he died, I would not have this junior brother, so I took good care of him."

Jia Chunfang raised her head, her cloudy eyes fixed on Song You, and gestured with her withered fingers in the air before continuing, "The first piece of flesh that Master took was the one I fed to Liu Xiang. At first, he refused to eat and kept vomiting, so I pinched his nose and forced it in. He didn't understand the benefits at all; he was too thin and needed to eat more."

Jia Chunfang's withered lips opened and closed, and her speech quickened.

"After swallowing it, he couldn't stop. He knelt on the ground and kowtowed, begging me to give him the rest. I felt sorry for my junior brother, so I gave it all to him. From then on, he ate more and more, and that's how he gained weight. Song You, tell me, haven't I, as his senior brother, taken good enough care of him?"

Song You's stomach acid was churning; this was beyond his imagination—his master had such a completely twisted side.

In his view, his master was jealous of his junior brother's favor, so he killed his master and fed his junior brother his master's flesh and blood, turning a weak person into a greedy mountain of flesh.

Jia Chunfang himself actually believed this without a doubt, immersed in his self-indulgent brotherly affection. The environment in this temple was already distorting human nature, and the master's mental state had completely collapsed.

In this way, the master was still highly praised. What about the other elders in the temple?

Song You remained expressionless and nodded in agreement: "Master's camaraderie with his fellow disciple Uncle is truly profound."

Jia Chunfang closed her eyes, a sob escaping her throat. The muscles around her eyes twitched, and she managed to squeeze out a few murky tears, which slid down her face and dripped onto the bluestone slab.

A thin layer of sweat broke out on Song You's back. The old monster had no intention of continuing to cause trouble, so he had passed this hurdle.

After crying a few times, Jia Chunfang opened his eyes, the sadness fading from his face, replaced by a lifeless expression. He strode towards Jiang Yangge, who lay slumped beside the table.

Jiang Yangge's eyes were tightly closed, his face was deathly pale, and he had fainted from the pain.

Song You quickly followed. Jiang Yangge was extremely familiar with the operation of the pharmacy and had just helped him. Song You squatted down and activated the external flame in his chest cavity. The flame gathered at his fingertips and landed on Jiang Yangge's left index finger.

A burning, stinging pain shot straight to his nerves. Jiang Yangge's body convulsed violently, and his eyes snapped open.

He reacted extremely quickly, and upon seeing Jia Chunfang in front of him, he turned over and knelt down on the ground.

"Disciple knows his mistake." Jiang Yangge kowtowed to the ground.

Jia Chunfang looked down at him: "So much money has been emptied from the accounts, why haven't you reported it?"

Jiang Yangge did not defend himself: "It is all my fault, and I am willing to accept the punishment."

As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Yangge grabbed his left arm with his right hand and twisted it forcefully.

The crisp sound of bones breaking echoed in the inner room. Broken bones pierced the flesh, and blood gushed out. Jiang Yangge bit his lip, swallowing back his screams. Cold sweat dripped from his forehead and splattered onto the ground.

Jia Chunfang looked at the twisted severed arm, her withered lips moving slightly.

"You're quite clever, knowing to keep your right hand for work. I'll spare your life this time."

Jia Chunfang turned to look at Song You.

"After that, you and he will keep an eye on the pharmacy. If any shady characters come in and try to move things, you will go and fill the stove."

Song You clasped his hands in acceptance of the order.

Jia Chunfang pointed to the stiff Li Bin on the ground: "This medicinal plant has a good foundation. With a little cultivation, it can barely make up for the losses that Liu Xiang dug up. You two, carry him to the back medicine cellar and plant him. Song You, come find me in the inner hall after you've finished."

After giving her instructions, Jia Chunfang turned to the disciples still kneeling on the ground, her voice turning cold: "Aren't you going to get up and get to work?"

The disciples, as if granted a pardon, scrambled back to their respective medicine furnaces, picked up palm-leaf fans, and continued to control the fire.

Jia Chunfang walked to a wooden couch deep inside the inner hall, hunched over, sat down cross-legged, closed her eyes, and began to process her twisted emotions.

Song You walked to Jiang Yangge's side, reached out and supported his right arm, and pulled him up.

Jiang Yangge steadied himself with the help of the other man, panting heavily, and said in a low voice, "Thank you for waking me up, Junior Brother Song. If I had passed out, I would have been useless. Today, I would have been carried out of this pharmacy by being carried out sideways."

In this world of spiritual treasures, losing value is equivalent to becoming waste; this is an ironclad rule.

Song You chimed in, "My senior brother also spoke up for me before, so we're even."

The two men approached Li Bin. Jia Chunfang's restraints had been removed, but Li Bin's limbs were weak and powerless. Jiang Yangge supported Li Bin's legs with one hand, while Song You supported Li Bin's armpits with both hands. Together, they lifted him up and carried him towards the medicine cellar at the back of the inner hall.

Li Bin was still struggling desperately, making incoherent shouts.

"Let me go! I need to see my master! Elder Zhongzao will not let you get away with this!"

Song You tightened his grip, clamping down on his joints.

"You still expect your master to come and save you?" Song You said calmly. "If he comes, he'll just skin you alive and devour you. To him, you're nothing more than a dish."

Li Bin ignored him and continued to twist his body. Song You, too lazy to argue, lit a fire bladder on Li Bin's forehead. Li Bin rolled his eyes, his head drooped, and he fainted.

As a carefully nurtured medicinal herb, all his vital energy was used to nourish the affected area, leaving his physical fighting strength extremely weak. He couldn't even withstand a casual touch from Song You.

Jiang Yangge looked at the unconscious Li Bin and sighed.

"I noticed his strangeness before. His cultivation level increased rapidly in just one year at the temple, but he never took on any outside assignments and spent all his time hanging around Elder Zhongzao. I never imagined he was used for this."

Song You observed Jiang Yangge's profile. Jiang Yangge's eyes also revealed lingering fear. This reaction was genuine. It seemed that treating living people as medicine was a secret technique mastered by only a very few core elders in the Po Cang Temple.

Song You remained vigilant; in this environment, anyone could turn on you for survival.

The two men carried Li Bin around a bend, and the light ahead went completely dark, with a strong smell of humus and soil hitting them.

Song You stopped and put Li Bin on the ground.

"What's wrong?" Jiang Yangge asked.

Song You's gaze fell on the storage bag at Li Bin's waist and the bulging pockets on his clothes.

He mentally reviewed the current situation. Li Bin was about to be buried as fertilizer, and it would be a waste to bury his belongings as well. Would some of the medicinal herbs that Mei Chong and the others stole from the pharmacy remain on him?

"Senior brother," Song You pointed at Li Bin on the ground, "since he's going to die anyway, why don't we loot him first?"

Jiang Yangge was stunned for a moment. He had followed the pharmacy's rules for years and didn't quite grasp the situation. But looking at the dimly lit passageway around him, and then at his broken left arm, the pressure to survive overwhelmed the rules.

"Okay." Brother Jiang nodded in agreement.

Song You squatted down and placed his palm close to Li Bin's pocket.