My disciple, you are now invincible. Go down the mountain and wreak havoc on the world!

The chill in the ward hadn't completely dissipated.

The old doctor paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, his shoes scraping against the paving stones with a clattering sound, his brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a fly.

Su Qingyuan stood by the window, watching the ambulances rushing past below, her fingertips clenched so tightly they turned white, her face still pale from the phone call she had just received.

Only Ye Xunhuan acted as if nothing had happened, leaning back on the sofa with a freshly opened orange-flavored lollipop dangling from his mouth.

His cheeks puffed out as he poked at his phone screen, playing a match-3 game, making the screen click loudly.

He was completely out of place at the scene.

"Xunhuan! How can you still be playing around!" Su Qingyuan turned around abruptly to look at Ye Xunhuan, her beard bristling and eyes wide with anxiety.

"The Pavilion Master of Youge has declared that if the 'Medicine King's Scripture' isn't handed over in three days, the million people of Jiangcheng will suffer!"

"The poison has now spread throughout the city, and hospitals in all districts are almost overwhelmed. If this drags on any longer, something truly terrible will happen!"

Ye Xunhuan didn't even raise his head; with a flick of his finger, he wiped away an entire row of candies.

He mumbled something under his breath and gave a casual "hmm":

"What's the rush? If the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up."

"Top...top my ass!" Su Qingyuan was so anxious she almost jumped up.

"My assistant just called; they've figured it out!"

"Youge has hidden the main ingredients for the antidote to the Ten Thousand Poisons Powder, along with a large quantity of the remaining poison that they didn't have time to distribute, on a cargo ship at the eastern dock of the city!"

"The leader is a Bronze Guardian from the Netherworld Pavilion, with dozens of trained assassins under his command. He's also taken over a dozen dockworkers hostage, threatening to slaughter them as a sacrifice if anyone dares to go!"

Su Qingyuan took a heavy breath, her tone becoming even more urgent.

"As you know, our Su family has fallen apart. There are only a few half-baked bodyguards left in the clan, and they are all under my second uncle's command. They can't form a fighting force at all."

At this moment, the old apothecary said urgently, "Young Master..."

"All the personnel from Medicine King Valley and the Ye family have been transferred to hospitals in various districts to help maintain stability and suppress the effects of the drugs. There's simply no one left to provide support!"

"That Bronze Guardian is one of the most formidable figures among the Twelve Guardians of the Netherworld."

"They spread rumors that you need to go alone; it's clearly a trap!"

"If you go alone, it's like a lamb entering a tiger's den!"

"Oh?"

Ye Xunhuan finally raised his eyelids, stuffed his phone into his pocket, twirled the lollipop in his mouth, and revealed a smile of interest.

"There are hostages? Playing this trick?"

"What time is it and you're still joking!" Su Qingyuan stamped her feet in frustration.

The old apothecary's expression was grave. "Young Master, perhaps I should contact the branches in the surrounding cities and have them send people over tonight..."

"What are you trying to adjust? By the time you get here, the daylilies will have gone bad."

Ye Xunhuan stood up and stretched, his joints cracking softly.

He was tall and straight, and even his casual, relaxed stance exuded a nonchalant, carefree air. He casually grabbed two strawberry-flavored lollipops and stuffed them into his pocket.

"He's just a lowly bronze-level protector, what's the big deal?"

"Alright, I'm leaving."

"Young Master, are you really going alone?!"

"What else? Bring a whole bunch of people over, and stop me from eating candy?"

"After we're done, we still have to give them lollipops!"

"Not worth it, not worth it!"

Ye Xunhuan raised an eyebrow, walked to the door, then stopped, turned back and winked at Su Qingyuan, his tone flippant, "Wait, take a bath, I'll bring you some dock specialties when I get back—"

"Grilled sausage and lollipop."

Su Qingyuan opened her mouth, wanting to tell him to "get lost".

The words were on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't bring himself to say them.

I was just about to say "be careful" when the guy had already disappeared.

……

East City Wharf.

It was windy late at night.

The waves crashed against the embankment, their roar echoing, and the salty, fishy smell mixed with a faint odor of poison filled the dock.

Ye Xunhuan stood at the intersection, staring at his phone's navigation, his brows furrowed in worry.

"What kind of lousy navigation is this? Left or right?"

He muttered to himself, already spinning around several times, crunching the lollipop stick in his mouth, "Where's cargo ship number three?"

"The writing on this sign looks like ants; who can read it?"

He possesses superb medical skills and unparalleled martial arts prowess. He is also the young master of the Ye family and a successor of the Medicine King Valley. However, he has poor vision and often wanders around in circles.

I got lost in the mountains years ago and ended up in the Hundred Snake Cave on the back of the mountain.

If he hadn't been naturally immune to all poisons, he would have been devoured by venomous snakes long ago, leaving not even bones behind.

If you haven't taken a road before, you'll get lost eight out of ten times; you're the type who can turn into a dead end even with navigation.

After thinking for a while, I simply put my phone back in my pocket and followed the smell of poison deeper into the area.

Anyway, the toxic substance has a strong smell, so following the smell shouldn't be a bad idea.

As we drove along, we encountered quite a few checkpoints along the way.

Every ten meters or so, there was a bodyguard dressed in black, carrying a machete, looking around warily.

With a candy in his mouth, Ye Xunhuan swayed and moved like a blur as he approached.

The night wind tugged at the hem of his clothes without making a sound.

The first sentry was rubbing his eyes and yawning when he felt a numbness in the back of his neck, his vision went black, and he fell straight down.

Ye Xunhuan withdrew his hand, still holding half a lollipop stick between his fingers, shook it, and muttered:

"Tsk, you can get sleepy even standing up. The standards for hiring at Youge are too low. They're not as energetic as the shepherds in the mountains."

They kept knocking as they went, and more than a dozen sentries didn't even get a good look at him. They were all knocked unconscious by the candy sticks and piled up in the corner, neatly stacked like a human pyramid.

As I approached the cargo ship, I heard a loud, arrogant laugh coming from the deck.

"If Ye Xunhuan knows what's good for him, he should obediently hand over the 'Medicine King Scripture,' otherwise, once the Pavilion Master makes his move, the entire Jiangcheng will be buried with him!"

"Your Excellency is wise! Once this is accomplished, all of us brothers will be promoted to Silver Armor Guards and live a life of luxury!"

"Well, you just wait and see, you'll all get promoted and make a fortune!"

"But on another note, keep a close eye on those dockworkers."

"If Ye Xunhuan dares to come, chop off a couple of them to show him the power of Youge!"

The deck was brightly lit, and the bronze guardian with a fierce face sat on a grand chair, playing with a gleaming, poisoned bull-ear scimitar in his hand.

A dozen or so trembling fishermen and dockworkers were tied to his feet.

They included men, women, and children, all with cloth stuffed in their mouths and their eyes filled with fear.

There were thirty or forty assassins standing around, each holding a sharp blade and exuding a murderous aura.

Ye Xunhuan leaned against the back of the container and listened, then crunched the candy in his mouth with a crisp sound.

Before he could move, he heard someone shout angrily, "Who's there? Get out here!"

Two assassins leaped into the air, brandishing poisoned blades, and charged towards Ye Xunhuan.

"What are you shouting for? You scared me."

Ye Xunhuan slowly emerged from the shadows, still holding the newly opened lollipop in his hand, which he was about to put into his mouth.

He was dressed casually in a hoodie and jeans, with flip-flops, looking like a customer strolling through a food street late at night.

He stood there with a cocky air, a lollipop dangling from his mouth, hands in his pockets, his face a picture of nonchalant laziness, as if he hadn't woken up yet.

The deck fell silent instantly.

The Bronze Guardian abruptly stood up, pointed his ox-eared scimitar sharply, and shouted sternly, "Ye Xunhuan?! You really dare to come here alone to die?!"