Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 408 Golden Flame-Tailed Rat

"Can't be solved?"

Xu Qingchi was completely stunned. He then knelt down and rushed to the old man's bedside, anxiously calling out, "Grandpa, what nonsense are you talking about?"

The old man glanced at Xu Qingchi, a hint of pity flashing across his face: "Grandpa has a difficult reason to tell you. If this poison is cured, I'm afraid it will implicate you."

"Grandpa, what exactly happened?"

Xu Qingchi looked even more anxious.

"I can't say."

The old man shook his head, his face resolute.

"Why!"

Xu Qingchi froze for a moment, then fell to the ground.

Then he quickly got up and shook the old man's arm: "Grandpa, I'm not afraid of being a burden. If this disease isn't treated, you'll die!"

"Grandpa was already a dying man, his death is nothing to regret!"

The old man closed his eyes.

"Grandpa, you..."

Xu Qingchi, unable to persuade him for a long time, could only look to Li Xiangming for help.

Li Xiangming remained silent throughout, seemingly observing from the sidelines.

The only reason he came to Shenfeng Valley was to fulfill his promise to Xu Qingchi.

The agreement stated that the cure would be exchanged for a magical herb.

The elderly person simply doesn't want to get treatment, so there's no question of him breaking his promise.

Therefore, this thousand-pound grass should belong to him!
He didn't care whether the old man lived or died, or about the so-called hidden story.

"senior!"

Xu Qingchi clenched his fists tightly, overwhelmed with grief, anxiety, and anger, causing him to tremble uncontrollably. But in the end, he suppressed his emotions and bowed to Li Xiangming, saying, "Please, senior, have a word with me."

Li Xiangming raised an eyebrow and walked out of the room.

Xu Qingchi followed closely behind, kneeling down in front of Li Xiangming again. This time he couldn't hold back his tears and choked out, "Senior, I don't know what to do. Please teach me."

He wasn't reluctant to part with the few medicinal herbs whose purpose he didn't know.

But he is not willing to give in!

Just when Mingming's long-cherished wish was about to be fulfilled, the biggest obstacle turned out to be his grandfather himself.

At this moment, he was in a state of utter confusion, with only one thought in his mind: if Li Xiangming left now, he would never have another chance to save his grandfather.

"Without your grandfather's cooperation, I couldn't cure that poison."

Li Xiangming frankly stated.

The help he was referring to was using his superior spiritual sense and understanding of meridians and dantian to locate the stubborn poison attached to the magic power, and then providing expert guidance to the other party to "eliminate" it at the right spot.

Why not use your own magic power?

This is because the two different magical forces are naturally mutually exclusive.

There is no possibility that Li Xiangming's magical power could flow freely within the old man's body.

Unless Li Xiangming has cultivated medical techniques and released special magical power that can exert influence without causing mutual damage to the opponent's magical power.

Even so, he only used his own magic to guide, rather than replace, the patient's magic in healing.

This is especially important.

Some people don't understand this concept and, after getting injured, will seek help from a monk they are on good terms with to heal their wounds.

Little did they know that this would only worsen the injury.

Professional tasks should be left to professionals, which is why, despite the abundance of healing elixirs in the cultivation world, physicians still hold an important position.

In fact, during times of war, the major powers would first recruit physicians, and only then alchemists and weapon refiners, who were the talents who produced strategic resources.

Returning to Xu Qingchi's grandfather, the stubborn poison in his body had been there for over ten years. Even professional doctors found it difficult to achieve immediate results.

Let alone laymen?

At most, Li Xiangming would pass on the methods he had come up with. If the other party did not accept them or did not want to persist, what could he do?
After learning all this, Xu Qingchi looked unwilling: "Is there really no way at all?"

"You should try to persuade your grandfather."

"I can't persuade them!"

Xu Qingchi felt even more desperate. No one knew his grandfather's personality better than him. In his grandfather's mind, he was always a child, and his words carried no weight.

Suddenly, he thought of something and took out a small mouse the size of his palm from his pocket. The mouse had golden hair and a white belly, and a fiery red stripe on its back. When the stripe extended to the tail, it slightly burst open, like a raging flame, which was particularly eye-catching.

"Golden Flame-Tailed Rat?"

Li Xiangming glanced at it twice, and his expression changed instantly.

"Does the senior recognize it?"

Xu Qingchi said with a face full of reluctance, "Its name is Ah Huang. It has been with me for three years. I was able to find so many spiritual herbs not because I was lucky, but because it guided me. Now I am giving it to you, senior, and asking you to find a way to save my grandfather."

Li Xiangming was shocked. He took the Golden Flame-Tailed Rat and examined it carefully.

The rat demon seemed to be asleep. There was no fluctuation of demonic power or even a sound of breathing from its entire body, so much so that even he was fooled.

Who would have thought that a mere Qi Refining Level 1 cultivator would possess such a treasure?

The Golden Flame-Tailed Rat is renowned in the cultivation world, largely due to its sensitivity to spiritual energy, which far surpasses that of other demonic beasts, making it a true treasure hunter.

It can be said that wherever the Golden Flame-Tailed Rat has lingered, all the nearby medicinal herbs will have nowhere to hide.

Why do golden-tailed rats love to search for medicinal herbs?

This was actually a last resort.

Because the Golden Flame-Tailed Rat has very low growth potential, it only has the cultivation level of the early stage of Spirit Awakening after adulthood, and its combat power is extremely weak. Basically, any monster can bully it.

However, spiritual herbs can break through this limitation, allowing it to break through to a higher realm and become a powerful demon cultivator.

Therefore, the search for elixirs is ingrained in its very genes.

It is precisely because of this ability that it is coveted by countless demonic beasts and human cultivators.

"Qingchi, how did you find it?"

Li Xiangming couldn't help but ask.

Xu Qingchi recalled for a moment and replied, "I remember once when I went into the mountains to look for herbs, Ah Huang was almost eaten by a wolf demon. I managed to save it. It is very intelligent and has always stayed by my side. It was it that led me to find the stone lingzhi. However, since last year, Ah Huang has been sleeping a lot. Once it sleeps, it won't wake up for at least ten days or half a month."

Li Xiangming was even more delighted to hear this.

Xu Qingchi's words undoubtedly confirmed the authenticity of the Golden Flame-Tailed Rat.

He wondered how this kid had managed to find the stone lingzhi on the cliff; it turned out he had the help of a noble "rat".

As for the Golden Flame-Tailed Rat falling into a deep sleep, it's easy to explain. This little guy must have eaten a high-quality spiritual medicine that he couldn't digest in a short time, so his body automatically entered a "protective mechanism"—only by not letting out even a trace of energy can it protect itself from being coveted by other demonic beasts.

However, this state cannot last long. Once the effects of the medicine in its body weaken, the Golden Flame-Tailed Rat will naturally wake up.

Thinking of this, Li Xiangming suppressed his surprise and slowly asked, "Demon beasts are usually not friendly with humans. It is truly remarkable that this rat is grateful for your kindness and repays you. Are you really willing to give it to me?"

A conflict flashed across Xu Qingchi's face, but he finally nodded dejectedly: "I'm sorry for it, but Grandpa is more important."

"Then I will give you some pointers."

Li Xiangming chuckled, then pointed to some buildings not far away and asked, "Who do you think is involved in the secret that your grandfather would rather die than tell?"

Xu Qingchi stood on tiptoe to look, and immediately realized: "It's the Valley Master!"

Suddenly, he remembered his grandfather's interrogation of Fan Sheng and changed his words, saying, "No, it's Young Valley Master!"

"You are very smart."

Li Xiangming praised, "Your grandfather was probably keeping some secrets for the young master, but the young master didn't trust him, so he chose to poison him, causing him to lose his ability to take care of himself. If your grandfather recovers, then the poisoning will be exposed. In my opinion, your grandfather has already guessed what happened."

(End of this chapter)