Starting from his vigorous old age, he began to conquer Liaozhai.

"This plague prefers yin and dislikes yang, fears fire, and is afraid of pure yang medicines. Dried mugwort and peach wood are both extremely yang and can counteract poison. Using them as firewood is worth a try." Mao Dafu's eyes were clear, as if he had suddenly seen the light.

He couldn't help but sigh inwardly, "The Immortal Physician truly lives up to his name."

Mao Dafu took another dose of the Corpse Plague Powder to boil. There was no need to go out of his way to find dried mugwort and peach wood, as they had brought plenty of these two items with them.

Not long after, Mao Dafu brought another batch of freshly prepared corpse plague powder to Zhang He's side.

"Lord Zhang, here you go."

Zhang He took the pottery bowl and looked at the two people who had lost their minds and were struggling.

"Hold him down!"

Several military doctors surrounded the people, who had become unrecognizable as plague corpses, and held them down tightly.

Mao Dafu reached out and pulled off the burlap, tightening it around the plague corpse's head. "Lord Zhang, hurry!"

Zhang He clenched his teeth and poured a full bowl of plague powder into the mouth of the plague-infested corpse.

"Roar~"

The plague corpse resembled a vicious wolf, its head struggling desperately, trying its best to break free.

However, after swallowing most of the bowl of plague powder, the plague-infested corpse looked pained and lowered its head to vomit repeatedly.

Zhang He and his companions retreated to a distance and observed quietly.

A pool of greenish-blue, viscous vomit was spat on the ground by the plague-ridden corpse.

An indescribable stench instantly spread throughout the entire tent.

"This smells awful!" Mao Dafu couldn't help but complain.

As more and more vomit appeared, the plague-ridden corpse lying on the ground convulsed continuously, and a black aura emanated from its body.

"Why isn't it moving? Is it dead?" Mao Dafu couldn't help but frown.

"No, he's still breathing. The medication must be working." Zhang He's voice carried a slight excitement.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, the man regained his senses.

The confusion in his eyes faded quickly.

"My lords, am I all better now?"

Zhang He let out a heavy sigh of relief. "It's okay for now, but we still need to observe. I'm sorry to trouble you, but the rope can't be loosened yet."

The man knelt on the ground, sweat and tears mingling together, and said, "Thank you for saving me, sir."

Zhang He then looked at another civilian who had turned into a plague corpse, "There's one more. Get the medicine."

Then, the group forcibly administered the antidote to another plague-infested corpse in the same manner.

Having confirmed that the Corpse Plague Powder had indeed taken effect, Zhang He finally felt relieved. His body was already exhausted from working day and night.

Now that he has achieved his goal, he can finally get a good night's sleep.

Zhang He looked at Mao Dafu and the others, "You should all get some rest. You've worked hard these past few days. Observe for two days. If there are no signs of relapse, you can return to Guobei County and inform the local officials to start mass production of the Corpse Plague Powder."

Mao Dafu's admiration for Zhang He deepened even further, and he couldn't help but sigh in his heart, "Lord Zhang truly deserves to be called a medical sage. It seems I must also study hard."

……

……

……

Ma Ting Township.

Cao Xiong was waiting at a teahouse on the only road leading into Mating Township from the Ten Thousand Mountains.

His gaze would occasionally fall on the end of the road, where, according to Liu Mingzi's divination, the Burial Dragon would arrive today.

The Evil-Smelling Blade lay on the table, its dense aura of malevolence almost bursting from its sheath.

After the tea shop owner put down the tea for Cao Xiong, he quickly left. Before he even got close to Cao Xiong, he felt a distinct sense of suffocation.

Cao Xiong ignored the tea shop owner's expression.

Finally, just before the beginning of the Si hour (9-11 AM), a figure dressed in a red Taoist robe slowly walked over.

Cao Xiong remained calm and said, "This Taoist's aura is not weak; he is definitely a cultivator at the Qi Refining Realm."

The Taoist in red robes arrived outside the teahouse, glanced at Cao Xiong, and then walked in and sat down at the table next to Cao Xiong.

"Grandpa, a cup of tea."

"Okay!" the tea shop owner replied hastily.

Cao Xiong casually placed his hand on the Evil-Sniffing Blade. "This Taoist priest, you're not from Guobei County, are you?"

The red-robed Taoist looked at Cao Xiong, a sharp glint in his eyes, and said, "This humble Taoist is merely passing by."

"Is that so?" Cao Xiong asked casually.

"The Burial of the Dragon"

"Hmm?" The red-robed Taoist priest suddenly heard his own name and spoke out subconsciously.

"It really is you." Before Cao Xiong finished speaking, his long sword was already drawn.

Zangpo Long reacted extremely quickly, leaving the shop before Cao Xiong's long knife could fall.

"What audacity!"

The Burial Dragon unleashed a burst of spiritual power, and azure smoke instantly filled the air.

Cao Xiong covered his mouth and nose and used his divine sense to pinpoint the location of the Burial Dragon.

"The Brahma Sounds Subdue Demons~"

The smoke dissipated wherever the long sword passed.

"I hate that sound," said the Burial Dragon in a cold voice.

Behind him, a swarm of unknown black insects appeared, densely packed, like a dark cloud rushing towards Cao Xiong.

"Buzzing~"

Cao Xiong's figure constantly moved around the perimeter of the insect swarm. With each strike, swarms of black insects fell to the ground.

Seeing that the poisonous insects could not harm Cao Xiong, Zangpolong threw out three thin needles.

"Ding ding ding~"

Cao Xiong's skin glowed with golden light, causing the three fine needles to fall to the ground.

The black insects were almost all dead, and Cao Xiong continued his attack on the Burial Dragon.

The Burial Dragon retreated continuously, a blue fireball condensing in its palm. "Sizzle~".

"Immovable King Slash~"

Cao Xiong immediately unleashed the second secret technique he had just mastered.

The phantom of Buddha glared angrily, his long sword enveloped in surging internal energy.

"Ah~" Zangpo Long felt the danger of death from this slash.

A strangely shaped longsword appeared in his hand, attempting to block the Evil-Sniffing Blade.

Cao Xiong's lips curled into a mocking smile, and in the instant the swords clashed, the longsword was shattered into pieces.

The Burial Dragon, whose aura was connected to the longsword, spat out a mouthful of blood.

Without stopping, the long sword arrived in front of the Burial Dragon in the blink of an eye.

[Defeat a Qi Refining Realm early stage cultivator, fragment +1]

Cao Xiong looked at the Burial Dragon, which had been cut in half, and felt pleased.

"The culprit is finally dead. All that's left is to control the plague and prevent it from spreading any further."

Cao Xiong skillfully searched the body of the Burial Dragon and eventually obtained two gray bags.

After confirming that there was nothing else, he collected Zangpolong's body and returned to Guobei County.

Back in the barracks, Cao Xiong couldn't wait to take out two storage bags, release his divine sense, and examine them one by one.

The first gray bag contained a bunch of porcelain bottles filled with pills, but he didn't recognize any of them.

Besides the pills, there are two cultivation manuals, one called "The Poisonous Insect Manual" and the other called "Nine Glazed Fire Cover".

Seeing these things, Cao Xiong shook his head in disappointment.

Then he opened the second gray bag. Unlike the storage bag, it was filled with rich spiritual energy, and there were several poisonous insects crawling in the corner.

"Can this gray bag actually hold living creatures?"

Cao Xiong was overjoyed; this must be the beast-taming bag, which is even rarer than a storage bag.

"The space is also quite large; it's more than enough to fit two warhorses."

Cao Xiong was preparing to test it out; with the Beast Taming Bag, he might be able to tame a demon beast as a mount.