I rely on learning to achieve immortality.

After a moment of internal reflection, Xu Zhou had already figured it out.

The erysipelas dissipated much faster than expected. The residual poison that would normally take three days to dissipate was completely gone in just one day.

The interval between doses of Huangyadan has been reduced by almost half.

"good."

A hint of satisfaction appeared in his eyes.

The cultivation speed will increase by at least 10%.

After confirming that the detoxifying soup had no other effects on him, Xu Zhou drank the rest of the soup in one gulp.

He felt that the practice was going smoothly and pleasantly, so he stopped practicing and returned to the table.

Now that the cultivation issue is resolved, it's time to continue learning.

...

Xu Zhou continued to stay in his cave, studying medical texts with peace of mind, and paid little attention to the affairs of the outside world.

However, every three or four months, he would go out once to enter the Thousand Wood Forest again with Fang Sheng and others.

This is mainly because wood and dew have a shelf life. Three or four months after harvesting, their spiritual energy becomes disordered and they are no longer suitable for making medicine.

Fortunately, the Thousand Wood Forest wasn't too dangerous, and after walking through it many times, he had become quite familiar with the route.

Moreover, traveling with Fang Sheng and his group allows them to learn about external changes through conversations, thus compensating for their lack of intelligence.

For example, the story of the ruins that was widely circulated a few years ago has now become a laughing stock.

The independent cultivators flocked to the scene, but after years of searching, they found nothing. Instead, they fought each other for the opportunity, resulting in heavy casualties.

In the end, it was the Golden Flame Sect that stepped in and quelled the storm.

Some say the ruins don't exist at all, while others say they were discovered in secret long ago, the treasure was taken, and the ruins were completely sealed away.

There were many different opinions, and the debate only gradually subsided in recent years.

Xu Zhou was also moved when he heard about this.

Cultivators clearly have extremely long lifespans; if they honestly cultivate in the mountains, they can live for a very long time.

The result came out, and by chance, he managed to save his life.

Fortunately, he only needs to study diligently in the sect to reap many benefits, without having to go out and cause trouble.

With such peace of mind for cultivation and study, a year slowly passed.

On this day, Xu Zhou, who was immersed in his cave, suddenly sensed something and exited the deep learning state.

The restrictions outside the cave have been triggered.

He had already placed a "Do Not Disturb" sign outside his door. Out of respect for him, an alchemist, the people of Qianmu Forest wouldn't easily come to his door. Having lived here for three years, this was the first time he'd been disturbed like this.

A surge of anger rose in Xu Zhou's heart, and he decided to go out and see who it was.

When he arrived at the door and saw the person's face clearly, he was startled.

Ke Qiaoshu!

Her expression was unusually hurried, and there was a hint of anxiety between her brows.

Before Xu Zhou could even speak, she said directly, "Come with me!"

Before he could finish speaking, Xu Zhou felt a sudden tightening around his sleeve.

In the next instant, he was carried away from his original spot.

Before he could react, he only felt the wind whistling past him and the scenery rushing past him.

Ke Qiaoshu's escape skills far exceeded his imagination.

In just a moment, the two arrived at a wooden house. Ke Qiaoshu put him down and then pushed open the door to go inside.

The wooden house was completely silent.

As soon as Xu Zhou stepped inside, he sensed that something was wrong.

He didn't recognize two of the three people in front of him, but the slightly nervous old man sitting below was Yan Xun, another alchemist in the camp.

Even Yan Xun, given his status, seemed somewhat reserved here. It seemed the other two were likely the duty supervisors of the garrison, late-stage Qi Refining cultivators on par with Ke Qiaoshu.

Upon seeing Xu Zhou for the first time, the muscular manager couldn't help but frown.

"Junior Sister Ke, are you sure you want him to come?"

The supervisor looked at Xu Zhou's overly youthful face and couldn't help but shake his head: "Even Master Yan is helpless, what can a low-grade alchemist like him do? If something goes wrong, can you bear the responsibility?"

Ke Qiaoshu said coldly, "Of everyone in the Thousand Wood Forest, only he has practiced medicine. If he doesn't come, who will?"

The other party was slightly taken aback and looked Xu Zhou up and down again.

Upon hearing Ke Qiaoshu's words, Xu Zhou's gaze finally bypassed Yan Xun's obstruction and saw that there was a bed behind her.

A cultivator lay on the bed, his clothes clearly indicating he was an inner disciple. His eyes were closed, his face was ashen, his breathing was disordered, and blood was still dripping from the corner of his mouth, suggesting he was severely injured.

Yan Xun grasped the other's wrist to take his pulse, but his face showed some helplessness, and his eyes looked at Xu Zhou with a hint of pleading.

"Alright," said the third supervisor who hadn't spoken before, "If we were to send a physician from the sect, it would take at least three or four days. Junior Brother Zheng can't wait that long, so let Alchemist Xu give it a try."

Ke Qiaoshu nodded and said to Xu Zhou beside her, "Give it a try, do your best."

Xu Zhou was still somewhat unclear about the situation, but he knew what he should do, so he immediately went to the side of the unconscious person in front of the bed.

Yan Xun seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and quickly moved aside to make it easier for Xu Zhou to see.

After sitting down nearby, Xu Zhou reached out and grasped his pulse, channeling his magical power to check his internal condition.

Upon closer inspection, his expression gradually turned serious.

This person was injured for some unknown reason, his internal energy and blood were weakened, but his magical power was almost out of control, wreaking havoc in his meridians, and he was on the verge of collapse.

He glanced at the man and suddenly felt that he looked somewhat familiar.

Xu Zhou had an excellent memory; in an instant, he remembered where he had seen that face before.

After Ke Yanfeng disappeared, he looked up the other people who had disappeared with his senior brother and saw their portraits.

The person in front of me is one of them.

In an instant, he felt his heart leap.

He slowly looked at Ke Qiaoshu, whose eyebrows were still furrowed. Upon seeing this, she simply nodded slightly, as if confirming his guess.

Xu Zhou finally figured it out.

No wonder Ke Qiaoshu was in such a hurry, practically barging into his cave to bring him here. It turns out that Ke Yanfeng, who had been missing for many years, had finally been found.

The only person who might know something is currently seriously injured and unconscious, so we must wake him up no matter what.

Without further hesitation, Xu Zhou patted his storage bag and took out a set of needle pouches.

"Try to keep quiet for a while."

After saying this, he took out several long needles from his needle bag and focused on the seriously injured person in front of him.

As the first needle was inserted, Xu Zhou's fingertips paused slightly.

It felt rough and was harder than I had imagined.

He read a lot of books, but had no real practice opportunities. When it came time to actually practice, difficulties arose one after another.

The knowledge he thought he had almost mastered while reading the book suddenly popped up one by one, making him realize that he was far from truly understanding "The Thousand Needles Meridian Opening Method".

But there's no turning back now; if he gives up at this moment, this senior brother won't survive the night.

Xu Zhou quickly adjusted his breathing and suppressed the distracting thoughts in his mind.

There was no way to retreat at this moment; all we could do was use what we had learned to the fullest and continue stitch by stitch.

When he started to use the needle, no one else dared to speak.

After watching for only a short while, the four onlookers felt a little worried.

The cultivator who had previously questioned Xu Zhou now lowered his voice and said to the two beside him, "Why is his needlework so hesitant, like he's not very skilled? Can he really do it?"

Ke Qiaoshu didn't know what to say, and only said, "Let's see first."

As time went on, Xu Zhou's needlework became more and more skilled, and his speed gradually increased.

The people nearby dared not utter a sound, and for a moment, the room fell into silence.

Suddenly, Xu Zhou inserted a needle, and the person lying on the ground jolted violently.

puff--

He spat out a mouthful of blood, and the room was immediately filled with a stench.

Ke Qiaoshu took half a step forward, just about to get closer to check, when she was stopped by the other two:

"Wait a moment."

"He vomited up stagnant blood, it should be effective."

Ke Qiaoshu paused, and only felt slightly relieved when she saw that the blood on the ground was tinged with blackish-red.

After the man vomited blood, Xu Zhou moved even faster, his fingers striking repeatedly, leaving several long needles in the man's chest, abdomen, and neck before he finally let out a long sigh of relief.

Seeing this, Ke Qiaoshu cautiously asked, "How is it?"

"My life has been saved."

Xu Zhou pondered for a while and said, "His injuries were all caused by the loss of control over his magical power. Coincidentally, my medical skills are good at treating this kind of injury, and I managed to press the magical power back into his chest and abdomen."

However, his deficiency of qi and blood has not been resolved and he will need to recuperate slowly. To avoid any potential complications, it would be necessary to consult the senior physicians of the sect.

After all, he hadn't fully mastered the medical classics, and this was his first time using his medical skills, so he was somewhat unsure of himself.

But for the others, the meaning was different.

The people inside the room exchanged glances, their expressions changing.

The person who was just on the verge of death was saved by him in just a moment?

Yan Xun's eyes widened in shock.

Although he hadn't studied medicine, he wasn't entirely unfamiliar with it. Even the situation that had left him helpless was easily resolved by Xu Zhou.

Yan Xun couldn't help but cup his hands and say, "Junior Brother's medical skills are so outstanding, congratulations!"

Xu Zhou nodded in response, but her gaze quickly shifted to Ke Qiaoshu: "Senior Sister Ke, how did this person get injured?"

Ke Qiaoshu did not answer immediately, but looked at the other two supervisors.

The more composed one, who was clearly of higher status, looked at Xu Zhou and said, "Junior Brother Zheng Lei was found in the Thousand Wood Forest a few days ago and was just brought back."

As soon as he was brought back, I immediately called Alchemist Yan. However, I didn't expect that after feeding him several healing pills, they had little effect. It was then that Junior Sister Ke suddenly remembered you and brought you along.

He smiled at Xu Zhou and said, "My name is Cui Jiangyun, and this other supervisor is Guan Zhengcheng. The junior brother you just saved is named Zheng Qi. I must thank Master Xu for his help this time; I will definitely send a thank-you gift afterward."

Xu Zhou bowed to make up for the lack of greeting, and then said, "Manager Cui, I have no request. Could you please allow me to stay here and take care of Senior Brother Zheng?"

Firstly, to ensure his injuries wouldn't recur; secondly, I have a past with Senior Brother Ke and wanted to stay and ask him some questions.

Cui Jiangyun hesitated for a moment, then said, "We appreciate Master Xu's kindness. However, Junior Brother Zheng's injuries are too severe, and he needs to rest. The sect's physicians will arrive in the next few days and will then take Junior Brother Zheng back to the sect."

As for how well he recovers from his injuries and whether he will come to see you, we'll have to wait until he wakes up to see.

Ke Qiaoshu, who was standing nearby, said at the right moment, "Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on Senior Brother Zheng. You go back and focus on your cultivation. I'll let you know if anything happens."

Xu Zhou was slightly puzzled, not expecting that his reasonable request would be rejected.

But since the matter had been brought up to this point, he could only nod in agreement.

This also gave him some hunch.

There seems to be more to the story behind Ke Yanfeng's disappearance.