I rely on learning to achieve immortality.

Zhang Wufeng looked helpless, but still cupped his hands and said, "In that case, what does Senior Brother Xu want?"

Xu Zhou simply smiled upon hearing this.

"Junior Brother Zhang has misunderstood. Although I also seek to establish my foundation, I would never risk the lives of my senior brothers for this purpose."

As for other matters, we can discuss them later.

Zhang Wufeng was slightly taken aback.

He had already prepared for Xu Zhou to take the opportunity to make demands, and had even thought about how to bargain.

Unexpectedly, the other party simply brushed it off.

For a moment, he was unsure of Xu Zhou's intentions.

At this moment, Xu Zhou had already stood up.

"Take me to see my senior brothers' injuries first."

...

The poisoned individuals are now waiting in a quiet room at Baicaotang.

Upon seeing Xu Zhou arrive, the group of people showed a hint of excitement on their faces, and then turned their heads away as if embarrassed.

Xu Zhou didn't care about this.

He simply walked up to the nearest senior brother, reached out and channeled his magic power to check the other's condition.

On the surface, these people looked fine and their breathing was steady, so they seemed to be alright.

But Xu Zhou scanned the area with his magic power and quickly sensed something was wrong.

"The opponent's mana circulation is somewhat obscure. It's as if there's an incompatible element mixed in with their mana, causing the mana circulation to be improper."

"Although this situation is not fatal, over time, it will become increasingly difficult to use magical power, and the meridians will be severely damaged during this process, thus affecting cultivation and even lifespan."

Xu Zhou took out his needles and tentatively inserted a few needles.

A nauseatingly sweet and pungent odor slowly wafted out, causing the expressions of the people around to change instantly.

"Master Xu, is there any way to cure this poison?" the poisoned person asked anxiously.

Xu Zhou pondered for a long time before slowly saying, "Second-tier miasma is indeed extraordinary."

The expressions on their faces changed.

"However, it's not entirely impossible to treat this," Xu Zhou added.

The group paused for a moment, then asked in surprise, "Master Xu, you really have a way?"

They had already consulted all the doctors at Baicaotang, and they all said they had no solution. They never expected Xu Zhou to say that there was a way to solve the problem, and they found it hard to believe.

Xu Zhou pondered for a moment and said, "It's still quite difficult to treat. I'm only about 70-80% confident."

The group hesitated for a moment.

Zhang Wufeng, however, reacted quickly, cupping his hands and saying, "In that case, I would like to ask Alchemist Xu to take action. Regardless of success or failure, I will offer a generous gift."

Xu Zhou glanced at him, but ultimately said nothing.

"Come with me."

A moment later, in another quiet room in the Hundred Herbs Hall.

Xu Zhou had the poisoned person lie on the bed board, and then began to administer acupuncture.

The second-tier miasma was indeed quite troublesome; even he couldn't figure out how to cure it.

Fortunately, this miasma only targets the meridians, which is exactly the area where he excels in the "Thousand Needles Meridian Opening Method."

Once the toxins are drawn out using acupuncture, the poison can be neutralized naturally.

The reason why the other doctors at Baicaotang were at a loss and had to let him take action was that, in order to detoxify using this method, the poison had to be completely removed in one go without any interruption.

There are several physicians in Baicaotang. But if we're talking about someone who has learned the "Thousand Needle Meridian Opening Method," and whose cultivation is deep enough to persevere to the end, then only Xu Zhou is one of them.

Unless Zhang Wufeng is willing to wait and spend a lot of time traveling to various spiritual sites within the sect to seek out those reclusive old physicians, only he can accomplish this task.

After a few needle pricks, the fishy-sweet smell was slowly forced out.

Xu Zhou had taken a Qingling Pill beforehand, so he wasn't afraid of being affected by the poisonous gas.

However, one must pay close attention and constantly observe changes in the toxicity of the patient.

Otherwise, a single oversight could cause the toxins to seep back into the depths of the meridians, rendering all previous efforts futile.

And so, time slowly passed.

The sunlight outside the window gradually dimmed; it was already sunset.

Only when Xu Zhou inserted the needles a few more times and the needle pricks no longer emitted a fishy-sweet smell did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.

This person was successfully detoxified.

Xu Zhou probed into his magical power and examined it carefully.

The previously detected obscure magical power has now completely disappeared.

The man slowly stood up, feeling his internal energy return to normal, and was both surprised and delighted: "Thank you, Alchemist Xu!"

Xu Zhou nodded slightly, but simply said calmly, "You can go out now."

The other party hesitated slightly and said in a low voice, "Master Xu, I'm sorry about before. Master Zhang's offer was really high, and I also need to plan for my family's future."

"Yes, I understand."

Xu Zhou remained noncommittal, then pointed to the door: "I need to rest for a while now."

Tell the people outside to select another person to come here tomorrow at Chenshi (7-9 AM).

...

Xu Zhou hadn't used his medical skills for many years, so he was somewhat excited to try them out this time.

After all, it was an experience of removing second-order miasma, which many doctors may not encounter a few times in their entire lives, making it extremely rare.

After mastering the technique once or twice, detoxification becomes much easier.

Xu Zhou only spent three or four days to clear away all the miasma that had been causing everyone so much trouble.

After everyone was detoxified, they all seemed a little embarrassed.

Most people offered explanations, saying a few words about why they had gone to Zhang Wufeng's side. One person even went so far as to ask Xu Zhou directly if he could be invited again for the next secret realm exploration.

Xu Zhou found it amusing and said that he would not go to the secret realm again for a while, to which the other party looked regretful.

After this incident, Zhang Wufeng visited again.

Upon meeting Xu Zhou, the other party first handed over a storage bag.

"We have troubled you a lot this time, senior brother. Here is the consultation fee for you. We hope you will accept it."

Xu Zhou took the storage bag, scanned it with his divine sense, and couldn't help but feel secretly satisfied.

Besides the pills he consumed, there were also a large amount of spirit stones and medicinal herbs inside, with a value far exceeding the consultation fees of ordinary doctors.

Even for top-grade alchemists like them, it would be considered quite valuable.

Clearly, Zhang Wufeng would rather contribute more resources than let this matter become a favor that is difficult to explain.

"If you feel it's not enough, I will add more later."

After Zhang Wufeng finished speaking, he waited for Xu Zhou to speak.

Xu Zhou pondered for a moment, then smiled and nodded: "These resources are already quite generous, even a bit excessive. Very well, I'll accept them."

Seeing that he accepted it readily, Zhang Wufeng immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

He was genuinely afraid that the other party would use this opportunity to bring up the issue of competing for the Foundation Establishment Pill.

I may not back down, but if things really escalate to that point, it won't look good for anyone.

Now that Xu Zhou has accepted the gift, he no longer needs to worry about these things.

"Thank you for your help, senior brother."

Zhang Wufeng smiled and said, "I hope you won't take offense, Senior Brother. After all, the opportunity to establish a foundation is rare, and no one would give it up so easily."

Xu Zhou simply said, "It's alright. Exploring secret realms is never an easy task."

Since Junior Brother Zhang has this intention, I, Xu, am happy to have some peace and quiet.

Zhang Wufeng opened his mouth slightly, as if he wanted to say something.

But in the end, he didn't say much, he just bowed and took his leave.

Xu Zhou's eyes flickered slightly as he watched Zhang Wufeng leave.

Although the other party looked tired when they came, they did not seem to feel much frustration, which was not the attitude of someone who had returned empty-handed.

After a moment's thought, Xu Zhou lightly tapped his fingertip:

"It seems that we have some clues about the secret realm."

"Maybe next time, or maybe two or three more times, he will actually get his hands on the Heavenly Spirit Fruit."

Although he noticed something amiss, Xu Zhou did not take any action.

He returned to his cave and began to study the foundation-building insights he had collected during this period.

Inside the cave, only the sound of turning pages could be heard.