Bearing the blue sky

A cool breeze was blowing as Li Zhongguo stood atop the city wall.

"How is it?"

Li Zhongguo remained expressionless.

The veteran who had initially led Zhu Ge to the front stood behind him and bowed, saying, "That kid didn't say anything bad about the fisherman in the straw raincoat."

"Oh?" Li Zhongguo turned his head in surprise upon hearing this: "My younger brother actually acquired a real canine tooth?"

"It's just that Canine Tooth accepted that Mercury Fruit." The old soldier shook his head with a smile.

"It's good to have greed; only with greed can you gain control." A smile appeared on Li Zhongguo's face. "I think that Zhu Ge is quite clever. If my younger brother is used well, he might be able to seek a high position in Yuanyang City."

"It's a pity I only have you by my side; the rest are of little use. Otherwise, why make things so complicated?"

"Congratulations, garrison commander!" the veteran praised. "When you are promoted, please don't forget to take your subordinates with you!"

"Haha, of course." Li Zhongguo's face revealed a ferocious smile as he spat on the city wall beneath his feet:

"This place is absolutely disgusting; I don't want to stay here for even a quarter of an hour longer!"

"Now I'm just waiting for my younger brother to become the city lord. That way, it won't have been in vain that I killed that Pei guy, or that I sent my younger brother here."

……

A cold wind howled, and a fisherman in a straw raincoat stood at the bow of his boat.

Suddenly, the fisherman in the straw raincoat looked back and realized that Hekou Pass was no longer visible.

"Just now, that old soldier seemed to have taken you somewhere..."

The fisherman in the straw raincoat spoke slowly.

Zhu Ge suddenly opened her eyes wide, then prostrated herself at the stern of the boat: "Yes! Yes! Report back to the fisherman, that person just now isolated his divine sense and told me that he was from Jijie Village, and asked me about his family!"

"Oh?" The fisherman in the straw raincoat smiled. "What do you mean?"

"I told him I hadn't been paying attention to his mother and that I would keep an eye out for her if I passed by, and pass on the message," Zhu Ge said, looking flustered.

"You bastard!"

The fisherman in the straw raincoat suddenly snorted coldly and slapped Zhu Ge across the face.

Zhu Ge's body slammed to the left, bounced back after hitting an invisible membrane.

"Fisherman, fisherman, I was wrong, fisherman!" Zhu Ge looked extremely flustered and kept kowtowing.

"Oh? What's wrong with it?" The fisherman in the straw raincoat turned his back.

"I... I shouldn't have agreed to that without the fisherman's permission," Zhu Ge stammered.

"Hmph, that's not the point!" The fisherman in the straw raincoat shook his head, saying with a tone of disappointment, "Your mistake was inadvertently revealing the true nature of Chicken Street Village!"

Zhu Ge was taken aback: "Is it real or fake?"

"Yes." The fisherman in the straw raincoat sighed and helped Zhu Ge up from the stern of the boat.

"I told Li Zhongguo that there were starving people everywhere along the way, and many villages had lost more than one in ten people."

"But you say you didn't notice the veteran's family. Does that mean you're implying that Jijie Village still exists? His family members were just women and children; how could they possibly survive in a village where everyone was living in misery?"

"This proves that Jijie Village can support an extra old woman! Jijie Village has over two hundred people; a village like that should hand over at least a thousand shi of grain!"

After this explanation, the fisherman in the straw raincoat's tone wavered slightly: "Do you understand now?"

"Oh, I see..." Zhu Ge replied blankly, then asked nervously, "Then, what do we do now?"

"It's alright." The fisherman in the straw raincoat turned around, looked at the moon in the sky, and a smile appeared on his lips that Zhu Ge couldn't see: "It's just that if Li Zhongguo dares to report the news at that time, I will just make up an excuse to get away with it."

"However, your performance in helping the wounded at Hekou Pass was commendable, which has enhanced our reputations. I should reward you accordingly."

As he spoke, the fisherman in the straw raincoat waved his hand, and a wine cup flew from his hand and landed in the hands of the singer.

"This is..." Zhu Ge was stunned.

The glass contained a milky white liquid, resembling milk.

"This is made from the pulp of milkberry. When taken with mercury fruit, it can prolong life and benefit the internal organs," the fisherman in the straw raincoat said with a smile in his eyes.

"Fisherman?!" Zhu Ge suddenly grabbed his right waist, where he stored the Mercury Fruit.

"Thump!!"

"Fisherman, I..." Zhu Ge knelt down again, about to kowtow, but felt a force lift him up.

"No need for further explanation," the fisherman in the straw raincoat said with a smile, shaking his head. "In the future, just accept whatever others give you. Remember, as long as you are loyal to me, you will naturally reap many benefits."

"Yes, I understand!" A bead of sweat rolled down Zhu Ge's forehead.

"Okay, take it. I'll protect you." The fisherman in the straw raincoat smiled. "By the way, remember to stop and let them know you're safe when you pass through Chicken Street Village. Since you've accepted their favor, you should do their favor."

"Yes, fisherman!" Zhu Ge wiped the sweat from his brow, then sat down cross-legged, took several deep breaths, and slowly exhaled.

It seemed like she was calming down her inner tension and panic.

But in reality?

What a cunning scheme! Li Zhongguo and the fisherman in the straw raincoat are indeed not as simple as they seem on the surface... Zhu Ge sneered inwardly.

On the surface, he took out the mercury fruit with slightly trembling hands and swallowed it, then tilted his head back and drank the milk-like liquid in the wine glass.

The next moment, a feeling of heat came through my body.

This feeling was better than the previous deep blue fruit and deep blue leaf; Zhu Ge could even feel that he suddenly had the feeling of a pillar supporting the sky in the morning.

"Quickly circulate your blood and qi, don't waste the medicinal power!" came the fisherman in the straw raincoat's reprimand.

"Although the Mercury Fruit is not a high-grade spiritual item, the milk syrup is the essence of ten milk fruit fruits, which is enough to be considered a low-grade spiritual item. The combination of milk syrup and Mercury Fruit makes its medicinal power almost equivalent to a mid-grade spiritual item!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Ge immediately began to guide the blood and qi within his body to circulate throughout the body, and wherever he passed, new blood and qi flowed into his body like rivers from the sea.

About half an hour later, his penis was limp, but his blood and energy had increased.

The key is……

Name: Zhu Ge

Lifespan: 9 year

【Characteristic: Not wearing】

[Inventory: Spider, Kunpeng]

Unexpectedly, his lifespan was extended by a year... Zhu Ge felt overjoyed and smiled.

Its effects of prolonging life and benefiting the internal organs are indeed remarkable!

"How is it? Is the effect alright?" came the voice of the fisherman in the straw raincoat.

Zhu Ge opened her eyes, her joy evident: "I feel much better!"

"Hmm." The fisherman in the straw raincoat nodded slightly. "I see your qi and blood are quite strong, which must be due to your decent cultivation techniques. However, you are currently only at the early stage of the Martial Arts Resentment Realm..."

"Alright then," the fisherman in the straw raincoat pondered, "we'll be passing through Chicken Street Village anyway. Go hunt down a Mountain-Crossing Beast. Its courage can help you break through to the mid-stage and generate your second Blood Qi. I'll help you back up then!"

Over the mountain peak?

King cobra!

Zhu Ge recalled a certain aura she had sensed in Jijie Village.

That was a demonic snake in the late stage of the first realm. Yueyue demanded that Chicken Street Village offer a live chicken as a sacrifice to avoid disaster.

The people of Jijie Village naturally didn't say much, as they didn't want to cause trouble.

Just like Jianshan Village.

Having demons like Tiger God and Mr. Insect nearby who can communicate is better than having someone like Fungus God who is difficult to communicate with.

It seems the only option is to kill that mountain peak... Zhu Ge sighed inwardly.

Having killed Guo Shanfeng, it's obvious that Chicken Street Village is going to be in a tense situation for a while.

Moreover, this mountain peak was originally a spider silk thread that he had left behind, but now it seems that it cannot be left behind.

This served as a wake-up call for Zhu Ge.

Spider silk is not the only thing, and plans can change... A realization dawned on Zhu Ge's mind.

"Hey? Zhuge, there's a little bear up ahead!"

"It must be the cub of that bear couple from before! Haha, while they're away, let's quickly kill that little bear and devour its heart!"

"As the saying goes, 'a bear's heart and a leopard's gall'—this is far more effective than a snake's gall bladder! Haha! You're truly blessed!"