A fantastical journey across the heavens, beginning with the Witcher.

It was three days later when they returned to a populated area.

Li De didn't care whether the wild environment was dangerous or not. The key issue was that the coal briquettes needed to eat dry hay and concentrated feed regularly. If they only relied on fresh wild grass to fill their stomachs, they would lose weight in no time, which would affect their stamina.

Furthermore, I've managed to butcher a few animal hides these past few days, and I need to get them to a nearby town to sell as soon as possible, or they'll start to rot.

"Beef burger."

Standing in front of the street sign bearing the city's name, the Witcher observed the waterfront city with great interest.

Compared to the villages and manors we had passed through before, this place was undoubtedly much more magnificent.

While it may not rival Sintra and Novigrad, the presence of the Cowburg Academy gives the city a unique and vibrant atmosphere, attracting merchants, artists, and scholars alike, making it far more open-minded than ordinary towns.

"stop."

On the long bridge at the city entrance, several fully armed soldiers stopped Li De, who was about to enter the city.

"The Witcher?"

The leading soldier was clearly knowledgeable; he recognized the man immediately upon noticing his unusual armor and two longswords.

Li De dismounted and shrugged: "It's obvious."

"What are you doing in Beefburg? How many days do you plan to stay?" The soldier's tone was interrogative, his eyes full of vigilance.

"What, has the beef burger become some nobleman's private property? Even entering the city requires such detailed questioning?"

Faced with such aggressive questioning, Li De retorted without hesitation.

"You fucking..."

The soldier was stunned by the rebuke, and in his anger and embarrassment, he was about to draw his weapon when he was stopped by a dignified voice.

"stop!"

The owner of the voice was wearing a full suit of plate armor, covered with a cloak embroidered with the city emblem, and a simply decorated longsword at his waist. He was not wearing a helmet, revealing a dignified middle-aged face.

He dismissed the soldiers, then strode up to Li De and introduced himself: "I am Sal Bronshi, captain of the city guard. Welcome to Cow Keep, Witcher."

"But it doesn't seem like they're that welcoming."

Thrall glanced at his subordinates, whose faces were flushed red, waved his hand, and signaled the demon hunters to follow.

"Don't blame them. There's been some trouble in the city lately, and everyone's on edge."

Someone died?

Seemingly surprised by the witcher's directness, the middle-aged officer couldn't help but glance at him before slowly nodding two seconds later: "Yes."

"No wonder." Li De led Coal Ball along with Sal. "The captain came to pick me up personally. Is he planning to lock me up in jail? Let me make it clear beforehand, I just arrived today and haven't gotten into any trouble."

"There's no need to worry about that. Beefburg is a law-abiding place. As long as you don't break the law, even if you pass by a prison, no one will drag you in as a guest."

During the conversation, Li De carefully surveyed the scene on the street, his brows furrowing slightly—it was too deserted.

This is nothing like the Beef Burger. Last time I came, street vendors were hawking their wares, the tavern entrance was full of drunks, bards playing the lute danced around girls, scholars debated fiercely on the square benches, and the girls in the brothels displayed their magnanimity and fiery passion, as if they wanted to drag every man inside and shower them with gold coins.

But right now, there's no lively scene at all, not even a single beggar in sight.

Just as he was about to ask the reason, the sound of soldiers arguing with residents came from not far away.

Sal, no longer in the mood for conversation, strode over and asked, "What happened?"

"Captain Bruno!"

Upon hearing his voice, the two sides immediately stopped arguing.

The soldier gave a stiff military salute, and the citizen carrying the vegetable basket bowed and greeted him. It was clear that this captain had a high reputation in the city.

"Captain, he already went out once yesterday, and he's going out again today."

The soldier's voice was filled with grievance; he had clearly been disobeyed for following the rules.

Sal turned to the citizens, his tone much gentler: "Why are you going out again? Didn't you buy enough food yesterday?"

The man waved his hands repeatedly, his face full of anxiety: "No, no, there's enough food! It's my son who has a fever. He had a high fever last night, and he couldn't even speak clearly this morning. I wanted to go find a herbalist to buy some medicine."

"You should go home first."

"But my son..."

"The doctors have all been called up to the city hall, so you won't be able to buy the medicine. Go home and wait."

Seeing the man stamping his feet anxiously, Li De spoke up at the opportune moment.

"Go back and find a clean cloth, soak it in warm water, wring it until it's half dry, and apply it to the child's forehead; if you have strong liquor at home, use your hands to dab it on the sides of the child's neck, armpits, and groin, but avoid rubbing the chest and soles of the feet; then find some licorice root, calendula, mint, ginger, and rice, boil them together into a soup and feed it to the child, if all goes well, the fever should break by the afternoon."

The people around were stunned.

Fever is a problem that everyone has to deal with. These days, the common ways to deal with it are nothing more than bloodletting, taking a cold shower, drinking herbal soup, or having a priest attend Mass. The rest depends on luck.

If you're lucky, you might survive; if you're unlucky, even if you do survive, you might be burned into an idiot. I've never heard of so many novel methods before.

Sal was the first to snap out of it: "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and write this down!"

"Oh... um... Master, could you say that again? I didn't hear you clearly the first time..."

Li De patiently repeated it.

The man thanked them profusely and was escorted away by the patrolling soldiers.

Sal hesitated for a moment: "I know about the methods you mentioned, such as applying a towel, but will rubbing the body with strong liquor and boiling those medicinal herbs into a soup really work?"

"I don't know. Witchers never get sick. A witch doctor told me that he cured many people using this method."

It wasn't that Li De was deliberately hiding something, but rather that it was simply difficult to explain.

The current state of medicine in the world presents a peculiar "magical duality".

Stripping away the magic and alchemy, and focusing solely on the medical foundations outside of magic, the medical field largely remains at the early Renaissance stage, with some remote areas even still stuck in the Dark Ages.

Bloodletting therapy, herbal remedies, superstitious religions... it is common for people to worship gods instead of taking medicine when they are sick. Bloodletting, shaving heads, and smearing pigeon droppings on the soles of feet are also not uncommon.

But once you include magic and alchemy, it's a completely different story.

Not to mention alchemy, which can create magical potions, sorcerers have even developed biological modification technology. Their representative achievement is the Witcher, who, in an era when there was no concept of microorganisms, managed to achieve the level of genetic modification.

While Newcastle University also studies medicine, its focus is more on wound healing, bone restoration, and amputation to save lives, with less research on common diseases.

Therefore, Li De's method can be considered "shocking and unconventional." At the very least, wiping one's body with strong liquor sounds somewhat like witchcraft.

"Alright, as long as it works, that's fine. But you really have changed my opinion of Witchers."

Seeing that the Witcher was unwilling to say more, Thrall did not press the matter further.

As for what opinions changed, the two tacitly avoided delving into the topic. It was obvious that it must have been the opinions of those who disregarded human life, were ruthless, and cold-blooded.

"Let's get back to the topic. Even the local residents of Beefburg aren't allowed to leave their homes freely, yet you personally brought a stranger like me into the city. Do you need my help?"

Sal bluntly stated, "I prefer to call it a win-win situation: you provide the labor, and I provide the money."