Chapter 101: Sound of Wooden Fish

After leaving the Square Courtyard, Hua Changxi returned to her own courtyard, placed the five wooden tokens from her hand onto the table one by one, and stared at them silently, lost in thought.

Taking the wooden tokens definitely meant paying a corresponding price.

"Is the price igniting the Dan Fire of the Nine Streets?"

If it was only that, then Hua Changxi could accept it, because with the alchemy legacy of the Divine Farmer Cauldron, she had confidence she could achieve it.

But what she worried about was that the price might not stop there.

Hua Changxi picked up the wooden token keys for No. 1 Qihuang Hall and No. 9 Qihuang Hall. The sword patterns on these two tokens were the deepest, having transformed from flat designs into three-dimensional patterns.

The three-dimensional sword patterns looked like miniature real swords, and the wooden tokens were merely containers holding the "swords."

Staring at the "sword" for a long time, Hua Changxi had a strong feeling that the "sword" inside seemed ready to fly out at any moment.

If the Dan Saint Hall truly was just a sacred site for alchemy, then the sword patterns engraved on the wooden token keys that could open Qihuang Hall seemed somewhat out of place.

Hua Changxi felt that these sword patterns definitely had another use, and they were likely one of the prices she would have to pay.

Although she knew she would have to pay a price, and a considerable one at that, Hua Changxi still did not intend to give up on seizing control of Qihuang Hall first.

First, sharing and teaching pharmaceutical knowledge in Qihuang Hall gave her the illusion of returning to her past life's lecture sessions—she quite missed that feeling of bathing in the ocean of knowledge, and doing so also made her feel it was very meaningful.

Second, unlocking Qihuang Hall gave her a great sense of accomplishment.

Third, every time she unlocked a Qihuang Hall, her cultivation speed surged dramatically, and when the sword patterns on the wooden tokens deepened, her cultivation speed also increased.

The sword pattern on token No. 9 was deep because the Dan Fire of the First Street had been ignited; the sword pattern on token No. 1 was deep because the most menial workers came to No. 1 Qihuang Hall to listen to her herbal medicine lectures.

After about a month of groping, she had already summed up the pattern: the deeper the medical knowledge she taught in Qihuang Hall, the more people attended, the more three-dimensional the sword patterns on the wooden tokens became.

Hua Changxi looked at the fifth wooden token she had just obtained and walked toward No. 4 Qihuang Hall. On the way, she kept thinking about how to handle the matter of Eunuch Jia and his four companions.

When she was almost at No. 4 Qihuang Hall, she saw Xiao Shouzi, the attendant of Eunuch Jia, leading a group of people out of No. 3 Qihuang Hall.

"Changxi, Eunuch Jia knows you've opened a herb garden in No. 3 Qihuang Hall, so he sent me to bring people to help you tidy it up. It's already done. Take a look and see if it's acceptable. If not, I'll come back tomorrow and redo it."

"Thank you, I appreciate your trouble."

Watching Xiao Shouzi and his group leave, Hua Changxi's expression turned somewhat serious. She walked to the gate of No. 3 Qihuang Hall and looked at the sword pattern on the stone pillar.

The sword pattern marked on the stone pillar only prevented other token holders from making their own marks, but it did not stop others from entering or leaving Qihuang Hall.

In that case, it didn't count as having Qihuang Hall under her control.

"Is this wooden token really a key? If it's a key, it should be able to restrict others from entering and exiting, shouldn't it?"

Hua Changxi walked outside No. 1 Qihuang Hall, frowned at the sword pattern on the stone pillar, and soon noticed a point she had missed before: the sword pattern was sunken inward.

Looking at the three-dimensional sword pattern on the wooden token and then at the sunken sword pattern on the stone pillar, Hua Changxi realized the two seemed to fit together. She walked up to the stone pillar, intending to align the wooden token with the sunken sword pattern.

However, she quickly withdrew her hand.

She still remembered the commotion caused by igniting the Dan Fire of the First Street. Who knew what would happen to Qihuang Hall when the sword patterns matched?

Better to be cautious and come back to investigate at night.

Hua Changxi went to No. 4 Qihuang Hall and tested the teaching content of No. 4 Qihuang Hall. As soon as it got dark, she returned to her own courtyard to refine pills. In the middle of the night, after confirming that the people watching from the shadows had withdrawn, she went to No. 1 Qihuang Hall.

After arriving, Hua Changxi walked to the stone pillar and took out the No. 1 wooden token. When the sword pattern on the token aligned with the sunken pattern on the pillar, the token and the pillar snapped together like two ends of a magnet with a "bang."

Then, spiritual light emerged inside No. 1 Qihuang Hall.

Standing at the gate, Hua Changxi clearly saw that the originally dilapidated courtyard instantly transformed into a spacious and sacred hall, with a rich fragrance of medicine filling the air.

On the stone walls around the hall, lifelike patterns emerged—mortal plants, spirit plants, divine plants, and even dao plants.

In the center of the northern side of the hall, a colorful cushion coalesced. Behind the cushion hung a golden bell. Then, with the colorful cushion as the center, circles of cushions began to appear to the left, right, and directly opposite, radiating outward endlessly.

Seeing this scene, Hua Changxi shuddered, snapped back to reality, and quickly removed the wooden token.

Fortunately, the token came off easily.

The moment the token was removed, the spiritual light vanished, and Qihuang Hall reverted to its original dilapidated courtyard.

"Is this the way to open Qihuang Hall?"

Hua Changxi looked around. Although the commotion just now wasn't loud, spiritual light was most conspicuous at night. Uncertain whether anyone else had seen it, she summoned the Somersault Cloud and swiftly left.

In the old courtyard of the square, Gu Xing suddenly opened his eyes while reclining in his chair, his gaze fixed straight toward the direction of the Chores Hall: "Someone has unlocked No. 1 Qihuang Hall! Is it that girl Hua?"

Hua Changxi knew that the commotion in No. 1 Qihuang Hall might be seen by others, but she didn't expect someone to come knocking at her door early the next morning.

Looking at the four people—Eunuch Jia and the others—standing at the courtyard gate, Hua Changxi was silent for a moment before letting them in.

Eunuch Jia's eyes burned fiercely as he looked at Hua Changxi: "Changxi, last night light flashed in No. 1 Qihuang Hall. Did you know about it?"

Hua Changxi shook her head: "I don't know."

Eunuch Zhao, who had never dealt with Hua Changxi before, didn't want to beat around the bush: "Hua Changxi, give us a straight answer: will you cooperate with us or not?"

Hua Changxi looked at him: "How do you want to cooperate?"

Hearing this, Eunuch Jia and the other three exchanged glances: "If one day someone tries to force us out of the Chores Hall, we hope you will protect us."

"Also, we hope to take part in whatever you're doing in Qihuang Hall."

Hua Changxi looked at them: "In Qihuang Hall, I only teach. If you want to attend classes, you can come anytime. As for protecting you… you're not my people, so why should I protect you?"

Eunuch Yu: "What must we do to become your people?"

Hua Changxi appraised the four of them, looking reluctant to take them in: "You all already have masters. Taking me as your master as well—isn't that improper?"

Seeing that Hua Changxi actually wanted them to acknowledge her as master, Eunuch Jia and the others hesitated.

Hua Changxi noticed that the sky was already bright and said, "I'm going to Qihuang Hall to teach. Go back and think it over carefully."

Thinking of the spiritual light that had flashed in Qihuang Hall the night before, Eunuch Yu spoke up first while Eunuch Jia and the other two were still hesitating: "No need to think. I acknowledge you as my master."

Hua Changxi was a generous person—whether directly putting Yu Gui in charge of ten medicine shops or the earlier cooperation in alchemy distribution, it was clear she valued fair exchange. As long as the value offered was sufficient, her returns were not discounted.

He was a eunuch—either he'd be a servant to this person or a servant to that one. Finding a master like Hua Changxi was far better than those nobles in the palace who devoured people without spitting out bones.

Seeing Eunuch Yu agree, Eunuch Jia and the other two hesitated a moment, then also declared their allegiance.

Hua Changxi looked at the four, turned her right hand over, and the Heart Demon Curse beast-hide scroll appeared in her palm: "If you acknowledge me as master, you must swear a Heart Demon Oath. If you betray me, your bodies will explode."

Having already sworn a Heart Demon Oath once, Eunuch Yu took the beast-hide scroll and guided the other three to drop blood and swear.

Only after the four had finished the Heart Demon Oath did Hua Changxi ask, "How many people saw the anomaly in No. 1 Qihuang Hall last night?"

Eunuch Jia’s role transition was remarkably smooth: "Rest assured, Master. We’ve already suppressed the matter. It won’t spread for the time being."

Hua Changxi glanced at him: "Notify everyone in the Chores Hall to come listen to my lecture."

Watching Hua Changxi stride away, Eunuch Jia and the other three exchanged silent glances.

"Is what we did… correct?"

"In the struggles of First Street, very few people caught up in them come out unscathed. What’s wrong with adding a layer of protection for ourselves?"

"The question is, can Hua Changxi… can the master really protect us?"

"The disturbance in No. 1 Qihuang Hall last night was definitely caused by Hua… the master. Following her is definitely the right choice—at least we can keep our lives."

After taking in Eunuch Jia and the three others, with their mobilization, more and more servants came to Qihuang Hall to listen to Hua Changxi’s lectures.

The sword patterns on the No. 2 and No. 3 wooden plaques became visibly more ‘three-dimensional.’

On the first of May, Hua Changxi determined that No. 4 Qihuang Hall taught the pathways and compositions of the meridians in humans, animals, and plants, covering content such as dissection, acupuncture, anesthesia, and massage.

On the fifth of May, after marking the stone pillar outside No. 4 Qihuang Hall with a sword pattern, Hua Changxi visited the old courtyard of the square again and retrieved the sixth wooden plaque.

On the sixth of May, Hua Changxi determined that No. 5 Qihuang Hall taught the decomposition, extraction, and fusion of plants, animals, and minerals.

On the tenth of May, the stone pillar of No. 5 Qihuang Hall was marked with a sword pattern, and Hua Changxi obtained the seventh wooden plaque.

On the eleventh of May, Hua Changxi determined that No. 6 Qihuang Hall was a place for teaching alchemy.

On the fifteenth of May, the stone pillar of No. 6 Qihuang Hall was marked with a sword pattern, and Hua Changxi retrieved the eighth wooden plaque from the old courtyard of the square.

The teaching content of No. 7 Qihuang Hall stumped Hua Changxi.

The content of the previous Qihuang Halls had all been deduced based on the alchemy inheritance, but after alchemy, she had no direction.

No. 6 Qihuang Hall taught alchemy, and No. 9 Qihuang Hall taught the diagnostic methods of inspection, auscultation, inquiry, and palpation. What would No. 7 and No. 8 teach?

To unlock the Qihuang Halls, Hua Changxi had been busy for over a month. Now, being stuck allowed her to find time to think about other things.

She first returned to Feng'an Alley to check on Pu Cao and Ah Niu.

"What's wrong with you two?"

Seeing that both Pu Cao and Ah Niu were listless, Hua Changxi was somewhat surprised, especially Ah Niu, whose eyes were bloodshot and in a very bad state.

Pu Cao glanced at Ah Niu: "Recently, when night falls, Ah Niu hears the sound of a wooden fish, which disturbs him and makes him restless."

Hua Changxi frowned: "Sound of a wooden fish? Didn't you go ask the neighbors to stop knocking?"

Pu Cao hesitated, as if wanting to say something: "But the problem is, I don't hear the sound of a wooden fish."

Upon hearing this, Hua Changxi's expression immediately turned serious: "Only Ah Niu can hear the sound of the wooden fish?"

Pu Cao nodded: "Changxi, I think Ah Niu might be possessed. He can't sleep at night, and if he does fall asleep, the sound of the wooden fish lures him away."

"Fortunately, Qing Niu lives with Ah Niu. Last month, whenever Ah Niu went to sleep at night, he would try to leave in the middle of the night as if he had lost his soul. Qing Niu grabbed him, and then I heard the commotion and got up to wake Ah Niu up with a slap, so he didn't go out."

Hua Changxi looked at Ah Niu: "The sound of a wooden fish?"

Pu Cao: "I specifically asked the neighbors nearby, but no one said their yard was rented to a monk."

When Hua Changxi heard the word 'monk', her eyes flickered immediately, thinking of Xu Yaoshi's situation.

During this time, Xu Yaoshi hadn't come to find her either. She wondered if Xu Ling and that monk named Konghai had returned.