Chapter 2: Proving Oneself

Not long after, the burly man arrived outside the hall where the old chieftain was resting, and saw the young chieftain waving a horsewhip, irritably lashing at a large tree in the courtyard.

"Erniu, are the people in the prison behaving?" Seeing the burly man approach, Ye Hongxiu stopped and asked.

"Young chieftain, they're all quiet. I gave them cornbread. If you ask me, they all caused the old chieftain to be poisoned—they deserve to die, shouldn't even be fed," Erniu nodded, grumbling resentfully.

"They're just bait used to divert attention, all ordinary people. Don't trouble them. The ones truly deserving death are those from Hidden Tiger Village—they colluded with the Five Venoms Sect to plot against my father. That debt will be settled sooner or later," Ye Hongxiu replied coldly, her face frosted.

She waved her hand to dismiss Erniu. He bowed and turned to leave, but after a few steps, he heard the young chieftain sigh behind him. Turning, he saw her wiping away tears and paused.

"Young chieftain—"

"Erniu, is there something else?" Ye Hongxiu wiped her tears, gazing coldly at him.

"Young chieftain, among those imprisoned, there's a bookish fellow. Not sure if he heard about your promise, but he claims to know medicine and can cure the old chieftain. I don't know if he's telling the truth, but I thought I should report it," Erniu said.

"Really? Take me to him," Ye Hongxiu was stunned, then commanded. At this point, she would not abandon even the slimmest hope.

"Boy, the young chieftain's here to ask—do you truly know medicine?" Soon, Erniu brought Ye Hongxiu to Fang Xian's cell. He knocked on the bars and questioned.

"Of course I do," Fang Xian replied lazily, glancing at the beautiful Ye Hongxiu.

"Do you dare drink a cup of poisoned wine, then detoxify yourself, to prove your skill?" Ye Hongxiu said coolly.

Fang Xian was taken aback by the demand, but confident in his toxicology: "As long as it's not the kind that kills instantly upon blood contact, I can try."

Ye Hongxiu was surprised—he was truly willing to test himself, likely not just boasting. Hope flickered in her heart.

"Open the door, bring him out," Ye Hongxiu ordered Erniu.

Erniu quickly unlocked the cell and pulled Fang Xian out. Ye Hongxiu patted his shoulder, finding his energy and blood ordinary, not a martial artist, which set her mind at ease.

"It's poisoned wine with Gut-Severing Powder. If you can't detoxify within a day, you'll die painfully. Do you dare?" she asked.

"Bring the wine," Fang Xian said, taking the wine gourd she handed him. He shook it—full to the brim.

He tasted a sip, finding it pungent, spicy, and fishy, quickly identifying the components of Gut-Severing Powder. Confident, he drank deeply, certain he could detoxify himself.

"Is this enough? Do I need to finish it?" Fang Xian paused after drinking half the gourd.

Ye Hongxiu checked the gourd, shocked he'd drunk so much, and quickly nodded. "That's enough."

"Does the village have various medicinal herbs? I need to prepare an antidote," Fang Xian asked directly.

"Follow me." Ye Hongxiu led him to Master Liu's residence, which also served as the village clinic. All who knew medicine lived here, and the collected herbs were stored here.

"Grandpa Liu, this man claims he can detoxify. He's already drunk poisoned wine with Gut-Severing Powder, and needs herbs to make an antidote," Ye Hongxiu explained.

"Young man, you truly know detoxification? If so, please cure the old chieftain. You may choose any herb you need," Master Liu said, both surprised and delighted.

Fang Xian said nothing more, and entered the herb storeroom to select ingredients, quickly picking out more than ten types.

In front of Ye Hongxiu, Master Liu, and others, he began preparing the antidote. The process was complex—extracting the essence and merging it. It took an hour.

Finally, Fang Xian succeeded, producing eight red pills called Detoxifying Pellets. Master Liu, though a veteran physician, knew little of toxicology and couldn't understand Fang Xian's methods, but was curious about the red pills.

"Master Liu, please check my pulse before I take the antidote," Fang Xian's face was pale, a thin black line appeared on his wrist—the poison slowly taking effect.

"The pulse is weak and faltering, trending toward decline. The poison is indeed acting," Master Liu reported to Ye Hongxiu.

"Good, take the antidote. No matter what happens, I'll spare your life," Ye Hongxiu nodded, her manner softening, seeing Fang Xian as a valuable asset to the village.

Fang Xian sat, had a bowl of clear water brought, took a Detoxifying Pellet, and closed his eyes to await the cure.

Meanwhile, more people gathered at the clinic. Besides the dozen within, others passing by stopped after hearing the news. Even Zhou Boxiong arrived, accompanied by a man in his thirties and a young girl.

"Hongxiu, can he really detoxify?" Zhou Boxiong asked as he entered.

"Second uncle, big brother, little sister," Ye Hongxiu greeted them with a smile, "He drank half a gourd of poisoned wine, made his own antidote, and Master Liu checked his pulse—he was showing symptoms of poisoning. Now he's taken the antidote. I've also checked—he's an ordinary man, no martial training," she explained.

"Let's hope he can cure our elder," said the thirty-year-old Zhou Tianming, Zhou Boxiong's son. The girl was Zhou Yuyan, his daughter.

"Who is this? Does he really know detoxification?" whispered someone in the crowd.

"Erniu said he's one of the prisoners, brought up yesterday. Who knows if he's telling the truth?"

"Perhaps he's just hoping for luck, hearing the young chieftain's promise?"

"Weren't you going to try your luck too? Why didn't you dare drink the poisoned wine? He actually drank it!"

"He really did? Is he mad?"

"Maybe he truly knows how to detoxify? He's made antidote pills, hasn't he?"

"Or maybe they're just random concoctions, hoping for luck."

The crowd murmured, careful not to disturb Fang Xian and jeopardize the old chieftain's rescue. Still, some doubted Fang Xian's abilities.

Suddenly, about half an hour later, Fang Xian spat blood—first several mouthfuls of black blood, then red. His complexion grew rosy, the black line on his wrist vanished.

"Master Liu, quickly, check his pulse again!" Ye Hongxiu cried, delighted.

"His pulse is strong and steady, full of vitality. The poison is gone," Master Liu announced, elated.

Just then, a voice echoed in Fang Xian's mind: "Host has used toxicology to cure himself—reward: Universal Detox Pellet, cures any poison."

Fang Xian checked his system panel—it now read: "Famous Person System, host Fang Xian, courtesy name Mingda. Skills: toxicology. Items: Universal Detox Pellet (1), Detoxifying Pellets (7)."

Young lady, I apologize for any offense," Ye Hongxiu immediately bowed to Fang Xian. Now proven capable, he was the village's hope.

"Sir, please cure my elder brother—we will reward you greatly," Zhou Boxiong said, delighted, bowing as well.

"Please cure the old chieftain," the crowd echoed, bowing respectfully, knowing the old chieftain was a grandmaster, the pillar of Qingyun Village.

"You are too kind, young chieftain. Please rise, all of you. I will do my utmost," Fang Xian replied, bowing.

"May I ask your name, sir?" Zhou Tianming inquired.

"I am Fang Xian, courtesy name Mingda. Greetings, second chieftain, young chieftain, and brave fellows," Fang Xian smiled.

"Please, Master Fang, come to my father's resting place. Erniu, thank you for reporting this, otherwise we would never have known Master Fang could detoxify," Ye Hongxiu said, praising Erniu.

"Hehe, I was just worried about the old chieftain, so I thought to try," Erniu chuckled.

"This Fang Xian truly knows detoxification—now the old chieftain is saved!"

"If Master Fang rescues the old chieftain, won't he marry the young chieftain?"

"He deserves it, as he is our great benefactor."

"Indeed. If Master Fang saves the old chieftain, I'd gladly be his servant girl!"

As Ye Hongxiu led Fang Xian away, the crowd erupted in lively discussion, faces bright with smiles, many praising Fang Xian sincerely.

"Host's reputation rises slightly, earning 15 Fame Points," Fang Xian received a system prompt—though not a reward, he gained points. He had no time to study their use.

Soon, Ye Hongxiu led Fang Xian to Ye Qingyun's resting place, where he lay on a bed, a layer of black mist on his face.

"Father, this is Master Fang Xian, skilled in detoxification. He drank poisoned wine and cured himself," Ye Hongxiu explained as Ye Qingyun opened his eyes.

"Thank you, Master Fang," Ye Qingyun nodded, then closed his eyes.

Fang Xian took his sleeve, noticing black lines had spread to the elbows, his body trembling, clearly exerting internal energy to resist the poison, though it wouldn't last much longer.

Fang Xian checked his pulse, then had Ye Qingyun remove his shirt, revealing black lines on his abdomen. Fang Xian's expression grew grave.

Though he now possessed the Universal Detox Pellet, enough to cure Ye Qingyun, he could not simply produce it—the villagers would wonder how he suddenly had such a thing.

Moreover, even if he claimed it was a family heirloom, curing Ye Qingyun so easily would not earn lasting gratitude and debt from Qingyun Village. Thus, he did not hurry to detoxify him, confident Ye Qingyun's martial skill could endure another day or two.