Volume One: First Signs of Brilliance Chapter 85: Old Huang

As noon approached, Wang Jue finally managed to coax his sister Wang Xiaoyu—who never wanted to leave home as long as there were snacks—out for lunch at a noodle shop. After a simple meal, Wang Jue handed his sister over to their parents and left the restaurant alone. He first returned home to fetch the spirit herb, then headed to the commercial district.

“Where’s number 110?” Wang Jue looked around, trying to find the storefront of the First Apothecary.

To be honest, Wang Jue was quite familiar with District Three, but as for District One, he barely knew his way around, let alone trying to find a specific shop in such a huge commercial area.

What truly frustrated him was the odd layout of the street: the shop numbers weren’t sequential but scattered all over. No doubt there was some order to it, but it was clearly not one Wang Jue knew. After all, he didn’t know anyone here.

Meanwhile, not far away, two men in their early thirties who had been about to leave suddenly stopped and turned to look at Wang Jue.

“Mouse, are you sure?” The man on the left, with shoulder-length hair and a shifty look about him, glanced at Wang Jue but didn’t notice anything unusual. He eyed his companion skeptically.

The short man beside him, wearing a cap, narrowed his eyes and sniffed the air, as if sensing something. He soon confirmed, “Heh, don’t forget, my nose is my livelihood. I can’t be wrong. That kid’s carrying a spirit herb, though I can’t tell what grade.”

The long-haired man’s eyes lit up. “Looks like it’s his first time here. Should we take it?”

“Of course! Why wouldn’t we?” The short man sneered coldly. “A single spirit herb goes for at least fifty thousand. If it’s a higher grade, this score could keep us comfortable for a while.”

The long-haired man glanced cautiously around, hesitating. “In broad daylight, if we snatch it outright, we could attract the security squad…”

“Use your brain, will you? Even if you get the herb, how will you sell it? An open robbery brings nothing but trouble. We wait until he’s sold it, intercept him on his way out, then vanish. The sky’s the limit.”

“You’re always the careful one!” The long-haired man gave a thumbs-up, flattering him.

The short man grinned smugly. “Alright, quit the flattery. You stick to the kid and keep in touch by phone. I’ll wait in the usual spot.”

“No problem.”

At that moment, Wang Jue had no idea he was already being targeted for the spirit herb he carried. For half an hour, he wandered the commercial street like a headless fly, peering here and there. In the end, unable to bear it any longer, he ducked into a drink shop. While buying a beverage, he asked the owner for directions. By coincidence, the owner knew exactly where to go and, perhaps because Wang Jue was a customer, readily gave him the address.

Thanks to this information, Wang Jue found the First Apothecary in about ten minutes.

“Who are you looking for?” Inside the shop, an old man lay on a bench. When Wang Jue entered, he questioned him at once.

The old man had snow-white hair and clouded eyes. He held a long-stemmed pipe and took regular puffs, but his voice was strong and clear.

Wang Jue glanced around. “Hello, sir, I’m looking for Old Huang.”

The old man paused mid-puff, said nothing, but scrutinized Wang Jue before pressing a button at his side.

Soon, an exasperated voice sounded from within: “Old man, I told you not to bother me unless it’s important! My potion was just about finished, and you startled me—now it’s ruined!”

A young man in a white lab coat, glasses perched thickly on his nose, stormed out from behind the curtain, grumbling as he peeled off a pair of special gloves stained with dried red residue—enough to remind any onlooker of blood.

“Don’t blame me. He asked for you by name.” The old man pointed his pipe at Wang Jue, who stood a step away from the door.

“Uh…” The young man paused, following the direction of the pipe, studying Wang Jue in confusion. “I don’t know you. How do you know me? How do you know my nickname? Who are you? What do you want?”

Without a change of expression, he rattled off four questions and fixed his gaze on Wang Jue, waiting for an explanation.

Without a word, Wang Jue presented the business card from his pocket, speaking efficiently as if to head off a barrage of further questions: “Monkey sent me.”

Seeing the distinctive card, the young man’s attitude softened. He examined it carefully, then handed it back with a smile, his demeanor much warmer. “So, what can I do for you?”

“I’m here to sell a spirit herb,” Wang Jue said straightforwardly.

“A spirit herb?”

Just then, a young man with shoulder-length hair entered the shop. Before the old man could speak, he declared, “Sir, I’m just looking around. No need to serve me.”

It was, of course, one of the pair who’d been tailing Wang Jue.

Seeing a newcomer, Old Huang gestured for Wang Jue to follow him into the back room.

Wang Jue nodded, and the two of them left together.

In a sitting room, Old Huang poured Wang Jue a glass of water before asking, “Where’s the herb? Let me see it.”

“Alright.” Wang Jue took the spirit herb, still in its plastic bag, from his pocket and handed it over.

The moment he saw the precious plant, Old Huang donned gloves and accepted it professionally. He rattled off its uses as if reciting from memory: “Terrestrial bracken root, usable in twenty-one basic formulas, eight intermediate, three advanced…”

“Forty years old. Not bad. I’ll give you four hundred thousand. How’s that sound?”

Wang Jue was taken aback. He’d researched the value of his herb beforehand and knew the going rate was between three hundred and fifty to four hundred thousand. What surprised him was that Old Huang hadn’t tried to haggle him down but had offered the highest market price.

Was this because of Senior Brother Monkey’s introduction?

Thinking it over, Wang Jue decided not to push his luck. “That works.”

At Wang Jue’s agreement, Old Huang relaxed and even managed a rare, albeit stiff, smile, as if he hadn’t smiled in years. “Truth be told, I’m in the middle of a batch, and your bracken root is just what I needed. By the way, I’ve got some potions from recent days—want to have a look?”

“No thanks,” Wang Jue replied, shaking his head. He was here to make money, not spend it.

One spirit herb had earned him four hundred thousand—a deal far more lucrative than selling materials from blood wolves. After all, even with blood beads, a blood wolf fetched little more than twenty thousand, while a first-grade spirit herb brought in the equivalent of twenty wolves. And that was assuming every wolf had a blood bead; otherwise, it would take even more.

Old Huang: “…”

Wang Jue’s flat refusal cut short Old Huang’s pitch.

With the deal done, Wang Jue didn’t linger and took his leave. Old Huang, eager to return to his alchemy with his new herb, simply watched him go.

—

After leaving the back room, Wang Jue exited the apothecary.

The long-haired man in the lobby brightened. “Huh, the kid no longer has the scent of the spirit herb—looks like he sold it!” The thought barely crossed his mind before he whipped out his phone to send a message and prepared to follow.

Suddenly, a pipe blocked his way, and someone grabbed his right arm.

Seeing Wang Jue disappearing down the street, the long-haired man grew anxious and snapped, “Old man, why are you stopping me?!”

“Heh…” The old man smiled broadly, getting straight to the point. “Kid, you can’t touch that one.”

“What are you talking about? I don’t understand. Get out of my way!” The man’s face changed, his voice rising in anger.

The old man took a leisurely puff, exhaled a smoke ring, and spoke as if making small talk, betraying no hint of menace. “He’s a friend of Master Huang. If something happens to him, you won’t be able to handle the consequences.”

Master Huang?!

The long-haired man’s expression changed instantly. He wrenched himself free and hurried from the shop, panic-stricken. Remembering his companion’s plan, he scrambled to send a message: “Don’t do anything! He’s one of Master Huang’s people! Cancel the plan! Don’t mess around!”

But as he hurried along, there was no reply. His face went ashen as he realized his partner might already have acted. His legs nearly buckled beneath him.

If they’d truly crossed Master Huang’s people, the two of them might not survive the night…

Five minutes later, the long-haired man arrived at their meeting spot, only to find his short companion lying in an alley, face covered in blood, his cap on the ground beside him, and clear signs of having been searched.

“Master Huang! It must’ve been Master Huang!”

The sight chilled the man to his core. He stumbled back, trembling. “No, I don’t want to die, I need to get out of here…”

Suddenly, just as he was about to run, a gloved hand clamped down on his shoulder. Before he could turn, darkness engulfed his vision and he collapsed.

—

By this time, Wang Jue had already arrived at the Martial Association to “shear some sheep.”

Perhaps because there were no classes today, Wang Jue spent nearly two hours at the association, racking up more than a hundred thousand experience points.

Seeing he had enough to upgrade his secret technique, Heaven-Cleaving Slash, from Minor to Major Mastery, he did so without hesitation.

With the upgrade complete, Wang Jue didn’t linger at the association but made his way to the martial hall.

“Junior, I’ve got news for you,” Monkey greeted him at the entrance, keeping his voice low. “If your team returns to Blood Wolf Valley, keep an eye out for Wolfblood Flower. Some alchemists recently found it can substitute for a rare ingredient in restorative potions. The news hasn’t spread yet, so I’m telling you in advance—I’ll pay fifty thousand for each one you bring. Since we’re brothers, I won’t cheat you.”

“Wolfblood Flower?” Wang Jue’s eyes gleamed.

Monkey nodded. “Exactly. It’s not a spirit herb, but it’s not common either. It mainly grows deep in blood wolf territory.”