Though it was well past lunchtime, Chu Mu had forgotten all about food and rest. His expression was more solemn and focused than ever before, completely immersed in the dozens of wooden boxes before him.

It took Chu Mu from high noon until dusk to just barely finish identifying the mere twenty-eight wooden boxes.

After several hours of intense concentration, he should have been utterly exhausted. But the bright light in Chu Mu’s eyes proved that, at this moment, his heart was anything but calm.

Twenty-eight wooden boxes. Twenty-eight herbs.

The oldest among them was a Cyan Spoon, approximately seventy years of age.

Even the youngest herb was at least ten years old.

What does it mean for something to be priceless?

These twenty-eight wooden boxes before him—this was the very definition of priceless!

After all, herbs used in common medical practice were ordinary materials, most with a growth cycle of only one year.

Even the formula he used to support his Body Refining Technique cultivation was made from ordinary herbs.

Before today, he could have searched every last cabinet in the pharmacy and would not have found a single herb of significant age.

According to the medical texts, while most herbs and plants could continue to grow beyond their normal cycle, doing so required extremely strict conditions regarding environment, climate, and all other related factors.

It was no exaggeration to say that every single aged herb was a miracle of nature itself!

He had once asked Elder Li about aged herbs, only to receive a single word in reply: "Rare."

Now, gazing at the twenty-eight wooden boxes, Chu Mu felt as if he were lost in a dream.

"Well?"

As Chu Mu was lost in thought, Elder Li spoke quietly.

Chu Mu paused, startled. He then stood, bowed, and clasped his hands in a fist-and-palm salute. For the first time, his respect was truly sincere.

Previously, whether it was Elder Li treating his injuries, learning the basics of Qi and Blood Cultivation, or his current medical studies, Chu Mu had seen it all as nothing more than a monetary transaction.

He paid, and Elder Li provided knowledge. It was a fair exchange, nothing more.

But this time, these twenty-eight aged herbs went far beyond the bounds of a fair exchange.

This was true even if, after examining them, the herbs were taken away and had nothing more to do with him.

But the experience alone... where could he possibly find such an opportunity, even with ten thousand gold pieces?

He simply didn’t have the connections! With his current status, he had no way of ever encountering them!

Whatever Elder Li’s motives for this gesture were, to Chu Mu, it was an undeniable, immense kindness!

Elder Li picked up a Wooden Box, took out the Cyan Calm Ginseng inside, and examined it as he asked casually,

"This stalk of Cyan Calm Ginseng—what is its age?"

Chu Mu focused his gaze on it for a moment before replying respectfully, "Approximately thirty years."

Elder Li frowned. "How many years, exactly?"

Chu Mu considered this for a moment, then shook his head.

"I... I am too dull. I do not know. Please, Elder Li, I ask for your instruction."

Elder Li didn’t answer, instead changing the subject abruptly. "What is the growth cycle of this Cyan Calm Ginseng?"

Chu Mu replied without hesitation, "The Hundred Herbs Atlas records that Cyan Calm Ginseng sprouts in early spring, matures in three years, and withers in the last month of winter."

"Brother Mu, you know your medical texts well."

Elder Li’s face showed his approval. "Then, Brother Mu, are you aware that all medicinal uses recorded in the texts are based on a Cyan Calm Ginseng’s standard three-year cycle?"

Chu Mu paused, not quite grasping what Elder Li was implying.

Then, as if struck by a flash of inspiration, his expression turned grave. After quickly organizing his words, Chu Mu couldn’t wait to speak.

"Elder Li, you mean to say that to use an aged herb such as this, one must determine its exact age to understand its specific medicinal properties!"

"Brother Mu, you truly are gifted."

Elder Li’s expression grew serious. "A tiny error can lead to a huge discrepancy."

"Once any herb or plant surpasses its natural growth cycle, it is in a struggle against fate itself. Every year, even every month, of additional growth is a metamorphosis, and its medicinal properties are bound to change dramatically."

"A Cyan Calm Ginseng at the end of its normal three-year cycle and one that has grown beyond that cycle can be considered two completely different herbs."

"A Cyan Calm Ginseng that has just surpassed its three-year cycle and one that has grown for six years can also be considered two different herbs."

"Brother Mu, you are well-read in the medical texts, so you surely know that once a plant surpasses its growth cycle, it has extremely demanding requirements for its environment and climate."

"Some may even undergo unpredictable changes due to differences in their environment."

"Some may not change in appearance at all, but their medicinal properties can be altered entirely. It’s not impossible for a tonic to turn into a poison. These kinds of changes cannot be judged by common logic."

"Therefore, the first principle of medicine is to know the herbs!"

"Knowing the precise age and precise properties of an herb—the level of precision you can achieve will largely determine how far you can walk this path, Brother Mu!"

Chu Mu was stunned. This entire theory was so far beyond his scope of understanding that it struck him like a clap of thunder, leaving him unable to react.

’To know people, to know herbs...’

’My understanding was so shallow...’

Chu Mu took a deep breath, engraving the lesson deep into his heart. He bowed. "I... accept your teaching!"

Elder Li paid Chu Mu no mind, his slightly clouded eyes fixed on the Cyan Calm Ginseng in his hand.

He then broke off a thin rootlet and placed it in his mouth. After chewing for a moment, Elder Li spoke slowly, "This stalk of Cyan Calm Ginseng is thirty-six years and eight months old. In the secular world, it could be considered a Supreme Treasure..."

Despite identifying the herb’s age down to the very month, Elder Li showed no pride. On the contrary, his expression held an unconcealable sadness.

It was as if chewing that tiny rootlet had stirred up some painful memory from the old man’s past.

Chu Mu was speechless. He couldn’t begin to imagine the profound experience required to be that precise, down to the very month.

After all, he couldn’t even get his hands on a single aged herb, let alone enough of them to build up experience—to say nothing of accumulating such profound expertise.

"Hm?"

In the midst of his astonishment, Chu Mu’s brow suddenly furrowed, and his gaze instantly locked onto the Cyan Calm Ginseng in Elder Li’s hand.

A craving!

An indescribable craving!

Chu Mu turned his senses inward.

He was certain it was not an illusion.

Just a moment ago, after Elder Li had snapped off that thin rootlet from the Cyan Calm Ginseng, this feeling of intense craving had welled up from within his body for no apparent reason.

It was just like...

Chu Mu’s pupils contracted. ’That night, with that blood-red Elixir Pill... wasn’t the craving just like this?’

’This Cyan Calm Ginseng...’

Chu Mu whipped his head around to look at the Cyan Calm Ginseng in Elder Li’s hand again.

’An age of thirty-six years and eight months... does that give it such a miraculous effect?’

’Then why didn’t I feel this when I was holding it a moment ago?’

’The rootlet?’

Chu Mu’s gaze locked onto the point where the rootlet had been snapped off, and he seemed to have his answer.

’Was it because the rootlet was broken, releasing some kind of essence that stirred the craving in my body?’ 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

...