Chapter 129 Professor Zheng Seeks Help, Ning Jinli Returns to Eagle's Den to Catch a Snake

"It's because..." Duan Wu replied slowly with a solemn expression, "It's because of natural disasters and man-made calamities that have led to widespread suffering and making it a luxury to have enough to eat."

Ning Jinli nodded slightly. "Humanity has limited influence over natural disasters, so what about man-made disasters? What is the greatest man-made disaster?"

“It’s war,” Duan Wu blurted out.

“That’s right!” Ning Jinli said seriously, “The endless wars, large and small, over the years, are constantly consuming everything, including human lives. People live on the edge, and just surviving has become a luxury. How can they possibly withstand various natural disasters?”

Duan Wu said, "Fairy, I understand. If we want them to live a peaceful life, there can be no war. But... even if we don't fight, the Yu Kingdom will still attack."

“That’s true,” Ning Jinli snapped her fingers, “So we must end the war between the seven major states of the Central Plains. What’s the only way?”

"Unify the world!" Duan Wu shouted. "I understand! We must unify the world so that everyone can live a peaceful and stable life!"

In an instant, the other soldiers present also realized the truth and felt an unprecedented sense of mission welling up from the depths of their hearts.

Ning Jinli looked around and said, "So, you should understand how to treat ordinary people from other countries. Besides, the people of the Central Plains are all of the same lineage and origin as the Chinese nation. They are originally our own people."

"Yes, I understand! Thank you for your guidance, Fairy." Duan Wu clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.

Ning Jinli looked pleased.

She had always worried that the deaths of General Duan and the soldiers of Xitun Pass would plant seeds of extreme hatred in the hearts of Duan Wu and the surviving soldiers.

Hatred can be a driving force, but it can also make people lose their minds and do wrong things.

If these seeds are allowed to take root and sprout, people like Duan Wu will only become killing machines in the future.

This time, I finally found an opportunity to instill the right mindset in them.

"Gentlemen," Duan Wu said, cupping his fists to the people of Yu Kingdom, "Just now, I was blinded by hatred and almost took my anger out on you. Please forgive me. Rest assured, you will be protected here from now on. Once we get rid of that incompetent and foolish king of Yu Kingdom, you can stay in Linxian City or go back to your hometown, it's up to you!"

The crowd was stunned for a moment, then burst into tears and wept uncontrollably.

They slowly stood up, weeping as they returned the greeting to Duan Wu, then knelt down again and kowtowed deeply to Ning Jinli.

If it weren't for the appearance of this woman known as a fairy, they would have truly perished.

"Duan Wu, arrange for some people to take them to settle in," Ning Jinli said. "I have something else to tell you."

"Yes, fairy."

Duan Wu immediately complied.

Subsequently, Ning Jinli told Duan Wu that Xiao Qidi would be in charge of the preparations for the next two to three months, and that Duan Wu would be in charge of training the 100,000-strong Da Xuan Army brought by General Zhang.

"One hundred thousand Great Xuan Army... all... all under my command?" Duan Wu was shocked.

Ning Jinli smiled and nodded.

Duan Wu hesitated, "But Fairy, I...I'm a little unsure. Do you and the Emperor really trust me so much?"

Ning Jinli recalled how Xiao Qidi had hesitated when she suggested to him that Duan Wu be the commander-in-chief of the Extinction Kingdom.

At the time, Xiao Qidi said that Duan Wu's temperament was not calm enough and he needed more experience.

Ning Jinli then told him that, according to historical records, when the Great Xuan conquered the six kingdoms, the first one to be conquered was the Yu Kingdom, and the general who led the war to destroy the Yu Kingdom was none other than Duan Wu.

So Xiao Qidi finally agreed.

However, Ning Jinli also had her own considerations. If she hadn't just seen Duan Wu suddenly understand after her guidance, she wouldn't have made her decision so quickly.

"Don't worry, you can shoulder the heavy responsibility of destroying the Yu Kingdom." Ning Jinli didn't tell him what she had just recalled, but gave him a very firm affirmation.

Duan Wu's eyes no longer wavered. He knelt on one knee, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said loudly, "This humble general will certainly not fail the trust placed in him by His Majesty and the fairy!"

“Just go ahead and train those soldiers,” Ning Jinli helped him up and continued to reassure him. “You can build whatever kind of army you want. I’ll provide whatever equipment and weapons you need.”

Duan Wu almost jumped up in excitement, "Thank you, fairy... thank you, fairy!"

He wasted no more time, mounted a horse, and headed straight for the camp.

At this moment, Xiao Qidi appeared from the corner and walked to Ning Jinli's side.

It turned out that he and Ning Jinli had come together after hearing that some disaster victims had entered the city, but they hadn't shown themselves yet. He had seen everything that had just happened.

"See? I told you he was quick to grasp things, didn't I?" Ning Jinli said with a smirk. "His growth rate is much faster than you think."

Xiao Qidi gazed at Duan Wu's departing figure as he rode away, then slowly withdrew his gaze and said softly, "Jinli, you are still the best."

"Hehe, of course!" Ning Jinli's smile stretched almost to her ears.

“It’s almost noon,” Xiao Qidi said, looking at her expectantly. “Can you have lunch with me?”

Ning Jinli thought for a moment, "I still have to handle some work projects at the factory today, so I need to hurry over."

A hint of disappointment flashed in Xiao Qidi's eyes.

"Pfft," Ning Jinli said with a laugh, "I didn't realize you were so clingy!"

Xiao Qidi's cheeks twitched slightly, and he coughed dryly, "Cough...Is there?"

Ning Jinli quickly looked around, and taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, she tiptoed and quickly kissed Xiao Qidi on the lips. "Be good, let's take care of the important things first. We'll have plenty of time to spend together in the future."

"I'm off now, see you later!" Ning Jinli also mounted a horse next to her and headed towards the Fairy Temple.

As Xiao Qidi watched her retreating figure, he gently touched his lips with his fingers, savoring the softness he had just felt. His ears burned, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up in a smile.

——

After returning to the factory, Ning Jinli hurriedly ate a takeout meal and then went to her office to review the content to be explained at the afternoon meeting.

The factory is progressing very quickly.

Not only have all the previous production lines been put into operation, but the factory buildings in the military industrial area are also almost completed.

They also bought a large plot of land next door to build a petrochemical plant. Once the oil field in Linxian City is completed, crude oil can be transported here.

She uses petrochemical plants to process crude oil at great depths, producing various types of energy and raw materials.

The raw materials can then be directly processed into finished products in her factory and supplied to Linxian City, promoting its development and thus creating a virtuous cycle.

In the afternoon, Ning Jinli held a two-hour meeting with the factory's senior management.

She didn't even have time to rest before rushing off to her pharmaceutical company.

The pharmaceutical company has already begun preliminary drug development, using herbs she brought from Medicine King Valley.

However, Medicine King Valley had previously suffered from the ravages of the Sha Yue barbarian soldiers, and the newly planted herbs had not yet matured, so only a small amount of stock could be brought here for research.

Ning Jinli not only handed over the company's management to Lu Jueming, but also put him in charge of all research and development work.

They even gave him the complete contents of the Shennong Materia Medica.

When Lu Jueming, who already loved traditional Chinese medicine, obtained such a priceless treasure, this wealthy young master from a top-tier family in Xinghan City was completely won over by Ning Jinli.

That not only greatly helped his beloved career, but also made him feel absolutely trusted.

Around three o'clock, Ning Jinli drove to the pharmaceutical company's parking lot. Just as she got out of the car, she suddenly received a call from Professor Zheng.

"Hello, Grandpa Zheng," Ning Jinli greeted him politely.

"Xiao Ning, are you busy?" Professor Zheng's voice sounded heavy on the other end of the phone.

Ning Jinli sensed something was wrong and immediately asked, "Please tell me what's wrong, I'm free."

Professor Zheng sighed, "An old friend of mine is dying, and the hospital has tried everything... I remembered that you pulled me back from the brink of death last time, so..."

“I see,” Ning Jinli said after a moment’s thought. “I just arrived at my pharmaceutical company. Tell me about your old friend later.”

"Thank you so much, Xiao Ning!"

"Grandpa Zheng, please don't be so polite. Please wait for me a moment."

"Okay, okay!"

Ning Jinli immediately headed straight for the company's R&D building.

She knew that Lu Jueming could only be found in the laboratory here.

Sure enough, upon arriving at the laboratory, I saw Lu Jueming fiddling with herbs in front of a pile of instruments.

He was so focused that he didn't even notice Ning Jinli standing next to him.

"Ahem." Ning Jinli coughed lightly.

Lu Jueming stopped what he was doing, turned around, and immediately broke into a big smile. "Miss Ning, when did you arrive?"

"I just arrived, could I trouble you for a moment? I have something urgent to attend to."

"No problem, go ahead and tell me."

Ning Jinli quickly explained the situation, saying that she wanted Lu Jueming, a medical prodigy, to listen to Professor Zheng's description first, and see if they could find a solution in the Shennong Bencao Jing (Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica).

Lu Jueming readily agreed.

Then, Ning Jinli called Professor Zheng.

Professor Zheng said he was right next to his old friend, so he turned on the video call so that Lu Jueming could see the patient's condition in person, while the attending physician from that hospital provided additional details.

Less than ten minutes later, Lu Jueming said that there was indeed a prescription that could work, but it would take some time to make the medicine.

Professor Zheng was overjoyed upon hearing this and hurriedly asked how long it would take.

Lu Jueming looked solemn and said that they should continue to do everything they could to buy more time for the patient, and he would also do his best.

After ending the call, Lu Jueming took out a notebook and quickly wrote down a long list of medicinal herbs. "Miss Ning, this is a prescription from the Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica."

As Ning Jinli looked around, she asked, "Do you have all the medicinal herbs?"

“We have all of the others, but this one is different,” Lu Jueming said, pressing his long index finger on the last herb. “I happened to look up information about it yesterday, but the information I found showed that this thing went extinct hundreds of years ago.”

"Purple-bellied golden-spotted snake?" Ning Jinli frowned. "I've never heard of this kind of snake before."

Lu Jueming looked at her and said, "Miss Ning, you were able to obtain the original Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica and even bring some herbs that should have been extinct long ago. I think you should also have a way to find this kind of snake, right?"

“Snake…” Ning Jinli instantly thought of the Eagle Falling Gorge in Yuqi Mountain. “Tell me quickly, what does this kind of snake look like?”

Lu Jueming pulled a notebook from his breast pocket, quickly flipped through it a few times, and displayed a drawing he had made himself. "This is a drawing I made based on various historical materials I found. I've tried my best to recreate it, but I can't guarantee it—"

"So this is what it is!" Ning Jinli exclaimed before Lu Jueming could finish speaking, "I must say, you drew it quite well!"

Lu Jueming's expression changed.

As expected, Ning Jinli really did manage to find this kind of snake.

However, he didn't want to ask why Ning Jinli had seen a snake that had been extinct for hundreds of years.

Just like why she has the original Shennong's Classic of Materia Medica and why she can produce rare and extinct medicinal herbs.

He was indeed quite curious, but he knew that there were many things he should suppress his curiosity about and just focus on doing what he was supposed to do.

"If I get you a purple-bellied golden-spotted snake, how long will it take you to make the medicine?" Ning Jinli asked.

Lu Jueming said confidently, "Within three hours."

"Okay!" Ning Jinli turned and left.

She had only taken two steps when she quickly stopped, turned back, and asked, "Are there any requirements regarding the size or whether the snake is alive or dead?"

Lu Jueming adjusted his glasses. "Just extract the venom."

How much do you want?

"The more the better..."

"Okay, wait for me!"

Ning Jinli left the laboratory in a flurry of activity.

Lu Jueming didn't waste any time and immediately began processing the existing medicinal materials.

——

Ning Jinli drove at breakneck speed back to the factory. When she arrived at the back door of the small warehouse, she habitually prepared to circulate her internal energy to turn the other side of the time-space tunnel towards her mother's training room in Yuqi Mountain.

Following her plan, she needed to go to Yuqi Mountain first, and then enter Zhuiying Gorge.

But just as she was about to take action, a brilliant idea struck her.

"Huh? Can I just open a passageway inside Eagle Falling Gorge now? If I can succeed, it will save a lot of time."

With a "let's give it a try" attitude, she closed her eyes.

Shangguan Ying had previously stated that she opened the entrance to the space-time tunnel where Xiao Qidi was because she had some kind of sensory connection with him.

Later, she opened a hole in the Xuan Kingdom's palace, which proved this theoretical speculation.

According to this theory, if she establishes a clear sense of other places, she should theoretically be able to open a passageway or entrance.

So, after she closed her eyes, she kept thinking about the scenes of living at the bottom of Eagle Falling Gorge.

Those days were unforgettable, and the impressions are especially deep.

With just a little thought, the memories in my mind become incredibly clear.

Two seconds later.

Ning Jinli opened her eyes in delight, "It actually worked! I'm a genius!"

She clearly felt that she had indeed moved to the other end of the time-space tunnel into the Eagle Falling Gorge, so she walked in without hesitation.

In the blink of an eye, she appeared at the bottom of Falling Eagle Gorge.

Before her was that familiar river, and not far behind her was the cave where she and Xiao Qidi had lived right after she fell down.

Ning Jinli had no time to reminisce about the past, nor did she have time to check her surroundings. She immediately focused all her attention and tried to summon the snakes here with her mind, just like before.

If I remember correctly, one of them was the purple-bellied golden-spotted snake that she needed.

A short while later, in the distant dense forest, in the thick grass piled with fallen leaves, snakes twisted their bodies and poked their heads out.

The rustling sounds were particularly noticeable in the woods.

Suddenly, a figure with a missing arm hurriedly retreated, avoiding the snakes that kept emerging.

Only after confirming that the snakes were not there to attack him did he breathe a sigh of relief and look in confusion in the direction the snakes had gone.

"Since I fell and miraculously survived until now... this is the first time I've seen something so strange..."

"Could something have happened?"