Chapter 69: Sudden Plague [Two-in-One]

When Wei Shengxue opened her eyes, she thought the system had taken her to an unknown place again.

This is a pitch-black cave, a damp and humid environment, there is not even a fire, and there is no cushion or felt on the ground.

This is simply a slap in the face of the guard's service ability.

She wanted to raise her hand to rub her eyes, but found that she couldn't move her hand.

Weishengxue:?

Can't move?

I used my spiritual sense to scan and found that he was tied up?

ah?

What's going on?

She had been in meditation for a day, not a year. How could such a large group of people end up falling into the hands of kidnappers?

Wei Shengxue's spiritual power was activated, like a sharp blade cutting, and he broke free in an instant.

A bright green light lit up in her hand. It was not as bright as a big fireball, but it was enough for people to see the situation clearly.

An empty, damp cave with no one in it.

'system? '

【I am here. 】

The familiar electronic sound made Wei Shengxue feel particularly at ease.

More than two hours after you entered meditation, they encountered bandits. They didn't fight them, so they were all tied up and taken to the mountain. Fusu was in a cave across the way, while the others were kept in separate thatched huts in the mountain stronghold.

Wei Shengxue paused as she was forming a seal. "No, why are you treating me differently?"

"Are our clothes not valuable enough? We only deserve a cave, but they all have thatched huts! Houses!"

The system watched its host, her defenses broken and her feet trembling as she frantically cast cleansing spells upon herself, with a touch of affection. After saving dozens of photos, it immediately entered a state of comfort.

A minute later, Weishengxue's fur was successfully smoothed out, and he walked out of the cave to find Fusu.

"Fusu?" she called softly from outside the cave.

…

There was a sound outside the cave again. Fusu tightly grasped the jade pendant on his waist and looked outside vigilantly. With his other hand, he pulled out a dagger that he had hidden secretly. He stepped hard, waiting for the opponent to get close to him before launching an attack.

"Fusu." A voice with a slightly ethereal feeling seemed to come from the horizon.

The recognizable voice made him recognize the person instantly.

"Master, I'm here."

He released his strength, stood up by holding onto the mountain wall, and staggered out of the cave.

Today was a new moon, and dark clouds obscured the starlight. He could barely see in the darkness, relying only on the mountain wall to move forward. Yet, he felt no panic at all. The moment he heard that voice, all his anxieties seemed to fade away, and he felt the security of his father's presence.

If Wei Shengxue knew what he was thinking, she would definitely take a few steps back, which was unnecessary.

Before getting close to the cave entrance, a faint green light illuminated an area, which was particularly conspicuous in the darkness.

"Master," illuminated by the light, Fusu could barely distinguish the road under his feet. He walked out quickly and looked her up and down several times. Seeing that she looked normal and was dressed neatly, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Then he quickly went over what happened after she entered into meditation. The process was similar to what the system said, but his ability to grasp the key points was much better than the system.

Wei Shengxue extracted several key points from his narrative:

First, the other side had someone who was good at ambushes and surprise attacks, and was very familiar with the terrain. With similar manpower but worse equipment, they almost had the upper hand over them.

Secondly, these bandits exercised restraint and avoided killing anyone if possible. After tying them up, they also gave the wounded some medicine.

Third, there are fields cultivated on the mountain land, a type that has never existed in the Qin Dynasty.

"They have people here who look like doctors, as well as farmers. The one in charge of the command should be a military man." Fusu's brows never relaxed when he talked about this.

I don't know whether these talented people gathered together to become bandits out of selfish motives or because they had someone supporting them from behind.

There were so many people opposing the empire that he had to make plans.

Wei Shengxue nodded to show that she understood, but she had a question, "Why were we thrown into the cave?"

"They couldn't do anything to us, so they had to lock us up separately."

Fusu took off the jade pendant from his waist and held it in his palm, "This is a gift from you to our father, right?"

Wei Shengxue had discovered this jade pendant a long time ago. She could tell at a glance that its restriction had been triggered twice.

"How is the user experience? How strong of an attack can it withstand?"

When this matter was mentioned, Fusu immediately remembered the hidden arrow that almost shot him through. If the jade pendant had not appeared and protected him at the critical moment, he would have been lying in bed unable to move even if he had not died.

That was a truly thrilling shot. I still break out in a cold sweat when I think about it now.

"That arrow should have four stone bows." Fusu expressed his feelings with a heavy heart.

The four-stone bows are the elite among the elite even in the Qin army.

Qin army archers generally had arm strength of two stones, three stones were already a minority, and four stones required the arm strength of a warrior or a fierce general like Wang Ben.

But here it appears.

Wei Shengxue was unaware of his worries. After walking a few steps, she found that there were too many weeds and fallen leaves and it was difficult to walk. She waved her sleeves and flew down the mountain with him.

"Is it over there?"

Fusu lowered his head in shame: "I can't see."

"Oh, I didn't ask you."

At the same time, the system's voice rang in her mind: [Offset 12 degrees to the right, 300 meters away in a straight line, is where they are being held.]

To make it obvious, it even used energy to display a green arrow above the room.

"Shh, be quiet."

The two landed silently, and with the help of spiritual power, no one noticed their arrival.

The torches burned brightly, and the two teams of bandits patrolled alternately, covering almost all blind spots.

Fusu became even more suspicious upon seeing this. The person who deployed this patrol was definitely a military genius, and he would be ranked among the top generals in the Qin Dynasty.

Wei Shengxue noticed the anxiety floating around him and raised a finger to her lips.

Shh.

Don't talk.

[You hide here, I'll go check on them.]

A soft and familiar voice sounded in my ears, and then there was no space around me. The immortal who was here just now had disappeared.

Fusu opened his mouth to call her, but considering the previous instructions, he covered his mouth again, lowered his body, and hid his body behind the trees and bushes.

Wei Shengxue made a hand gesture to hide his figure, and when he appeared again he was already inside the thatched hut.

She looked around and saw only about ten people, all of them injured. Yang Zi was changing their dressings under the candlelight. Judging from his technique, he was using the first aid method she taught him.

It was obvious that she was trying very hard to stop the bleeding from the wound, but the wound was large and deep, and ordinary medicine was washed away by the blood gushing out of the wound as soon as it was applied, and had no effect at all.

The wounded lying here were pale as gold paper, and they were afraid that they would die from excessive blood loss in a short while. In their current state, even if the bleeding could be stopped, their vitality would be severely damaged, and they would need to recuperate for a long time before they could recover.

Wei Shengxue sighed, drew a few healing runes in the air, waved his hand, and pushed them into the wounded man's body. He then took out a few fruits containing spiritual power, crushed the drawing array, and set up a simple warming array in the room.

The effect of spiritual power on mortals can be said to be immediate. As soon as the rune entered the body, the wounds that had been unable to be healed began to heal slowly. The bleeding stopped and scabs formed, which was visible to the naked eye. Even the increasingly weak breathing of the wounded became steady.

This magical scene was an obvious signal to Princess Yangzi. She stood up in surprise and was about to call out when she saw several shadows reflected on the window.

She thought of the bandits guarding outside the window and dared not make a sound. She could only gesture and mouth the words, "Master, you're awake!"

Wei Shengxue first set up a barrier in the house before revealing his figure.

"Why are you the only ones here? Where are the others?"

Princess Yangzi tugged at the wrinkles on her sleeve uncomfortably and replied, "The others were imprisoned in another place. We were unable to move, so we only sent a few people to guard them."

"You said he would wake up within a day, so I tried to stay here and buy time."

"They are the most seriously injured. There are also several people with minor injuries who have been detained there as well."

Wei Shengxue thought of the shocking scenes he had seen when his spiritual consciousness had just spread out, and knocked on the system.

"Tong'er, look for someone."

[One hundred and twenty meters to the right, in the basement.]

[The cell is still fully functional. They've all been disarmed and tied up. No further casualties for now.]

"Cough cough cough... The wind is blowing so hard that I can't help coughing." The voice of a bandit was heard outside the door.

"Ahem, I have a little too. But in this situation, I need to go back to the miracle doctor and ask for a bowl of warming soup."

"Hey, when will this late spring cold snap pass? Everyone in my family is coughing and can't sleep at night."

"Who isn't? There are coughs everywhere in this village. Cough, cough, cough... There were also coughs during the change of seasons in previous years, but not this severe."

"Yeah, yeah, I think so too. The cough has been particularly severe this year. Our second in command, who is as strong as an ox, has also been infected this time. I heard from my second aunt that he couldn't sleep well at night because of the cough."

"Alas," the bandit sighed heavily, "if it weren't for the fact that we spent so much money on the medicine, the boss wouldn't have taken such a tough idea."

They walked away while talking, but revealed enough information.

"Are there many sick people in the village?" Weishengxue asked.

"I don't know." Yang Zi shook her head. She hadn't seen many people since she was captured, and her focus was on her brother and the immortal, so she didn't pay attention to how they were doing.

Wei Shengxue was thinking about Fusu who was still outside and might be discovered at any time, and originally wanted to go back as soon as possible, but she didn't expect to hear such news.

She took out a jade slip and quickly sketched out a defensive formation. "I'm going to explore the village. Take this jade pendant with you. Don't let it go."

…

"System, there are quite a few people who are sick here."

Wei Shengxue, who had already walked around the village, came to this conclusion, "It's a pity that it was just a minor cough and didn't have much impact on them, otherwise we could have organized everyone to take advantage of the opportunity to counterattack."

[Yeah, it's a pity it's just a minor cold.]

Aside from coughing and sneezing, it won't affect your daily activities. It's a minor cold that will clear up within a week with medication or seven days without.

After a stroll back, she saw that Fusu was still the same as when she left, even his posture had not changed.

"Are you okay?" Are your feet numb?

"Master!" Fusu exclaimed in surprise. As soon as the two words came out of his mouth, he immediately covered his mouth and looked around vigilantly, but found that the surrounding environment had changed and they were no longer where they were just now.

"Master, shall we go and rescue them?"

Wei Shengxue was about to agree, but suddenly found that she seemed reluctant? ?

She was silent for a moment, questioning her heart, and it seemed that she really didn't want to leave.

Huh? She clearly wanted to leave, so why did she feel reluctant?

"System, system, help me, help me! I feel like I'm being controlled!"

System: […This is a cultivator's intuition.]

You make a decision based on emotion and reason, but your intuition may sense another option that is more beneficial to you. It is best to follow your intuition at this time.

"Stay and fight head-on?"

[I don't know. I'm not a living being, so I don't have any intuition.]

Wei Shengxue: ...

"We're not leaving yet."

Fusu: Ah?

"Then go rescue people first? Otherwise, we'll be threatened by the hostages."

Wei Shengxue: "That's how you were caught."

Fusu nodded. "At that time, I had the jade pendant to protect me, so they couldn't get close to me. But with the knife on your neck, I didn't dare to take the risk."

Wei Shengxue felt a chill on her neck as he described it, as if she could sense the danger she was in through her imagination. This was the first time she had encountered such a thing, but unfortunately she didn't realize it at the time.

"Let's go, rescue them, and then..." She was silent for a moment, unable to think of what to do, and could only say, "Anyway, go rescue them first."

------

In the core area of ​​the village, in an exceptionally clean yard.

Several candles were lit lavishly here, the flickering candlelight illuminating the bamboo slips that were either spread out or piled up on the table.

Having books, pens and ink, and being able to write are conditions that not everyone can have.

This is the doctor in the mountain stronghold, and he is also the miracle doctor mentioned by those bandits just now.

He was working at his desk, comparing the information on a row of bamboo slips, which recorded the connections between the people who coughed the most severely.

"Aunt Lin went to visit Dashi's family. Two days later, Dashi's wife started coughing. Then his son, who had been playing with the other children in the village, went home. A few days later, these families all started coughing, and then... then most people in the village started coughing..."

Then when did Aunt Lin start coughing?

"Well, I don't remember. It's been about half a month." The person who pushed the door open heard him talking to himself, recalled carefully for a long time, and finally scratched his head and gave up thinking.

The doctor looked up from the bamboo slips and asked, "Ershan, why are you here?"

"Oh, the boss asked me to ask you if you have any medicine that can make you sleep immediately after drinking it. Give a potion to those two in the back mountain."

The doctor's face darkened. "No," he said, seeing that he was about to speak, he immediately started to chase him away. "Get lost! I'm a doctor, not a poison master. Don't come to me for this kind of thing! Get out of here! Don't get in the way here."

After the others left, the doctor looked down at the bamboo slips again, pounding his head in confusion. "Shhh~ There must be some connection between these things. What is it?"

After a while, he dove into the pile of bamboo slips again and rummaged through them. "I feel like this connection is somewhat familiar. Where have I seen it before?"

…

"A cold is always contagious. He's a little too nervous." Wei Shengxue came here after saving people and complained to the system.

"Yes, yes, this minor ailment will heal after the seasons change." The system agreed with her, "But mortals are very fragile, so this might be a serious illness for them."

Wei Shengxue, impersonating her former self, retorted, "It's not that bad. If you're serious, just go to the pharmacy and buy some medicine. If you're not, just drink a few cups of hot water and get over it. It'll be better in a few days anyway. It's just a minor cold, but he's treating it like a terminal illness."

The system couldn't figure it out either. It was a cultivation system, and all previous tasks were carried out in the world of cultivation. The knowledge instilled during creation was also applicable to the world of cultivation. Although the contents of the main system database would be backed up in the database, it was basically just there for viewing, so it really didn't understand the physical condition of mortals.

Yiren Yitong turned around and left in this confusion to join the others.

Logically, the people who gathered should leave the stronghold in time, but the caravan leader lost all his goods and refused to leave.

"Besides, our carriages and horses have been seized by bandits. There is no village or shop here, and the nearest town is dozens of miles away. Are we going to walk all the way here?" The caravan manager tried to persuade them.

They could walk, but these nobles who came out of the Xianyang Palace never touched dust when they walked in and out, so how could they withstand the dozens of miles of mountain roads?

Fusu glanced at him sideways without exposing his little thoughts.

The immortal said yesterday that she didn't want to leave for the time being. They had come with her to broaden their horizons, so they would not leave her alone.

The two parties have different goals, but the results are the same. Sometimes there is no need to be too clear about it. It is better to be confused.

It was still some time before dawn, and they couldn't stand in the forest together in the cold wind, so after discussing it, they returned to the cave in the back mountain. Although it was a bit damp, it was at least a shelter from the wind.

They picked up firewood and lit a fire to dispel the darkness and coldness. They looked at the immortal who seemed particularly friendly in the firelight, and their emotions, which had been anxious for the whole day, suddenly relaxed.

As their tense minds relaxed, sleepiness began to creep in, and yawns began to rise one after another, as if contagious. Everyone looked at each other, and the most energetic people took turns keeping watch. The others huddled together, fully clothed, and slept, resting their energy for tomorrow's "battle."

Fusu moved a few feet closer to Weishengxue, lowering his voice and asking softly, "Don't you need to bring Yangzi out?"

Wei Shengxue conveniently set up a soundproof barrier and replied in her normal voice, "I made her an amulet and sent her a message. Her conditions there are much better than staying in this cave with us."

With the amulet, no one else could hurt her, so there was no need to worry after passing on the message. Fusu thought about it and decided that there was no need to worry. So he wrapped up his outer robe, went back to the fire, closed his eyes and rested.

The next morning, the one who broke the silence was not the bandits who discovered that the hostages had disappeared, but the doctor who had been buried in bamboo slips all night.

He knocked on the door of the house where the boss was with an almost terrified scream, "Boss, plague!"

He had big dark circles under his eyes, his face was pale, his beard was messy, and his body was covered with traces of ink and herbal juice, like a ghost that had just escaped from a graveyard.

He grabbed the boss's arm in a fit of rage, with such force that it almost bit into the flesh, but the boss was completely oblivious to the pain. All his attention was on what the doctor had just said.

"What plague are you talking about? These people who were just tied up are carrying the plague?!"

He broke free and paced around the room, growling angrily, "I knew I shouldn't have been soft-hearted. I should have just killed them! Someone..."

"No!" the doctor's sharp cry interrupted him, "It's not them! It's us! It's the plague in our village!"

The roar seemed to have drained all his strength, and the doctor's voice became weak. "Our cough is not a simple illness, it's a plague."

The eldest boss instinctively rejected the suggestion: "Impossible! Plague kills people, and we're all still alive." He stared at the doctor like a ferocious beast, "This isn't a plague, it's just a common illness."

The doctor's expression was blank. "Plagues have always been sent from heaven. How could they be diverted by the prayers of mortals? The texts passed down by our predecessors have recorded such plagues."

"It starts out as a minor cough, just a cough. Who cares? Falling while collecting firewood is more serious than that. But it gets worse and worse until it's incurable. It's precisely because people don't take it seriously in the early stages that it spreads more widely. Only when people start dying in large numbers do they realize it's a plague."

The eldest boss was silent for a long time, then asked, "Can he be saved?"

The doctor laughed bitterly and said, "If we had just appeared, we could have given it a try. But now... it's better to take the brothers to the mountain and dig a good grave while we still have the strength, so as not to leave our bodies exposed in the wilderness."

The house fell into an eerie silence again.

Until someone came running over and shouted, "Boss, those people ran away!"

The eldest leader looked up as if awakened, his eyes gleaming with hope. "One of them is impenetrable to swords and knives, and another has a glowing eggshell on his body that will reveal itself if a sword strikes. They must be extraordinary people! They can definitely save the people in the village!"

Without waiting for the doctor's response, he strode out of the yard and raised his voice to order, "Gather the people in the village, bring the best food, and we will go to the back mountain."

As for the possibility that everyone in the prison had escaped, would the people in the back mountain still be there? The boss refused to consider this possibility.

…

In the cave in the back mountain, there were already continuous coughing sounds coming one after another, and many people even felt a slight chill.

But no one paid much attention to it.

After all, he had been frightened all day and slept in a cave in the wilderness with thin clothes for a night. It was normal to catch a cold. Once he got the supplies back, he would boil a few bowls of ginger soup and drink it to sweat it out, and he would be fine.

"If I had the noodles like those from a while ago, I would be well today."

"Hey, you're really imaginative. That noodle soup is so delicious that I even want to swallow my tongue. It's a blessing from the gods that I can eat it once. Do you want to have it again?"

The caravan manager was so shocked by Fusu's cold glance that he broke out in a cold sweat. He turned around and scolded, "Shut up! You shameless idiots! You keep coveting things that don't belong to you!"

Wei Shengxue sat aside without making any statement.

She didn't want to argue with anyone over a few packets of instant noodles, nor was she willing to share them. She just sat there and waited for this to pass.

But this cold spreads pretty fast.

'Isn't that right, Tong'er?'

The system didn't respond for a long time, but Weishengxue didn't take it seriously. He just thought it was having a great time chatting with its gay friends again.

Until the gatekeeper outside the cave ran in and said, "The bandits have discovered that we have escaped and are now gathering their forces to head towards the back mountain!"

They were unarmed and had no way to deal with the bandits. They hastily organized themselves and picked up some stones and sticks, but they were not panicked at all because they had an immortal behind them!

They had no confidence in themselves, but they had full confidence in the immortal. As long as she moved her fingers, the bandit leader or the sharpshooter would be turned into a corpse in minutes.

The bandits came very quickly. Just as they had arranged their offensive and defensive positions, hundreds of young and strong men were already in front of them.

Fusu, the temporary leader of this side, stood in the center and said harshly: "You are occupying the mountains and becoming bandits..."

Just as he opened his mouth to speak, the boss on the opposite side knelt down with a "bang".

The various gangsters behind him dropped their weapons and knelt on the ground.

Fusu was frightened and stopped talking. He looked down at himself.

Could it be that I’ve only been with the immortal for a month or so, and his persuasion is already so powerful?

I don’t know how long this effect will last.

It would be great if my advice to my father could be effective after I return to Xianyang.