Playboy: Medical and Martial Master-Chapter 289: Zhulongjie!

According to Huang Qianggang's original plan, they should have reached Life-breaking Cliff around noon if they had set out in the morning and maintained a normal pace.

But plans rarely keep up with changes.

It wasn't until after four o'clock in the afternoon that the trio finally arrived at Life-breaking Cliff.

The long delay was because Sun Zhe had spent the entire journey collecting herbs.

Many rare and precious herbs, which even professional collectors like Huang Qianggang and Bai Ran couldn't find, seemed to practically present themselves to Sun Zhe, as if he were strolling through his own private garden.

This wasn't because Sun Zhe was lucky; it was because he had been collecting herbs with his grandfather since childhood and had long since developed a keen eye for them.

He knew the growing environments and habits of various herbs like the back of his hand.

For example, upon seeing an inconspicuous weed, he could deduce that a particular medicinal herb had to be growing within a certain radius of it.

「Below Life-breaking Cliff.」

Sun Zhe set down his heavy backpack and looked up at the steep cliff face ahead, which soared over fifty meters high, making him feel utterly insignificant.

The towering cliff before them looked like a great wall placed in the mortal world by the Creator himself.

According to Huang Qianggang, after crossing this "wall," they would officially enter the Life Forbidden Zone.

"Ah Zhe, look."

Bai Ran walked over to Sun Zhe's side and tilted her chin toward the cliff face, gesturing for him to look.

Following her gaze, Sun Zhe saw many small cairns dotting the relatively open, flat patch of grassland at the base of the cliff.

A branch was stuck in the ground before each cairn, with a strip of white cloth tied to it.

"Are those graves?" Sun Zhe asked, looking at Bai Ran's profile.

"Yes. They belong to explorers who fell while climbing, or poachers, or other herb collectors."

"It's too expensive to transport the bodies out, so most are just buried on the spot."

Sun Zhe gazed up at the steep, smooth cliff face again. "No wonder this place is called Life-breaking Cliff."

Bai Ran patted his shoulder. "It's getting dark. Let's camp here for the night to rest and recover. Tomorrow, I'll take you rock climbing."

Sun Zhe laughed. "Aren't you afraid of camping next to so many graves?"

Bai Ran chuckled nonchalantly. "What's there to be afraid of? Years ago, I even dared to camp here overnight all by myself."

Sun Zhe gave her a meaningful look. "Then why were you so scared to go to the bathroom last night?"

Hearing this, Bai Ran's face flushed red. She gave his calf an irritated kick and turned to walk away.

"I'm not talking to you anymore!"

Meanwhile, Huang Qianggang had already chosen a campsite and was taking the tent out of his backpack to set it up.

"I'm serious, Doctor Sun, you're really something else!"

"This bag of herbs you gathered today is worth at least five million, and it could probably fetch an even higher price at auction!"

"Hahaha... I've really learned a lot from following you today!"

"No wonder the two Presidents Su hold you in such high regard."

Sun Zhe simply smiled without a word. He walked to the side, opened the backpack specifically used for herbs, and began to take stock of the day's harvest.

Looking at the rare herbs that money couldn't normally buy, Sun Zhe felt a surge of motivation. Celestial Prison Mountain really is a treasure trove.

In just one day, he had already found a third of the herbs needed to refine the Spirit Crane Pill!

And this was only the edge of the mountain's deeper regions. If he kept going, he was sure to find even more exceptionally rare herbs!

Lost in thought, his gaze suddenly locked onto a large boulder up ahead, and his brows furrowed.

The boulder was over three meters tall. It had likely broken off the cliff and fallen here years ago, and it was now covered with vines, making it look quite unremarkable.

But as Sun Zhe stared at the rock now, his eyes lit up.

Bai Ran, who was squatting beside him and helping to sort the herbs, asked, "What is it, Ah Zhe?"

Sun Zhe suddenly burst out laughing. "White silk! It's really white silk!"

Bai Ran was startled. This guy's getting bolder and bolder. She quickly poked him and shot a discreet glance over at Huang Qianggang.

Seeing that Huang Qianggang was still focused on pitching the tent, she breathed a secret sigh of relief.

She whispered, "He's right there! How dare you ask me to wear white silk?"

"Hmph, white silk, you say? With my style and temperament, do I look like the kind of person who would wear white silk?"

Sun Zhe gave her a strange look. "What are you mumbling about?"

"Nothing."

Bai Ran shot him a withering glare.

Sun Zhe suddenly walked toward the large boulder, laughing joyfully. "I can't believe I actually found White Silk Hulus here!"

"Master Bai?"

Bai Ran was filled with curiosity and hurried after him.

Huang Qianggang was curious as well. He stopped what he was doing and followed them. "Doctor Sun, what's this White Silk Hulus you're talking about?"

Sun Zhe stopped in front of the massive rock and explained with a smile, "This White Silk Hulus is also known as Candle Dragon Sap. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a Divine Medicine. It can cure a hundred diseases and neutralize a hundred poisons. It's something you can only hope to stumble upon, not seek out."

"My grandfather used to have a piece of White Silk Hulus that he used for brewing wine. He used to say that encountering something like this was a blessing accumulated over several lifetimes."

Hearing this, Huang Qianggang and Bai Ran exchanged a look, their faces still full of confusion.

The husband and wife were both professional herb collectors and knew of almost every medicinal plant, but they had never heard of anything called White Silk Hulus.

Sun Zhe stared at the gray vines covering the large boulder, so excited he felt as if he had discovered a hidden treasure.

Just then, Huang Qianggang leaned in for a closer look. "Hey, isn't this just Chicken Skin Vine?"

"Doctor Sun, you don't mean to say the White Silk Hulus is this, do you?"

Sun Zhe nodded and explained, "The leaves and vines of this plant are useless and, in fact, poisonous. Only its root is valuable."

"Its root can only take shape within extremely narrow rock crevices. It grows in flat pieces and becomes woody and incredibly hard over time."

"Because of the many white streaks on its surface, which look like orchid leaves, it's called White Silk Hulus."

Huang Qianggang laughed. "Well, I'll be. It's true you learn something new every day!"

"I've lived this long only to learn today that the root of the Chicken Skin Vine is actually a type of medicine."

"Doctor Sun, I'm really learning so much just by following you!"

Sun Zhe said, "A typical Chicken Skin Vine grows in soil. If it's not old enough, its root won't form a leaf-like shape and will have no medicinal value, which is why nobody pays it any mind."

With that, he pulled the entrenching tool from his belt, walked over, and after brushing aside the gray vines, tried to pry into the crevice in the rock.

Unfortunately, the crevice was so narrow that he couldn't even get the tip of the entrenching tool inside, let alone pry with it.

Bai Ran, who was watching from the side, commented, "That crack is too narrow. You'll have to use some force to get in." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Hearing this, Sun Zhe shot her a sideways glance. Her husband is right here, and she still dares to make a joke like that to my face.

"Brother Huang, Sister-in-law, you two go set up the tent. I can handle this myself. Once I see how much I can get out, we'll split it evenly."

"Hehe, that sounds great!"

By the time evening fell and the sky began to darken, Sun Zhe still hadn't managed to pry open the crevice.

However, he had already used his Yin Yang X-ray Vision and confirmed that what he wanted was indeed inside the rock.

Although the age and quality weren't as good as the piece his grandfather used for brewing wine, the sheer quantity more than made up for it.

In total, there were seven of these rhizomes that resembled orchid leaves!

So, he infused his True Qi into the entrenching tool and continued to pry with all his might!

I'll have these made into pendants later for Yan'Er and Qiaoqiao. They'd make perfect necklaces. This stuff is far more precious than any gold or jewel, and you can't even buy it with money.

"Ranran, watch out!"

As he was muttering to himself, Huang Qianggang's alarmed shout suddenly rang out from the direction of the campsite.

"What's going on?"

Sun Zhe was instantly on alert. He stopped what he was doing and spun around to look.

The moment he turned, he saw Bai Ran sprinting toward him.

"What is it, Sister-in-law?"

Bai Ran yelled urgently, "Ah Zhe, climb the cliff, quickly! A pack of wolves is coming!"