Chapter 67 – Medicine King (1/2)

Chapter 67 – Medicine King

Just as Shenfa Wanxi (Past Destroying God) and Nie Yan were saying their goodbyes, two players near the entrance of the Alchemist Guild erupted into a heated argument. One of the quarrelers, a young man who barely looked twenty, wore plain cotton clothing and the Alchemist Guild’s badge on his chest. His level was low, so most likely he was only at the Apprentice rank in the Alchemist Guild. The other quarreler, an Elementalist who looked to be in his thirties, wore equipment of much higher quality. Tall and robust, he dwarfed his opposition so much that he made the Apprentice Alchemist seem like a child.

“The failure in concocting isn’t my fault this time!”

“Not your fault? Then are you implying it’s mine!?”

“Yes! They set me up to fail when I was concocting!”

“Peh! Our captain provided you with so many ingredients, yet they were all turned into useless garbage by you. We can’t even recoup our losses! I heard you got lucky and learned some sort of hidden skill. Good, get lucky and scram out of my sight before I make you eat shit too!” Obscenities and curses poured out of the Elementalist’s mouth. The moment he finished speaking, he slapped the apprentice Alchemist in the face and knocked several alchemy tools and other items to the ground.

The slap sent the Apprentice Alchemist tumbling down the guild entrance staircase. As he lay sprawled out on the ground, he lifted his head and hatefully glared at the Elementalist.

“Ahhh!? What the hell are you staring at? You got something to say? Keep staring and I’ll make you eat the dirt even harder! Get lost!” The Elementalist’s eyes bulged out of their sockets as he glared threateningly at the Apprentice Alchemist.

The Apprentice Alchemist glanced at the Elementalist once more. Eventually, he lowered his eyes and silently collected his tools off the floor.

“Bitch!” The Elementalist stamped on the Apprentice Alchemist’s chest and knocked him back to the ground. The Apprentice Alchemist didn’t retaliate; he remained taciturn, simply staggering back to his knees and continued picking up his things.

…

“Isn’t he too much of a pushover? Even after being kicked, he didn’t even make a sound!” Shenfa Wanxi couldn’t help voicing his opinion. The scene had left a bad taste in his mouth.

“The way he dealt with the situation isn’t wrong. Right now, he probably has no choice but to endure. I believe by the time he rises in standing, it still won’t necessarily be too late for him to retaliate,” Nie Yan said with a peculiar expression in his eye. Despite taking on the abuse, the determination still hadn’t faded from the Apprentice Alchemist’s eyes. Those who could patiently endure were especially terrifying.

Shenfa Wanxi tilted his head back to look at Nie Yan. The latter’s words took him by surprise. Nie Yan was likely someone similar to himself, a person who refused to be on the short end of the stick. If anyone were to offend him, then they would definitely be met with appropriate retaliation. However, Shenfa Wanxi suddenly saw Nie Yan’s expression change to pleasant surprise. He was gazing at the Apprentice Alchemist like he found some kind of treasure.

“So it was him… It really is true; be they enemies or friends, both are bound to be met on a narrow path!” Nie Yan muttered to himself in a low voice. He recognized this Apprentice Alchemist, but it wasn’t because they were friends. No, rather they were enemies. If things stayed on course, this person would eventually become one of Victorious Return’s most faithful dogs. In his original timeline, over a tenth of Victorious Return’s various high-level potions, pills, tonics, and other drugs were concocted by this one person; several of which could only be concocted by him.

Nie Yan had suffered heavily due to the oppressive manpower Victorious Return possessed, but those vile concoctions were also one of the factors that led to his many defeats. While in the wilderness, he had once encountered a squadron of Victorious Return members. At that time, he was unaware those players were escorting this Alchemist on a quest, and usually, he and his friends wouldn’t be at a disadvantage when facing off against such a group. However, who could have imagined each and every one of those players would take out some crafty, eccentric pill that bolstered their combat power by many fold. So, under the effects of those pills, he and his friends were beaten to a wretched state.

The Apprentice Alchemist in front of his eyes was called Bird Leaves No Eggs. Owing to the fact that his name was unpleasant to the ears, because the “Bird” in his name could also be read as “Penis,” the members of Victorious Return didn’t feel comfortable addressing him directly by name. Thus, they gave him the nickname of Medicine King. This title was rather suitable, considering the numerous contributions his concoctions brought to the guild.

However, at this moment, Bird was merely an Apprentice Alchemist. He had just been kicked, both literally and figuratively, out of the Dark Hero guild. In a month’s time, Victorious Return would recruit and attach great importance to him due to their guild leader showing him kindness and recognizing his worth. This was the reason for his unwavering loyalty and dedication to the guild. In other words, he was a person who did have somewhat of a moral compass.

Even if he’s the Medicine King, he’s only an Apprentice Alchemist right now… Whether he’ll be worth the investment remains to be seen. Nie Yan pondered for a while. Bird’s success wouldn’t have been possible without Victorious Return’s generous support. They had supplied him with an ample amount of alchemic ingredients and slowly nurtured him until he became the Medicine King in both title and ability, to the extent his name resounded throughout the entire Atlanta continent.

After considering his current financial resources, Nie Yan decided fostering the Medicine King absolutely wouldn’t pose any problems. If he wished to succeed in the future, he needed to slowly build up his influence at present. He wanted to set up his own businesses in the game: an alchemy store, equipment shop, auction house, he couldn’t be lacking in a single one. However, what he was in most urgent need of was talented people, and fortunately, an opportunity to recruit one such person had presented itself. He felt taking Bird under his wing would undoubtedly be the correct choice.