Di Fuyi's final strike almost took Mr. Zhu's life, as seen from the fractures on the left side of his chest. The broken bones almost punctured his heart, so he dared not move and could only wait for Gu Xijiu to help him.
Gu Xijiu said nothing but proceeded to set the broken ribs. She was weak, but her physical condition did not affect her skills. Soon, three fractured ribs were set back into place. She then applied some medicine to help the wounds heal better.
Her medicine worked like magic. In only about an hour, agility returned to Mr. Zhu. Although the wound still hurt, he could walk freely as if nothing had happened.
"I did not expect to see him here. I never knew that he was willing to go so far all for his beloved sister. Humph! I will not make the Devil Quenching Clothing for him anymore, so he has no way to do business with those from the outside," he spoke with a tone of displeasure.
"Fine, let us not talk about him. Have you got the herbs that I need?" Gu Xijiu interrupted his ranting.
"Of course!" Mr. Zhu quickly showed her his collection.
Gu Xijiu examined the herbs and realized that he really did his best to fulfill her request. Every herb was the best of its kind, and he got a sufficient amount.
Relieved, Gu Xijiu kept the herbs.
"Aren't you going to make the pill?" Mr. Zhu was perplexed.
"That can wait. The toxins in my body are largely gone. I will save these herbs for later. I shall wait until I have the guiding herb before I perform the alchemy to make the ant.i.toxin. By that time, I will make sure that all the toxins in my body will be detoxified."
"What did you mean by the guiding herb? You should have told me about it yesterday. I would have got it for you by now," Mr. Zhu was surprised.
"The guiding herb is not something that you can get within a day or two. It can only be found in a very dangerous place. Even if you manage to get it, the entire journey will last about two weeks," Gu Xijiu answered with a tight smile.
The herbs that Mr. Zhu found for here were fundamentally used as ant.i.toxins. Even without Di Fuyi's help in getting rid of the toxins in her body, she could always make another pill with the help of Mr. Zhu, which would have the same effect as Di Fuyi's method of detoxification.
However, without Di Fuyi, she would certainly be dead by now under the attack of the snake. She was still grateful for his timely arrival.
Mr. Zhu finally understood. "What is the guiding herb?"
"The heart of the Silver Ring Crocodile."
With a frown, Mr. Zhu was troubled. He knew about the Silver Ring Crocodile. They lived in the most dangerous and poisonous swamps.
The poisonous swamps were thousands of miles wide, filled entirely with poisonous gas that allowed no animals to pa.s.s through. No other animals were able to survive in the swamp, except for those that were equally deadly. No humans were able to get close, too.
Although Mr. Zhu liked to mess around with different poisons all the time, the poisonous swamp still remained as a headache to him.
"Is there any other way to detoxify the toxins in your body?" Mr. Zhu was determined to find another method.
"No," Gu Xijiu dismissed it with a shake of her head.
"In that case, I will do all I can to get the other half of the ant.i.toxin from Yuanyuan!" Mr. Zhu had a feeling that this would be an easier alternative.
Gu Xijiu disagreed, "I have studied the poison. The two separate portions must be taken at the same time. Otherwise, the other half of the ant.i.toxin will be useless. Maybe it will make the situation even worse."
"What if you fail to detoxify all the toxins?"
"I will have one year left to live." Gu Xijiu calmly explained the harsh truth of her short lifespan.
