Bai Huan was greatly puzzled. These medicinal herbs could be found everywhere on Tianmu Peak, so who would squander pills to exchange for herbs? These were two completely different things. Thus, unable to believe it, he asked, “Is what Junior Brother Ren said just now true? Medicinal herbs can really be exchanged for pills?”

Zhang Xiaohua smiled and said: “Naturally, it’s true. Didn’t I already say so on the stage just now?”

Bai Huan scratched his head. “Who would believe words like that? Medicinal herbs aren’t worth much, and we ourselves can’t refine them into pills. Who would simply exchange pills for them? Oh, could it be that Junior Brother Ren has some conditions?”

Zhang Xiaohua nodded. “Exactly. Ordinary medicinal herbs need not be brought over for exchange. Only those with great age, or rare and unusual herbs, things I’ve never seen before, would be useful.”

“Really?” Bai Huan still did not believe him. “I just so happen to have an unidentified medicinal herb there. I picked it several years ago in the ‘Youlan Twilight Trial’ within the ‘Youlan Grand Canyon’ when I was fortunate enough to participate. I wonder how many pills Junior Brother Ren can exchange for it?”

Zhang Xiaohua was stunned. “‘Youlan Twilight Trial’? Youlan Grand Canyon? What are those?”

But the excited Bai Huan was in no mood to listen. He immediately turned and left, saying as he went: “Junior Brother Ren, just go inside and rest. I’ll go fetch that medicinal herb and see whether it can be exchanged for a ‘Small Bone-Consolidating Pill’.”

Zhang Xiaohua could neither laugh nor cry, and loudly called out, “Senior Brother Bai, no need to hurry. Bringing it tomorrow won’t be too late. I’ll reserve one for you. In a little while, I’ll need to meditate and recuperate.”

Only then did Bai Huan stop. Still worried, he said, “Then Junior Brother Ren must save one for me. I’ll head back now and ask Elder Lei for the betting records first, then help organize them for you. Mm, since you wish to help fulfill the wishes of us Herb Division brothers, I’ll definitely spread the word for you as well!”

After speaking, he waved his hand and hurried off at great speed. Since he had been the first to obtain this information, he naturally had to prepare his medicinal herbs first so others would not beat him to it. If Zhang Xiaohua had not repeatedly reminded him, perhaps Bai Huan would only have informed the others after exchanging for the pills himself.

Watching Bai Huan leave happily, Zhang Xiaohua became even happier. Not only could he exchange his useless pills for medicinal herbs, but he could also establish a good image before the Herb Division brothers. Anyone would be delighted by such a thing.

Entering the small courtyard, Zhang Xiaohua closed the courtyard gate behind him. Then, with a single somersault, he leapt into the air and performed several clean flips in succession. After landing, he almost threw his head back in loud laughter. Today… had truly been too exciting.

Just thinking about the one hundred and fifty taels of gold worth of medicinal pills now in hand, along with nearly all the pills the Tianmu Peak disciples had lost to him, made him thrilled. Mm, if those people tomorrow still refused to give up and continued trying to win their losses back, then they would once again lose the same amount of pills to him. The total would go from little to a lot, and simply thinking about the final amount was frightening. Hehe, if all those pills were exchanged for medicinal herbs, just how many herbs could he obtain?

Moreover, even a disciple like Bai Huan possessed rare medicinal herbs, so there was no need to mention the other disciples. He himself had only just entered the Incense-Spreading Sect and had already encountered a “Dragon Scale Fruit” in the forest. These disciples, however, frequently moved about Tianmu Peak and the other nineteen peaks, so they certainly must have even better things.

“Right, just what exactly is this ‘Youlan Twilight Trial’ in the Youlan Grand Canyon? There are surely excellent medicinal herbs inside as well. I should find an opportunity to properly ask Boss Chen about it and make time to take a look.”

Though the three gambling matches that morning had appeared extremely arduous in the eyes of others, just as Zhang Xiaohua had deliberately made them appear, in reality Zhang Xiaohua had merely been playing around. If not for luring the disciples into seeking “revenge” over the next three days, or for the sake of keeping a low profile, he could have dealt with those so-called Vajras within moments of stepping onto the stage.

Now that he had stretched his muscles and bones, it was naturally time to comprehend the Heavenly Dao and cultivate formations. Those were the true tasks he needed to devote himself to.

The Heavenly Dao was so vast and boundless, while Zhang Xiaohua himself was so insignificant. Beneath the radiance of heaven and earth, Zhang Xiaohua was practically less than an ant. Every time he sensed the endless Heavenly Dao, his heart could not help but overflow with emotion. This seemingly limitless comprehension—who knew when it would finally end?

Yet each sigh of emotion also tempered his Dao Heart once more, making his heart toward the Dao ever firmer. The ancients had said it best: “A mountain of books has a path through diligence; an ocean of learning is crossed by hardship as the boat.” Nothing could be more correct. The seemingly unfathomable Heavenly Dao had already, through Zhang Xiaohua’s tireless comprehension, gradually formed into a small path. Though it had only just begun, and the road ahead remained unclear, the Great Dao had three thousand branches, each different from the others. Who could say that Zhang Xiaohua’s little path would not one day develop into a Great Dao? That it would not become one of the Three Thousand Great Daos?

Time passed quickly. The drifting clouds at the horizon gradually thinned, and the blazing sun had already begun to sink westward. As Zhang Xiaohua continued comprehending the Heavenly Dao, he seemed to gain something, yet also seemed to gain nothing. Then, amidst that hazy state, his heart suddenly stirred. Frowning, he opened his eyes and released his Divine Sense.

Sure enough, outside the bamboo grove, a person was sneakily looking left and right, moving forward with light and cautious steps. Once he neared the grove, he turned his head once, saw that no one was nearby, immediately exerted force beneath his feet, flashed into the bamboo forest, and then used Qinggong to rush toward the small courtyard where Zhang Xiaohua lived.

When Zhang Xiaohua looked carefully, was it not Zou Shuming, the leader of the Ten Vajras?

“What is this unlucky fellow doing here?” Zhang Xiaohua wondered. “Didn’t he just get defeated by Boss Chen yesterday after stepping onto the stage? Could he be here to cause trouble for me?”

“But even if he wants trouble with me, he could come openly tomorrow. I already announced that challenges would begin tomorrow. Coming today means neither his name nor his reasons are justified, right?”

Zhang Xiaohua’s Divine Sense followed Zou Shuming all the way until he neared the small courtyard. Then Zou Shuming leapt down from the bamboo, his movements extremely nimble, causing Zhang Xiaohua’s heart to stir. “This fellow’s Qinggong is actually superior to Qi Yuntian’s. Mm, he’s almost on par with those mountain-patrolling disciples I encountered when I first entered the Incense-Spreading Sect. Ah, now I understand. This fellow actually came to scout out information.”

Having guessed his purpose, Zhang Xiaohua naturally did not neglect the matter. With a leap, his body shot onto the bed he had never once lain upon before, where he quickly assumed the appearance of being fast asleep.

Zhang Xiaohua’s guess was indeed correct. Zou Shuming cautiously leapt onto the wall, stretched out his head to look around, then circled to the rear of the courtyard. With a flash of movement, he entered the small courtyard and used Qinggong to bound several times until he reached the top of the small building. Pressing his ear against the roof, he listened for quite a while, then stealthily crept to the eaves. Hanging upside down like an inverted lotus, he lowered his head from the roof and peered inside.

Within the empty room, he immediately spotted Zhang Xiaohua lying crookedly upon the bed, still fully clothed.

Seeing Zhang Xiaohua sleeping so soundly, Zou Shuming could not help but reveal a smile at the corner of his mouth. Anyone with profound martial arts, if their inner energy had merely been depleted, would surely sit cross-legged and regulate their breathing to recover. But resting like an ordinary person in this manner could only mean that their physical strength had been excessively exhausted, to the point where breathing exercises alone could not restore it. Only the most primitive form of rest could satisfy the body’s needs.

“So this Ren Xiaoyao really is exhausted to the extreme. Hehe, of course. Fighting two gambling matches in succession—even I myself couldn’t guarantee complete victory under those circumstances. Not to mention that in the final match, he directly competed in endurance against the opponent. This little fellow still lacks experience in gambling matches. Although sleeping like this can restore physical strength, when he gets up tomorrow, his hands and feet will definitely feel weak. How could he possibly continue the gambling matches then? This trip truly wasn’t wasted.”

As Zou Shuming thought this to himself, he continued carefully observing. Only after the time it took to eat a meal, when the sky had already grown dark, did he finally withdraw himself back onto the roof. Then, using Qinggong, he vanished in a puff of smoke. Amid the dim darkness, his figure could no longer be seen clearly.

“Hahaha!” The moment Zou Shuming left, Zhang Xiaohua flipped himself upright into a sitting position and muttered to himself, “Looks like not everyone on Tianmu Peak is a fool. They actually sent someone to probe my true condition. Mm, it seems tomorrow I’ll have to cast out even more bait.”

After thinking this through, Zhang Xiaohua was just about to close his eyes and resume his cultivation when he suddenly frowned deeply once more.

Although his Divine Sense was not currently released, ever since his Divine Sense had been exhausted back in Spring Rebirth Valley, and after the insights into the Heavenly Dao he had gained afterward, he had become able to naturally sense abnormalities within a radius of more than ten zhang without even using Divine Sense.

At this moment, he once again sensed someone approaching the bamboo grove.

“Boss Chen really is quite something else. He already explained things clearly in the gambling arena at noon and told people not to disturb me, so why is someone still coming to bother me at night? Earlier it was the Great Vajra from the Pill Division, so who could it be this time?”

When Zhang Xiaohua used his Divine Sense to look, hehe, it was no outsider at all, but Boss Chen, Chen Fengxiao himself, accompanied by his right-hand man Qiu Weicheng. However, the two of them stopped as soon as they reached the edge of the bamboo grove, lowering their heads together to discuss something. Just like Wu Zhouxu’s visit last time, Zhang Xiaohua shrugged and secretly thought: “What kind of habit is this? Why not finish discussing things before coming over? Instead, they wait until reaching the entrance to start talking. Seriously.”

Yet this time differed from before. After speaking for a while and glancing toward the small courtyard beyond the bamboo grove, the two did not enter. Instead, they nodded to each other and turned back.

Zhang Xiaohua was stunned. “Why aren’t they coming in? Strange!”

Since they were not coming to disturb him, Zhang Xiaohua continued with his cultivation. He immersed his Divine Sense into his Niwan Palace and began comprehending the rabbit talisman once more. What he forgot was that the sky had already darkened, and he had not even lit a lamp. To others, it naturally appeared that he had already gone to sleep. How could Chen Fengxiao and Qiu Weicheng possibly knock on his door in the darkness?

The night passed without incident.

Early the next morning, after Zhang Xiaohua finished practicing the Big Dipper Divine Fist, he released his Divine Sense, yet unexpectedly discovered that no one had approached within a radius of more than ten zhang. He could not help but feel puzzled. “Could it be that they didn’t fall for it?”

Ai, Zhang Xiaohua had become somewhat obsessed with money. The sky had only just begun to brighten, and people had not even finished breakfast yet, so how could they possibly rush over so eagerly to cause him trouble?

Although no one had come yet, people would certainly arrive before long. The waiting time was neither especially long nor especially short. Feeling somewhat bored, Zhang Xiaohua took the Bishui(Azure Water) Sword from his money pouch.

Though the Bishui Sword was extremely sharp and could even produce sword light when infused with True Qi, unfortunately, Zhang Xiaohua did not know any sword techniques. Those few nameless sword forms were also meant for the Chasing Dream Sword use, making the Bishui Sword little more than a chicken rib to him.

Casually channeling True Qi into the Bishui Sword, he carelessly swung it through the air several times. The “zizi” sound of tearing through the air was extremely piercing to the ears. If paired with a suitable sword technique, it would certainly become a sharp weapon for killing enemies!

With regret, Zhang Xiaohua withdrew his True Qi, examined the Bishui Sword before his eyes for a moment, then inserted the short sword back into its long-worn scabbard.

Yet just as his gaze swept across the scabbard, Zhang Xiaohua’s heart stirred. His Divine Sense immediately swept over it.

At once, a delighted light flashed from his eyes.