Wan Yao Zhai (The Medicine Shop)

---

Chapter 74: Wan Yao Zhai (The medicine Shop)

Ignoring Yao Chen's unrealistic remarks, Xiao Yan began strolling around the Qing Shan Town, observing the small town he had never set foot in before.

The small town in the early morning was full of life. All kinds of shops were preparing to open, and large groups of mercenaries were shouting in the streets, organizing people to enter the Beast Mountain Range.

Xiao Yan suddenly noticed that although these mercenaries each gathered in their own groups, there was one spot where the most people were gathered.

And unlike the empty spaces where the other mercenaries gathered, these mercenaries were actually surrounding the entrance of a shop.

Xiao Yan slightly squinted his eyes, raising his hand to shield the glaring sunlight, and clearly saw the signboard at the entrance of the shop.

Wan Yao Zhai.

An herbal medicine shop, no wonder so many people were gathered here.

Xiao Yan nodded knowingly. These mercenaries, preparing to enter the mountains, would naturally need to gather healing medicine for emergencies, so it made sense for them to be gathered in front of a medicine store.

But just as Xiao Yan thought this, he noticed something unusual.

Although there were other medicine stores around, with a few mercenaries coming in and out, the number of people gathered at the entrance of Wan Yao Zhai was still much higher.

And not only that, these mercenaries were gathered right at the entrance but no one was actually going in to buy medicine.

What's going on here?

Just as Xiao Yan was pondering, the mercenaries at the entrance of Wan Yao Zhai suddenly became agitated.

"Little Fairy Doctor! My goddess!"

"Pick me! Pick me! Pick me!"

"Get lost! Am I not better than you?"

Alright, Xiao Yan roughly understood now.

Xiao Yan lightly scratched his head. There were always women who were adored everywhere, even in this mercenary-filled Qing Shan Town.

Once he figured that out, Xiao Yan wasn't particularly curious to see what this so-called Little Fairy Doctor looked like.

After all, in terms of appearance, Xiao Yan was confident no woman could compare to Yao Chen. And for a woman to have such prestige in this chaotic Qing Shan Town, she must have some real abilities; otherwise, it wouldn't be possible to survive here.

In other words, this kind of woman probably wasn't someone Xiao Yan could get along with.

Since he wasn't interested in that, Xiao Yan didn't pay much attention.

On the contrary, he was more interested in Wan Yao Zhai.

Before leaving home, Yao Chen had mentioned she would teach him alchemy, but the first part of the journey was filled with encounters with bandits, and in the latter part, Yun Zhi was always with him, so Xiao Yan hadn't found the chance to learn.

Now, it seemed like a good opportunity to visit the medicine shop. It would be better to familiarize himself with some herbs before starting to learn alchemy, so he wouldn't be clueless when it was time to begin.

Fortunately, although there were many mercenaries gathered at the entrance of Wan Yao Zhai, they were all there for the Little Fairy Doctor, so there weren't many people at the door itself. Xiao Yan easily squeezed in and immediately saw a middle-aged man crouching down, organizing a medicine chest. Upon noticing someone entering, the man slowly looked up. When he saw Xiao Yan's still somewhat youthful face, he paused for a moment, then smiled and asked.

"Young brother, are you here to buy herbs?"

"No, I'm just here to have a look."

Xiao Yan lightly waved his hand, somewhat embarrassed, and made it clear he wasn't here to buy herbs. The middle-aged man wasn't upset. He picked up the medicine chest, placed it on the counter, and then glanced at Xiao Yan with a smile.

"It's fine~ Anyway, we've just opened the shop, and there aren't many customers yet. Feel free to look around."

"Thank you," Xiao Yan said softly, and then remembered something. He gently asked, "My name is Xiao Yan, may I ask what your surname is?"

"Hahaha~ Young brother is quite polite. That's rare around here in Qing Shan Town. Mercenaries here barely speak without shouting." The middle-aged man smiled, clearly in a good mood, "My surname is Yao. I'm the owner of this Wan Yao Zhai. You can call me Boss Yao."

Boss Yao then glanced at the heavy mysterious ruler that Xiao Yan was carrying on his back and curiously asked.

"Young brother, are you also a mercenary?"

"I wouldn't say I'm a mercenary. I'm far less capable than those real mercenaries. I just arrived in this town today," Xiao Yan humbly replied. He then pointed to the crowd of mercenaries outside and asked Boss Yao, "Boss Yao, do the mercenaries in this town go into the Magic Beast Mountain Range every day?"

"Ah~ As long as the weather is not particularly bad, it's pretty much every day."

Boss Yao answered, and at that moment, Xiao Yan noticed three bottles of healing medicine on the counter, which were clearly different from regular medicine. It was obvious that these weren't the usual bulk-produced healing potions.

"Boss Yao, are you an alchemist?" Xiao Yan asked, and Boss Yao waved his hand lightly.

"How could I be~ Young brother, don't overestimate me. If I were an alchemist, my nose would already be up in the air."

Boss Yao said with a laugh. Even though he was middle-aged, he had a very carefree and happy personality.

He then picked up a bottle of healing medicine from the counter, not caring whether it would break, and tossed it to Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan hurriedly caught it in his hands, and Boss Yao continued.

"I'm just an ordinary Physician. It's just that I can use fire to roughly fuse herbs together. With a little patience, you don't even need Dou Qi; you can just light a fire and slowly burn them together."

Listening to Boss Yao's words, Xiao Yan nodded thoughtfully and looked down at the healing medicine in his hands. At that moment, Yao Chen also expressed admiration for the medicine.

(This boss is really too humble. He's not an alchemist, yet he can make healing medicine to such a level.)

"Is this very impressive, Senior Yao Chen?" Xiao Yan asked, confused. Yao Chen answered.

(For a physician, this is quite remarkable. His healing medicine is already comparable to that made by a first-grade alchemist, and some first-grade alchemists might even produce worse results than him.)

Yao Chen's words made Xiao Yan feel a sense of respect for Boss Yao. If Yao Chen, who could casually make five bottles of Qi Gathering Powder, gave such a high evaluation, it was clear that this healing medicine was exceptional for a physician.

It seemed that Boss Yao wasn't as casual and carefree as he appeared.

"So, Xiao Yan, young brother, are you interested in alchemy?" Boss Yao asked softly, noticing that Xiao Yan was carefully inspecting the healing medicine.

"Yes."

Xiao Yan didn't hide it, nodding slightly. Boss Yao then smiled and asked again.

"Would you like to learn from me? Although my skills aren't the best, I should be able to guide you. That girl Xian'er was taught by me, after all~"

Boss Yao proudly raised his head, and Xiao Yan was slightly stunned.

"Xian'er?" Xiao Yan turned his eyes to the door, then realized, "You mean Little Fairy Doctor?"

"Exactly~ That girl was trained by me from the start~"

Boss Yao looked blissful, a proud father's expression on his face, which made Xiao Yan feel a bit helpless.

Well, all fathers with daughters must act like this.

(End of chapter)

---

For every 100 power stones = 1 chapter

300 power stones = 5 chapter

500 power stones = 8 chapter