Although his hands were becoming increasingly fragrant, Zou Feng wasn’t worried.
It would only take another two or three days for his Five Poison Palm to advance to the next stage.
Then, the fragrance would gradually fade.
’But until my Cultivation Skill reaches Great Success, I guess I’ll just have to be a man who carries a faint, sweet scent...’
For the next few days, the Yang Mansion remained bustling, fueled by the continuous banquet.
With a new Entering Grade Martial Artist in the family, one with imnse potential at that, a seven-day banquet was hardly an overreaction.
anwhile, Zou Feng and the other servants were swamped, with almost no ti to rest except at night.
Of course, the one who had it worst was Li Rui.
He was already dog-tired from working all day, only to face the agony of Cultivation and the misery of studying at night.
Neither the Detoxification Soup nor the herbal redies for calming the mind and aiding sleep could cure the root problem; they only provided temporary relief.
After observing Li Rui’s state, Zou Feng was almost certain that within ten days, even if Li Rui didn’t die, he would most likely lose his mind.
The Chronic Poisoning, combined with the stress of high-intensity studying, was torturing both his mind and body.
And yet, no one had appeared who could be chosen to succeed him.
’I still can’t figure out why Yang Yanpeng never makes the list. Otherwise, he could at least help Brother Li shoulder so of this burden.’
Another three days passed, and the banquet was finally on its last day.
It was almost over, thank goodness. The servants of the Yang Mansion were at their breaking point.
Before dawn, Zou Feng finished his extra training and let out a long, turbid breath.
He was still in the process of Cultivating, and his palms were pitch-black.
The entire room was filled with a sickeningly sweet fragrance.
Normally, a place like a woodshed would be a pri spot for pests like snakes, insects, and rodents to make their nests.
But anyone who searched the room would be astonished to find that, aside from Zou Feng himself, there were no other living creatures to be found.
The reason was simple: Zou Feng had beco the most potent source of poison in the vicinity. Pests knew from the scent alone that sothing was wrong and didn’t dare approach.
After a long mont, Zou Feng’s eyes shot open. "Success!" he exclaid in delight.
"Five Poison Palm (Slightly Accomplished), Progress: 1%"
"Herbal Catalogue (Slightly Accomplished), Progress: 48%"
The Five Poison Palm had finally broken through to the second stage.
The *Herbal Catalogue*, being purely a body of knowledge to be studied, naturally progressed much faster.
And that was with very little free ti lately; otherwise, he could have learned the *Herbal Catalogue* even faster.
After he stopped cultivating, the blackness on his palms quickly faded.
He felt incredibly strong.
He was itching to find soone to spar with and test it out.
Unfortunately, the Five Poison Palm was completely unsuitable for sparring.
It ca down to the sa old problem. If his opponent knew he used poison and took precautions, he’d be in for a rough ti. The Five Poison Palm’s techniques lacked any subtlety, and its striking power was pathetic. As long as his opponent wasn’t a complete pushover, he would most likely be beaten to a pulp.
But if his opponent didn’t know he used poison and was struck or inhaled too much toxic gas, they would most likely drop dead on the spot.
So, he really couldn’t just go and spar with anyone.
This truly lived up to the saying: "For killing, not for show!"
Thinking of this, Zou Feng beca even more aware of the Five Poison Palm’s limitations.
’In short, this Cultivation Skill’s greatest weakness is that it’s useless in a direct confrontation.’
’And in the future, there will surely be tis when a sneak attack fails and I’m forced into a direct confrontation.’
’So, to put it bluntly, relying solely on the Five Poison Palm won’t be enough.’
’A Poison Attack is a deadly weapon, true, but only on the condition that I can actually hit my opponent.’
’It’s ti to learn a Body Skill to complent the Five Poison Palm.’
’So, the question is, where am I going to get my hands on a Body Technique Martial Arts?’
’On top of that, Brother Li is really at his limit. Now that the Five Poison Palm has reached "Slightly Accomplished," the poison required for my Cultivation will need to be even more potent.’
’And when that happens, the side effects of my Cultivation will naturally beco more severe.’
Zou Feng couldn’t co up with a solution right away, so he had to set the matter aside for now and head out to work.
Since it was the last day of the banquet, they didn’t need to prepare any extra ingredients, so things were a bit more relaxed.
Even the Head Chef, Luo Yong, found a spare mont to take a few puffs from his pipe.
He had been exhausted lately, too, and felt as if he had sprouted a few more white hairs.
As for Li Rui, his eyes were sunken and his gaze was vacant; he looked like he could drop dead at any mont.
Luo Yong tapped his pipe. Unable to watch any longer, he said, "Li Rui, go and get so rest. It shouldn’t be too busy today."
"Oh..."
Li Rui nodded numbly and staggered out of the kitchen.
The sight made Zou Feng’s heart ache.
’My progress in the Five Poison Skill has co at a terrible price for Li Rui.’
’I desperately need soone to take Brother Li’s place.’
Luo Yong noticed the pained look on Zou Feng’s face as he watched Li Rui leave, and he couldn’t help but marvel to himself again, ’This kid truly has the heart of a saint!’
"Xiaozou, co over here a mont."
Zou Feng imdiately put down what he was doing and walked over to Luo Yong.
"Master, did you need sothing?"
Luo Yong asked casually, "How are you coming along with the first volu of the Herbal Catalogue?"
Zou Feng saw no reason to be modest about this, so he answered directly, "I’ve read it through several tis. All that’s left is to morize so of the finer details."
"Which herb becos toxic when prepared in a dicine with Earth Store Fruit?"
"Purple Sunflower, and also Fire Silk Grass."
"Can Black Ginseng Sand be consud with beef?"
"Yes, it can. In fact, it has a noticeable supplentary effect for Body Refining Martial Artists, but the daily consumption shouldn’t exceed..."
Luo Yong continued with several more questions, and Zou Feng answered each one flawlessly.
By the fifth question, Luo Yong was stunned.
’What a talent!’
’It’s a waste of his talent for him to be a cook.’
’Still, with his Lowly Status, there’s no better path for him than being a cook right now.’
He stopped his questioning and nodded in satisfaction. "The storeroom is short on many ingredients for our dicinal dishes. I’ll write up a list in a bit. This afternoon, you can go into town and procure everything we need."
Zou Feng was taken aback for a mont, then bowed respectfully. "Thank you, Master!"
’He definitely had to thank him. Procuring ingredients was a cushy job, after all.’
’You could always get a little sothing on the side.’
Usually, the procurent of such ingredients was handled by the Head Chef himself.
After all, any qualified chef was well-versed in the *Herbal Catalogue*, so there was no danger of being swindled.
The fact that Zou Feng, a re apprentice, had been given such a lucrative assignnt showed that Luo Yong completely considered him one of his own.
After the lunch rush was over, Zou Feng devoured a whole basin of rice and several pounds of at under the astonished gazes of the other kitchen staff.
To top it off, he also put away several plates of fruit.
During the continuous banquet, sneaking leftovers wasn’t an issue.
Even the beggars from town could co to the mansion’s gates for a al, let alone the servants of the Yang Mansion itself.
Any leftover food was distributed by the kitchen staff as they saw fit, and there was always more than enough at to go around.
The perks were even better than during the New Year’s festival.
This inadvertently solved a problem Zou Feng would have otherwise faced.
Naly, getting enough nutrition to keep up with his martial arts training.
He especially needed large quantities of at.
The fact that Zou Feng was able to advance his Five Poison Palm to its current level in such a short ti was also related to how well he had been eating.
It wasn’t entirely thanks to Brother Li carrying the burden for him.
Having eaten and drunk his fill, Zou Feng bid farewell to Luo Yong and left the Yang Mansion.
He didn’t need to carry any money. As a servant of the Yang Mansion, he only had to present a token during his procurent, and the shopkeepers would let him take the goods directly.
As for settling the bill, the mansion had a dedicated person who would handle all accounts at the end of each month.
But even so, the person handling procurent could still reach a tacit understanding with the shopkeepers to pull so strings.
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