The preparation to return meant saying goodbye to Old Daoist Xiao and his disciple. Long Xiao had expected them to leave, but Meiling proposed accompanying Long Xiao to the East Sea for a few days.
Meiling was pure and straightforward. Xiao Ming and Meiling chatted happily, and when Meiling expressed her desire to visit the East Sea, Xiao Ming immediately agreed.
Long Xiao looked at Old Daoist Xiao and said, "Daoist Xiao, your disciple wants to play for a few days. Take her along."
It was Old Daoist Xiao's idea for Meiling to go to the East Sea. Hearing Long Xiao say this, he naturally agreed.
"Alright, then we'll be troubling you all. We're unfamiliar with the East Sea and will have to rely on the three of you."
Before Long Xiao could reply, Xiao Ming said, "Don't worry, Daoist Xiao. Food and lodging are all on us. Xinglin Caotang has plenty of space; it can accommodate one or two hundred people without a problem."
"Impossible. How can a clinic possibly house one to two hundred people?"
Lin Wei chuckled and said, "Daoist Xiao, don't underestimate Long Xiao's clinic. Its scale is similar to a hospital."
To curry favor with Long Xiao, after dinner and drinks, Old Daoist Xiao said, "Long Xiao, don't you have a map of Shaoyang Valley? I heard that over a thousand years ago, a famous physician died there, and many people are searching for his legacy. Why don't you go and see?"
"Daoist Xiao, are you referring to the Nine Yang Divine Needles? Are you looking for them?" Long Xiao asked.
Old Daoist Xiao shook his head. "I don't enjoy the medical path. Although medicine is good and can save lives, it delays one's cultivation."
"Do you know about Shaoyang Valley?" Long Xiao asked again.
Old Daoist Xiao nodded. "I've been there twice. The entire valley has only one village, and all the villagers are surnamed Ge. They are said to be descendants of that divine physician."
Over the past thousand years, the village had been renamed several times, called Gejiapu, Gejiabao, and Gegcun. Regardless of the name change, it always contained the character 'Ge.'
Long Xiao was eager to find the Five Elements Qi, and initially didn't want to go. However, after Old Daoist Xiao's description, he felt that the man was very familiar with the place. Perhaps they could find the Nine Yang Divine Needles without much delay, so he decided to try his luck.
Having decided to go to Shaoyang Valley, they packed their belongings and began to descend the mountain.
Si Huai walked along, secretly grinning. He was finally able to escape these three calamities; staying near them, he might be killed one day.
After descending the mountain, Old Daoist Xiao saw Xiao Ming's stretched limousine and asked in surprise, "Why did you buy such a big car?"
Xiao Ming put on a mysterious look and said, "Daoist Xiao, you're skilled in cultivation, but not in buying cars."
"Quick, tell me, what's the use of buying such a big car?"
Meiling giggled. "Master, can't you tell? This glutton must have bought it to carry more food."
Xiao Ming, his secret exposed, glared at Meiling unhappily and got into the car.
Meiling burst into laughter. "Didn't I say it right? This glutton eats even more than I do."
Long Xiao looked at Meiling and thought to himself, they are truly a perfect match. Although Meiling is a girl, she eats no less than Xiao Ming.
As soon as Meiling got into the car, she started rummaging for food. She was now familiar with Xiao Ming and felt no need to be polite.
After Xiao Ming started the car, he called out, "Don't eat it all, leave some for me."
Shaoyang Valley was west of Phoenix Mountain. Long Xiao and his companions detoured through two counties, found a place halfway to drop off Si Huai, and then drove until dark before entering Gejiabao.
Shaoyang Valley was flanked by continuous high mountains, with a large river running through the middle. The road followed the river, and Gejiabao was located at a bend in the river.
The village was not large, with about eighty households. Because every household in the village grew medicinal herbs, the village was slightly more prosperous than the surrounding ones.
Before entering the village, Old Daoist Xiao advised Long Xiao to say they were there to purchase medicinal herbs, which would make things easier.
When they drove into the village, they went directly to the village committee. They asked to meet the village chief and told him they were the owners of Xinglin Caotang and needed a large quantity of medicinal herbs.
Normally, it was medicinal herb dealers who came to buy herbs, and they would offer very low prices. This time, a clinic owner had arrived, so the price would surely be fair. The village chief looked at Long Xiao and immediately smiled.
Long Xiao, who was knowledgeable about medicinal herbs, asked the village chief to bring some samples. He examined them, pointed out their strengths and weaknesses, and told the chief he needed the best quality herbs.
As it was getting dark, the village chief immediately arranged for them to stay at the village committee and also invited them to his home for dinner.
The village chief was not only fond of drinking but also skilled in small talk. Once the conversation started, he chattered about everything under the sun.
Long Xiao enjoyed this kind of person. He started the conversation, then listened as the village chief spoke, and soon steered the topic to the divine physician from over a thousand years ago.
The village chief told Long Xiao and his companions that the divine physician who died in the valley over a thousand years ago was their Ge family ancestor, named Ge Xian.
Ge Xian became a divine physician because he encountered an immortal in his childhood. The immortal taught him medical skills, after which he changed his name to Ge Xian and began to practice medicine, treating people everywhere.
"Why did your ancestor come to such a poor mountain village? There wasn't a village here over a thousand years ago, was there?" Old Daoist Xiao asked.
The village chief nodded. "There wasn't a village nearby at that time. Our Ge family ancestor came here to find a medicinal herb, something called 'Huo Mao' (fire reed)."
The village chief thought for a moment and nodded again. "Yes, it was called 'Huo Mao.' It is said that this grass only grows where a fire qilin appears."
"How did he end up dying in this valley?" Lin Wei asked curiously.
"It seems he found the 'Huo Mao' and was preparing to leave Phoenix Mountain with it. The fire qilin discovered that its 'Huo Mao' had been stolen and chased him down from Phoenix Mountain."
"Was your ancestor killed by the fire qilin?" Xiao Ming asked.
The village chief shook his head. "No, the fire qilin was no match for our Ge family ancestor. According to the elders, our ancestor was killed by a mountain demon."
The village chief spoke for a while about the Ge family ancestor. He didn't mention the Nine Yang Divine Needles, and Long Xiao dared not ask.
As they drank and talked, the village chief soon became a bit drunk. When the topic turned to medical skills, the village chief said, "Our Ge family ancestor's medical skills were arguably the best in the world. If our ancestor hadn't died suddenly and passed down his knowledge, every member of the Ge family would be a divine physician."
"What medical skills did your ancestor possess?" Meiling asked.
The village chief sighed. "Our Ge family ancestor was a general practitioner, skilled in everything. Especially acupuncture; the Nine Yang Divine Needles were the best in the world, unmatched by anyone."
"Are the Nine Yang Divine Needles really that powerful?" Xiao Ming asked.
The village chief nodded. "Of course they are powerful. Although we Ge family members can only perform three needles now, no one in our village ever goes to see a doctor outside. If anyone gets sick, they just prick themselves with a needle and they're fine."
"Your ancestor died in this valley. Why did you later move here?" Long Xiao asked curiously.
The village chief sighed. "When our ancestor died, he had the diagram of the Nine Yang Divine Needles with him. Later, our Ge family built the village here precisely to find our ancestor's remains."
The village chief told everyone that for over a thousand years, each generation of the Ge family had been searching for the remains of their ancestor. However, after more than a thousand years of searching throughout the entire valley, and even scouring Phoenix Mountain, they had found nothing.