The herb storage warehouse was big, and it’s interior was filled with neatly arranged rows of shelves that categorised an a.s.sortment of medicinal plants.
Deeper in the store was a small room which contained different herbs from outside. These herbs were meant for Mán-cultivators of the tribe, thus normal tribesmen could not enter.
Even if the healer was here, he would also require the patriarch or Grandpa’s token before he can enter this room that was of great importance to the whole WuShan Tribe.
But this rule did not apply to Su Ming. Long ago, Grandpa had given Su Ming a special ident.i.ty, allowing to enter at ease to help him differentiate the herbs.
Stepping into the room, Su Ming saw Bei Ling holding Chen Xin’s hand as they walked towards the small room containing the precious herbs. Outside the door, an old man sat cross-legged. He word a beast skin top, and looked frail, with white hair and a face full of creases. Receiving the two’s tokens, his shut eyes open slightly and gave a quick glance. Without a change in expression, he shut his eyes once more.
Su Ming’s steps were slow. He knew Bei Ling did not want to see him, and in silence chose not to enter the room. He paced up and down the row of shelves, looking at the variety of herbs. He was very familiar with them, and has picked almost of them before.
When he was done, Bei Ling and Chen Xin had yet to leave. With hesitation, Su Ming stopped outside the small room.
“Little La Su, why are you hesitating?” An old voice came to Su Ming as he pondered. Raising his head, he saw that it was the old man who guarded the room for all these years.
“Nan Song Grandpa, I’m no longer a La Su…” Su Ming smiled, shaking his head.
“I remember now, your generation of La Su had completed their Mán-awakening a few months back. Cannot call you little La Su from now on.” The old man grinned with gentleness in his eyes.
“Since you are here, why not enter? Don’t worry, Grandpa Nan Song is here for you if anything happens! Thinking back, I dared to compete with your Grandpa when wooing girls, what’s there to be afraid of!” The old man blinked, smiling.
Su Ming’s eyes widened, it was the first time he heard of this. Smiling helplessly, he hesitated for an instant before pushing the door, and entered the room.
He was being hesitating towards Chen Xin as the old man said, but towards Bei Ling whom he held grat.i.tude for. He did not know how to explain. So many years had pa.s.sed, yet Bei Ling was still as cold to him as before.
“Forget it…” Su Ming sighed inwardly. The moment the door opened, he saw Chen Xin who was picking herbs, and the masculine figure who turn around, looking at him coldly.
Returning the gaze, he walked aside to another shelf, ignoring the two. Recalling the ingredients required for the Mountain Spirit Pill, he began checking.
Looking at Su Ming, Chen Xin wanted to speak, but stopped after some hesitation. As she grew up, she gradually understood more things, and learnt of her relationship with Bei Ling. The puppy love she had for Su Ming during their younger years, slowly faded.
“Night Marrow Gra.s.s…”
“Thousand Leaved Flower…” Su Ming paced slowly in the room, sweeping his gaze at the precious herbs, before finding the two required for the Mountain Spirit pill.
“Too bad there isn’t the last one…” Su Ming pondered deeply, looking through the entire room again.
At the moment, Chen Xin and Bei Ling had finished picking their herbs. After Chen Xin bade goodbye to Su Ming, she was pulled along by Bei Ling out of the room. Before he left, Bei Ling paused. Without looking back, he spoke calmly.
“Without a Mán-body, these herbs are useless on you. Think twice before wasting them on yourself, why don’t you just leave them for the other tribesmen.” Finishing his words, he left with Chen Xin.
Su Ming remained silent, looking at the two leaving. Without a word, he checked the room again, before leaving with the two herbs in hand.
When Su Ming brought the two herbs out, the cross-legged sitting elder did not mind. Instead, he watched Su Ming with interest.
“Grandpa Nan Song…… It isn’t what you think……” Su Ming spoke while scratching his nose.
“What did I think? I never said you had a complication relationship with those two La Su, I never said anything.” The old man laughed.
Su Ming’s face flushed, Embarra.s.sed, he wittingly squat in front of the elder.
“Grandpa Nan Song, have you seen this herb?” Su Ming drew an image of a herb on the floor as he spoke.
The old man smiled. Lowering his head to see, he thought deeply before slapping his head.
“Isn’t this Sieved Cloud Leaf, we do not have it here at WuShan Tribe. It requires a special environment to grow in. In the region, only FengZhen Tribe has it on sale. What do you need it for?”
“I saw it on one of Grandpa’s books, but couldn’t find it at WuShan despite searching for a long time. So it looks like this.” Su Ming’s pretended to understand.
“Of course not, this is one of the better herbs for lower tiers of blood condensation cultivation. Even if it is sold at FengZhen, it will be overpriced. But if you want, you can let your Grandpa bring you on a visit to bazaar outside FengZhen. They often have various herbs for sale or exchange.” The old man smiled, shaking his head.
Su Ming’s heart leapt. After asking a few questions, he bad goodbye to the elder and left in a hurry under the latter’s teaseful gaze.
Leaving the warehouse, Su Ming treaded on snow with matters on his mind.
“Sieved Cloud Leaf… The other herbs of the Mountain Spirit Pill I can pick myself, except for this Sieved Cloud Leaf… Grandpa Nan Song said it was expensive…” Su Ming sighed with a frowned. Feeling his body, besides some stone coins he obtain from Yu Chi of Black Mountain Tribe, he had no other valuables.
Within the tribe, barter trade is the usual practice, thus coins were rarely used. However, once out of the village, stone coins are required to buy stuff.
Stone coins is a currency made from special rocks, and was only forged by major tribes. If illicitly made, it will result in the a tribe’s destruction by the ruling major tribe.
Searching his body, Su Ming found only three stone coins that belonged to the dead Yu Chi. As for Su Ming, he originally did not even have a single one.
“Without money, how can I buy it… If only I had a hundred… Or a thousand… I have heard Grandpa mention the location. Mán-cultivators are allowed to go in groups. It isn’t too far from here…” Su Ming made a bitter smile, feeling a headache arise.