Qiu Zu: From an apprentice in a medicine shop to an immortal ancestor.

The old man was dressed in tattered, patched coarse cloth clothing, with worn-out straw sandals on his feet. His hands were rough and chapped, with swollen joints. His face was dark, weathered, and covered in deep wrinkles.

His eyes were cloudy and dim, revealing fatigue and helplessness.

At first glance, the old man looked every bit the ordinary country farmer, suffering from the invasion of "demonic energy", his aura weak and his life hanging by a thread.

Aside from the critical situation, there was nothing particularly remarkable about him.

In fact, the old man had clearly used some method to conceal his aura, making it difficult for ordinary physicians to detect anything amiss when taking his pulse.

However, his disguise could not escape Qiu Zhen's "fiery eyes".

When Qiu Zhen awakened his "Primordial Spirit Avatar", he might not have noticed anything at a simple meeting, but once he took the old man's pulse, his identity as a cultivator became immediately apparent.

"Another cultivator," Qiu Zhen thought to himself, feeling that this was the third fellow practitioner he had encountered, after "Little Monk Kongyin" and "Yanshan Dharma Master".

Humans are social creatures, good at huddling together for warmth.

In the current world, with the Way of Immortals declining and cultivators being reduced to "demons and evil beings" in the eyes of others, their situation is awkward, and they should huddle together for warmth even more.

When encountering a fellow cultivator face-to-face, Qiu Zhen felt a primal excitement and joy, a feeling of finding a "kindred spirit", but reason kept his inner excitement in check.

The reason was simple: you can't judge a book by its cover.

No matter what, he would not easily reveal his identity.

At that moment, Qiu Zhen maintained a normal expression, defining his identity as a "physician" and suppressing any further thoughts.

"Girl, the demonic energy in your grandfather's body is quite heavy."

Upon hearing this, the young woman felt a slight sense of panic, but her expression remained normal as she said anxiously:

"Please, Divine Physician, save his life."

The gaunt old man raised his eyelids, feigning the unease and anxiety of a rural farmer, his expression listless, as if he didn't even have the energy to speak.

"Still putting on a good act," Qiu Zhen muttered inwardly, while maintaining a professional demeanor on the surface.

"Come, let me perform acupuncture on your grandfather."

Immediately, Qiu Zhen had the young woman remove the old man's clothes, took out silver needles, and began to administer the [Taiyi Exorcism Acupuncture].

After a series of acupuncture treatments, wisps of black energy emerged from the old man's body.

The effect was quite good.

However, it was only a temporary solution.

Unlike ordinary mortals, who would undoubtedly die once the "demonic energy" was expelled, the old man was a cultivator, and the demonic thought was hidden in his sea of consciousness.

Expelling the demonic energy would be useless; if the old man couldn't cut down the demonic thought with the sword of wisdom, it would inevitably revive.

Before long.

"Girl, take your grandfather back to rest."

"Thank you, Divine Physician."

Led by Zhao Dou, the grandfather and granddaughter left, expressing their gratitude profusely.

Qiu Zhen watched the grandfather and granddaughter leave, feeling a sense of melancholy in his heart.

In fact, he had the ability to help the old man destroy the demonic thought, but it was inconvenient.

Either it would expose his identity as a cultivator, or it would reveal the other party's identity as a cultivator; in a situation where he didn't know the details, neither option was good.

A doctor has a benevolent heart, but there are limits, and protecting oneself is very important.

Qiu Zhen shook his head and didn't think too much about it, treating it as an ordinary act of charity, not taking it to heart, and having no intention of contacting the grandfather and granddaughter.

In any case, he had helped the old man solve his immediate problem, and whether he could suppress the demonic thought depended on his own fortune.

Good charity work and good cultivation are the true paths.

Unknowingly, half a month passed.

Just as Shopkeeper Liu had said, the Medicine King Valley sent people to support Qingmu City in just a few days.

Among them were many Medicine King Valley disciples who knew the [Taiyi Exorcism Acupuncture], which greatly relieved the pressure on Shopkeeper Liu and Doctor Li, allowing them to breathe a sigh of relief.

Qiu Zhen felt a bit of regret about this.

He had been doing a lot of exorcisms these days, but the number of patients suspected of being "possessed by demonic thoughts" had clearly decreased significantly.

This was Shopkeeper Liu "taking care" of him, afraid that he would get tired.

But...

Qiu Zhen really couldn't express his suffering.

He wasn't tired at all.

At his age, full of vigor and vitality, erupting seven or eight times a day was just a piece of cake, and he enjoyed it.

Fortunately, after half a month of charity work, he had gained quite a bit.

As dusk approached, after no longer receiving patients, Qiu Zhen lay on his recliner, leisurely resting, his mind sinking into the spiritual fetus in his sea of consciousness.

The Primordial Spirit Qiu Zhen radiated golden light, like a saint or a god, as if he were the most supreme and noble being in the world, and the golden light was more condensed and more sacred than before.

This was the result of Qiu Zhen's charity work, exorcising evil spirits, treating illnesses, and saving disaster victims.

In the current cultivation world, the orthodox Talisman lineage has declined, and it is impossible to become an immortal through accumulating merit and virtue, but performing good deeds is itself a part of cultivating "inner nature".

Doing more good deeds makes one's thoughts clear, and the unity of knowledge and action makes the mind and thoughts stronger and purer.

Apart from this, the greatest gain was in the cultivation of "vitality".

[Medicine King Five Animal Play, Third Layer, estimated to be completed in 21 days]

"I'll be able to break through the third layer of the Five Animal Play soon."

Qiu Zhen was in a great mood.

Today, during his clinic, he exorcised evil spirits for two patients "entangled by demonic thoughts", and gained two small clusters of "spiritual essence".

If nothing unexpected happened, he would be able to refine the two small clusters of "spiritual essence" tonight and break through in one fell swoop, becoming a Third Level Martial Master.

In just a little over half a year, he had gone from being a mere pharmacy apprentice to breaking through three levels in a row.

This cultivation speed, even compared to the legendary top-grade genius with the best innate talent, was probably only stronger, not weaker.

"Young Master, he's here again."

While Qiu Zhen was pondering, Bai Zhu, who was lying beside him, muttered softly.

As soon as he finished speaking, a Medicine King Valley disciple dressed in green walked in from outside the house.

He was about the same age as Qiu Zhen, but his cultivation level was higher, his qi and blood were thick, he was handsome, his skin was fair, and his conversation was extraordinary.

At first glance, he looked like a wealthy young master from an extraordinary background.

His talent must be very good, as he had practiced martial arts since he was a child, which was why he had such cultivation.

This person's name was Hua Yu, and he was one of the Medicine King Valley disciples who had come to support them these days.

Perhaps because they were about the same age, he and Qiu Zhen were quite compatible.

The two had become quite familiar these days, often visiting each other.

"Shopkeeper Liu said that the disaster victims have almost all arrived these days, and there will be significantly fewer patients later on, so we're finally done."

Hua Yu stroked Bai Zhu's smooth fur:

"Brother Qiu, what do you say, should we go to the restaurant tonight for a gathering?"

"Okay."

Although Qiu Zhen was eager to return and break through, he didn't refuse normal social interactions.

Anyway, there was no rush.

So, the two greeted Shopkeeper Liu and left work, heading straight to the best restaurant in the city and setting up a table.

After a round of toasts and small talk, Qiu Zhen returned with Bai Zhu in high spirits.

After leaving the city, he followed the official road for a while, then turned onto a small path in the fields to take a shortcut, using his movement technique to return directly.

Mount Qiu Zhen Valley was twenty to thirty miles away from Qingmu City, belonging to the distant suburbs.

For more than half a month, he had been traveling back and forth between the two places every day, so he was familiar with the road and had found the shortest route.

"Swish, swish, swish ~"

Qiu Zhen had mastered the [Xun Wind Immortal Deer Tendon] in the [Godfiend Five Animal Play], and his footwork was amazing, his speed was astonishing.

His whole person was like a fleeting shadow, flying through the fields and mountains.

After rushing for about ten miles, Qiu Zhen entered the sparsely populated hills of the distant suburbs.

Just as he had entered the mountain, Qiu Zhen had a sudden premonition, stopped rushing, glanced around, and his expression turned cold:

"Who's there?"

"Little Divine Physician Qiu is quite alert."

As he spoke, a series of "rustling" sounds rang out in the forest.

Soon, two figures appeared in front of Qiu Zhen.

An old man and a middle-aged man.

Qiu Zhen didn't recognize the middle-aged man; he was completely unfamiliar.

But he recognized the old man in the tattered cloth clothes at a glance.

"It's you?"

Qiu Zhen was surprised.

The old man in front of him was the "cultivator" who had asked him to exorcise evil spirits at the pharmacy that day.

After more than ten days, he had actually taken the initiative to find him again.

"May I ask what brings you here, old sir?"