I Have Medicine

Chapter 545 - A Different Gaze.

The battle went on for eight to ten hours. Each opponent was defeated in just a few moves, and even the one who lasted the longest could only withstand a hundred rounds against Wu Yingyuan. Not a single person managed to emerge victorious.

Wu Yingyuan grew fiercer as she fought, her entire body exuding an aura of murderous intent. Yet, her eyes remained cold and clear, and she was able to restrain her strength at the last moment when employing lethal moves. Otherwise, instead of simply defeating her opponents, she would have claimed their lives outright.

Gu Zuo couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. No wonder so many people had come to this martial arts competition to seek her hand in marriage—most looked at her with genuine respect. For a woman to overcome the physical limitations of her early cultivation stage, relying only on ordinary talent to grow this strong, with a personality so resilient and determined, was truly no small feat.

By this point, Gu Zuo felt even more certain that Wu Yingyuan couldn’t have the Cuckoo Body. That kind of constitution, which thrived on sucking the blood of others and indulging in idleness, wouldn’t foster someone who tirelessly fought and improved themselves bit by bit.

After some thought, Gu Zuo transmitted his perspective to Gongyi Tianheng.

Gongyi Tianheng smiled faintly, his gaze remaining fixed on the battle platform, though his mind carried their silent conversation.

[What Ah Zuo says indeed holds merit. In my opinion as well, this woman does not seem to carry the Cuckoo Body blood.]

[Right? While bloodlines don’t wholly define temperament, they do carry instincts and inherent traits that should manifest in some way. Yet in this woman, there isn’t the slightest sign of such.]

Gu Zuo nodded in agreement.

Take Mu Baizhi as an example. After stealing the talent and beauty of the white-clad woman, she became a heavenly favored daughter. If her temperament had been strong and determined, she wouldn’t have wasted time entangling herself with numerous geniuses—she would have focused entirely on her own advancement. Yet Mu Baizhi was different. Though she indeed grew stronger and diligently cultivated, there was a sense of superficiality to her progress, unlike Wu Yingyuan, whose every movement brimmed with confidence.

This difference stemmed from Wu Yingyuan’s hard-earned accomplishments. Her strength was forged through her own effort and battle, giving her a boldness and charisma that earned admiration. On the other hand, Cuckoo Body women who married outstanding men and bore their children never relied on their own strength to dominate the world. Even with great fame, they couldn’t escape the aura and protection of those around them. But Wu Yingyuan? Though she was the daughter of a city lord, her martial prowess was undeniably real, and the respect she garnered from the warriors of Eight Desolations City was earned with her own hands.

[However, our master wouldn’t deceive us. The peculiarity of this woman lies in the fact that she was once abducted and has achieved a cultivation progression far beyond what her ordinary talent would suggest. This incongruity in her growth cannot be ignored.]

[What do you mean, big brother?]

[If not her, then perhaps it has something to do with those around her.]

Hearing this, Gu Zuo was slightly taken aback.

[You mean… her maid, Qing Wan? But her talent is equally mediocre, and her cultivation level is too low, progressing far too slowly to be suspicious.]

Gongyi Tianheng’s expression grew slightly more serious.

[She is highly suspicious and must be carefully monitored and investigated over time. Of course, apart from Qing Wan, everyone else around her must also be scrutinized.]

Gu Zuo nodded, indicating his understanding.

That’s true. They couldn’t just easily discard their suspicions. Moreover, Cuckoo Body women were too mysterious. Even though they now almost fully believed that Wu Yingyuan wasn’t a Cuckoo Body woman, they couldn’t completely dismiss the possibility of suspicion.

Once Gu Zuo and Gongyi Tianheng were on the same page, Gongyi Tianheng smiled and stopped dwelling on the issue.

Speaking of which, whether Wu Yingyuan could marry in the end, and which kind of man she would choose, could also serve as some sort of basis, perhaps.

They needed to be cautious and avoid alarming the enemy.

Wu Yingyuan fought fiercely, defeating several more opponents, and by the time she had done so, the daylight had already faded into night.

At Wu Zhenhuang’s command, several large orbs, the size of footballs, rose into the air, emitting a bright glow that illuminated everything around the combat arena, making it seem like daylight.

Gu Zuo’s sharp senses quickly noticed a faint smell of blood on these orbs. As his mental energy scanned them, he soon realized that these orbs had strange patterns and an aura of death. They seemed to have been taken from some creatures’ bodies—or somewhere else entirely.

One of Wu Zhenhuang’s members then explained, “These are the life-orbs of the Giant Rock Tribe, carefully crafted by the best refiners of our human race. Though they are called magical weapons, they’re mainly for lighting purposes. Our human race has a vast land and resources, and we have many objects that can serve as nightlights, but the Giant Rock Tribe has a long-standing blood feud with our Eight Desolations City. Since their orbs are useful, we’ve mined a few more to use for lighting. This also helps show off the power of our human race.”

After hearing this, Gu Zuo immediately understood.

It was like how, in the modern world, some savage tribes would use the skulls of their enemies to make drinking vessels or hang them on city walls to intimidate their opponents. It was quite effective at scaring those who defied them. In this case, it was probably something similar.

A life-orb, huh? Just the word “life” in its name should make one realize how important this orb is to the Giant Rock Tribe. Yet, their precious orbs are being used as mere light bulbs by the human race. It is enough to slap the Giant Rock Tribe’s face.

After understanding this, Gu Zuo didn’t feel it was particularly cruel but silently agreed.

After all, the Giant Rock Tribe was already treating their human race as food. Using their orbs as light bulbs didn’t seem so bad. If anything…

Gu Zuo asked curiously, “Since different tribes each have their own abilities, would their other body parts, such as bones and tendons, be usable for forging magical weapons or pills? Have any of you ever tried?”

As soon as these words left his mouth, the deputy commanders couldn’t help but swallow, feeling a bit shocked.

After all… except for the non-humanoid ancestors, most other ancestors and foreign tribes were humanoid as well, just with strange appearances and greater differences from the human race.

Humanoids… they weren’t the type of warriors who specialized in practicing evil arts, so how could they start skinning, peeling, and refining bones?

Seeing that no one responded, Gu Zuo was a little surprised: “Could it be that no one has tried?”

One of the members smiled awkwardly, “Indeed, we haven’t.”

He had originally intended to say that because these foreign tribes were humanoid, it made it difficult for them to act without feeling some reluctance. But if he said that out loud, it would be inappropriate and show a lack of courage on their side.

Gu Zuo shifted his gaze and noticed several battle slaves nearby. He then seemed to understand: “Foreign tribes also have valuable materials. Since there is already a blood feud, we might as well make use of them. The Blue-Eyed, Giant Rock, and Demon Wolf tribes may be humanoid, but they are worse than animals. There’s no need to show pity just because of their appearance.”

This was what Gu Zuo truly thought. In this world, there were plenty of humanoids. Maybe if he was asked to do this in the beginning, he might have felt psychological barriers. But ever since becoming a pharmacist and receiving the inheritance from the Medicinal Celestial Grand Hall, his perspective had shifted. Now, he only saw things as either “usable” or “not usable.” Moreover—just think about it—people in the modern world still undergo surgeries like heart transplants, organ donations, and cornea transplants. Was there really a big difference between that and using materials from foreign bodies to forge usable items? Just because their appearances were similar, abandoning such useful materials would be wasteful.

Of course, he also understood that the more one struggled to survive in a place like Eight Desolations City, the more one would respect life. But since the foreign tribes were already dead… using their remains was also a viable option.

At the end of the day, he was still a pharmacist.

Gu Zuo’s words did stir the deputy commanders, and their gazes toward him had subtly changed.

It was extremely rare for a pharmacist to settle in Eight Desolations City, and among these rare pharmacists, there had never been one quite so… difficult to describe.

Unconsciously, everyone raised Gu Zuo’s level of ruthlessness by several tiers. For such a seemingly soft, youthful pharmacist, they no longer dared to underestimate him in the slightest.

Gu Zuo continued, “The materials from the Blue-Eyed, Giant Rock, and Demon Wolf tribes, if we want to utilize them, will likely require multiple attempts before we can confirm their effectiveness. I have an inconvenient request… If, in the future, you kill any of the members of the three tribes, could you send their bodies to me? If I succeed in my research, I can teach the methods to the pharmacists you trust, to help enhance Eight Desolations City’s power. How do you all feel about that?”

The deputy commanders exchanged glances.

It was still the City Lord, Wu Zhenhuang, who spoke up: “This matter, I agree to! Rest assured, Master Gu. Whatever corpses there are, you may have as many as you need. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration, Master Gu.”

Gu Zuo smiled, “I’m glad that City Lord Wu doesn’t think I’m being too bothersome.”

After this conversation, everyone’s attention was once again directed to the battle stage.

Wu Yingyuan was still magnificent, and no one under her could match her strength in battle. However, the many young strong warriors watching from below were still restless, and due to her formidable skills, many of them now looked at her with even greater eagerness.

Gu Zuo was also among them.

But the Eight Desolations City warriors, on the other hand, felt conflicted.

On one hand, they thought Gu Zuo’s words made a lot of sense, but on the other, they were left a bit hurt… though this time, it wasn’t because of the use of the corpses. Instead, their curiosity about this pharmacist’s origins had grown stronger.