Chapter 118: Chapter 110: The Secret of Wuxi Village

Xiao Hu’s family home had four rooms. One was for his parents, one was for Xiao Hu, and a third was for his younger sister.

However, Tang Mo didn’t see Xiao Hu’s sister. Xiao Hu’s mother explained that his sister, Xiao Tao, was gravely ill and couldn’t come out to welcome her, asking for her understanding.

"Gravely ill? Can’t you ask the Sect Leader for a Medicinal Insect to cure her?"

Tang Mo still remembered what Xiao Hu had told her on the way here.

"The Sect Leader said that each type of Medicinal Insect treats a different illness. The village doesn’t have the kind that can cure Xiao Tao yet."

Xiao Hu lowered his head. This was also the reason he was so desperate to go to the place Tang Mo had mentioned.

’If they could really catch a lot of Medicinal Insects, maybe they’d find the one that could cure Xiao Tao’s illness?’

He really wanted to save his sister’s life.

Xiao Tao was getting sicker and sicker. It would take a long time to prepare the Medicinal Insect, and he didn’t know if she could hold on until then.

’One type of insect for one type of illness?’

Tang Mo felt this whole business was getting more and more bizarre.

Xiao Hu’s parents were naturally also full of anticipation for the place Tang Mo had described, so they treated her with the utmost enthusiasm.

They led her to the empty room and prepared bedding and some daily necessities for her.

"This empty room is...?"

Tang Mo had observed that the houses in Wuxi Village were arranged in a very orderly fashion. It seemed unlikely they would build a spare, empty house.

"This was my younger son’s room... He got sick and passed away later."

Tang Mo nodded. ’So even if this Sect Leader and his Medicinal Insects are incredible, people in Wuxi Village still die.’

Xiao Hu remembered what Tang Mo had said in front of the Sect Leader: as long as they provided her with food and lodging, she would take them to that place.

So, when evening came, Xiao Hu brought Tang Mo her dinner.

In an independent village like this, one that didn’t rely on a base, there were naturally no nutrient solutions.

Meat from Basic-level Mutant Beasts was tough to eat, and while meat from Intermediate Beasts was naturally good, it wasn’t easy to hunt them.

Xiao Hu brought Tang Mo two dried bones with some jerky still attached, along with two fruits.

Tang Mo could vaguely sense that this was meat from an Intermediate Beast. Judging by how precious Xiao Hu treated the food, this was probably the best meal his family had to offer.

Tang Mo felt a bit embarrassed to accept it. ’Xiao Hu’s family has a seriously ill sister, and I just bluffed my way in. What kind of person would I be if I ate the best food they had?’

"It’s already great that I get to stay here. From now on, I can find my own food."

"No! Don’t go back on your word! You have to take us to that place, I’m begging you."

Xiao Hu thought Tang Mo’s refusal meant she didn’t want to take them to that place. His eyes filled with pleading. Fearing she wouldn’t accept, he set the food down and quickly ran off.

’The people here are so simple-minded. They really think that as long as they meet my demands, I’ll definitely keep my promise.’

Left with no choice, Tang Mo picked up the jerky and began to gnaw on it slowly.

’Deceiving honest people feels terrible. I’ll have to find a chance to repay this kindness later.’

Tang Mo’s spiritual power had reached a point where she no longer needed to set aside a specific time at night to focus on cultivation.

She had now found a new method: cultivating her spiritual power while doing other things.

For example, when she was traveling, she would often sprint while simultaneously circulating her spiritual power throughout her body.

As long as she wasn’t talking or fighting, she could get her spiritual power to circulate rhythmically through her body at any time. This undoubtedly saved her a lot of time.

She was already ranked twenty-first on the Huaxia leaderboard. She really had to work harder; she had her pride to think about, after all.

.bg-ssp-10081{margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto;display:flex;justify-content:center;}

Later that night, after Xiao Hu and his family had fallen asleep, Tang Mo quietly got up and went outside.

She crouched in front of the row of jars and opened one.

The moment she unwrapped the white cloth bound by coils of hemp rope that sealed the jar’s mouth, Tang Mo was nearly knocked over by a nauseating stench.

’How could she describe that smell?’

It was like the stink of rotting mutant beast meat in a swamp, covered in flies.

Holding her breath against the stench, Tang Mo peered into the jar. Inside were only two insect carcasses; the rest was a thick, black liquid.

’That makes sense. I just sold one of these insects today for an Intermediate Crystal Core. They’re so valuable, it’s normal for Xiao Hu’s family to only have two.’

The smell alone was more than Tang Mo could bear; she could hardly imagine how anyone could eat this stuff.

’Just thinking about it made her stomach turn.’

After examining it carefully several times, Tang Mo could confirm that these were just the ordinary, bloated, rotting corpses of insects.

Although she didn’t know what the liquid was, the insects themselves were surely worthless. Curing illnesses and saving lives with them was completely impossible.

’It seems the key to the mystery lies in the Sect Leader’s final, secret step.’

Tang Mo carefully re-wrapped the jar’s lid the way she had found it and put it back.

’The villagers of Wuxi Village must be quite simple and honest. Otherwise, they wouldn’t just leave something they consider so valuable sitting out in the open.’

’They must be certain no one would steal them for every household to dare do this.’

Tang Mo tiptoed back into the house. As she passed the room belonging to Xiao Hu’s sister, Xiao Tao, she heard a series of coughs from within.

"Big Sister."

Tang Mo naturally heard the voice and moved closer to the door of Xiao Tao’s room.

"Are you calling me?"

Tang Mo hadn’t met Xiao Tao yet, but Xiao Tao, inside her room, must have already heard about her arrival.

’Knowing that I can lead everyone to a place to catch lots of Medicinal Insects, this sick young woman must be very happy.’

’Too bad I’m destined to disappoint her.’

"Big Sister, can you come in for a moment?"

The girl’s voice from inside the room was gentle, her breathing unsteady and interspersed with coughs. It was a heart-wrenching sound.

Tang Mo hesitated for a moment, then pushed the door open and walked in.

A small chair was placed by Xiao Tao’s bed, with a lit candle on top.

On the chair also sat a half-read book. It seemed the girl passed her days in the room by reading.

Tang Mo looked at the girl on the bed.

Xiao Tao was the same age as Xiao Hu, nineteen. They were fraternal twins.

Xiao Tao’s face was drained of color, sallow and yellowed. Her lips were pale and tinged with a dark hue.

A trash can sat on the floor nearby. Tang Mo glanced inside and saw it was full of blood-stained tissues.

’It seems Xiao Tao really is gravely ill.’

"Big Sister, you’re from the outside, right? Can you tell me about the outside world?"

Xiao Tao didn’t ask anxiously about catching Medicinal Insects as Tang Mo had expected. Instead, she asked about the world outside, her eyes shining brightly in her sallow face.

Tang Mo sat by the bed and told Xiao Tao about S Base and the villages around B City.

Tang Mo kept her stories superficial, mostly covering things one could read in the Alliance Daily, but Xiao Tao still listened with rapt attention.

.bg-ssp-10016{margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto;display:flex;justify-content:center;} #dl-banner-300x250 { max-height: 0 !important; overflow: hidden !important; }

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.