"It''s even harder for medicine farmers; not only is it laborious, but it''s dangerous too." Shang Huan sighed, "Those powerful Exotic Beasts all run off towards the medicinal fields."

    "Not only were the fields destroyed, several people died too!" Shang Huan shook his head in lament.

    "Luckily I sent them my secret grilled meat seasoning, which helped mitigate some of their losses. Otherwise, this year would have been even tougher!"

    Chen Mu couldn''t help but glance at Shang Huan.

    From the sound of it, you''re still a good guy, huh?

    "To help them, we don''t know what risks we''ll have to take."

    "Xiao Shang, you''re just too soft-hearted!" Old Hao wore an expression of tough love.

    "I''m not stopping you from being kind, but we have to eat too. It wouldn''t be too much to raise the prices a bit," Old Hao earnestly advised.

    "Alright then," Shang Huan said with a troubled face; "After all, we''re not having it easy either."

    Chen Mu: "..."

    I often feel like I don''t fit in with you guys because I''m not shameless enough.

    Do you even want to keep your face?!

    "Brother Chen, just go ahead and build without worry."

    "The good days are still to come!" Shang Huan proclaimed, waving his hand grandly.

    I''m afraid I''ll make the money but not live to spend it!

    ...

    Chen Mu watched with vacant eyes as Shang Huan and his companion heatedly discussed raising prices.

    "Next time I deliver the Calming Pills, I should hammer on them a bit more."

    It took quite a while before the two of them took a sip of their cool tea and finally ceased their endless discussion.

    "In the past, we were all envious of the medicine farmers, but this year it''s the other way around," Old Hao chuckled.

    "It''s because they occupied land with good feng shui," Shang Huan also laughed.

    Is it because of the Earth Spirit Vitality?

    So that''s why the powerful Exotic Beasts all ran off to the medicinal fields?

    Chen Mu suddenly understood.

    "If Brother Chen is thinking of learning medicine farming, I think it''s better to wait for a couple of years," Old Hao suggested.

    "No one knows if next year there will still be Exotic Beasts causing trouble."

    "Besides, that skill isn''t easy to learn."

    "It''s costly, and without one or two years of study and trial, don''t even think about making money from the medicinal fields," Old Hao said earnestly.

    Chen Mu glanced at the increasingly thriving Nightshade and sighed, "The expenses are indeed not small."

    But making money really is possible.

    Those little more than twenty plants are enough for him to recover all his investments.

    Still, Old Hao wasn''t wrong.

    These next two years, it''s indeed inadvisable to go to the medicinal cultivation area.

    If he were to come across Exotic Beasts causing trouble again, it wouldn''t matter if the fields were ruined, but it would be terrible if his life were at risk.

    "It''s safer to plant Yellow Bud Rice."

    "Yeah. It''s exhausting, sure, but at least there''s no need to face the strong Exotic Beasts," Old Hao agreed, exhaling puffs of white smoke.

    ...

    Nighttime, at the base of Low Mountain, Yellow Bud Rice fields.

    Chen Mu walked leisurely among the Yellow Bud Rice.

    Seemingly noticing Chen Mu''s figure, the white-scaled giant snake abruptly twisted its head, its golden vertical pupils filled with cold scrutiny.

    Almost instantly, it enveloped itself in a green mist and suddenly appeared beside Chen Mu.

    In the blink of an eye, a black shadow as quick as lightning slashed through the air, accompanied by a low whistling sound, and violently struck Chen Mu.

    Boom!

    It was like two balls violently colliding.

    Black smoke flickered around Chen Mu, and he was instantly sent flying.

    The hard mountain seemed like a sandbox, and Chen Mu, like a massive lead ball, was smashed into the dirt.

    Bang!

    Soil scattered as Chen Mu suddenly sprang out from within the mountain.

    Midair, his body rapidly grew taller and expanded.

    His skin rippled with bulging muscles, where even thread-like muscle fibers could be seen.

    Then, turning into a black lightning bolt, he almost instantly arrived in front of the white-scaled giant snake.

    His right fist clenched, silver threads flickering intermittently over his skin, as the muscles in his arm swelled even further.

    Bang!

    The giant snake''s head reeled as if struck by a heavy truck, involuntarily snapping backward.

    White scales rippled and rolled like waves from the impact.

    "Haha, exhilarating!"

    The Cloud Mirage Spirit Armor Technique had been transforming his body, giving him strength that could match that of the white-scaled giant snake!

    Bang Bang Bang...

    Chen Mu''s fists pummeled like bee wings, striking at the snake''s head repeatedly.

    Yet the giant snake''s scales rhythmically opened and closed, completely absorbing Chen Mu''s hard hits.

    Even the tail, sweeping unexpectedly, sent Chen Mu crashing back into the ground once again.

    When he sprang from the mountain again, he saw the white-scaled giant snake preparing to burrow into the ground and escape. Even Five Ghosts Moving Mountain struggled to hinder it.

    Chen Mu couldn''t let it escape!

    With a low shout, Soul Strength rapidly gathered in his right hand.

    The icy sensation absorbed by the Spirit Armor Technique at the position of his kidneys was also drawn into the palm of his right hand.

    A fist-sized, magma-like black and red orb materialized.

    "Sand Shooting Shadow!"

    The orb nearly appeared out of thin air in front of the white-scaled giant snake.

    The next moment, the orb exploded.

    Countless sesame-sized fragments instantly smeared a large part of the white-scaled giant snake.

    Hiss hiss hiss...

    A piercing chorus of agonized shrieks rang out abruptly.

    The entire snake convulsed and twisted in frenzy.

    The area hit by Sand Shooting Shadow immediately turned black and began to rot.

    The tough white scales were stained with black and red, becoming brittle and fragile.

    "Five Ghosts Moving Mountain!"

    Five strands of black smoke, like five smoky black snakes, rushed into the white-scaled giant snake''s body through the decaying wounds.

    In just two breaths, the white-scaled giant snake, which had seemed invincible just moments before, became like a rubber hose scorched by high heat.

    Limp and collapsed on the ground, it could no longer get up!