The young girl just stood quietly beside the man, unusually silent.

Suddenly, Ethan Brooks felt a wave of dizziness in his head.

Ethan Brooks was startled and quickly steadied himself, not knowing where this dizzy feeling came from. It seemed to be because he had stared at the girl for a moment too long.

How could something like this happen?

Ethan Brooks's expression changed slightly, feeling a bit uneasy inside.

Chapter 2: Wuyang Wood

This kind of situation had been happening to Ethan Brooks frequently lately.

Edward Brooks knew very well in his heart that his illness was getting worse. Old Man the master had once solemnly warned him that the "Yama Medicine Hand" was extremely powerful and domineering, but the medicine must not be overused. Otherwise, the poison would seep into the bone marrow—at best, all martial arts would be lost; at worst, the muscles would go limp, the bones would soften, and life would be in danger. Back in the days when Old Man was at the height of his fame across several southwestern provinces, he suddenly retired and withdrew from the martial world precisely because of the backlash from the medicine. Major hidden dangers had appeared in his body, and if he continued to fight recklessly, he would either die at the hands of his enemies or by his own.

Old Man secluded himself in the remote mountain town of Qingyuan because he feared his enemies would come looking for him, forcing him into fights. Every time he fought, the backlash from the poison would deepen.

Fortunately, times changed. After the new government was established, it cracked down hard on all kinds of martial gangs and secret societies. The once-glorious big gangs vanished into thin air, and the enemies Old Man had offended scattered in all directions. No one came to trouble him anymore, so he was able to live out his years in peace. His only regret was having no children or descendants. When he passed the "Yama Medicine Hand" to Ethan Brooks, it was partly because he saw potential in him as a martial artist, and partly because he couldn't bear to let the sect's unique skill be lost in his hands.

He thought that in this era of firearms, even if Ethan Brooks practiced the "Medicine Hand," it would only serve as a means of self-defense and he wouldn't devote himself too much to it.

But what Ethan Brooks's master hadn't expected was that, after so many years, the world had changed again. Ethan Brooks had actually become a brotherhood leader, and his status was no less than his master's back then.

Of course, today's brotherhood is not the same as in the past. Many things have changed. Perhaps only the name remains, and the way things are done is very different, especially the relationship with the authorities.

Ethan Brooks had trained the Medicine Hand to a profound level, and just like Old Man back then, the medicine had started to backfire.

In recent years, even though Ethan Brooks had stopped using the medicine, he could still clearly sense all kinds of changes in his body. Dizziness was just the mildest outward symptom. Now, even if the most beautiful young girl was stripped naked and placed in front of him, Edward Brooks would be powerless, only able to stare helplessly, unable to do anything.

At this thought, Ethan Brooks took the leopard-tooth pipe from his mouth, turned his head, and asked a capable man in his thirties beside him, “Henry, any leads on the Wuyang wood?”

The capable man, dressed in a suit, was the most trusted brother under Edward Brooks, and the general manager of Qingyuan Grand Hotel. In recent years, as Ethan Brooks kept a low profile and often went into the mountains to gather herbs himself, he had left many matters to Henry to handle. Henry was essentially his spokesperson—not only loyal, but also extremely shrewd and capable, making Ethan Brooks feel very at ease.

Henry shook his head, his brows tightly knit, and said, “Edward, what exactly is this Wuyang wood? I’ve asked a lot of people. Not only have they never seen it, they’ve never even heard of it…”

A bitter smile appeared at the corner of Ethan Brooks’s mouth.

It wasn’t just Henry who had never heard of it—he himself hadn’t either. That life-saving prescription was given to him by Old Man on his deathbed, who told him that if the backlash from the medicine ever became too severe, he could use this prescription to save his life. But Old Man also told him that the prescription had been given to him by a reclusive master he met in his youth, and he himself had never used it. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to, but because there was one ingredient that couldn’t be found anywhere.

That ingredient was called “Wuyang wood.”

The master warned Ethan Brooks that without Wuyang wood, the prescription could not be used, or else the effect would be the opposite.

Ever since the first signs of medicinal backlash appeared a few years ago, Ethan Brooks had sought medical help everywhere—not only from Chinese doctors, but also from Western doctors. He had been examined and hospitalized in top hospitals in big cities like the capital Mingzhu, and had consulted the most famous professors, but the results were negligible.

Only then did Ethan Brooks remember the prescription his master had given him years ago. He quickly found it and prepared to gather the ingredients. At that time, Ethan Brooks was quite confident. After all, Qingyuan was the herbal medicine distribution center of the three southwestern provinces—how hard could it be to put together a prescription?

What he never expected was that, while the other dozen or so ingredients were quickly gathered, this “Wuyang wood” simply couldn’t be found. Qingyuan city was full of herbal medicine merchants from all over the country, people with vast experience, but no matter whom Ethan Brooks asked, they all shook their heads. One big medicine merchant from the northeast even asked him in surprise what Wuyang wood was—was it a type of wood used for making furniture?

Ethan Brooks was quite frustrated at the time.

But Edward Brooks was not someone who gave up easily, especially since this matter concerned his life—he had to give it his all. Ethan Brooks decided to go into the mountains himself to ask the elders deep in the mountains for information.