William Clark had remained silent on the side, but when Eleanor Brooks asked a question, he finally spoke: “This man is not poisoned by the Seven Venomous Cloud Python.”

“You’re talking nonsense! Both my companions died in the jaws of that beast, and I barely made it back alive myself—do you think I’d mistake it? You brat, I have no grudge against you, so why are you trying to get me killed?” Before William Clark could finish, the burly man cut him off with a barrage of accusations.

“Haha…” Eleanor Brooks burst out laughing, tears nearly streaming down his face, before saying, “Did you hear that? Utterly ridiculous! Ignorant child, get lost! If you keep making trouble here, I’ll have someone throw you out!”

Eleanor Brooks’s ability to diagnose the poison at a glance was convincing in itself. Besides, the man had escaped from the python’s jaws—how could he possibly be mistaken?

Beast hunters spend their days dealing with monsters; aside from their own families, they know beasts better than anyone. The chance of them making a mistake is even smaller.

“Get lost! Don’t delay Master Brooks from treating us!”

“This brat is actually undermining his own father—he’s hopeless!”

“If I had a son like that, I’d have beaten him to a pulp long ago.”

At this point, even the onlookers couldn’t stand it anymore. They saw this as nothing but a farce caused by William Clark, and all started telling him to leave.

At this moment, Lucy no longer had her earlier confidence. She tugged at William Clark’s sleeve, looking a bit timid. Yet she didn’t retreat; instead, she stepped forward half a pace, positioning herself protectively in front of William Clark, as if afraid these people might suddenly attack him.

William Clark was moved, but shook his head and calmly said, “What you see with your own eyes isn’t always the truth. This man is indeed not poisoned by the Seven Venomous Cloud Python, but by the Seven-Colored Cloud Python.”

Chapter 5: Coughing Blood

“Nonsense! What Seven-Colored Cloud Python? Never heard of it. Do you think you can just make up a beast and fool us?”

Eleanor Brooks was quite accomplished in the field of alchemy in Qin, and naturally had some knowledge of monsters. He had never heard of any Seven-Colored Cloud Python.

If even he hadn’t heard of it, there was no way William Clark, this ignorant kid, would know.

“Young Master Clark, you’re not just insulting Master Brooks and me—you’re insulting all of us beast hunters! We make our living under the claws of monsters and know them better than anyone. I’ve been a beast hunter for so many years and never once heard of a Seven-Colored Cloud Python.”

At this point, the burly man was even more convinced that William Clark was stirring up trouble and trying to get him killed, so his words became even harsher, even a bit malicious.

Ordinary people have their own ways of surviving. This burly man might seem rough, but he was actually quite shrewd. His life depended on Eleanor Brooks saving him, so he didn’t want to offend Eleanor Brooks. He tied himself to Eleanor Brooks, and brought up the entire beast hunter community, just to make William Clark back down.

Even if William Clark didn’t back down, the Ye family wouldn’t be as reckless as him and risk offending all the beast hunters.

Many of those present were beast hunters, and upon hearing this, the place erupted.

“That’s right! What Seven-Colored Cloud Python? Never heard of it!”

“This spoiled brat is really disgracing Master Clark. Looks like the Ye family’s glory ends with this generation—they can’t compare to Drunken Star Pavilion anymore. Seven-Colored Cloud Python? I’ve been in the Endless Forest for nearly thirty years and never heard of such a beast.”

“I’m done watching. Let’s all head over to Drunken Star Pavilion. This fine Fragrant Medicine Hall has been turned into a mess by a spoiled brat.”

William Clark just stood there silently, which was surprising to Eleanor Brooks, who knew him well. Normally, if things got this heated, William Clark would have exploded by now, but today he acted as if nothing was wrong, as if the patients weren’t even insulting him.

Still, William Clark had completely embarrassed him today, but he wasn’t afraid to reason with him anywhere. Maybe it was good for the kid to suffer a little—if this kept up, the family business old Ye had built would be ruined by this boy sooner or later.

William Clark slowly turned his gaze toward the noisy crowd, sweeping his eyes over the faces of those making the most commotion. Those people had been quite pleased with themselves, but for some reason, after meeting William Clark’s eyes, each of them felt as if they’d fallen into an ice cellar.

Finally, William Clark’s gaze settled on the man who had first incited the crowd to go to Drunken Star Pavilion. That man had been feeling smug, but suddenly felt a chilling murderous intent lock onto him, his expression freezing in place, looking indescribably strange.

He was a tough, sharp-eyed middle-aged man, also a beast hunter. Those who knew him called him David Turner, but no one knew he was actually a spy planted among the beast hunters by Drunken Star Pavilion. Whenever something valuable was found in the Endless Forest, he would kill and rob, then hand the goods over to Drunken Star Pavilion.

And Drunken Star Pavilion was the biggest rival of Fragrant Medicine Hall in Qin.

Suddenly, the once noisy hall fell silent, the clamor cut off as if a waterfall had been sliced in half.

For a moment, the hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop—an oppressive, terrifying silence.