Young Master Sullivan let out a laugh, then suddenly struck toward Henry Carter with his palm.

Henry Carter's body tensed up. Seeing this Young Master make a move, he did his best to turn aside. Although he had never practiced martial arts, he was prepared, and that Young Master only struck at his vital point with a casual palm, not using his full strength. In the end, Henry Carter actually managed to dodge.

The palm missed his vital point, but hit his shoulder.

Henry Carter's face turned pale as he staggered back more than ten steps, his body nearly flying backward through the air, finally collapsing to the ground.

Failing to kill Henry Carter with one strike, Young Master Sullivan showed a cold expression, snorted, and picked up a bowl of medicinal soup to drink.

The others also drank the restorative soup one after another.

"Brother Zhao, you didn't manage to kill him with one palm, that's really..." another Young Master said mockingly, "Brother Zhao, why not finish him off with your sword?"

"A mere herb-gathering novice, is he even worthy of my sword?"

Mr. Sullivan sneered and walked toward Henry Carter.

With one step forward, he suddenly felt the world spinning, his head dizzy.

Chapter 003: Ascension Herb

"Brother Zhao, you..."

The yellow-robed Young Master also looked pale. He saw Young Master Sullivan's unsteady steps and felt dizzy himself.

Young Master Sullivan turned his head and saw that several of his companions' faces were bloodless and faintly tinged with blue.

The one with the weakest cultivation, Young Bennett, had the deepest blue on his face, almost as green as grass. He let out a groan, unable to speak, and collapsed headfirst.

The rest all fell to the ground as well.

The yellow-robed Young Master glanced at Henry Carter, then at Young Master Sullivan, showing a self-mocking look, and said bitterly, "Capsized in a gutter, lost our lives in a little mountain valley."

This yellow-robed Young Master had black blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He said bitterly, "Since cultivating inner strength, I've roamed the martial world without trouble. Fate toys with people—who would have thought I'd die in a little mountain valley, at the hands of a herb-gathering boy? If word of this gets out, it will be a laughingstock for a hundred years. Sigh, after we're gone, the martial world of today will surely decline..."

Among these few, they could be called the most outstanding of the martial world, yet now they died in this nameless mountain. The younger generation of the martial world would be weakened. Even if it didn't affect the future, at least for now, their strength would surely wane.

He sighed and fell to the ground.

Young Master Sullivan had the strongest inner strength and held on the longest. His hair bristled with rage, his energy surged, and his hairband snapped. His eyes bulged with fury as he gritted his teeth and shouted, "I refuse! I am not resigned!"

"Ascension Herb."

Henry Carter propped himself up, barely leaning against a tree, clutching his nearly shattered shoulder, cold sweat pouring from his forehead. Yet he still managed a faint smile and said, "A Daoist of the Liu family in the previous dynasty was obsessed with alchemy. One day, he fired up his furnace and took the elixir himself, dying on the spot. The chickens and dogs in his house also ate the scattered pills and all died as well."

"This Daoist was of royal blood, so history only records that he achieved the Dao, took the elixir, and ascended in a cloud of light, with his chickens and dogs ascending to heaven as well."

"This highly poisonous herb, with a beautiful name, is called the Ascension Herb."

Henry Carter looked at him and said, "Perhaps this was just the royal family's blessing for him, hoping that after his death, he would ascend to immortality. Or perhaps it really is an immortal medicine—after taking it, you heroes may truly ascend to the heavens. If you become immortals in the future, don't forget to come back and help your old friends."

Henry Carter spoke with utmost seriousness, not a trace of mockery in his tone.

But that was the greatest mockery of all.

Young Master Sullivan spat out a mouthful of blood and roared angrily, "Impossible! I've practiced martial arts since childhood and am well-versed in medical and toxicology texts. I've never heard of any Ascension Herb!"

Henry Carter said calmly, "This is an obscure medicinal herb, not recorded in ordinary texts. It's only mentioned in passing in Daoist scriptures, but my father has seen it before and can recognize it."

Young Master Sullivan felt his head growing even dizzier. He forced himself to stand, shouting harshly, "Why are you fine? Why aren't you dead? You clearly drank the soup too. I was watching—you didn't take anything else, let alone any so-called antidote."

Henry Carter raised his hand and said, "I accidentally brushed against a tree."

He turned the back of his hand toward Young Master Sullivan, trusting that the other's martial skills meant his eyesight wouldn't be lacking.

Young Master Sullivan immediately saw the green moss in the crevices of his fingernails. He couldn't hold on any longer, took a step forward, his blood surging, and collapsed at once. The last thought surfaced in his mind...

So... that's how he detoxified... and probably how he poisoned us as well...

Young Master Sullivan was filled with unwillingness. He gripped the corner of his robe tightly, refusing to let go.

Seeing this Young Master Sullivan, clearly the leader of the group, fall dead, Henry Carter let out a sigh of relief, gave a bitter smile, clutched his shoulder, and slowly regulated his breathing. From his nearly shattered medicine basket, he took out two herbs and chewed them.

He didn't know how much time had passed before the darkness before his eyes gradually faded. Leaning on the tree, he gritted his teeth and stood up, heading toward the spot where the blue bird had fallen.

He parted the grass—nothing!

He climbed the tree with one hand—still nothing!

He called out hoarsely—still nothing!

He searched the area for a long time, until dusk was nearly upon him, but still couldn't find the blue bird.

Maybe... maybe something had carried it away?