Gamers Are Fierce

Lvzhou is a millennium-old ancient city. A thousand years ago, the local governor Li Bin built a city here, imitating the capital Xianheng. He also constructed water conservancy projects to alleviate floods, enrich the soil, encourage agriculture and sericulture, and dedicate himself to grain storage.

To this day, Lvzhou has become the wealthiest city in the southern region. The former Shu King Meng Chang once ordered the planting of hibiscus all over Lvzhou City to showcase its prosperity, hence Lvzhou also earned the nickname "City of Hibiscus."

In Yongle Square of Lvzhou, there was a merchant named Wang Bu who ran a silk business. He had accumulated a vast fortune early in life. Additionally, he was well-read in poetry and the classics, generous, kind, and approachable, and had made many friends within Lvzhou City.

His family was flourishing and his wealth secure, which aroused the envy of others.

Yet there was one matter that had troubled Wang Bu for ten years.

And that was his daughter.

Ten years ago, his daughter, still with her hair tied up in the traditional style for young girls, suddenly complained to him of an unbearable sour pain in her nose and difficulty breathing.

Wang Bu thought it was just a common cold that children often suffer from and didn't pay much attention to it. Only after he had a doctor examine her did he discover that in each of his daughter's nostrils there was a small polyp.

No matter what medication she took or what powders were applied, these two polyps did not disappear. Instead, with time, they grew bigger and even hung out from the nostrils, dangling in front of her lips like two soapberries.

Not only were they extremely unsightly, but any touch would also cause her severe pain.

Though she was in the bloom of youth, this strange illness tormented her to the point of restlessness. Day and night she hid in her boudoir and washed her face with tears.

As her father, Wang Bu was indescribably pained. He spent a fortune hiring renowned doctors to treat her bizarre illness and even personally visited famous mountains and rivers in search of a highly skilled healer for his daughter's stubborn ailment, but he ultimately found nothing.

Around noontime, as Wang Bu sat in the courtyard drowning his sorrows with wine, he suddenly heard Men Fang come to report that a Tianzhu Monk was at the door asking for alms.

Wang Bu, annoyed, instructed Men Fang to give the monk some silver and send him away, but Men Fang said that the Tianzhu Monk claimed to be skilled in medicine and might have a way to cure the polyps.

A thought struck Wang Bu, and he had Men Fang bring the Tianzhu Monk to the main hall to be treated with hospitality. The monk appeared with dark skin, emaciated, with deep blue eyes and sunken sockets, wearing a lengthy goat beard, and always with a gentle smile at the corners of his mouth, giving him quite the look of a recluse.

Wang Bu welcomed him warmly and, during their conversation, tested the monk with strange illnesses he had heard about. The monk responded fluently, and the treatments he described seemed plausible.

Since he was there, Wang Bu thought it wouldn't hurt to let him try.

Wang Bu called out his daughter. As soon as the monk saw Miss Wang, his eyebrows lit up with joy, and he nodded continuously, "This condition, this poor monk has also seen in Tianzhu; it is not difficult to remove."

Wang Bu, overwhelmed with joy, eagerly asked the monk to treat her.

The monk then took out a bag of white powder, approached, and gently blew it onto Miss Wang's nose. The white powder adhered to the polyps hanging from her nostrils. In an instant, the two elongated polyps withered and dried up, naturally falling off and dropping to the ground, while Miss Wang herself was still in a daze, completely unaware.

The stubborn illness that had tormented the Wang family for ten years disappeared in a puff of smoke. Wang Bu and his wife were ecstatic and hurriedly ordered their servants to prepare a generous financial reward to thank their benefactor.

But the monk waved his hand and smiled, "There's no need for such, benefactor. Practicing medicine and saving lives, offering medical help to the world, is simply my duty. Moreover, this powder is commonly available in Tianzhu and doesn't cost much. If the benefactor insists on showing gratitude, perhaps you could gift these two polyps to this poor monk. It will be convenient for this poor monk to Professor my Disciple in the art of medicine by giving examples."

Wang Bu had always considered these polyps a thorn in his side and wanted nothing more than to be rid of them. He agreed immediately and handed the polyps over to the monk.

The Tianzhu Monk carefully wrapped the polyps in cloth and took his leave.

Wang Bu went to the door to see him off. Just as he stepped outside and was about to express his thanks once more, he saw the monk stride away rapidly, disappearing into the crowd after sprinting a hundred steps, as if he were escaping.

Well, after all, he was a remarkable and unusual person; such peculiar behavior was not so odd.

Wang Bu shook his head, returned home, and enjoyed the company of his family.

A short while later, Men Fang came with another message, saying that this time a young man riding a white horse was requesting an audience.

Wang Bu went out to meet him. The young man's eyebrows were furrowed, his face wore a look of distress as he greeted Wang Bu with a salute, "I have heard that your beloved daughter is suffering from a stubborn illness. May I have the honor of meeting her? I may have a prescription that can cure the polyps."

Wang Bu was momentarily taken aback. "I am afraid that I must disappoint you, young master. Just now, a monk from Tianzhu visited and cured my daughter's chronic condition before leaving."

The young man looked as if he had been struck by a thunderbolt and asked unwillingly, "And the two polyps...?"

"They were also taken by the eminent monk, who said they were to be used to Professor his Disciple in the art of medicine."

"Damn foreign monk! I was but one step too late..."

The young man's face turned ashen, and he couldn't help but curse loudly, catching Wang Bu off guard.

Noticing the expression on Wang Bu's face, the young scholar then explained, "Your Excellency is unaware. Those two nasal polyps are called Dragon's Beard.

They seem like an illness, but in fact, they are a gift from the heavens.

Once the Dragon's Beards reach fifteen years, they will naturally fall off. The person who grew them will then be blessed with a life free from want, filled with peace, joy, and happiness, and longevity of a hundred years.

If the Dragon's Beards are taken before the fifteen years are up, the person will become ordinary, and those Dragon's Beards can then be used in medicine to create Spirit Pills that will increase a Cultivator's power by ten years."

"Ah?"

Wang Bu listened, dumbfounded. He had never imagined such a story lay behind the polyps in his daughter's nostrils. He wished to ask the young scholar for more details, but he saw the youth mount his white horse and chase after the monk, disappearing in the same direction the monk had taken.

The monk whom the young man was so intent on finding was, at that very moment, sitting in a private room of a tavern, sipping wine and looking at the two withered polyps on the table with a smug expression.

I have long heard that Lvzhou City is a famous city blessed with many remarkable and unusual people. Yet today, seeing this, it seems not so impressive after all. To think they would overlook the Dragon's Beard right before their eyes, allowing me, a monk from Tianzhu, to seize the advantage.

The monk named Qi Yu tapped his fingers on the wooden table, muttering to himself with elation and triumph. Unable to contain his glee, he took another large gulp of wine.

If all the Cultivators in Lvzhou City are but a bunch of good-for-nothing drunkards, then seizing the Auspicious Beast presents an excellent opportunity...

The monk Qi Yu thought silently to himself, ignoring the loud revelry of the other guests in the neighboring private room.

"Have you heard? There's a new wandering Cultivator who roams the land, upholding justice and performing heroic deeds, known as Taoist Xi Menzi..."