Chapter 169: The Friendship of Peak Warriors

Lin Dong instinctively took the black porcelain bottle and looked at Yun Cangqiong in confusion.
Yun Cangqiong casually said, “There are two Reverse Meridian Pills in the bottle. Yun Lan gave them to you.”
After saying that, Yun Cangqiong clapped his hands and smiled at Old Ding, “Now, I don’t have a single Reverse Meridian Pill left. If you want one, go find someone else.”
Old Ding was stunned. He had cried and pleaded for half a day to get just one pill, yet without saying a word, Yun Cangqiong had given him two. Comparing the two, did he even need to live anymore?
“I say, young Yun, with Yun Lan’s talent, she should be the next head of your Tianjian Sect. According to the rules of major sects, shouldn’t the heir to the sect head, whether marrying or dating, choose someone from within the sect with outstanding talent?” Old Ding wondered.
Lin Dong was surprised. “Do major sects have such rules?”
“Of course,” Old Ding replied irritably. “Otherwise, if you randomly marry or date a disciple from another sect, wouldn’t that mean handing half of your sect over to them?”
“Is that related?” Yun Cangqiong countered.
“Of course it is. Even if Yun Lan, blinded by love, has her eye on Lin Dong, she should know the chances of success are slim.” Old Ding said sourly. “Is it worth giving him two Reverse Meridian Pills at once?”
Although Lin Dong was a bit upset by the word “blinded by love,” he didn’t argue and instead stared intently at Yun Cangqiong’s face.
Reverse Meridian Pills were ninth-tier medicinal pills, their value far beyond what an ordinary person could comprehend. Lin Dong also wanted to know why Yun Lan was so generous to him.
“You think Yun Lan, like you, makes friends wherever she goes?” Yun Cangqiong said calmly. “Don’t be fooled by Yun Lan’s easy-going nature and her equal treatment of everyone. The only one she truly considers a friend is Shopkeeper Lin.”
Lin Dong was silent, feeling a mix of honor and disappointment, along with an indescribable emotion. It seemed his initial thoughts had been a bit presumptuous.
Over by the side, Old Ding clicked his tongue. “Young Yun, look at Yun Lan, then look at yourself. Aren’t you ashamed of your attitude toward friends?”
Yun Cangqiong dismissed him with disdain. “If you can, give birth to a daughter who treats friends like trash.”
“The old man doesn’t have such leisure…” Old Ding grumbled as he took out a porcelain bottle from his clothes and threw it at Lin Dong.
Lin Dong caught the bottle and asked in confusion, “What’s this?”
“A Reverse Meridian Pill,” Old Ding explained.
“Thank you, old man!” Lin Dong quickly thanked him. With this one, he now had three Reverse Meridian Pills.

“Why thank me?” Old Ding waved his hand. “This one is returned to you for that kid Liu Xiu. As for the one given to you, I never got it.”
“It makes no difference.” Lin Dong chuckled as he placed both porcelain bottles on the mobile counter. With three Reverse Meridian Pills in hand, he could ensure that his spiritual energy would flow through his meridians at the speed of a genius for three years.
“Since there’s nothing else to do, let’s drink while we still have time!” Old Ding vanished in a flash and went to a corner filled with wine jars. He grabbed one jar each and threw them at Yun Cangqiong and Lin Dong. “I have friends all over the world, but most of them end up buried in yellow earth. In the end, having you two as friends to drink with satisfies me greatly.”
“It seems I was worried for no reason about Yun Lan’s poor choices in friends!” Yun Cangqiong laughed. “I didn’t expect you to consider Manager Lin as a friend too.”
“There’s no choice. That kid is extremely bold, even daring to scheme against peak-level experts.” Old Ding ripped off the mud seal, took a big gulp, and smacked his lips. “Fortunately, he’s generous enough to provide Millennium Jade Dew. Drinking with him isn’t a loss after all.”
“Then fine, I’ll take advantage of you today. If I don’t drink at least a hundred jars in these two days and nights, or less than you, I, Yun Cangqiong, will never touch alcohol again.”
Yun Cangqiong laughed heartily and slammed his right hand on the jar, causing the mud seal to fly off. In an instant, the crystal-clear nectar, filled with a strong fragrance, poured out. His bold drinking style even surpassed Old Ding’s.
Lin Dong was both amused and exasperated. The mindset and concept of friendship among peak-level experts were truly baffling.
Knowing full well that his old friend had only three days left, he still challenged him to a drinking contest, accelerating his deterioration. Coupled with his earlier indifferent attitude, those who didn’t know might think Yun Cangqiong wished Old Ding would die sooner.
Old Ding was equally carefree. Even on his deathbed, he still fought fiercely over a Reverse Meridian Pill, and now he risked his life drinking with others, as if it were someone else who couldn’t live three days.
As the two were about to start drinking, Old Ding, who always believed that drinking was the most important thing in the world, forced Lin Dong to intervene. “Elder, Senior Yun, can we talk about drinking later?”
“Talk later? Why?” Old Ding asked in confusion.
“Well…” Lin Dong felt helpless. Since Yun Cangqiong was already beyond help and Old Ding’s last hope seemed lost, although it wouldn’t take long to use the Braised Wind Spirit Grass, taking it earlier would allow him to rest in peace sooner.

Of course, that is on the condition that it’s confirmed Old Ding has truly given up completely. Otherwise, losing such a major task after waiting for half a year just because of a trivial matter would make Lin Dong feel like he’s hitting a wall. After sorting his thoughts and finding no polite way to phrase it, Lin Dong spoke directly: “Elder, are you sure there’s no hope left for you?” Old Ding scratched his head and said with a mix of laughter and sorrow, “If even Young Yun can’t save me, how could I expect to be saved? But who else can I turn to?” Logically, though Old Ding’s expression and tone didn’t show despair, his words were indeed despairing. Yet, it’s hard for ordinary people to understand the mindset of a peak warrior—Lin Dong feared that peak warriors never know what despair is and would never give up no matter what happens. To become a peak warrior, apart from talent and luck, one must also have an unparalleled mindset; even when there’s no hope, they still never give up—something truly hard to explain. After thinking for a while, Lin Dong had no other choice and asked, “Then, has the elder ever thought of some sudden turn of events?” “If even Young Yun can’t save me, what kind of turn of events could there be?” Old Ding was baffled and snapped, “What’s wrong with you today? Asking such strange questions. It’s just that I’m dying! I’ve lived for nearly a hundred years, enjoying a carefree life—what’s there I can’t understand? Be more open-minded. Learn from Young Yun—if you can save a friend, do it; if not, losing one or two isn’t a big deal.” Lin Dong was speechless. But it seemed certain that Old Ding had given up. “That’s a fair point, Manager Lin…” Yun Cangqiong reached out the wine jar to Lin Dong. “Is it okay if I call you Lin Dong directly?” “It’s fine, fine…” Lin Dong quickly shook his head, lifted the clay seal, and held up the jar. “It’s an honor for Lin Dong to be called by his name directly by Senior Yun.” “Then stop calling me Senior Yun too. A friend of a friend is still a friend. There’s no real taboo. Since you’re friends with Yun Lan, just call me Uncle Yun from now on!” Yun Cangqiong smiled. “Life and death are predestined. This old man hasn’t lived in vain. Spending a couple of days drinking with him happily is enough to honor him as a friend.” Lin Dong’s head was dizzy. He wondered if, after coming to this world, he had some kind of aura bonus—something specifically meant to attract remarkable people. Otherwise, even though he’d been in this world for a year with few friends, he somehow ended up connecting with many outstanding individuals.

Yun Lan was like this, and Old Ding was the same. Lin Dong wouldn’t believe anything they said. Yun Cangqiong was willing to treat a mere merchant as a junior just because of his relationship with Yun Lan and Old Ding. Yun Cangqiong raised the wine jar in his hand toward Lin Dong, then drank greedily as if a whale were sucking in water. As Lin Dong had expected, Yun Cangqiong did have some goodwill toward him, and it wasn’t just because of Yun Lan and Old Ding. The reason the three of them acted this way was the loneliness that comes from being at the peak of strength. Yun Lan’s strength was unmatched among the younger generation, while Old Ding and Yun Cangqiong were even rarer peak warriors. For them, someone who could ignore their status was truly rare. Although Lin Dong couldn’t ignore their status either, the cultivation bonuses from the inn system gave him great confidence, so he wasn’t at all hesitant in front of these three, unlike ordinary people facing powerful foes. To other powerful beings, this might seem overconfident. But to Old Ding and the others, who didn’t consider themselves superior, it was the basis for treating each other as equals. Seeing that the bottom of Yun Cangqiong’s wine jar was getting closer and closer to the center, Lin Dong also raised his arm and tilted his head back, letting the flowing wine rush down his throat. After a moment, more wine dripped from the jar. Lin Dong let out a hearty burp, put down the jar, and then got back to the main topic: “Maybe I have a way to treat the old man’s injury.” The two of them looked at Lin Dong in surprise, not quite understanding what he meant. “I have a folk remedy that can treat internal injuries,” Lin Dong said with a smile. “Maybe we can give it a try.” “A folk remedy?” The two exchanged glances—this was quite a bold joke. The internal injuries of peak warriors weren’t ordinary injuries; it was impossible for luck to play such a role. Lin Dong nodded. Since the braised Wind Spirit Grass couldn’t explain it, he decided not to explain at all. “Better to try something than do nothing. It can’t hurt to give it a shot.” “Whatever you say!” Old Ding waved his hand. He no longer had any hope regarding the injury. But as Lin Dong said, it couldn’t hurt to try. Acting as a ‘dead horse’ was a way to compensate for not getting a second Reverse Meridian Pill. “Alright, I’ll go prepare right away.” Lin Dong was overjoyed and quickly bid farewell, rushing out of the room eagerly. In a level 4 inn, the maximum capacity for spirit stones was 800. And for every 1% increase in the effect of the braised Wind Spirit Grass, the consumption of spirit stones doubled, meaning the maximum recovery speed could only be set at 10%.

He opened the inn system, topped up the spirit stones, and set the braised Wind Spirit Grass to restore 10% of internal injuries. Then, Lin Dong rushed to the kitchen. Finding a stove, he took out ten withered Wind Spirit Grass from the mobile counter, lit a fire, poured in oil, and added the pre-prepared two taels of wolf blood, two taels of green peppers, and one tael of ginger one after another. Before long, a plate of braised Wind Spirit Grass was ready. After checking the inn system to confirm that a plate indeed consumed over 500 spirit stones, Lin Dong picked up a pair of chopsticks and, without pause, carried the dish to Old Ding’s room. “It doesn’t look great, but it smells nice. Try it first…” Old Ding seemed more interested in the taste of this unconventional remedy. After handing the chopsticks to Yun Cangqiong, he said cheerfully, “I forgot we need side dishes to go with the drink. Lin, go to the kitchen and get a few more dishes.” Yun Cangqiong also didn’t seem to think this remedy would work and took the chopsticks from Old Ding.