The medicinal ointment Elder Wu sent was indeed quite effective. These past few days, he applied it to his sunburnt skin daily. It felt cool and slick when spread on, and after just a few days, the condition of his sunburnt skin had improved significantly.
Although he was still a long way from being 'fair-skinned,' at least all the dead skin had peeled off. A full recovery was just a matter of time.
Skin problems were not to be underestimated.
The people of this World generally had rougher skin. However, the widespread sunburns a refugee sustained from months of continuous sun exposure were vastly different from the tanned skin of Ordinary People developed over years.
And this was one of the key reasons Qin Fang had such a strong 'air of a refugee' about him.
Once his skin problem was resolved, that 'air of a refugee' about him wouldn't be so strong.
When he went out again, he probably wouldn't be immediately identified as a refugee.
Just like that, more than ten days passed in a flash.
During this time, Elder Wu didn't visit again, as if he had forgotten about Qin Fang.
Qin Fang wasn't anxious. He hadn't stepped out of the courtyard gate in over ten days, spending every day practicing with his Darts in the yard.
The wounds on his waist and shoulder had clearly recovered a lot during this time. The wounds began to itch, and the scabs were already starting to fall off. As long as he didn't press down hard, he could barely feel any pain.
As for the soles of his feet, they had long since formed thick calluses and didn't hurt at all anymore.
For such injuries to completely heal in about twenty days showed just how astonishingly effective that dark ointment was.
This was a testament to Elder Wu's medical Skill.
It was no wonder he held such a transcendent status in True Martial County.
With no one to talk to for over ten days, Qin Fang received no news from the outside world and didn't know what had happened after the refugee rebellion.
He couldn't help but feel a little concerned. 'Have the refugees attacked the towns and markets around True Martial County? Or have they already been suppressed?'
'With a refugee riot on such a large scale, the Great Yu Court couldn't possibly ignore it, could they?'
'If the True Martial Region can't suppress the riot, they'll surely send troops from elsewhere to crush it.'
In the end, however, he didn't dwell on it.
'It has nothing to do with me anyway.'
'I should focus on getting my body healthy first.'
His own life was as precarious as a drifting duckweed, completely reliant on Elder Wu's charity to get by. He really didn't have the spare energy to worry about anything else.
And so, in the blink of an eye, he had already lived in this courtyard for half a month.
One day, while he was sleeping, a tremendous boom suddenly exploded, jolting the deeply slumbering Qin Fang awake. The entire room trembled violently, and roof tiles shook loose, falling to the ground with a CRACKLE.
"An earthquake?"
Startled, Qin Fang quickly scrambled up and rushed out of the house.
Then he froze, staring in astonishment at the distant horizon...
It was the dead of night, yet the distant horizon was suffused with a crimson glow, as if the entire sky were on fire.
The roaring sound came from the direction of that crimson light, and the ground trembled from the vibrations.
Apparently, Qin Fang wasn't the only one awakened. Faint cries of alarm could be heard from outside.
"Wh-what's happening?"
"The sky's on fire!"
"Is the earth dragon turning over?"
This quiet alley wasn't just home to Qin Fang; other families lived here as well. However, since Qin Fang had never left the house since arriving, he didn't know any of his neighbors.
But the strange phenomenon in the sky had startled everyone. The wailing of a child could be heard, clearly frightened to tears by the thunderous roar.
'Earthlight?'
Qin Fang frowned to himself as he looked at the crimson horizon.
He knew, of course, that similar phenomena occurred during major earthquakes. This light was called 'earthquake light,' also known as 'earthlight.'
'Looks like a major earthquake happened over there...' Qin Fang thought.
But earthquake light usually only lasts for a few seconds. This crimson phenomenon, however, lasted for dozens of breaths before it gradually subsided. The roaring also vanished, and stillness returned.
Qin Fang observed for a while longer. Seeing no other strange phenomena, he let out a soft breath. When he turned to look back, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry...
'Great. Even more of the few tiles I had on the roof have been shaken loose. I can probably stargaze from inside my room now...'
Shaking his head, Qin Fang went back inside to sleep.
...
"Elder Wu, there's a child over there who also hurt their head. Could you please take a look?"
Before dawn, Huichun Hall was already bustling with activity.
In the clinic, Elder Wu was bandaging a patient's head when he heard his apprentice's voice. He turned his head and saw a couple walk in anxiously, carrying a wailing child.
Elder Wu gave the patient a few instructions and then walked over.
"Elder Wu, please take a look at him."
"The earth dragon turned over last night. A roof tile fell and hit him right on the head."
The couple anxiously explained the cause of the injury.
"Don't worry, let me take a look first."
Elder Wu calmly reassured them and examined the child's injury. It wasn't actually serious, just a small gash on the head. It only looked severe because it was bleeding a lot and the child wouldn't stop crying.
After checking it, Elder Wu said, "It's nothing serious. A little ointment will fix it right up."
He walked to the side, found some ointment, and treated the child's wound.
The surrounding chatter was noisy.
"The earth dragon turning over injured quite a few people."
"We were lucky. It must have been far from here. If it were any closer, a lot of people would have died."
"From the direction, it looked like it came from Stone Bay..."
"I heard that band of rebelling refugees went toward Stone Bay. Don't tell me they were caught right in the middle of the earth dragon turning over?"
"If that's the case, then the heavens have eyes! It'd be best if all those bastards died!"
"A bunch of black-hearted scum. True Martial County saved them, and not only were they ungrateful, they repaid kindness with enmity... My third grand-uncle was killed by those rioters in the refugee uprising! And my poor niece, not even ten years old, they... Damn it!"
The man's expression was filled with grief and anger, and he couldn't go on.
Many people's faces showed expressions of hatred.
The refugee riot wasn't just simple looting and pillaging.
Many things that would outrage both men and gods had also occurred.
...The negative emotions that had been building for days erupted at once. Those refugees had even tasted human blood—what cruelties were they not capable of?
It's no wonder these people hated the refugees.
Elder Wu was busy until noon, when the number of injured finally started to dwindle...
When the earth dragon turned over yesterday, many people were injured by falling objects in their homes, but thankfully, none of the injuries were very serious.
Elder Wu took a short break, and after a moment of thought, he headed out the door.
"Elder Wu."
"Elder Wu."
On the way, he ran into many apprentices from Huichun Hall, all of whom greeted Elder Wu respectfully.
Elder Wu nodded calmly to each of them, making his way out of Huichun Hall and toward a nearby general store.
"Elder Wu."
A simple and honest-looking youth sitting on a flat-cart at the entrance saw Elder Wu and quickly bowed respectfully.
Elder Wu nodded. "You'll be making a trip with me in a bit."
"Yes, sir!" the youth quickly replied.
Elder Wu entered the general store. Shortly after, other shop assistants came out, loaded some items onto the flat-cart, and then the simple youth followed behind Elder Wu.
When they passed a butcher shop, Elder Wu paused for a moment, then went inside.
A short while later, ten jin of pork had been added to the flat-cart. Then, Elder Wu led the simple youth into a quiet alley.
Outside a dilapidated little courtyard, Elder Wu raised his hand to knock.
But then he heard a soft SWISH from inside, followed by a crisp THWACK.
Elder Wu froze for a moment, then narrowed his eyes and waited at the gate for a short while.
Then, a few more faint SWISHES came from the courtyard, followed by the crisp THWACK-THWACK sounds of something striking a wooden board.
'This is...'
'The sound of a Hidden Weapon?'
Elder Wu narrowed his eyes, then knocked on the door.
A moment later, the door opened, and Qin Fang appeared.
Seeing Elder Wu, his eyes lit up slightly, and a smile spread across his face.
"Elder Wu."
Elder Wu nodded and walked into the courtyard. His gaze immediately fell on a wooden board set up at the edge of the yard, a bullseye painted on it.
And at that moment, four Darts were stuck neatly in the center of the bullseye.