Mo Ling turned towards Yang Changtian , " Senior brother Yang , looks like god was on our side too , the miasma dispersed just in time."

Yang Changtian flashed him a peculiar smile , " Actually , the miasma was also dispersed by Ms. Liu. "

Li Cheng whipped his head around at this.

" But I thought miasma couldn't be dispersed manually. Isn't that right, Oldest Senior Brother ? questioned Mo Ling.

Li Cheng was still looking at Liu Ying deep in thought before finally answering, " Yes that's right , so far there hasn't been a single effective method."

" It's actually simple, I just burned herbs that are considered holy. Corpse miasma itself is cursed , so it's only normal to fight cursed things with holy things " Liu Ying replied nonchalantly. " This method has been dismissed before due to the potential backlash it can cause to the people who are tainted with corpse miasma." she continued explaining. " But it's safe to assume that there aren't much, if any humans left in this village with all the crazies lurking around. And we haven't been tainted with the miasma either . So any potential backlashes are eliminated."

Liu Ying was impressed, he had read about this method a few years back. Using holy herbs such as sage , turmeric , holy basil and even lotus against corpse miasma , can indeed destroy the corpse miasma , but for people who've been living in areas with high miasma , who have been completely tainted with it , this method was but a death sentence During the time this method emerged , it received a lot of backlash from people for its high lethality rate, and as a result it was buried , and forgotten over the years. Even he forgot all about this method, as he simply dismissed it for being useless, but today he realised how wrong he was.

" It will get dark soon, we better meet up with the others and find a place to settle for the night." Yang Changtian said after observing the sky for a while.

The other agreed and they started walking to the village square. Before long, they found a chaotic scene in front of them, Zhang Anying was on the verge of tears, while Zhou Zilong was yelling at him. Da Xiong was carrying a dead body back.

" I cant believe you're this stupid , how in the world did you mess up the antibiotics with the anti scarring medicine ?! " Zhou Zilong screeched.

" I was panicking, Senior brother , " Zhang Anying replied sheepishly

" What happened ?" Yang Changtian asked, rushing towards them.

" Oldest senior brother.. " Zhang Anying began to whine. But Zhou Zilong cut him off. " Senior Brother , this idiot mixed up the antibiotics with anti scarring medicine , and now some people who were scratched aren't responding to any other medicine as we missed out on the golden period. Their infections are spreading fast too ."

Yang Changtian was immediately furious with Zhang Anying. Liu Ying's medicine bag was divided into sections clearly , even a blind man could distinguish between the 2 different medicines let alone someone who's had first aid training , but Zhang Anying managed to mess that up. They had also used up a lot of medicine.

Yang Changtian wacked Zhang Anying on the head before turning to apologize to Liu Ying.

" Ms. Liu , I apologise for my junior's mistake. I will reimburse you later for the wasted medicine." He said solemnly.

Liu Ying just waved her hand before crouching down next to one of the infected patients, she observed the wound for a while. " This might be necrotizing fasciitis , but it seems much faster." Liu Ying said after a while.

' Necro... what ? " Mo Ling asked, scratching his head.

" Necrotizing fasciitis is more commonly known as the flesh eating disease." Li Cheng explained , " I agree , the spread has been amplified. We have to treat them soon, or the infection might spread too much, killing them."

Liu Ying nodded . " I agree but it looks like all the antibiotics were used up ." she said pointing to the now empty bottles.

Everyone turned to glare at Zhang Anying. Yang Chang Tian and Zhou Zilong's glares were the most menacing and Zhang Anying prayed that he doesn't get buried alive.

Liu Ying sat down on a rock and stared into the horizon. She was like a statue ,not moving an inch.

" What is she doing ? " Yang Changtian whispered to Jin Wei.

" She's thinking . She says that zoning out helps her block out unnecessary stuff." Jin Wei replied, shrugging his shoulders..

Yang Changtian muttered an 'oh' before turning to look at the sky himself.

Liu Ying jumped to her feet abruptly , and rushed off before anyone could react.

" What the hell was that ? she scared the shi..." Mo Ling spotted the nasty look Li Cheng flashed at him, " Shi..vering lights out of me, " he quickly corrected himself.

Yang Changtian and Jin Wei were just about to follow her , but she reappeared around the corner, carrying a clay jar.

" We can use this to stop the spread of infection. It'll buy us time." Liu Ying said, her eyes were sparkling.

Li Cheng quickly took the jar from her and opened it to find honey. " How ? " he asked .

" Honey has the ability to stop the spread of an infection , and in some milder cases , it can cure the infection completely." Liu Ying replied matter-of-factly. " We can use it to buy some time , and tomorrow we can scour the village for some medicine. And if we are lucky enough , there may be some medicine left behind."

Liu Ying then turned to Yang Changtian , " I think it would be best to find a place to settle for the night before treating them ."

Yang Changtian agreed and turned to instruct the others to set up camp.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Less than 2 hours later , camp was done. One tent was allocated as a medic tent , to monitor and treat the patients.

Liu Ying was treating the patients while Li Cheng was helping her. Zhou Zilong and Jin Wei stayed to help them.

Yang Changtian had Da Xiong and Mo Ling take some disciples to bury the dead away from the village. 5 people were initially killed by the Crazies , while 3 others died due to not being treated in time. While most of the survivors were not injured too seriously, there were 3 people currently in critical condition due to the necrotizing fasciitis spreading fast.

Liu Ying covered the infected area with honey and within minutes , the spread of the infection slowed down visibly.

Li Cheng released a sigh of relief . While it probably won't cure the infection, honey has brought them some much needed time.

Yang Changtian was observing them from the entrance of the tent. He felt conflicted. It was true that without Liu Ying , the casualties of this mission would be high , in fact it was a miracle if any of them survived. He didn't expect the situation to be this dangerous.

Yang Changtian made a mental note to immediately investigate the underground water source that had signs of sabotage tomorrow. He pulled out the ghostly tiger token from his pocket . He gripped it tightly, exerting so much strength that the token almost broke. After a while he loosened his hold , stuffing the token back into his pocket , he reached out to touch the lotus charm hanging from his sword. His fingers began to stroke the lotus, the stones gave off a slight warmth. He looked back at Liu Ying and Li Cheng hovering over a man ,trimming the dead skin off and applying honey on the wound.

" Senior brother ," Zhang Anying's voice breaking his trance. Yang Changtian turned to look at him. " I didn't mean to..." Zhang Anyng continued , but Yang Chanian lifted a finger . " Your apology doesn't mean anything here Anying. When we get back , you're going to study the first aid course again. I will personally ask Master Bo to do so."

" But Senior I - " Zhang Anying wanted to protest.

" No buts , that's final." Yang Changtian said harshly. He gave Zhang Anying a glare before turning to walk away.

" Senior ...... Senior ! " Zhang Anying followed , still protesting.

" Okay ! " Liu Ying breathed out. " That's all we can do for now. " She stood up before going over to wash her hands. She then pulled out a small white bottle from her pouch and poured some of the liquid in the bottle to her hands before rubbing it all over her hands. Immediately the strong smell of alcohol paired with a citrusy smell filled the tent.

Li Cheng sneaked up on Liu Ying to see what was in the bottle. Liu Ying spotted him from the corner of her eye, and she handed the small bottle over to him. " That's concentrated alcohol with citronella and lime oil." She explained, they are excellent antibacterial medicines. Go wash your hands first ." She pointed at the wash basin.

Li Cheng washed his hands and patted them dry , before pouring a drop of the liquid into his hands , rubbing it all over his hands. He then sniffed his hands. After dealing with the rapidly rotting flesh and bloody wounds , his hands were tainted with a disgusting smell that was hard to get rid of. But now , just a drop of this solution makes his hands smell clean and fresh.

Liu Ying noticed Li Cheng's eye sparkling. " I do apologise , I just bought this one bottle with me , so we can only share it for now. But since you like it so much , I'll send you a bottle when we return. " Li Cheng broke into a smile at this.

" Senior ! That isn't fair , I want one too." Jin Wei started to whine , then looking around , he pointed at Zhou Zilong , " He wants one too."

Zhou Zilong could only let out a confused ' Haah ?'

Liu Ying looked at Li Cheng , before rolling her eyes at Jin Wei's whining. Li Cheng was also trying hard not to laugh.

Liu Ying walked over to her bag and took out a small clay bottle , and threw it towards Jin Wei. " " Here's your anti scarring medicine , apply it 3 times a day ."

Jin Wei immediately thanked Liu Ying and rushed out to clean his face so he could apply the medicine.

Liu Ying turned to Li Cheng, " Let's go rest , it was a tiring day today. " Li Cheng nodded at her, and they exited the tent together.

They were approaching the others who were sitting around a fire. Liu Ying stopped and looked towards a mountain further away. Yang Changtian noticed this , " What's wrong ? " he asked, turning to look at the mountain .

Liu Ying stared at the mountain for a while before nodding her head. " I thought I just saw a small flash of light."

Li Cheng also looked over , " It might be the sun playing some tricks ."

Liu Ying just nodded at this.

Yang Changtian observed Liu Ying's expression for a while , before going back to eating.

The flash of light was almost negligible , and the mountain was quiet further away.

The flash had come from the reflection of a spying glass. A group of people were hidden on the mountain , spying on the village . They felt their blood run cold when Liu Ying stopped and stared directly at them. They finally breathed a sigh of relief when she moved on.

" Brother , did that person notice us ? " one person asked.

" Impossible , how could she notice us , it was probably just a coincidence." The leader of the group replied . " We should be on alert for the next few days." He ordered the others. "It's getting dark now , we better go back."

The other nodded and they packed up heading inwards. Soon they reached a cave and they entered , before using a stone disc to close up the entrance. Moving further inwards , the cave opened up into a small village , multiple wooden sheds were erected , in the cave where the roof collapsed creating a cave shelter.

The women were cooking while the children were still running around. A kid spotted them and yelled . " Big brother Song and the others are back ! "

Everyone stood up to greet them .

An old lady , with wrinkled skin , but kind eyes approached the group. " Song Lian , how was it ? "

The leader of the group Song Lian bowed towards the old woman. " Village elder , the group of people managed to catch the Crazies. Now they set up camp at the village to treat their wounded." he replied . " For now , it's possible that they aren't a threat to us , but we must observe them for longer to be sure. The miasma also dispersed , Elder."

The Village elder was surprised at this. " But the miasma wasn't supposed to disperse anytime soon. They must have something to do with it. Observe them for longer."

" Yes Elder ! " the group called out in unison.

" Children, let's go have dinner now." The elder took them to eat dinner.

After having dinner , Song Lian retired to his home and lied down.

Liu Ying's stare keeps replaying in his head. While it wasn't possible , he felt that she noticed them. Song Lian shook his head to clear it. Tomorrow is going to be a long day , so he decided to stuff his worries to the back of his head and rest for now.

Meanwhile Yang Changtian , Liu Ying and the others finished having their lunch and they were getting ready to sleep. Yang Changtian was just about to enter his tent when he spotted Liu Ying walking towards him.

" Ms. Liu, what's wrong ? " he asked. After she helped him today , their relationship got better , and while he didn't completely trust her yet, he knew that she wasn't a bad person so his attitude towards her was much warmer.

" Mr. Yang, earlier today , I really did see a strange reflection from that mountain . " Liu Ying said, pointing at the mountain. " And I suspect there are people on that mountain."

Yang Changtian was surprised at this. " Are you sure ? "

Liu Ying nodded , " there should be some survivors ,and it was confirmed that a group of soldiers were dispatched here to control the situation too , so I don't think that they were all killed. I theorise that the survivors went into hiding. And I also suspect the reflection was from a spying glass. "

" How can you be sure that that was a reflection from a spyglass ? It could just be the light playing games with water or something." Yang Changtian asked with his eyes narrowed.

Liu Ying shook her head." The reflection produced from a spyglass is unique. My family was involved in the creation of spy glasses , so I am somewhat familiar with them."

Yang Changtian stared at her for a while before nodding his head. " I'll send some people to check."

Liu Ying shook her head. " It would be better to stay and watch. They must be observing us , so I want to try to lure them out. It probably won't take long" A small smirk was forming on her lips.

Yang Changtian looked at her before breaking out into a smile. He nodded his head agreeing.

The both of them turned to look at the mountain , its imposing aura still apparent even in the darkness.