The sun was already high in the sky when Ye Yiming finally woke up. He had been too excited to sleep the night before, tossing and turning for half the night before finally drifting off.

After a meal that could have been either breakfast or lunch, Ye Yiming left the Duke's mansion, ostensibly to stroll around town but actually headed for the herbalist's shop. His research the previous night had led him to a crucial realization: the system had activated after absorbing the ginseng soup, indicating that medicinal herbs contained cultivation points!

On his way to the shop, Ye Yiming couldn't help but worry. He was no longer the纨绔子弟 (prodigal son) he once was, and his current body was so frail that he could easily die again if he wasn't careful. All these factors led him to a decision: he needed to start cultivating, not for anything else but to strengthen his body. Besides, it would be a waste not to utilize the system he possessed.

This time, however, Ye Yiming was accompanied by a larger entourage. As the sole heir of the Ye family, his previous incident had caused quite a stir in the Duke's mansion. Now, his security detail was beefed up, led by a formidable Earth-level expert.

Through his recent understanding, Ye Yiming had learned about the cultivation levels in this world, ranging from the lowest Low-level Martial Artist to the most powerful Heaven-level Martial Artist. An Earth-level expert was akin to a regional overlord, and even in the Tianyang Kingdom, only the city lords of larger towns held such a rank. The fact that one of his protectors was an Earth-level expert demonstrated the Ye family's deep concern for his safety.

After traversing several streets, Ye Yiming and his entourage finally arrived at a herbal shop named "Ye Ji Pharmacy," clearly a Ye family business.

Upon entering, a shop assistant immediately greeted him with a bow and a servile smile. "Young Master, welcome! What can I get for you today?"

"Hmm," Ye Yiming nodded. "Bring me some older herbs, preferably those over a hundred years old."

The assistant was stunned. Older herbs? Over a hundred years old? And more than one? Although Ye Ji Pharmacy had a decent selection, most were common herbs. The older ones, especially those over a century old, were scarce and not something a lowly assistant could decide on.

After a brief pause, the quick-witted assistant replied, "Young Master, the older herbs are kept by the old shopkeeper. I'll fetch him for you right away." With that, he scurried off.

While waiting, Ye Yiming used his Appraisal skill to examine the herbs in the shop.

"Midnight flower, growth age 1 year, cultivation points 0!"

"Fragrant grass, growth age 2 years, cultivation points 0!"

"Xanthium, growth age 5 years, cultivation points 0!"

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Ye Yiming continued appraising, but the herbs were all between 1 to 3 years old and lacked cultivation points.

Then, a notification popped up: "Kudzu, growth age 10 years, cultivation points 1!"

Finally! Ye Yiming's eyes lit up as he grabbed the grayish-yellow root and examined it closely. However, he couldn't discern anything special, as his knowledge of herbs was limited.

After putting away the kudzu, Ye Yiming continued appraising until the shopkeeper arrived. By then, he had only found one herb with cultivation points.

The shopkeeper, Li Yuan, was a slightly plump man in his sixties. Ye Yiming recognized him from his memories; he was his grandfather's former military physician, highly respected and even a teacher to many imperial physicians.

Upon seeing him, Ye Yiming immediately bowed. "Greetings, Grandpa Li! I apologize for troubling you today."

He even noticed his guards, including the Earth-level expert, bowing slightly to Li Yuan.

Li Yuan was puzzled. This little rascal was usually afraid of him. Why was he here today? Was his brain still muddled?

He stepped forward, grabbed Ye Yiming's wrist, and felt his pulse, much to Ye Yiming's amusement.

The pulse check was brief, and Li Yuan soon frowned and withdrew his hand. "What are you doing here, you little rascal?" he asked gruffly.

Ye Yiming explained his purpose, not surprised by Li Yuan's address. From his memories, he knew that Li Yuan even dared to call his grandfather "old rascal" to his face, while even the current emperor addressed his grandfather as "Uncle Ye" in private.

"Hmph!" Li Yuan snorted after hearing Ye Yiming's request. "What do you need those old herbs for? You usually only want yangyuan grass and firebloom. Why the change today?"

Ye Yiming blushed. The names of those herbs clearly indicated their purpose as aphrodisiacs. Despite being only 18, the original owner of this body was already a veteran in the pleasure quarters, which made Ye Yiming from Earth quite embarrassed. As a result, he often came to Ye Ji Pharmacy for those herbs.

Ye Yiming had already prepared an excuse. "Well, Grandpa Li, I recently discovered a new recipe, so..."

"Hmph!" Li Yuan snorted again. "What new recipe could you possibly discover? Forget it, follow me." He led Ye Yiming further into the shop.

Li Yuan didn't take Ye Yiming's claim seriously. He would simply check the herbs later to ensure they weren't harmful and let the boy have his fun.

Ye Yiming followed Li Yuan to a small room at the back of the shop, filled with the rich aroma of herbs. Three shelves lined the walls, holding numerous small boxes. Ye Yiming's eyes lit up as he opened one.

"Jingcao, growth age 12 years, cultivation points 1!"

Excited, he opened several more boxes and used his Appraisal skill.

"Qinglian seeds, growth age 30 years, cultivation points 3!"

"Xiangguo fruit, growth age 50 years, cultivation points 5!"

"Xia grass, growth age 20 years, cultivation points 2!"

The notifications brought a wide grin to Ye Yiming's face. If all these herbs were converted into cultivation points, he would be rich!

Although the individual points were small, the sheer quantity made up for it. Ye Yiming also realized that only herbs over ten years old had cultivation points, with each additional decade increasing the points by one.

However, his current Primary Absorption skill was limited to absorbing 1 point per hour, plus 3 points from his comprehension, totaling only 4 points per hour. Taking too many herbs would be pointless.

In the end, after much pleading with Li Yuan, Ye Yiming settled for ten xiangguo fruits, twenty qinglian seeds, and two century-old ginseng roots.

He left Ye Ji Pharmacy with a satisfied smile.

"Century-old ginseng, growth age 102 years, cultivation points 10!"

With the two ginseng roots, ten xiangguo fruits, and twenty qinglian seeds, he had a total of 310 cultivation points, enough for seven or eight days of absorption.