Could it be that I am the cruel villain?
Chapter 173 - 126: Immortal Elixir

Chapter 173: Chapter 126: Immortal Elixir

"You..."

In a fit of fury and frustration, she could never have imagined that she, who had clearly come to save others, would instead be accused and condemned from a so-called moral high ground.

Step by step, she was pressed harder; step by step, she retreated.

If she were one of those seasoned travelers familiar with society’s ways, facing such a scene would only elicit a nonchalant smile; such unsophisticated moral coercion wouldn’t bother them in the least.

But Cen Yueyue was different.

Nearly all of her life experience came from her family. Before Core Formation, the furthest she ever went was to the city gates. It wasn’t until after Core Formation, when she had the ability to protect herself, that her family didn’t impose too many restrictions on her personal freedom.

This was her first long journey.

How could the Cen Family Village Chief not know that his daughter had taken his grandnephew out to play? But now, no one had come looking for the siblings, which said a lot.

Some things, one must personally experience to find the answers, to understand how to respond. He believed his daughter needed to experience certain things, not just your cultivation at home.

"Stop it! This is not an Immortal Elixir!"

" What he gave you is a Gu Worm, it’s Gu Poison! No one knows what happens after taking it; some have even lost their lives because of this poison, reduced to wild beasts, spreading the Gu everywhere!"

"Do you all wish to become such walking corpses?"

Desperate and agitated.

Her cold voice tinged with annoyance, she hadn’t anticipated this turn of events. Meanwhile, Jiang Feng slowly descended from a rooftop in the distance, then slipped straight into the rear hall—no one would care about a person from the Qi Refinement Realm at this moment.

Yet the common folk remained dull-witted.

In their eyes, they only saw the Immortal Elixir as a cure; they only saw the disabled, who, after taking the Immortal Elixir, were regenerated and grew back limbs. They didn’t understand what Xu Huoyao meant, nor the implications of Gu Worms.

They lacked a clear concept of contagious diseases or plagues; they only knew that if they consumed the Immortal Elixir, the critically ill could spring back to life and get out of bed.

The aged and dying in their family, once taking the Immortal Elixir, could be reborn.

To them, regardless of whether they would lose their minds or retain their humanity, the ability to stand up once more was enough, choosing to ignore any side effects.

Take the Gu Poison outbreak in the southern part of Fengzhou, strictly speaking, these individuals seeking the medicine were the real spreaders: running around after obtaining the medicine until the Gu Poison erupted within them, causing their families and towns to suffer.

But they wouldn’t feel guilty about this; they might even think...

It’s none of my business.

Anyone standing in the way of curing themselves, or their family,

Is sin.

Is evil.

That’s the mentality of unenlightened commoners.

"Everyone has seen with their own eyes."

"Since I, Hou Zhongxiao, came to Red Flower Temple, I have never harmed anyone nor taken a life, and I’ve never asked for anything from you!"

"Whatever you wished for, I, Hou, have done my utmost to fulfill your desires. You wanted safety for your family, and I granted it to them."

"You wanted health for your children, and I bestowed it upon them."

"Before taking the Elixir, I warned you that although it could save lives, there were certain side effects. I mentioned that if a person’s constitution couldn’t withstand the medicine’s power, they might die."

"I, Hou, am not talented, but within my capabilities, I’ve done my all to treat everyone. Now, my Red Flower Temple is destroyed, and years of hard work have gone in vain—all because of this woman from Cen Family Village in the Southern Border!"

"It’s not that I’m unwilling to save you; rather, it is she, the daughter of the Cen Family Village Chief, Cen Yueyue, who prevented me from saving your wives! Husbands! Children!"

"It is she who burned all the medicine to ashes, cutting off your hope of curing your families."

A few short sentences instantly ignited the hundreds of people atop Red Flower Temple, like pouring oil on fire.

The overall impression of the Southern Border had never been good to begin with. Even if Cen Family had a decent reputation, it was only among those in the industry; these commoners didn’t have access to that.

Rage was kindled in an instant, and some fearless individuals directly approached Cen Yueyue, causing her to panic and subconsciously kick out.

"Oh—"

She spat out a mouthful of blood. Even a subconscious kick was enough to injure an ordinary person.

An old granny quavered loudly in protest.

"This damned Enchantress! She’s attacking us! She wants to kill us."

"Kill her! Kill her!"

"Get out of Fengzhou, Enchantress get out of Fengzhou!"

"Go! Go! Go..."

"This woman wants to murder us, she wants to murder my wife!"

The crowd surged forward.

Twisting her body, she launched herself onto a branch with both legs, and as she looked down at the dense throng of people, her mind went blank. If faced with hundreds of enemies, she wouldn’t hesitate to kill them all.

But this was a mob of hundreds of unarmed commoners.

"Come down! Enchantress come down."

"Upper Immortal, Upper Immortal! We must protect the Upper Immortal, we can’t let this Enchantress succeed."

"Kill her, it’s all because of this damned Enchantress!"

"My child, if not for this damned Enchantress, my child might have been saved..."

The power of hundreds of people was terrifying. Although they were all weak and infirm, they were still furiously slamming their bodies against the tree, which was not particularly sturdy, to begin with. It started shaking wildly and within seconds, there was a crackling sound.