A Mortal’s Medicinal Elixirs

The girl noticed something odd. There was a trail of footsteps leading down the staircase, but the insides of the trail were clean.
Not a speck of dust or a drop of water could touch them, yet every inch of ground around the trail was covered in dust and
dewdrops. The old man stared at the trail, and he gasped, “It’s him!” “Grandpa, what do you mean he’s powerful?” asked the girl,
surprised. The old man sighed. “I mean what I said. He’s a Qi State master. He’s protected by a layer of Qi, and that layer of Qi
protects him from all minor things like dust, grime, dewdrops, and even pests. Even his trail is protected by that same power,
keeping everywhere he goes perfectly clean. That explains this trail.” The girl was shocked. Qi State masters were fighters who
had reserves of Qi within their own bodies, and every state only had a few dozen of those. They were either the leaders of an
organization or hermits who lived deep in the mountains. What’s one of them doing here? Wait, and he said I would die soon. It
can’t be real, can it? The old man said, “Gwen, he might show up again tomorrow. We shall come early in the morning and wait
for him.” The girl nodded. “Yes, Grandpa.” I need him to help me if what he said is true. On his way back, William bought some
crab roe dumplings. Tia noticed the aroma, and she hopped into the living room. “Ooh, crab roe dumplings. My favorite.” Mia
emerged from her room as well. “I have school today, William. Give me a ride.” “Sure.” William nodded. “In a minute.” Halivaara
High was just twenty minutes away. Mia usually took the bus, but today, William would give her a ride on his trusty bicycle. After
breakfast, he pushed out his bicycle. He used it to travel everywhere back in high school. The tire in the back needed some air.
He wiped the seat off and pumped the tire, then he took Mia to school. “Hold tight.” Right after William said that, they flew off like
a rocket. Shocked, Mia screamed. “Slow down, William,” she said. However, William didn’t listen. He could see an ant from miles
away and perceive all obstacles within dozens of yards. Even at top speed, he had nothing to worry about. Mia was scared at
first, but she got used to the speed quickly. To her surprise, she noticed William passing by all the cars and bikes easily. A while
later, William set his eyes on the left corner before him. There was a purple car there, and the plate was oh-so-familiar. It was the
same car that killed his father, and through the window, he saw a young man swinging his head around, the music blaring at full
volume. His gaze was glossed over, and remnants of powder were stuck to his nose. Obviously, the guy just snorted some
drugs. “Salisbury!” William’s eyes burned with hatred. That man was his father’s killer. He was the useless rich kidSalazar
Salisbury. William rode further ahead and stopped beside the car, then he fired a golden needle away at the car. The needle
pierced the car’s windshield and buried itself in Salazar’s head. The young man froze and quickly fell into an episode of fits. He
started foaming at the mouth, and his eyes rolled back. William sneered and rode on to Halivaara High. That’s enough to turn
you into a retard, Salazar, but this is only the beginning. When he came back after letting his sister off, Salazar’s car was
nowhere to be seen. Someone must’ve found and taken him to the hospital, but no matter. I have time. I’ll destroy the Salisburys
and their accomplices. When he came home, he saw a group of people surrounding his house. Two priests were muttering
something before the spruce tree, and Dominic Reynoldsthe village chiefwas there as well. Oh, guess he’s heard of the ‘tree
spirit’ and hired these priests for an exorcism. He sneered and parked his bicycle, then he watched the show with his arms
crossed. Noticing William, Dominic sneered. “You were just released from jail, right? Behave yourself. I’ll be keeping a close eye
on you.” William ignored his mockery and sent a needle straight into Dominic’s lower back. A moment later, he started moaning

and groaning in pain, but he couldn’t find out where the pain came from. His whole body was in agony. Shocked, the priests
came to check on him, but the moment one of them held Dominic, the village chief let out a scream of pain. The priests
exchanged a look. They were at a loss. William shook his head. “I told you there’s a spirit here, and it gets mad easily. You just
had to push your luck.” He shook his head and pushed his bicycle back into the house. The crowd dispersed quickly. Dominic
was taken to the hospital and the priests left looking defeated. When William entered his house, Melisenna told him that Tia left
in a hurry. She saved Melisenna and William’s numbers in her phone before she left, however. Huh. I thought she’d stay for a
while. Why did she leave? None of my business, though. William then went and purchased some gifts with his mother, then they
went to see his grandparents. Now that he was released, Melisenna’s folks were relieved. William took the chance to ask his
grandfather about the jade pendant. It was the thing that granted him the third eye and all his powers, so he wanted to know
where it came from. His grandfather told him it was a family heirloom that was passed from one generation to the next. William
was the thirteenth generation of descendants to get that. William had lunch at his grandfather’s house, and someone called him
halfway through. Aidan? He smiled and left the table to take the call. “Hey, Aidan.” He was good friends with Aidan. They used to
be bunkmates, and he cared about William the most after William was convicted. He had also visited William at the prison twice.
“You’re released?” He knew William had been released. William had texted him the day before. “Yeah. Did you just see the text?
Busy man, huh?” Aidan stayed silent for a while. “You should come to the campus.” “Why?” William was surprised. “You’ll know
when you get here.” Aidan hung up right after that. William’s heart sank. The Aidan he knew was a calm and collected man. If
even Aidan was worried, then this could only mean one thing. Queenie’s in trouble. Queenie was his girlfriend, and after he was
sentenced to prison, Queenie promised she’d wait for him. Even though he was in prison, he would ask Aidan to buy some gifts
for her every holiday. Worried, he told Melisenna he needed to do something, then he took the train to Justford. Justford was
where his college was located. The city was the economic hub of Igneus and had a rich history. There was also a cradle of
talented people there. Justford was about two hundred miles away from Halivaara, and it took an hour or so by train to reach
there. The moment William hopped off, he saw Aidan waving at him from within the crowd. Aidan was a slender, handsome man
measuring six-foot tall. He had a buzz cut, and he was in sports attire. He was a good basketball player and one of William’s best
friends. They hugged for a moment before William looked into his eyes. “So, what happened?” Aidan had a weird look on his
face. “She’s here too. Queenie, I mean.” William looked back and saw Tannerhis best friendstanding with Queenie. They didn’t
approach William. Instead, they were standing close to each other like they were a couple. William’s heart sank. I see. “Go. Get
some closure.” Aidan patted his shoulder. With a heavy heart, William approached the two of them. Never did William expect to
be betrayed by his best friend