After another night, early in the morning, Han Li went towards the medicine garden, wanting to observe if those few medicinal plants had changed in any way.
Before he even entered the medicine field, he suddenly smelled several strong medicinal fragrances.
Han Li was slightly stunned, but then his heart stirred: "Could it be..."
He couldn't help but quicken his pace, finally arriving in front of those few plants emitting strong fragrances.
Were these the same medicinal herbs from yesterday? Han Li couldn't believe his eyes. He slapped his still somewhat sleepy face several times until it stung a bit, stopping his self-inflicted punishment.
"The Yellow Dragon Grass leaves are slightly purple, the Bitter Lotus Flower unexpectedly has nine petals, and the Forget-Worry Fruit peel has turned black! Haha! Haha!" Han Li couldn't hold back anymore, even if he was usually calm, at this moment, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"I'm really in luck this time. Overnight, these herbs with only one or two years of potency have all turned into the appearance of herbs that have matured for several years. Look at the color of the leaves, the shape of the fruits, and the fragrance of the petals; they are completely consistent with those of mature rare medicinal herbs." Han Li carefully inspected the medicinal herbs again, confirming that they matched exactly what was described in the medicinal books—truly precious herbs that had matured for several years.
"If I can ripen herbs in this way, I'll have as many precious medicinal materials as I want! Moreover, I can sell the excess herbs to others. In this way, I'll make a lot of money." Han Li's excitement led him to think wildly.
The more he thought about it, the more excited he became, and the farther he thought. He felt like he had really hit the jackpot this time. Suddenly, he tumbled on the ground several times, behaving just like any other fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy expressing his excitement.
After a long while, Han Li finally sobered up, his mind returning to its usual alertness, and began to consider the difficulties he would face in enjoying this unexpected windfall.
First, although these herbs seemed fine on the surface, their actual medicinal properties still needed to be tested. After all, they had absorbed that strange liquid to change like this. Who knows if there are any mutated components in them? Han Li had witnessed the tragic fate of those rabbits yesterday with his own eyes, so he had to be cautious.
Second, the mysterious green liquid in the small bottle had been used up. He didn't know if there would be any further signs of its continued production. What if it was a one-time thing? He had to confirm again tonight.
If these two aspects were not problematic, he still needed to grasp the details and steps of ripening these herbs to completely control this incredible method.
After deep thought, Han Li identified several unresolved issues, realizing that without solving these problems, this windfall would be just a fleeting illusion.
After considering everything, Han Li began to act.
He first went to the kitchen outside the valley, bought two more gray rabbits, and brought them back. Han Li's actions made the kitchen steward both happy and puzzled. Why did this boy always buy live rabbits? Did he want to slaughter rabbits himself to practice his cooking skills?
Han Li didn't care about what others thought. This time, instead of tying the rabbits in the medicine garden, he tied them at the door of his own room to easily observe their changes.
Then, he went to the medicine field and carefully picked the matured medicinal herbs, preparing several doses of excellent medicine. He mixed the prepared medicine with the rabbits' favorite food and fed it to them three times a day, testing whether these medicinal herbs were poisonous.
After doing all this, Han Li anxiously waited for nightfall. As he felt time pass slowly, night finally arrived as he had hoped.
As soon as it got dark, Han Li ran outside and placed the small bottle on the ground, concentrating intently on observing any changes.
Fifteen minutes passed, but the bottle remained unchanged.
Thirty minutes passed, still no change in the bottle.
Forty-five minutes...
As time passed, Han Li's heart sank deeper and deeper. By the time it was almost dawn, the bottle still hadn't shown any signs of change.
He felt thoroughly disappointed. Could it be that the bottle was truly a one-time consumable? Or had he done something wrong?
Forcing himself to focus, Han Li looked around.
"There's nothing suspicious, except that the sky is a bit dark," Han Li muttered to himself.
Suddenly, he froze. He raised his head and looked up at the sky, which was completely black, without any stars or moon. The phrase "the sky is a bit dark" suddenly woke Han Li up.
"Could it be because it's overcast and there are no stars or moon?" Han Li remembered that the bottle's changes had always occurred on clear nights, when the sky was unobstructed and he could see the stars and moon. But today's weather was gloomy, with dark clouds covering the sky.
Han Li's spirit was slightly uplifted by this thought, but seeing that the sky was already getting bright, he knew that nothing would happen tonight. He put away the bottle, intending to try again when the weather cleared.
However, to Han Li's surprise, the weather didn't clear up in the following half month. Instead, it continued to drizzle. This kind of weather persisted until now.
Han Li looked at the soft, continuous drizzle outside and felt increasingly frustrated and anxious. The more he hoped for the weather to clear up, the more it rained without stopping. There was no sign of it stopping.
He looked back at the two rabbits taking shelter from the rain inside the room. Their lively appearance made Han Li even more frustrated. Since eating the medicated food, not only had they shown no problems, but they had also become even more energetic than before. For the past two weeks, Han Li had carefully observed them every day, confirming that the rabbits showed no signs of poisoning. On the contrary, they became stronger because of the good medicine that was good for bone strengthening.
This positive result not only didn't make Han Li happy, but it also made him feel uneasy. He couldn't calm down no matter what, and for him, whether the bottle could produce green liquid again had become the key to all these problems. However, the stubbornly persistent bad weather had prevented him from solving this mystery, leaving Han Li extremely frustrated!
