Cultivation is Just That Scientific - Chapter 1: Coercion

“Don’t make a sound, or I’ll kill you!”

A hoarse voice sounded next to his ear, and Li Shiming felt a slight sting on the back of his neck.

He was being held by a sharp weapon!

He never would have thought that while walking in the back garden of the Nanjing Prefecture’s yamen, inside his own family’s estate, he would be taken hostage.

“Don’t do anything foolish. I don’t want to hurt you. I just need you to help me with something!” the hoarse voice continued.

Li Shiming dared not move. As the person behind him drew closer, a thick smell of bl00d filled his nostrils.

The man behind him seemed pleased with Li Shiming’s cooperation; there was no impulsive reaction of a typical scholar. If he had any other choice, he wouldn’t have resorted to threatening the prefect’s son.

“What do you want me to do?” Li Shiming asked in a steady voice, calming his mind.

“Young Master Li, before you help me, swallow this pill first!” the man behind him said, withdrawing his weapon.

A bl00d-stained hand then presented a black pill next to Li Shiming’s head.

Hearing the man call out his name, Li Shiming’s heart trembled. If the person dared to abduct him knowing his identity, he was either someone desperate or someone absolutely confident in his plan.

Though the sting on his neck had disappeared, he still didn’t dare resist. This body was only that of a fifteen-year-old scholar. In two lifetimes, aside from the simple exercises in his previous life’s school, he hadn’t learned any combat skills.

He took the pill from the bl00d-stained hand and swallowed it without looking closely.

Of course, he wasn’t foolish enough to actually ingest an unknown pill. At the moment he “swallowed” it, with a thought, he stored the pill in the server room space.

The server room space — a space that had traveled with him during his transmigration.

Three days ago, when he realized he had transmigrated, he discovered that his university library’s server room had, through some bizarre means, become part of him.

As long as Li Shiming thought about the server room space, his consciousness could enter it.

At the core of the server room space was a large IBM z15 server housed in four server racks. Beside them was a specialized uninterruptible power supply (UPS), and a toolbox with maintenance tools on the other side.

Due to the UPS having no power, the IBM z15 server was just decoration.

However, he found that the server room space could function as a storage space. He could store any objects he came into contact with inside.

Seeing Li Shiming swallow the pill, the man behind him finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Having Li Shiming’s identity made things much easier. If anyone else tried to buy what he needed, they might attract suspicion. But no one would question Li Shiming, no matter what he purchased.

“Young Maste Li, the pill you took is called the Three-Day Soul-Breaking Pill (三日断魂丸). If you don’t take the antidote within three days, your body will rot, and you’ll die. Don’t think of finding a physician. Even if you gave the method to Nanjing Prefecture’s most skilled doctor, they wouldn’t be able to create the antidote in time!” The sound of a sword being sheathed came from behind, followed by the hoarse voice.

“Can I turn around? I’m not comfortable talking to someone like this,” Li Shiming said in a deep voice.

“Young Master has guts!” the man behind him praised and stepped back.

Li Shiming turned around to see a middle-aged man missing his left arm, with the stump still bandaged and bl00d faintly seeping through.

Li Shiming quickly recalled the major case his servant Mo Yan had mentioned. Yesterday, at the Tianxiang Tower (天香楼 – Heavenly Fragrance Tower), a man in white had killed seven escorts from the Weiyuan Escort Agency (威远镖局), and only Chief Escort Wang (王总镖头) had escaped.

More importantly, Chief Escort Wang had lost his left arm during his escape.

“Chief Escort Wang, can you tell me what you need me to do?” Li Shiming asked calmly.

Being identified didn’t surprise Chief Escort Wang much.

As the prefect’s son, it was natural for Li Shiming to know about major incidents like the one at Tianxiang Tower.

“I bear no personal grudge against you. As long as you help me, I swear to the heavens that I will give you the antidote. Poisoning you was a last resort!” Chief Escort Wang bowed his head slightly, his face showing genuine apology.

Li Shiming’s heart remained unmoved. Having lived two lifetimes, he understood human nature all too well.

Regardless of Chief Escort Wang’s reasons, the fact remained that he had poisoned him.

“This is a prescription. Please buy the herbs and prepare the medicine, then bring it here. I trust you’re smart enough not to tamper with it. If there’s anything wrong with the medicine, I’ll know immediately, and you’ll never get the antidote to the Three-Day Soul-Breaking Pill!” Chief Escort Wang handed Li Shiming an old piece of paper, his tone threatening.

The paper was worn and detailed the quantities and ages of various herbs, along with instructions for preparation.

“Some of these herbs will take time to procure. I’ll do my best to deliver the medicine tonight,” Li Shiming said, glancing at the prescription.

According to his memories, some herbs on the list were very rare. Even with the influence of his family, gathering them would take time.

Though the Three-Day Soul-Breaking Pill didn’t threaten him, he still needed to keep up the act.

“Fine, I’ll wait behind the rock garden!” Chief Escort Wang knew the herbs weren’t easy to obtain; otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone to such lengths.

“I hope you keep your word, Chief Escort Wang!” Li Shiming pocketed the prescription and gave him a deep look.

With that, he turned and walked away. Chief Escort Wang watched him leave, admiration flashing in his eyes.

But admiration quickly turned to murderous intent. No matter what, he couldn’t let Li Shiming live. He had completely offended him. Even if he gave up the antidote, once the prefect found out, not even nine lives would save him.

“Don’t make a sound, or I’ll kill you!”

A hoarse voice echoed in his ear, and Li Shiming felt a slight prick at the back of his neck.

He was being controlled with a sharp weapon!

He never expected that he would be kidnapped while taking a stroll in the garden of his own estate, located in the backyard of the Nanling Prefecture’s government office.

“Don’t do anything foolish. I don’t want to hurt you, as long as you help me with something!” the hoarse voice continued.

Li Shiming didn’t dare to move, and as the person behind him got closer, a strong smell of bl00d filled his nostrils.

The person behind him was very satisfied with his understanding of the situation, and he didn’t act rashly out of a sense of righteousness. If he had any other choice, he wouldn’t have blackmailed the son of the Prefect.

“What do you want me to do?” Li Shiming asked in a steady voice, trying to calm himself.

“Young Master Li, before you help me, take this pill first!” the person behind him said, putting away the weapon.

Then, a bloodied hand brought a black pill to Li Shiming’s head.

Hearing the person behind him call out his name, Li Shiming was taken aback. The other party dared to kidnap him even knowing his identity. Either he was a desperate man, or he was absolutely confident.

Although the prick at the back of his neck had disappeared, he still didn’t dare to resist. This body was only a fifteen-year-old Xiucai. Having lived two lives, he had only learned the broadcast calisthenics from his previous life in school, and nothing else.

He took the pill from the bloody hand and swallowed it without looking closely.

Of course, he couldn’t be so obedient as to eat a pill of unknown use. The moment he swallowed the pill, he subtly moved his consciousness and put the pill into the server room space.

The server room space, a space that had come with him through the transmigration.

Three days ago, after he discovered he had transmigrated, he found that the server room of the university library from his previous life had somehow coexisted with him in a bizarre way.

As long as Li Shiming thought of the server room space, his consciousness would enter it.

The core of the entire server room space was a large IBM z15 server composed of four server racks, with a dedicated uninterruptible power supply on the side, and some maintenance tools in a tool cabinet on the other side.

Due to the lack of power for the uninterruptible power supply, the large IBM z15 server had become a decoration.

However, he found that the server room space could be used as a storage space, and he could put the items he touched into the storage space.

The person behind him breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Li Shiming swallow the pill.

It was too convenient for Li Shiming’s identity to do things for him. Others might be suspected when buying what he wanted, but no one would suspect Li Shiming no matter what he bought.

“Young Master, the pill you took is called the Three-Day Soul-Breaking Pill. If you don’t take the antidote within three days, you will rot and die. You don’t even have to think about finding a doctor. Even if you give the method of making the Three-Day Soul-Breaking Pill to the famous doctors of Nanling Prefecture, they won’t be able to make the antidote within three days!” The sound of a long sword being sheathed came from behind, followed by the hoarse voice.

“Can I turn around? I’m not used to talking to people like this!” Li Shiming asked in a deep voice.

“Young Master is bold!” the person behind him praised, and then took a step back.

Li Shiming turned around and saw a middle-aged man with his left arm severed. The severed arm was still bandaged, and a hint of red was visible.

Li Shiming quickly thought of the major case mentioned by the servant Moyan. Yesterday, a white-clothed man in the Tianxiang Tower had killed seven of the Weiyuan Escort Agency’s escort leaders, and only Chief Escort Wang had escaped.

More importantly, Chief Escort Wang had been the one who had his left arm severed by the white-clothed man when he escaped.

“Chief Escort Wang, can you tell me what you want me to do?” Li Shiming asked in a deep voice.

Chief Escort Wang wasn’t very surprised that his identity had been exposed.

As the son of the Prefect, it was normal for him to know something about what had happened to him. The Tianxiang Tower case was a recent major one.

“I have no grudge against you, Young Master. As long as you help me, I swear to heaven that I will detoxify you. Poisoning you was a last resort!” Chief Escort Wang lowered his head and bowed slightly.

His face showed a look of apology, as if it came from the heart.

Li Shiming was not affected by this. Having lived two lives, he understood human nature very clearly.

Regardless of whether Chief Escort Wang was forced to do it or not, the fact that he had poisoned and blackmailed him was true.

“Here is a prescription. Please help me purchase the medicinal ingredients and brew them here. I believe you are a smart person, and you won’t do anything to the medicine. If there is any problem with the medicine, I will know immediately, and the antidote for the Three-Day Soul-Breaking Pill will be gone!” Chief Escort Wang saw that Li Shiming was very calm and was not affected by him. He knew that it was useless to say more, so he handed a piece of paper to Li Shiming and threatened him.

This piece of paper was very old, and in addition to the quantities and ages of various medicinal ingredients, there were also requirements for the brewing method.

“It will take some time to purchase the medicinal ingredients on the prescription. I will do my best to deliver the medicine tonight!” Li Shiming glanced at the prescription and said in a deep voice.

According to his memory, several of the medicinal ingredients on this prescription were very precious, and it would take a lot of time even if he used the connections of the government office.

Although he was not threatened by the Three-Day Soul-Breaking Pill, he still had to go through the motions.

“Okay, I’ll wait for you behind the rockery!” Chief Escort Wang of course knew that the medicinal ingredients in the prescription were difficult to obtain, otherwise he wouldn’t have needed to go to so much trouble and could have just found someone to solve the problem.

“I hope Chief Escort Wang keeps his oath!” Li Shiming put away the prescription and looked at him deeply.

After saying that, he turned and left. Chief Escort Wang watched his receding figure, and a look of admiration flashed in his eyes.

However, Chief Escort Wang’s admiration quickly turned into killing intent. No matter what, he couldn’t let Li Shiming live. He had completely offended Li Shiming, and even if he handed over the antidote, if the Prefect knew about this, he wouldn’t have enough lives to die.

Translator’s notes:
Some names and their meanings
Nanling Prefecture- Prefecture in Southern hilly region
Tianxiang Tower – maybe a brothel as the name is common in poems describing beauty.
Weiyuan Escort – Says mighty escort