The Vial That Would Not Open

On the way back, Han Li saw few people. A few passing senior brothers noticed him limping with some surprise but said nothing. No one paid much attention to the youngest disciple.

When he returned to his quarters, the pain in his foot became more severe. Han Li quickly sat on the edge of the bed and gently removed his shoes and socks to check the injury.

The swelling was severe. His right big toe was raised high, the skin stretched red and shiny like a bright red chili pepper.

He reached under his wooden pillow and pulled out a small medicine bottle. This was a trauma ointment carefully prepared by Doctor Mo, effective against bruising, swelling, and even bleeding. He had barely managed to obtain it from Doctor Mo, originally intending to keep it for Zhang Tie in case the Elephant Hide Art caused injuries. He never expected to use it on himself.

As soon as he opened the lid, a rich medicinal scent filled the room. He gently poured some powder onto the swollen toe. A cool sensation spread immediately—truly worthy of Doctor Mo's secret recipe. The effect was instant. Doctor Mo's medical skills were beyond question.

Han Li found a clean cloth, wrapped the injured toe into a large bundle, and then put his shoes and socks back on.

Good. The pain had lessened considerably.

He paced slowly a few steps, satisfied with his quick treatment of the wound.

Now it was time to deal with that mysterious vial—the very cause of his serious injury.

Han Li took the vial from his bosom and wiped it clean with a rag. Only then did its full appearance become clear.

The vial was not large; it could be completely held in one palm, even slightly smaller than his medicine bottle. The entire body was a pale light green, with a few dark green patterns printed on its surface. The patterns were leaf-shaped, lifelike, and raised to the touch, as if real leaves had been inlaid directly into the surface.

He weighed it in his hand. It was heavy. But it was clearly not made of any metal he knew, nor any kind of ceramic. When he touched it, there was neither the cold feeling of ordinary metal nor the smooth texture of ordinary porcelain.

Han Li observed it carefully for a long time before confirming that the vial was made of some material he did not recognize. The pale green seemed to be a natural color, intrinsic to the material itself, not dyed later.

When he saw the tightly sealed cap, he decided to satisfy his curiosity and open the vial immediately to see if there was anything inside.

He placed his hand on the cap again and twisted with all his strength.

Once, twice, three times... The cap and body seemed to be cast as a single piece, not moving in the slightest. There was no sign of the cap being opened.

Han Li was startled. He had been unable to twist it when he first picked it up, but at the time he was worried about his injury and hadn't exerted much force. He thought that now, using his full strength, opening it would be easy. Unexpectedly, it still would not budge.

He twisted a dozen more times until his arm felt sore, but still with no success. So he stopped.

He shook his arms and stretched his wrists—the excessive force had strained them slightly.

He brought the vial up to his eyes and examined it carefully again. Unfortunately, he found no hidden mechanism on it.

Now Han Li was troubled. If he could not open the cap, how would he know if there was anything inside? And if there was, given how unusual and tightly sealed this vial was, it must be an extremely valuable treasure.

Han Li held the vial tightly in his hand, staring at it, dazed for a while. Finally, he decided to let Zhang Tie, who was much stronger, try to twist it open. He knew that Zhang Tie could now carry buckets of dozens of jin of water in each hand and run up and down the mountain at a fast pace. The large water jars in the valley were all filled by him every day on schedule.

With this decision made, Han Li went to Zhang Tie's room to wait, hoping Zhang Tie would return soon.

Waiting was truly unpleasant. Han Li felt time pass extremely slowly. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally heard the creak of Zhang Tie pushing the door open.

Looking up, Han Li saw Zhang Tie wearing a thin blue cloth shirt, faintly emitting steam from all over his body, sweating profusely. Han Li knew this was normal after practicing his techniques, so he wasn't surprised.

When Zhang Tie saw Han Li in his room, he was startled. Before he could speak, Han Li, who had grown impatient, thrust the vial in front of him.

"Brother Zhang, do me a favor. Can you open this vial for me?"

"Where did you find this? It looks pretty!" Zhang Tie was slightly stunned for a moment, then took the vial.

He twisted with all his might; the vial gave a faint creaking sound, but the cap didn't budge.

"Huh! This thing is really sturdy. It's hard to twist! What is it made of?" Zhang Tie shook his head apologetically at Han Li, tossed the vial back to him, and offered another suggestion. "I can't do it. Maybe you could try with another senior brother?"

"You can't either?" Han Li grew a bit anxious and couldn't help pacing in the room.

"Hey! What happened to your foot?" Zhang Tie finally noticed that Han Li was walking a bit oddly.

"Nothing, I just kicked a stone while walking." Han Li didn't know why, but he didn't want to tell Zhang Tie the truth about the vial. Perhaps it was just subconscious, taking matters concerning the vial as his own little secret.

Han Li felt very disappointed now. He had no energy to chat with Zhang Tie. After asking a few questions about his brother's training progress, he left the room, intending to go back and figure out how to solve the vial problem by himself.

When he returned to his own small room, Han Li set the vial upright on the table. He leaned close to the table, stared at the vial intently, while his mind raced rapidly, trying to think of a good way to solve the problem.