Body Strengthening Elixir

Body Strengthening Elixir

Having settled the matter of making money, Lin Le continued practicing his fist forms. Perhaps it was an illusion, but he felt that his punches flowed more smoothly today.

After lunch, Lin Le left the martial hall again. There was still something he needed to verify.

Yet after wandering around the city for a full circle, Lin Le did not spot a single beggar.

After thinking it over, Lin Le understood what was going on.

The city entry fee!

Under normal circumstances, individuals did not have to pay an entry fee to enter the city. But these were clearly unusual times. There were more and more refugees outside the city, and if they were allowed in unchecked, it would likely have a great impact on public order within the city.

With an entry fee in place, those who came in either had a little spare money or someone they could seek refuge with. Those with neither money nor connections naturally would not be willing to pay those ten copper coins.

After all, there was free porridge outside the city.

So it was only natural that there were no beggars. Once you were a beggar, where would you get the money to enter the city? Those with money were definitely professional beggars.

Ordinary commoners might not have received an education, but they were not fools. They had no sympathy for professional beggars who loved ease and hated labor, so naturally they would not give them even a single copper coin.

When professional beggars found they could not beg for money, they naturally would not enter the city either, instead mixing in with the refugees to drink porridge.

When he reached the city gate, Lin Le looked toward the porridge stall distributing food and fell into thought.

From the looks of things, there was no room for him to interfere. And even if he added another bowl of porridge, it might count as adding flowers to brocade for the refugees, but it would not be sending charcoal in the snow.

Judging from the merit he had obtained the previous two times, the good deed he performed had to be enough to alter the course of someone's fate.

If he merely handed out porridge, he estimated he would not gain even a scrap of merit.

But how could he obtain better merit?

As Lin Le pondered this, he heard a cough. Turning his head, he saw an old man slowly walking past with a cane.

His eyes shifted, and Lin Le came up with an idea.

Thinking of what he had seen along the way, Lin Le hurried to a small apothecary named Renji Hall.

The physician was seeing patients. Seeing this, Lin Le went directly to a young man dispensing medicine. "Hey, I'd like to buy some medicinal ingredients."

"Small business, no credit." The young man recited the usual line. When he turned and saw the fair-skinned Lin Le, though, a smile appeared on his face. "What would you like to buy?"

Only people from wealthy households could be raised with such a complexion. There was no need to say more.

"Sachets," Lin Le said. "Sachets made with medicinal ingredients such as realgar and mugwort. What is the lowest price per sachet?"

"Ten copper coins," the young man said.

"This is three taels." Lin Le took out three small silver ingots. "Make three hundred of them and hand them out to the children outside the city."

From what he had seen, there were now a little over a thousand refugees outside the city.

Three hundred would be enough for every child to have one.

"Which children?" the young man asked in confusion.

"All of them," Lin Le said. "If there are extras, burn them on the spot to help ward off pestilence for the adults."

After a disaster, what was most likely to happen? Famine, plague, robbery, and death.

The government porridge stalls were handling the famine, so he would prevent plague. As for robbery, there was nothing he could do about that. He was not an immortal yet; he could not take everything into account.

Upon hearing the word "all," the young man could not help casting Lin Le a surprised look. He cupped his hands and said, "Young sir, what noble righteousness!"

"Not at all, not at all. I'm only doing what little I can," Lin Le said, scratching his head. Rarely praised, he felt somewhat embarrassed.

"Being able to do good deeds is worthy of respect," the young man said. "I'll take this order. Within three days, I will definitely distribute the sachets to every child."

Ignoring the young man swiftly snatching away the three small silver ingots, Lin Le nodded. "Many thanks."

"You're too courteous," the young man said.

Just as Lin Le was about to leave, the physician seeing patients called out to him. "Young sir, wait. Since you are here already, how about I take a look at you?"

"No, I still need to practice my fists," Lin Le said with a wave.

"It's no trouble. Sometimes, once your body is properly conditioned, your fist forms will grow more vigorous with practice." The physician stroked his little mustache, clearly implying something.

Lin Le thought for a moment, then turned around and joined the line.

When the physician saw Lin Le queue up, the appreciation in his eyes deepened.

The line was not very long, and soon it was Lin Le's turn.

The physician took Lin Le's pulse, looked at his tongue, and even felt his bones. Then his brows furrowed. "Strange. Why doesn't this match up?"

One need not fear a smiling Western doctor; one need only fear a traditional physician with lowered brows.

The moment the physician frowned, Lin Le's heart rose and fell like seven buckets drawing water. Afraid that his body had some serious problem, he cautiously asked, "Physician, do I have some hidden ailment?"

"No hidden ailment, no hidden ailment." The physician waved his hand. "My eyes deceived me. I had thought your qi and blood were weak and scattered, young sir, but instead they are overly condensed and showing outwardly. That was why I misjudged you."

"Ah Zhen, prepare a dose of Body Strengthening Powder for this young sir as my apology."

The young man dispensing medicine slapped his forehead and listlessly replied, "Yes."

Very quickly, the young man handed Lin Le a packet of medicine. "Just dissolve it in hot water and drink it."

"Alright." Lin Le nodded and turned to leave.

Watching Lin Le depart, the young man looked at the physician. "Father, does that young sir really have no problems?"

"He really has no problems." The physician slapped the young man on the head. "You brat, can't you hope for the best for others?"

Lowering his head, the young man complained, "Who told you to misdiagnose him? Now the money we just earned has all been thrown back in."

"Money, money, all you know is money." The physician glared at him. "How did I give birth to a son who fell into the money pit?"

"Yes, you're lofty, you're amazing. Let's see what Mother says when we get home!" The young man curled his lip, but then the corner of his eye caught something, and he froze.

There was a grain of broken silver at the corner of the table. It did not look like much, but it was at least five mace.

Had that young sir left it? The young man turned his head, but Lin Le was already nowhere to be seen.

When Lin Le returned to the martial hall, he looked at the medicine packet in his hand and still went to the kitchen for a bowl of hot water.

He had bought it already, after all. He could not just let it go to waste.

Lin Le knew about things like Body Strengthening Powder. Above it were even better medicinal pills such as Blood Essence Pills and Tiger Leopard Pills, but he had no intention of buying them.

With his divine ability, he could already efficiently refine raw ingredients. Why eat overpriced medicinal pills when he could directly consume cheap raw ingredients instead?

"Oh, Body Strengthening Powder." Seeing Lin Le steeping the powder, the kitchen worker could not help laughing. "If you have that spare money, you might as well buy White Ape Pills from the martial hall. Though one pill costs one tael, it's better than two and a half doses of Body Strengthening Powder."

"Someone gave it to me. No point wasting something free," Lin Le casually said, then drank the Body Strengthening Powder.

As the medicinal power entered his body, it was swallowed clean. Lin Le's expression shifted slightly.

After offering his thanks, Lin Le left the kitchen and found a secluded corner to stand in, entering the inner landscape of his Inner Vision Divine Ability.

He saw that another droplet had appeared on the lotus leaf that condensed Blood Essence Treasure Liquid.

Body Strengthening Elixir, the essence of Body Strengthening Powder.

What is the difference between it and Blood Essence Treasure Liquid?

Puzzled, Lin Le gave it a thought, and the Body Strengthening Elixir fell into the lake.

Then Lin Le felt a faint warmth in his heart. Streams of heat followed his blood, coursing through his veins and circulating throughout his body.

Lin Le immediately began practicing his fist forms, refining the medicinal power.

Once he had refined it all, Lin Le went to pull the two-hundred-and-sixty-pound Stone Lock. With only a slight lift, he knew he could raise it.

The effect is this good?

Lin Le was astonished. A blood ginseng worth fifteen taels had only increased his strength by sixty pounds, yet five hundred copper coins' worth of Body Strengthening Powder had increased it by ten pounds.

Judging by the results, he had been somewhat self-righteous before. It seemed that medicinal pills were more effective than the raw ingredients combined.