A New Source of Wealth for Mother and the Jiang Family

Jiang Huaishan spent nearly an Incense Stick—around thirty minutes—finishing a set of Arhat Fist. By then, he was panting heavily, drenched in sweat.

The Arhat Fist turned out to have many comprehensive moves, each with its own purpose.

This fist technique came from the Buddhist school. Most Buddhist disciples used Arhat Fist to lay their foundations, and it was widely practiced in the south of the Great Qian Kingdom.

Zhao Ping'an opened his panel and saw that it had successfully recorded Arhat Fist.

Arhat Fist [Low Grade] (0/100)

Discovering that Arhat Fist was actually a low-grade martial art, he could not help feeling pleasantly surprised.

This meant that by relying on proficiency-based deduction and comprehension, he could obtain a mid-grade fist technique, further increasing his ability to protect himself.

"Cousin, I'll teach you one move at a time," Jiang Huaishan said, panting. He did not stop to catch his breath first.

Zhao Ping'an said, "Second Cousin, I've already memorized everything. You don't need to teach me move by move."

"Huh?!" Jiang Huaishan cried out in shock, his face full of disbelief. "Really?"

Arhat Fist had so many moves. Back then, it had taken him a full half-year just to barely memorize them all.

Zhao Ping'an nodded firmly. "Really."

He closed his eyes slightly, opened his panel, and filled up the Proficiency Points for Arhat Fist in one go.

Two or three breaths later, Zhao Ping'an finished receiving the insights into Arhat Fist.

He opened his eyes and began practicing Arhat Fist right in front of Jiang Huaishan.

Seeing Zhao Ping'an execute every move with such force that the wind howled around his fists, his fist wind terrifying, seemingly performing it even better than the martial arts teacher who had taught him, Jiang Huaishan was left utterly dumbfounded.

Not far away, Second Maternal Aunt was equally astonished.

Eldest Maternal Aunt was also deeply shaken, though she had been mentally prepared beforehand.

After completing the set of Arhat Fist, Zhao Ping'an withdrew his fists and regulated his breathing without shedding a single drop of sweat.

Jiang Huaishan recovered from his shock, worshipful light shining in his eyes as he shouted, "Cousin, you're a monster!!!"

Zhao Ping'an smiled. "My understanding of Arhat Fist still isn't deep enough. Shall we practice Arhat Fist together again tomorrow?"

"Alright, I'll listen to you in everything!" Jiang Huaishan immediately nodded hard.

After Eldest Maternal Aunt and Jiang Huaishan left, Second Maternal Aunt crouched before Zhao Ping'an, took his little hand, and said with a smile, "Ping'an, I heard from your Eldest Maternal Aunt that you learned Qingfeng Swordplay very well. Can you guide your Third Cousin too?"

"Second Maternal Aunt, I'd be happy to," Zhao Ping'an readily agreed. "Let's go find Third Cousin."

Second Maternal Aunt had nursed him since infancy. She could be considered half a mother to him, and he dearly wished to repay her.

"No rush." Second Maternal Aunt picked Zhao Ping'an up. "Let's fill your belly first."

With that, she turned and walked toward the bedroom.

After he had his fill of milk, Zhao Ping'an followed Second Maternal Aunt to her family courtyard and earnestly guided Jiang Huaiyi in Qingfeng Swordplay.

Jiang Huaiyi's Qingfeng Swordplay also improved tremendously, gaining the true essence of Qingfeng Swordplay.

Late that night, Zhao Ping'an quietly got out of bed again and went into the courtyard. Then he increased the proficiency of Arhat Fist to one hundred times the required Proficiency Points.

Smoothly, he comprehended a new fist technique that rose to an even higher level.

However, the new fist technique was not unnamed. It was directly displayed as Arhat Subduing Fist [Mid Grade].

Arhat Subduing Fist was the advanced form of Arhat Fist. Its power was immense, capable of eliminating demons and subduing devils, and only inner disciples of the Buddhist school could be taught it.

On the morning of the fourth day, in Moon Laurel Courtyard, Zhao Ping'an taught Jiang Huaishan and Jiang Huaiyi Arhat Fist together.

News that Zhao Ping'an was instead teaching Jiang Huaishan and Jiang Huaiyi Arhat Fist spread among the maids and servants of Jiang Manor, eventually reaching the ears of the family head, Jiang Wen.

Jiang Wen was half-convinced and half-doubtful, so he went to verify it personally.

After watching Zhao Ping'an perform an entire set of Arhat Fist with his own eyes, Jiang Wen was filled with shock and delight.

He too had earnestly and diligently practiced Arhat Fist in his youth, yet he found that this grandson of his performed it even better than he did, with an even truer flavor of Arhat Fist.

One had to know that he was a Divine Treasury Realm expert.

"Good, good, good!" Jiang Wen praised three times in succession before bursting into hearty laughter. "Truly my, Jiang Wen's, excellent grandson!"

Seeing her father praise Zhao Ping'an so highly, Jiang Shuyue smiled as she wiped away tears.

She had been forced to return to her maternal home to nurture her pregnancy, give birth, and raise her child. Although her family had sincerely accepted her, she had still felt embarrassed, uneasy, and ashamed.

Now, Zhao Ping'an had displayed astonishing intelligence and martial arts talent at only half a year old, earning even further recognition from her maternal family. At last, she felt somewhat reassured.

That day, Jiang Manor held a family banquet to celebrate Zhao Ping'an.

At the banquet, Jiang Wen solemnly told Jiang Shuyue and the other Jiang Family members, "Ping'an has exceptionally strong martial arts comprehension, but we must not pull up seedlings to help them grow. He is only half a year old, and his bones are still extremely fragile. Other infants his age can barely even crawl. From now on, no one is allowed to let him learn any martial arts before he turns four!"

Everyone became solemn. "Father is right."

Zhao Ping'an had never imagined that because of this, he would be unable to encounter any other martial arts for quite a long time.

Time flew by. In the blink of an eye, Zhao Ping'an was eight months old, and his sturdy growth had made him as tall as a two-year-old boy.

Zhao Ping'an had already taken the initiative to stop nursing and switch to solid food, eating foods rich in essence, demonic beast meat, and the like.

Relying on breast milk alone could only help his body grow. It could not allow him to rapidly accumulate more True Essence and increase his strength.

After she stopped nursing Zhao Ping'an, Jiang Shuyue began leaving early and returning late, keeping herself constantly busy and unable to stay with him. She had to participate in managing the Jiang Family's businesses and contribute to the family; she could not peacefully remain in Jiang Manor, eating and drinking for free.

Her cultivation was at the Primordial Sea Realm, already making her one of the core forces within Jiang Manor.

During the day, Zhao Ping'an had his Wet Nurse accompany him.

Zhao Ping'an was naturally very sensible. He neither cried nor made a fuss, instead finding many books to read and using them to understand this world.

Through those books, he finally gained a clear understanding of the world.

This world was called the Great Barrens, having evolved from the ancient Ancient Barrens. Today, apart from its boundless oceans, the land of the Great Barrens was divided into five regions: the Eastern Wilderness, Southern Wastelands, Western Wastelands, Northern Wastelands, and Central Wastelands.

In the Great Barrens World, the Ten Thousand Races competed for survival. There were fierce beasts and divine beasts, flood dragons and luan phoenixes, demonic beasts and devils, evil spirits and witchcraft... and so on. The Human Race was far from being the ruler of the Great Barrens.

On the contrary, the Human Race had once been food, sacrifices, slaves, and servants to the Ten Thousand Races. After more than a hundred thousand years of unyielding and wise struggle, they had finally escaped the fate of enslavement.

At present, the Human Race mainly flourished in the Eastern Wilderness, occupying one-quarter of it—all fertile land—and continued to rise without cease.

The Great Qian Kingdom lay at the easternmost edge of the Eastern Wilderness. It was the largest human kingdom, facing the endless ocean to the east, bordering the Great Zhou Kingdom, Great Yan Kingdom, and Great Liang Kingdom to the west. Its northern frontier faced evil spirits and the Rakshasa Race, while its Southern Border was constantly threatened by Demonic Beasts and Fierce Beasts.

Within its borders stood two sacred cultivation grounds: North Capital Taoist Palace and Southern Pudu Mountain. Naturally, the Great Qian imperial court was the strongest. Deep within Qian Imperial Palace, an Apex Emperor Weapon—Xuanyuan Sword—was enshrined.

An Apex Emperor Weapon was the companion weapon of a supreme Human Race expert—a Great Emperor—and could suppress the Human Race's fortune.

Zhao Ping'an read very quickly. He would pick up a book and rapidly flip through it once, letting the panel record it, then directly add Proficiency Points. The book's knowledge and information would immediately flood into his mind. Not only could he recite it backward and forward, he understood it deeply as well.

It was practically the same as directly pouring the book's knowledge into his brain.

After reading for two months, Zhao Ping'an had almost no books left to read, and his days became unbearably dull.

One evening, Jiang Shuyue bought two jin of Tricolor Deer meat and had the kitchen prepare it for Zhao Ping'an.

Zhao Ping'an took a bite of deer meat and found it delicious. He immediately picked up another piece and brought it to Jiang Shuyue's lips. "Mother, this meat is so tasty."

Yet Jiang Shuyue leaned back and shook her head with a smile. "Mother has eaten it before. I know what it tastes like. You eat it yourself."

Tricolor Deer was also a low-level demonic beast, but its meat cost two or three times as much as other low-level demonic beast meat. She could not bear to eat it.

Zhao Ping'an somewhat dejectedly withdrew his chopsticks and asked, "Mother, why don't you eat demonic beast meat to improve your cultivation?"

Before his birth, he had added one million Proficiency Points to Jiang Shuyue's Clear Void Xun Wind Art. If she cultivated diligently and received enough Cultivation Resources, reaching the Divine Treasury Realm would certainly not be a problem. Even the Dragon Transformation Realm was possible.

But after Jiang Shuyue gave birth to him, aside from absorbing Heavenly Essence for half an hour each day, she no longer cultivated, much less consumed Spirit Pills, demonic beast meat, or anything else to improve her cultivation.

"Mother's cultivation talent isn't very good. I'm already very satisfied to have Primordial Sea Realm cultivation," Jiang Shuyue explained with a smile, then changed the subject and urged, "Hurry and eat. It won't taste good once it gets cold."

Zhao Ping'an said nothing more and lowered his head to eat.

He knew in his heart that it was because they had no money. That Old Hag had taken it all away.

He pondered silently that he had to find a way to make money.

At the same time, he could not help thinking of his almost boundless Essence Sea. He did not know how many Cultivation Resources it would take to fill it.

The next morning, Zhao Ping'an had a servant buy two or three jin of quicklime from outside.

He built a small stove in an open area of the courtyard, then placed a clay pot on it and prepared another clay pot and firewood.

At noon, the servant returned with the quicklime.

As he handed the quicklime to Zhao Ping'an, the servant worriedly reminded him that quicklime was dangerous and that he had to be careful.

Although he knew Zhao Ping'an was a Child Prodigy and could not be treated as an ordinary child, Zhao Ping'an was still too young.

"I know how dangerous quicklime is. You can rest assured," Zhao Ping'an said, a steady expression appearing on his childish face.

Seeing this, the servant relaxed slightly. If something happened, he would be unable to bear the consequences.

After obtaining the quicklime, Zhao Ping'an immediately filled a wooden bucket halfway with clear water, preparing to make limewater.

The Wet Nurse, who had been following Zhao Ping'an all along, was so frightened that she hurriedly stopped him.

"Wet Nurse, don't worry. I know that water will boil when it encounters quicklime," Zhao Ping'an said calmly.

Still unconvinced, the Wet Nurse said, "If you want to put the quicklime into the bucket, I'll do it for you."

Because Zhao Ping'an had shown such intelligence so early, she could not treat him as a child and forbid everything he did. She could only do her best to reduce the danger around him.

Still, when she saw Zhao Ping'an building a stove and the like in the courtyard, she assumed he was simply too bored and was playing house out of childish whim.

Seeing the Wet Nurse's determination, Zhao Ping'an had no choice but to hand her the piece of quicklime in his hand. "I'll trouble you, Wet Nurse."

The Wet Nurse took the quicklime, somewhat timidly and fearfully tossed it into the water bucket, then immediately turned and fled seven or eight steps away from it.

The quicklime sank to the bottom of the bucket, and the water inside truly began boiling at once. White, high-temperature steam rose up, and even scalding droplets splashed out.

Zhao Ping'an did not hurry to deal with the bucket. He fetched two large bowls, filled one with clear water, added salt, and stirred it gently.

Once the bucket stopped emitting steam, Zhao Ping'an stirred the lime and water with a wooden stick, producing cloudy white limewater, then used the other large bowl to scoop out a bowlful.

He poured the bowl of saltwater and the bowl of limewater together into the clay pot on the stove. Then he lit the fire beneath it and stirred with a wooden stick as it boiled.

The Wet Nurse watched from the side, unsure what to say.

Even if he was playing house, who cooked saltwater and limewater?

During this time, the servant who had bought the quicklime returned to check on him out of concern. Discovering that Zhao Ping'an was actually boiling limewater for fun, he secretly found it amusing. He was still a child after all.

Once the water boiled, Zhao Ping'an continued boiling it for quite some time before extinguishing the fire and allowing the water to cool gradually.

After the salt-and-lime mixture cooled, white powdery sediment settled at the bottom while the water became clear.

Zhao Ping'an carefully poured the water into the second clay pot, set it on the stove, and added a large amount of lard.

The Wet Nurse was even more speechless. Who cooked food like this?

After lighting the fire, Zhao Ping'an continuously stirred the mixture of water and lard in the clay pot with his wooden stick.

Once the water boiled, he lowered the flame and continued stirring without pause.

Gradually, the mixture in the clay pot began to thicken, becoming another milky-white substance.

The Wet Nurse's face involuntarily showed disbelief.

How could lard solidify after being heated? It completely defied common sense!

Zhao Ping'an poured out the milky-white, semi-paste substance and placed it into two molds to sit and cool.

"Young Master, what is this?" the Wet Nurse finally could not help asking curiously.

Zhao Ping'an gave a mysterious smile, then said, "Something good. If it turns out successfully, I'll give you one piece."

Half an hour later, Zhao Ping'an picked up the cooled soap and examined it. Then he used it to wash his hands, observing the results.

To his delight, the effect was quite good. It cleaned thoroughly without harming the skin. His very first experiment had actually succeeded.

However, he still needed to make another batch.

And before taking the second batch off the stove, he swiftly dripped in some Jasmine Juice.

The sun set in the west, and night fell.

Jiang Shuyue returned late that night. Zhao Ping'an insisted on waiting until the end of the hour of Xu before she finally returned.

"Ping'an, why are you still awake? You're still young. You must sleep early." Jiang Shuyue slightly furrowed her brows as she scolded Zhao Ping'an.

Accepting the lesson, Zhao Ping'an said, "Mother's reprimand is right. But Mother should also come home early to rest. You mustn't exhaust yourself."

Jiang Shuyue's expression softened at once. She stroked Zhao Ping'an's little head. "Mother knows you're sensible."

"Mother, I have a gift for you." Zhao Ping'an looked up, took out a piece of soap, and presented it before Jiang Shuyue.

Jiang Shuyue picked up the soap and examined it carefully. Confusion and surprise appeared on her stunningly beautiful face. "This looks like... pancakes? But it is snow-white as jade throughout, with no impurities, no strange odor, only a faint jasmine fragrance."

Ordinary pancakes inevitably contained impurities, mottled colors, and strange smells because they were made with pig pancreas, plant ash, and other ingredients.

The next moment, she lowered her head and gave a somewhat helpless bitter smile. "This pancake must be very expensive, right? Don't spend money recklessly in the future."

She intended to sell it the next day in exchange for silver.

Zhao Ping'an gently shook his head and smiled. "I made it myself."

"What? You made it?!!" Jiang Shuyue was utterly shocked and asked incredulously, "You really made it?"

Zhao Ping'an nodded firmly. "I really did."

Then he explained, "I've read many books over the past two months and gained some inspiration, so I invented this secret recipe and made it to show filial respect to Mother."

For a moment, Jiang Shuyue was both comforted and excited. She crouched down, drew Zhao Ping'an's tiny body into her arms, and could not help saying, "Good child, Mother's good child..."

After a while, she released Zhao Ping'an and asked seriously, "This kind of pancake is very valuable. Can you give Mother the secret recipe?"

"Of course." Zhao Ping'an immediately agreed.

Giving Jiang Shuyue the method for making soap had been his true purpose all along.

Jiang Shuyue said excitedly, "That's wonderful! With this secret recipe, Mother will be able to spend more time with you in the future."

After putting Zhao Ping'an to bed, Jiang Shuyue impatiently took the soap to find her father, Jiang Wen—the head of Jiang Manor.

This was an exclusive road to wealth.