The dark night finally passed. The next morning, as the sun rose over the horizon, the light in the woods gradually brightened.
A burst of footsteps rang out, and two people entered the woods from the entrance.
One was old and the other young. The old man wore white cloth robes, and although his hair was gray, he looked remarkably spirited.
The other was a man in his thirties. He was powerfully built, wore gray clothes, and had a curved saber hanging from his waist. Both of them carried bamboo baskets on their backs.
"Ah!"
The gray-clothed man suddenly cried out in alarm when something caught his foot. He looked down and saw the corpse of a gray wolf, which startled him.
"There are some over here too?"
The gray-clothed man steadied himself and saw several other wolf corpses lying nearby. Every one of them had its skull pierced through!
The old man, meanwhile, spotted Tang Jie unconscious against a large tree. He exchanged a glance with the gray-clothed man, and both saw the shock in each other's eyes.
"Were all these wolves... killed by him?" The gray-clothed man swallowed. He practiced martial arts himself, but could only be considered a third-rate martial artist. That black-clothed youth had killed so many wild wolves, and every strike had pierced through the hardest part of a wolf's skull with a hidden weapon. He was unquestionably an extremely powerful martial artist!
"He's still breathing... but he's badly injured. Tie Niu, come help!"
The old man came to Tang Jie's side and placed a finger against his wrist. Feeling that Tang Jie still had a pulse, he hurriedly spoke.
"Okay!"
The tall gray-clothed man known as Tie Niu immediately came over and carried Tang Jie onto his back.
"This... this whole area is damaged... Could some kind of monster have trampled through it?" Tie Niu also noticed the ruined trees and cracked earth. A trace of fear rose in his heart, and he only wanted to leave as quickly as possible.
He and his grandfather, Tie Dong, were from a small-town clinic nearby and had come here to gather medicinal herbs. After finding Tang Jie unconscious, they did not stand by and do nothing. Instead, they carried him away from the area.
Tang Jie had no idea how long he had been unconscious. He slowly opened his eyes and found himself in a quiet little room, lying on a wooden bed.
Tang Jie tried to move, but the pain coming from his chest made him frown slightly.
"Young brother, you're awake? Quickly, drink this bowl of medicinal porridge. Your body is still very weak."
A voice sounded beside Tang Jie. A simple and honest gray-clothed man walked over, carrying a bowl of fragrant medicinal porridge.
Although he did not know Tie Niu, Tang Jie could more or less guess that passing travelers had carried him away.
"Th... thank you." Tang Jie's mouth was terribly dry, and his body was extremely weak. He forced himself to sit up, rasped out his thanks, then took the bowl and drained it in a few gulps.
Tie Niu and his grandfather, Tie Dong, were both stunned. Tang Jie had been extremely weak that morning. According to their estimation, he should have slept for two or three days before waking up. Yet Tang Jie had awakened after only half a day. Aside from being somewhat weak, he was already largely out of danger. Such recovery ability was simply astonishing!
"Stay here as long as you need. This is the clinic in Maple Forest Town. Once your injuries have healed, you can leave."
The old man, Tie Dong, smiled from the side.
"Okay... then sorry for the trouble." Tang Jie nodded slightly and lay back down. He was still very weak.
Tang Jie saw his belongings placed beside the bed, including the Cosmos Bag. Tie Dong and Tie Niu worked at the clinic in Maple Forest Town and were kindhearted people. They had not tampered with Tang Jie's things. After all, it was obvious at a glance that Tang Jie was no ordinary person, and rummaging through his belongings might instead bring trouble upon them.
"Once I've recovered a little, I'll eat some monster-beast meat and quickly restore my body."
Tang Jie silently told himself this as he sensed his condition. His Golden Bell Shield had been shattered, and he had taken a palm strike from that demon. Now he was like someone who had suffered a serious illness, with depleted blood and qi and extreme weakness. Fortunately, his body was powerful, and there was enough monster-beast meat in his storage bag. He would recover soon.
The next day arrived, and Tang Jie was already able to get out of bed and walk. He took monster-beast meat from the Cosmos Bag, borrowed the clinic's kitchen, and began preparing a grand feast of roasted meat himself.
"Y-you made meat appear out of thin air? He's... a cultivator!"
Tie Niu and Tie Dong were deeply shaken by the sight. They were even more certain that Tang Jie was a cultivator. Otherwise, there was no way to explain it!
"Come and eat too. This monster-beast meat is extremely nourishing. It can improve your constitution and strengthen your bodies."
Tang Jie roasted a large chunk of monster-beast meat, then smiled at Tie Dong and Tie Niu.
Monster-beast meat was something money could hardly buy. Even some top martial artists had never tasted it!
"Okay... okay!"
Tie Niu nodded repeatedly and swallowed. The monster-beast meat smelled incredibly delicious!
The three of them began enjoying the monster-beast meat. After Tie Dong and Tie Niu ate pieces the size of bowls, they felt so full that they could barely stand. Their entire bodies burned with heat. It was simply too nourishing!
What shocked the two men was that Tang Jie's stomach seemed like a bottomless pit. He gnawed away in great gulps, chewing slowly and thoroughly, and before long had eaten a platter-sized piece of monster-beast meat.
Tang Jie rapidly refined the monster-beast meat he had eaten. The tremendous energy within it replenished his body, causing his originally feeble physique to rapidly recover toward its peak.
In only two days, Tang Jie had restored his body to its peak condition.
At this moment, Tang Jie suddenly had a strange thought. "Come to think of it, my Boyhood Art can automatically restore lost essence and qi, constantly maintaining its peak. But if I keep eating monster-beast meat to replenish my blood and qi, could I break through this peak?"
This serious injury and the large amount of monster-beast meat he had consumed allowed Tang Jie to feel the tremendous power of blood and qi contained within it, and he suddenly thought of this possibility.
Once he had an idea, he acted on it. Even though Tang Jie had already recovered to his peak condition, he continued eating large amounts of highly nourishing monster-beast meat.
Something that left Tang Jie stunned happened!
As the monster-beast meat was rapidly digested, the excess power of blood and qi should have dispersed, or caused him to become over-nourished and unable to endure it, resulting in a nosebleed or something similar.
But none of this happened to Tang Jie. The excess power of blood and qi did not dissipate. Instead, it transformed into a scorching force that was stored in Tang Jie's muscles, meridians, bones... every inch of his body!
"This... The excess power of blood and qi in my body didn't disperse. Instead, it transformed into a scorching force that was stored in every part of my body?" This change made Tang Jie's body tremble, his face filled with disbelief!
"Could this be the secret of the Boyhood Art's Red Sun Art? After the Boyhood Art is cultivated to its highest realm, the Red Sun Art, it can accumulate Pure Yang power. With every passing day, the accumulation grows a little deeper. But this natural growth is very slow. If I actively replenish it, the excess energy won't overflow once my essence is full. Instead, it will transform into Pure Yang Boyhood Qi and be stored in every inch of my body!"
A trace of joy appeared in Tang Jie's eyes as he thought of the Boyhood Art's characteristics.
The Boyhood Art ranked last among Bodhidharma's Four Divine Arts, yet it was a superior cultivation method for laying the foundation of the martial path. The longer one practiced it, the deeper one's power became, and it could also accumulate Pure Yang Boyhood Qi to strengthen the body.
This Pure Yang Qi could be accumulated through eating and consuming highly nourishing substances. Energy exceeding the body's limits would not disperse. Instead, it would transform into Pure Yang Boyhood Qi and be stored away!
A new day has arrived. Please give me flowers and rating votes, nyaaa! (╥╯^╰╥)
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