Waiting for an Opportunity

Chen Luo's goal was very clear. For him right now, there were only two most important things. The first was to find an Immortal Cultivation Technique, or at the very least, some upper-level Martial Arts like Divine Skill Secret Manuals. Otherwise, relying solely on the Internal Qi circulation method of Black Tiger Fist to mobilize the blue power within his body was too slow. This would severely affect his recovery speed and the unleashing of his strength.

The second thing was to replenish his foundation.

Currently, only the Royal Family Brain could utilize this pale blue energy, which was absolutely not enough. It was like sitting on a treasure mountain without knowing how to use it. Therefore, the second thing was to find some 'brains' similar to the Royal Family Brain to help him increase his cultivation speed.

Neither of these things was easy, and he had no leads yet. The matter of techniques was the most difficult. Based on the circles Chen Luo had access to so far, let alone Immortal Cultivation Techniques, even decent Martial Path techniques were hard to come by. The Jianghu changed every day, but the people who could truly learn Divine Skill Secret Manuals and become masters were, in the final analysis, still that small portion. Ordinary people, let alone Divine Skill Secret Manuals, couldn't even access the Martial Path. The Imperial Court's control over the Martial Path was no joke. If Chen Luo hadn't used his Third Uncle's connections to meet Crippled Ma, he wouldn't have been able to access the Martial Path either.

So after thinking it over, Chen Luo decided to start with the second matter.

Finding brains with 'Aptitude'.

This was easier than finding techniques. As long as there were dead people, he had a chance. The best place was definitely the valley. People were dying there every day now. It was just a shame that Old Daoist Lichen died so miserably last time, melting directly into a bloody pulp. Otherwise, he would have borrowed his brain to use it, and maybe he could have cultivated too.

"Going directly is definitely not an option. The target is too obvious, and I might be ambushed and killed on the way."

Chen Luo walked and pondered countermeasures.

At this point, the most important thing was to remain calm.

He fought desperately when there was no opportunity to carve out a path forward. Now that a path had been opened, it was naturally best to be cautious. Cultivation, like being a person, requires being aggressive when necessary and steady when necessary. These two are not contradictory.

Someone who only knows how to charge forward mindlessly will definitely not go far. Similarly, someone who loses the spirit of progress will not become the ultimate winner either.

"Let's wait for a bit first. Anyway, when people die, the Undertaker handles it. At most, the integrity will be slightly damaged, which won't have a big impact."

Chen Luo glanced in the direction of the Yamen.

Chen Laosan had been an Undertaker in this place for most of his life, and his most extensive connections were through this channel. Therefore, for Chen Luo, instead of blindly venturing out and taking risks, it was better to wait until afterward and dig up graves.

He was familiar with this path!

"Excluding techniques, there's only one way left for me to improve myself right now."

His gaze swept around, finally settling on the Xingan Pharmacy at the end of the street.

Medicinal Paste!

It was time to develop new medicinal pastes. Using external objects to improve himself and accelerate the digestion of the pale blue energy was also a shortcut. The low-grade medicinal agents he used before had been eliminated. Now was a good time to upgrade them together.

Among the more than a hundred brains, there just happened to be a master of using medicine.

"Boss, I want to buy medicine!"

Chen Luo walked into the shop and knocked on the counter with his hand.

"Give me a pack of all the aged ones on the top row there."

"Alright!"

The Shopkeeper, who had been dozing off, instantly perked up when he heard this.

A big customer!

After buying the medicine, Chen Luo didn't stay in the city for long. He took the wrapped medicinal herbs and left the city.

The security in Qingya County was still very strict now. It was fine during the day, but at night there were soldiers patrolling, and it was easy to get into trouble.

After returning to the village, Chen Luo resumed the same life as before. He boiled medicine and practiced his fists during the day, and used over a hundred brains in rotation for cultivation at night. His days settled down like this. Finding techniques and planning for the brains didn't seem so urgent anymore.

The situation in Qingya County was unstable now, and it was better to stay put than move, especially since he had already obtained the greatest benefit.

Chen Laosan came back twice. Seeing that he hadn't gone out to take risks again, he felt relieved. He even brought him information about Crippled Ma and Junior Sister Apprentice He Min. He heard that they had both settled down in Yanhu County. With the Sha Lake Gang's influence, even in a different place, they could quickly gain a foothold. The rest was a matter of development.

Half a month later.

Countryside Courtyard.

Chen Luo sliced a portion of Aged Herb, picked it up with his index finger, and tasted it on the tip of his tongue. The sour and astringent taste stimulated him to instinctively narrow his eyes.

The age was correct.

Putting the Aged Herb away, he took out two purple-black small centipedes from the cage next to him. These were a centipede-like species, highly poisonous. Among the more than a hundred brains Chen Luo had collected, there were talents who specialized in these things. After flipping through a few books and supplementing his basic knowledge, he could start refining medicine.

He put the poisonous insects and Aged Herbs into the stone mortar.

Then he poured the black medicinal paste, heated on the stove next to it, into the mortar and slowly mashed it with the stone pestle.

A strong smell wafted out again, but Chen Luo was used to it now. He mashed all the medicinal paste expressionlessly before going outside to air it out. After the medicinal paste cooled, he returned to make medicinal plasters.

"The effect has weakened again."

He applied the newly made medicinal plaster to his Dantian and carefully sensed it. He found that the heat emitted by the medicinal paste had decreased by more than half, and the improvement to his Martial Path was not as obvious. As for strength, there was no need to mention it; this effect disappeared after cultivating Internal Qi.

Improvement after Bone Forging became very difficult. Chen Luo had used many methods but couldn't change this situation. Being able to concoct this Poisonous Insect Medicinal Agent was already considered a genius idea.

"The Poisonous Insect Medicinal Agent is also becoming useless."

A hint of disappointment flashed in Chen Luo's eyes.

He had originally wanted to stay here peacefully for half a year and wait until the turmoil in the valley completely subsided before going to dig up graves. Now it seemed he had been a bit too naive, underestimating the difficulty of improving in the Bone Forging Realm and his own Aptitude.

"It's not without any gains, I guess."

He glanced at the Medicinal Herb Compendium on the table. In Chen Luo's mind, the medicinal properties of hundreds of herbs and their corresponding toxicity annotations flashed through skillfully. He was now half a Physician. With the corresponding brain, learning these things was like having a cheat. He could remember everything he saw and learn it instantly.

Night fell.

Chen Luo absorbed the power of the Poisonous Insect Medicinal Agent and finished his daily cultivation. He opened his eyes and looked at the sky outside, then returned to his room and locked his things. He didn't change into his night-traveling clothes and leave the village until close to Zi Shi.

When there's nowhere left to advance, you can only take risks.

Tonight, I'll scout the area first and see if there's a chance to "borrow" a couple of "brains."

Moving swiftly, Chen Luo soon reached the edge of the valley.

But before he could enter, he heard the clang of weapons. He quickly concealed his presence and leaped onto a large tree, using the dense leaves to hide his body.

The sound of fighting came quickly.

And disappeared even faster.

Before Chen Luo could get closer, the battle there was over. The smell of blood drifted through the air into the dense forest, clear and distinct.

So fast?

Chen Luo's pupils contracted. He peered through the gaps in the treetops and saw a group of Imperial Court soldiers cleaning up the area.

Several young Jianghu wanderers lay dead by the roadside, riddled with arrows, and one had even taken an Iron Palm strike to the back. Their deaths were truly miserable.

An army encirclement combined with a sneak attack by experts!

No wonder these young experts died so quickly.