Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup, Ten-Refinement Long Saber

Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup?!

Su Mu's eyes lit up, and his heart rejoiced. These past few days, he had been contemplating going to the Black Market to see if he could buy a medicinal recipe once the Force within his body had sufficiently matured. After all, the Body Strengthening Soups sold at pharmacies were rather expensive.

Today, Su Mu had simply intended to visit Zhou Shan. Zhou Shan had always treated Su Mu well and had even taught him blacksmithing skills. In short, Su Mu had no ulterior motives for this visit.

He never expected that after seeing him practice the Five Animal Frolics, Zhou Shan would directly gift him a recipe he had been longing for.

"The Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup is an improved version of the Body Strengthening Soup recipe created by the lineage of the divine physician Hua Sheng. Besides invigorating qi and blood, and relaxing muscles and bones, long-term consumption also has a certain effect on improving physique, sharpening vision, and clearing hearing... hence the name Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup."

Not only did it possess the usual effects of Body Strengthening Soup, but it also improved physique, sharpened vision, and cleared hearing!

Su Mu's heart burned. If the description was accurate, the value of this Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup would undoubtedly far exceed that of ordinary Body Strengthening Soup. Moreover, according to Master Zhou Shan, buying the medicinal ingredients himself according to this recipe would be much cheaper.

When Su Mu had inquired about the recipe that day, one pharmacy had vaguely quoted a price of one hundred taels. If an ordinary Body Strengthening Soup recipe was worth a hundred taels, then this Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup would be worth at least several hundred taels of silver, or even more!

Furthermore, Su Mu also had a realization.

In fact, Su Mu had been puzzled when Wu Heng of the Black Tiger Gang brought people to his door that day. Wu Heng had claimed to have held back, but Su Mu had felt a powerful Force from his attack.

At that time, several masters who tried to help him were sent flying out, showing that the palm strike was not as light as Wu Heng had claimed.

But why could the ordinary person Zhou Shan, who took a blow containing Force from a Qi Refining Martial Artist, recover so quickly?

Now, Su Mu understood.

"It's this Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup..."

The long-term consumption of the Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup could improve physique to a certain extent, and this was likely the reason.

If it had such astonishing effects on an ordinary person like Master Zhou Shan who didn't practice martial arts, what miraculous effects would it have on him, a martial artist?

For a moment, Su Mu's breathing became somewhat rapid. His earlier estimation of several hundred taels of silver was likely a gross underestimation of the recipe's value.

The next day, Su Mu asked to copy the recipe and return the sheepskin scroll. When Zhou Shan woke up that morning, he was a bit disoriented, unable to recall why he had given the sheepskin scroll to Su Mu the previous day.

But since it had already been given away, there was no reason to take it back.

Zhou Shan waved his hand, "This sheepskin scroll isn't anything valuable anyway. Besides, I've already memorized everything in it; I can't forget it even if I tried. You can keep the sheepskin scroll, but you can't easily pass it on to others."

"Yes, Master Zhou, I will certainly not pass it on to anyone else."

Su Mu thanked him solemnly.

Zhou Shan looked puzzled, not understanding why Su Mu was so serious. In his opinion, this recipe was not a valuable item, just an ordinary medicinal prescription.

Moreover, drinking too much of this soup made his whole body feel hot and uncomfortable, so Zhou Shan only brewed a few doses to drink during winter.

That day, after finishing his work at the forge, Su Mu, unable to contain his excitement, left the blacksmith shop. To avoid attracting the attention of those with ulterior motives, Su Mu did not go to the usual pharmacy where he bought Body Strengthening Soup but deliberately chose a different one to purchase the medicinal ingredients.

"What would you like to buy, young man?"

Su Mu immediately recited a list of medicinal ingredients. Each time he named an ingredient, the pharmacy apprentice would pull out the corresponding drawer and retrieve it. Soon, all the ingredients were gathered.

"Young man, your total for these ingredients comes to one thousand eight hundred and nine wen. We can waive the nine wen in the remainder. Recently, our shop received a batch of high-quality wild ginseng. Would you like to buy some?" The apprentice, noticing that most of the ingredients were for replenishing qi and blood, tried to promote the wild ginseng.

Su Mu shook his head, paid the silver, and turned to leave the pharmacy with the ingredients. He couldn't help but show a pleased expression, muttering to himself.

"Indeed, no matter the world, medicine is a highly profitable business..."

According to the quantity specified in the recipe on the sheepskin scroll, the ingredients he bought today were enough to prepare three doses of the soup. Additionally, there were several leftover ingredients. When he bought medicinal ingredients in the future, he could reduce the quantity or switch to another pharmacy to purchase them, thus preventing the recipe's proportions from being leaked.

In the end, the cost for one dose of the soup was only half a tael of silver, cutting the price in half, which was merely half of the price sold at the pharmacy.

"I just don't know how effective the Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup will be?"

Su Mu returned to Dongbian Village full of anticipation and immediately began to try decocting the medicine. The processing of the ingredients for this Body Strengthening Soup was not complicated, but since it was his first time, Su Mu meticulously followed every step.

"One qian of Huangjing, sliced; two qian of Hongyehua... Grind the Poria into powder, and simmer for an hour."

Once the medicinal ingredients were processed, the subsequent steps were very simple, requiring only batch decocting in a clay pot at different times.

Su Mu wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"It doesn't seem difficult either?"

Before long, the medicinal liquid in the clay pot began to boil, and a medicinal fragrance more potent than that of ordinary Body Strengthening Soup filled the room. Su Mu's nose twitched, and his anticipation for the Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup grew even stronger.

An hour later, Su Mu lifted the lid of the clay pot. Looking at the pot of dark, ink-like soup, he couldn't help but swallow. The Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup looked far more concentrated than the decoction made from the pre-packaged medicinal powder bought at the pharmacy.

At the same time, the bitter taste of traditional Chinese medicine was even more intense, reaching an almost pungent level.

Su Mu frowned a few times, gasped, and then took several deep breaths in place before gathering the courage to pour a bowl.

Gulp, gulp, gulp-------

Momentum is everything; the second attempt is weaker than the first.

Su Mu tilted his head back and downed the bowl of Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup in one go. Before his body and taste buds could react, Su Mu strode out into the courtyard and began practicing the Five Animal Frolics and Tiger Subduing Fist.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Su Mu's body moved, his spine swaying like a great fish, his arms cutting through the air with a whistling sound. He executed the movements with unparalleled skill, starting with the Tiger Crouching stance, followed by Tiger Roar and Tiger Claw, each move flowing seamlessly into the next.

After performing the thirteen forms of the Tiger Play once, Su Mu could feel the medicinal effects of the Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup he had just consumed taking effect. Although the spring night was still filled with a whistling cold wind, Su Mu, clad in thin clothing, felt his body warm, as if basking in the midday sun.

"The medicinal effect is so strong... at least twice that of ordinary Body Strengthening Soup!"

Five Animal Frolics (Great Accomplishment 18%)

Tiger Subduing Fist (Beginner 25%)

As dawn broke, Su Mu let out a soft breath and stopped his training. After cultivating all night, both the Five Animal Frolics and Tiger Subduing Fist had improved. The reality was indeed as Su Mu had estimated.

With such a significant increase in proficiency overnight, the medicinal effects of the Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup were truly double, or even more than double, that of the ordinary Body Strengthening Soup sold at the pharmacy.

After confirming this, Su Mu's eyes lit up. With the Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup, his cultivation speed would undoubtedly far surpass his previous pace. Not only that, but his future expenses on medicine could also be halved.

"With such twice-as-effective medicinal properties, this Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup is worth over a thousand taels of silver and it wouldn't be excessive!"

He had spent the entire night cultivating, yet Su Mu didn't feel overly tired at this moment. The Force flowed within his body, filling Su Mu with energy.

In the days that followed, Su Mu devoted himself wholeheartedly to forging weapons during the day and immersed himself in cultivation at night. Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, half a month had passed.

Sizzle, sizzle.

Su Mu placed the glowing red long saber into a bucket of water, listening to the sizzling sound. He couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

This was the final tempering process, and it was time to test the results of the past month.

Taking a deep breath, Su Mu used iron tongs to retrieve the long saber from the water bucket.

As the saber left the water bucket, a cold glint appeared. The blade was sharp and smooth, and water droplets slid off the edge with incredible ease. Su Mu felt a moment of daze.

Nearly a month of experiences flashed before his eyes, from Li Xiaohu and the deceased Sun Li bringing two baskets of iron ore, to more than ten days of forging and folding, and finally to the emergence of this cold, menacing long saber.

Su Mu's hands, gripping the iron tongs, trembled slightly.

Blacksmithing (Master 1%)

As if guided by inspiration, the moment Su Mu personally forged his first long saber and it came out of the furnace, his Blacksmithing skill broke through from Minor Accomplishment to Master.

A warm current then generated in his abdomen, flowing through his limbs and meridians, dissipating most of the fatigue from a day of forging. At the same time, Su Mu felt subtle changes in his body, and his mind suddenly became clearer.

[Comprehension: 7 (Slight Potential)]

After reaching Master level in Blacksmithing, the Comprehension stat on Su Mu's status panel also changed. It had just been increased a few days ago due to reaching Minor Accomplishment in Tiger Subduing Fist, and now it had improved again.

"Huh?!"

Zhou Shan, who had been observing Su Mu's movements, let out a surprised sound. Just as he was about to speak, another person spoke first, their voice filled with immense shock.

"May I see this saber?"

A dark-skinned man's expression stirred, and he strode over quickly. It was none other than Shopkeeper Li Tie of the iron shop.

Hearing Shopkeeper Li's voice, all the blacksmith masters in the forging room at this moment put down their hammers and cast curious, questioning glances.