There were medicinal mountains in the area around Qingshui Town, and plenty of merchants came and went, buying medicinal herbs. Naturally, the town had quite a few medicine shops.
Unlike the blacksmith shops on the outskirts of Scholar Street, the medicine shops were situated in the bustling part of town. Su Mu left the shop and headed toward the crowded streets.
Before long, flags bearing the large character for "medicine" came into view, fluttering in the breeze.
Su Mu casually entered one of them, a shop called Tongfu Pharmacy.
The fourteen- or fifteen-year-old Pharmacy Apprentice glanced at Su Mu's coarse cloth clothes and asked listlessly, "Young master, what would you like to buy?"
"Do you have anything that can strengthen the body?"
"Strengthen the body?"
The Pharmacy Apprentice hesitated before asking, "Young master, are you planning to practice martial arts?"
Su Mu nodded. The Pharmacy Apprentice immediately perked up. "Please wait here a moment, young master. I'll fetch my master."
Before long, an old man emerged from the back room of the pharmacy. He looked Su Mu over, then stated the price in an even tone.
"Our shop has an ancestral Prescription that is quite effective for those practicing martial arts. It can invigorate the circulation of qi and blood, soothe sore muscles, and treat ordinary bruises and injuries. It's an excellent aid for martial arts training."
"Martial arts schools, gangs, and wandering heroes often buy it from our shop. One dose can be used three times, once a day. It costs one tael of silver per dose, and the price is firm."
Hearing that it could invigorate the circulation of qi and blood and soothe sore muscles, Su Mu's eyes lit up. That was exactly what he needed. But when he heard the price of one tael per dose, he couldn't help clicking his tongue.
One tael of silver was enough to feed an ordinary family of three for several months. Here, though, it bought just one dose, which lasted three days. At ten doses a month, that came to ten taels of silver.
After doing the math, Su Mu suddenly realized that the twenty-six taels Sun Li had given him weren't much at all.
But buying medicine wasn't Su Mu's main purpose in coming today. If possible, he'd much rather buy a Prescription. After all, martial arts couldn't be mastered overnight, and that would be a better deal in the long run.
So Su Mu got straight to the point. "Old Physician, would you sell the Prescription?"
The Old Physician frowned and shook his head at once. Prescriptions were treasures in any medicine shop, especially those intended for Martial Artists. They were the source of a shop's profits. How could he sell one so easily?
"The Prescription isn't for sale."
After leaving Tongfu Pharmacy, Su Mu visited several other shops. They all said their Prescriptions weren't for sale, and every dose cost one tael of silver.
"The shops in town must have agreed on the price together."
"I'll buy a few doses and see how well they work... Maybe I can take them back and show Physician Xiao."
Gritting his teeth, Su Mu finally chose a pharmacy and spent three taels of silver on three doses of Body Strengthening Soup. But his hopes came to nothing: medicine for Martial Artists was already prepared by the pharmacies as ready-to-use powder.
Even if he could identify the herbs in the powder, it would be difficult to recreate the proportions. A slight difference in the ratio could make the medicine's effects worlds apart.
Giving up on the idea of buying a Prescription directly from a pharmacy, Su Mu thought of another way.
If the pharmacies wouldn't sell Prescriptions, he could try the Black Market.
"The Black Market is a den of mixed fish and dragons... There's no rush. At the very least, I need to strengthen the force inside my body first, then become a Qi Refining Martial Artist for real."
Having made up his mind, Su Mu soon spent another twenty copper coins at the market on a clay pot for boiling medicine.
When he returned to the village, Su Mu began preparing the medicine.
The ready-made Body Strengthening Soup powder only needed three large bowls of water added in the clay pot, then boiled down to one bowl.
The firewood crackled and the medicine began to bubble, sending steam billowing through the kitchen and filling it with the fragrance of herbs. As it continued to simmer, that fragrance gradually turned into a bitter, scorched smell.
Su Mu furrowed his brow. His thoughts drifted, quite unexpectedly, back to his childhood in his previous life. He had never been afraid of injections or getting hurt, but he'd always dreaded taking medicine, especially herbal medicine. Back then, his parents would coax him into drinking it with a piece of candy wrapped in paper.
Now he had been transported to another world, and he probably couldn't go back. His former self had likely been roasted alive in that fire. He had been an unfilial son, but at least his family still had his little sister...
Sigh!
The youth let out a soft sigh. Determination showed on his young face. He had been given a second life with such difficulty; whatever happened, he had to make something of it.
Once the Body Strengthening Soup was ready, Su Mu took a deep breath and swallowed a mouthful. His expression changed at once. It tasted just as he remembered: bitterness blossomed across his tongue, like eating a huge mouthful of bitter coptis.
Better to suffer briefly than at length.
Gulp, gulp. Su Mu simply tipped his head back and downed it. After finishing the bowl, he strode out of the house and into the yard, quickly beginning his practice of the Five Animal Frolics and Tiger Subduing Fist.
"I'll practice and see how it works!"
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
His punches cut through the air with a rush of wind. At first, Su Mu had practiced partly to distract himself, since the medicine was so bitter. But before long, his eyes lit up.
"Hmm? It seems to work!"
As he settled into his training, the effects of the Body Strengthening Soup soon kicked in. The bitter liquid he had swallowed turned into a warm current inside him, leaving his whole body pleasantly warm. The swelling and soreness in his arms eased after a faint tingling sensation.
Training in this state doubled his results for half the effort. After just one morning, Su Mu was surprised to find that his newly learned Tiger Subduing Fist had gained 1% proficiency.
"As expected of Body Strengthening Soup made for Martial Artists... It's just too expensive."
Su Mu couldn't help sighing. He needed to forge a genuine Ten Refinements Weapon as soon as possible. A prospective blacksmith's monthly wage of three hundred copper coins couldn't support such a staggering expense.
Time flew, and in the blink of an eye, three days had passed.
With the help of the Body Strengthening Soup, Su Mu's swollen arms had recovered almost completely, and the force inside his body had grown to more than twice its original strength.
Under cover of night, Su Mu quietly left the courtyard. He went to the back hill beyond the village and stopped before a poplar as thick as his arm.
The next moment,
Su Mu tensed his muscles, leaned forward, and drove out his right fist in a practiced strike.
Tiger Subduing Fist, First Stance: Fierce Tiger Pounce.
Bang!
After a loud thud came a sharp crack. The poplar, as thick as an arm, snapped cleanly in two. Su Mu had shattered it with one punch.
Had that punch landed on an ordinary person's flesh and blood, it would have shattered their bones and torn their sinews.
Seeing this, Su Mu himself was stunned. He lowered his head and looked at his right fist. He had shattered the tree with his bare hand, yet not a single mark had been left behind. He hadn't even felt any pain.
"Refining strength into force. Force can not only increase a Martial Artist's killing power, but also protect his body!"
Now that the force inside Su Mu had grown stronger, he could unleash its full power in one punch. That punch was enough to snap a poplar.
"I should return to the shop tomorrow."
Su Mu got up early. After practicing the Five Animal Frolics and Tiger Subduing Fist, he headed for town.
After three days away, Su Mu exchanged a few pleasantries with the blacksmiths in the forge. He was just about to light the furnace and continue forging the unfinished long saber when a commotion broke out outside the shop, followed by an angry shout.
"Where's your boss? Tell him to get out here! Your Li Family Blacksmith Shop owes the Black Tiger Gang an explanation today!"
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