Golden Toad Qi Locking Method

For the next stretch of time...

Aside from tending the Spirit Field, eating, and releasing the cranes, Li Shuidao stayed behind closed doors. Even after releasing the cranes, he would be gone for a long time before returning.

For several days in a row, Jiang Xue and Lu Qi'er seemed not to see Li Shuidao at all. On the few occasions they did, they only caught sight of him working busily in the Spirit Field.

His movements were quick, nothing like his leisurely pace before...

"Did getting poisoned change his temperament?" Jiang Xue wondered.

Lu Qi'er didn't feel anything in particular. The two of them were always serving by Madam's side.

They rarely saw Li Shuidao, and Madam Qin Yue'e naturally had even fewer chances to see him.

Having lived two lifetimes, Li Shuidao understood human nature far better than an ordinary youth.

Setting aside all moral codes, if he were to become involved with Qin Yue'e, the drawbacks would far outweigh the benefits. It would be a dead end, plain and simple.

No matter how passionate a romance was at the start, it ended either in love or in mutual destruction.

If they fell in love, their forbidden affair would sooner or later be discovered by his master, who would kill him. If love turned to hate, his master's wife would kill him.

Unless Li Shuidao became powerful enough to kill anyone he wanted and take any woman he wanted, he was better off keeping their relationship firmly within the bounds of master and disciple. That was the only way he might survive.

Now that he had obtained one of his master's four supreme arts, the best choice was to retreat while the tide was still in his favor, and quit while ahead.

In at most half a year, the Lineage would arrange for him to return home, marry, and have children. By then, everything would settle back into peace...

In the small courtyard.

Li Shuidao rolled onto his back and lay down, crossing his hands over his chest and curling his body into a pose like a carp held in one's arms, with his elbows propping him up from the ground.

In just a moment, a sheen of sweat appeared on his forehead. His body had to remain steady, his breath had to sink, and most importantly, his waist had to stay firm and hold.

This posture was truly difficult to maintain. But as long as he kept at it, he would surely be able to hold it a little longer with each passing moment...

Only by remaining steady and sinking his breath could the true essence within his body gather in one place.

Only when it gathered could he control it; only when he controlled it with his mind could he finally elevate it...

Li Shuidao's arm shot upward. Mana surged through his meridians like a swimming dragon, and his elbow joint cracked sharply.

Water Toad Dragon: his breath moved like a swimming dragon, coursing through his body as his pores opened wide, bringing the inner and outer into communion...

The key to cultivating Water Toad Dragon was the innate Divine Ability, Water Breath Technique.

Without the innate Water Breath Technique, this Daoist art could not be mastered.

After resting for a long while...

Li Shuidao once again practiced the Jade Toad Qi Cultivation Art. Although he now had the complete cultivation method, he could only practice the first two forms. Only by practicing them repeatedly and using Water Toad Dragon to fully open the meridians throughout his body could he begin cultivating Jade Toad Gazing at Moon.

Knock, knock, knock...

Someone was knocking on the gate of Li Shuidao's small courtyard.

He lifted the latch.

Li Shuidao's brows jumped.

Standing outside was his master's wife, Qin Yue'e—and she was alone.

She wore a pale purple dress, a white sash around her waist, and a gold hairpin with dangling ornaments. She looked exceptionally beautiful and radiant, as delicate and lovely as a flower.

"If you need anything, Madam, you could have Sister Jiang Xue pass along the word. Why come all the way here yourself?" Li Shuidao asked, looking flustered.

"Were you planning to leave me standing outside?"

"I wouldn't dare. Please come in, Madam."

Qin Yue'e walked into the courtyard with a bright smile.

"Where are Senior Sister Jiang and Senior Sister Lu?" Li Shuidao asked cautiously.

"I sent them off to take care of some errands," Qin Yue'e replied with a smile.

She had come prepared!

Li Shuidao looked solemn and asked uneasily, "May I ask what brings you here, Madam?"

Qin Yue'e didn't answer. She gazed at him tenderly for a long while before finally saying, "You've now reached the middle stage of the Spirit Channeling Realm. You can use pills to temper your Mana. I have a bottle of Qi Circulation Pills here. Take one each day before you begin your exercises; they'll greatly benefit your cultivation and breath control. Would you like them?"

Li Shuidao hesitated for a moment, then bowed deeply. "Thank you for your kindness, Madam, but I'm afraid I can't accept them."

"Oh... You should think it over carefully." Qin Yue'e patted her Storage Bag and took out a jade bottle.

"Qi Circulation Pills cost fifty Jade Coins each at the market. There are thirty pills in this bottle, so it's worth fifteen hundred Jade Coins. At your wage of thirty Jade Coins a month, this single bottle is worth more than four years of work..." Qin Yue'e said in a voice full of temptation.

Li Shuidao gazed at Qin Yue'e's lovely face, her fair skin, and the bottle of pills in her hand. His breathing had already grown a little rapid.

After a breath or two...

Li Shuidao said firmly, "I appreciate your kindness, Madam, but I don't want them."

"Before, you swore you would obey my every word. Now you won't even accept pills I reward you with?" Qin Yue'e asked, a trace of displeasure on her face.

"This junior will naturally obey your every word, Madam. If an elder gives me something, I wouldn't dare refuse. I only ask that you not give me such precious things in the future. I truly don't deserve them." Li Shuidao clasped his hands respectfully.

"Hehehe..." Qin Yue'e covered her mouth. "You really are a little sly fox. It wouldn't be right to give you all of these, so I'll give you just one."

Qin Yue'e poured a round pill into her fair, jade-white palm.

"Thank you for your generous gift, Madam." Li Shuidao carefully accepted it.

Qin Yue'e put the remaining pills back into her Storage Bag, then took out a Daoist Book.

Li Shuidao had sharp eyes and saw it clearly: Golden Toad Qi Locking Method.

"Take this Daoist Book and make a copy. Return it to me tomorrow. I need to put it back in my husband's secret vault so he doesn't discover it," Qin Yue'e said rather sternly.

"Madam, one shouldn't accept a gift without having earned it..." Li Shuidao was about to clasp his hands and refuse.

Qin Yue'e raised a hand to stop him. "This is a Daoist art that I require you to cultivate."

"Why?" Li Shuidao asked, puzzled.

Daoist arts were best mastered in depth, not in number. Li Shuidao already had the Jade Toad Qi Cultivation Art; he absolutely wasn't going to bite off more than he could chew by practicing the Golden Toad Qi Locking Method as well.

Laying a solid foundation mattered more than anything. Besides, this Daoist art certainly wouldn't come for free. The more his master's wife gave, the greater the return she would expect.

"Shuier, your master has four supreme arts. Of them, the Jade Toad Qi Cultivation Art is the foundation of Daoist cultivation. To save your life, I took it upon myself to teach it to you. If your master found out, given his temperament, he would surely take your life—and I would be caught in his anger too," Qin Yue'e said.

"Madam has shown me kindness greater than a mountain, and I know it well. Not only will I keep the Jade Toad Qi Cultivation Art secret, I'll also conceal the fact that I have Mana. I won't let anyone find out. What is there for you to worry about?"

"You can't hide it!" Qin Yue'e said sternly.

"You've only just gained Mana, and you don't know how to cultivate it, so your master naturally can't see your cultivation. But now that you've started practicing the Jade Toad Qi Cultivation Art, your aura will soon grow stronger. Then your master will know your cultivation just by looking at you. How could you possibly hide it?"

"Could it be that this Golden Toad Qi Locking Method...?"

"That's right. This Daoist art can conceal your cultivation. Once you reach a high level, even your Spirit Companion won't be able to discern your Mana. Do you know how skilled the Golden-Faced Gentleman is at hiding his true nature? Few people know he's actually a toad. So many have met their ends in the trials because they didn't know the truth," Qin Yue'e explained in a lowered voice.

"I understand. I'll copy it right away." Li Shuidao hurriedly took the Daoist Book from Qin Yue'e.

Qin Yue'e nodded, then left the courtyard.