Training

As if he had suddenly thought of something, a shadow fell across Feng En's face.

"Master, what's wrong?" Jiang Shuo asked with concern.

"When we were at the Mad Saber Sect, you used the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill in public. With Wenren Qiang's knowledge and keen eyes, he definitely saw through it." Feng En frowned in thought. "But why didn't he point it out in public? Could it be that he was deliberately hiding it too?"

"The Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill is connected to the Forbidden Ground. Perhaps he didn't want to expose the secrets hidden within it," Jiang Shuo said.

The Mad Saber Sect disciple who delivered meals to Mo Xuanwu was instructed by Wenren Qiang, so he naturally knew that Mo Xuanwu was imprisoned inside the Forbidden Ground.

Mo Xuanwu was famous for the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill. If word got out that Jiang Shuo had learned the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill inside the Forbidden Ground, the Mad Saber Sect would likely be destroyed by the major sects in the blink of an eye.

Feng En glanced at Jiang Shuo without pressing him for details.

After pondering for a moment, he said, "I've heard that the inner force of the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill is strange. To be safe, once you've recovered, practice only some basic exercises for now. Don't learn any internal cultivation method."

Jiang Shuo nodded.

From the moment he had learned the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill, this difficult problem had lingered in his mind. He had not expected Feng En to consider everything so thoroughly, and warmth filled his heart.

"All right, get some good rest. Put the matters concerning Dream Red Pavilion aside for now." Jiang Shuo had only just awakened, and Feng En did not want him to tire himself out. He turned and left the room.

After Feng En left, Jiang Shuo was the only person remaining in the room. With nothing better to do, he simply sat cross-legged on the bed and practiced the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill.

He inhaled air through his mouth and nose, guided it through his meridians around his entire body, and slowly gathered it in his dantian, refining it into true qi.

When Jiang Shuo had fought Chen Xian at the Mad Saber Sect, he had suffered some internal injuries. At present, he relied on regulating his breath to slowly heal them.

He used the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill's method of circulating qi. Although it repaired his meridians very quickly, it required an astonishing amount of true qi. Jiang Shuo's simple breath regulation alone was nowhere near enough.

Even though Jiang Shuo deliberately slowed his pace, the imbalance between expenditure and intake kept growing worse.

Eventually, every cell in Jiang Shuo's body was like a famished infant, desperately clamoring for true qi.

Jiang Shuo struggled to satisfy the needs of every part of his body. After holding on painfully for a long while, he ultimately could not bear the burden and had no choice but to give up.

"Phew—"

Jiang Shuo slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of foul air. His forehead was already covered in sweat.

He had not even managed to complete forty-nine cycles. Turning his head toward the incense burning in the censer in the room, he saw that not even half a stick of incense had burned away.

"This Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill really is difficult." Jiang Shuo raised a hand and wiped the sweat from his forehead, muttering to himself.

Regulating one's breath with an ordinary internal cultivation method could restore one's energy and accumulate true qi. Although the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill also left him feeling refreshed, it consumed an enormous amount of physical strength.

The moment Jiang Shuo opened his mouth, he felt that his throat was hoarse and his mouth and tongue were parched.

Before Feng En left, he had placed a cup of water on the tea table beside the bed.

Jiang Shuo picked it up and drank it, but felt no relief from his thirst. Deep down, an inexplicable intuition arose: it seemed that only true qi could erase the discomfort in his body.

As soon as this thought appeared, it grew wildly like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, swiftly filling Jiang Shuo's entire mind.

In an instant, Jiang Shuo's mind wavered, and an intense craving arose.

Jiang Shuo was badly startled. He hurriedly took two deep breaths before finally calming the ripples in his heart.

That unfamiliar impulse had nearly seized control of Jiang Shuo's consciousness. Recalling what had just happened, he could not help feeling a lingering fear.

"Haste makes waste. It seems I can't cultivate the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill too excessively." Jiang Shuo thought silently, no longer daring to recklessly seek rapid progress.

Over the next few days, Jiang Shuo deliberately restrained the time he spent cultivating. The terrifying situation from before did not happen again, which put him somewhat at ease.

Jiang Shuo lay in bed for two days before he was able to get up and move around.

Although the wound in his abdomen still throbbed faintly, he could already perform simple movements.

Aside from his daily routine and cultivation, Jiang Shuo would take a walk around the vicinity of his room whenever he had nothing to do.

Strangely, Yu Yuhan, who had originally come once a day, seemed to be busy with something these days. Jiang Shuo could not see her at all.

That day, while Li Zicheng was delivering his meal, Jiang Shuo grabbed him and asked, "Why haven't I seen Yu Yuhan these past few days?"

Previously, Jiang Shuo had always called Yu Yuhan Miss Yu or Senior Sister Yu. It was only after her vehement insistence that he finally changed how he addressed her.

"She..." Li Zicheng hesitated for a moment, then smiled and patted Jiang Shuo's shoulder. "What else could she be doing? Of course she's busy with the epidemic outside the city."

"The epidemic?" Jiang Shuo raised one eyebrow, catching the flicker in Li Zicheng's eyes. "The epidemic has been going on for more than half a month. No matter how many refugees there are outside the city, there's no need for her to personally go there anymore. Zicheng, tell me honestly—what exactly has she been busy with these past few days?"

"This, this..." Although Li Zicheng was highly adept at dealing with people, Jiang Shuo was his closest friend. Lying to him tortured Li Zicheng inwardly, so it was only natural that he would reveal a flaw.

Seeing Li Zicheng's evasive and halting manner, Jiang Shuo became even more certain that something was going on behind the scenes.