Practicing Skills

As if suddenly remembering something, a shadow fell across Feng En's face.

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

"When you were at the Mad Saber Sect, you used the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill in public. With Wenren Qiang's knowledge and eyesight, he absolutely saw it," Feng En frowned in thought. "But why didn't he point it out publicly? Could he also be deliberately concealing something?"

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

The Mad Saber Sect disciple who brought food to Mo Xuanwu was guided by Wenren Qiang, so he naturally knew Mo Xuanwu was imprisoned in the Forbidden Ground.

Mo Xuanwu was famous for the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill. If news spread that Jiang Shuo had learned it from the Forbidden Ground, the Mad Saber Sect would likely be annihilated by a major sect in an instant.

Feng En glanced at Jiang Shuo without pressing for details.

He pondered for a moment and said, "I've heard the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill's internal energy is strange. To be safe, once you've recovered, focus on basic exercises for now and don't practice any internal energy cultivation methods."

Jiang Shuo nodded.

From the moment he learned the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill, this problem had been lingering in Jiang Shuo's mind. He hadn't expected Feng En to consider everything so thoroughly, which warmed his heart.

"Alright, you should rest well. Put the matters at Dream Red Pavilion aside for now." Jiang Shuo had only just woken up and didn't want him to overexert himself. Feng En turned and left the room.

After Feng En left, Jiang Shuo was alone in the room. Bored, he simply sat cross-legged on the bed to practice the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill.

He inhaled air through his mouth and nose, circulating it through his meridians around his body, slowly gathering it into his Dantian, where it was refined into True Qi.

When he fought Chen Xian at the Mad Saber Sect, Jiang Shuo had sustained some internal injuries. Now, he was using breathing techniques to slowly heal.

He was employing the circulation method of the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill, which repaired meridians very quickly, but it required an extremely vast amount of True Qi. Simple breathing techniques were not enough.

Even though Jiang Shuo deliberately slowed down his pace, the situation of insufficient supply continued to worsen.

Eventually, all the cells in Jiang Shuo's body felt like hungry infants, desperately demanding True Qi.

Jiang Shuo tried his best to satisfy the needs of every part of his body. After stubbornly persisting for a long time, he was finally overwhelmed and had to give up.

"Hoo—"

Jiang Shuo slowly opened his eyes, exhaling a breath of turbid air. His forehead was already covered in sweat.

He hadn't even completed forty-nine cycles. He turned to look at the incense in the censer in the room; less than half a stick of incense had burned.

"This Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill is indeed difficult," Jiang Shuo muttered to himself, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Normal internal energy cultivation techniques' breathing exercises could restore energy and accumulate True Qi, but the Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill, while also making him feel refreshed, consumed a huge amount of stamina.

As soon as he opened his mouth, Jiang Shuo felt his throat was hoarse and dry.

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

Jiang Shuo took it and drank, but felt no relief from his thirst. A vague intuition arose in his heart, as if only True Qi could alleviate his physical discomfort.

This thought, like bamboo shoots after rain, sprouted and rapidly filled Jiang Shuo's entire mind.

Instantly, Jiang Shuo's mind wavered, and he felt an intense craving.

Jiang Shuo was greatly alarmed. He quickly took two deep breaths, which finally calmed the ripples in his heart.

That unfamiliar impulse had almost controlled Jiang Shuo's consciousness. Recalling what had just happened, he couldn't help but feel a sense of lingering fear.

"Haste makes waste. It seems I can't over-cultivate this Meridian Swallowing Divine Skill," Jiang Shuo thought to himself, not daring to rush forward recklessly.

In the following days, Jiang Shuo intentionally restrained his cultivation time, and the terrifying situation from before did not recur, which put him slightly at ease.

Jiang Shuo was able to get out of bed and move around after lying down for two days.

Although his abdominal wound still ached faintly, he could already perform simple movements.

Besides his daily life and practice, Jiang Shuo would take walks near his room when he had free time.

Strangely, Yu Yuhan, who usually visited once a day, seemed to be busy with something these past few days, and Jiang Shuo hadn't seen her at all.

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

Before, Jiang Shuo had always called Yu Yuhan "Miss Yu" or "Senior Sister Yu." It was only after her strong insistence that he changed his address.

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

"Epidemic?" Jiang Shuo raised an eyebrow, catching the flicker in Li Zicheng's eyes. "The epidemic has been going on for over half a month. Even with so many refugees outside the city, she wouldn't need to go personally by now. Zicheng, tell me honestly, what has she been busy with these days?"

"This, this..." Although Li Zicheng was smooth, Jiang Shuo was his close friend. Deceiving him put him through inner torment, and he couldn't help but reveal a flaw.

Seeing Li Zicheng's hesitant demeanor, Jiang Shuo became even more certain that something was going on behind the scenes.