Tiger's Heart

For more than an hour, he worked until the last bit of skin separated from the tailbone.

Cui Hao held aloft a magnificent tiger pelt, almost perfectly whole, with only a thin slit along the midline of its belly!

Its fur gleamed, its stripes stood out clearly. Though stained with a little blood, it still radiated a fearsome majesty.

Su Yun and Hu Xing both breathed a sigh of relief, amazement in their eyes. This was more than just prey; it was proof of a man's prowess.

Next came the gutting and the removal of the entrails.

Following the cut along the belly's midline, he sliced steadily through the muscle, carefully avoiding anything that might damage the pelt, until the plump abdominal cavity lay exposed.

The first thing he lifted out was a tiger's heart twice the size of an adult's fist.

It was heavy in his hands. The moment he cradled that heart, which held the essence of the mighty tiger, an indescribable craving surged up from the deepest part of Cui Hao!

It wasn't hunger, but something more primal: an instinctive attraction to, and desire to devour, the vast essence of life.

He had no time to think. He hurriedly rinsed the blood from its surface with cold well water, then sank his teeth into the tough heart muscle!

The meat was incredibly tough and chewy, carrying a strong, pure taste of blood and a faint, peculiar warmth, as if life itself were burning within it.

At the same time, waves of searing, refined warmth, brimming with wild power, surged down his throat into his stomach, then exploded, rushing through every limb and bone like a wildfire!

It was as if rain had fallen upon drought-cracked earth. Every cell in his body absorbed it frantically, rejoicing and leaping with delight!

He instinctively glanced at the panel.

[Realm: Mortal Martial, Great Accomplishment (522/1000)]

[Broken Fist Stance Training Method: Great Accomplishment (522/1000)]

Just a few mouthfuls of tiger heart had made his progress increase by a whole point!

Cui Hao was shaken. A sharp light gleamed in the depths of his eyes.

If he could regularly eat enough beast heart and meat to replenish himself... could he break through to Mortal Martial Perfection in fifty days? Perhaps it wouldn't even take that long!

The next day.

Dawn was only just breaking, and the morning mist had yet to lift, but Cui Hao was already on his way into the city with an empty shoulder pole to buy supplies.

Coarse pottery jars, large-grained rough salt, bundles of firewood... He made trip after trip, hauling everything back without complaint.

In the courtyard, the tiger meat had been cut into evenly sized strips.

He carefully and vigorously rubbed coarse salt into some of it to make sure the salt penetrated, then packed it tightly in layers into washed pottery jars to cure. This was to preserve it for a long time.

The rest was skewered on shaved branches and hung neatly from a makeshift smoking rack.

There was no open flame, just wisps of pale smoke curling slowly around the strips of meat above, licking at them.

It was nearly noon. Cui Hao was carefully scalding the last few empty jars with boiling water, preparing to store tiger blood or rendered fat in them.

Suddenly, hurried pounding on the gate and an excited shout, its pitch warped with exhilaration, shattered the courtyard's calm.

"Brother Hao! Brother Hao! Open up! You made it! You made it!"

Lin Da's hoarse voice brimmed with joy, as if some momentous celebration had just taken place.

Cui Hao paused, the corner of his mouth twitching helplessly.

Made it? He'd only secured a spot with resources in the preliminary exam. He was still a long way from truly becoming a Martial Xiucai.

But Lin Da's booming voice and excitement outside the gate made it sound as if he were announcing that Cui Hao had passed the imperial examinations and become a top scholar.

Cui Hao shook his head with a rueful smile, wiped his hands, and went to pull open the creaking wooden gate.

Lin Da was panting like an ox, his face red and his neck flushed, sweat beading on his temples. He was so excited he could barely get the words out, just pointing toward the village entrance over and over. "Br... Brother Hao! They... they're at the entrance! They're beating gongs! They're beating gongs!"

As if to prove his words, the clear, forceful clang of a gong rang out, its measured rhythm carrying the authority of the government. "Clang! Clang! Clang!" It drew nearer, cutting through the quiet fields and ringing into every corner of Willow Tree Village.

Cui Hao looked up and turned toward the sound.

On the village's dirt road stood two constables in crisp, dark red uniforms and black cloth caps, each with a conspicuous red feather tucked into the brim. They walked upright on either side of a minor official in a blue robe, who held a vermilion-lacquered wooden tray with both hands. With his chin raised and measured official stride, the man headed straight for Cui Hao's home.

The unusual procession instantly set the quiet village abuzz.

Farmers in the fields straightened to look. Women peered out from their kitchens. Children gathered from every direction, following at a distance, both curious and timid.

The villagers murmured among themselves, quickly forming a ring around Cui Hao's courtyard.

The minor official stopped at the gate, cleared his throat, and raised the tray slightly. Facing the crowd, he drew out his words in a loud, carrying voice. "Good... news!"

At his cry, the whole crowd fell silent in an instant.

"Cui Hao, Master Cui, of Willow Tree Village, north of Qingyuan City—!"

He paused deliberately, his gaze sweeping over the villagers, who stood hushed and breathless, before he proclaimed in a clear voice, "In this year's martial arts preliminary examination, he displayed outstanding skill and outshone his peers, earning seventeenth place on the Mortal Martial List! We have come to deliver the good news!"

"Ah—!"

The crowd fell silent at first, then erupted in an even greater wave of astonishment. A moment later, they fell dead quiet once more, leaving only heavy breathing and gasps suppressed to the breaking point.

Every eye turned toward Cui Hao, standing quietly at the wooden gate in a rough cotton tunic and trousers, his expression calm.

Hearing the commotion, Su Yun came out of the house and held on to the rough doorframe, her fingers turning faintly white from gripping it so tightly.

She looked at the solemn faces of the constables, at the silver ingots and packets of medicine beneath the red cloth on the tray, then at her husband's upright but silent figure. Her nose stung, and her vision blurred in an instant.

Everyone else saw only the glorious result. Only she knew how hard Brother Hao had worked, going out before dawn and returning after dark, old wounds piling atop new ones... Tears spilled from her eyes and slid down her cheeks, but she bit her lip hard and didn't make a sound.

"Master Cui, Madam Cui," the minor official said, his face arranged into a practiced, respectful smile. He stepped forward and presented the tray. "As stipulated, we have brought your rewards."

"Thirty taels of silver, patterned like snowflakes, and fifteen packets of Qi and Blood Powder! Please count them. If everything is in order, Master Cui, please leave your mark on this receipt."

Cui Hao didn't move. He only turned his head slightly and looked at his tearful wife, his gaze softening for a moment.

When Su Yun saw her husband look at her, she hurriedly wiped her face with her sleeve, drew a deep breath, then stepped forward and reached out with trembling but resolute hands to take the heavy tray.

Only then did Cui Hao step forward. He pressed his fingerprint onto the receipt, then took a small string of copper coins from his sleeve pocket and gave them to the messenger as a tip.

"Thank you for the reward, Master!" The minor official quickly bowed even lower, his manner deferential and ingratiating. He knew full well that anyone who broke into the top few dozen in the preliminary exam would, at the very least, become an expert in Clear Force. With luck, they might pass the Martial Xiucai examination—or even advance to Dark Force.

It was worth forming a good connection now and leaving a favorable impression. It might benefit him in the future.

To make that "good connection" even more obvious, the minor official turned to the villagers and raised his voice again. "Good people of the village! Master Cui has taken seventeenth place on the Mortal Martial List! This is an honor for Willow Tree Village! Master Cui is exceptionally talented and works diligently. His future is sure to be boundless! I've come to share in the celebration!"

"Thirty taels of silver... and all those packets of medicine from the government..." The crowd came to their senses and began offering congratulations and exclamations of amazement from every side.

With their task complete, the minor official and constables beat their gongs as they left.

But the villagers stayed, pressing closer with even greater enthusiasm to offer their congratulations. The way they looked at Cui Hao and Su Yun was now utterly different from before, filled with awe, envy, and a hint of fawning distance.

Throughout it all, Lingdang remained quietly hidden in the shadows behind the west room's window, watching the commotion outside through a hole in the paper. She didn't come out, and no one asked about her. As always, she remained unnoticed.