Receiving the True Dharma

A more advanced True Method?

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone nearby looked up, some surprised and others delighted as they turned toward An Jing, and the area quickly erupted into a buzz of noise.

"Congratulations, Senior Brother!" "Wow, as expected of Brother An!" "Could it be that our Senior Brother has already mastered both of those mental cultivation methods and martial arts techniques? So quickly?!" "Of course!" "This is just who Senior Brother is..."

For a moment, the entire training ground was filled with congratulations and praise; everyone was genuinely happy for An Jing.

After all, An Jing had already proven that whenever he learned a technique, he would teach it to others with complete sincerity. Whether they could learn it or not was one thing, but he never held anything back.

Since that was the case, what did it matter if An Jing learned a True Method early? If they lacked the talent to learn the True Method, it wouldn't matter anyway, and if they did have the talent, An Jing having learned it early meant he could guide them in the future.

If anything, they should want An Jing to learn it early! That way, when he mentored them as juniors, his experience would be even richer!

As for jealousy, it wasn't as if no one felt it.

But what was the point of jealousy? Martial arts were different from literature; if you couldn't beat someone, you truly couldn't beat them. You couldn't just talk your way out of it, and being stubborn only meant getting beaten up again.

Facing this outpouring of goodwill, An Jing cupped his hands in a salute, then followed Instructor Li toward the Medicine Pavilion, feeling half-delighted.

His delight was natural, of course, because the True Method—the Linyuan Qi-Nurturing Stake and the Armor-Piercing True Energy—was not particularly difficult for him. He had long since cultivated them to great success, nearing perfection, so how could he not be happy to improve himself with a higher-level True Method?

As for the other half of his feelings, they were quite complex—a mix of curiosity, worry, doubt, and a sense of calm.

He hadn't expected to be held in such high regard, and this had disrupted his plans.

However, plans could be changed, and this was also an opportunity for him.

Ever since he heard that strange sound in the Medicine Pavilion last time, An Jing had been paying close attention to this core building of Xuanming Manor.

It was a pity that the five-day check-up intervals were too short, and he had to lead his team, leaving him no time to observe the surroundings carefully; this time, he should have a chance.

An Jing also knew that the beast meat and medicinal liquids all originated from the Medicine Pavilion, where they were roughly processed before being sent to the kitchen's back hall for preparation.

Counting the days, today did indeed seem to be a 'meat-eating' day, and if he was lucky, there was a high probability he would see the raw materials for those various beast meats and medicinal liquids.

It was time to find out the truth.

Soon, Instructor Li went to pay his respects to the Manor Master, while An Jing waited at the entrance of the Medicine Pavilion.

"Yo, isn't this our little champion this time?" "Congratulations, there really aren't many who get taught a True Method before the trial." "Not bad, kid."

The pharmacists entering and exiting the Medicine Pavilion all knew An Jing. Several of them had presided over his physical examinations and were quite familiar with him, even taking the time to greet him with a smile.

An Jing naturally returned each greeting politely, then feigned indifference as he observed his surroundings and the movements of the pharmacists.

There were not many pharmacists, seven in total, all studying under Manor Master Yao. They moved in and out quite frequently, mostly to collect the herbs drying next to the Medicine Pavilion and transport them inside cart by cart.

An Jing recognized many of them as the main ingredients for the medicinal liquids they drank. There were also some he didn't recognize, and he couldn't determine what those medicines were used for.

Besides that, there were many large water vats placed in the open space on both sides of the Medicine Pavilion. An Jing didn't find this strange; in this life, there was no tap water system, so naturally, they needed to store extra water for daily medicine production.

While waiting, An Jing happened to see a team of servants come over to move water vats out of the Medicine Pavilion, and then move others back in.

The only thing that was a bit strange was that these water vats emitted a thick, sweet, and fishy medicinal odor.

Some were swaying and heavy, seemingly filled to the brim.

Could it be that there is medicine stored in water vats?

An Jing found it hard to imagine at first, but once he considered that the medicine in the Medicine Pavilion had to be prepared for hundreds of people, he didn't find it strange anymore.

Hm?

Just as An Jing was planning to memorize the patterns of the medicinal materials he had seen, intending to go back and ask Gu Yeqi to identify them, he suddenly stopped observing.

His brow furrowed slightly. He sniffed the air and immediately caught the familiar scent of 'meat'.

It was here.

Rumble—a massive shadow emerged from the main entrance of the Medicine Pavilion. Two sweating pharmacists, along with three instructors, were shouting slogans as they pushed an extremely large and heavy cargo cart out of the main door.

A rich, meaty aroma wafted from it, and when An Jing looked closely, he was stunned.

Because, inside this cart, there was nothing but a large quantity of bones.

A massive pile of various beast bones, all scraped clean!

What kind of beasts are these?

An Jing could clearly distinguish that these bones included wolf, tiger, jackal, leopard, and even a pair of huge bull horns, and the wing bones of large birds.

The various beast bones, scraped completely clean, were piled into a small mountain that required a cargo cart and several grown men to push.

"It's stuck!" The cart had only gone halfway before it got caught on a small depression in the Medicine Pavilion's stairs. Seeing this, An Jing immediately knew this was his chance and stepped forward.

"Can you handle it, An Jing?" The instructors had originally intended to exert the effort themselves, but seeing An Jing step up to help, they all laughed. "Don't hurt your back."

"Of course I can." As An Jing moved closer, he realized these beast bones were indeed extraordinary; even the scent carried a strange vitality that made one's heart feel restless. He suppressed this feeling and exerted his strength.

His Armor-Piercing True Energy erupted, and in an instant, An Jing lifted the entire cargo cart slightly, clearing the depression.

"Strong!" Even the instructors couldn't help but praise him. "Your Armor-Piercing True Energy is already mastered; you can manifest it not just in your hands and legs, but throughout your entire body. No wonder the Manor Master wants to teach you the True Method."

"Alright, we have to keep working. You're a lucky kid."

An Jing watched as the group pushed the cargo cart away. He noticed that whenever these instructors spoke of the 'True Method', they all wore expressions of deep envy. He pondered to himself, Could it be that none of these instructors have learned the complete True Method?

That made sense; they were likely the ones who had learned the martial arts techniques but hadn't fully mastered them, the ones who had been weeded out. Even Instructor Li, he feared, had not learned the full True Method.

That is possible, but it is not very important.

Because just now, while getting close, An Jing had noticed the true peculiarity of those beast bones.

Patterns...

An Jing muttered to himself, the strange details on those beast bones appearing in his mind: "Those beast bones have a large number of grayish-black, bizarre patterns that made me feel dizzy just by looking at them..."

For a moment, an unprovoked anger even welled up in his heart, but it quickly subsided, and An Jing grew alert: "Are those patterns the source of the Violent Roar?"

Is it only by enduring that urge to scream madly that one can remain in Xuanming Manor?

"This is definitely not the meat of ordinary fierce beasts! It's not as if I've never seen fierce beast meat before... Could it be, a demon, a... monster?"

Just as An Jing was still pondering, Instructor Li came down.

"Go on."

His single eye was filled with envy: "The Manor Master is waiting for you."

An Jing snapped back to reality, nodded immediately, and climbed the stairs.

Manor Master Yao did not usually stay in the Medicine Pavilion; he would walk around, observing the growth of the medicinal herbs in the fields on both sides, and often came to inspect the children's training. He only stayed in the Medicine Pavilion all day on the days when he checked everyone's health and when they ate meat.

An Jing also knew that many instructors referred to Manor Master Yao as Vice Envoy Yao, as the entire Xuanming Manor was a branch of a large organization. Manor Master Yao was an executive within that organization, and "Yao" was not even his surname, but his title.

"Vice Envoy" implied there was a "Chief Envoy," and the primary function of the entire manor, aside from cultivating members, was refining medicine.

Soon, An Jing arrived at the fifth floor.

"Little An."

Manor Master Yao was currently at his desk reviewing some applications, and on the table sat a strange, dark-gold, wide-mouthed vessel that emitted a peculiar luster.

Seeing An Jing standing at the doorway, he looked up and said casually: "Come in, sit."

Seeing An Jing sitting respectfully behind the desk without saying a word, Manor Master Yao couldn't help but sigh: "You really are calm. I told you this time I would impart the true method to you, so why don't you have a happy expression on your face? You really don't seem like a child."

"Because this disciple knows that greater gifts represent greater expectations."

An Jing lowered his head slightly and said, half-seriously: "The Manor Master and all the instructors and lecturers recognize me. While I am certainly happy, I also understand that this is a heavy responsibility that must be treated with seriousness."

"Mm."

Manor Master Yao's expression remained unchanged. He took a seemingly plain-looking booklet from a drawer to the side and handed it to An Jing: "Take a look."

An Jing glanced at Manor Master Yao before picking up the booklet.

<Imperial Heaven Piercing-God One-Origin Qi-Nurturing Method>