Silver-Backed Bear Meat

Could this progress be counting the memories from my past life as well?

In my past life, I was, at the very least, someone who had received compulsory education and attended university.

If that is the case, then Literacy should indeed be considered an entry-level skill.

However, the effect seems rather formidable—it increases comprehension.

The slight increase in comprehension brought by this skill allowed me to understand several obscure and difficult points from the Tiger Form Manual that I had studied earlier, now that I reflect upon them again.

It seems that practicing martial arts is not just about tempering one's blood and qi or practicing moves; understanding the underlying principles is equally important, Li Yuan thought to himself.

He was full of anticipation for this newly emerged skill.

Yet, the high entry progress requirement of 500 points made Li Yuan realize that to improve, he would need long-term persistence.

Li Yuan did not linger; he returned the book to its original place, went back to the courtyard, and picked up the Stone Lock once more.

Following the essence of the Tiger Form he had just grasped, he combined it with the stance work and began to practice again.

This time, he could more clearly feel his blood and qi following the tightening of specific muscles, and the soreness remained.

But that warm sensation was more concentrated, as if his strength was being gathered and tempered bit by bit.

He practiced until evening.

Skill: Five Animals Fist Stance (Entry)
Progress: 110/300 points

The efficiency is slightly higher than just bitter training alone, Li Yuan thought with satisfaction.

He only stopped practicing when he felt a significant depletion and a distinct hunger in his stomach.

Polishing the body requires replenishing nutrition, especially when it comes to the deficit of blood and qi, which must be supplemented in a timely manner.

Li Yuan first greeted Zhao Qin, then asked:

"Third Senior Brother, do you know where the meat sold is most suitable for a martial artist to nourish themselves?"

"Two streets behind our Martial Arts Hall, there is a 'Zhang's Meat Shop'. There is no meat you can't buy there, only meat you can't imagine," Zhao Qin replied.

"Do they have dragon meat?"

"That, they don't have. If they did, they wouldn't be selling meat here," Zhao Qin shook his head.

"If you want to replenish blood and qi, eating hearty meat or taking potent medicine are both fine, but the silver spent is not a small amount."

"It would be better to first reach the Ox Skin Realm and become an official disciple. By then, the tuition fees will be reduced, and the extra silver can be used to buy meat."

Nourishing the body while tempering blood and qi is, of course, the fastest way.

Zhao Qin understood Li Yuan's thoughts and immediately advised him.

"I understand."

Li Yuan thanked Zhao Qin, washed up, and tucked away the silver he had earned from the Wild Boar.

He left the Martial Arts Hall and headed straight for the back street.

Soon, Li Yuan arrived at Zhang's Meat Shop.

The shopkeeper was a burly, middle-aged man wearing a greasy apron, currently lying on a chair waiting to close up shop.

"Shopkeeper, I don't want ordinary meat today. Lately, I've felt that my blood and qi consumption is too high while practicing martial arts, so I want to buy something specifically for replenishment. Do you have any good recommendations?"

Hearing this, the shopkeeper didn't say much; it seemed he was already accustomed to martial artists coming to his shop.

He turned and went into the back room, returning with a basket filled with various kinds of meat.

"Silver-Backed Bear Meat, five taels of silver per catty. Eating one meal can sustain a day's consumption; it replenishes blood and strengthens the body."

The shopkeeper took out a piece of light red dried meat from the basket and said.

"There is also Black Fish Meat, Monkey Meat, Wild Beef, Wild Mutton, Fox Meat..."

The shopkeeper listed over a dozen types of meat in one breath.

There were smoked meat strips as well as fresh meat.

Li Yuan decided to buy a little of everything he hadn't tried before, excluding what he had already eaten.

He would go back and test them slowly to see which type of meat provided the greatest boost to his Consumption skill.

"Ahem, Shopkeeper, can it be a bit cheaper? It's a bit expensive."

The total came to nearly three taels of silver.

In these extraordinary times, if he could haggle, that would naturally be for the best.

"How is it expensive? It has been this price for so many years; don't talk nonsense with your eyes open."

"Sometimes you should look for the reason within yourself; after all these years, have you made any progress in your martial arts?"

The shopkeeper, who had been amiable just a moment ago, now sank his face and spoke indifferently.

Li Yuan listened to these familiar words and shook his head; seeing the shopkeeper's attitude, there was clearly no room for negotiation.

He had no choice but to act as if he hadn't heard it, paid the silver, and cradled the large, wrapped bundle of meat in his arms.

Taking advantage of the fact that it wasn't dark yet, he returned to Blue Stone Village.

"Going back and forth like this is too troublesome; I must find a way to secure a place to live in Wuxi County."

Since he was all alone, he was at least free to do as he pleased.

When Li Yuan passed through the Shanty Town while carrying the meat, quite a few people stared at him with green, greedy eyes.

Perhaps sensing that he was not someone to be trifled with, no one stepped forward to cause trouble.

By the time he returned home, it was already night.

The only benefit of winter was that meat was easy to store and didn't spoil quickly.

Li Yuan deftly processed the meat into portions of equal weight to make jerky.

In this way, every time he ate, he could clearly know which meat provided him with the greatest improvement.

After a few days, he quickly discovered which meat offered the most significant boost.

It was the Silver-Backed Bear Meat.

This meat was not only incredibly satiating, but every time he consumed it, a warm sensation would spread throughout his limbs.

Sometimes he couldn't eat too much of it, as overconsumption easily led to congestion in certain areas.

The price was not cheap either, at five taels of silver per catty; he reckoned even the young masters in the Inner City couldn't afford to eat it at every meal.

In the blink of an eye, another ten days passed.

Strangely, Wang Three Scars, whom he had beaten to a pulp, had not sought out Yan Xiang for revenge.

Sometimes when he saw him, he would even dodge far away.

However, Li Yuan was happy to enjoy the peace and quiet.

Li Yuan continued to repeat his daily routine: going up the mountain to hunt, practicing stance work at the Martial Arts Hall, and using the money earned from hunting to buy meat.

His body was becoming increasingly robust; being in his teenage growth phase, he thrived on whatever he consumed.

Li Yuan's skills were also steadily improving.

[Skill: Archery (Minor Achievement)]
[Progress: 460/800 points]

[Skill: Literacy (Entry)]
[Progress: 150/500 points]

[Skill: Five Animals Fist Stance (Entry)]
[Progress: 250/300 points]

[Skill: Consumption (Entry)]
[Progress: 150/200 points]

These were Li Yuan's current skill levels; both his stance work and consumption skills were about to reach Minor Achievement.

Especially the consumption skill—although the Silver-Backed Bear Meat was sufficient, it had accelerated his progress rapidly.

It was no wonder these martial artists spared no expense to buy such high-quality meat.

During these days, it wasn't that Li Yuan hadn't thought about hunting big game, but let alone fierce beasts like the Big Worm or the Black Lump, even the wild boar from last time was nowhere to be found. It was truly a job that relied on luck.

Li Yuan now found that his time each day was simply insufficient; not to mention practicing stance work, just the time spent searching for prey on the vast mountain took up the better part of his day.

Not to mention hunting small game, which was just a minor distraction.

This significantly delayed his progress in increasing his strength.

Therefore, Li Yuan planned to cooperate with his uncle or other veteran hunters; they would be responsible for tracking the fierce beasts, and Li Yuan would be responsible for the kill.

In this way, he would save time while still earning silver and high-quality meat.

Of course, there was another more extreme method, but his current strength did not allow him to dwell on it.