Finally, Chen Han bought three pounds of Exotic Beast meat for one hundred and fifty taels. As he was leaving, Aunt Xue'er gave him a meaningful look and said, "Eating meat is a blessing, but don't eat yourself to death..."
Eat himself to death?
What a joke. How long had it been since he'd last eaten meat? If he let himself have his fill, he could probably finish it all in less than two days.
At a loss, Chen Han left, carrying the heavy sack. His mind churned. I wonder if this will be enough to rebuild my sinews and bones.
If it wasn't, he'd have no choice but to save up silver.
How long that would take, he had no idea.
Chen Han returned to where he was staying, washed up quickly, and lay down. Just as he was about to fall asleep, a hand wrapped around him.
It was his wife. Her body sweated easily, and her hands were covered in blisters of all sizes from scalding oil. Anyone who spent long hours cooking in a kitchen ended up like that.
In that hot, damp environment, frail women suffered even more. Heat rash, stomachaches, and other ailments were all too easy to catch.
She earned only two or three taels of silver a year. Even so, this job had been found for her by Shen Wuren through a connection, and many ordinary people couldn't get one no matter how hard they tried.
Chen Han felt awful, and his resolve to pursue the martial path only grew stronger.
At that moment, Shen Wan'er was filled with a sense of security. Her father might be getting old, but their family had gained someone even more promising: the husband who shared her bed.
"Things are looking brighter and brighter. As long as Father and I work a little harder to earn silver and help my husband recover, we'll finally make it through."
"Father said Chen Han is an extraordinary man, with a boundless future ahead of him. The Chen Family was blind to his worth. That's how I got so lucky and ended up with such a good man."
Then she thought of Aunt Wang, who was always showing off in front of everyone about how her nephew had studied martial arts. Hmph! What's so special about that? My husband even beat Master Bear to death!
Shen Wan'er was feeling immensely proud, but she also worried that one day Chen Han might grow tired of her, his poor old wife, and never come back.
......
It was early the next morning. After breakfast, Shen Wuren went off to work. Before leaving, he told Chen Han to come to him if he ran out of silver, leaving Chen Han at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
He wondered what Shen Wuren's face would look like if he found out that the meat Chen Han had bought for one hundred and fifty taels might not even last two months.
That morning, Lu was at home mending clothes for people, earning a few copper coins now and then.
She'd slept soundly that night and hadn't known what happened. Shen Wuren, afraid she'd let the story slip, hadn't told her.
Chen Han went to the kitchen and set the Exotic Beast meat on the chopping board, cutting off a piece about the size of his fist.
Then he put the meat in a bowl, added wine and sliced ginger, and let it marinate for a while.
Like ordinary meat, the essence of Exotic Beast meat lay in its flesh and blood. This wouldn't diminish its effects; instead, it would remove the strong gamey smell so he wouldn't gag and throw it up while eating.
The finest ingredients often needed only the simplest preparation. Chen Han took out the rapeseed oil his family treated like a treasure and poured a little into the pan. Once the oil was hot, he tossed in the shredded ginger and garlic all at once.
After stir-frying them until fragrant, he put in the entire fist-sized piece of Exotic Beast meat and cooked it by pan-frying.
In the end, he had a steak browned on the outside and still half-raw within.
From what he'd learned while living with the Chen Family, this was the best way to prepare it, ensuring that its qi and blood were preserved as fully as possible.
A rich aroma wafted through the air. Chen Han's eyes lit up, his fingers itched to dig in, and his mouth watered.
In either life, he had never smelled anything so sweet and savory. It was as if some irresistible delicacy were tempting him, making his body—long deprived of enough qi and blood—tremble uncontrollably.
Chen Han couldn't hold back any longer. He grabbed the meat and took a huge bite. The moment it entered his mouth, it burst with juice, rich and sweet.
He polished it off in just a few bites, and still wasn't satisfied. He cut off another piece and cooked it.
As he reached for a third piece, a flash of clarity struck his mind. It felt as if a knife had skimmed his scalp, and he came to his senses in an instant.
Aunt Xue'er's meaningful words from the night before echoed in his mind. Cold sweat broke out all over him, soaking his clothes.
He'd just lost control!
"Why did that happen? I've eaten Exotic Beast meat before, back when I was with the Chen Family."
He recalled that after he'd successfully broken through and reached Bright Force, the family had allowed him to eat Exotic Beast meat once a month, though it had only been a tiny strip, no bigger than his little finger.
Nothing like the generous portion he had now.
But back then, it hadn't been dangerous enough to make him lose control.
Why was it different now?
Chen Han recalled how he'd felt. It had been an intense craving from deep within his body, like a parched land finally receiving rain, or a desert stumbling upon an oasis.
"Could it be... that my qi and blood have been depleted for too long?"
After thinking for a while, that seemed to be the only explanation.
Then something occurred to him, and his expression turned serious. "So Aunt Xue'er saw through my situation. What she said back then was nothing but a kind warning."
Once he understood, he couldn't help feeling a little fond of her.
But he had no time to dwell on it. Sweat poured from his body, and wisps of white steam rose from his skin. His face flushed, and faint red threads of blood showed beneath his skin.
Chen Han felt a scalding wave surge from his stomach through his limbs and every sinew and vein. It burned like fire, leaving him in agony. He clenched his teeth so hard they nearly shattered.
The effects of the Exotic Beast meat had clearly kicked in.
With a few pounds of meat about to take him out single-handedly, Chen Han forced down his restless heat, stepped into a bow stance, and began practicing the Taiji Health Cultivation Technique.
At that moment, he was like a powder keg about to explode. The Taiji Health Cultivation Technique was a tiny hole in its base, slowly channeling out the overflowing qi, blood, and yang energy within him, replenishing his body through martial training.
[Taiji Health Cultivation Technique +1+1]
[Taiji Health Cultivation Technique 4/500]
As his proficiency increased, the heat surging into his head gradually subsided. He sensed some mysterious changes in his body: the resilience of his sinews and veins, the strength of his bones, and the reserve of qi and blood within him all seemed to have improved, almost imperceptibly.
Was it an illusion?
The great road back to martial arts lay right before him. After being dormant for so long, it felt almost unreal.
Would the humiliation he'd suffered, the years of swallowing his pride and bowing and scraping, and all the compromises he'd made finally pay off today?
It wasn't until three hours later that Chen Han was certain it wasn't an illusion.
His sinews and bones... were truly rebuilding!
For a moment, he felt tears welling in his eyes.
"I still can't let myself get carried away. This is only the beginning of rebuilding my sinews and bones. All my stats have improved by almost imperceptible amounts. I have to keep my head down. Give it enough time, and I'll be reborn!"
By then, with my proficiency panel, I'll be able to sweep aside every martial apprentice my age in the Chen Family, seize most of their martial training resources for myself, and break through to Martialist or even Martial Master!
I'll kick down the doors of every martial arts school in Black Lion City. Even against the Black Mountain Gang, I'll have the confidence to leave not a soul alive.
When that day came, I'd be the strongest person in Black Lion City.
As for Chen Qiuyu, I certainly wouldn't let her off. Her family's power wouldn't save her, and not even the clan patriarch would be able to protect her.
Chen Han sank into a wonderful fantasy in which he could slay gods if they stood in his way and slaughter Buddhas if they crossed him.
After a while, he slapped himself. "Chen Han, you've gotten way ahead of yourself. You're barely at the starting line, and already you dare dream of anything and everything!"
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