Three Years

The days that followed were unexpectedly peaceful.

Zhao Ting was a man of his word. Only a few days later, he sent someone to deliver an Eagle-Wolf Guard waist medallion and official documents. Xia Dong naturally and formally joined the Eagle-Wolf Guard, becoming a medical officer under the command of the Pingyang County battalion commander.

Only after truly stepping into the Great You Dynasty's establishment did Xia Dong tangibly realize the benefits of "leaning against a big tree to enjoy the shade."

Not to mention the generous monthly stipend of two low-grade spirit stones and one Foundation Building Pill that arrived like clockwork, the internal archives opened to the Eagle-Wolf Guard alone made Xia Dong feel this position was worth every bit of effort.

As the sharp blade used by the Great You Dynasty to monitor all extraordinary powers in the world, the intelligence held by the Eagle-Wolf Guard was far beyond what could be found in the folktales circulating among the masses.

These materials were all personally compiled and organized by the lords of the Bureau of Profound Mysteries in the capital.

The content was incredibly vast and complex, ranging from the orthodox immortal sects and their cultivation techniques to the demons, ghosts, and heretical paths hidden in deep mountains and old forests; the archives contained rough records of them all.

From this, Xia Dong finally understood what the "Spirit Spring" Zhao Ting spoke of actually was.

The so-called Spirit Spring was a special pool created by the imperial court's formation masters, who used grand arrays capable of seizing the creation of heaven and earth to forcibly lock spiritual energy at the convergence points of spirit veins in famous mountains and great rivers. The spiritual energy within that pool water was so dense it was nearly tangible. If a mortal could bathe in it, the power of the formation would guide the massive influx of spiritual energy to forcibly scour the body, possessing the miraculous effect of cleansing the marrow and improving a mortal's natural aptitude.

For martial artists walking the path of martial arts, this Spirit Spring was an absolute, supreme holy land they dreamed of, capable of saving them years or even decades of grueling refinement.

Yet, after reading through it, Xia Dong felt little stir in his heart.

The archives stated clearly that no matter how miraculous the Spirit Spring was, it only targeted the "physical body," that mere skin-bag. It could not fundamentally help a mortal improve their "root vessel," nor could it possibly wash out a spirit root.

The Evergreen Qi-Circulation Art followed the path of transformation through the integration of the three treasures—essence, qi, and spirit—pointing directly to the origin of all spirits.

Of course, Xia Dong was also aware that the threshold for his cultivation technique was extremely high.

It not only required the practitioner to possess a cultivator's "divine sense," but also demanded that this sense be extremely pure, untainted by even the slightest bit of resentment or Sha Qi.

Had he not obtained the Profound Yin Scripture by sheer coincidence, and possessed a heaven-defying object like the Bronze Ancient Bell capable of refining ghosts into Yin Evil Pill without any impurities, how could he, a mortal without a spirit root, have ever cultivated divine sense?

Xia Dong had already completely destroyed the jade slip of the Profound Yin Scripture. As for that tattered Yin Gathering Banner, he had no intention of selling or using it, lest he expose himself.

As for the skeleton at the bottom of the dry well, Xia Dong had pondered it repeatedly but ultimately decided not to touch it. That underground secret chamber already had formations inscribed to conceal one's aura; if he were to rashly move the skeleton and trigger some unknown restriction, or cause the Yin evil aura to leak out, it would only be inviting trouble.

Deep in the night, the backyard of the Changchun Medical Hall.

Xia Dong sat cross-legged in the secret chamber at the bottom of the well, taking out the monthly stipend he had just received from the Eagle-Wolf Guard—two spirit stones and one Foundation Building Pill.

Adding the two sent by Qin Wan, he now had four spirit stones coming in every month.

Xia Dong did not rush to absorb the spirit stones. Instead, he pinched the Foundation Building Pill, which was the size of a dragon's eye and emitted a faint medicinal fragrance, between his fingertips. After examining it for a moment, he tilted his head back and swallowed it.

The moment the pill entered his stomach, it felt completely different from the gentle Bigu Pill, which merely maintained a sense of fullness and provided long-lasting essence.

The Foundation Building Pill seemed to transform into a ball of extremely mellow life essence, dissolving within his body.

A surge of incredibly pure medicinal power, like a warm current in spring, instantly rushed toward his limbs and bones.

Xia Dong dared not be negligent. He closed his eyes tightly, and his divine sense instantly projected out of his body.

He split a wisp of divine sense to wrap around the spirit stones on the bed, while simultaneously guiding the spiritual energy from the depths of the dry well to gather into his body continuously; the remaining divine sense sank into his body, driving the Evergreen Qi-Circulation Art to refine the medicinal power of the Foundation Building Pill.

Essence, qi, and spirit—these three treasures of the human body intersected within Xia Dong's body along an extremely profound and obscure trajectory.

Hum.

Xia Dong's heart contracted violently, emitting a roar like muffled thunder.

Following that, a wisp of cyan-colored "Qi," thicker and purer than ever before, was forcibly condensed deep within his dantian!

This newborn "Qi" carried an ancient and mysterious vitality, traveling rapidly along Xia Dong's meridians.

Wherever it passed, the tiny impurities that had accumulated in his body from eating grains and meat, which were usually difficult to expel, were like snow meeting the scorching sun, quickly scoured away and dissolved.

The progress of his Evergreen Qi-Circulation Art had clearly accelerated!

Xia Dong felt an extremely comfortable, tingling sensation spreading throughout his entire body.

His bones were greedily absorbing the vitality brought by this "Qi," emitting faint "crackling" sounds.

Wrapped in this innate Qi that seized the creation of heaven and earth, Xia Dong's breathing gradually became almost imperceptible. His entire being seemed to have returned to the amniotic fluid of the womb, entering an extremely deep state of "fetal respiration."

His physical body was repairing its innate deficiencies bit by bit, reshaping his own root vessel.

He did not know how much time had passed before a mouthful of grayish-white turbid air was spat out from his mouth like a sharp sword. It condensed in the air without dispersing, shooting out more than three feet before slowly dissipating.

Xia Dong clenched his fists, feeling the increasingly solid and fluid power within his body, and was overjoyed.

"The effect of this Foundation Building Pill is actually several times better than the Bigu Pill."

He could clearly feel that the proportion of spiritual energy he intercepted from heaven and earth had increased again, albeit imperceptibly.

Xia Dong looked down at the two spirit stones on the bed that had already turned into grayish-white powder. "It's just a pity that there is only one Foundation Building Pill each month."

Although Xia Dong desperately wanted more Foundation Building Pills, he still chose to continue his low-profile cultivation. In any case, with the monthly spirit stones and the Foundation Building Pill, his cultivation progress had already accelerated; there was no need to invite unnecessary complications.

Pingyang County, Eagle-Wolf Guard branch.

After reading the letter from his family, Zhao Ting's expression shifted in shock.

The letter instructed him to stop investigating Xia Dong.

It turned out that Xia Dong's original file had been sealed by the Bureau of Profound Mysteries, and even the Zhao Family could not access it.

To the great clans in the Capital City, being unable to uncover the truth was far more terrifying than the truth itself.

As for the family's stance on Xia Dong, they left it to Zhao Ting to handle as he saw fit.

Zhao Ting understood the family's intentions perfectly: if Xia Dong were to transform from a loach into a dragon in the future, the family could leverage Zhao Ting to secure his favor.

If the matters surrounding Xia Dong proved too volatile, it would be treated as Zhao Ting's own unauthorized decision, ensuring the family remained untarnished.

"If you won't touch it, then neither will I." Unable to fathom the depths of the situation, Zhao Ting simply stopped looking for Xia Dong. However, it was easier to invite a spirit than to send it away; he could not afford to fall out with him either.

He would maintain the relationship without being overly intimate.

He did not report this matter to the Hundred-Household, hoping to avoid any unnecessary trouble.

After much deliberation, Zhao Ting decided to simply treat Xia Dong like any other ordinary medical officer.

Unknowingly, another three years passed.

Xia Dong's medical skills had been thoroughly verified within the Eagle-Wolf Guard of Pingyang County, proving to be exceptional in every sense.

The medical prowess Xia Dong had displayed over the past three years was enough to earn him the reputation of a miracle doctor, even within the Eagle-Wolf Guard.

This was something Zhao Ting had never anticipated.