Fang He

The opening form of the Qi Gathering Form bore some resemblance to the Iron Ox Technique. Both adjusted the rhythm of one's breathing and guided vital blood along specific routes.

The difference lay in the direction. The Iron Ox Technique focused on striking the viscera; every breath was like hammering an anvil, leaving the abdomen sore and swollen after practice. The Nurturing Origin Technique was precisely the opposite. Vital blood flowed slowly along the meridians and muscles, neither rushing nor crashing, like warm water soaking through the body.

With the complete technique guiding him in his mind, coupled with his rough grasp of the first form's framework, Li Yuan picked it up quickly.

In less than half an incense stick's time, he could guide his vital blood through the Qi Gathering Form's route for a complete cycle. It was still somewhat awkward, but smoother than when he had first practiced the Iron Ox Technique's opening form.

After practicing it several times, Li Yuan did not stop and moved directly into the second form—Breath Nourishing.

The Breath Nourishing Form had a slower breathing rhythm than the Qi Gathering Form, and its vital blood route was more prolonged. Its focus was to naturally nourish the muscles and tendons along the way as vital blood flowed back from the extremities.

Without the infusion, merely locating the points where vital blood flowed back would have taken several days of exploration. The technique in Li Yuan's mind had marked every point with perfect clarity, so he only needed to follow it.

The only problem was his stamina.

The Nurturing Origin Technique was not as fierce as the Iron Ox Technique, but its strength lay in endurance. Each form required sustained circulation of vital blood over a long period, causing stamina to drain bit by bit.

Fortunately, the Qi-Blood Self-Generation affix had remained equipped. His vital blood recovered fifty percent faster than usual, and after a brief rest following each form, most of his fatigue faded away.

Under ordinary circumstances, that difference in recovery speed would not amount to much. But during high-intensity continuous training, a fifty-percent increase in recovery meant greatly shortened rest periods and denser practice sessions.

Li Yuan maintained a rhythm of one form after another. After completing Qi Absorption, Breath Nourishing, and Blood Enrichment, with two brief breaks in between, his stamina swiftly returned to full each time.

An hour and a half later, Li Yuan concluded his practice and let out a long breath.

[Nurturing Origin Technique: Entry Level (0/200)]

The Nurturing Origin Technique had successfully reached Entry Level. It was a little slower than when the Iron Ox Technique had reached Entry Level, but incomparably faster than studying it manually.

After finishing his practice, Li Yuan did not rise immediately. Instead, he quietly sensed his body for a while.

The most obvious change was that his vital blood had become more abundant than before.

It was not a matter of having much more of it, but rather that the way it flowed had changed—previously, as vital blood traveled through his body, it weakened upon reaching his extremities, and his fingers and toes would occasionally grow cold. Now, even when it reached his fingertips, it still had strength to spare. His entire body was warm from head to toe.

At the same time, he could sense his own vital blood more clearly.

Previously, when he circulated a technique, he had to rely on vague sensations to determine where his vital blood had gone and how quickly it moved. Now, it was as though he possessed a rough map. He could tell more clearly which channels his vital blood flowed through and where it weakened.

Li Yuan lay down and rested with his eyes closed for a while, then began circulating the Spirit Guiding Art.

Cultivation was the foundation of everything.

The next morning, Li Yuan had barely opened his eyes when he heard footsteps outside the wooden door.

Then came three knocks, neither hurried nor slow.

Most people living in this area were outer cultivators of the Wang Family. They were not strangers to one another, but few took the initiative to visit and knock on doors.

Li Yuan got up, removed the door bar, and pulled open the wooden door.

An unfamiliar face stood outside.

He looked to be in his early thirties, of medium build with broad shoulders and sun-darkened skin. A faint old scar crossed his cheekbone, healed white by now. He wore a somewhat worn grayish-brown short outfit, its cuffs tightly bound, with a sheathed short saber tucked at his waist.

He was not from the Patrol Squad, nor was he from the Management Office—at least, not anyone Li Yuan knew.

The other man spoke first. Cupping his hands, he said, "Sorry to disturb you. My surname is Fang, Fang He. I just moved into the room next door."

Fang He turned sideways and tilted his chin toward the wooden cabin beside them, which had been empty for a long time.

Li Yuan glanced over. The windows of that cabin were indeed open, and a half-worn travel pack rested by its door.

The Management Office had just issued a notice saying that vacant houses in the residential district would be rented out to rogue cultivators. It seemed people had already begun moving in.

"Li Yuan." Li Yuan nodded, returning the greeting.

Fang He's gaze paused briefly at Li Yuan's waist. As someone who frequently came and went from the market district, he naturally recognized that waist token.

"I just moved here, so I came by to say hello."

Fang He's tone became a little more serious.

Li Yuan stepped aside by half a pace and leaned against the doorframe. He had no intention of inviting him in, but neither did he shut him out a thousand miles away.

"I'm from a Monster Hunting Squad. Something happened to our team in the mountains, and we got scattered. I came to stay in the market district for now."

A Monster Hunting Squad. Li Yuan's heart stirred.

Quite a few Monster Hunting Squads operated along the outskirts of the Yuanheng Mountains. Some had as few as three to five people, while others had more than a dozen. They specialized in hunting demonic beasts in exchange for spirit stones and materials, making them one of the more organized groups among rogue cultivators.

Monster Hunting Squads being scattered was something Li Yuan had heard plenty of lately in the market district. But most of it was secondhand or thirdhand information, with no small amount of embellishment added along the way.

"Things have been spreading fiercely outside lately. They say demonic beasts are migrating outward in large numbers, and several Monster Hunting Squads have been wiped out," Li Yuan said.

Fang He snorted and reached up to touch the old scar on his cheekbone.

"It is serious. The demonic beasts deeper in the mountains really are being squeezed outward, and their activity range along the outskirts is much larger than it was half a year ago. But as for some massive demonic beast invasion, or every Monster Hunting Squad being wiped out... it hasn't reached that point."

Fang He paused, lowering his voice slightly.

"Of the squads that were lost, two heard that something valuable had appeared near a mine vein deep in the mountains. Greedy for merit, they rushed in headlong and never came back out. Another squad fought with a different Monster Hunting Squad over territory. After killing the demonic beasts, their own people started fighting first. Only one Monster Hunting Squad was wiped out because the increase in demonic beasts led them to encounter several exceptionally powerful ones."

"The teams that honestly hunt demonic beasts along the outskirts have not suffered such severe losses. Some squads have actually earned more because there are more demonic beasts."

Leaning against the doorframe, Li Yuan did not respond, but he compared this information with what he had previously heard on the streets.

What the rogue cultivators outside were saying was that the Yuanheng Mountains were falling apart and Monster Hunting Squads were dying batch after batch.

Fang He's account was that the situation was serious but manageable. The two versions differed greatly, but Fang He had experienced it personally, making him more credible.

"How did your team get scattered?" Li Yuan asked.

Fang He waved a hand. "Bad luck. We ran into a Single-Horned Snake Badger that was about to break through to Second-Order. That thing was shedding its skin and had a vile temper. We did not have enough people and could not beat it, so the captain told everyone to scatter. One died, two were injured, and the rest of us fled in different directions."

When he mentioned that one person had died, Fang He's tone did not waver at all, as though he were merely commenting on the fine weather.

Li Yuan gave him another look.

In the Monster Hunting Squad line of work, death was commonplace. Anyone who could speak of it in such a tone had either seen too much of it or possessed a heart of stone.

"How long will you stay in the market district?"

"Depends on the situation." Fang He rolled his neck. "Once things outside settle down a little, the captain will find a few people, form another team, and head back into the mountains."

Li Yuan nodded and did not ask further.

Fang He did not seem inclined to continue talking either. He cupped his hands, turned, and returned to the cabin next door.

Li Yuan watched Fang He's back as he entered the neighboring wooden cabin, then closed his own door.

After resting for most of the morning, Li Yuan tidied his clothes and went out on patrol.

Li Yuan followed East Street toward North Alley. When he reached the middle section of North Alley, a small stall set up against the corner of a wall caught his attention.

A clean white cloth covered the stall, upon which lay several small bags of grain in different colors. Some were bluish-green, some pale yellow, and one bag was jade-white, its grains plump and full, radiating faint fluctuations of spirit qi.

White Jade Rice.

Li Yuan's steps paused.

The last time he had seen White Jade Rice was when he collected rent in the Spirit Field District. Uncle Wang had given him a bundle, which Li Yuan later turned in. It had been converted into spirit stones at ten percent of market value and issued to him.

At the time, the system had detected that White Jade Rice could be equipped. Its affix was Five Grains Nourishing Qi, which could improve stamina recovery and vital blood.

The stall owner was a middle-aged woman in her forties. She was plainly dressed and had an honest-looking face, appearing to be a spirit farmer from the Spirit Field District.

Li Yuan crouched before the stall and picked up the bag of White Jade Rice, weighing it in his hand.

Semi-transparent words appeared before his eyes:

[Equippable item detected: White Jade Rice (requires one jin)]

[Affix preview: Five Grains Nourishing Qi (White)—stamina recovery speed increased by fifty percent, vital blood increased to a certain degree]

[Condition for permanent effect: consume ten jin of the same type of spirit grain]

[Current Equipment Slot (2/2). Replace currently equipped item?]

The advantage of spirit grains like White Jade Rice was that they could be stored for a long time. Unlike medicinal pills, spirit grains did not have an expiration period. As long as they were properly preserved, their quality would not decline even after a year or half.

"How much is the White Jade Rice?"

The middle-aged woman held up one finger. "One spirit stone per jin."

It was more expensive than before. The bundle Uncle Wang had given him when collecting rent had been worth roughly half a spirit stone per jin at market price. Now, the price had nearly doubled.

Herbs had gone up in price, and spirit grains had risen along with them. Nothing had been left behind.

Li Yuan touched the spirit stones in his sleeve. After some thought, he still took out one spirit stone and handed it over.

White Jade Rice could be stored. It would surely be useful someday.

The middle-aged woman accepted the spirit stone, carefully weighed out one jin from the bags on her stall, wrapped it in oiled paper, and handed it to Li Yuan.

Li Yuan tucked the White Jade Rice into his sleeve, rose, and left.

By the time he finished the remainder of his patrol route, the sun had already tilted westward.

Li Yuan returned to his residence, sat on the bed, and began cultivating.

Two hours later, Li Yuan shifted his consciousness, and the Panel appeared.

The Iron Ox Technique's cooldown had ended.

[Equipment removed: Nurturing Origin Technique]

[Qi-Blood Self-Generation (White) affix temporarily inactive]

[Note: After equipment of the same type is removed, it cannot be equipped again for twelve hours]

The book appeared in his palm out of thin air. The sensation of being soaked in warm water throughout his body faded along with it, and the speed at which his vital blood recovered visibly slowed.

Li Yuan took out the Iron Ox Technique manual.

[Cooldown for equipment of the same type has ended. It may be equipped again]

Equip.

The manual turned into light and merged into his body. The five-form technique of the Iron Ox Technique became clear in his mind once more.

Deep within his abdomen, that familiar warmth surged up again, enveloping his five viscera and six bowels, supple and dense.

Viscera Strengthening had returned.

[Current Equipment Slot: 2/2]

[Equipped items: Vein-Clearing Pill, Iron Ox Technique]

[Acquired affixes: Circulation Acceleration (White), Viscera Strengthening (White), Spirit Qi Filtration (White) (Permanent), Clean Physique (Gray) (Permanent)]

Everything had returned to normal.

Li Yuan did not delay. First, he stood firmly in the room and practiced the first four forms of the Iron Ox Technique once. Vital blood washed through his viscera, and with the support of Viscera Strengthening, every form flowed more smoothly than yesterday.

After finishing the Iron Ox Technique, Li Yuan followed the technique in his memory and practiced the first three forms of the Nurturing Origin Technique twice more.

Without the infusion provided by equipment, the details of the technique were indeed somewhat blurrier. He had to repeatedly adjust several vital blood points in the third form, Blood Enrichment, before locating them accurately. But the foundation he had gained after reaching Entry Level remained, so he was not as utterly lost as when he had first manually flipped through the book.

After practicing both mortal techniques, Li Yuan sat cross-legged and circulated the Spirit Guiding Art.

Spirit qi entered his body, pure and free of impurities, while his circulation revolved at high speed.

The three White Traits each performed their own duties—Spirit Qi Filtration removed impurities, Circulation Acceleration drove the circulation, and Viscera Strengthening provided steady support beneath it all.

The spiritual power in his dantian was full and abundant, still some distance from saturation. Every circulation brought tangible growth in spiritual power.

Dusk sank beyond the window, and only the steady sound of breathing remained within the wooden cabin.

With a shift of consciousness, the Panel appeared:

[Iron Ox Technique: Entry Level (170/200)]

[Nurturing Origin Technique: Entry Level (14/200)]

Both techniques were advancing steadily.

Li Yuan closed the Panel and continued cultivating.