'It seems the news of Tian Erhu's death hasn't leaked yet... So be it. Let this muddy water settle for a few more days. For me, that can only bring benefits.'
Shen Xiuhan concealed the glimmer in his eyes and strode into the inner courtyard.
By then, the sky had already brightened, yet the inner courtyard remained deathly silent and utterly empty.
His second senior brother, Xu Chuan, had not arrived yet. Even if he did, he would still have to oversee and supervise the early-morning practice of the thirty-odd people in the outer courtyard.
Shen Xiuhan did not dawdle. Facing the biting morning wind, he lowered his waist and sank his hips, assuming the opening stance of the Mystic Eagle Stance.
An hour later.
"Phew!"
Shen Xiuhan slowly completed his exercise and exhaled a long, silky stream of white mist.
He opened his eyes, and an unconcealable delight burst across his face!
Yesterday, during the system's "deduction" in his Sea of Consciousness, it had not only brought his Mystic Eagle Stance to perfection and allowed him to comprehend the killing move Heavenly Mystic Eagle Force, but had also forcibly pushed his cultivation to the Bone Tempering Peak!
He had originally thought that after his consciousness returned to his body, the system had only fed back his understanding of the stance technique and martial skills.
The cultivation he had built up over those fifteen years, however, had not all returned to reality. It had merely helped him open the Blood Gate and step into the early stage of Bright Force.
He had thought that was where it would end, but he had never expected...
The cultivation he had accumulated over fifteen years had not vanished into thin air. Instead, it had been imprinted into this body in an even more heaven-defying manner.
On the path of martial arts, one needed techniques, companions, wealth, and a suitable place.
For ordinary martial artists, from the moment they opened the Blood Gate, cultivating the Blood Tempering Realm to perfection would take at least half a year, or even a full year, no matter how hard they trained day and night, even with medicinal meals to nourish them.
To break through further into the mid-stage of Bright Force and open the profound gate of the Tendon Tempering Realm required even more painstaking effort. Those who remained stuck for three to five years without making an inch of progress were as common as carp crossing a river.
Yet Shen Xiuhan had merely practiced the stance five times just now, and with each repetition, he could feel the qi and blood within him rapidly surging!
In just half an hour, the qi and blood throughout his body had actually risen by a whole notch!
At this rate, replenishing his qi and blood to the Bone Tempering Peak he had reached during "deduction" would take at most three or four months of effort!
If he could find some medicinal meals and pills that nourished qi and blood, it would be even faster!
Shen Xiuhan's thoughts raced, and a bold guess flashed through his mind!
The martial realm and insights he had cultivated during "deduction" had indeed all been fed back into his body.
It was only that the blood-qi energy of heaven and earth could not be created from nothing. His physical body still had to temper and absorb it all over again.
For an ordinary person who wished to set foot on the martial path, it was like excavating a reservoir in barren, solid rock.
Not only was it time-consuming and laborious, with slow progress, but if one accidentally dug the meridians askew or caused the foundation to collapse, that would be the so-called deviation into demonic practice—and failure to break through!
But because Shen Xiuhan had absorbed the realm he cultivated during "deduction," there was already a dug-out, dried-up reservoir within him.
All he had to do now was simply "pour water" into it!
And the highest cultivation he had reached during "deduction" was the Bone Tempering Peak.
That meant...
Before his cultivation returned to the Bone Tempering Peak, his martial path would be as smooth as a galloping horse on a broad plain, as easy as walking on level ground!
'Then what if... during the next "deduction," or the one after that, my cultivation breaks through to the Tendon Tempering Realm, or even Hidden Force, Transformation Force, or an even higher realm?'
'Wouldn't that mean that, as far as I'm concerned, the martial path would no longer have even the slightest bottleneck or shackle?!'
"Hiss..."
Shen Xiuhan drew in a sharp breath, and raging waves surged through his heart.
"Junior brother, what are you thinking about?"
Just then, Xu Chuan strode into the inner courtyard, carrying a bowl filled with black, ink-thick medicinal soup.
"Second senior brother, good morning!"
"Good morning, good morning! Come over quickly and see what good treasure your senior brother brought you!"
Xu Chuan bared his teeth in a hearty grin and mysteriously extended the bowl of black soup toward him.
Shen Xiuhan leaned closer for a look. His brows immediately furrowed, and after thinking for a moment, he said:
"Judging by the color... could this be some kind of poison?"
"..."
Xu Chuan's expression stiffened slightly. He looked at him speechlessly and snapped irritably:
"Don't talk nonsense!"
"This is Ebony Origin-Replenishing Soup, a highly nourishing tonic. It's the portion specially prepared by our master for inner-courtyard disciples. Each person gets only one bowl every seven days!"
"Outer-courtyard disciples don't get any at all. If they want to drink it, they have to pay for it!"
Ebony Origin-Replenishing Soup?
Shen Xiuhan's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly reached out to take it.
He brought it close and sniffed. An intensely strong, even pungent, bitter medicinal smell rushed straight into his head. Before he had even tasted it, he could already feel his gall turning sour.
Seeing his expression, Xu Chuan burst into loud laughter.
"Don't be fooled by its ugly appearance. Its medicinal power is ferocious!"
"It contains Blood Vine, Origin-Nourishing Ginseng, Yellow Lotus Leaf, and other powerful tonics to invigorate the blood and replenish qi. It also has Ebony Stem to strengthen the foundation and lock in the essence. Our master brews it personally, and only ten bowls are made every seven days."
"Only inner-courtyard disciples who remain at the martial academy can receive a bowl according to their allotment. Those who go out to take up posts and perform duties can only count themselves unlucky and miss out on this delicacy."
"Any extra portions are priced and sold to the wealthy young masters among the outer-courtyard disciples."
Hearing this, Shen Xiuhan asked curiously:
"Senior brother, how much does one bowl of Ebony Origin-Replenishing Soup cost?"
"Six qian."
Six qian, which was six hundred copper coins.
That was enough to feed a family of four in the shantytowns of the outer city for two or three months.
Yet to a martial artist, it could only buy one bowl of medicinal soup, gone in two swallows.
It truly was true that scholars could be poor while martial artists needed wealth!
"That six-qian price is only for outer-courtyard disciples. If it's sold outside, it costs at least another one or two qian more."
"Someone once bought the medicinal soup and resold it for a profit, infuriating our master. He specifically established a rule that it had to be consumed on the spot."
As if afraid Shen Xiuhan would misunderstand, Xu Chuan added:
"Of course, the rule is mainly meant to guard against those crafty schemers in the outer courtyard..."
"Junior brother, if you're short on money, don't sell your own allotment for the sake of such a small sum. If our master finds out, he'll certainly be displeased."
"If you really are short of silver and need some to tide you over... I'm not wealthy myself, but I can still scrape together one or two taels to lend you."
Listening to Xu Chuan's considerate words, warmth flowed through Shen Xiuhan's heart. He immediately laughed freely and cupped his fists.
"Senior brother, you're worrying too much. This medicinal soup strengthens the qi and blood. I wouldn't have enough for myself, so how could I bear to sell it?"
With that, he lifted the large bowl and drained the Ebony Origin-Replenishing Soup in one gulp!
The medicinal soup entered his stomach!
It was like swallowing a ball of fiercely burning flame. The qi and blood throughout his body surged wildly, churning and responding like boiling water!
Without waiting for Xu Chuan to remind him, Shen Xiuhan stamped a foot and landed atop the Plum Stakes.
He lowered his waist and sank his hips, both claws thrusting out!
He opened the Mystic Eagle Stance and, along with his breathing and circulation, began using the stance technique to refine the domineering medicinal power rampaging through his body!
After completing one set of the stance, barely thirty percent of the medicinal effect had dispersed.
Shen Xiuhan immediately struck while the iron was hot, performing three more sets before slowly settling his breath and withdrawing his stance.
For a moment, he felt the pores throughout his body opening wide, every inch of him refreshed and exhilarated!
"How is it? Feels pretty good, right?"
Nearby, Xu Chuan, who had been practicing martial skills alone, wiped away his sweat and chuckled.
"...It feels excellent!"
Shen Xiuhan leaped down from the wooden stakes, his eyes gleaming brightly.
Too fast!
Just one bowl of Origin-Replenishing Soup had caused the total amount of qi and blood within him to surge by a full twenty-five percent in less than an hour!
At this rate, Shen Xiuhan was confident that he could cultivate all the qi and blood in his body to the Blood Tempering Great Accomplishment realm in roughly two months.
"Come on, let's eat lunch first. Afterward, you and I can spar with our martial skills!"
Xu Chuan wiped away his sweat and spoke.
Before you continue