Cultivation

In the early morning, a thin white mist shrouded the mountains. The air was fresh, birds sang, flowers bloomed, and everything was so beautiful. Then a breeze swept past, suddenly carrying the dull thuds of flesh striking flesh.

In a secluded grove atop the Back Mountain, Xiao Yan stood. He was naked except for a pair of shorts, holding a horse stance with his feet gripping the ground tightly. His teeth chattered, cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and his body was covered in bruises, with barely an uninjured spot left.

Behind Xiao Yan, Medicine Elder, in his soul form, sat cross-legged atop a boulder. His face was stern as he watched Xiao Yan grit his teeth and persevere.

Medicine Elder extended his palm, and the air rippled slightly. A pale red beam of Dou Qi suddenly shot from his hand, lashing heavily across Xiao Yan's body like a whip and leaving behind a long bluish bruise.

Xiao Yan's face twitched nonstop, and his body trembled uncontrollably. Waves of searing pain drilled into his heart. Under that intense agony, he could barely remain standing and nearly collapsed to the ground.

After the pain passed, Xiao Yan felt a thin stream of Dou Qi rapidly flow through his body. Stimulated by the pain, it seemed to grow more active, joyfully coursing through his meridians and acupoints before gradually seeping into his bones and muscles, silently strengthening them.

"Continue!" As the pain gradually faded, Xiao Yan remained where he stood and gritted out the words.

Seeing Xiao Yan persist through gritted teeth, Medicine Elder revealed a satisfied smile on his withered old face and nodded slightly. Dou Qi surged from his palm once more.

"Bang, bang, bang..." In the dense forest, endless dull impacts mingled with pained groans, echoing without end...

Medicine Elder's control was impeccable. Every attack barely exceeded Xiao Yan's current physical limit. It would not seriously injure him, but it would allow him to experience real pain.

The piercing pain of Dou Qi striking his body twisted Xiao Yan's young face almost beyond recognition. With every wave of Medicine Elder's hand, fresh wounds appeared on his body, a terrifying sight.

Only when there was not a single uninjured spot left on Xiao Yan's body did Medicine Elder finally let him go.

"Tell me, do you have some kind of masochistic tendency? How can you take such a beating?" Medicine Elder teased.

Xiao Yan rolled his eyes and bared his teeth in pain. "You're the one with a masochistic tendency! I'm only doing this to become stronger."

"Oh? Getting stronger for whom? For that girl Xun'er?" Medicine Elder asked with a chuckle.

Xiao Yan shot Medicine Elder a sidelong glance and could not be bothered to answer. His entire body was burning with pain, and he had no strength left.

"Hehe, so you're admitting it. But I like that girl Xun'er too," Medicine Elder teased again.

"Shut the hell up! Nobody thinks you're mute just because you don't speak!" Xiao Yan snapped through gritted teeth as he hurriedly put on his clothes.

Medicine Elder's transparent body twisted, turning into a streak of white light that shot into the black Ring. He left behind a concerned warning he had repeated countless times before. "I won't tease you anymore. Hurry back and soak yourself in the Foundation-Building Elixir. Otherwise, the bruised blood left inside your body will seriously injure you!"

Xiao Yan nodded. After getting dressed, he slowly descended the Back Mountain and headed toward his little room.

Once Xiao Yan returned to his room, he quickly shut the door. Enduring the severe pain, he slowly removed his clothes and crawled into the wooden tub filled with green liquid.

As the cool green liquid touched his bruised skin, Xiao Yan let out a blissful moan. It felt far too good.

"I really want to lie here forever!"

However, Xiao Yan gave up on that tempting thought. He sat cross-legged in the tub, formed an unusual hand seal, and slowly began cultivating, because he knew this was the best time to do so.

What Xiao Yan did not know was that while he was immersed in cultivation, Medicine Elder emerged again in soul form and floated beside him. Seeing Xiao Yan continue cultivating despite everything, Medicine Elder nodded approvingly.

Stroking his beard with his right hand, he carefully studied the bruises on Xiao Yan's body. After watching for a long time, his face showed an expression of realization. During today's training, Xiao Yan had somehow endured more than fifty lashes on his first attempt. At the time, Medicine Elder had only assumed Xiao Yan had an unusually high tolerance. But after thinking it over, he felt that was impossible. After all, Xiao Yan had never undergone such grueling training before.

No matter how much Xiao Yan could endure mentally, his body still had its limits. His mind might hold on, but his body could not.

Unable to figure it out, Medicine Elder appeared again. Sure enough, he saw that the bruises on Xiao Yan's body were rapidly fading. The earliest ones had already vanished entirely.

"Looks like I really did find a treasure. I never expected his body to have such a secret. I'll ask him about it when he wakes up." Looking at Xiao Yan, who was wrapped in green currents of energy within the tub, Medicine Elder smiled and murmured softly.

As the green currents grew fewer, the green liquid in the tub gradually faded until it became clear water. When the final wisp of green energy disappeared, Xiao Yan suddenly opened his eyes. A flash of white light flickered through his dark pupils, faintly tinged with pale green.

He slowly stood, stretched lazily, and rolled his neck. His bones crackled all over.

"That felt amazing!" Feeling the abundant Dou Qi within his body, Xiao Yan said blissfully.

"Stop basking in your own glory!" Just as Xiao Yan closed his eyes in contentment, an aged voice suddenly rang out.

"Huh? Teacher, why did you come out?" Xiao Yan asked in confusion.

"Hehe, let me ask you something. Have you noticed anything unusual about your body?" Medicine Elder asked with a smile.

"Unusual? Have I? Why don't I know about it?" Xiao Yan replied doubtfully.

"Haven't you noticed that your injuries heal especially quickly?" Medicine Elder continued.

"Especially quickly? Isn't that normal?" Once, when Xiao Xun'er had gone out shopping, Xiao Ning seized the opportunity and gathered people to beat Xiao Yan up. Although Xiao Yan fought back with all his might, they had the advantage in numbers. At the time, he only possessed Fifth Duan Dou Qi and did not know any Dou Skills. As a result, he had been beaten black and blue, and they had even threatened him not to get close to Xun'er again. Yet after Xiao Yan returned home, his body had completely recovered after just one night. At the time, he had even marveled at how wondrous the Battle Through the Heavens World was.

"Normal my ass. Come here and let me examine your body." Medicine Elder waved him over impatiently.

Xiao Yan immediately covered his crotch in fright and cried out, "What are you trying to do?"

Seeing Xiao Yan's reaction, Medicine Elder was rendered speechless. His anger made his eyebrows shoot up high. With a stretch of his hand, he directly pulled Xiao Yan over.

Xiao Yan suddenly felt his body become light, and he shouted, "Yamete!"

Feeling a strand of domineering Dou Qi enter his meridians and probe around, Xiao Yan let out a breath of relief. He had thought Medicine Elder had some strange fetish.

When the Dou Qi entered Xiao Yan's Qi Sea, Medicine Elder's hand abruptly tightened. Then he burst into loud laughter.

"I never expected you to possess such a heaven-defying opportunity, to actually have it. Looks like taking you as my disciple was truly the right choice." Releasing Xiao Yan's arm, Medicine Elder said with a broad smile.

Seeing Medicine Elder laugh so heartily, Xiao Yan's childish face was full of confusion and bewilderment. He immediately asked, "Teacher, what happened? And what is this 'it' you mentioned?"

"Haha! Don't worry about that. You'll naturally find out in the future. At last, I won't need to be so cautious. I can train you without holding back." Medicine Elder seemed to be in an exceptionally good mood and could not stop laughing.

Medicine Elder was happy, but Xiao Yan's little face fell. This was supposed to be cautious? He had already beaten him half to death!

"What are you standing around for? Put on your clothes and go train on the Back Mountain." Medicine Elder urged before diving straight into the Ring.

"Ah! This..." Seeing that it was only just beginning to grow light outside, Xiao Yan helplessly shook his head. After washing up quickly and getting dressed, he opened the door.

"Hm? Why is there an extra food box outside? Did Xun'er make this? Did that girl get up so early?" Xiao Yan scratched his head.

"Hehe! Your little girlfriend really does care about you. She even prepared breakfast for you. If that guy found out... wouldn't he be heartbroken to death?" Medicine Elder teased.

"Ah, it's hardest to bear a beauty's affection! The better you treat me, the greater the pressure I feel!" Xiao Yan took out the food from the box, hummed a tune, and ate as he headed up the mountain. Clearly, he still had no idea that even more brutal training awaited him.