Hua Hanying Returns, Feasting on Tiger Meat

The weather grew colder by the day. Qingning County lay in the southeastern region, and every year around mid-October, fierce winds would rise and heavy snow would fall.

Over the past few days.

The estate had issued padded coats. Wearing them made one much warmer.

The daily morning training had not been canceled. Li Xian sprinted through the snow, leaving everyone behind. He finished three laps early, yet showed no sign of stopping.

His breathing was long and steady, his blood and qi without the slightest fluctuation. He ran through the snow as if walking on level ground. Then, in a certain instant, his speed suddenly surged, and each stride became even more effortless.

[Skill: Running]

[Proficiency: 1950/3000 Major Accomplishment]

[Description: Run upon snow, travel Riding the Wind. You have gained insight into the "Treading Snow" trait.]

The snow was soft, like cotton wool spread across the ground. Every step sank into it. With the ground giving way beneath one's feet, running naturally lacked force.

It was impossible to pick up any more speed.

When running through snow, this was the greatest obstacle of all.

The "Treading Snow" trait was meant to treat the snow as something slippery, using deft force with every step.

Rather than crushing the snow beneath his feet, he borrowed its softness to glide a stretch of distance. It conserved more strength while making him faster.

Li Xian's mind paused. In that instant, his speed increased by a full seventy percent.

"Speaking of running in snow... even the wild beasts of the mountains would probably be unable to outrun me."

Within the Estate Guard Compound, Pang Long had ordered people to brew "warming soup." Each house guard returning from the morning run drank a bowl, and their bodies quickly warmed up.

Then they began practicing in the courtyard.

Li Xian's Clearwind Leg and Four Directions Fist steadily improved each day.

Near the hour of the Snake.

Pang Long suddenly strode toward the group with great excitement.

"Hahaha, you lot are lucky. Hua Hanying brought down a Mountain Tiger yesterday."

"You're getting the benefit of it. There'll be tiger meat today, hehe. This is rare stuff. The Mountain Tiger is the king of forest beasts—eating it strengthens your sinews and bones."

Pang Long raised his thick brows and laughed.

His features were rugged, his brows, eyes, mouth, and ears all large, making his expressions obvious and leaving him unable to hide what was on his mind.

He was genuinely delighted.

"Eagle Lord? Eagle Lord has returned?"

The house guards cried out in surprise.

This Hua Hanying was a Grade-A House Guard.

Madam possessed tens of thousands of mu of fertile land, as well as mulberry fields, tea gardens, and other estates. Some house guards were dispatched beyond the estate to guard a place for long periods.

To deter petty thieves and scoundrels.

"Haha, it seems everyone still remembers me."

As he spoke, a tall man laughed heartily and stepped out from behind Pang Long.

This man was Hua Hanying. Among the house guards, he was truly a Grade-One figure of great renown.

His brows rose like handsome peaks, and he carried himself with exceptional pride. As his gaze swept over the crowd, he made no effort to conceal his sense of superiority.

"Hanying, you only return once in a long while. Why not show everyone what you can do?" Pang Long said with a smile.

Seeing how much the house guards revered him, Hua Hanying was greatly pleased and wished to display his martial arts. "Then I shall make a fool of myself."

He stepped into the middle of the crowd and assumed a stance.

His martial arts were practiced to a high standard, his foundation solid. With only the slightest move, it was clear that his strength was far from ordinary.

Suddenly, he leaped into the air and clawed fiercely at the ground. With a bang, snow erupted several yards high, drawing cries of alarm from the crowd.

"Eagle Lord, impressive!" The house guards all cheered.

Yet when everyone looked more closely, they were even more horrified.

A patch of accumulated snow had vanished from the ground, exposing yellow-brown earth. The soil carried a scorched smell, and the insides of the claw marks had been burned black...

"Eagle Lord, your Fire Eagle Claw is truly formidable."

"If that claw landed on a person, how could they possibly survive?"

"Eagle Lord is invincible."

Amid the crowd, Li Xian nodded inwardly. That claw strike was indeed formidable.

Striking down from above, whether in force, angle, or the use of Inner Qi, it was the strongest he had seen apart from Pang Long.

Now that my Four Directions Fist has reached Major Accomplishment, I can finally see some of its intricacies.

Li Xian thought to himself.

"Hanying, you really have trained the Fire Eagle Claw to the realm of Major Accomplishment!" Pang Long walked over, happily patting him on the shoulder as he praised him without restraint. "Excellent, excellent!"

"I still have Commander Pang to thank for his guidance," Hua Hanying said with a faint smile.

"Have Mountain Wind Stronghold and the Hongquan Gang made any moves lately?" Pang Long pulled Hua Hanying into the house, asking as they walked.

"Hmph. What moves would such a rabble dare make?" Hua Hanying said coldly.

Pang Long cared little for distinctions of rank and status. He poured Hua Hanying some tea, sat down casually, and continued:

"That place is a treasure ground. Some of Madam's medicinal plants can only grow there. Only with you guarding the place can I rest at ease."

"Commander Pang, I understand." Hua Hanying said.

"Very well, I also have some good news to tell you." Pang Long raised his brows, extended his palm, and said, "Take a look. What is this?"

"Nothing at all..." Hua Hanying studied it for a moment, then his pupils suddenly contracted. A tiny wisp of white vapor was rising from Pang Long's palm.

This was...

One of the signs of the Bone Recasting realm, called "Palm Immortal Insight." It meant that someone capable of this had, somewhere in the unseen, already grasped a trace of immortal opportunity.

Hua Hanying's throat moved, and his heart churned like River-Turning Sea-Churning waves. Trembling, he asked, "Could it be... could it be... you..."

"Hahaha, it's still far too early. Just a tiny half-step, that's all." Pang Long failed to notice Hua Hanying's strange reaction and was immersed in his own delight.

"Con... congratulations." Hua Hanying hurriedly raised his teacup and took a sip, letting out a faint breath of relief.

"The tiger meat isn't as tasty as I imagined."

Inside the Dining Hall.

The tiger meat was divided up for consumption. Grade-A House Guards could eat the tiger claws, tiger head, tiger heart, tiger gallbladder, and such parts. Grade-B House Guards ate the tiger legs, tiger whip, tiger back, and so on.

Grade-C House Guards could only eat miscellaneous cuts of meat.

As for Grade-D House Guards, even getting soup required fighting for it.

Only after the Grade-A and Grade-B House Guards had eaten their fill was it the Grade-C House Guards' turn to enter the hall and eat.

Li Xian took a wooden bowl. The cook ladled him a bowl of soup with two chunks of tiger meat inside.

"Thanks, brother." Li Xian laughed brightly, carrying the bowl away.

Tiger meat was incredibly tough and sinewy. Anyone with poor teeth would likely be unable to chew it apart. The flavor was quite ordinary as well, carrying an indescribable fishy stench.

[You ate cooked tiger meat. "Consumption" proficiency +5]

But it truly was a great tonic.

Li Xian's fifteen-year-old body could rapidly make up for its previous deficiencies by eating such beast meat.

The more he ate, the brighter his eyes became. With his body fully nourished, he had strength after eating his fill, and whatever he did would yield twice the result with half the effort.

After the meal, Li Xian drained the soup clean, asked for a large white steamed bun, and wiped the bottom of his bowl spotless. He did not waste even a crumb.

"Can I have another bowl?"

Li Xian had a thick skin.

"You brat... fine." After hesitating for a moment, the kitchen gave Li Xian another bowl of soup, along with a fist-sized piece of tiger bone.

There was marrow inside the tiger bone, milky-white and gelatinous. It had been boiled until the bone came apart. With a hard slurp, it all went into his stomach.

[You sucked tiger marrow, strengthening blood and qi and nourishing the body. "Consumption" proficiency +6]

That mouthful was truly the essence among essences.

After wiping everything clean again, waves of heat rose from Li Xian's body. "Inner Qi" continuously sprang forth within him, gathering in his Dantian.

"Consumption" has strengthened the effect, helping me absorb it faster and in greater quantities. And also... I was malnourished before, so the Inner Qi I cultivated couldn't grow.

Now, after feasting on tiger soup and tiger meat... the previous deficiency has been filled, so the Inner Qi has fed back into me?

In the time it took to eat one meal, his Inner Qi had increased by thirty percent.

Even his eyesight and hearing seemed to have become sharper.