After the Snowstorm, Cooking Essence Food Again

Everything had temporarily settled down.

Li Xian returned to his quarters and sat cross-legged on the bed, recalling Pang Long's words.

"Essence Consumption is an elusive realm. Seeing Madam Wen make her move today really opened my eyes."

"To think such a demon could be killed with just a flick of her finger. I've also caught a glimpse... of the battle between those who have undergone Bone Recasting."

"Those things are still far beyond me. Qi Circulation Through the Heavens is my goal right now!"

He immediately calmed his mind.

He circulated the Inner Qi in his Dantian, condensed it into threads, and guided it around his acupoints, slowly extending it through his meridians.

Li Xian had learned three martial arts: the Major Accomplishment fist technique Four Directions Fist, the Minor Accomplishment broken fist technique Wild Bull Fist, and the Initiation leg technique Clearwind Leg.

Inner Qi came from martial arts.

It gathered in the Dantian.

This Inner Qi would be used up, but as long as he ate and rested, it would recover to its peak on its own, like an unending wellspring of vitality.

He condensed Qi into threads and sent it coursing through his body.

By the time the Qi had passed through eighty-one acupoints, his Dantian was already completely empty. He had used up his Inner Qi and could no longer circulate it through the major acupoints, so he naturally couldn't achieve "Qi Circulation Through the Heavens."

"Looks like I'm still a long way from Qi Circulation Through the Heavens."

"But as long as I persevere, I can still reach out and touch this level!"

Now that Li Xian had a goal, his eyes shone brightly.

He couldn't wait to get out of bed and practice martial arts, but his quarters were cramped. With four beds in the room, there was no space left.

He had narrowly escaped death today and was truly exhausted, so he had no choice but to rest for a day. He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

The next day.

Around Chen Hour, Li Xian awoke naturally.

[Skill: Sleep]

[Proficiency: 278/500 Initiation]

[Description: You are gradually mastering the knack of sleep. You can ignore the noise around you and sleep soundly until dawn. While you sleep, your stamina, Blood Qi, and the energy in every part of your body are slowly restored.]

He opened the window a crack.

The wind came laden with snow and blew straight in, making the temperature plummet.

"Who is it?! Opening the window in weather like this-have you lost your mind..." Bao Yongkang, who shared the quarters, was hit in the face by a gust of cold wind.

He jolted awake, his sleepiness gone in an instant, and was about to curse in annoyance.

But when he saw it was Li Xian, he immediately stopped himself, gave an awkward smile, pulled up his quilt, and went back to sleep.

Though it was a day of howling wind and heavy snow, Li Xian was unwilling to waste time. He could think of nothing but practicing martial arts.

The quarters were cramped, with room for only four people to rest. There was nowhere for Li Xian to spread his arms and legs.

Besides, it would disturb Kong Sun, Bao Yongkang, and Jia Jie. Li Xian wasn't so overbearing as to do that.

Then an idea came to him, and he looked outside.

"Who says you can't practice martial arts in a snowstorm?"

He tied a rope around his waist, about two zhang long, fastened the other end to the door, and plunged alone into the snowstorm.

Braving the biting wind and driving snow, he began practicing martial arts.

[The world is cold, yet your heart burns like fire; your circumstances are harsh, yet your will is firm. You painstakingly practice Four Directions Fist in the cold wind. Proficiency +9]

[You have glimpsed the vastness of the world, and a hundredfold more vigor drums within you. You diligently practice Clearwind Leg in the sudden snowfall. Proficiency +11]

He kept up this arduous training without pause.

Kong Sun, Jia Jie, and Bao Yongkang could only mutter that he was a freak, a beast. In weather like this, he still insisted on practicing martial arts.

"He deserves to stand out. Li Ye is Li Ye."

Kong Sun had wanted to imitate him, but he'd only taken one step outside before shivering all over from the cold.

Forget practicing martial arts or boxing-even walking a few steps was difficult.

Frost formed on Li Xian's eyelashes, and the cold split his skin, yet his expression remained exceptionally resolute.

Practicing his fist technique in the snow was indeed extremely difficult to get used to. The world was bitterly cold, and even the flow of Inner Qi seemed to meet a faint resistance.

His movements were stiff and not nimble enough.

For other people, practicing martial arts this way would actually be like pulling up seedlings to help them grow-rushing to succeed.

Take Clearwind Leg, for example.

This leg technique was all about the word "light," like a clear wind brushing willows. The movements didn't necessarily have to be fast, but they had to be fluid.

But when you kicked in the wind and snow, your joints and limbs grew stiff. No matter what, it was hard to move smoothly.

That would only have the opposite effect.

You might even grow worse the more you practiced.

But Li Xian was different. The Fate Frame "Heaven Rewards Diligence" ensured that every bit of effort he put in would bring a corresponding gain.

As long as he practiced the right way, his martial arts would only improve and would never regress in the slightest.

"In weather like this, isn't this exactly..."

"my chance to surpass everyone else?!"

Li Xian suddenly thought of this, and realized that though the world was cold, it held boundless hope. He could spend a great deal of time each day focused on practicing martial arts.

With no one to disturb him, his progress would naturally be rapid.

[Four Directions Fist] could gain [260] Proficiency in a day, while [Clearwind Leg] could gain [190] Proficiency in a day.

"Master Li, please, have a seat. Warm yourself up."

Kong Sun and the other two were thoroughly impressed. Whenever Li Xian returned to the room, the three of them immediately gave up the warmest spot to him.

Anyone with eyes could see it.

Someone like him, if he didn't die, would surely climb even higher. Better to curry favor with him quickly.

"It's fine. You don't have to accommodate me."

Li Xian waved his hand, perfectly casual.

After warming himself up, he went back outside to practice martial arts. When he could no longer bear the cold, he returned to warm himself by the fire.

He repeated this over and over.

Four days later, the snowstorm showed signs of letting up, and Li Xian couldn't help thinking what a pity it was.

[Four Directions Fist]

[Proficiency: 1591/5000 Major Accomplishment]

[Description: You practiced your fist technique in the snowstorm and, using the fist principles of Four Directions Fist, comprehended the secret art "Wind Listening, Position Sensing." It complements the trait "All-Around Hearing" perfectly. Your fist intent is powerful yet restrained, gradually drawing close to Perfection.]

[Clearwind Leg]

[Proficiency: 419/1000 Proficiency]

[Description: Your legs move like a clear wind, and your foot strength has increased.]

Over these past few days, all his martial arts had made decent progress.

These gains pleased Li Xian greatly. But there was one downside: the food had been far too meager. He couldn't go out these past few days, so he'd made do with dry rations mixed with hot water for every meal.

Martial artists ate, nourished themselves, trained, and soaked in medicine; "eating" came first.

Without meat to replenish his Blood Qi, his martial arts progress would be affected.

That afternoon.

The snowstorm finally died down. The guards came out of their quarters one after another and breathed a sigh of relief.

Long-missed sunlight shone down on the earth. The snow piled up in front of the door was already about a zhang high. For the past few days, Li Xian had practiced on top of the snowdrifts.

"Great! We can finally get out!"

Bao Yongkang shouted at the top of his lungs.

Li Xian walked into the sunlight and savored its warmth on his skin. A faint warmth spread through him, an indescribably pleasant feeling.

"Although the snowstorm lets me practice martial arts freely, there's still nothing like having sunshine."

Li Xian stretched, and his bones and muscles crackled. It was as though tremendous strength lay hidden within his body.

Suddenly, he heard a gong being struck in the distance.

Luo Fang was gathering the miscellaneous servants again. The snowstorm had left thick snow piled up inside and outside the manor.

The miscellaneous servants would have their hands full. For the next few days, they'd probably have only one job: clearing away the snow and ice.

As soon as the snowstorm stopped, Pang Long came over in high spirits, smiling as he approached everyone.

"Buck up, everyone! Li Xian, pick a few guards and come with me. Quickly, we're going somewhere."

Pang Long spoke cheerfully.

"Commander Pang, what is it?" Li Xian asked.

"Good news! Hahaha!" Pang Long slung an arm over Li Xian's shoulder and laughed. "Madam is firing up the cauldron again to brew [Essence Food]!"

"Madam gets the meat, and we get to drink the broth."

"There's a huge pile of snow in the manor, too. We can put it to good use!"

At this point, Pang Long lowered his voice and said to Li Xian, "Knowing Madam's temperament, you've earned merit this time. You might get a bigger share of the Essence Food!"