What Kind of Medicine Is This

"That's Hidden Strength!" Ji Wenyue replied, looking at Xia Daoming with surprise and astonishment.

"Hidden Strength?" Xia Daoming's face showed confusion.

"Doesn't Big Brother Xia know that once a Martial Master cultivates to the Fifth-Rank realm, their strength can shift from manifest to hidden, becoming known as Hidden Strength?" Ji Wenyue looked at Xia Daoming with increasing surprise.

Little did Ji Wenyue know, this guy in front of her was only a Second-Rank Martial Master a little over a month ago, and his master was only a Fourth-Rank Martial Master. How could he possibly know so much?

"I'm not very clear, please tell me," Xia Daoming humbly admitted and asked for clarification.

"The strength we exert now is manifest, essentially the same as the brute force exerted by ordinary people. It acts on the surface of an object. It's just more concentrated and powerful, called Manifest Strength.

The strength exerted by a Fifth-Rank Martial Master not only acts on the surface of an object but can also penetrate the body silently, attacking from both inside and out, multiplying the lethality. This is called Hidden Strength.

Therefore, although the increase in strength between the Fifth-Rank and Fourth-Rank seems no different from before, the actual combat power difference between the two is incomparable.

Between Fourth-Rank and Third-Rank, it's roughly one against three, but between Fifth-Rank and Fourth-Rank, it suddenly becomes one against seven. That's why Martial Masters from the Fifth-Rank onwards are also called Great Martial Masters."

Speaking of this, Ji Wenyue remembered that Xia Daoming had actually killed a Fifth-Rank Martial Master with brute force just now, and couldn't help but turn to look at him.

Even though Liao Min was old, he was still a Fifth-Rank Martial Master! And he was actually killed alive by a Fourth-Rank Martial Master.

This was simply unbelievable!

"Right, are there many Great Martial Masters in Li City?" Xia Daoming asked.

"Very few. Strength is inherently formless, and it's even harder to cultivate when it shifts from manifest to hidden. It requires the aid of divine intent secret diagrams for comprehension. Divine intent secret diagrams are unlike ordinary cultivation methods that can be openly taught; they generally have rather strict conditions.

Hidden Strength is difficult to train, and the cultivation methods are hard to come by. Therefore, the vast majority of Martial Masters stop before the threshold of the Fifth-Rank their entire lives," Ji Wenyue replied.

"What about Martial Dao Grandmasters?"

"There's only one person in the entire Li City who has reached the Grandmaster realm. It's said that their strength can manifest externally," Ji Wenyue said, her eyes once again showing reverence and longing.

"Strength Manifestation!" Xia Daoming's heart trembled upon hearing this.

"That's right, Strength Manifestation is called Transforming Strength, and it can kill people from a distance. There are even rumors that a Grandmaster's Transforming Strength can resist Immortal Arts!" Ji Wenyue said.

"What? Transforming Strength can resist Immortal Arts!" Xia Daoming's spirits were greatly lifted upon hearing this.

His biggest worry was the difference between Immortals and Mortals.

Martial artists faced cultivators with no chance of resistance.

Now, it seemed things weren't that dire.

As long as martial artists cultivated their Martial Dao to the realm of Transforming Strength, they had a chance to contend with cultivators.

As for what level of cultivators a Martial Dao Grandmaster could contend with, that was not something Xia Daoming could know now.

In any case, having a chance to contend with cultivators was much better than having none.

"You're not very old, but you know quite a lot," Xia Daoming remarked with emotion.

"Of course!" Ji Wenyue puffed out her chest, causing Xia Daoming to glance at her a few more times.

Ji Wenyue's heart skipped a beat under Xia Daoming's shrewd gaze, and she immediately lowered her head, falling silent.

The sunset finally sank completely below the horizon.

Twilight mist enveloped the desert, and the world became dim.

Within their line of sight, there was still no sign of human habitation.

"We'll stay here tonight!"

Xia Daoming dismounted his horse in front of a sand dune.

Ji Wenyue hesitated before dismounting and sat down a few yards away from Xia Daoming, leaning against the dune with her knees hugged to her chest. Her bright eyes watched Xia Daoming with a mixture of vigilance and timidity.

It was because Xia Daoming had been scrutinizing her with his shrewd gaze quite a bit on their journey.

Now, with a man and a woman spending the night alone in the wilderness, Ji Wenyue really couldn't imagine Xia Daoming being a gentleman and not taking liberties with her.

"I knew bringing a pampered young lady would be nothing but a burden, except for providing some eye candy and amusement on the road!" Xia Daoming shook his head as he saw Ji Wenyue sitting far away with her knees hugged after dismounting.

Shaking his head internally, Xia Daoming took the firewood and tent from the horse's back.

There was little vegetation in the desert, making it difficult to collect firewood temporarily.

This firewood was something Xia Daoming had deliberately kept an eye out for and collected along the way as a backup.

The tent was a simple single-person tent that Xia Daoming had prepared for his long journeys and camping outdoors.

After setting up the tent against the dune and building a pile of firewood in front of it to light, Xia Daoming first took out the medicine to repel snakes and insects from the saddlebags and sprinkled it around the campsite. He also threw some caltrops and pulled some silkworm threads.

Once all this was done, Xia Daoming finally sat down by the campfire with peace of mind.

He first filled a small pot with water and placed it on the fire, then speared some Crimson Flame Rabbit jerky with a fork to smoke and roast.

The Crimson Flame Rabbit was a very rare wild rabbit from the northern regions of Mangzhou Prefecture. It was as large as a fox and as agile and fierce as a leopard, making it extremely difficult to hunt.

However, its meat was very nourishing for blood and qi, and it was highly favored by Martial Masters.

Of course, the price was also very expensive, around fifty taels for one Crimson Flame Rabbit. In the past, Xia Daoming would never have dared to dream of it.

Now, he didn't lack money and was only focused on strengthening his meridians to the peak of Fourth-Rank Martial Master Level Nine as quickly as possible, so he was willing to spend money.

Three days ago, he passed by an oasis market and saw a merchant selling two Crimson Flame Rabbits. He immediately bought them both and made them into jerky for consumption during the journey.

One head had already been eaten, and one remained.

Soon, the aroma of roasted rabbit wafted through the night air.

Ji Wenyue sniffed the scent, her gaze drifting to the roasting meat on the fire rack. She swallowed hard, but still didn't dare approach Xia Daoming.

Seeing the rabbit was nearly cooked, Xia Daoming took out a flatbread and placed it on the fire to warm.

Just then, the water boiled.

Xia Daoming, as if by magic, produced a teapot from his saddlebag, added some Snow Silk Grass tea, and brewed a pot with the boiling water.

Snow Silk Grass, harvested from the high mountain cliffs of the northern lands, was as fine as hair and as white as snow. It not only had a clear, sweet taste but also calmed the mind and refreshed the spirit, proving quite beneficial for martial artists meditating and cultivating.

Naturally, it was not cheap.

Once the flatbread was warm, Xia Daoming sliced off some rabbit meat and placed it inside, rolling it into a wrap. Just as he was about to take a bite, his peripheral vision caught sight of Ji Wenyue, huddled in the corner of a dirt mound, hugging her knees. He hesitated for a moment before standing up and walking towards her.

Seeing Xia Daoming approach, Ji Wenyue instinctively shifted backward.

"Here," Xia Daoming said calmly, offering the wrap.

"Thank you!" Ji Wenyue hesitated before accepting the meat wrap.

Before Ji Wenyue could finish speaking, Xia Daoming had already turned and walked away.

Ji Wenyue watched his retreating back, her eyes showing less wariness and more curiosity and gratitude.

Even now, she still couldn't quite figure out what kind of man her rescuer, who seemed so unkempt, truly was.

If you called him a good person, his decisive ruthlessness when killing and his shrewd gaze when looking at her didn't seem to fit.

But if you called him a bad person, he hadn't actually done anything untoward during their journey, aside from his unrestrained gaze.

And now, he had even brought her food.

Whether it was hunger or the sheer deliciousness of the wrap, Ji Wenyue, who had initially eaten with ladylike restraint, quickly abandoned all pretense and devoured it, finishing the entire wrap in just a few bites.

Licking the lingering salty taste from her fingers, Ji Wenyue looked back towards Xia Daoming, still wanting more.

As she looked, she met Xia Daoming's gaze.

"Come here!" Xia Daoming beckoned her over.

Fullness breeds lust, just as they say...

Ji Wenyue's heart skipped a beat.

But after receiving his life-saving grace earlier that day and now accepting his offered food, not to mention his vastly superior strength, even if she suspected ill intentions, Ji Wenyue could only get up and walk over.

"Brother Xia, when I return to the Ji family, I will repay your life-saving kindness handsomely. I know you've been wandering alone in the desert for many days and must desire a woman to attend to you.

But I am only seventeen and still unmarried. Can you please spare me? Don't worry, as soon as we reach Li City, I will have my family arrange the most beautiful girl in the city to serve you comfortably," Ji Wenyue said cautiously, stopping about two steps away from Xia Daoming.

Xia Daoming stared intently at Ji Wenyue, a million thoughts racing through his mind.

Do I really look like that kind of beast in human clothing?

Seeing his fixed gaze, Ji Wenyue trembled nervously, her chest heaving. In the firelight, coupled with her beautiful face, it was indeed easy to be tempted.

"I... I am the legitimate daughter of the Ji family Patriarch. Even if Brother Xia truly desires me, it's not impossible, but it still requires the consent of my parents and a matchmaker. We can't just hastily couple in this wilderness," Ji Wenyue said after a long pause, gritting her teeth.

"Do I look like a man worse than a beast?" Xia Daoming asked irritably.

"Of course not, of course not! Brother Xia is my savior, naturally a very good person," Ji Wenyue quickly replied.

"If that's the case, what did you mean by what you just said?" Xia Daoming asked.

"Well, that is... Brother Xia, haven't you been looking at me often on the way?"

"Nonsense! This desert is vast and boundless. I've been wandering in it for days, and I've barely seen a blade of grass. There's no scenery to speak of, and I'm almost sick of the boredom.

At a time like this, even if a sow suddenly appeared, I'd appreciate the sight. And you're not bad-looking, with a decent figure. If I don't look at you to pass the time, should I foolishly admire this endless desert?" Xia Daoming retorted, annoyed.

"Ah! Ah! Uh!" Ji Wenyue was stunned.

"Stop making those noises. We're in the wilderness. Do you really think I'm a saint who can resist temptation!"

"Ah! Oh!" Ji Wenyue belatedly covered her mouth, her pretty face flushing red.

This is going to be the death of me! Looking at the scene, a surge of heat rose within Xia Daoming, but he ultimately suppressed it with a sigh, tossing a medicine box over.

Ji Wenyue quickly caught it.

"Isn't the Ji family a major merchant of medicinal herbs? And aren't you the alchemy genius of the Ji family? Take a look at this for me. What kind of medicine is it?" Xia Daoming said.

He had found the medicine box on Liao Min. Judging by how carefully he had kept it on his person, it was likely quite valuable.

However, one shouldn't take medicine randomly.

What if it's some kind of 'eternal erection' potion?

PS: If you have time, please leave comments and likes to boost the popularity of this new book. Thank you! Another update will be at noon.