Li Gou's Breakthrough, the Cart Company's Rising Spirits

Once Qin Geng had made up his mind, his days settled into a routine.

Early in the morning, while the sky was barely light, he got up and headed to the Ye Residence.

It was the best time to train. Ye Lanzen occasionally offered a few pointers on the essentials of Monkey Form, but more often, Qin Geng simply endured the plum-blossom stakes on his own.

When he left the Ye Residence, he made sure to eat until his belly was round. Even if the medicinal Blood Fare now served only as a catalyst, he still had to lay a solid foundation.

After noon, he changed into an inconspicuous short outfit, tucked the Water-Splitting Thorn into his belt, and plunged into the reeds at Great Willow Shoal on the Xun River.

That was his hunting ground and his greatest source of income. Life beneath the water was quiet. Aside from matching wits with fish, shrimp, crabs, and turtles too foolish to stay out of his way, he spent his time honing Alligator Form Fist.

Toward evening, as darkness fell, he returned to Tanlong Alley with water still clinging to him.

He lit an oil lamp and pored over the booklets Lu Xingmin had given him on feng shui and geomancy.

The material was obscure, page after page of searching for dragons and locating auspicious points, of how hills and waters faced or turned away. Even with the Water Lord's gift, it made his head ache.

But for that Copper Lotus Seed, and so he could one day understand the Dragon Vein's formation core, he had to swallow this bitter medicine.

As for the physician's affairs, Zheng Tonghe had yet to emerge from seclusion, so they had to be set aside for now.

One day, just after nightfall,

Qin Geng came