Seeking a Master, Tenfold Nourishing Tea

"You saved my life. I won't fool you."

Shopkeeper Lu spoke earnestly. "Think it over. If you feel it's too dangerous and don't want to go, I won't force you. I'll find another third-tier cart driver."

Qin Geng fell silent for a moment.

Official status really was a fine thing.

In a world that devoured people, wearing the skin of an official could spare him a great deal of trouble.

But what he lacked most right now wasn't protection. It was a path to greater strength.

He needed martial arts that would take him further!

He had nearly reached the end of the Xingyi Dragon and Tiger manual.

Once [Martial Artist] reached level ten and he stepped into Bright Force, would his experience points still rise without a later-stage technique to guide him?

What if he took a wrong turn in his training and left himself with hidden injuries?

At that thought, Qin Geng raised his head and met Shopkeeper Lu's eyes with a steady gaze.

"Shopkeeper Lu, could I pass on the official status?"

"Hm?"

Shopkeeper Lu looked surprised. "You don't even want official status? Then what do you want? More money?"

"I want to find a master."

Qin Geng's voice was grave.

"A master?"

This time, Shopkeeper Lu was truly stunned.

He looked Qin Geng up and down, his brows drawing together as a strange expression crossed his face.

"Isn't your master... Zhou Yonghe, the Su Family's senior House Guard?"

Anyone with a discerning eye could tell that the foundations of Qin Geng's Form-Intention Fist came from Hebei Form-Intention. His form was cut from the same cloth as Zhou Yonghe's.

"No."

Qin Geng shook his head. "House Guard Zhou was repaying a favor he owed my aunt. When I went to the Su Family, he only gave me a handwritten copy of Xingyi Dragon and Tiger and told me to practice it on my own. I never served him the tea to become his disciple, and he never formally accepted me."

"Hm?"

After hearing that, Shopkeeper Lu's expression changed completely.

"He only gave you a manual? And told you to follow it?"

"No one guided you?"

"No one guided me."

Qin Geng answered honestly.

"Hiss—"

Shopkeeper Lu drew in a sharp breath.

Good grief!

Just how high were Zhou Yonghe's standards?

Put a born killer like Qin Geng, blessed with Dragon Tendon and extraordinary comprehension, in any other martial arts school, and they'd be terrified someone might snatch him away before they could pass down their legacy!

Yet Zhou Yonghe had tossed him a manual and left him to it?

And...

What shocked Shopkeeper Lu most was Qin Geng himself.

The kid had actually taken a battered manual, with no teacher and no one to lead him, and forced his way to real mastery of Xingyi Dragon and Tiger!

Zhou Yonghe must have misjudged him—or perhaps he has something else in mind...

Shopkeeper Lu kept the thought to himself.

But what was bad for Qin Geng was good for him, Lu Xingmin.

Since Qin Geng had no formal master, he was an unclaimed piece of jade.

"Fine."

Shopkeeper Lu made up his mind on the spot and slapped his thigh. "I'll do it."

"If you want a master, I'll introduce you to someone."

"This senior has real skill. He's more than qualified to be your master."

Qin Geng's eyes lit up. "Really?"

"When I, Lu Xingmin, give my word, it's as firm as a nail driven home."

Shopkeeper Lu's expression turned serious. "But let me be clear about one thing."

"The martial world has its rules. I'll make the introduction and get your foot in the door."

"Whether he accepts you, whether he sees something in you—that depends on your own fortune and ability."

"If it doesn't work out, don't blame me."

Qin Geng nodded like a pestle pounding grain. "I understand! All I need is a chance!"

These days, finding a master and learning a craft was harder than climbing to heaven.

Teach a disciple everything, and the master could starve. That wasn't merely a saying; it was a lesson written in blood.

For carpenters, masons, tailors, and theater troupes, it meant someone stealing their livelihood.

In the martial world, it meant someone stealing their life!

Entrust your teachings to the wrong person, take in an ungrateful wolf, and he might learn the skills you kept at the bottom of the chest, then turn around and betray his master—or leak his secrets to an enemy. His master's whole family, young and old, could pay with their lives.

That was why renowned masters chose disciples with the utmost care. They tested character, perseverance, and talent, sometimes even investigating three generations of a candidate's family.

Without an introduction, you could kneel to death outside a master's door and still not earn a second glance.

For Shopkeeper Lu to offer him that introduction was an enormous favor.

Shopkeeper Lu watched Qin Geng's excitement with a faint smile, then added:

"Don't worry too much, either."

"With the makings of a 'born killer,' you'll likely catch his interest as long as your character isn't too rotten."

"And if it really doesn't work out..."

"I'll teach you myself!"

Hearing that, Qin Geng felt more reassured than ever.

Shopkeeper Lu was an unfathomable master of the shadow trades. His Flying Brush and Paper Effigy Craft showed that he was also a highly skilled martial artist.

With that promise to fall back on, he was set.

"Thank you, Shopkeeper Lu!"

Qin Geng rose and bowed with deep respect.

"Forget the formalities."

Shopkeeper Lu waved a hand. "Now, to business."

"The fifteenth of the eleventh month, a quarter into the hour of the Rooster. Meet me at Heaven-Reaching Gate on Bell Mountain."

Shopkeeper Lu instructed him, "Don't bring your cart. It can't get up there. We'll be relying on our legs for this trip into the mountain."

"A quarter into the hour of the Rooster?"

Qin Geng raised an eyebrow.

That was when the sun sank behind the western hills and weary birds returned to their nests—just as darkness fell.

They were going into the mountain at night?

"Yes. We'll spend the night in the mountain and return at daybreak."

Shopkeeper Lu seemed to see his confusion. "Some things can only be seen at night. Some paths can only be walked at night."

A chill rose from the soles of Qin Geng's feet.

Bell Mountain...

That place was thick with mass graves. Legend said its yin energy was overpowering.

But he had taken the job. There was no reason to back down now.

"Fine."

Qin Geng gritted his teeth and nodded.

He silently counted the days.

A little over ten days remained.

Without Bone-Strengthening Powder, his [Martial Artist] leveling would certainly slow over those days.

But there was nothing he could do except keep at it.

Eat more meat, spend more time holding his stance, and gain whatever he could.

"Shopkeeper, if there's nothing else, I'll be off to make preparations."

Qin Geng made to take his leave.

"Not yet."

Shopkeeper Lu stopped him and pointed to the bowl of tea on the table, which Qin Geng hadn't touched.

"Drink the tea."

"That's good stuff. Don't waste it."

Shopkeeper Lu smiled. "That one bowl is worth three doses of Bone-Strengthening Powder."

"It's that good?"

Qin Geng's eyes went wide.

Three doses of Bone-Strengthening Powder?

"Of course."

Shopkeeper Lu smiled. "That's Dragon Well Imperial Tribute, reserved for the imperial city, with several specially prepared qi-restoring medicines added. Most people would be lucky just to smell it."

Qin Geng needed no further urging.

He picked up the bowl and, as if afraid Shopkeeper Lu might change his mind, tipped back his head and drained it in one gulp.

He even chewed up the tea leaves and swallowed them.

Boom!

The moment the tea reached his stomach, it became a scalding current of heat, fiercer even than strong liquor.

Like a wild horse breaking free of its reins, the heat rushed through his limbs and bones, soaking into every thirsty muscle and tendon.

Warmth spread through Qin Geng's whole body. Even the joints that ached from his grueling practice felt so good he wanted to groan.

The medicinal force was immense!

How was this tea? It was practically a tenfold restorative tonic!

"Good tea!"

Qin Geng praised it, feeling strength fill his body.

With that bowl of tea in him and a few more days of hearty meals, he could definitely hold out until the fifteenth of the eleventh month!

"Go on, then."

Shopkeeper Lu waved him away and picked up his purple-clay teapot again. "Remember the time. Don't miss it."

"Got it! See you then!"

Refreshed and invigorated, Qin Geng cupped his hands in farewell and strode out of Osmanthus Fragrance Studio.