After leaving the relay station, Lu Mian traveled for another seven or eight days, drawing ever closer to Martial Might Commandery City.
That day, before nightfall, Lu Mian found another ruined temple to shelter in.
The temple stood at the foot of a mountain. It was small, with only a dilapidated Buddha hall and a few monks' quarters.
Abandoned for too long, the monks' quarters had rotted and collapsed, leaving Lu Mian with no choice but to rest in the Buddha hall.
He casually built a fire, took out a Qi-Nourishing Pill, and swallowed it.
Now that his cultivation had reached the third realm: Foundation Establishment, the vital essence food provided was negligible, even with the Spirit-Swallowing Stomach Pouch's powerful digestive abilities.
After all, the Spirit-Swallowing Stomach Pouch could absorb every last bit of nutritional essence, but it could not conjure any out of thin air.
In fact, after entering the Foundation Establishment Realm, Lu Mian had effectively freed himself from the need for food. Gathering and refining the spiritual energy of heaven and earth each day was enough to sustain him.
Still, to satisfy the Spirit-Swallowing Stomach Pouch's craving to devour things, Lu Mian usually ate a few Qi-Nourishing Pills.
"According to the map of Xia Province, I'm in Qing'an Commandery now... Martial Might Commandery City is up ahead."
Lu Mian took out a map. After confirming his location, he drew the Baleful Flame Blade and laid it across his knees.
Over the past few days, he had placed his own imprint on the Baleful Flame Blade. Following the Spirit-Nurturing Art Song Baozi had taught him, he had also been steadily infusing it with his mind, attempting to establish a special connection.
According to the Spirit-Nurturing Art, this process usually took a year.
But Lu Mian preferred unconventional approaches.