A pill as a gift

"Junior Brother Hu, you mustn't do this. Having a master like you is a blessing Dacheng must have cultivated over several lifetimes. Get up first, and we'll talk. To tell you the truth, I planned to give three Origin-Enhancing Pills for Sect Master Bai's grand birthday celebration."

Before Xuanzhenzi could finish, Hu Guyi hurriedly interrupted. "Senior Brother Xuanzhen, it's all right. Dacheng isn't in such a hurry. If you successfully refine more in the future, just save one for me."

Hu Guyi had a reason for being so eager to explain. In his view, giving three Origin-Enhancing Pills as birthday gifts would probably exhaust Xuanzhenzi's entire remaining stock. He also knew how difficult these pills were to refine. In the past, Xuanzhenzi had only managed one or, at most, two a year.

"Junior Brother Hu, don't be so hasty. I haven't finished yet. You're in luck this time. Not long ago, I was fortunate enough to refine five Origin-Enhancing Pills," Xuanzhenzi said with a smile.

"Then...?" Hu Guyi's eyes lit up at Xuanzhenzi's words. He knew there was now a pill for his disciple.

"Patience, patience. I gave one of them to Qinghe!" Xuanzhenzi said.

"No wonder I noticed that Martial Nephew Qinghe's cultivation had advanced so much. Thinking about it now, I wasn't mistaken earlier. He broke through to the second-class realm by taking an Origin-Enhancing Pill, didn't he?" Hu Guyi naturally knew Qinghe's strength. Back then, Qinghe had also been at the upper third-class level, though his cultivation had been somewhat deeper than that of Hu Guyi's eldest disciple, Liu Dacheng.

Xuanzhenzi did not rush to explain. Instead, he smiled slightly and continued, "Another will probably have to go to the leader of the Piaoshui Gang. He reserved one with me two years ago. With two years already gone by, I really would feel bad putting him off any longer."

"Then...?" His excitement instantly plunged to rock bottom. Doesn't that mean there are none left? Hu Guyi thought.

"However, there is one thing you've misunderstood, Junior Brother Hu. Although my disciple Qinghe has broken through to the second-class realm, he did not take an Origin-Enhancing Pill. He broke through on his own. So he should still have his pill. In a little while, I'll have him give it to Dacheng," Xuanzhenzi said with a smile.

Hu Guyi let out a breath, then smiled. "Senior Brother Xuanzhen, I've made a fool of myself before you. I simply care too much about this disciple. The Iron Sword Sect will have to depend on him in the future."

"I understand how you feel, Junior Brother Hu," Xuanzhenzi said with a hearty laugh.

"Senior Brother, I won't say any more words of thanks, but you must accept this Old Mountain Ginseng and He Shou Wu. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare ask for this Origin-Enhancing Pill on Dacheng's behalf," Hu Guyi said.

Xuanzhenzi considered it and did not decline this time. "Very well, I'll accept them. But I must remind you: once Dacheng takes the Origin-Enhancing Pill, although he will have a very good chance of breaking through to the second-class realm, making any further progress afterward will probably be harder than hard. You must be prepared for that."

"Of course I know that. But our Iron Sword Sect is only a small sect. Even after I grow old and am gone, with Dacheng's second-class strength holding the fort, the Iron Sword Sect shouldn't have its name erased from Jianghu, should it?" Hu Guyi said with a smile.

Xuanzhenzi smiled slightly and said no more. There was nothing wrong with Hu Guyi's thinking. After all, once someone reached the second-class realm, every further step was exceptionally difficult. Moreover, with a second-class expert holding the fort in a third-class sect, ordinary people in Jianghu would not come looking for trouble. As long as they did not provoke any formidable figures, keeping the sect in existence in Jianghu would pose no problem. After all, martial artists who did not qualify for any class were as numerous as the hairs on an ox. Reaching the third-class realm was already respectable, while those in the second-class realm were certainly experts. It could be said that probably fewer than twenty percent of third-class martial artists would ultimately reach the second-class realm. As for the first-class realm, even one in ten second-class experts reaching it would probably be a good result.

Two hours later, Liu Dacheng and Hu Qingqing thanked Huang Xiao and the other three.

"Junior Brother Liu, Junior Sister Hu, I think Uncle-Master Hu and my master may be talking for a while longer. If you have nothing to do, you can look around the area. It's all wilderness, though, so please don't mind," Qingfeng said with a smile.

"Senior Brother Qingfeng, your Zhongnan Mountain is much nicer than our Iron Sword Sect. It's quiet here, and the surroundings are so peaceful. If I could, I really would like to live somewhere like this for a long time," Hu Qingqing said.

"You're quite right, Junior Sister Hu. With so few people around, that's the one good thing about it: peace and quiet," Qingyun said with a chuckle.

"Junior Brother Dacheng, it's been a year since we last sparred. My hands have been itching!" Qinghe said to Liu Dacheng.

"Senior Brother Qinghe, after losing to you by three moves last time, I went back and trained in seclusion. This time, I'm going to win it back," Liu Dacheng said with a smile.

"Good! Then let's go to the back courtyard and spar again. We'll see just how much you've improved," Qinghe said with a hearty laugh.

"I was just hoping to experience your fine skills again, Senior Brother. After you!" Liu Dacheng said.

After watching Qinghe and Liu Dacheng leave, Qingfeng smiled helplessly. "That Qinghe..."

"My senior brother is the same. Most of his motivation for training comes from wanting to beat Senior Brother Qinghe just once. But he loses every time. I don't think he has much of a chance this time either." Hu Qingqing covered her mouth and giggled.

"No one can say who will win or lose until it's over. Oh, right, I have a batch of pills in my furnace that's almost ready. I need to go back and watch over it. Eldest Senior Brother, Fourth Junior Brother, I'll be going ahead. I'll leave Junior Sister Hu to you," Qingyun said.

"Well, one of you forgets everything else as soon as there's someone to spar with, and you forget everything else when it comes to pills. Still, I need to leave for a while too. Since Uncle-Master Hu is here, I ought to put some care into preparing the meal. Fourth Junior Brother, stay and keep Junior Sister Hu company," Qingfeng said.

Without waiting for Huang Xiao to answer, Qingfeng and Qingyun left.

"You're Senior Brother Qingxiao, right?"

While Huang Xiao was still pondering how to begin, Hu Qingqing spoke first.

"Yes, yes. My name is Qingxiao. I'm Master's fourth disciple!" Huang Xiao answered, at a loss as to what to do with his hands and feet.

Hu Qingqing giggled. "I know you're Martial Uncle Xuanzhen's fourth disciple. Senior Brother, how about showing me around nearby? This is my first visit to the Green Ox Temple."

"All right, all right..." Huang Xiao replied rather woodenly. In the past, he had devoted all his attention to books in pursuit of success in the imperial examinations, so naturally he had had little contact with girls. Moreover, to Huang Xiao, Hu Qingqing possessed a beauty fit to grace a nation, like an immortal maiden from the heavens. This left him rather at a loss. Hu Qingqing, however, was quite a lively talker, so the two did not run out of things to say while together. Of course, it was mostly Hu Qingqing asking questions and Huang Xiao answering honestly.

After Hu Guyi had stayed at the Green Ox Temple for ten days, Xuanzhenzi set out for the Huaqing Sect with Huang Xiao. Naturally, Hu Guyi, Liu Dacheng, and Hu Qingqing accompanied them. As for Qingfeng, Qingyun, and Qinghe, Xuanzhenzi had them remain at the temple.

There were still five days until Bai Tianqi's grand birthday celebration, but the Huaqing Sect was three days' journey from Zhongnan Mountain, so they set out a few days early to avoid being late.

Xuanzhenzi had brought Huang Xiao along because, as he put it, he wanted Huang Xiao to see more of the world. There would certainly be many people coming to offer birthday congratulations to Bai Tianqi of the Huaqing Sect, and the occasion would probably be quite a grand one.