Two days slipped past in a flash, and it was time to finish work again.
The remaining half of the setting sun was swallowed bit by bit by the vast mountain ranges. Jiang Yi walked out of the Quenching Room and stood in the deepening dusk.
He thought back over these past days, arriving at the Quenching Room before the roosters crowed and hurrying back to the Large Compound after sunset.
Often, he had not even had time to eat before falling into bed and sleeping heavily, only to wake the next day and return to work.
He truly was like a farmer's mule, donkey, or horse, scarcely allowed a moment's rest.
"If I work the full twelve years, my temples will probably be gray and my Qi and Blood depleted. What cultivation could I speak of then? What immortality?"
Jiang Yi had come to understand the hardships of a Mortal Laborer profoundly: eight hours of toil, with possible overtime as the end of the month approached.
Once eating and sleeping were accounted for, there was scarcely any free time left. Even sitting in meditation and practicing breathing became a luxury.
"Every coin of talisman money costs blood and sweat."
Whenever he thought of this, Jiang Yi could not help wanting to curse the body's original owner.
That had been a full twenty or thirty thousand in talisman money!
How long would he have to endure the torment of the Quenching Room, how much hardship would he have to suffer, to save that much?
And he had actually gambled it all away?!
He must have been possessed!
"Brother Yi, want to come find something good to eat? These past two days have worn you down until your lamp's almost out of oil. Hurry and have some medicinal food to nourish yourself."
He Laohun felt that if Brother Yi carried on like this, he would hardly last the full twelve years. Over his time at Crimson Flame Peak, he had seen far too many Mortal Laborers die of overwork in the workshops.
Jiang Yi cupped his hands, then said:
"No, Brother He. I'll go back to my room and sleep first. I've already asked Duty Officer Yang for a day off. Tomorrow, I'll see how things look before buying some medicine."
After two days of roasting beside the furnace, his young, reasonably handsome face looked like the bark of a nearly dead tree.
"Old Yang has some humanity in him after all, letting you take leave."
He Laohun sighed and said no more.
Mortal Laborers were fated to toil like oxen and horses. Meeting someone like Yang Xun, who did not maliciously bleed them dry, was already a tremendous blessing.
Those with worse luck ended up at Soul-Nourishing Peak or Sewing Peak, their hearts hanging in suspense every day, afraid they might run into bad luck and suffer punishment.
"I'll have a little fun before heading back to the Large Compound."
He Laohun returned his copper tally, then went off with the other workers to find some entertainment.
Besides butcher shops, eateries, and restaurants, Crimson Flame Peak had no shortage of brothels and other establishments of pleasure.
Unlike the immortal path, the demonic path placed little importance on whether one lost one's primal yang.
Besides, a Mortal Laborer's work was arduous and hard to bear. Relentless exploitation could wear them out too quickly.
Thus, the sect turned a blind eye, happy to let those beneath them conduct a little trade in flesh.
It both gave the many beasts of burden somewhere to vent and recovered the talisman money that had been paid out.
Two birds with one stone!
After parting with He Laohun, Jiang Yi returned alone to the Large Compound.
Widow Qin and Old Li's family were cooking in the kitchen, and the fragrance of food and meat wafted straight into his nose.
Only someone like He Laohun, whose whole family was fed once his own stomach was full, enjoyed eating out.
Even without spirit rice, lavish meals of meat, fish, fine wine, and good dishes were no small expense.
Seeing Jiang Yi step over the threshold, Widow Qin greeted him first:
"Back from work, Brother Yi? Have you eaten? Why not have a few bites here?"
Jiang Yi gave a grin.
"Thank you for your kindness, Sister-in-law Qin. I'm exhausted and have no appetite. I couldn't eat."
Widow Qin's husband had been transferred to Sewing Peak's "hide-making room" some years earlier, and had later died suddenly for no apparent reason.
Such an abrupt upheaval had naturally brought a difficult stretch of days. Jiang Yi had lent a hand with a few small matters, forging this bond of goodwill.
Though Widow Qin wished to look after him, she feared wagging tongues and could not show too much warmth.
She only said:
"I made black-bone chicken soup to replenish the blood, and there's some left. If you don't mind it, Brother Yi, you can drink it later."
Jiang Yi thanked her again before returning to his room and falling into bed for a long sleep.
He truly was exhausted in body and sinew, and he still had things to do at a quarter to midnight tonight.
He might as well rest early and replenish his spirits.
At midnight, the Large Compound was still as water.
Tonight, the moon's clear radiance was especially bright, its full round shape reflected in the water vat.
With a splash, a wooden dipper stirred it into several pieces.
"So cold!"
Jiang Yi hastily wiped his face and perked up, then went to the kitchen and drank the chicken soup Widow Qin had left especially for him.
The stove was still slightly warm, and the soup had not gone cold. A cozy warmth spread through his limbs and bones, leaving him quite comfortable.
At this hour, most Mortal Laborers had already gone to bed. A few diligent ones might be seizing the time to meditate and practice breathing.
Huff!
Jiang Yi wrapped his thick Daoist robe tightly around himself, breathed out a plume of white mist, and headed outside.
Before long, his figure vanished into the bitterly cold night.
"Everything should be all right now."
Jiang Yi circled through the woods of Crimson Flame Peak a few times. Only after confirming that no one was following him did he hurry toward the fallen trees on the mountain's shaded northern side.
Cold wind whistled through the woods, and snow crunched beneath his feet.
In less than seven and a half minutes, Jiang Yi found the "Fortuitous Encounter" shown by the heavenly book.
His steps stopped. He stared, stunned, and even held his breath.
Hanging in the vault of heaven, the bright moon, large as a round platter, shed its clear radiance, washing like water over the vast mountain ranges.
Perhaps because of the terrain, the mountain's shaded side formed a natural hollow, like a basin.
Beams of limpid, pure moonlight actually drifted down, like snowflakes shaken loose and fluttering through the air.
Then the terrain gathered them together. Gradually, the silver radiance became liquid, accumulating and flowing down to form a shallow pool.
"The heavenly book truly did not deceive me!"
Jiang Yi took a deep breath, restrained his excitement, and carefully made his way down.
As his hands and feet touched the silver radiance, he felt an icy coolness.
His face, nearly cracked from two days of roasting in the Quenching Room, no longer stung like needle pricks once the moonlight brushed it.
"My skin's peeling?"
Jiang Yi felt a faint itch on his face. He rubbed it gently a few times, and the dry, dead skin fluttered away in flakes, exposing fresh, tender flesh.
But he paid little attention to his face. He hurriedly sat cross-legged and began circulating his cultivation method to refine Qi.
"After three years at the Dao Academy, this was the only useful skill I learned."
The Dao Academy's actual lessons amounted to only two things: seated stillness practice and moving stance practice.
The former nourished Qi and spirit; the latter nourished blood and body.
It might sound simple, but truly accomplishing it was far from easy.
The human mind held so many distracting thoughts. Reining them in and sitting for hours with steady breathing and a calm mind was exceedingly difficult.
Many Dao Academy pupils studied for years on end without passing this hurdle.
Moving stance practice, by contrast, was easier to pick up. It generally consisted of things like the Five Animal Frolics, Eight Section Brocade, and Diamond Skill, which could stimulate Qi and Blood and strengthen sinews and bones.
"Before beginning the practice, gather the spirit and concentrate Qi, allowing the breath to regulate itself. Then inhale and exhale, letting yin and yang interact before circulating through every part.
"Still the mind and sit motionless, cross the legs and bend the thighs, press the heels firmly against the Life Gate..."
Jiang Yi smoothed away the distracting thoughts in his chest. In his several years as a Mortal Laborer in the Qianji Sect, he had never neglected his seated practice and remained proficient.
Once settled, he pressed his tongue against his palate, parted his teeth, and began breathing in and out!
"So wonderfully cool! Like drinking chilled plum wine!"
Before long, two streams of white mist curled around Jiang Yi's nose, differing in length and extending and contracting unpredictably.
The pure moonlight drawn down resembled myriad silver threads, strung with olive-shaped beads hanging in heavy strands.
He inhaled through his nose and exhaled through his mouth, his breaths even, fine, soft, and long. Soft hissing and huffing sounds rose and fell as he drew in strands of moonlight and slowly refined them.
The process was extraordinarily soothing.
Jiang Yi felt as though he were savoring mellow wine, pleasantly tipsy.
He was just like a greedy drinker, taking mouthful after mouthful without stopping, tilting his head back to drink his fill.
Strand after strand of moonlight turned into Frost Qi, dissolving into his limbs and bones, then surging like rivers through the prescribed circuits.
Like a trickling stream, the fine, continuous True Qi gradually grew stronger with each circulation, producing a swelling, throbbing sound.
Jiang Yi concentrated fully, utterly absorbed in the changes of his breathing and the rise and fall of True Qi.
Suddenly, he felt his heartbeat quicken, as though a great drum were pounding-thump, thump, thump, thump-shaking him with alarm.
Jiang Yi remained seated without moving, striving to stay calm. His Dao Academy teacher had warned him never to panic at any abnormality during cultivation, or he would risk cultivation deviation!
"Once I make it through, I'll have ascended the Second-Story Tower."
He held on for roughly another seven and a half minutes. Once he had consumed all the moonlight's silver liquid, the rhythm of Jiang Yi's Qi refining also slowed.
But he continued drawing his True Qi along, circulating it little by little through a full circuit.
Much later, the accumulated snow melted and cold dew dampened his clothes, yet the figure wrapped in a thick Daoist robe resembled a clay statue or wooden carving, without even a breath.
Only when dawn spilled over the horizon, turning it the pale white of a fish's belly, did Jiang Yi open his eyes. True Qi bubbled like a spring, filling his body with greater, vigorous vitality.
Just then, a ray of daylight overhead crossed the mountain ranges, pierced the woods, and happened to fall on Jiang Yi's fair face.
His reddened face and dry, cracked skin were now soft and tender again. In the morning light, they took on a translucent, jade-like sheen.
Just as He Laohun had said, he was a handsome young fellow!
"I did it."
Jiang Yi's eyes shone, full of confidence. He rose and stretched his limbs, his sinews and bones ringing out inch by inch.
Every part of him felt like a powerful bow drawn taut, brimming with strength, shaking the snow crystals into scattering clouds.
"Qi Refining Second Stage-I did it!"
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