Testing Medicine and Beginning Body Forging (Seeking Collection)

As he neared the kitchen, Shi Xuan suddenly thought about the possibility of airborne poisons and quickly stopped. Enduring the pain of parting with his resources, he applied an Earth Armor Talisman to himself. Upon activation, the ground beneath him writhed, and yellow earth crawled up his body, covering him in a layer of soil within moments, making him look like a Terracotta Warrior. At the same time, he cast a Dust Removal Incantation on his face before continuing towards the kitchen.

As soon as he stepped into the kitchen, a strong medicinal aroma filled the air. All three concoctions smelled harmless and non-toxic.

Shi Xuan labeled the medicine jars with the characters Jia, Yi, and Bing. He then found three bowls and wrote Jia, Yi, and Bing on their rims. He affixed a Dust Prevention Talisman he had drawn earlier to a tray and activated it. Afterward, he forced the medicinal liquids into their corresponding bowls. Shi Xuan thought proudly, "Even though this is ancient times without a laboratory, I can still perform sterile operations. Daoist magic is truly miraculous."

Carrying the tray, he entered the courtyard and stopped where four dogs were leashed in the corner. He placed the tray on the ground, formed a hand seal, and stepped out the Seven Star Steps, murmuring an incantation and mobilizing the Qi in his body. After a moment, he cast the Immobilization Incantation, freezing the four dogs in place. Shi Xuan quickly administered the three bowls of medicine to two black dogs and one yellow dog, then retreated to the side to await the effects.

A few breaths later, one of the black dogs suddenly convulsed, foaming at the mouth and bleeding from its eyes. It struggled but couldn't move and was still within moments. Due to the Immobilization Incantation, it remained standing and did not fall. Shi Xuan broke out in a cold sweat. Thankfully, he had conducted an experiment. He wondered if he could sell this as a potent poison recipe for a good price later. As for why he wouldn't use it himself, looking at its effects—no melting into a pool of blood, no puff of yellow smoke—it seemed only effective against ordinary people and martial artists. It was unlikely to have a significant effect on cultivators with some level of cultivation.

At this point, the other two dogs appeared energetic, their eyes red, and they began barking. Nothing seemed amiss. However, after a short while, the yellow dog suddenly exerted itself and broke free from the Immobilization Incantation's power. It then began to run wildly around the courtyard. If the courtyard walls weren't so high, it probably would have jumped right over. Shi Xuan observed for a moment, about to approach and compare it with the remaining black dog, when the yellow dog's pace slowed, and it finally let out a whimper and collapsed, motionless.

Shi Xuan stepped forward and examined it closely. He discovered it had merely fainted, its body completely drained, as if it had expended a tremendous amount of energy. It seemed this prescription was more like a stimulant, harmful rather than beneficial to the body.

Shi Xuan returned to the corner and observed the remaining black dog until the Immobilization Incantation's power wore off. The black dog merely expelled a layer of black substance from its body and appeared lively after the spell's effect ended. Now Shi Xuan had a clear understanding of the prescription. However, to be safe, he decided to wait another night and check on the two dogs again tomorrow.

Since the medicinal bath formula and the oral administration formula used the same medicinal ingredients, only with different proportions, the medicinal bath formula could also be finalized now. However, caution was paramount, so he decided to test it on the remaining dog first.

The experimental results were very satisfactory to Shi Xuan. After bathing, the yellow dog showed no adverse symptoms, only scratching its bones as if they were itchy. By evening, it had recovered. Shi Xuan speculated this was a sign of the medicinal properties penetrating its skin.

After a day of running around and being busy, Shi Xuan was also very tired. After going out for dinner, he returned, meditated briefly to regulate his breathing, and then fell asleep.

The night passed without incident.

The next day, Shi Xuan woke up very early. Both dogs that had taken the medicine were still alive and well. However, the yellow dog, which had ingested the suspected stimulant, looked much older and lay listlessly in the corner.

Shi Xuan confirmed the medicinal effects and felt greatly relieved. Today, he was going to begin his body-tempering cultivation.

There was a mysterious and close connection between a person's body and soul. Therefore, it was common to see people with strong bodies having better spirits, and those with weak bodies appearing listless. Body tempering and soul nurturing involved practicing various external martial arts to strengthen the body, which in turn nourished the soul. When the body was trained to a certain limit, internal energy would naturally arise, and simultaneously, the soul would break through its realm and enter the Qi Nourishing and Soul Strengthening Stage.

If one forcefully practiced internal energy techniques to enter the Qi Nourishing Stage before the body reached its limit, they would suffer hidden injuries due to the body's inability to withstand the consumption of Refining Essence into Qi. In severe cases, it could deplete the body, leading to consumption disease. Of course, after entering the Qi Nourishing Stage, one still needed to consume large amounts of nutrients daily to compensate for the consumption of Refining Essence into Qi. Otherwise, if the body only expended without intake, various illnesses would still occur. This was why martial artists consumed many resources; it was difficult for martial artists without money or power support to master profound martial arts.

After lunch, Shi Xuan looked at the bowl of medicine placed before him. He calmed his mind for a moment before drinking it down in one gulp. Then, he took off his Daoist robe and walked into the courtyard bare-chested.

At this moment, Shi Xuan felt the medicine he drank transform into a surge of heat that spread to every corner of his body. He assumed a stance and began practicing the starting posture of the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist from the Treasure Record.

Since Shi Xuan had already familiarized himself with the ten moves of the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist in the morning, he was now quite proficient, moving from the initial Savage Dragon Twisting Waist and Azure Dragon Subduing Waves all the way to the concluding Golden Dragon Wagging Tail and Heavenly Dragon Descends.

As he executed the moves of the fist technique one by one, Shi Xuan felt the heat flow in coordination with his movements. Often, after a move, the heat would concentrate more in the most tensed and forceful areas of his muscles. Under the pressure of internal and external forces, impurities within his body were expelled through his pores, guided by the combination of the fist techniques and the heat flow.

Shi Xuan felt increasingly exhilarated as he fought. He performed the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist from beginning to end, and from end to beginning, over a dozen times, each time slower than the last. Towards the end, it resembled the practice of Tai Chi in later generations. However, Shi Xuan found the slowness exhilarating at this moment. With the cooperation of the medicinal power, he felt that parts of his body and the inner layers of his muscles, which he had never trained before, began to tremble with the movements of his fists.

If an outsider were to witness this, they would see Shi Xuan's body emitting heat, as if he were enveloped in a thin mist. The area above his head, where the heat was most intense, resembled white smoke rising. The surroundings seemed to be encircled by wind, creating a circle of about ten feet on the ground.

After reaching extreme slowness, Shi Xuan's fist movements began to speed up again. By the end, each punch whistled through the air, and the sounds of his joints cracking were as dense as popping beans.

Gradually, Shi Xuan entered a state of clarity, as if he could see his soul and body. The soul was within, the body was without. With every punch, he felt as though both his body and soul were striking together. Simultaneously, the Qi and Blood power of his body continuously nourished his soul from within, causing it to slowly grow stronger.

Shi Xuan felt increasingly invigorated, his spirit growing better and better. It felt as though a surge of energy was about to erupt from his heart. After the Golden Dragon Wagging Tail, he pulled his left hand, turned his body, and exerted force with all his muscles. His right hand descended diagonally like Mount Tai crushing down, executing the move Heavenly Dragon Descends.

With one punch thrown, all the strength in his body and the surging energy in his heart seemed to be released through this fist. The air let out a crisp crack, actually creating a gust of wind that snapped a thin branch off a tree twenty feet away.

After throwing this punch, Shi Xuan stopped his movement, feeling incredibly refreshed. His muscles were sore but filled with strength. However, he was covered in sweat and a layer of black grime, which made him feel uncomfortable.

Because of this, Shi Xuan quickly walked to the well, fetched a bucket of water, and found a rag to wipe the grime off his body, feeling refreshed. Since the medicinal bath was prepared at the right time, it was ready now. Shi Xuan went to the kitchen, stepped into the tub, and sat down cross-legged. He felt the medicinal power seeping into his muscles from his skin as the temperature rose, and it even seemed to be penetrating towards his bones. Following the instructions in the "Treasure Record," Shi Xuan began to regulate his breathing, feeling his body in a balanced and interactive state as a whole. This was essentially one meaning of "Qi" in Qi Refining: the ability to control and coordinate the strength of different parts of the body to eliminate harm and restore balance.

While regulating his breathing, Shi Xuan endured the uncomfortable itching and numbness, feeling the strength in different parts of his body and maintaining his body in a state of overall balance. In this state, anything that disrupted the body's balance and caused harm would be expelled as the body transformed towards balance (within its limits, hence the need for appropriate amounts of harmful ingredients in the medicine. This is also the value of a formula). Thus, the harmful components of the external medicine were slowly expelled from the body. Of course, during this expulsion process, harmful substances deep within the bones were also removed, while the beneficial components of the external medicine replenished the body in their place.

One must know that during normal breathing exercises and Qi Refining, it is difficult to expel harmful substances from deep within the bones. This is because these harmful substances have not reached a level that endangers the body's balance. Only as the body further strengthens and "Qi" reaches a very high level can some of these be expelled, a level that Shi Xuan might only reach after another one or two realms.

Amidst the itching and numbness, Shi Xuan maintained this state of breathing regulation. This intensity of practicing "Qi" also had some benefits for the soul. It wasn't until half an hour later, when he felt the medicinal power gradually receding, that Shi Xuan stepped out of the tub. After drying himself, he felt a sense of lightness and extreme comfort. His mind was clear, his senses were sharp, and the strength of his soul had increased slightly. At the same time, his previous minor internal injuries had actually healed. He had originally estimated that they would take half a month to recover, which was the benefit of practicing "Qi."

After this day of body tempering, Shi Xuan felt his physical and soul strength before sleeping. He preliminarily judged that if he continued with this routine twice a day, morning and evening, he would be able to enter the Qi Nourishing and Soul Strengthening Stage in five months. Moreover, his physical strength would definitely far surpass his previous level, as the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist and this medicinal formula were far superior to his previous methods. They allowed him to train in areas he couldn't before, and the effect of training the same area was also much better. It was indeed content from a supreme technique. However, when practicing the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist, he felt he hadn't grasped the true essence of this martial art and needed to work even harder.

In the following months, Shi Xuan lived a secluded life. Apart from going out to eat and buy medicine, he stayed in his courtyard. Twice a day, he pondered and practiced the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist. In his remaining free time, he reviewed the various techniques he had learned with this body, and both his physical body and soul greatly improved. At the same time, he recalled the knowledge and experiences shared by Old Daoist Xu, preparing himself for his future journey to seek immortality and the Dao in the world.