Wu Changqing's medicinal porridge was indeed delicious. Born from the holy land of medical poison, Medicine King Valley, this bowl of porridge not only maximized the effects of the medicine but also did not affect the taste of the ingredients themselves. In fact, the slight bitterness of the medicinal herbs enhanced the flavor of the food even more.
The old man watched as Wang Anfeng almost swallowed the medicinal porridge along with the bowl, his smile growing warmer. After ensuring the young man had fully recovered, he passed on the words of Master Ying to Ci An and Wang Anfeng. With a slight pause in his voice, he stroked his goatee and added,
"This is Master Ying's intention, not something I wanted to say..."
"But after all, this matter is of great significance, so it's best to be cautious."
Although Wang Anfeng didn't understand what 'world's difference' meant, he knew he couldn't stay here for too long. So he put down the bowl and said,
"If that's the case, I should go back first."
"Master, Second Master, your disciple takes his leave."
His voice paused, and then he turned towards the direction of the door and bowed with fists clenched, shouting out loud,
"The junior thanks the master for his guidance."
The sound carried, but there was no response.
Wang Anfeng chuckled lightly, raised his arm, and whispered to the Buddha Beads,
"I want to go back to Great Liang Village..."
A clear female voice rang in his ear, and the monk's room, the candlelight, the monks, and the old man gradually disappeared, replaced by the familiar furnishings of his home in Great Liang Village. The young man let out a breath, exhaling a long stream of white air. He was suddenly enveloped by cold, making him shiver slightly.
Turning to check, the fire in the room had indeed been extinguished long ago. It wasn't exactly cold, but the transition from a warm environment was too abrupt.
Although it was still dark outside, he had already slept for a long time in Shaolin and now didn't feel sleepy at all. Pushing open the door, he saw the black bear already deep in slumber under the shed and the green-maned horse, alerted by the noise, opened its eyes but closed them again nonchalantly upon seeing Wang Anfeng. Dark clouds piled in the sky, with snowflakes starting to flutter down.
According to the calendar, the beginning of November was almost over.
Wang Anfeng suddenly felt as if waking from a dream.
He met his master in May when the weather was still hot. In the blink of an eye, half a year had passed, and with that somewhat strange period, he had actually been practicing martial arts for over a year. He had passed Master Ying's first test, grown taller, and his inner strength had increased.
It really was like a dream.
Wang Anfeng exhaled a breath of white air, brought some dry firewood into the house, and rekindled the stove fire. Watching the burning flames, he gathered his Inner Qi and let it disperse throughout his limbs and body, while reminiscing about his encounters over the past six months.
Xiahou Xuan, Huangfu Xiong, Liu Wuqiu.
And the silly black bear, along with that boy named Zhao Xiujie who would come by every so often.
Thinking of that young man, Wang Anfeng chuckled softly. The other's behavior was indeed somewhat contrived and childish. However, he hadn't shown up for some time, probably having given up.
With the stove fire rising, Wang Anfeng got up, sat cross-legged on the bed and began to breathe deeply and rhythmically, sinking into cultivation.
It was the beginning of November according to the calendar. Less than fifty days remained until the next New Year's Eve. In a place like Great Liang Village, the atmosphere of bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new was still just lurking beneath the surface of everyday life, with undercurrents flowing silently before returning to tranquility.
However, in the County City, it was like the flames in Wang Anfeng's stove, already lit and gradually building up.
Tailor shops began making new clothes, vendors formed alliances, preparing to stockpile good merchandise to make a big profit during the festive season, and distant relatives started to visit for various reasons, such as... Zhao Xiujie's uncle's family in another County City.
In his room, a boy two years younger than him was just flipping over the last page of a book, smacking his lips with lingering pleasure and saying,
"Brother Xiujie, your books are so interesting!"
"I never knew books could be this captivating. They're simply unputdownable."
Zhao Xiujie glanced at the cover of "Tales of the Gallant Young" and admired him, saying, "You have good taste, kiddo. This book is the most exciting one I have here. The experiences inside are so full of twists and turns that they're irresistible. If I could have such encounters, I might become a master myself."
A disdainful snort suddenly came from the side, igniting Zhao Xiujie's irritation. He glared at the white-robed young man sitting properly on his knees beside him, and said,
"Qin Fei, what do you mean?!"
"If you think there's something wrong, then just say it. Cut out the passive-aggressive comments!"
The young man in the white shirt opened his eyes and glanced at him indifferently, saying,
"Not worth disputing."
Zhao Xiujie's face flushed red with anger as he stood up and said,
The child around ten years of age hurriedly got up and stepped between the two brothers, smiling from one side to the other as he said,
"Don't fight, please don't fight..."
"It's been a long time since we saw each other."
Zhao Xiujie rubbed the chubby face of the child who had come closer, glaring fiercely at the white-shirted youth who had never gotten along with him before finally sitting down with some effort and saying,
"For Xiong's sake, I won't hold this against you."
The youth opened his eyes and pursed his lips, feeling that perhaps he had been too cold just now. After some thought, he started to explain,
"The path of martial arts might have shortcuts at the entrance, but to become a true master, there are absolutely no shortcuts. I skimmed through the book earlier, and those so-called 'Spiritual Medicines' that grant the strength of sixty years in one dose... can only appear in the top ten most dangerous places in Jianghu.
Even the ordinary masters would perish if they entered, let alone a youth with no strength to truss a chicken."
"Moreover, even if one wished to assimilate the essence of a millennium-old medicinal herb, one would already need to possess the strength of the Middle Third Rank, and furthermore, one would have to be an external-type master with a strong physique, and have the assistance of at least three high-level masters. Otherwise, there is an extremely high likelihood of being blown into pieces."
"Secondly, becoming a peerless powerhouse by consuming Elixirs? Elixirs are useful, yes, but they are merely aids. They can lessen the time needed for bitter training, but they do not replace the need for it."
"Medicinal power is blind and brainless. To prevent it from running wild in the meridians and leading to Deviation, more attention and effort are needed. The more potent the effects of the Elixir, the higher the demands for durability of the body and the mind.
My master once said, only with an indomitable will can one deal with the overwhelming opportunities, otherwise, one is merely a part of the opportunity itself, and bearing precious treasures without the means is a crime, leading one to lose their life for nothing."
"As for the claim that one could emerge peerless in the world after several years of solitary training in a cave, that is utterly impossible because..."
The youth, feeling a bit apologetic for his earlier demeanor, began to explain in detail based on his own three years of learning. However, he didn't realize that the more thoroughly and authentically he explained, the uglier Zhao Xiujie's expression became. His face turned ashen green, and suddenly standing up, he looked at him with a cold sneer and said,
"Wow, you're quite something! It's unfortunate that my residence happens to have some of those experts from beyond this world that you look down upon. With all your abilities, surely you didn't just learn how to talk a good game, right?"
Qin Fei was momentarily stunned, feeling that his well-intentioned explanation instead had resulted in humiliation. His expression slightly chilled, he said,
"So what do you propose?"
"All your talk sounds so good; why not have a match to prove it?!"
This time, the child could no longer stop them. The two brothers, who had been quarreling almost since childhood, left with cold faces to the training field. Zhao Xiujie called forth his five masters. Although the grandmaster who could assault enemies with his sword was not there, he thought that the remaining few masters could certainly teach the presumptuous Qin Fei a lesson.
Then he saw the white-shirted youth standing with his left hand behind his back, facing the enemy with one hand and effortlessly flipping over one 'recluse expert' after another to the ground. First, his face showed a brief shock, which then turned uglier and uglier.
The last elder standing next to Zhao Xiujie watched as the four people cried out on the platform and looked at the youth standing tall with his cold face and hand behind his back. He swallowed his saliva, looked up at Zhao Xiujie with an awkward smile, and said,
"Xiujie... your master has a bit of a cold leg today, how about... another day?"
Zhao Xiujie clenched his jaw tightly with frustration. Even as engrossed in the fantastical stories of Jianghu as he was, he knew he had been fooled. He got up and with one kick at the old man's shameless face, sent himself stumbling, his face turning even greener with rage. Qin Fei let down his right hand and pursed his lips seriously, saying,
"You're not young anymore, Zhao Xiujie. Stop having those unrealistic daydreams of soaring to success in one step and making your parents and elders worry. If you start training in martial arts step by step from now, even though you're a few years late, diligence can make up for dullness. It's not too late yet."
Although they were words of comfort, in Zhao Xiujie's eyes at that moment, they were no different from humiliation. Biting his teeth hard, he suddenly thought of someone. With the rashness and anger of a youth clouding his judgment, he blurted out without thinking,
"That doesn't count!"
"I know of an absolute young martial arts master!"