All-class Gu Immortal

Chapter 18 Sense of Qi
"Junior Brother Zhou, see you later."

"Ah Qing, I'm leaving now."

The afternoon passed quickly. The apprentices who didn't have money to buy the Qi and Blood Soup left first, and many of them said goodbye to Zhou Qing as they left.

Zhou Qing returned the greetings one by one.

He felt the muscle soreness becoming more and more pronounced.

We need to buy the herbs for the body-strengthening soup.

Zhou Qing walked out of the gate of Baiyun Martial Arts School and headed straight for Dafeng Pharmacy.

Today, his progress in Baiyun Zhuang Gong has improved rapidly. While this is partly due to Wei Hongyu's more detailed instruction, the most important reason is that his diet has improved over the past two weeks.

According to Wei Hongyu, after learning Baiyun Zhuang (White Cloud Stance), one needs to practice continuously to feel the existence of 'qi' in the body, and then to control and strengthen qi and blood.

In the past two days, Zhou Qing has been able to feel a faint energy emanating from his chest while practicing the White Cloud Stance.

This should be what Wei Hongyu referred to as Qi and blood.

However, one needs to cultivate one's Qi and blood to the thickness of a hair before one can feel it more clearly.

Most apprentices in the martial arts school can feel the presence of qi and blood in their chests within a month, but that is far from enough.

Those who can break through to the Skin Refining Realm have basically refined their Qi and Blood to the thickness of hair within half a month.

To break through to the Skin Refining Realm, one must refine the Qi and blood in the chest to the thickness of two fingers, and then, according to the martial arts practiced, circulate the Qi and blood to designated parts of the body.

For example, in the White Cloud Palm Technique, the sign of breaking through to the Skin Refining Realm is to cultivate blood and qi as thick as two fingers, and then be able to circulate the blood and qi to both palms in a very short time, so that the palms are strengthened by the blood and qi, turning grayish-white, and greatly increasing their defense and attack power.

Currently, every month, people at the Baiyun Martial Arts Academy become apprentices through the poison water test, but none of these apprentices have ever reached the Skin Refining Realm within three months.

Ultimately, it all boils down to one word: poverty!

In the early stages of martial arts training, nutrition is more important than training.

[Progress: Beginner (79/800)]

Hopefully, the body-strengthening soup will be more effective.

Zhou Qing felt a pang of regret; one dose of medicine cost 150 coins, and it could only be taken for a maximum of two days.

"Shopkeeper, please prepare two doses of medicine for me according to this prescription."

Zhou Qing went to Dafeng Pharmacy and handed the prescription he had copied by hand to Manager Wang.

Since it was bought for one or two taels of silver, he naturally wouldn't bring the original prescription with him, as it contained crucial information such as the order and timing of decocting the medicine.

"Please wait a moment, sir." Manager Wang took the prescription, glanced at it, nodded, and turned his back to the medicine cabinet to begin dispensing the medicine.

A short while later, he wrapped the herbs for the two doses of body-strengthening soup separately in paper bags and placed them on the counter.

"Two doses of tonic, priced at three hundred cash, actually received two hundred and seventy cash."

"Huh?" Zhou Qing paused as he took out his money.

"Our young master greatly admires your righteous act, and even said that if you can break through to the Flesh Refining Realm, he will definitely invite you to be the head steward of our Zhao family."

"Well, the young master said that from now on, whenever you come to buy medicine, I'll sell it to you at the martial arts school's purchase price." Manager Wang said with a smile.

"Then please convey my thanks to Young Master Zhao on my behalf, Manager Wang." Zhou Qing placed the copper coins on the table and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Manager Wang.

The two doses of medicine cost 30 coins less, enough to buy more than a pound of pork.

"Of course, of course, take care, young man." Shopkeeper Wang smiled and saw Zhou Qing out of the pharmacy.

Seeing Manager Wang's appearance, Zhou Qing was really not used to it.

He still prefers his previous unruly demeanor.

No wonder the Zhao family, despite their tyrannical rule and exploitation of the local people, has remained powerful and influential.

The Zhao family only preys on the poor.

No wonder everyone wanted to be an official in ancient times, and everyone in this world needs to practice martial arts.

A fist represents power, and a clenched fist signifies holding power.

Young Master Zhao was impressed by his righteous act? How could Zhou Qing believe such nonsense?

If he were to break through to the Flesh Refining Realm, he would never join the Zhao family as a henchman.

The Zhao family was simply using profits they shouldn't have earned to do favors.

If the Zhao family hadn't controlled the town's businesses, and hadn't ruined any disobedient ordinary merchants, the town's prices wouldn't be so high.

It is said that prices in Heishan Town are no lower than in Ping'an County.

"Still poor!"

The two doses of medicine cost 270 coins, and he gave the old woman another 200 coins as her food expenses for the month.

I now have less than sixty coins left.

Luckily, I managed to catch that snow rabbit.

To improve their living standards, they need to catch more poisonous insects or go hunting.

However, he was not good at hunting, did not know where was suitable for hunting, and did not have the necessary weapons for hunting, such as bows and arrows.

Even custom-made items at the blacksmith's shop would cost at least two or three hundred coins, not to mention he didn't have time to practice archery from scratch.

"We can only focus on raising silkworms and wait for the next harvest."

The silkworms at home have finished mating and have started laying eggs. In about ten days, the first batch of silkworm eggs will hatch into silkworm larvae.

"This time we need to raise at least two batches of silkworms."

Zhou Qing is preparing to make a big splash this month.

Then, feed a whole silkworm directly to the Green Silk Gu, and let it produce more droppings for the silkworm babies.

"I'll earn at least six taels of silver next month, then I can enter the Skin Refining Realm sooner."

The body-strengthening soup that Wei Hongyu gave him was only to help him restore his qi and blood and replenish his body. The qi and blood soup at the martial arts school contained secret medicines and was most compatible with the White Cloud Palm Technique. You still have to pay to buy the soup to drink.

With the added benefit of the Green Silk Gu's blood-regulating effect, a two-pronged approach is needed to reach the Skin Refining Realm sooner.

"Let's have braised pork tonight," Zhou Qing said as he passed the butcher shop. He took out thirty coins and bought a pound of pork belly with alternating layers of fat and lean meat. As soon as he entered the courtyard carrying the pork home, he smelled the aroma of meat wafting from the main house.

"Grandma, I'm back!"

Zhou Qing shouted towards the main house. After two months in this world, this was the first time he truly felt like he was home.

"Aqing is back." The old woman came out wearing a coarse cloth apron.

"Did you buy pork? I also bought some pork to render oil."

"Grandma, let's have braised pork for dinner tonight," Zhou Qing said with a smile, shaking the pork belly tied with straw in her hand.

"Okay!" The old woman took the pork from Zhou Qing's hand.

Although Zhou Qing can cook, her skills are limited.

Before the food prepared by the old lady was even served, he was already very hungry.

"It's so fragrant!"

Looking at the braised pork and stir-fried cabbage with pork cracklings on the table, Zhou Qing swallowed hard.

"Grandma, it's so delicious!"

Zhou Qing picked up a piece of pork belly with alternating layers of fat and lean meat and stuffed it into his mouth, feeling incredibly satisfied.

Then he picked up a piece of pork crackling and a few pieces of cabbage, and shoveled a big mouthful of rice into his mouth.

In his previous life, he would never have eaten fatty meat, and he would never have touched pork cracklings.

But now, he only feels that this is the most delicious food in the world.

"Grandma, eat up!" Zhou Qing's mouth was covered in oil, but she noticed that Grandma hadn't touched her chopsticks much.

“You eat, child. I already ate before you came back.” The old woman shook her head.

"What did you eat?" Zhou Qing asked.

As he spoke, he got up and walked to the stove, opened another large pot that was steaming, and inside was a layer of bran and rotten vegetable leaves floating on the surface.

"You're going to eat this?"

Zhou Qing was taken aback.

"Grandma is old and doesn't have a good appetite; she can't eat greasy or meaty food," the old woman said with a smile.

Zhou Qing scooped up some rotten vegetable leaves from the pot and put them in her mouth, only to find that no salt had been added to the pot.

The old woman's words reminded him of his grandparents in his previous life who didn't like to eat meat, his mother who only ate fish heads, and his father who never liked to eat lean meat.

“A family should share happiness and joy. Grandma’s behavior shows that she doesn’t consider me a member of the family.”

Zhou Qing returned to his seat, picked up some pork belly and pork cracklings, and put them into the old woman's bowl.

He understood that the old woman meant well, but she might also have some reservations, since this was their first day living together.

But after a while, the old woman will find out what kind of person he is.

He took care of his grandmother not only to repay her kindness, but also for a simple reason: he wanted to do it, and he happened to have the ability to do so, so he did it.

"Okay, Grandma will eat." Faced with Zhou Qing's firm attitude, Grandma did not refuse again.

Compared to Zhou Qing's wolfing down his food, the old woman ate very slowly and carefully, as if she wanted to savor every bite of food.

After dinner, the old lady told Zhou Qing to rest early, while she cleared the dishes, washed them, and cleaned the house.

Seeing that Zhou Qing was preparing to decoct the medicine, she came up to help.

The old lady seemed to be very skilled at everything she did.

After drinking the body-strengthening soup, Zhou Qing felt his body heat up and felt warm all over. Under the starlight, he practiced the White Cloud Stance in the yard.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhou Qing felt drenched in sweat, as if he had been pulled out of the water, but he was not tired at all and had even more energy.

[Progress: Beginner (100/800)]

"The progress has increased by this much?"

Zhou Qing calmed himself down, and a line of text appeared in his vision.

This time, the progress increased by 21 points, more than in the previous two or three afternoons.

"The body-strengthening soup is so effective?!" Zhou Qing exclaimed in surprise.

"Pfft!" At this moment, the Green Silk Gu that had settled in his abdomen made a sound.

"I know, you're the most important one, you little sycophant," Zhou Qing thought to himself with a smile and a curse.

"You don't need to pick mulberry leaves these few days. I'll make sure you have a good meal when we go up the mountain, okay?"

"Pfft pfft—!"

"Aqing, the hot water is ready. Come and take a bath. Don't catch a cold when you're all sweaty." The old woman came out of the main house.

"okay!"

The next day, Zhou Qing got up early, ate two large bowls of rice mixed with braised pork soup, then carried a new basket on his back, took his tools, and headed out of town.

"puff!"

As soon as he entered the forest, the Green Silk Gu issued a warning.

"Someone's following me?" Zhou Qing raised an eyebrow.

"Pfft~"

"Not very strong?"

Zhou Qing narrowed his eyes and sneered inwardly.

“There are really people who are not afraid of death!”

P.S.: The next chapter will be posted tonight. I'm busy during the Chinese New Year holiday and won't be able to finish writing it all at once. Happy New Year everyone!

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(End of this chapter)