Divine Tang Era

Chapter 168 Drunkenness

Inside the hot pot restaurant, several flame lamps illuminated the interior brightly.

The people at Fengzhen Temple were drinking heartily, but Xu Dan paid no heed. He directly broke the seal on the second jar of wine and peeled off the sealing paper. In an instant, a richer, more intense aroma than the first jar, along with its unique scent, wafted out.

"Um"

Xu Dan twitched his nostrils slightly, took a sniff, and felt that this jar of wine was much better than the first one. He picked up a wine spoon, scooped some out, and poured it into a bowl.

The wine, as clear as a ruby, shimmered beautifully as it was gently swirled in the bowl.

Taking a small sip, the wine entered the throat and instantly transformed into a massive surge of energy, rushing towards the dantian like a wild horse. The Hidden Profound Cauldron swiftly channeled this energy into its vessel for refinement, while the remaining wine vapors rose and spread throughout the body, warming and intoxicating.

Xu Dan found it very strange; he had only taken a sip of the drink, yet he seemed to be unable to hold his liquor. He couldn't help but ask He Rong, "What kind of wine is this?"

"Red Blood Vinegar is made by adding the blood of ferocious birds and beasts to grapes, and it has the effect of replenishing qi and blood," He Rong replied.

"It really does replenish qi and blood, and the taste is also very good. Unlike the previous jar, which was sour and hard to swallow. Although the Crimson Blood Vinegar is a bit sour and astringent, it has a slightly sweet taste, and there is a lingering sweetness in the mouth after drinking it. It's good."

Xu Dan gave a thumbs-up and then asked, "Does your general store have wine gourds?"

"I don't have any ordinary gourds, but I acquired a jade gourd from someone digging for treasure. I've already cleaned it; it smells of wine inside, so it's probably meant for holding wine. What do you want it for?"

"This wine is good. I want to fill a gourd and store it. Go and get the jade gourd quickly."

"Okay, wait a moment." He Rong turned around and quickly went back to the shop.

Just then, a man from Fengzhen Temple, who had smelled the aroma of the wine, asked eagerly, "Young master, are you still selling your wine?"

"Sell it, just a moment, it'll be ready soon."

He Rong quickly brought over the jade gourd. It was about the size of a hand, its surface a translucent white like mutton fat, with faint bluish veins showing through in the light, like strands of spring water frozen in ice, dreamlike and ethereal. The gourd's belly was round and full, its surface carved with a lotus scroll pattern. A few streaks of dark red seeped into the indentations of the lotus petals, whether from cinnabar or aged wine stains, it was unclear. Upon closer inspection, at the dragon-head-shaped vine knob, there was a naturally formed pale yellow crack, as if someone had accidentally dropped it, adding an air of antiquity.

Xu Dan took the gourd, twisted open the lid, and smelled it; it did indeed smell of alcohol.

"Have you washed it?" Xu Dan asked, still not entirely at ease.

He Rong knew what he wanted to ask, and quickly said, "It's been washed inside and out several times, soaked in boiled and cooled water for several days, and then soaked in wine for a while. It's very clean, so you can use it without worry!"

Hearing him say that, Xu Dan finally felt relieved. After all, it was something he was going to drink, so he couldn't be careless in the slightest.

So he circulated his qi and blood, using his fingers as a guide to lead the crimson blood pearl in the wine jar into the jade gourd.

"Wow, this young man is quite skilled in using the principles of Qi and Blood!" someone from Fengzhen Temple exclaimed in surprise.

"You only see his use of Qi and blood, but you don't see the powerful Qi and blood within his body," said Kui Mu Xingjun, who had been silent until now.

"Hiss, what powerful blood and energy! In the capital, someone this age is considered outstanding among their peers. I never expected to find such talent in the remote borderlands," said another member of Fengzhen Temple.

"That's not all. I saw his archery skills when the ghosts attacked the city earlier, but I didn't expect his qi and blood to be so strong as well."

"I think I saw him use the Five Elements Arrow before."

"The Xue family's Five Elements Arrows?" The person who heard this stared wide-eyed, their face filled with shock.

"Yes, it's the Xue family's Five Elements Arrow."

"This guy is probably going to make it onto the Qilin Ranking!" someone from Fengzhen Temple exclaimed.

"Alright, half the wine is gone and you're still pouring more. I don't want to sell it anymore." Seeing that Xu Dan was going on and on about pouring wine, Pleiades Star Lord waved his sleeve and grabbed the wine jar from a distance.

Xu Dan was then surprised to realize that he had drunk half a jar of wine in such a short time. He shook the jade gourd, which still seemed not to be full, and couldn't help but sigh, "What a wonderful treasure!"

"The shopkeeper said it's a magical artifact, and the price is a bit high," He Rong said.

"How much?" Xu Dan asked.

"Thirty spirit stones."

"How much?" Xu Dan thought he had misheard and asked again.

"Our shopkeeper said the jade gourd sells for thirty spirit stones," He Rong repeated.

"Has your shopkeeper lost his mind? He's selling a broken gourd for thirty spirit stones. Why doesn't he just rob it? He'd make more money that way than he earns!" Xu Dan shouted.

"I don't know if I've lost my mind, but if you don't want Menglu, you can return it. Nobody's forcing you." Seeing that He Rong hadn't returned for a long time, He Qiu, the shopkeeper of the general store, was worried that something had happened, so he came over to check and happened to hear Xu Dan's words.

Xu Dan glanced at the jade gourd; he still couldn't return it, but the price was negotiable.

He showed no embarrassment at being overheard speaking ill of others, and said amicably, "Manager He, we're practically neighbors across the hall. Neighbors should be friendly and helpful to each other. But your price doesn't seem friendly at all. Could you give me a discount?"

"Then twenty-eight," Heqiu said in a very generous manner.

Unfortunately, this wasn't the price Xu Dan had in mind, so he said, "Manager He, your price is too high. Look at the quality of this gourd; it's mediocre at best. You could easily find one anywhere in the mountains and rivers. With a little more money, it wouldn't be difficult to carve a similar gourd. How dare you charge twenty-eight spirit stones? To be honest, I don't want to take it for free. Otherwise, I'd go to Mingfeng Tower to find my sister; she could surely give me a better gourd. How about this, I'll take a loss and give it to you for fifteen spirit stones?"

When Mao Ri Xingjun and the others heard about Mingfeng Tower, they glanced at Xu Dan. It was because the owner of Mingfeng Tower had come the day before yesterday that they came to eat today.

Otherwise, do you really think that the people who sealed off the temple are so free?

Heqiu wasn't interested in the price Xu Dan quoted at all. "At least twenty spirit stones, take it or leave it."

"Eighteen, eighteen at most," Xu Dan countered.

"Just twenty, don't pour the wine out and give it back to me." Heqiu insisted on his bottom line.

"Manager He is a bit stubborn! Fine, I'll take the loss. Twenty it is, it's what I like." After saying that, Xu Dan took out spirit stones from his storage bag and gave them to He Qiu, and also paid for the two jars of wine.

After taking the money, Heqiu took Ge Rong away.

The Pleiades Star Lord distributed the wine; the Crimson Blood Pearl was vibrant in color and emitted a delicate fragrance. After everyone drank it, the wine instantly transformed into a surging surge of vital energy that flowed into their stomachs. The aroma of the wine then spread, intoxicating them.

"This wine is delicious, isn't it? I think it's pretty good too."

Seeing their expressions of great enjoyment, Xu Dan also picked up the jade gourd, took a sip, and exclaimed, "Good wine!"

"Crimson wine in a jade gourd, I long to drink, but the pipa urges me on. Don't laugh at me, drunk and asleep in this little inn; such moments are rare indeed." Xu Dan said, shaking his head.

The people at Fengzhen Temple were used to him altering the poems, so they didn't say anything and just stared at him.

Xu Dan felt a little embarrassed by the stares. "Ladies and gentlemen," he said, "even if I were incredibly handsome and dashing, surpassing even Pan An and Song Yu, you don't need to stare at me like that!"

"Heh," the crowd just sneered.

"Brother, why is your face so red? It looks like the little fat boy's bottom got spanked by the teacher," Little Magpie said innocently from the side.

"red."

Xu Dan was completely bewildered. Suddenly, a strong wave of dizziness washed over him, as if he were drunk. "This liquor is quite strong," he thought. He quickly said, "I'm a little dizzy, I need to rest. Yun Niang, you watch the shop, call me if you need anything."

"Young master, go and rest!" Mother said.

Xu Dan staggered up the stairs, then suddenly remembered something and turned to tell his mother, "Mom, when you collect the money later, charge them the original price for those two jars of wine. It's their first time here, so give them a discount. They won't get such a good deal next time." After saying that, he swayed back to his room to rest.

"Is the young master alright?" Yun Niang asked Rui Wu Ni with a worried expression.

"Don't worry! You just had a couple of drinks, you'll be fine after a good night's sleep," Rui Wuni comforted her.

Even so, Mother still couldn't help but worry.

"This young man is no good! He gets drunk after just a couple of sips of wine. With that kind of drinking capacity, he'll never make it onto the Qilin Ranking," someone from Fengzhen Temple joked.

"Huh, I feel a little dizzy too," said another person from Fengzhen Temple.

"Me too."

"This is a bit strange. I feel dizzy after just one bowl. I need to go back and refine it quickly."

In no time, all the other people from Fengzhen Temple had fled, leaving only Maori Xingjun, Jishui Xingjun, and Kuimu Xingjun. If Xu Dan were still here, he would probably think they were trying to skip out on the bill and eat for free.

"Are you two alright?" Pleiades Star Lord asked with concern to Winnowing Basket Star Lord and Kui Wood Star Lord.

"It's just a bowl of wine, what could possibly happen?" Ji Shui Xingjun tapped his foot, and the refined wine vapor silently disappeared into the floor.

"Hmm," Kui Mu nodded, casually tossing the alcohol fumes into his storage bag.

The Rooster Star Lord also quietly suppressed his alcohol fumes. The three of them were Star Lords after all; they had to maintain appearances and couldn't afford to lose face in front of others. Rui Wu Ni saw all this but said nothing. Perhaps, apart from Jiu Niang's matter, nothing else interested her.