Gou Zai Xianwu Wenjing Search for Opportunities

Lin Yuan seemed to have heard of the Golden Lotus Sect before. He had heard of many similar rural sects since he was a child, such as the Red Lotus Sect, the Rice Fighting Sect, and the Yellow Heaven Sect.

Whenever there is a famine and villagers cannot afford to hire a doctor, these mysterious and supernatural people always appear. Their names may change, but they always follow the same pattern: burning talismans to drive away illness and evil spirits for the poor, and gathering followers for themselves.

Those villagers who were cured became devout believers in the gods; those who were not cured were considered sinful, and the gods said they deserved to die.

Lin Yuan inquired about the Golden Lotus Cult's sorceress, but his elder brother didn't know much about her either, saying she was an old woman who was rambling on and on.

He then instructed his elder brother that if anyone in the family fell ill, they should consult a doctor first and not these shamans or sorcerers. Finally, he also instructed his elder brother to take good care of his third son and his wife.

After his elder brother left, Lin Yuan returned to his routine of going back to work, home, and back again.

……

Time flies like water, and the days of studying and practicing martial arts have passed in the blink of an eye.

Winter Solstice has arrived in the blink of an eye, and it's very cold.

The merchants who used to flock to the town had long since returned home, the docks were deserted, most of the shops on the street were closed, there were hardly any people to be seen, and the shop assistants were all slacking off behind their doors. Even Hongliu Lane had quieted down, with less of the decadent music.

Only the rice shops remained open. Rice prices rose higher and higher inversely to the temperature, but business was unusually good.

As the saying goes, "Practice makes perfect in the sweltering heat of summer and the freezing cold of winter," and this weather is the perfect time to practice martial arts.

Early in the morning, Hu's cook brought medicinal food and breakfast to Lin Yuan and his companion.

Lin Yuan took out two Body Tempering Pills from the medicine bag and swallowed them along with the dark medicinal soup. As the soup entered his stomach, a warm current arose, and his body immediately warmed up.

It's too cold today, so Zhao Sheng isn't coming over.

It didn't snow this morning, but the frost and dew were too heavy; staying there for too long could easily lead to cold entering the body.

With Lin Yuan's current physical strength, he is not afraid of this bit of cold evil. However, after consuming the medicinal food, the medicinal food will generate red-hot medicinal power in his body. While the medicinal power tempers the skin and flesh, it will make his whole body red-hot and his pores open. If he is stimulated by cold evil, he is most likely to suffer from internal heat and external cold, and get sick.

Actually, this isn't a big problem. As long as Doctor Meng prescribes a new winter-training medicinal diet based on his symptoms of internal heat and external cold, it can clear the heat and expel the cold. However, changing the prescription costs five taels of silver each time. Lin Yuan wanted to save some money, as did Hu Cai.

Instead of practicing their boxing in the open courtyard, the two went to a side hall of the Hu family's house. This hall was originally used to store coffins, but it was cleared out for the two to use for practicing boxing. It was tall, spacious, sheltered from the wind and rain, and very warm.

The two practiced separately at first.

Lin Yuan still practiced the basics first, standing on the barricades for half an hour, and then practicing the Eight Directions Footwork for half an hour.

Hu Cai was somewhat tired of the monotonous stance training and footwork, and refused to practice the basic skills step by step. After practicing for a few quarters of an hour, he started practicing the Sixty-Four Forms of Long Fist.

An hour later, Lin Yuan had diligently completed his basic training. By this time, the medicinal food in his stomach had been mostly digested, and the fiery medicinal power had entered the circulation of his blood and qi throughout his body.

He did not learn from Hu Cai to practice the 64-form Long Fist, but only practiced the basic 16-form.

The reason is that when Doctor Meng prescribed the new formula last time, he warned that the Sixteen-Style Long Fist was more comprehensive in tempering the body, able to train almost all the tendons, bones, skin and flesh, and that the medicinal power was absorbed more evenly by each part of the body, making it suitable for beginners to temper their bodies. The Sixty-Four-Style Long Fist, on the other hand, was more suitable for fighting enemies.

However, Hu Cai and Zhao Sheng were both keen on sparring with their opponents and not very interested in basic long fist techniques.

Lin Yuan ignored all of that and persisted in practicing his own style. He quickly became immersed in the world of boxing. The fiery medicinal power circulated throughout his body with his blood and qi, and spread to his limbs and bones with the force of his fists, tempering every inch of his flesh and nourishing every tendon and bone.

The essence of tempering the body lies in nourishing it with medicinal cuisine and tempering it with martial arts techniques.

Soon, Lin Yuan was covered in sweat, the beads of sweat growing larger and larger, his fair skin gradually turning red, and wisps of heat rising from his body, with wisps of mist rising up.

I don't know how much time passed.

Lin Yuan remained immersed in the monotonous and repetitive Sixteen Forms of Taizu Long Fist. At this moment, his fists were powerful, and his blood and qi surged continuously, giving him a sense of endless circulation.

In that instant, he could clearly feel that his blood and qi were much stronger than before, and his physical strength had also increased.

Is this what it feels like to make progress?

He pressed on, continuing to throw punches fiercely. However, due to the intense consumption of his energy, this state did not last long, and he gradually began to feel his strength waning.

Without Coach Hong this time, Lin Yuan dared not try to push himself to the limit. Martial arts training should not be overdone, as overexertion can easily injure the body.

That's perfect!

He immediately pulled back his fist, stood up straight, steadied his breathing, and calmed his blood and qi.

He let out a long breath, feeling extremely joyful; the feeling of each enhancement was indeed very pleasant.

This is the addictive feeling of positive feedback.

At this moment, Hu Cai was also sizing him up. Seeing him withdraw his fist, he immediately stepped forward and patted his muscles and skin, saying with a smile, "Your qi and blood are strong, and your skin and flesh are robust! Junior brother, have you broken through to the Lesser Qi and Blood Realm? When did this happen? I haven't heard you mention it before!"

"Minor Qi and Blood Realm?"

"You didn't just break through, did you? I knew it, there's no reason for you to hide it from me." Seeing his confusion, Hu Cai laughed and immediately showed off like a know-it-all, "The Lesser Qi and Blood Realm is the early stage of the Body Tempering Realm. The Body Tempering Realm is about tempering the physical body and strengthening the Qi and blood, so it's also called the Qi and Blood Realm. The early stage is the Lesser Qi and Blood Realm, and the later stage is the Greater Qi and Blood Realm."

Hu Cai had no interest in reading, but he was extremely interested in martial arts. He used to learn from his elder brother, and later from his martial arts-practicing friends. Before he knew it, he knew more about martial arts than his peers.

"I've broken through to the early stage of Body Tempering?" Lin Yuan was overjoyed upon hearing this. "That's right, it's been about time. I've been studying and practicing diligently these past few days, not daring to slack off in the slightest."

Finally, he asked, "Is there a clear standard for this division of realms? How can it be accurately judged?"

"It's not that detailed." Hu Cai scratched his head, but as the second senior brother of the traditional martial arts school, he couldn't bring himself to do it. So he racked his brains, grabbed a teapot from the square table, and poured a cup of tea for the two of them. "Just like tea, you can tell the difference between three-tenths full and seven-tenths full once you've had tea. As for how to differentiate them, it's all about making a rough estimate."

"Yes, I understand. Just like tea, whether it's three parts hot or seven parts hot, you can immediately tell whether it's warm or scalding as soon as you taste it." Lin Yuan slowly sipped his tea.

"That's pretty much it, that's the gist of it."

"There are such detailed distinctions here? I've never heard them mention this before?"

"When people practice martial arts, they only care about strength and who's stronger. Unlike you and me, who love to ponder these literary things every day!"

Lin Yuan put down his teacup and laughed: "First, you must know what it is, then you must know why it is. Only in this way can you learn by analogy, and the path of martial arts will be easier."

"Junior brother, you always speak differently from others. No wonder you've been working so hard to master the fundamentals."

The two practiced martial arts together, and Hu Cai was not unaware of Lin Yuan's every move. However, as the second senior brother, he did not want to lose to his junior brothers, especially in combat.

"Doctor Meng said that we should focus on practicing the basics when tempering our bodies. Once we have a solid foundation, we can then consider practicing other skills. Do you think that makes sense?" Lin Yuan asked rhetorically.

"Of course there is! It's just that practicing for too long gets too boring."

"I will try my best to persist in things that make sense. I can't compare to the scions of powerful families, and if I practice blindly for a while, I'm likely to go astray." Lin Yuan didn't intend to lecture him; they were just exchanging ideas.

Hu Cai, who was somewhat perceptive, remained silent for a moment before saying, "Junior brother is right. I will now practice my basic skills more."

"Then you can practice on your own, I have to go to school."

"Today is the Winter Solstice, so school is closed."

"I forgot to tell you, my mentor wants to write a book and establish his own school of thought, so I'm assisting him."

"Huh?" Hu Cai immediately lost his composure. "Did Xu, that cheapskate, say anything about what benefits he'd give you?"

"My mentor said he would give me credit after the book is finished."

"Oh, that's good. So you're going to become a master of divination in the future?"

"It's not that easy to write. I'm just trying my luck. Let's talk about it later."