I am about to die of old age, and I have awakened the character of longevity.

Chapter 50: Advance or Retreat
After bidding farewell to Zhou Xing, Xie An took the silver and went to the black market to find the shopkeeper Wang and bought three sets of tiger skin soup.

Shopkeeper Wang was the owner of the largest herbal medicine shop on the black market. He had become familiar with Xie An over the past few months, but he was a stubborn person. Even though he knew Xie An was a butler, he refused to lower the price and still asked for 20 taels per pair.

However, Xie An knew that Manager Wang was an honest man. He would never shortchange the medicines or mix in defective herbs. The efficacy of the medicines was guaranteed and was definitely better than the Tiger Skin Yuan Tang medicine on the market.

After taking the medicine, Xie An returned to his own villa.

He drew a few buckets of cool well water, heated it up and poured it into the bathtub, then poured in a bowl of Tiger Skin Yuan Soup. The various medicinal herbs in it were quickly soaked by the hot water, emitting a strong medicinal aroma.

It smells a bit pungent and not very pleasant, but once you get used to it, you'll think it's a medicinal scent.

"That's almost it."

Xie An smelled the medicine and checked the color of the medicine in the tub. Knowing that the time was right, he took off his clothes, sat in the tub, and began his medicinal bath.

Although Xie An has now entered the Bronze Skin Realm, he still needs to take medicinal baths in Tiger Skin Yuan Tang regularly to further strengthen his skin membrane and increase his strength.

Now that the Plum Blossom Monster has set its sights on the black market, Xie An is under increasing pressure. He just wants to improve his strength as quickly as possible.

Xie An, who has a long life character, is not in a hurry at all.

He knew very well that he just needed to develop slowly.

If you don’t have enough talent, you have to work hard to make it happen.

There is nothing you can't afford to waste.

Taking advantage of the intervals between medicinal baths, Xie An sat down cross-legged and began to practice fetal breathing. The hairs on his skin began to tremble slightly.

Among the three methods of fetal breathing, the sign of success is breathing through the navel.

Xie An had already entered the second stage of the fetal breathing exercise, and the Yin-Yang interaction was almost halfway through. He could already make eye contact, sense each other, and regulate each other's breathing.

He has entered the second stage of the interaction between yin and yang: the interaction between the heart and the kidneys.

The so-called interaction between the heart and kidney is what Fetal Breathing Qigong believes: the mind is yin within yang, and the kidney qi is yang within yin. Interacting the heart and kidney produces essence and qi, which transforms into body fluids to irrigate the five internal organs.

It just so happens that the so-called body fluids irrigating the five internal organs can complement and promote each other with the internal strengthening of the five internal organs by the Five Animal Exercises.

Now Xie An's Five Animal Exercises for strengthening the five internal organs has reached 98, and is only two points away from the full limit.

Xie An put his mind at ease and tried to break through the last two points as quickly as possible.

Hu Hu Hu.

After taking a few breaths, Xie An closed his mouth and nose.

Relying closely on the breathing through the navel to maintain circulation, and then stimulate the connection between the heart and kidneys, the hairs on the surface of the skin spontaneously fluttered, as if being blown by some force.

"When the skin pores can breathe, it will be a sign that the heart and kidney are connected. Don't rush, take your time..."

The daytime passed quickly.

As dusk falls and the black market is about to open, the young men become busy again.

Xie An also ended the medicinal bath in time.

Open the panel:

[Current longevity level: Level 1!]

[Five Animal Exercises: Strengthens the Five Internal Organs (99/100)] [Fetal Breathing Exercise: Intercourse of Yin and Yang (47/100)]

[Remaining Years: 30]

"Hmm? The Five Animal Exercises actually improved by a point!"

Xie An was delighted.

According to Xie An's past experience, the closer to the full quota, the more difficult it is to improve progress.

"It seems the two major health-preserving exercises can indeed enhance each other. Once I have fully strengthened my five internal organs, I can enter the final stage of the Five Animal Exercises - cultivating internal Qi! By then, I should be able to cultivate the so-called Qi sensation. Then, I might be able to go to Tang Family Fort and strive for that opportunity."

Thinking of this, Xie An smiled.

It’s a pity that there has been little progress in martial arts training.

Xie An already knew that he had no talent for martial arts, so he kept a positive attitude.

"Brother!"

There was a knock on the door from outside.

Xie An changed into his uniform robe and opened the door to welcome Zhang Lin in.

Zhang Lin asked as soon as he entered the room, "Brother, Zhou Xing told me that you're letting the black market open today?"

Xie An knew Zhang Lin was frightened, so he gave his two reasons:

Firstly, if we close the black market, the huge losses will have to be borne by the two of them, and Wei Dian will think that we two deacons are incompetent and cowardly.

Secondly, the most urgent thing is to find out the information about the Plum Blossom Monster and report it to Wei Dian so that he can respond. Instead of panicking and reporting as soon as something happens...

After hearing this, Zhang Lin couldn't help but look at Xie An with admiration. "Brother, you are really thoughtful. I was too impulsive before. As for patrolling, we will follow your instructions. We are the ones in charge of the Tiger and Wolf Sect. As long as we make proper preparations, the Plum Blossom Monster may not have a chance to take advantage of us."

No matter how powerful the Plum Blossom Monster is, it can't stand up to a large number of people. The most feared thing is being left alone...

Xie An agreed. "Brother Zhang, please remember not to act alone. I'm an expert in archery. I'll bring a heavy bow and lurk behind you."

Zhang Lin immediately recalled the amazing archery skills Xie An had displayed during the test. He felt much more at ease and bowed in thanks, "With my elder brother behind me, I have nothing to worry about."

After finalizing the details of the plan, Xie An took out a heavy bow from the house, hung up the quiver, and then took the standard broadsword, and then went out with Zhang Lin.

Zhang Lin noticed that the heavy bow hanging from Xie An's waist was even thicker and stronger than the one he had used during the test. "This bow looks very strong. It's not a two-stone bow, is it?"

Xie An did not hide it, "I have gained strength from practicing martial arts in recent months, so I changed to a three-stone bow."

Zhang Lin felt more secure after hearing this. "Great! The Three Stone Bow is quite powerful. Even the Plum Blossom Monster might not be able to withstand it."

Xie An just smiled and said nothing more. After instructing Liang Zhi to keep an eye on the black market, Xie An followed Zhang Lin, Zhou Xing and others out, patrolling the nearby mountain roads in the night.

When they were halfway there, Xie An said to Zhang Lin, "Brother Zhang, I'm an archer, so I'm suitable to hide in the dark and follow."

"That's right. I have to rely on my brother's archery skills tonight." Zhang Lin said goodbye without thinking too much.

Xie An went into the woods on both sides of the mountain path and followed secretly.

(End of this chapter)