Journey to the West: The Immortal Clan Begins by Feeding Monkeys at Five Elements Mountain

Chapter 93 Mountain Spring Revitalizing the Body
Jiang Yi didn't reply, but simply took the soup bowl and took a small sip.

Upon tasting the soup, the first sensation is a delicate sweetness, gentle and soothing, like snow melting in a clear spring.

Before he could even savor the sensation, he felt a heat in his dantian, and a surge of medicinal energy rushed up, directly to his chest and abdomen, making his ears turn red from the heat.

His eyes darkened, and he thought to himself that his previous caution was indeed correct.

If this soup is so bad, imagine what would happen if a mouthful of medicine were swallowed; one would probably be rolling on the ground, steam billowing from all seven orifices.

He turned to his wife and daughter and instructed them: "Drink slowly, take small sips. Medicine is good, but too much can be poisonous."

Liu Xiulian nodded in agreement, but the little maid Jiang Xi held the bowl and drank with a beaming smile.

Jiang Yi ignored it, picked up a chicken bone, took a bite, and sucked the last bit of meat clean.

It is indeed fragrant and potent, far superior to ordinary tonics.

However, compared to this miraculous soup, it ultimately pales in comparison.

With a "crunch," he chewed the bone and swallowed it, then tilted his head back and drank half a bowl of soup in one gulp.

The medicinal effects surged, a layer of red light rose on his face, and the blood and qi in his chest surged like waves crashing against a cliff, one after another.

Without blinking, Jiang Yi put down the bowl, got up, went out the door, walked to the eaves, and picked up the long stick.

With a slight shift in footwork and a turn of the knees and elbows, a sweeping motion of the staff sent the shadow of the staff flying through the air.

It was Jiang Ming's style of staff fighting, which was simple in technique but solid and forceful, and extremely demanding on internal energy.

This is the perfect time to refine the medicinal energy and also take the opportunity to refresh my skills, which I haven't mastered for a while.

As he practiced the staff techniques, his arms and legs became more fluid, and with each rise and fall of his strength, he could vaguely rediscover the skill he had acquired in his younger days.

But the burning sensation in his abdomen was still churning violently, showing no sign of dissipating.

Just then, footsteps came from the direction of the old house.

Jiang Yi put away his stick and looked up. It was the tall servant from Liu Family Village.

He still looked the same, thin and straight as a stick, with a cold and aloof gaze, devoid of any warmth or human touch.

Without saying much, he went around to the cold ground behind the courtyard and bent down to harvest the batch of Illusionary Yin Grass.

Before long, all the cold grass was packed into a basket. He clapped his hands, then carried the basket around to the foot of the mountain in front of the courtyard.

Standing outside the courtyard, without going in, he simply relayed the year and number of plants across the steps.

Jiang Yi glanced at it, nodded, and didn't even bother to look closely.

But then the servant suddenly spoke up again: "This matter this morning, plus the debts from the previous times, just covers the cost of that jar of Condensed Dew Wine."

"...Dewy Wine?"

Jiang Yi paused, turned around, and frowned slightly.

There was a hint of bewilderment in his tone.

The servant remained calm and said:
"This morning, Chief Jiang came to the manor and specifically requested a jar of the finest spirit wine, saying it would be put on Hancao's tab."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yi immediately recalled that when Jiang Ming went out to go up the mountain at noon, he did indeed have a plain-mouthed, rough porcelain jar tucked under his arm.

He didn't show it on his face, only nodding slightly, which was considered an admission of guilt.

After the servant bowed and left, his figure turning around the corner of the mountain, Jiang Yi finally withdrew his gaze, but a thought slowly began to ferment in his heart.

In the morning, there were two pots of medicinal soup in the kitchen. One pot had a light and elegant fragrance, while the other had a strong meaty aroma. The aromas went their separate ways, clearly distinct.

When the eldest son went up the mountain, he did indeed bring two food boxes, no more and no less.

The pot of fragrant wine was naturally sent to the one at the foot of the mountain.

But what about that pot of fragrant, oily food?
All that was left on the stove were a few scraps of bone, not even a speck of meat.

If we're talking about keeping things to oneself, the eldest son isn't the type to be greedy and steal food.

Even if he did have selfish thoughts, with his physique, he couldn't handle that pot of spiritual soup.

A thought suddenly occurred to Jiang Yi, and he stopped in his tracks.

It was my own oversight.

There's more than just one figure in the back mountains...

Upon realizing this, a sudden chill ran through me.

He immediately composed himself, calmed his mind, and forcefully suppressed the chaotic thoughts. He stopped speculating, silently returned to his room, drank some soup, and picked up the stick again.

As the stick dances, the mind remains calm, without questioning, thinking, or speculating, letting things take their course.

That night, Jiang Ming did not return home.

It wasn't until the next day when dawn broke that Jiang Yi saw his eldest son staggering out of the mountain path.

His steps were unsteady, as if he were walking on the wind, with a few beads of sweat on his forehead, his brows slightly furrowed, but he couldn't suppress the smile on his lips.

It was like a hint of joy hidden in drunkenness, yet one's feet were still dangling.

Jiang Yi watched from afar, a slight chill running through him.

That jar of dew-condensed wine was truly no ordinary brew.

If it were ordinary wine, even if he drank the whole jar, with Jiang Ming's constitution, he would sober up completely in no time.

But judging from his current appearance, it's clear that the effects of the spiritual wine haven't worn off, and his blood and energy are still circulating in his meridians, indicating that he's not quite done yet.

Jiang Ming entered the courtyard, respectfully called out "Father," his face calm and composed, and then turned and went back into the house.

He changed his clothes, washed his face, and rinsed his mouth in one go. Finally, he slung his schoolbag over his shoulder and headed to school without looking back.

Jiang Yi stood by the spirit field, watching his figure sway and recede into the distance, his heart as calm as still water.

The sun had barely moved past its zenith when Jiang Ming returned home early after the court session.

He had barely stepped inside when he put down his book bag, rolled up his sleeves, grabbed a hoe, and headed towards the back of the mountain.

They didn't return until the dead of night, when they finally crept back unnoticed.

Mud clung to his clothes, leaves clung to his sleeves, and his shoes were damp and soft from his footsteps; he was enveloped in the scent of mountains and water, a blend of spiritual energy and aura.

He didn't say anything, and Jiang Yi didn't ask.

We continued with the usual seedling cultivation, tilling of the land, feeding of chickens, and irrigation of the fields.

Day after day, the sky remained the same, and life went on as usual, as if nothing had happened.

This sneaky behavior continued for three days without stopping.

It wasn't until the rooster crowed for the second time that morning that Jiang Yi got out of bed and put on his clothes.

He slung the hoe over his shoulder and, as usual, began patrolling the land in front of and behind the house.

As soon as I turned the corner past the orchard behind the yard, I realized something was wrong.

Beyond the mountain boundary, where the spring was once located, now has a shallow groove.

It's about the width of a palm, two inches deep, and diagonally across, like a line of water dug out by a child playing.

Clear water meandered through the bottom of the ditch, flowing gently and slowly, as if it had a spirit of its own, flowing happily on its own.

Jiang Yi raised an eyebrow, paused slightly, and squatted down to feel it more closely.

I could feel a hint of spirituality in the clear, cool water vapor; it was indeed a spring from the back mountain.

Following the waterline closely, one can see that at the end of the groove, there is a dense forest where vines hang low and grasses dance wildly.

The newly dug channel is inconspicuous and cleverly hidden.

The water meanders around the back of the mountain, flowing gently out in front of the orchard without encroaching on the mountain's boundaries in the slightest.

The rain nourishes the soil silently and steadily, as if giving this land a new lifeline.

Jiang Yi's eyes lit up, and he immediately understood.

With this water vein, there is no need to fetch water or irrigate; this sacred land will be bathed in spiritual energy every day.

Moisture washes over the earth, and spiritual energy arises spontaneously.

Those few spirit fruit trees seemed to have drunk their fill of the clear dew, their branches and leaves stretching out, their colors becoming even more translucent.

When the wind blows, the branches rustle, sounding as if someone is laughing and talking on the branches.

The spiritual energy lingered among the intertwined roots, then slowly seeped into the adjacent medicinal field, spreading inch by inch along the soil veins.

This is like a gentle, continuous flow of water, nourishing things silently.

Compared to carrying things on my shoulders and in my hands every day, it saves me a lot of effort and speeds up the refining process.

(End of this chapter)