Am I the old man who's always by my apprentices' side?

Chapter 4 Cultivation of Immortality?

Where you come from is not important; what's important is that your master puts you to work.

Feeling grateful, Chang Ping'an obediently picked up the bowl of steaming hot meat soup.

At first, he didn't think much of it, but when the rich aroma of the broth wafted into his nose, a belated feeling of hunger instantly overwhelmed his brain.

Like Pigsy eating ginseng fruit, Chang Ping'an didn't even care that it was too hot to eat, and quickly swallowed a bowl of meat soup.

Moreover, calling it a bowl is not quite right. Although the container for holding soup is indeed only the size of a normal large bowl, it looks more like a clay pot with two handles, which is quite exquisite.

"Thank you, Master, I am full..."

Before Chang Ping'an could finish speaking, Zhang Chengdao produced another bowl of meat soup from somewhere. The "bowl" that he had finished earlier, just like the one left over after drinking the kudzu root soup that morning, disappeared in the blink of an eye after he finished the soup.

It’s really a magical method!

So when the "immortal" saw through his stubbornness and handed him another bowl of meat soup, Chang Ping'an didn't dare to say anything, silently accepted the soup, and drank it.

With food in his stomach, the hunger was somewhat relieved, and Chang Ping'an was able to savor the taste of the meat soup.

Rich and mellow, it seems like no spices were added, but the meat itself is very flavorful and has its own saltiness. Although it is a bit bland, it is an excellent bowl of meat soup overall.

Moreover, he had never eaten meat like this before.

Swordsmiths like them only had the chance to eat meat when they were working as blacksmiths, but that meat was fishy and smelly, and some even had a foul odor. It was no different from chewing wood. Although they seemed to remember it as delicious, it paled in comparison to the bowl of meat soup in front of them, which was a delicacy.

Is meat really this delicious?

Before I knew it, another bowl of meat soup was gone.

But Chang Pingan had barely put down his bowl when a third bowl of meat soup appeared before him.

Master truly lives up to his reputation as a deity!
Chang Ping'an felt even more awe.

He really hadn't eaten enough—as a swordsmith, he naturally had a large appetite, and since falling off the cliff yesterday and hanging on the tree all night, he hadn't eaten anything, not to mention the loss of strength after being seriously injured!
Two bowls of meat soup were barely enough to fill a tooth gap, but unexpectedly, his master noticed his predicament!
"Thank you Master!"

Chang Ping'an didn't say much and continued to drink the third bowl of meat soup.

And Zhang Chengdao...

Zhang Chengdao felt a little reluctant.

No matter what, Chang Ping'an's age in modern times would be the age to still be in school, but in this time and space he is bullied and can't even get enough to eat.

He wanted to feed his apprentice, but was limited by objective conditions and could only make some lean meat soup. After all, he couldn't guarantee that his self-created dishes would be filling, so he conservatively chose to rely on his golden finger to make some food that he could to feed his apprentice.

Even after feeding him three bowls of meat soup, the "starving" status bar was still flashing, indicating that he had quite a large appetite.

The saying "a half-grown boy can eat his father out of house and home" is really apt!
Then, one of them buried his head in the soup and drank it down while the other kept passing him soup, until they finished twelve bowls of meat soup. Only then did the "starving" status in Chang Ping'an's status bar finally disappear.

One set of beast meat is 30 portions, and one bowl of lean meat soup is made from one portion of beast meat. If Chang Ping'an's appetite is the same, the set of ingredients he drew will only last for one more meal, and his cheap apprentice will have to go hungry again.

And you can't just let them drink meat broth all the time, can you? In an instant, Zhang Chengdao suddenly felt that his cheap apprentice was not "cheap" at all.

So Zhang Chengdao picked up his building panel again and checked the buildings he could construct.

Because in the game, game accounts have levels, and each time you level up, you unlock the corresponding buildings.

To build more functional buildings, such as the [Grain Kitchen] or [Herbal Medicine Hall], you need to upgrade them to the corresponding level.

Zhang Chengdao is currently at level 1. To reach level 2, in addition to the campfire he has already created, he also needs to build a workbench and a thatched hut.

The former, like the campfire, is a functional building; having it allows you to craft planks. The latter is a dwelling, but since it's a basic thatched hut, it only provides shelter from the wind and rain.

In order to upgrade his cheat ability, Zhang Chengdao decisively handed the "Elementary Qi Refining Book" to Chang Ping'an, instructing him to study it on his own. Then he wandered around collecting materials, planning to secretly build these "buildings" and then dismantle them.

It was built to upgrade the cheat codes; demolishing it was purely a matter of saving face.

How could a proper master let his apprentice live in a thatched hut? That would be too shameful!

Chang Ping'an picked up the "Elementary Qi Refining Book" as if it were a treasure, and immediately buried himself in reading it, even exclaiming in amazement.

Because the cultivation system described in this manual is completely different from the martial arts of today!

He was completely engrossed in the rough introductions to various realms, such as Qi Refining, Foundation Building, Elixir Formation, Nascent Soul, Out-of-Body Transformation, Spirit Integration, Void Transformation, and Mahayana.

When Chang Ping'an read the lecture, he was so excited that his face turned red when he learned that once one reached the Foundation Establishment stage, one could separate water and shake mountains, and once one reached the Nascent Soul stage, one could move mountains and fill seas!
Turning to the next page, the book stated: "Those who draw qi into their bodies and achieve qi refinement are no longer like ordinary people, and their lifespan can approach two hundred years."

Upon seeing this sentence, Chang Ping'an couldn't help but gasp.

In the Great Xiao Kingdom, True Qi Martial Arts are divided into nine realms, from First-Rank Martial Artist to Ninth-Rank Martial Artist. Among them, the Ninth-Rank Martial Artist has the lowest cultivation level. For example, Chang Ping'an himself was a Ninth-Rank Martial Artist before his natal sword was destroyed and his True Qi meridians were severed.

An eighth-rank martial artist is roughly equivalent to an inner disciple of the Sword Forging Manor, while a seventh-rank martial artist is mostly at the level of a manager.

In fact, once you reach the seventh rank, you can be called a master. Together with the sixth rank, you can become the leader of some second-rate sects in the martial arts world.

Those above the fifth rank are top-notch experts, capable of leading a region independently within the imperial court.

The fourth rank is called the Acquired Venerable, and the third rank is called the Innate Venerable. Both are extremely rare cultivation levels. In the entire Great Xiao Kingdom, there are only a few dozen martial artists above the fourth rank.

As for the second and first ranks, they were respectively honored as Grandmaster and Great Grandmaster.

Chang Ping'an had only heard of martial artists at these two levels in legends. It was said in the martial arts world that there were no more than ten Grandmasters in the entire realm, and only four Great Grandmasters!
In martial arts, only those who cultivate to the level of Acquired Venerable or above can have a slightly longer lifespan. If nothing unexpected happens, they can live healthily to about seventy or eighty years old—which is already quite rare!

If it's a grandmaster or great grandmaster, I've heard that the great grandmaster from the previous dynasty was over 120 years old and still alive.

But apart from that, I've never heard of anyone living to be nearly two hundred years old!

To live to be two hundred years old... wouldn't that make you an immortal?!

(End of this chapter)