Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

Ma Xianhong still looked incredulous: "But your medical report is far superior to mine."

He shook the paper in his hand. "No, not just me, even if an ordinary human started training from the womb, it would be impossible to reach this level! This is unreasonable!"

Cheng Mo shrugged: "But that's how I am. And I heard that there's a guy who insists on doing 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats every day, plus a 10-kilometer run. After three years, he can punch through a street."

Ma Xianhong was astonished: "Is there such an extraordinary person in this world? Where is he? What is his name?"

Cheng Mo: "In the comics."

Ma Xianhong: "...Huh?"

Cheng Mo waved his hand with a smile: "Just kidding, Brother Ma. Don't make the atmosphere too tense."

Ma Xianhong: "..."

He rubbed his temples, looked at the report again, and finally accepted reality.

"Let's begin then," Ma Xianhong said. "Your physical condition is making me a little uncertain. Let's lower our expectations a bit."

Cheng Mo was very open-minded: "Brother Ma, there's no need to worry. I'm used to disappointment. It would be best if it succeeds, but it doesn't matter if it doesn't. Just do your best."

Since the parties involved had said so, Ma Xianhong was ready to proceed with the operation.

"Go in," he said, pointing to the body-refining furnace. "Try the lowest intensity first."

……

While Cheng Mo was still being tested on his physical abilities, Xia He grew bored. She already knew that Cheng Mo was incredibly strong, and she herself had no interest in participating in the test.

After looking around for a while, she decided to find a new place to live first.

Xia He wanted a house near the stream for easy access to water, and preferably one that was far away from other people so she would have more freedom of movement.

She walked around the village and found that the villagers lived quite far apart, but the houses closest to the stream were already occupied.

You either have to build it yourself or lower your expectations.

Xia He naturally chose to lower her requirements.

She found an empty house that was a little far from the creek but still relatively quiet, and then went back to the small house where she had stayed the night before to start moving.

Looking at the little wild boar hanging on the stove, Xia He hesitated for a long time before stuffing it into Cheng Mo's backpack.

This time, there was only one baby wild boar in the bag.

She carried two backpacks and ran towards the new house, clutching wet clothes. She made one trip, then came back a second time to get bedding.

The villagers, watching her hopping and skipping, couldn't help but shake their heads and sigh—what a waste of such beauty, being so tightly controlled by a man.

Upon arriving at the new house, Xia He took out the wild boar, secretly hung it under the roof beam, and then took her backpack to the stream to wash it.

The villagers sighed when they saw this—this girl had just washed clothes for that young man yesterday, and now she has to wash them again for moving. It's really...a tragedy.

After washing the bag and confirming that there was no more odor, Xia He happily returned home.

Back in the house, she looked at the empty room and felt something was missing. She got up again and went to borrow a wood-chopping knife from a nearby villager.

Because of the meal they had shared the previous night, and out of sympathy for the little girl, the villagers simply gave her the knife.

Xia He smiled and said, "Thank you, Uncle."

The villagers' expressions were somewhat complicated: "A young girl like you needs to take good care of herself when she's out there."

Xia He didn't seem to understand the villagers' implied meaning. She just hummed in agreement twice and skipped off into the woods.

She chose a tree of moderate thickness and chopped it down with her knife.

The blade pierced the wood with a dull thud. After chopping down the tree, she went to pick flowers—wild chrysanthemums, camellias, and some small purple flowers whose names she didn't know.

Carrying the wood and bouquet back into the house, Xia He whittled the wood into a frame and set up a simple flower stand by the window. She then placed the bouquet in bamboo tubes on the stand and put another vase of flowers in a corner of the room.

On the washstand were two bamboo cups, her pink toothbrush, and Cheng Mo's blue toothbrush, placed side by side with a hand's width between them.

The bedding was spread out in the two rooms, but she placed a copy of the Tao Te Ching by her bedside and a bottle of peppermint balm that she had brought with her by Cheng Mo's bedside.

Xia He looked at her arrangement and clapped her hands in satisfaction.

Yes, that looks much better.

……

Inside the Cultivation Hall.

After Cheng Mo entered the body-cultivating furnace and closed the lid, Ma Xianhong walked to the control panel, took a deep breath, and began operating it.

Old Ma placed his hands on several grooves on the tabletop, and a faint aura emanated from his body. This aura flowed along his arms into the control panel, activating the dense patterns on it.

hum-

A deep rumble came from inside the cultivation furnace, and the patterns on the outer wall of the furnace lit up one by one, with light flowing around. The surrounding pipes vibrated slightly, and the ore in the energy storage device began to release a soft halo.

Ma Xianhong closed his eyes and concentrated, using his own Qi as a guide, and carefully began to draw upon the Qi of heaven and earth through the complex system constructed by the Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements.

The air inside the hall seemed to thicken, and invisible energy began to converge towards the cultivation furnace.

Inside the furnace, Cheng Mo initially only felt that the air was fresher, but soon, a vibrant energy began to envelop him.

The feeling was like returning to the place where life was first conceived—warm, safe, and full of endless possibilities.

He naturally relaxed his body and mind, and with each breath, he seemed to be in sync with some grand rhythm, his blood and qi surging and emitting a deep, distant sound like thunder.

Very comfortable.

Gradually, Cheng Mo felt as if he had transformed into a clear spring, pure and transparent.

Then, an invisible force propelled the spring water, causing it to flow from top to bottom and from left to right, spreading throughout the world.

He was immersed in this wondrous experience, his consciousness somewhat hazy, just as he was anticipating the stream merging into a river and rushing into the sea—

Everything came to an abrupt end.

The thrust disappeared, and the warm embrace quickly cooled. Cheng Mo transformed from flowing water back into a clear spring, and then back into a person.

He opened his eyes, feeling lost and dejected.

Click... Sizzle!

A hissing sound rang out, the furnace door slid open, and outside light poured in.

Cheng Mo adjusted to the light, then ducked out of the cultivation furnace. He looked up and saw Ma Xianhong leaning against the control panel, panting heavily. He was swaying, pale, with sunken cheeks and bloodshot eyes, looking like someone who hadn't slept all night and had indulged in excessive sexual activity.

Cheng Mo was shocked and quickly took two steps forward: "Brother Ma! What happened to you?"

He looked up at the sky; the sun was already setting outside. "Could I have been inside for ten days or half a month?"

Ma Xianhong, panting heavily, said intermittently, "Just... half a day... I'm already... panting... unable to hold on... If you really stay inside... for ten days or half a month... I'm afraid... panting... you'll only be able to absorb my corpse..."

Cheng Mo asked curiously, "Corpses can be used too?"

Ma Xianhong: "...Hoo hoo...Your focus...is off track..."

Cheng Mo scratched his head sheepishly: "Hehe, sorry Brother Ma, I got a little excited. By the way, how come you're so weak after only half a day?"

Ma Xianhong waved his hand weakly: "I also...want to know...why...in just half a day...huff..."

He was so weak that he could barely speak.

Cheng Mo quickly supported his arm: "Brother Ma, you should stop talking for now, sit down and rest for a while. I'm really afraid you'll die from overwork."

He helped Ma Xianhong to a chair and carefully helped him sit down.

Just as the two had settled in, a loud clang came from the entrance of the hall.