From a country cook to a master chef

Lin Jue quickly closed the book and looked at the girl with anticipation.

The Golden Lotus of Emerging Earth is extremely rare. If he could obtain this precious medicine and combine it with the Breakthrough Pill from the martial arts school, he would have a great chance of advancing to the Martial Master level.

The Four Symbols Martial Arts Academy is now surrounded by hidden enemies. Reaching the Martial Master level as soon as possible will be of great benefit to both the academy and oneself.

"My name is Lin Jue, a disciple of Master Liu of the Four Symbols Martial Arts School. If you know the location of this medicine, I am willing to pay a large sum of money for the information you provide."

The girl was somewhat surprised, but then generously said, "There's no need for a large sum of money, but that place is often infested with wolves and is extremely dangerous. I'm not sure if the medicinal herbs you need are there."

Upon hearing the girl's words, Lin Jue immediately felt that this matter was feasible, and clasped his hands in a salute: "To be honest, this medicine is very important to me. If you know where it is, even if there is only a sliver of hope, I am willing to risk trying it."

"In that case, I can tell you about that place, but I have one more condition."

"Please speak freely, young lady."

The girl lowered her head and fiddled with her fingers, saying somewhat shyly in a soft voice, "Meridian-clearing grass, I would like to ask you to pick a Meridian-clearing grass for me."

Looking up, she saw Lin Jue looking astonished. The girl's face was flushed. She gently brushed aside the messy hair that covered her eyebrows, took out a square wooden box from the stall behind her, and handed it over. "The wild beasts in Wolf Smoke Valley are ferocious. This is my family's heirloom beast-repelling incense, which can help you."

Lin Jue took the wooden box from her body, and as they approached, a delicate, feminine fragrance wafted towards them.

His face suddenly flushed red, and he quickly took two steps back, his heart still beating faster than usual.

Having calmed himself down, Lin Jue said earnestly, "If it's just a single Meridian Opening Grass, I can agree to your request. Now, please tell me, where exactly is that place?"

"It's not that I don't trust you, but these are chaotic times, and one must be wary of others. Before I tell you anything, shouldn't you leave something with me as collateral?"

The girl's eyes were filled with anticipation. The Meridian Opening Grass was also of great importance to her. If it weren't for the fact that the place was too dangerous and that she was a girl, she would have been willing to risk going into the valley to collect the herb herself.

Lin Jue understood the girl's worries and said with a smile, "Of course. I have some jewelry here, so I'll leave it with you as collateral."

"That place is called Wolf Smoke Valley, located west of Yucheng, about thirty miles from here."

The girl calmly accepted the jewelry bag Lin Jue handed her, then simply bent down and searched for something under the stall.

As she bent over, Lin Jue, looking down at her, saw clearly the glimpse of spring in the girl's eyes, which made his heart race again and his face turn bright red.

The girl searched around the stall for a while, then finally stood up with satisfaction, beaming: "This is a rough map of Wolf Smoke Valley, drawn by my grandfather. It marks the specific locations of some of the medicinal herbs."

Upon hearing this, Lin Jue was overjoyed and took the map to examine it carefully.

"Moneywort, Black Bone Vine, Rock Pot Bean, Vein-Clearing Grass... and Golden Lotus, this is wonderful."

The map drawn by the young girl's grandfather not only clearly marked the location of some medicinal herbs, but also thoughtfully included their shapes for future generations to refer to.

"In that case, if you successfully harvest the Meridian Opening Grass, you can come here to find me. I will set up a stall here on the 2nd, 5th and 8th of every month."

After agreeing on the time and place to meet, Lin Jue stuffed the book into his pocket and chased after Liu Ruyan ahead.

"Wolf Smoke Valley?"

After listening to what Lin Jue said, Liu Ruyan frowned and said, "I heard my father say that Wolf Smoke Valley is not only inhabited by various wild beasts, but may also contain even more dangerous monsters, making it extremely perilous."

"Everything has its share of good and bad fortune. We have already searched the entire medicine market, but we are missing about 70% of the medicinal materials we need. We can probably only find the rest in Wolf Smoke Valley."

Before they knew it, the two had returned to the entrance of the martial arts school. Lin Jue planned to listen to his master Liu Yue's opinion. Upon learning that his senior brother Wang Lingzhi's injuries had worsened, the brothers immediately decided to venture into Wolf Smoke Valley.

At 3 p.m., under Liu Yue’s personal guidance, Lin Jue completed the Songhe Changquan Eight Paths Seventy-Two Gates Stance Exercises in just half an hour, without making a single mistake.

"Now that your movement techniques have reached a certain level, let me test how well you've improved your eyesight."

As Liu Yue spoke, he disappeared into the bamboo forest. When he came out, he grabbed a handful of bamboo leaves and threw them forcefully into the air. "Count how many leaves there are."

"Eighty-nine pieces!"

"No, it's ninety pieces!"

Liu Yue opened his fist, and there was a bamboo leaf in his hand.

"Remember, no matter what, your gaze should not be limited to one place. Only when you can truly see in all directions can you be considered to have mastered your eyesight."

Lin Jue immediately nodded and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Master."

"Um."

Liu Yue responded and led Lin Jue to the backyard of the martial arts school. In the spacious backyard, there were wooden stakes of varying heights standing densely, with an iron ball hanging from each stake.

Liu Yue leaped onto the shortest wooden stake, striking a steady, upright pose, and declared in a loud voice, "This is my unique suspended plum blossom stake technique, which can simultaneously train body movements, hand techniques, and eyesight."

"When practicing, walk with the ball suspended in the air, follow the ball with your eyes, and move your hand in sync with your eyes."

Liu Yue personally demonstrated, the speed of the swaying ball increased with each punch, but even so, he could easily cope with it, using skill to neutralize the brute force of the iron ball.

"Remember, follow the ball with your eyes, and your hand will move accordingly."

Lin Jue nodded, stood on the plum blossom stake thoughtfully, and imitated his master's posture, also striking a pose of standing on one leg like a golden rooster. However, after only a few moves, he was knocked off the stake by the iron ball.

With a determined look in his eyes, he stubbornly tried again and again. After repeated failures, he finally grasped a bit of the technique of the suspended ball plum blossom stake.

Follow the ball with your eyes, and at the same time, your breathing should not be disturbed by the iron ball. Focus your mind on your dantian and keep your breathing steady.

If you need to hold your breath, you can't hold it for too long; you need to find a proper balance between relaxation and pressure.

With this insight, Lin Jue's fighting improved dramatically, earning Liu Yue's repeated nods of approval. "Truly worthy of being my disciple!"

"You learned the suspended plum blossom stake technique in less than an hour. Putting aside your physical advantages, your martial arts talent is truly the best I have ever seen. Even Lingzhi cannot compare to you in this respect."

"Master, you flatter me. Senior Brother's martial arts are superb. Lin Jue still has much to learn from him."

Lin Jue was humble and sincere, and Liu Yue nodded in satisfaction, saying, "That's right, being neither arrogant nor impatient is the martial virtue that a martial artist should have."

"With your awareness, I feel even more at ease about your journey to Wolf Smoke Valley."

Liu Yue smiled, turned and left. He had already taught Lin Jue ninety percent of the techniques of movement, hand, eye and footwork, except for footwork. Footwork is the speed of the feet, and it is impossible to break through in a short time. He could only teach Lin Jue more when he returned from Wolf Smoke Valley.

It was getting late, and thinking about his upcoming trip to Wolf Smoke Valley to gather herbs, Lin Jue practiced the suspended ball plum blossom stakes one more time before hurriedly leaving the martial arts school and returning to his residence in Jiming Lane.

On the way, he made a trip to Jing'anfang and, after much trouble, finally managed to buy a bundle of animal-attracting incense commonly used by hunters.

When he returned to Jiming Lane at night, he pushed open the courtyard gate and saw that the courtyard was full of firewood, all of which were thoughtfully covered with a layer of oil paper used for wrapping food to make it waterproof.

Lin Jue was dumbfounded.

Who put so much firewood in my yard?