Divine Tang Era

Whenever she had free time, Little Magpie would always bring Black Bear to lie behind the doors and windows on the second floor and peek out through the cracks.

Today was no exception, except that besides peeking, she also had to wait for her Brother Xu.

Suddenly, a figure appeared in sight. Little Magpie happily ran downstairs and shouted, "Mother, Brother Xu is back! Come and open the door!"

"Okay!"

Yunniang wiped her hands and hurriedly ran out of the kitchen. Opening the door, she saw Xu Dan carrying a large pile of things on his back and shoulders, and immediately went to help. As she unloaded the basket, she said with concern, "Young master, why are you carrying so much stuff? Didn't you ask for help?"

"It's nothing, just a little something, I can carry it," Xu Dan said with a smile.

"Brother Xu." Little Magpie happily jumped into Xu Dan's arms, opening her arms for a hug.

Xu Dan picked her up and asked, "How was school today? Was it fun? Did anyone bully you?"

Little Magpie said proudly, "No one bullies me, and the teacher even praised me. Brother Xu, school is so much fun! I practiced my boxing once in class, and many people praised me for being amazing. There was even a chubby boy who wanted to become my student, but I refused. Silly boy, I don't like being his student."

Seeing her charming and adorable appearance, Xu Dan couldn't help but nuzzle her cheek.

"As long as no one bullies us, we won't bully others, understand?"

"Yes, I understand." Little Magpie nodded vigorously.

After playing with the little one for a while, Xu Dan put her down, went outside to buy a wine jar, put the honey from his basket into it, and then took it to the grain storage room. He specifically told Yun Niang and Xiao Que'er to take some when they wanted to eat, so they wouldn't be afraid to touch it. He put the remaining honey into his storage bag and carried it with him.

It was getting late, and most of the shops in the city had already closed.

Since the herbs couldn't be sold immediately, Xu Dan put them away and planned to sell them the next day.

On the way back, he was focused on his journey and didn't rest much. Although he wasn't tired, he was a bit dirty, so Xu Dan went to take a shower and have dinner.

As night fell and the moon rose, its light spilled down, draping the earth in a thin veil. Xu Dan stood in the courtyard, circulating the Northern Dark Tortoise's Sun and Moon Ingestion Technique, which he had obtained from the Mingfeng Pavilion Master, drawing down the essence of the moon bit by bit and swallowing it into his belly.

Suddenly, a pulling force came from my heart, drawing all the essence of the moon in and then releasing it.

With each inflow and outflow, the moon's essence becomes much purer.

The heart pounded, and the golden lotus at the center shimmered, as if it had come to life.

Xu Dan suddenly remembered that he could breathe and exhale while holding the Crimson Flame Giant Shield the other day, so he took out the giant shield from his storage ring, held it up, and practiced the Standing Cauldron Sealing Furnace Technique while breathing and exhaling. The Standing Cauldron Sealing Furnace Technique is a stance training method that cultivates qi and blood; the Northern Darkness Black Tortoise's Sun and Moon Inhalation and Exhalation Method is about absorbing the essence of the sun and moon to cultivate qi. The two are not incompatible, so they can be practiced together.

Within the blood vessels, qi and blood surge like waves.

One wave pushes another, one swarm squeezes another, rushing headlong into the Qi and Blood Golden Cauldron.

The illusory golden cauldron gradually took shape and slowly solidified.

The spiritual energy condensed within the meridians was compressed by pressure, causing fragments to fall off and transform into spiritual energy. This spiritual energy did not enter the dantian, but instead rushed into the blood and qi, replenishing them and making them even stronger. The blood waves surged violently, like a thousand horses galloping, crashing fiercely into the illusory image of the golden cauldron of blood and qi.

"boom"

Another golden cauldron was formed, making four golden cauldrons, with four thousand mighty forces.

Xu Dan raised the hand holding the Crimson Flame Shield a little higher.

With this lift, an immense force pressed down on his body, causing his blood and qi to become wild and gradually boil, like the tide of the Qiantang River, wave after wave, howling and roaring, desperately rushing towards the re-condensed golden cauldron phantom.

The boiling blood and qi steamed the water vapor, turning it into white mist that rose from Xu Dan's head.

At that moment, Xu Dan looked as if he were being boiled in fire, his entire body covered in blood.

Just then, a stream of moonlight essence was drawn down, refined by the golden lotus at his heart, and flowed into his dantian. Xu Dan's body, which had been boiling in crimson flames, felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over him on a sweltering day, bringing him immense relief. The boiling blood and qi in his veins subsided somewhat, but the outward raging waves disappeared, replaced by undercurrents that swirled and propelled his blood and qi forward relentlessly.

Sensing something was wrong with his body, Xu Dan frowned.

When the Master of Mingfeng Pavilion gave him the two cultivation techniques, he didn't mention this matter. Could it be that he practiced them incorrectly?

Xu Dan closed his eyes, focusing his inner and outer pupils together, revealing his double pupils. Looking inside his body, his internal organs, large and small intestines, limbs, bones, meridians, and blood vessels all came into view. After carefully examining his body for a while, he found nothing wrong.

Conversely, blood vessels expand and widen under the impact of qi and blood, allowing them to hold more blood.

The blood also became more abundant, stronger, and thicker, seemingly trending towards the transformation of lead and mercury in legend.

The changes in the blood caused changes in the flesh, bones, and bone marrow that coexisted with it. These changes were all for the better. After checking and finding nothing wrong, he resumed his cultivation.

Xu Dan had trained at the Mo Family Martial Arts School more than once, so early the next morning, he sold the herbs he had picked the day before to He Rong.

Their shop will take anything as long as it's profitable.

Of course, the prices would be lower than at places like Mingfenglou, but higher than at market stalls. To avoid being forced to tell stories by Lizhu at Mingfenglou, Xu Dan sold the herbs to He Rong. Fortunately, they were acquaintances, and He Rong offered a higher price than others. In return, Xu Dan also gave him a jar of honey harvested the day before.

Neighbors should get along well to maintain a good relationship; if they're always complaining, no one will be happy living together.

After dinner, Xu Dan took Xiao Que'er to the martial arts school.

Now the little one has officially begun her early childhood commute, but she doesn't find it tiring at all; on the contrary, she's very happy because she has many good friends to play with at both the martial arts school and the academy. Xu Dan feels that she treats both places like a joyful kindergarten.

Upon entering the martial arts school, he handed her over to the senior instructor and headed towards the teaching building.

Now, these martial arts disciples who gather herbs have been gathered together.

After gaining experience, those who no longer wish to practice martial arts can leave their schools to make a living on their own, or be assigned by the martial arts school to work as escorts or guards.

"You all did a good job gathering herbs yesterday, but some of you weren't. Even though I taught you how to heal your wounds, some of you were still wailing and screaming for help. If your senior brother hadn't rushed over, you would all have been eaten by wild beasts in the forest."

Upon hearing Lu Shizong's reprimand, some people lowered their heads in shame.

In light of the martial arts students' performance yesterday, Lu Shizong explained to everyone again how to treat the wound.

Not only that, he also told everyone how to prevent mosquito bites, how to treat snake bites, and how to deal with attacks from wild animals. He hadn't talked about these things before, and it was unclear whether he was deliberately waiting until everyone encountered them to share them, so as not to be unenthusiastic. Now, upon hearing what he said, everyone's eyes lit up, afraid of missing a single word.

It is said that there were no mosquitoes in Jingning City in the past.

Mosquitoes thrive in dark, damp environments, while Jingning has a dry climate with strong ultraviolet radiation, which is detrimental to their growth. Furthermore, Jingning is located in a high-altitude area with low air pressure, making it difficult for mosquitoes, which primarily feed on blood, to find blood there, hence their rarity.

Later, people realized that Jingning was a treasure trove, and they all came to dig for treasures and pan for gold, bringing mosquitoes and other insects with them.

This claim has been proven false by locals. Mosquitoes have existed in Jingning for a long time, but they are rare in warm, humid, and dark places, even rarer than protected animals.

Lu Shizong not only taught how to deal with mosquitoes, poisonous snakes, and wild beasts, but also gave prescriptions and taught everyone how to make them.

If you don't want to buy the medicine yourself, you can also purchase it at the martial arts school's pharmacy.

The pharmacy offered cheaper over-the-counter medicines, but to buy them, one had to exchange them for herbs they had gathered themselves, a practice many disciples agreed to. Xu Dan, wanting to avoid the hassle, also bought his medicine from the pharmacy.

After a day of rest, we will continue collecting herbs the next day.

The training wasn't just about gathering herbs. Once everyone was familiar with the process, Lu Shizong began leading the martial arts school disciples on hunts, not just of ordinary wild animals, but also of demonic beasts.