"Hand in your herbs! Hand in your herbs!"
As it grew dark, Zhao Tiezhu started shouting at the village entrance.
Five members from the warrior preparation camp had set up a long table. On the table sat five circular pans.
These pans were woven from bamboo, and they were usually used for sunning dates or herbs.
Three of the five pans were already filled.
People lined up to hand in the herbs they picked. A long-bearded elder identified each herb's age and rarity. He used a small scale to weigh the herbs before recording it down.
When it was Yi Yun and Jiang Xiaorou's turn, Yi Yun slowly handed his harvest over.
The bearded old man took a look and his eyes lit up, "Dan Guo! Black Fungus! Liquorice root! Wild Ginseng! These are good herbs!"
The elder looked at these expensive herbs as if they were his babies, and started stroking them the moment they entered his hands.
Yi Yun stood by the side and heaved a sigh of relief. This old man may be a herb expert, but he was unable to tell that the herbal essence had long been sucked dry by the Purple Crystal.
This was understandable. The herbs that were sucked dry by the Purple Crystal did not look any different from a recently picked herb.
"Hehe, kid you sure got lucky. You can keep your rations today!"
Zhao Tiezhu was very pleased seeing the herbs.
They were in charge of collecting the herbs, and they would received rewards from Lian Chengyu if the quality was high!
When Lian Chengyu began his meteoric rise in the future, his lackeys would have something to gain. He could enter the big city, and might even get a job in the city!
"I acknowledge the fact that you are a suitable medicine boy who possesses the natural talent to pick herbs. For me to send you picking herbs was due to my foresight, matching you to your best potential!"
"Surviving your previous accident has improved your herb picking skills. According to this standard, hand in another ounce of herbs tomorrow!" said Zhao Tiezhu as he smiled casually.
"What!?"
Jiang Xiaorou was enraged. Picking 16 oz of herbs was already extremely difficult, yet Zhao Tiezhu added more!
Jiang Xiaorou knew Yi Yun's herb picking speed was fast, and a tiny bit more would not matter to him. But knowing Zhao Tiezhu, it would be him "taking a yard when they gave him an inch". An accident would eventually happen!
"Warrior Zhao, you must be joking. These herbs were picked extremely arduously from my hard work all day. It's my all."
Yi Yun's intonation was extremely slow. As he moved his lips, his eyes were glancing at the three pans filled with herbs.
A layer of light dots had begun floating on the surface of the three pans.
These light dots were obviously drawn out by the Purple Crystal. They were like fireflies in the night, and floated slowly to Yi Yun.
An unnoticeable smile suffused on Yi Yun's face. The Purple Crystal needed some time to absorb the herbal essence. Zhao Tiezhu's bullshit was to Yi Yun's delight.
"Damn it You think I'm negotiating with you!?" Zhao Tiezhu slammed the table, giving the bearded old man a shock.
"You cheap folk only know how to eat. It's rare that there's something you trash could be used for, and here you are coming up with all sorts of excuses! The Lian tribe doesn't rear freeloaders. The people either be warriors, or do honest labor work! Hand over one more ounce of herbs tomorrow. Scram!"
Being scolded in the face by Zhao Tiezhu, Yi Yun's face scrunched up and his body froze.
The people around him understood that for a twelve year old child to be scolded so harshly in public, it would be an extreme blow for Yi Yun.
Zhao Tiezhu saw Yi Yun's face turn white. He wanted to tease further.
Jiang Xiaorou could not bear it anymore before pulling Yi Yun away. However, Yi Yun's feet were rooted in the ground and were immovable. It was as if he had turned to stone from Zhao Tiezhu's harsh words.
"I'm almost done absorbing… If I were to absorb anymore, Lian Chengyu will be suspicious."
Yi Yun was unfazed by Zhao Tiezhu. He was treating his words as a mad dog's barking. He was only concentrating on how much herbal essence he should absorb.
"Absorbing about 80% would do. I need to leave some soup for Lian Chengyu. Even a fool would be able to spot something amiss if such a large amount of herbs lacked any herbal essence."
Yi Yun could not go into conflict with the upper echelons of the Lian tribal clan. He may be able to get rid of Zhao Tiezhu, but he was still no match for people like the Patriarch or Lian Chengyu.
The herbal essence absorbed by the Purple Crystal quickly entered his bloodstream, circulating through Yi Yun's body, warming his channels. His body grew warmer and his face turned a hearty pink.
Yi Yun felt his body light with euphoria.
Yi Yun's appearance looked pathetic to the crowd. His face was red, and his limbs were limp. It must have been a result of Zhao Tiezhu's reprimanding.
"Poor kid. He's so young. He's being singled out because he opposed Zhao Tiezhu on the day of the ration distributions"
"This kid sure has a bitter life. His mother died shortly after they arrived in the Lian tribe. He's weak and prone to illnesses. He has no strength, he won't be able to resist Zhao Tiezhu."
"What's up with the people from the warrior preparation camp using the village. You guys think Young Master Lian Chengyu will really bring us into the city?"
"Shh, don't speak nonsense. If the people from the warrior preparation camp hear it, you'll be in shit luck!"
"I think this kid will get fixed to death sooner or later…"
It was common for people to fall to their deaths when picking herbs up in the mountains. The more expensive a herb, the higher it was. Yi Yun must have climbed up high, risking his life to hand over such high grade herbs. He was doomed to fall to his death going forward.
But so what if someone died in the Lian tribal clan? The lives of the people here were worthless.
…
Late at night, the moon hung in the sky like a silver hook.
In the Lian Patriarch's drug room, a few men were fanning the flames made from a large pile of timber under a big pot.
A few old men from the drug room were carefully arranging the herbs. They began brewing the herbal medicine made of several combinations of herbs and supplementary drugs.
The supplement drugs and heat were passed down confidentially in the Lian tribal clan. It was not to be known to the commoners. For if they knew how, they could secretly pick herbs and brew it for themselves.
The upper echelons of the Lian tribal clan felt that using herbs on the commoners was the same as using good grain to feed the pigs. It was useless.
Even the members of the warrior preparation camp did not have a chance to soak their body in herbs.
The herbal stew that was meticulously brewed was meant for Lian Chengyu.
"Good! Good! You did well this time. There were several good herbs collected!"
The Patriarch was very satisfied after looking at the herb roster.
"This is expected of little me," said Zhao Tiezhu nodded with a fawning smile. "It was ordered by the Patriarch and it concerns the future of Young Master Lian, little me would never dare to fail to comply. The moment I left the training grounds, little me ran to the herb mountain to supervise the picking of herbs. Even the cowardly ones had to climb up the cliffs. As such we had good luck finding the Black Fungus and Dan Guo."
Zhao Tiezhu took all the credit from Yi Yun.
"Not bad! You worked hard. Go to the warehouse and collect a catty of meat," the Patriarch patted Zhao Tiezhu on his shoulders.
"Thank you Patriarch!" said Zhao Tiezhu happily.
"Yes, do well. When Chengyu becomes a kingdom warrior, he will be in need of errand runners. If you are wise, you can get the appreciation of Chengyu. If you can be by his side, when Chengyu soars, you will definitely reap some of the benefits."
"Patriarch, thank you for your kind words!" Zhao Tiezhu knelt down kowtowing. He was inexplicably excited.
That kid Yi Yun was his lucky star. He didn't expect that little minion to be that good at picking herbs. In the future, he'd give him benefits like a tiny bit of herbal dreg and some rations. That poor kid would be so thankful receiving that tiny amount and would do everything as his slave horse!
Zhao Tiezhu walked off as he dreamed of his bright future in which he commanded the masses in the big city.
While the Lian tribal clan was brewing the herbal medicine, Yi Yun had secretly come to the back of the Lian Clan Herb Mountain.
Facing the moonlight, Yi Yun stood on a boulder like a pine tree.
Yi Yun had previously used the opportunity to absorb large amounts of herbal essence using the Purple Crystal when Zhao Tiezhu was collecting the herbs.
Now the herbal essence was surging through his body like a firestorm!
The best way to absorb the herbal essence was to cultivate. During the cultivation process, he would digest the herbal essence and train up his body!
Yi Yun slowly straightened his left foot, with his left hand grabbing his left ankle. With his right knee bent, his body bent like a bow.
This was the 'Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain' stance. Yi Yun had secretly learned the first six stances of the 'Dragon Rib Tiger Bone Fist' and he was able to gesture it accurately.
'Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain' crux was to tighten the body's tendons. Yi Yun kept pulling his body till it hurt before punching with a roar!
"Ka-cha!"
Yi Yun had punched through a small tree in front of him!
However such a result was not satisfactory for Yi Yun. He didn't want the power from the fist, but to be able to push his tendons to their maximum.
In the five levels of Mortal Blood, the first three levels, Valiant, Vigor and Thunderous were simply a measure of the martial artist's body conditions. Through continuous training of the flesh, organs and bones, the body's hidden potential will be revealed, resulting in the realm of Vigor and Thunderous. It was all a natural process and not something one could aim for.
Yi Yun understood that by mastering 'Dragon Rib Tiger Bone Fist', he would have no problems reaching the fifth level of Mortal Blood. Because based on what Yao Yuan said, 'Dragon Rib Tiger Bone Fist' was a basic technique that even a Purple Blood realm person could employ to great effect.
"Ka-cha!"
A clear snap. Yi Yun broke a thin pinetree with the thickness of a fully grown leg. His fists were bruised, but it didn't matter. The herbal essence that the Purple Crystal absorbed were gathering in Yi Yun's body, slowly spreading, becoming part of Yi Yun's strength.
Yi Yun loosened his fists before clenching his fists again!
Yi Yun practiced "The Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain" stance for the umpteenth time. Yi Yun's muscles were like a young tree sprout being watered, growing and thriving.
Yi Yun had trained from midnight to daybreak!
Despite the intense training, the Purple Crystal which had absorbed large amounts of herbal essence supplemented Yi Yun with the energy, causing him to be radiant and awake.
Yi Yun gave his all for every 'Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain' stance. His tendons were pulled to their extremes every time!
Such intense training was also demanding on Yi Yun.
His body was sore. Besides the soreness, his body had already expended all the herbal essence he had previously absorbed. The essence had blended into Yi Yun's flesh and blood. Yi Yun's tendons were repeatedly pulled, slowly making them more resilient.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Yi Yun did not know how many punches he had thrown. Because it was physically demanding, Yi Yun's eyesight became blurry. His perception deteriorated but the pain from his punches and the pulsing feeling from the pull of tendons were extremely clear!
Yi Yun entered a wonderful state. It was without distractions, a state of semi-consciousness.
He had forgotten everything. The only thing he could remember was his body's tendons. Imperceptibly, Yi Yun had formed a mind map of his tendons and muscles. It was a magical feeling.
In this state of selfless training, Yi Yun could 'see' his meridians.
Sweat rained down and his fists bled.
The sweat had misted his eyes while he heard the faint whistling of the wind. Yi Yun only felt an intense pressure in front of him.
In that second, Yi Yun managed to conjure a strength of unknown origins. He roared as his tendons were pulled to their extremes before shooting out a punch!
"Peng!"
Yi Yun's practice had uprooted the pine tree, scattering the wood!
Amidst the flying sawdust, Yi Yun's body had clearly made a soft 'Peng!' sound.
Although it wasn't loud, it was extremely crisp. Just like the twang of a bowstring, it was especially clear in the wide open night sky.
Tendons like bowstrings. So this is tendons like bowstrings…
Yi Yun fell onto the ground staring at the sky with his arms wide open.
That last punch had used up all of his energy!
Yi Yun breathed in deeply. His right fist was mangled red with blood, but the pain made him even more excited!
He knew that he had made small progress towards his 'Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain'!
This night was the first time he had practiced martial arts in his life. He was practicing the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom's top technique–'Dragon Rib Tiger Bone Fist'. The twang of a bowstring using his tendons from 'Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain' was something only a person with Mortal Blood level three, Thunderous, could produce.
But Yi Yun had managed to do it. Although it was soft, he was after all still in the realm of Valiant. He was also only twelve, his bones and muscles were incomparable to an adult's.
The results were not something any member of the warrior preparation camp could match. He had even exceeded Lian Chengyu's Valiant level from the past.
…
Yi Yun did not have a night's sleep, but so did the old man responsible for brewing the herbs in the Lian tribe drug room!
It took an entire night to brew the pot of herbs. Even the stones propping the pot up were red hot.
At dawn, a few strongmen came to pour out a large amount of black liquid from the pot.
This was the entire pot's essence.
"Hmm… these herbs are the best this time. We could still brew it another three times or so. Although it will be less effective, it's still extremely precious. You guys can use it to shower. The herbal dregs will be left for the commoners. It will be needed when the desolate bones are refined!"
The Lian tribal clan's imperfect brewing techniques could only obtain 20% of the herbs' essence. This was their limit.
And Lian Chengyu could only absorb half of the herbal essence obtained by the tribe through soaking.
Which was to say, Lian Chengyu could only absorb 10% of the herbal essence.
The ratio may sound low, but it was understandable. A normal person was unable to absorb a large percentage of the food they ate, not to mention herbs that were a hundred times harder to absorb.
The bucket of black herbal liquid was sent into Lian Chengyu's isolation chamber.
Lian Chengyu had already heard that valuable herbs like Dan Guo, wild ginseng, Black Fungus and licorice were in that pot of herbs!
Lian Chengyu's cultivation had reached the point of breakthrough. He was most in need of the herbs to enrich himself.
"Good! Good! It came just in time!"
Lian Chengyu looked at the black herbal liquid with a face full of excitement.
He disrobed and jumped into the hot liquid naked.
The temperature was above ninety degree celsius, sufficient to cook any meat. Even a Mortal Blood fifth level like Lian Chengyu felt pain all over his body.
But this temperature was the optimal temperature for absorbing the herbal essence. Such hot water could open up the pores and let the herbal liquid enter the warrior's body through his pores.
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