Comprehending Myriad Techniques as Woodcutter

’Damn it, I hate people like that.’

Situ Qin couldn’t quite make out his rustic slang, but she understood his general meaning. She smiled.

"Alright, alright. Look, your medicine is here."

Xie Yuan turned to look and saw a serving girl bringing in a medicinal soup. The concoction was brownish-yellow, yet it emitted a faint golden glow, looking utterly miraculous.

His spirits lifted. He rose to his full height and took his leave from Situ Qin.

"Please enjoy your zither practice, Miss Qin. I’m going back to focus on my own training."

Situ Qin smiled, nodded, and gave a gentle wave.

Xie Yuan took the medicinal soup himself and strode out of the waterside pavilion.

Behind him, the music of the zither started anew, its melodious cadence slowly fading into the distance.

Xie Yuan returned to his guest room. After regulating his breathing for a moment, he picked up the bowl and downed the medicine in one gulp.

Even after so much time had passed, the liquid was still scalding hot. The moment it entered his stomach, an inaudible BOOM seemed to resound, setting Xie Yuan’s entire body on fire.

Xie Yuan felt as if a ball of fire was burning in his stomach, spreading searing heat to his every limb and bone. His entire body instantly turned bright red.

With a muffled groan, beads of sweat as large as peas rolled down his forehead like rain.

’Hold your breath, focus your mind, and recite the incantation!’

After all, Xie Yuan had been training for some time and possessed a firm will. He endured the discomfort, forcibly calmed his mind, and began circulating the Static Posture Heart Method of his Nourishing Health Art.

Thus guided, the medicinal power began to flow, circulating through his meridians with his internal breath and surging through his blood vessels with his Blood Qi, being refined again and again.

Time passed slowly. The heat inside his body dissipated bit by bit, gradually being absorbed into his system.

Xie Yuan gradually grew accustomed to the sensation. Though his body was still burning hot, his breathing became increasingly steady as he immersed himself in his training, digesting the medicinal liquid.

「Three days later.」

Xie Yuan opened his eyes, and a flash of golden light seemed to flicker within their depths before vanishing.

He exhaled a long breath, one that lasted for the time it would take to drink a cup of tea. A normal person would have suffocated long ago.

The temperature in the room rose slightly. After exhaling the last indigestible dregs of medicinal power, Xie Yuan finally concluded his meditation and stood up.

[Chopping Wood: (7465/10000)]

[Golden Bell Shield - 2nd Layer: (869/1000)]

[Nourishing Health Art - 4th Layer: (16/4000)]

[Eight Trigrams Mountain-Shaking Fist - Proficient: (135/1000)]

[Moon-Cutting Axe - Proficient: (69/1000)]

[Rushing Wolf Saber Skill - Perfected]

[Celestial Concealment Skill - Initiate: (73/1000)]

[Black Celestial Book: (???/???)]

Seeing the massive changes before him, especially the incredible progress in his foundational cultivation art, Xie Yuan clenched his fist tightly!

The effects of the Nine Yang Flower concoction were clear and abundant. For someone at his current level, the medicinal power was so potent he couldn’t even fully absorb it all.

Xie Yuan’s Blood Qi had been boosted by a huge margin, his Bone Forging was nearly complete, and as a result, his Golden Bell Shield progress had also skyrocketed.

Among the four stages of External Training, Bone Forging was not as technically difficult as Tendon Stretching. It was, however, the final stage. This was partly due to the natural progression of external arts from the outside in, but mostly because it required an immense amount of Blood Qi.

It was easy to imagine just how abundant one’s Blood Qi had to be to strengthen all several hundred bones in the body to the point of a qualitative transformation.

That was why many Third Training Martial Artists had to spend a great deal of time building up their reserves, preparing for the moment they could finally make the breakthrough.

No matter how talented Xie Yuan was, this slow, grinding process of accumulation was not something that could be accomplished overnight.

However, by relying on this earthly treasure, he had directly overcome the most difficult part, achieving in a single day what should have taken ages!

His Blood Qi had surged, his Golden Bell Shield progress had leaped forward, and Xie Yuan’s physical strength had grown by an immeasurable amount. He felt power coursing through his entire being.

And that wasn’t even the most pleasant surprise. After all, the Nine Yang Flower replenished a person both internally and externally.

Xie Yuan never expected that Situ Qin’s recipe, combined with the Nine Yang Flower, would push his Nourishing Health Art directly into the next realm, reaching the 4th Layer!

This brought about a complete transformation in his abilities. His Inner Power had always been the foundation of his invincibility against peers of the same rank, and every breakthrough brought a massive boost.

Xie Yuan swung his arms through the air a few times. They felt both light and brimming with power. His abilities were on a completely different level now.

’The rewards from this trip to Yunzhou Prefecture have been absolutely staggering. On top of that, there’s the mysterious Celestial Concealment Skill... Hmm, that high-intensity "hand-holding" session at the Inspector General’s residence boosted its progress by nearly a hundred points.’

’This escort mission went completely off the rails, but the results were a resounding success.’

The only exception was the setback at the hands of Lu the Third... but he would be repaid in due time.

As Xie Yuan excitedly took stock of his gains from the trip, a nagging feeling crept in. He felt like he was forgetting something.

As he thought, his hand slowly lowered, and his brow began to furrow.

BANG! He threw the door open and asked the startled serving girl at the entrance:

"How many days was I in there?"

"T-three days, Master Xie."

"Three days?!?"