Chapter 88: Deeds Exposed, Clash with Mountain Wind

[Consuming inferior delicacies increases proficiency by 31]

Only those who possess the ability to digest refined food are qualified to pursue a "complete transformation".

Li Xian sat cross-legged on the spot, circulating his Qi throughout his body, consolidating his blood and closing his pores. Although the blood flow was slow, the pores were not completely closed.

He barely touched upon the mystery of the "closed aperture," but found it difficult to control it freely.

But I felt the essence of heaven and earth flowing like a clear stream, fine as a hair, thin as a cicada's wing, beginning to spread through my body. It was far inferior to the "essence soup" and "essence meat" of the last time.

Starting from the abdomen, it travels through the flesh and bones. When passing through the major acupoints of the body, its speed is slowed by the circulating Qi.

But it couldn't last long. The essence of heaven and earth crossed the Qi, dispersed to the skin, emerged from the pores, and returned to the world.

"Last time I consumed the essence of the food, I was not able to circulate my Qi throughout my body. I felt that the essence of heaven and earth disappeared in the blink of an eye, like a gust of wind."

"Now I can not only circulate my Qi throughout my body, but I can also achieve a semi-step in solidifying my blood and closing my orifices. This allows the essence of heaven and earth to remain in my body for a little longer."

The changes before and after are significant, and the progress is evident.

"However... the essence of heaven and earth is still difficult to absorb. Commander Pang said that in order to absorb it, the essence of heaven and earth needs to be washed through this clay body again and again."

"Unconsciously, you can absorb half of it, and gradually, you will be able to reach the threshold of consuming essence."

"But before that, I'd better make sure the hole is completely closed, otherwise wouldn't it be a complete waste?"

"The treasures of heaven and earth are so precious. I have no way to get here, but I am extremely lucky. The more so, the more I should cherish them."

"Commander Pang, I don't know how long you've helped Madam, or how much time you've endured to achieve what you have today. I still need to keep a steady mindset and take things one step at a time."

When one consumes the crab roe of a mountain crab, the essence of heaven and earth is barely perceptible. However, once it enters the stomach, the skill [consumption] takes effect, increasing its power by more than 30% imperceptibly.

This is what allows the essence to condense into threads, giving it a concrete and tangible form.

There were only two mountain crabs left, both of which were already cooked. It would be a waste not to eat them, so Li Xian had no choice but to open the crab shells and eat the crab roe one by one.

Circulate Qi throughout the body, solidify blood... do your best to close the orifices. So that the essence of heaven and earth can be preserved for as long as possible, every extra breath counts.

Finally, drink the soup. It has a milky white color, a sweet taste, and after entering the stomach, it contains "the essence of heaven and earth" as fine as a hair.

"Could these mountain crabs be miniature demons?"

After Li Xian had eaten and drunk his fill, he extinguished the fire and buried the crab shells scattered on the ground. Suddenly, he had a premonition and wondered:

"If that's the case, wouldn't there be large demons in the mountains?"

"Once I have completely 'closed my orifices,' I will risk my life again to go up the mountain and catch some more to eat, no matter what demons there are."

"It's always better to rely on yourself than to rely on others!"

It was already broad daylight by then.

Li Xian, carrying a large pot, was hurrying towards the wooden house. The stream was not far from the wooden house; after walking five or six miles and crossing a hill, the outline of the wooden house would come into view.

A woman was pacing back and forth in front of the house, looking anxious.

"Aunt Zhang, were you looking for me?" Li Xian asked.

This woman is Zhang Tiezi's wife; Li Xian recognizes her.

"Grandpa, Grandpa, you're finally back!" Aunt Zhang was overjoyed to see Li Xian, but then her expression tightened and she became anxious again.

"What happened?" Li Xian asked, frowning.

Aunt Zhang said, "This matter needs to be explained starting from last night. Sir, please come with me."

She led the way towards the village entrance.

Li Xian looked around and noticed something was amiss. At this time of day, the village would usually be filled with conversation, but today it was eerily quiet.

Aunt Zhang said, "Yesterday morning, I took two or three sisters and several men to town to sell some fruits and wild vegetables to supplement our household income."

"It was already dark when I got back. When I arrived at the village chief's house, there were several strong horses parked there—one, two, three… I can't remember exactly. I looked closely and realized, 'Aren't these the horses from the Mountain Wind Village gang? Why have they come back again?'"

“My husband was so scared that his legs were trembling. I was relatively calm, though. I knew there was a hill behind the village chief’s house, where the vegetation was dense and you could see into the house. I was brave enough to hide there and see what was going on.”

"It's fortunate that this happened, otherwise I would have been in danger."

Li Xian already had a guess. As the two entered the village, there was chicken feathers everywhere, but hardly any people were to be seen, which meant that something had happened.

Li Xian asked, "Tell me in detail what exactly happened."

Aunt Zhang, still shaken, recounted the scene...

It turns out that last night, Peng Fox, the third leader of Shanfeng Village and a strategist, personally led his men down the mountain to Heihe Village.

At that time, the villagers, young and old, were all in the house.

Peng the Fox, dressed in a fox fur coat, was playing with walnuts in his hands. He had a long face, thin eyebrows, thin lips, and a short nose. He said, "Today is the chieftain's birthday. You are under the chieftain's protection. Shouldn't you show your appreciation?"

Uncle Fu said, "May the chieftain of Heihe Village live as long as the Southern Mountains, be immortal, and have boundless blessings..."

Peng the Fox said, "What's the use of these empty words? What I mean is silver, rice, or at the very least, a pretty girl from some family."

Then he added, “Today is a joyous day, so I won’t make things difficult for you. If your village can hand over the silver, I’ll leave immediately. Maybe I can even put in a good word for you and save you from having to come back so often. Of course, that depends on your sincerity.”

Uncle Fu said, "Ah! Since that's the case, I'll offer my entire fortune to celebrate the chieftain's birthday." He then took out one tael of silver.

"One tael of silver?" Peng Fox laughed. "It's not a small amount, but it's unlucky. How about this, the chieftain is fifty-three this year. If you can come up with three taels of silver, I'll guarantee you four years of peace and stability."

At this point, their murderous intent was already evident.

As fate would have it, Fang Yaozi had recently performed a meritorious service and was rewarded with a few taels of silver by the chieftain.

Peng the Fox descended the mountain and visited each of the surrounding villages. He used the same excuse to ask each village for money as a test.

If someone can produce three taels of silver, they must be the real culprit. Even if they aren't, we'll treat them as such.

A country bumpkin is short-sighted, lacking wisdom and strategy. He only cares about immediate gains and is easily tricked.

"Really?" Uncle Fu was feeling guilty and wanted to get rid of the bandits as soon as possible.

On one hand, there's a glimmer of hope; if a few taels of silver could guarantee several years of peace, then even if this year brings cold and hunger, as long as they endure it, they can enjoy a comfortable life next year.

As for where the silver came from, he thought of an explanation and said it came from selling cattle.

So he took out the remaining two silver coins.

Little did they know, once that fox Peng accepted the silver, what further explanation would he need?

He smiled meaningfully, "Truly, the sea is immeasurable; it has broadened my horizons."

Then, the tone shifted abruptly: "The Black River Village attacked and killed members of the Mountain Wind Stronghold. The entire village was captured and brought back to the stronghold!"

Uncle Fu was shocked and knelt down to explain. However, his explanation was full of holes and was easily seen through by Peng the Fox.

Aunt Zhang hid in the back mountain and luckily escaped the disaster.

...

Aunt Zhang was a rural peasant woman, so her account was bound to be inaccurate. But Li Xian knew the inside story, so she quickly sketched out the general outline clearly.

"According to Aunt Zhang's account, the bandits deliberately tricked Uncle Fu and the others. Uncle Fu fell for their scheme and exposed the truth."

"It's no wonder that Uncle Fu was fooled. Although he was old and experienced, he lacked vision. It's normal that he was deceived and his tricks were exposed."

"It seems that there are some exceptionally intelligent people in Shanfeng Village. We must be careful."

Li Xian felt deeply troubled.

"Grandpa, what...what do we do now? They were all captured and taken back to the mountain stronghold last night. Could they all be killed?" Aunt Zhang cried.

"Calm down." Li Xian paused for a moment, then asked, "How far is Shanfeng Village from here?"

"About fifty or sixty li away, on that Golden Wind Mountain," Aunt Zhang pointed eastward.

"We shouldn't have reached the mountain stronghold yet," Li Xian analyzed calmly. The snowy mountain paths were difficult to traverse, and fifty or sixty li was already an extremely long distance.

If you rush there now, there might be a chance to save them.

"If I let them be killed, firstly, the madam will definitely blame me."

"Secondly, I killed the bandits, and now that my deeds have been exposed, they will still come looking for revenge... I can't stay in this mountain village any longer. Mountain crab treasures, tiger and bear paws are not for me."

"Instead of being passive, we should take the initiative, rescue the villagers, turn them into armed forces, and increase our strength."

"Whether it's for my own benefit, my own conscience, or anything else, I'm willing to give it a try."

(End of this chapter)