Chapter 109 A Prefecture-level city...

During dinner, Chen Yi met Xie Tingyun, Shen Huatang's senior sister.

The name is quite elegant.

However, she really didn't understand etiquette.

During dinner, she would unconsciously eat large mouthfuls of vegetables while staring intently at the meat.

Then, after being subtly kicked by Shen Huatang as a reminder, he showed a reluctant expression, sat up straight, and started eating in small bites.

Not only Chen Yi noticed this, but Xiao Wan'er also noticed it.

Perhaps she had interacted with Xie Tingyun during the day and had a general impression of him, which she found somewhat interesting.

Of course, this was just a minor interlude.

During the meal, the topic of conversation was mostly about the pharmacy's business.

Since signing the contract with Baicaotang, the business of several pharmacies owned by the Xiao family has been on the right track.

Xiao Wan'er was in a good mood.

During the few times they ate together, she was able to exchange a few words with Chen Yi.

Or it could be about the recent accounting situation of the pharmacy, or how the managers of the other pharmacies are doing.

Chen Yi naturally understood her intention; he knew she wanted to share some experience and methods so that he could adapt to the role of the pharmacy manager as soon as possible.

Perhaps she still hoped that he would manage the Jishi Pharmacy well, so that he could gain face in front of the Xiao family.

Many within the Xiao family did not think highly of Chen Yi, believing that as a scholar, he would be too proud to lower himself to be the manager of a pharmacy.

This is a stereotype.

The social hierarchy is: scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. Merchants are generally looked down upon.

Therefore, Chen Yi was not surprised that the Xiao family and those who knew his situation would have such thoughts.

However, Xiao Wan'er didn't mention any of these things tonight.

"Has Jishi Pharmacy noticed anything unusual recently?" Xiao Wan'er asked while eating ginseng soup to nourish her yang energy.

Chen Yi pretended to think for a moment, then shook his head: "Nothing unusual. It's been raining for days, and most of the people in the shop are craftsmen seeking shelter from the rain."

He smiled and turned to tell the interesting story he had heard that afternoon: "They said that the most powerful person in the martial arts world is called 'Master Bai'."

"Have you heard of the saying, 'Listening to the misty rain in the Wind and Rain Tower, one becomes invincible in the martial world'?"

Xiao Wan'er seemed surprised by this turn of events, and after a slight pause, she said she didn't know.

Then she looked at Shen Huatang and Xie Tingyun: "Do you know?"

"Master Bai? How come people in the martial arts world don't know him?"

Xie Tingyun subconsciously uttered a phrase in the local dialect of Shu Prefecture, glanced at the silent Shen Huatang, and continued in a more serious tone:

"Master Bai is a senior figure in the martial arts world. He has been famous for fifty years and has always been a legendary figure. I heard that he entered the realm of terrestrial immortals very early on."

"With a wave of his hand, he can turn the clouds and rain upside down, and has the power to move mountains and fill seas."

"However, in recent decades, few people have seen him again, and no one has heard of him fighting with anyone."

At this point, Xie Tingyun looked at Chen Yi: "Young Master, you...you're interested in matters of the martial world?"

Chen Yi said with a smile, "It's interesting to hear those craftsmen talk about telling fortunes."

Xie Tingyun raised an eyebrow, a hint of delight on his face. Just as he was about to speak, he felt a kick to his foot and could only cough, "Hmm... indeed interesting."

She looked at Shen Huatang with resentment, opened her mouth as if to say a few words silently.

Shen Huatang ignored her and pondered, "Miss, what Wang Ji said during the day might be true, we must be careful."

Xiao Wan'er naturally had this plan, and nodded, saying, "Starting tomorrow, you will lead a group to inspect the medicine hall."

Seemingly realizing that this was all so abrupt, she offered a few words of explanation to Chen Yi:

"At noon, Wang Ji came to the manor seeking help, saying that the Huanyin Sect was going to take action against Baicaotang and hoped that the manor could lend a hand."

Chen Yi nodded knowingly, "No wonder you asked that earlier, but I didn't find anything unusual at Jishi Pharmacy."

As soon as he finished speaking, Xie Tingyun muttered under his breath, "If a scholar like you had noticed this, the Huan Yin Sect would have been wiped out long ago."

"..."

Chen Yi chuckled to himself; this woman was indeed straightforward.

Xiao Wan'er heard this too, and smiled, saying, "My brother-in-law is indeed not good at martial arts."

Realizing he had misspoke, Xie Tingyun grinned, and under Shen Huatang's helpless gaze, stood up and bowed, saying:

"Well, tonight I'll just wander around the city and check on the surroundings of Baicaotang and a few other pharmacies."

Xiao Wan'er nodded upon hearing this and said, "Very well, thank you for coming all this way, Fairy Tingyun."

"It's alright, it's alright."

Xie Tingyun waved his hand, then paused again, glanced at Shen Huatang, and respectfully took his leave.

Before leaving, she also took a roasted chicken leg with her.

As Shen Huatang watched her walk away, she stood up and said, "Miss, I'll take some people with me to go and see."

Xiao Wan'er thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "In that case, you should directly inform the people in the Punishment Hall and tell them to be careful as well."

Shen Huatang bowed and turned to leave.

Chen Yi simply watched quietly and finished the soup in his bowl.

After a moment of silence, he asked, "The reappearance of the Illusionary Sound Sect, and targeting the Hundred Herbs Hall again, suggests that it is being orchestrated by people from the Shu Prefecture."

Xiao Wan'er hummed in agreement, then said vaguely, "I don't know the specifics. It was all handled by my grandfather and second grandfather with the people from the Criminal Investigation Department."

"Brother-in-law, don't worry about it. Just stay at home for now and go to the pharmacy when things have calmed down."

Chen Yi had this intention, so he stood up and bowed like Shen Huatang: "I will obey Miss's order and return to Chunhe Garden now."

Xiao Wan'er looked at him acting strangely and scolded him, "Even if you don't leave the manor, you should still care about the pharmacy business. It's not like Liu Quan can't come to the manor."

Chen Yi smiled and nodded, then led Xiao Wuge back to Chunhe Garden.

Xiao Wan'er watched the two people, one big and one small, leave quietly, her smile gradually fading.

Silently, I lowered my head and drank the ginseng soup, feeling a strange unease in my mouth.

Back to Chunhe Garden.

Xiao Wuge glanced around and whispered, "Brother-in-law, I have a secret to tell you."

"Um?"

"Sister Xie Tingyun is Sister Huatang's senior sister. Her martial arts skills are very powerful."

Chen Yi had long suspected that Xie Tingyun was skilled in martial arts, but he wasn't sure of the specifics. He smiled and asked, "You saw it?"

Xiao Wuge nodded repeatedly, "She can retrieve objects from a distance."

As he spoke, he made a dragon claw gesture to pull back, "That way, the thing is in her hands."

After listening, Chen Yi thought to himself, "This seems to be a wonderful use of true essence."

"Release true essence externally? It doesn't seem to require a very high level of cultivation."

Xiao Wuge, however, was very interested in this. As he followed him back to the wooden building, he gestured, saying, "I wish I were this good too."

Chen Yi patted his head, "After you've completed your marrow cleansing and foundation building at age six, you'll naturally be able to too."

Xiao Wuge chuckled twice, but his smile quickly turned into a somber expression.

"When I turn six, I can no longer stay in Shuzhou; I have to go to Jinling."

As he spoke, he brought up the old matter again, looking at Chen Yi hopefully: "Brother-in-law, are you really not planning to come to Jinling with me?"

Chen Yi thought for a moment, but did not refuse directly. He just smiled and said that he would wait and see how things were going in the manor next year.

This answer was already quite perfunctory, but it still made Xiao Wuge very happy.

Chen Yi smiled and asked Xiao Die to help him wash up.

To everyone's surprise, Xiaodie brought over a bowl of ginger tea first, saying, "Young master, the humidity is high on rainy days..."

Chen Yi looked at the still steaming ginger tea, did not refuse, and drank it all.

Xiao Die happily accepted the teacup and led Xiao Wuge upstairs.

Chen Yi watched the two walk away, touched his stomach, and felt his true energy flow through his dantian and dantian, dissipating the warmth of the ginger tea.

Now that he has achieved mastery in martial arts, some things are actually bad for him if he eats too much of them.

In particular, he is skilled not only in martial arts, but also in medicine.

The human body needs a balance of Yin and Yang to maintain harmony.

Whether yang energy increases or decreases, or yin energy increases or decreases, it will affect the human body, so we always need to pay attention to it.

After Xiaodie and Xiao Wuge had rested.

Chen Yi then got up and began his cultivation as usual.

He temporarily stopped practicing his fist, footwork, and spear techniques, and devoted all his time to practicing the Four Symbols Technique.

He continued practicing until midnight, completing six full cycles of the exercises before finally concluding his practice.

After carefully comprehending the profound mysteries of martial arts in his mind, Chen Yi stood up and went to the window.

At this moment, the downpour subsided slightly, leaving only a light drizzle.

The wind was quite strong, and you could see the blurry outline of the bamboo forest in the distance, swaying from side to side.

"To reach the eighth rank, one needs to open up the eight main meridians and the Ren and Du meridians."

"Now all that's missing is the Ren and Du meridians."

Within just two days of acquiring the Four Symbols Technique, Chen Yi's cultivation level had made significant progress.

He progressed directly from the middle stage of the eighth rank to the upper stage, and now he is about to reach perfection. His progress is remarkably rapid.

"Upon reaching the seventh rank, one should be able to unleash the full power of the Falling Dragon Spear."

As Chen Yi pondered this, he silently made a note of his plan to find a suitable weapon in the future, preferably one that was inconspicuous and could be hidden away.

Before long, midnight arrived—

[Daily Intelligence - Mid-Grade Earth Rank: At 1:15 PM, the Hundred Herbs Hall suffers a calamity. Many opportunities may be gained.]

Chen Yi glanced at it, "Earth-level, huh..."

(End of this chapter)