Chapter 75: Leisure for half a day, the immortals stay in the altar
November is already halfway over.
Today is the day the weather warms up, and it's also the day to receive our wages.
There was a long queue in front of the accounting office. Li Xian was invited by Bao Yongkang, Jia Jie and Kong Sun, who lived with him, to go together.
The three of them were clearly trying to intimidate others.
Being able to speak with a second-class guard is an extremely honorable thing. Fighting and brawling among martial artists is commonplace. The strong bullying the weak is even more prevalent.
The law of the jungle dictates that the weak naturally gravitate towards the strong. This is the way of survival, and there is nothing shameful about it.
Li Xian understood what the three were thinking and didn't mind helping them out.
Half an hour later, they reached the front of the procession, crossed the threshold, and entered the accounting office.
"Class B Guardian, Li Xian."
"The total monthly salary is 620 coins, plus one Tiger Red Pill."
The accountant, Uncle Xiang, glanced at him. He recognized Li Xian and had a deep impression of him. Before Li Xian could speak, he handed him a cloth bag.
It contained copper coins and elixirs.
"Thank you, Uncle Xiang." Li Xian weighed the cloth bag in his hand, overjoyed to have more money in his account.
"I'm doing this for the lady, it's what I deserve, there's no need for thanks," Uncle Xiang smiled, waved his hand, and gestured for Li Xian to get on with his work.
Li Xian carefully counted his money, including his odds and ends and today's wages, totaling one tael and five hundred coins.
Tiger Crimson Pills are standard issue for the B Academy, with one available each month. This is because the lady is refining the "Extreme Body Pill," and the Tiger Crimson Pill is a byproduct with a very large production volume. Since the lady doesn't need it, it is naturally distributed downwards.
This pill costs a little over one tael. It is made by boiling the internal organs of a tiger, and its medicinal effect is mediocre. After taking it, the whole body feels hot and the skin turns red.
At this time, practicing martial arts, with the body rippled by the lake, leads to faster progress.
"I have now circulated my Qi throughout my body, and I am not far from the Jia Academy."
"If there is another competition for guards, I can take it a step further."
Li Xian pondered for a moment, then strolled through the courtyard until he reached a lake. He drew his sword and gently stirred the water.
I took a break today, balancing work and rest, and wasn't feeling tired. So I wandered around the courtyard.
The lake was surrounded by lush green willows, a scene completely unlike any winter landscape.
"I've heard that there's a hot spring vein below the village, in a very good location with warm air."
Li Xian muttered to himself.
Before I knew it, I arrived at the large, horizontal tree I had seen during my first patrol.
He has already achieved some proficiency in martial arts.
Looking at the broken tree again, the feeling was completely different; I even felt a faint stinging pain in my eyes, as if an invisible sword was stabbing at me.
"Looking at it this way, the difference is really huge."
"I wonder what it will be like when Madam goes all out."
"I've also heard that martial artists consume essence, and some lucky ones are chosen by heaven, their physiques change, and they will show special characteristics."
"These many things can only be gleaned from Commander Pang's oral account. Who knows when we will be able to see and hear them for ourselves?"
Li Xian sighed, recalling the matter of the "Immortal in the Altar." Although he had no good feelings towards Li Haitang and the others, it was still good that the "Immortal in the Altar" was cruel and bloodthirsty and could be brought to justice as soon as possible.
Don't get too close, turn around and drive away.
He has been steadily improving his martial arts skills without any slackening. His progress in the Four Directions Fist, the Gentle Breeze Leg, and the Azure Palm is obvious, but there has been no major breakthrough yet.
After circulating his Qi throughout his body, he began to try "consolidating blood and closing the orifices," but he had neither a mentor nor any experience, and was completely clueless. He wanted to find Pang Long, but he didn't know how to ask.
"I'm fifteen this year, and I've only been practicing martial arts for two or three months. My Qi circulation is too fast."
One should always be wary of others. The specific methods for securing blood and closing the orifices can only be inquired about indirectly first, without arousing suspicion.
"If I can't find the answer for the time being, it's good to take this time to reflect. Besides, I'm still practicing martial arts, and my skills are still improving."
Li Xian calmed himself down.
...
That noon, Li Xian gathered his team, equipped them with knives and dried biscuits, and set out on patrol.
"Mr. Li, please go first."
The third-class guard in the same unit was as obsequious and ingratiating as ever.
"We're patrolling Dongnong Village today, everyone follow me."
"Keep your eyes open."
Li Xian gave a shout and began patrolling the mountain along the eastern side. When he got hungry, he ate flatbread and drank water; if that wasn't enough, he would eat some dried bear meat.
The turmoil has subsided today.
The road is not difficult to walk.
"Mr. Li, could I have a piece of your dried meat to try?"
The nurse ate some dry biscuits, but was still incredibly hungry. Seeing Li Xian chewing on dried meat from time to time, she finally couldn't resist and mustered up the courage to ask him.
"Woolen cloth."
Li Xian opened the meat bag.
The meat of bear, tiger, and deer was all shaved into strips and smoked into jerky. He had already eaten most of it by now.
Only ten pieces of tiger jerky and three pieces of bear jerky remained. As for venison, it was long gone.
Eating venison results in the least increase in [eating] proficiency. However, venison has the best taste, with a milky aroma and a smoky flavor, making it a satisfying snack.
On the contrary, tiger meat and bear meat are better. Tiger meat has a lot of tough tendons, making it hard to eat; bear meat has a fishy smell and is not very delicious.
There are still many of these two types of dried meat left.
"Deliciousness and health benefits cannot coexist."
Li Xian was really tired of eating it, so he simply distributed the extra dried meat to the guards.
The guards on patrol, already accustomed to hunger, naturally treasured the food and chewed it with relish.
"Master Li is magnanimous."
"Lord Li is mighty!"
The crowd praised him repeatedly.
"Eat your fill and continue patrolling. Go early and come back early."
Li Xian called out.
Upon arriving at "Dongcun Village," the lady owned over a thousand acres of farmland. However, the area also contained farmland belonging to other prominent families in the county, such as the "Lin Family" and the "Huang Family."
They stood close together.
The patrols of the guards were mainly to check whether the Lin and Huang families had illegally encroached on the land.
"Grandpa...Grandpa..."
While patrolling the fields, I suddenly saw an old man approaching me, trembling.
"Hey, is that how you address someone as 'Grandpa'? You should call him 'Grandpa'..."
The First Division was about to reprimand them.
Li Xian slightly raised her hand, and Bing Yuan immediately fell silent and took a step back.
"Old man, please speak," Li Xian asked.
"Ah! Madam." The old man was flattered and his knees buckled, about to kneel down and kowtow.
Li Xian slightly raised his hand, placing the scabbard against the old man's knee. His inner energy circulated, holding the old man in place; the old man still wanted to kneel, but he couldn't.
"Old man, you're not young anymore. I can't accept calling me 'Grandpa' anymore. Just call me Director Yi," Li Xian said with a smile.
"Yi...Yi Yuan?" the old man called tentatively. Seeing that Li Xian's face was kind, he became a little bolder. "Yi Yuan sir, this...this matter, I would like to ask you to report to Madam."
"Oh?" Li Xian asked, "What is it? Tell me slowly and clearly."
"It's like this," the old man said fearfully, "recently..." "our village has been haunted. Several people have disappeared one after another, and we haven't even seen a trace of them."
"At first, we thought they were tigers, leopards, wolves, and jackals, so we set traps, but we caught nothing. Instead, even more people went missing. And you know what? Most of the missing people were young adults, children, and women. We old folks, on the other hand, were all fine."
"What are we going to do? These old bones of ours, even if we wanted to work, we wouldn't be able to by next spring."
"Please inform Madam of her situation and try to think of a solution!"
Li Xian frowned: "Is that so?"
“Absolutely true,” the old man nodded.
After some negotiation, Li Xian went to the scene to check and found that there were indeed quite a few missing people in the village, but there were no clues. He had no choice but to give up and promised to return to the village to report.
Having patrolled this far, Li Xian gave the order to return to the village. The old man, fearing that Li Xian might not take it to heart, specially brought a basket of eggs.
Li Xian refused to accept the money and went straight back.
On the way, pondering the strange things, a chill crept into my heart.
"Could it be... that immortal in the altar is still in Qingning County?"
The sensation was extremely strong.
(End of this chapter)
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