Ten-odd days passed in the blink of an eye.
On this day, before it was even time to get up in the morning, Lu Changsheng arose early.
He hurried over to the secluded corner where he practiced martial arts at night.
The sky was still dim, but a faint glimmer of dawn had begun to show.
Lu Changsheng had woken so early to practice the Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique.
For more than ten days, he had persistently trained in the Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique, and nearly every day he could hear the blood in his body coursing like a rushing river.
He knew the day he would sense his qi and blood was not far off.
Perhaps it would happen in these very few days.
Because of that, he practiced martial arts with even greater diligence.
As usual, Lu Changsheng assumed the bizarre postures of the Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique.
Instantly, the blood inside him surged as if a torrent were rushing through.
Moreover, the sound grew louder and louder until Lu Changsheng's entire body turned bright red.
Boom!
The next instant, a roar echoed in Lu Changsheng's mind.
A vision appeared before his inner sight.
He seemed able to "see" a mass of bright-red blood coursing through his body in a distinct pattern.
"Qi and blood—this is qi and blood!"
Lu Changsheng was overjoyed.
He had finally sensed his qi and blood, achieving initiation in the Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique.
However, upon sensing it closely, Lu Changsheng had a sudden realization: he had been mistaken before.
Qi and blood was not ordinary blood.
What he had been hearing was not the flow of physical blood either, but his qi and blood.
Qi and blood was a special energy within the body that nourished the physical form.
The stronger one's qi and blood, the sturdier one's body became.
Lu Changsheng immediately checked his attribute panel.
Host: Lu Changsheng
Comprehension: 99 (Mediocre)
Basic Saber Technique: Minor Mastery
Basic Sword Technique: Minor Mastery
Basic Staff Technique: Minor Mastery
Tiger Pounce Hand: Major Mastery
Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique: First Layer
On the attribute panel, the Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique had indeed been initiated, stepping into the first layer.
In Lu Changsheng's perception, his qi and blood was only a tiny clump right now.
Yet with time, as he cultivated the Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique, he would be able to steadily build and expand this mass of qi and blood.
The Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique had three layers in all, and Lu Changsheng had only reached the first.
Reaching the first layer counted as initiation; he no longer had to practice those bizarre postures every day.
He could now directly take control of his qi and blood to circulate it through his body.
Lu Changsheng gave it a try and indeed saw his qi and blood circulate through his body, round after round.
Yet after a few cycles, his qi and blood had not grown noticeably.
Instead, Lu Changsheng felt an overwhelming hunger, his entire body gripped by discomfort.
"Elder Liu once said that building qi and blood requires tonic nourishment. That's why the martial artists in the guard team need daily medicinal cuisine—to supply what is needed to grow their qi and blood.
"Since I didn't make it into the guard team and don't have medicinal cuisine, my qi and blood will grow at a snail's pace.
"At this rate, I'm afraid I won't even reach the second layer of the Great River Blood-Strengthening Technique in several years."
Lu Changsheng frowned.
Even though he had now sensed his qi and blood, he still could not enter the guard team.
Taking this long just to sense qi and blood was viewed by the guard team as having poor aptitude, unworthy of being nurtured.
There was another option: buying medicinal cuisine.
The medicinal cuisine used by the guard team was actually quite ordinary and could be purchased from outside pharmacies. As long as one had silver, one could buy it on one's own.
Crucially, Lu Changsheng had no silver.
Not to mention silver, he did not even possess a single copper coin.
"I have to find a way to earn money."
Lu Changsheng turned it over in his mind. As a chore apprentice, he received no wages whatsoever.
Besides, leaving Miaoshou Garden was out of the question.
After all, chore apprentices had signed indenture contracts with Miaoshou Garden. If someone fled and was captured, they could be beaten to death on the spot.
Of course, the indenture contracts had a term limit.
The period seemed to be three years.
Three years was the maximum allowed by the authorities, who did not permit anyone to keep permanent slaves.
Thus, an indenture contract could last three years at most, after which it had to be converted into an employment contract.
From that perspective, the authorities were fairly decent.
At least Lu Changsheng would not have to remain an apprentice at Miaoshou Garden for the rest of his life.
Still, if he could not consume medicinal cuisine for three whole years, Lu Changsheng would suffer a tremendous loss. He had no desire to see his martial arts stagnate without progress for three years.
Lu Changsheng spent several days thinking it over without coming up with a good idea, so he could only shelve the matter for now and take things one step at a time.
"Rise and shine! Up, everyone!"
On this day, just like usual, the apprentices gathered in the square.
Supervisor Zhang wore a faintly solemn look as he said in a low voice, "The weather has grown colder by the day lately, and the number of patients coming down with wind-cold has surged. What is more, trade routes have been cut off by a band of mountain bandits, and our medicinal herbs are running low.
"You have all studied herbs for a while now and can recognize a fair number of them. Today, the garden's doctors will lead you into the mountains to gather herbs. With guards escorting you, there is no need to worry about your safety.
"If you gather enough herbs, there will be reward silver."
Hearing that, hints of delight showed on the apprentices' faces.
Reward silver!
As chore apprentices, they received no wages, and their pockets were cleaner than their faces.
None of them had expected an opportunity to earn reward silver today.
As for the prospect of grueling labor in the mountains, they did not care in the slightest.
"All right, let's move out."
And so, guided by a group of doctors and escorted by members of the guard team, the apprentices marched into the mountains in a grand procession.
Over a dozen li outside Nanyang City lay Wuniu Mountain.
Wuniu Mountain was vast, its woods teeming with venomous insects and ferocious beasts.
The deeper one went into the mountain, the more perilous it became.
Venturing into the mountains to gather herbs was thoroughly arduous, and even extremely dangerous.
The apprentices had been full of high spirits, but the moment they stepped into the mountains, they began groaning and complaining bitterly.
Yet it was not up to them. Now that they had arrived in the mountains, they had to gather herbs.
Those who gathered plenty would receive reward silver, while those who gathered too few would naturally face punishment.
No one wanted to be punished, so they could only scatter in all directions to search for herbs.
The guard team drove off venomous insects and fierce beasts within a certain perimeter, but they could not shadow every single apprentice.
Consequently, once the apprentices scattered, they quickly vanished into various parts of the mountain forest.
Lu Changsheng's luck was rather poor. After searching the mountains for more than two hours, he had only gathered a few common herbs.
With so meager a haul, let alone earning reward silver, he would probably be punished once he returned.
"I've heard that rare and precious herbs grow in the depths of the mountain.
"If I want reward silver, I have to take the risk and go deeper."
Lu Changsheng thought it through. The mountain depths merely had rougher terrain. As for venomous insects and fierce beasts, as long as he stayed alert and steered clear of them, nothing should happen.
After all, the guards were not useless either.
They surely had methods to drive away the pests and predators.
Having made up his mind, Lu Changsheng made his way toward the depths of the mountain.
Along the path, the brambles in the forest tore at his skin.
He ended up covered in scratches from head to toe.
Fortunately, they were merely superficial cuts, nothing serious.
At last, Lu Changsheng spotted a valley.
The valley was overgrown with many precious medicinal herbs.
"Is that... ginseng?"
"To think there would actually be ginseng deep in Wuniu Mountain."
With his sharp eyes, Lu Changsheng noticed what seemed to be wild ginseng growing in the valley.
In truth, ginseng could be cultivated through farming.
Yet wild ginseng was scarce, and aged wild ginseng was all the more precious.
Lu Changsheng immediately entered the valley and began digging up the wild ginseng.
After digging up several roots, Lu Changsheng looked up and saw that the cliffs framing the valley were also covered with precious medicinal herbs.
Suddenly, halfway up the cliff face, Lu Changsheng spotted what seemed to be a cave.
It was extremely well hidden; without looking closely, one would never notice it.
Lu Changsheng's heart stirred.
This valley was peculiar. It seemed exceptionally suited for herbs to thrive, which was why so many precious varieties grew here.
However, once mature, precious herbs had to be processed immediately, or they would rot away and go to waste.
With so many herbs, Lu Changsheng could never finish harvesting them all alone.
Yet if he reported this to Miaoshou Garden, he would receive only a bit of reward silver at best.
Compared to such an abundance of herbs, what was that tiny reward worth?
Lu Changsheng was in dire need of silver right now. If he could turn these herbs into money, he would surely make a fortune.
"This cave can serve as a temporary storehouse for the mature herbs. I can process and store them first, then find a way to carry them out of the cave and trade them for silver later."
With that in mind, Lu Changsheng climbed up into the cave.
The cave was dry.
However, inside it, Lu Changsheng was startled to see bedding as well as simple daily utensils.
"Someone lives here?"
Lu Changsheng's heart leaped in surprise.
At the same time, a rustling sound from outside the cave drifted into his ears.
He glanced around.
Hurriedly, he darted into a secluded corner of the cave and hid himself away.
Chapter 4