Chapter 34 — The Bone-Tempering Bath and The Little Genius
The Heavy Steps Home
The walk back from Meng City was long.
When Long Tan finally saw the wooden gates of his home, the adrenaline that had fueled him all day finally evaporated.
His shoulders slumped. His eyelids felt like lead.
He was a Third Grade Master, yes. But he was also human.
He had forced a violent breakthrough yesterday, barely slept, fought a confrontation this morning, and walked to the city and back.
The "furnace" inside him was cooling down, leaving behind a deep, aching exhaustion in his marrow.
"I'm home," Long Tan called out, his voice hoarse.
Su Lan opened the door instantly. She saw the fatigue in his eyes. She didn't ask about the money. She didn't ask about the Zhou family.
She just took the empty crate from his back.
"The water is boiling," she said softly. "Rest."
The Divine Recipe
Long Tan didn't sleep yet. He had one more duty.
He walked to the backyard garden. The Vital Soil was glowing faintly.
The Spirit Peach Tree had produced new treasures.
He picked them carefully:
Two Ripe Spirit Peaches: They were pink, fuzzy, and smelled like sweet nectar.
Two Emerald Peach Leaves: These contained pure wood energy, good for healing.
He carried them to the bathhouse—a small wooden shed they had built next to the kitchen.
Inside, a large wooden tub was steaming.
"Tonight, we don't just wash," Long Tan told Su Lan. "We rebuild."
He threw the ingredients into the boiling water:
The Spirit Peaches (smashed to release the juice).
The Peach Leaves.
The leftover fibrous roots of the Dragon-Blood Ginseng.
The crushed white bones of the Iron-Tusk Boar.
The water turned a milky jade-green color. The steam smelling of herbs and meat.
The Trial of the Son
"San," Long Tan called.
Little San waddled in, holding a wooden toy sword. He looked at the bubbling green water and blinked.
"Papa, bath?"
"Yes," Long Tan knelt down. "But this is a special bath. It will hurt a little. Like a bee sting."
Su Lan looked worried. "Tan, he is only five. Is the Bone-Tempering too early?"
Long Tan looked at his son. "The world is cruel, Lan. The Zhou Family is just the beginning. If he wants to be safe, he must be strong. Steel must be forged while it is young."
He looked at Little San. "Do you want to be strong like Papa? Do you want to protect Mama?"
Little San looked at his mother, then at his father's broad shoulders.
He nodded firmly. "Strong."
Long Tan lowered the boy into the hot, medicated water.
"Wah!"
Little San cried out immediately. The energy in the water rushed into his small pores. It felt like ants biting his skin.
Tears welled up in his big eyes. His lip quivered. He looked ready to jump out.
"Endure," Long Tan said, his voice strict but his eyes kind. "Breathe. Inhale... Exhale."
Most children would scream. Most children would climb out.
Little San sobbed, sniffled, and wiped his nose.
But he stayed in the water.
He clenched his tiny fists and mimicked his father's breathing.
Hiff... Huff...
Su Lan covered her mouth, her eyes tearing up with pride. "He is so brave."
The Family's Growth
Long Tan stepped into the tub behind his son. Su Lan stepped in on the other side.
The three of them sat in the medicated steam.
Long Tan felt the Peach Energy seep into his tired bones. It soothed the cracks in his meridians left by the violent breakthrough. The ache faded, replaced by a warm comfort.
He looked at Su Lan.
Because of the Spirit Rice, the Boar Meat, and living next to the Vital Soil, she had changed too.
She was no longer the frail, sickly woman she was a month ago. Her skin was rosy. Her grip was strong.
Long Tan checked her pulse.
[Su Lan Status]
Strength: 400 Jin.
Rank: Peak First Grade (Passive Growth).
She hasn't even trained properly, and she is already stronger than a standard village guard just by eating my food.
Then he checked Little San.
The boy had stopped crying. He was asleep in the water, his small body absorbing the energy like a sponge.
[Little San Status]
Age: 5 Years.
Strength: 200 Jin.
Potential: S-Grade Genius.
200 Jin at five years old? Long Tan smiled. When he grows up, he will shake the world.
The Warm Dinner
An hour later.
They sat around the small wooden table.
The mood was light. The fear of the Zhou Family felt a thousand miles away.
There was a feast on the table:
Roasted Boar Meat with Honey Glaze.
Steaming White Spirit Rice.
The slices of the Spirit Peach from the bath (Long Tan had saved the flesh before putting the pits in the water).
Little San was eating with both hands, stuffing rice into his mouth.
Suddenly, he stopped and looked at his fingers.
The long bath had made his skin shrivel up.
"Papa! Look!" San gasped, eyes wide with horror. "My hands! They are old!"
He held up his prune-like fingers.
"I am an old man!" San wailed.
Long Tan paused mid-chew.
Su Lan burst out laughing. It was a clear, bell-like sound that Long Tan hadn't heard in years.
"You are not old, silly," Su Lan kissed San's forehead. "You are just clean."
Long Tan chuckled, shaking his head.
He looked at his wife laughing, and his son eating.
He clenched his fist under the table.
This, he thought. This is what I am protecting. And if anyone tries to take this away... I will kill them all.
[AUTHOR'S NOTE]
Add to Library 📚 for the next arc: The Clan Expansion!