The water in the wooden tub gradually cooled, and the deep crimson, which had been as thick as blood, slowly faded.
Along with it went the pain that had pierced him to the bone marrow.
Zhao Liuyun felt hot all over, his muscles soft, as if he had just emerged from a long, arduous battle. Now resting, every inch of his body felt weak and limp.
Struggling, he used clear water to wash off the remaining medicinal liquid, then dried his body with a towel. Too tired to put on clothes, he lay down directly on the bed.
He pulled the quilt over himself and closed his eyes. A heavy wave of sleep washed over him.
No matter how important the matter, it had to wait until he woke up.
When he opened his eyes again, the window showed the deep night, perhaps seven or eight o'clock.
The fatigue from the long carriage ride had vanished.
Zhao Liuyun now understood why his Martial Uncle had said, "You'll know after you finish the medicinal bath."
Pain makes a person forget all distracting thoughts!
If not for the instinct of gaining experience through meditation every night, he probably would have slept until dawn the next morning.
Struggling to climb out of bed, Zhao Liuyun rubbed his flat stomach.
He had clearly eaten dry rations on the carriage ride over, and he had been quite full.
Yet, now his stomach rumbled with hunger, feeling completely empty, as if he hadn't eaten for two days.
This must be one of the effects of the medicinal bath.
His body was radiating heat; there wasn't a spot from head to toe that wasn't warm.
Looking in the mirror, Zhao Liuyun saw his cheeks were flushed, as if he had a fever.
But he was a Spirit Master, making it hard for him to fall ill. This was clearly the effect of the Dragon Blood Tree medicinal bath.
The medicinal power stimulated his body, accelerated blood circulation, and promoted the body's absorption of food, giving him a huge appetite.
Physical growth doesn't come out of nowhere, and it's well known that—
You have to eat a lot to grow fast!
The wooden tub in the room was placed aside. His Martial Uncle must have poured out the remaining medicinal liquid.
Light shone from outside the door, meaning his Martial Uncle was still busy.
If his guess was right, food had already been prepared.
Putting on his clothes, Zhao Liuyun hid his gold spirit coins under the bed and followed the light.
His small wooden cabin wasn't large; it was right next to his Martial Uncle's cabin.
There was a strong herbal scent nearby... was this a herb warehouse or a pharmacy?
The light was coming from inside.
The door was open, and Zhao Liuyun walked straight in.
"Martial Uncle."
"Awake?" Huang Xin glanced at his Martial Nephew who had pushed the door open, a hint of surprise in his eyes.
After soaking in the Dragon Blood Tree medicinal bath alone, not only did he not pass out and wait for Huang Xin to clean him up, but he managed to wash himself and climb into bed.
This was already astonishing.
Even more surprising was that he could wake up on his own in the evening?
"Don't you want to sleep a little longer?" Huang Xin asked softly.
"No, I still need to meditate later," Zhao Liuyun's voice was clear, though mixed with a slight tiredness.
Huang Xin was speechless.
Is this what a genius is like?
Not letting go of even a moment of cultivation, insisting on practicing even after undergoing a bone-corroding and heart-scorching medicinal bath.
"It's fine to rest for a night after the medicinal bath," Huang Xin advised.
"No, no, cultivation is like sailing against the current; you regress if you don't advance. Furthermore, I can't let this develop into laziness," Zhao Liuyun smiled brightly, a galaxy reflected in his eyes. "My aspirations are high. I cannot slacken now."
"Cannot let this develop into laziness..." Huang Xin murmured, nodding involuntarily.
He had admired his Martial Nephew's resilient will before, but now he respected this character even more.
People only saw his exceptional talent, but they didn't know how much hardship and sweat he put in behind the scenes.
Thinking of his own youthful laziness, Huang Xin felt a momentary sense of shame.
Zhao Liuyun didn't notice his Martial Uncle's churning thoughts. He just felt an intense hunger in his stomach and couldn't help but ask:
"Martial Uncle must have prepared food, right?"
"Of course."
The Dragon Blood Tree medicinal bath stimulates the body to rapidly absorb the nutrition from food, so it naturally requires food for replenishment.
Huang Xin had intended to finish processing the medicinal herbs at hand before waking his Martial Nephew, but he hadn't expected him to walk out on his own.
Filled with admiration, he smiled mysteriously: "This ingredient, I guarantee you've never tasted it before!"
"Oh?" Zhao Liuyun was intrigued by the remark, and his appetite was instantly piqued.
Arriving in the kitchen, the fire in the stove was burning fiercely, and a thick clay pot was bubbling, emitting wisps of white steam.
A rich, potent meaty aroma, intertwined with a thick medicinal scent—ginseng, red leaf flower...
Sniffing, Zhao Liuyun became even more expectant.
Lifting the lid with a cloth, inside was a large, plump, and tempting boiled pork hock!
"Guess what kind of meat this is?" His Martial Uncle's voice rang in Zhao Liuyun's ears.
He instinctively began to analyze it in his mind.
The knowledge from the academy library was a great help.
The bone was thick, the muscle texture firm, the fat layer extremely thin, and upon closer smell, there was a hidden wildness within the medicinal fragrance.
"This shape... wild boar?" Zhao Liuyun's eyes showed surprise. "Spirit Beast!"
Huang Xin began to scoop the soft, well-cooked hock into a large bowl, saying, "A good guess. This hock is from a ten-year spirit beast, an Earth Essence Pig."
"It's highly nutritious. Combined with tonic herbs like ginseng, it can effectively replenish the energy lost after the medicinal bath."
Zhao Liuyun followed him to a small dining table and sat down on a chair.
"Guess how much it cost in total?" Huang Xin deliberately kept him guessing, tapping the trembling pig skin with his chopsticks.
Ordinary meat was fine, but Zhao Liuyun had very limited knowledge of Spirit Beast meat.
He struggled to recall fragmented accounts he had read in travel notes: "Five gold spirit coins?"
"...It's only a ten-year one. Why would it be that expensive?" Huang Xin rolled his eyes. "One!"
"Just this hock alone is one gold spirit coin!"
"But you can't just buy one hock at a time. The market price for a whole foreleg is ten coins, and even with a discount, I paid eight!"
Zhao Liuyun was secretly amazed, recalling the Spirit Hall enforcement teams patrolling the Spirit Hunting Forest. He blurted out, "Are these all assets of the Spirit Hall?"
Huang Xin nodded:
"That's right. Spirit Hall has specialized personnel who recover the corpses of spirit beasts from spirit hunting."
"The Spirit Hunting License only permits Spirit Masters to hunt for Spirit Rings, and the spirit beast corpses are all owned by the Spirit Hall!"
"And the medicinal herbs?" Zhao Liuyun immediately connected this to other aspects.
Huang Xin replied, "Also true. Spirit Hall also has specialized herb gatherers."
"To put it plainly, within the Spirit Hunting Forest, apart from the Spirit Rings and the one-in-a-million Spirit Bones, every blade of grass and tree is an asset of the Spirit Hall."
So that's it!
Zhao Liuyun suddenly understood.
The Star Dou Great Forest is vast, making it difficult for the Spirit Hall to fully control. So, they limit the outflow of Spirit Beast meat under the guise of "prohibiting wanton killing."
And because of the extreme danger, herb collection is difficult, indirectly controlling the quantity of medicinal outflow.
These Spirit Hunting Forests, which are scattered across the Douluo Continent, are the main source of low-level Spirit Beast meat and various medicinal herbs.
High-end resources certainly come from the major spirit beast habitats, but their quantity is incredibly scarce.
What truly circulates in the world are these "low-end" goods, which seem common but are strictly controlled.
That the Spirit Hall can use such powerful means to guard this immense wealth is no wonder it is rich enough to rival nations.
Of course, the Spirit Hall must have other industries, but this one aspect alone is astonishing enough.
"Martial Uncle, what do you mean?" Zhao Liuyun was thoughtful.
Huang Xin spread his hands, his tone jocular:
"The medicinal bath costs money, and the Spirit Beast meat needed after the bath also costs money. I can't afford this kind of expense anymore."
"You are a genius Spirit Master and a genius Physician. It's time for you to work hard and earn money for your own future."
Not to mention that practicing medicine is required for the experience of the [Physician] profession, at the very least, he still had his savings to fall back on.
Zhao Liuyun happily accepted, his stomach growling loudly—
"Gugu gugu~"
"Martial Uncle?"
Huang Xin immediately burst into laughter: "I heard your stomach rumbling long ago! Hurry up and eat while it's hot. It would be a shame to waste the flavor of this Earth Essence Pig if it cools down."
Zhao Liuyun threw aside his politeness and began to eat in large mouthfuls, like a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey.
The meat was full of flavor, the tendons soft and the meat tender and glutinous. He kept nodding as he ate.
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