Chapter 110: Poor Scholars, Rich Warriors
Lin Ruoxi looked at Cheng Yuan with a gentle smile. "You can reward me however you like."
Cheng Yuan grinned. "Alright then. I don’t want to drink cold water tomorrow morning."
’Cold water?’
Lin Xinghe and Hua Yao exchanged confused glances. ’What kind of riddle are Xiaoyuan and Ruoxi talking about?’
Lin Ruoxi understood what Cheng Yuan meant. She gently bit her lip, her gaze flickering. ’That big scoundrel, to think he’d make such a request.’
In truth, that bowl of water could only deter a gentleman, not a rogue.
’If he wants it gone, then it’s gone.’
"Fine! If you can really handle the wealthy merchants of our Luocheng, you won’t have to drink cold water anymore."
Cheng Yuan decided to push his luck. "What if I handle the wealthy merchants from the Provincial City too?"
Lin Ruoxi’s eyes widened. "Cheng Yuan, don’t push it! Handling the merchants is just one piece of the puzzle!"
"What if I solve all the problems?"
"If you solve every single problem, I’ll give you a shoulder massage and wait on you like a king for a day!"
"You’ve got a deal."
"Hmph!"
Lin Ruoxi shot Cheng Yuan a look. Clearly, she didn’t believe he could solve all their problems.
「The night passed without a word.」
The water wasn’t spilled.
Lin Ruoxi did not sleep well. She had one nightmare after another, always dreaming that their Yuanxi Auction House was being crushed by Huanya Auction House until they had lost their shirts!
Lin Ruoxi got up, yawning, washed up, and ate breakfast.
Cheng Yuan watched her, and his heart ached. ’It’s so hard for a woman like Ruoxi to start her own business. I just want to hold her and cherish her.’
But theirs was a ’marry first, love later’ situation. Although they were legally married, they hadn’t developed much affection for each other yet. The road to revolution was still long.
After finishing her meal, Lin Ruoxi wiped her mouth with a napkin and turned to Cheng Yuan, her eyes filled with a sliver of anticipation. "Cheng Yuan, we’re heading to the company. Do you want to come and see?"
Hua Yao and Lin Xinghe also looked at Cheng Yuan with hopeful expressions.
But to their disappointment, Cheng Yuan just shook his head gently. "You guys go on ahead. I’m not in a hurry to go over yet."
The hearts of the three sank. They then exchanged self-deprecating glances.
’What were we even thinking?’
’Cheng Yuan must have just been talking big yesterday. How could we have taken him seriously?’
After the three of them left, Cheng Yuan took out the locked case he had brought back last night.
CLICK. The case opened.
Inside, it was neatly divided into two compartments.
Each compartment contained a handwritten Secret Manual and some medicinal herbs.
With his Celestial Witch Inheritance, Cheng Yuan could tell at a glance that these were all extremely precious herbs—potent Tiger and Wolf Medicine meant to replenish Qi and blood.
He even saw two stalks of five-hundred-year-old wild old ginseng. This stuff could extend one’s life and was incredibly valuable. It was clear the two families truly regarded him as one of their own core disciples.
Some of the herbs were already pre-portioned into small packets according to a formula, ready to be used as needed.
Cheng Yuan didn’t consume the herbs right away. Instead, he first picked up the Hu Family’s Secret Manual. It was an Inner Power Heart Method passed down from a branch of Taoism—the "Longevity Skill."
Cheng Yuan flipped through it as if he’d found a priceless treasure.
After reading a few pages, his expression turned strange.
Compared to the Celestial Witch Heart Method, the Longevity Skill seemed a bit shallow, like the difference between a college student and an elementary schooler. It felt crude and ordinary to him.
Cheng Yuan only had to read it once to completely grasp its Mystical Technique.
Cheng Yuan even began to suspect, ’Is the Hu Family holding back? Do they not see me as one of their own?’
But the herbs the Hu Family had given him were the real deal, not watered down in the slightest. And just yesterday, Hu Shishi had so solemnly warned him not to share the Cultivation Technique with outsiders.
’This Cultivation Technique is so low-level, I wouldn’t even want it if they gave it to me for free, right?’
Cheng Yuan put down the Longevity Skill and picked up the Zhu Family’s "Nine Extremes Scripture."
This time, it was a little more interesting.
The "Nine Extremes Scripture" was clearly more profound than the "Longevity Skill." However, Cheng Yuan could tell with a single glance that it was only a fragment, missing the most crucial part.
Without that most important part, the "Nine Extremes Scripture" was no better than the "Longevity Skill"—both were elementary Cultivation Techniques.
Cheng Yuan frowned deeply.
’Are the Cultivation Techniques from these two families really at this level?’
’Or are both families being wary of me and didn’t give me their most profound techniques?’
Cheng Yuan wasn’t sure.
He would have to test the waters the next time he saw Hu Shishi or one of the Zhu Family’s younger generation.
Cheng Yuan wasn’t too disappointed. After all, the Tiger and Wolf Medicine from the two families was genuine.
Using this Tiger and Wolf Medicine to aid his Cultivation would increase his training speed several times over!
Cheng Yuan didn’t follow the herbal combinations prepared by the two families. His own medical knowledge surpassed theirs by an unknown degree, and he had discovered that the proportions in their mixtures were not optimal.
Many of the medicinal properties would clash and neutralize each other, wasting much of the Medicinal Power.
It wasn’t that the two families were deliberately trying to harm him. Rather, the medical skills of their ancestors were limited. The overall effect of their concoctions was still restorative, but a great deal of the efficacy was lost.
For Cheng Yuan, solving this problem was simple.
After swapping a few herbs and adjusting the dosages of others, the efficacy of the new formula increased by several times!
Cheng Yuan immediately brewed a dose of the medicine. A thick, fragrant aroma filled the air. Just by smelling it, Cheng Yuan felt one of his minor Meridians begin to loosen.
An hour later, Cheng Yuan finished brewing the medicine and downed the large bowl of tonic in one go!
BOOM!~
The moment the tonic entered his stomach, Cheng Yuan felt an astonishing wave of heat rise up. The blood in his entire body felt like it was about to boil, and he was filled with inexhaustible strength!
Cheng Yuan rushed to the small courtyard to train. He fully circulated the Celestial Witch Heart Method and was thrilled to find that, under the potion’s influence, its operational speed had skyrocketed several times over!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
In just an instant, Cheng Yuan broke through several minor Meridians!
This was the first time since obtaining the Celestial Witch Inheritance that Cheng Yuan had experienced such an exhilarating Cultivation session. He even lost track of time!
After an unknown amount of time, Cheng Yuan suddenly threw a punch. His right arm CRACKLED as an astonishing wave of air erupted outwards, instantly destroying a plant in the small courtyard!
An ecstatic expression appeared on Cheng Yuan’s face. Using Tiger and Wolf Medicine to aid his Cultivation truly gave him twice the results with half the effort. In just a single morning, he had opened all the minor Meridians in his right arm!
At this moment, Cheng Yuan’s right arm had reached physical perfection—the Quasi-Divine Realm!
When attacking with his right arm, he could now release his True Qi externally!
Once Cheng Yuan opened all the minor Meridians throughout his entire body, he would officially step into the Quasi-Divine Realm!
At that time, by leveraging the advantages of his Celestial Witch Heart Method, he should be able to fight an ordinary Divine Realm Expert!
Cheng Yuan slowly withdrew his power, dispelling most of the doubts in his mind.
The Hu and Zhu Families probably weren’t being wary of him. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have given him such effective Tiger and Wolf Medicine!
With the help of this Tiger and Wolf Medicine, Cheng Yuan was confident he could break through all the minor Meridians in his body within a week!
Cheng Yuan now deeply understood the saying "poverty for scholars, wealth for warriors." He finally understood why only the super-rich families could produce top-tier experts!
Cultivation burned through too much money; an ordinary family could never afford it!