Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup?!
Su Mu's eyes lit up, and he felt a surge of joy in his heart. He had been considering visiting the Black Market to see if he could buy a prescription once his internal power was sufficient, given that the Body-Strengthening Soup sold in pharmacies was rather expensive.
Today, Su Mu merely intended to visit Zhou Mountain, who had been kind to him, even teaching him Forging Art. In short, Su Mu had no ulterior motives for this visit.
Unexpectedly, upon witnessing Su Mu practice the Five Animals Qigong, Zhou Mountain directly gifted him a prescription he had yearned for day and night.
"Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup, an improved version of the Body-Strengthening Soup recipe created by the medical sage Hua Sheng. Apart from promoting Qi Blood and soothing muscles and bones, long-term consumption can also improve physique and enhance eyesight and hearing... hence the name Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup."
Not only does it have the effects of ordinary Body-Strengthening Soup, but it also improves physique and enhances eyesight and hearing!
Su Mu's heart burned with desire. If the description was accurate, the value of this Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup must far exceed that of ordinary Body-Strengthening Soup. Moreover, according to Master Zhou Mountain, obtaining the ingredients using this prescription could save him a lot of money.
That day, when Su Mu inquired about the prescription, one pharmacy had subtly offered a price of one hundred taels. If the ordinary Body-Strengthening Soup prescription was worth one hundred taels, this Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup could probably be worth several hundred taels, or even more!
Besides, Su Mu had a realization.
In fact, the day the Black Tiger Gang's Wu Heng brought people to the doorstep, Su Mu was already suspicious. Although Wu Heng claimed to have held back, Su Mu felt a powerful force from him.
Several masters who attempted to assist were flung away, indicating that the strike was not as gentle as Wu Heng claimed.
But why did Zhou Mountain, an ordinary person, recover so quickly after enduring a blow infused with the power of a Refining Power Martial Artist?
Now Su Mu understood.
"It's this Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup..."
Long-term consumption of Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup can improve one's physique to a certain extent, and this is likely the reason.
If Zhou Mountain, an ordinary person who doesn't practice martial arts, could achieve such impressive results, what miraculous effects would it have on someone like him, who practices martial arts?
For a moment, Su Mu's breathing became somewhat rapid. His earlier estimate of several hundred silver taels probably grossly underestimated the value of this prescription.
The next day, Su Mu expressed his desire to copy the prescription and then return the parchment scroll. Zhou Mountain, who was still groggy after waking up early, vaguely remembered why he gave the scroll to Su Mu the day before.
But since it was already given, there was no reason to take it back.
Zhou Mountain immediately waved his hand. "This parchment scroll isn't worth anything valuable, and besides, I've memorized its contents long ago. I couldn't forget it even if I tried. You can keep the scroll, but you mustn't easily share it with others."
"Understood, Master Zhou. I will certainly not share it with others."
Su Mu gratefully expressed his thanks.
Zhou Mountain looked puzzled, not understanding why Su Mu was so earnest. In his view, this prescription wasn't a valuable item, just an ordinary one.
Moreover, drinking too much of this soup made one feel burning all over, so Zhou Mountain only occasionally prepared some during the winter.
After a day's work at the forge, Su Mu, barely able to contain his excitement, left the iron shop. To avoid attracting attention from interested parties, he did not go to the usual pharmacy for Body-Strengthening Soup but instead went to a different one to buy ingredients.
"What would you like to buy, young man?"
Su Mu promptly recited a list of herbs, and as he mentioned each one, the medicine boy pulled open the corresponding herb drawer to retrieve them. In no time, a set of ingredients was gathered.
"Young man, your total for these herbs is one thousand eight hundred and nine cents. We can waive the remaining nine cents. We've recently received a batch of high-quality wild ginseng. Would you like to buy some?" The medicine boy, noticing that most of the herbs were for replenishing Qi Blood, attempted to sell Su Mu some wild ginseng.
Su Mu shook his head, paid the silver, and left the pharmacy with the ingredients, unable to hide his pleased expression and mumbled to himself.
"Indeed, in any world, pharmaceuticals are a lucrative business..."
According to the prescription on the parchment scroll, the ingredients he bought today were enough to prepare three doses of the soup, with several herbs left over. In future purchases, he could reduce or switch pharmacies, thus preventing the prescription from being leaked.
In the end, one serving of the soup only cost him half a tael of silver, directly halving the price, just half of what the pharmacy sold it for.
"I just wonder how effective this Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup is?"
Filled with anticipation, Su Mu returned to Dongbian Village and immediately started preparing the decoction. Managing the ingredients for this Body-Strengthening Soup was not complicated, but since it was his first time handling them, Su Mu meticulously followed each step.
"Slice ten grams of Yellow Essence, two grams of Red Leaf Flower... grind Poria Cocos into powder, and simmer for one hour."
Once the herbs were processed, the next steps were simple: gradually and timely placing the herbs into the sandpot for decoction.
Su Mu wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"Doesn't seem too difficult?"
Before long, the medicinal liquid in the sand pot was boiling, filling the room with a fragrance more intense than ordinary Body-Strengthening Soup. Su Mu's nose twitched, and he immediately had higher expectations for the Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup.
An hour later, Su Mu uncovered the sand pot and looked at the pot of ink-black medicinal soup, swallowing involuntarily. This Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup looked far thicker than the powders directly bought from the medicine shop and boiled.
At the same time, the bitter Chinese medicine smell was even denser, reaching an acrid level.
Su Mu furrowed his brows, inhaled sharply, and after taking several deep breaths on the spot, he summoned the courage to scoop out a bowl.
Gulp gulp-------
First engage with vigor, then weaken.
Su Mu tilted his head back and downed the bowl of Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup in one go. Seizing the moment before his body and taste responded, Su Mu strode out to the courtyard to practice Five Animals Qigong and Tiger Subduing Fist.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Su Mu's body began to move, his spine swaying like a big fish, his arms cutting through the air with a whooshing sound. He skillfully posed, initiating with Tiger Stance Form, then proceeding fluidly with Tiger Roar and Tiger Claw.
After performing the Thirteen Tiger Forms once, Su Mu could feel the effects of the Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup he just drank. Though spring had just begun, the cold wind still howled at night, but at this moment, Su Mu, in thin clothes, felt warm as if basked in the midday sun.
"The medicinal effect is strong... at least twice that of ordinary Body-Strengthening Soup!"
Five Animals Qigong (Great Success 18%)
Tiger Subduing Fist (Entry Level 25%)
With dawn approaching, Su Mu finally exhaled lightly and paused his training. After a night's practice, both Five Animals Qigong and Tiger Subduing Fist showed improvement, indeed roughly estimating as Su Mu had calculated.
Just one night brought such proficiency improvements; the Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup's medicinal effect is indeed twice, or even more than twofold, that of the ordinary Body-Strengthening Soup sold at the medicine shop.
Confirming this, Su Mu's eyes lit up. With the Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup, his cultivation speed would undoubtedly far exceed his past pace, and moreover, his future expenses on medicine could be halved.
"Such an efficacious medicine, this Three-in-One Body-Strengthening Soup is worth one thousand silver taels without exaggeration!"
Having spent the entire night in training, Su Mu didn't feel much fatigue at this point. The power flowing within made him full of energy.
In the days following, Su Mu dedicated himself completely to forging blade soldiers by day and indulged in cultivation by night. Time flew swiftly, and half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
Sizzle sizzle.
Su Mu placed the red-hot long saber into a bucket of water, listening to the sizzling sounds, feeling a bit tense.
This was the final tempering and refining, a time to test the results of this month's work.
Taking a deep breath, Su Mu used the tongs to retrieve the long saber from the water bucket.
As the blade left the bucket, it glimmered with a cold light, its edge sharp and smooth. Water droplets dripped smoothly off the blade; at this moment, Su Mu felt somewhat dazed.
Nearly a month's experiences flashed before his eyes, from when Li Xiaohu and the deceased Sun Li brought over two baskets of iron ore, to the ten days of forging and folding, to the present moment as a chill-imbued long saber emerged.
Su Mu's steady hands holding the tongs suddenly began to tremble.
Forging (Great Success 1%)
With a stroke of insight, as Su Mu personally forged his first long saber, his forging skill achieved a breakthrough, advancing from Small Success to Great Success.
A warm current thus generated in his abdomen, flowing through his limbs and meridians, dissipating more than half of the day's forging fatigue, and Su Mu also sensed subtle changes in his body as his mind became clearer.
[Comprehension: 7 (Moderate Potential)]
After reaching Great Success in forging, the comprehension aspect on Su Mu's attribute panel also changed. Just days ago, comprehension had improved due to the Tiger Subduing Fist reaching Small Success, and now it had elevated once more.
"Huh?!"
Zhou Mountain, who had been observing Su Mu's actions nearby, voiced his surprise, about to speak but was pre-empted by another's voice, carrying immense astonishment.
"May I have a look at this saber?"
A dark-skinned man, moved to the core, walked over quickly—none other than the Iron Shop Owner Li.
Hearing the Iron Shop Owner's voice, all the blacksmith masters in the forging room immediately put down their iron hammers, directing curious and puzzled gazes at Su Mu's saber.