In the kitchen, Song Ciwan cleaned the Mouse Demon's offal and stir-fried two large plates of it with lard, leftover minced pork belly she had bought earlier, chili peppers, ginger, and pickled radish.
The Big White Goose came waddling into the kitchen, honking loudly. It circled Song Ciwan's feet, craning its neck and pacing back and forth. Wet drool trickled down from both sides of its flat beak. You could have filmed a food documentary on the spot: *A Bite of Goose*.
Song Ciwan's mood relaxed slightly. She remembered Chi Hua Fairy had said she could feed the Big White Goose some cooked meat, so she picked out some of the pork belly from the two dishes and mixed it into its coarse grain mush.
As for the Mouse Demon offal, Song Ciwan decided not to feed it to the goose just yet.
'I have to do this gradually. I'll see if the Big White Goose's Qi Blood increases noticeably after eating more cooked meat, then I can cautiously try feeding it Low Level Demon Beast Materials.'
The Big White Goose was already captivated by the savory aroma of the pork belly and squatted to one side, eating with relish.
Song Ciwan then placed both plates of Mouse Demon offal onto the Heaven and Earth Scale to trade.
[You have sold two plates of spicy and sour stir-fried Mouse Demon offal and obtained two Qi Circulation Pills.]
Qi Circulation Pills!
Two plates of cooked Mouse Demon offal could be directly exchanged for two Qi Circulation Pills!
Song Ciwan let out a long laugh, which was met with the Big White Goose's echoing "GAK GAK!" Song Ciwan: "Hahaha..."
She crouched down to gently stroke the goose's back, sharing her joy with it.
The Big White Goose continued to chow down while Song Ciwan washed the pot and utensils. She made two more vegetable dishes before finally eating her own meal with coarse grain rice.
She didn't touch the cured meat that Yang Taixuan had given her. In her heart, she still wanted to observe the full three years of mourning for her parents, hoping that if they could enter the cycle of reincarnation, their next lives would be free from suffering.
She placed the cured meat on the Heaven and Earth Scale and sold it.
[You have sold half a jin of cured meat stewed in a four-flavor Qi-replenishing soup and obtained one portion of Marching Powder.]
Marching Powder: A restorative item suitable for Mortal Martial Artists below the Bone Refining Stage. It can help one quickly replenish stamina and Essence Qi.
'Good stuff. It's not suitable for me anymore, but I'll store it. Maybe Yang Taixuan can use it in the future.'
Song Ciwan continued with her trades.
Today, she had collected twelve wisps of Mouse Demon Death Qi from the Washing Room.
[You have sold twelve wisps of faint Mouse Demon Death Qi and obtained one jin of mouse moss.]
Mouse Moss: A symbiotic organism of Mouse Demons. It comes from dark, sunless underground places. When ground and boiled in water, it yields two liang of Dark Cyan Water. Spraying this on oneself can conceal the aura of the living. It can also be directly ground and applied as a powder, though the effect is inferior to Dark Cyan Water.
This item made Song Ciwan's eyes light up. She immediately stored the mouse moss away.
'I'll boil it into Dark Cyan Water when I need it. After all, the Heaven and Earth Scale's internal space can only store items obtained from trades. Once an item from the outside world changes its form, it can't be put back in. For the sake of portability, sometimes I have to make compromises.'
At this point, the only special item left to trade today was [The Prying Gaze of a Divinity Transformation Expert].
Song Ciwan thought for a moment but decided not to sell it just yet. Instead, she got up and moved around for a while.
She was trying her best to adjust her condition. The two Blood Essence Pills she had taken earlier were still continuously releasing their medicinal effects, so Song Ciwan slowly regulated her breathing as she walked.
This continued until night deepened. The Big White Goose, full and sleepy, puffed out its chest, honked "GAK GAK," and walked back into its coop to rest.
Under the ink-blue canopy of the sky, the city's lights began to thin. The sounds of neighbors settling down for the night filled the air. The hour of rest had arrived.
Song Ciwan could now sustain her breathing exercises for half an hour, and she could circulate twenty percent of her True Qi without it stinging her meridians. She returned to her room, closed the door, and summoned the Heaven and Earth Scale.
[You have sold the prying gaze of a Divinity Transformation Expert, weighing two liang and three maces, and obtained the First Layer of Fetal Transformation and Shape-shifting, one of the Thirty-Six Celestial Spirit Techniques.]
One of the Thirty-Six Celestial Spirit Techniques, Fetal Transformation and Shape-shifting!
At that moment, a vast wave of Divine Will descended from the heavens, carrying with it all sorts of profound incantations that seemed to unravel the mysteries of the universe and the primordial fetus.
Song Ciwan sat cross-legged in her room, her body trembling slightly. True Qi coursed through her, stinging her meridians, yet she felt herself sinking into an unprecedented state of excitement.
Her brain went into overdrive, her heart pounded, and all her Qi Blood surged upward. Her entire consciousness and will focused with extreme intensity on analyzing and memorizing this profound incantation.
Time trickled by like a water clock, drop by drop, until the east grew pale and the sky began to brighten at dawn.
Song Ciwan's eyes snapped open, and she spat out a mouthful of stagnant blood.
Spitting out the blood didn't weaken her; instead, she felt a sense of great relief and ease wash over her.
Song Ciwan laughed out loud, "Haha!" She had finally, completely memorized the incantation and Cultivation method for the First Layer of Fetal Transformation and Shape-shifting.
'Worthy of a Divine Skill obtained in exchange for [The Prying Gaze of a Divinity Transformation Expert]! What is Fetal Transformation and Shape-shifting? It's basically a Transformation Technique!'
Fetal Transformation and Shape-shifting was just one of the Thirty-Six Celestial Spirit Techniques, and the First Layer she obtained was just enough to allow her to learn how to change between male and female forms.
As for changing into animals, or even inanimate objects, that wasn't possible yet. The First Layer didn't cover that. But for the current Song Ciwan, this was more than enough.
'The Heaven and Earth Scale actually traded me a Celestial Spirit Dao Skill! The upper limits of this world must be far higher than I could ever have imagined!'
Song Ciwan silently activated her Insight Technique, summoning the personal panel she had created to check what she had just learned.
Celestial Spirit Daoist Skill: Of the Thirty-Six Techniques, Fetal Transformation and Shape-shifting, First Layer (Beginner 2/100)
A whole night of hard work, and she had barely reached the Beginner level, gaining just two experience points.
Song Ciwan rubbed her face, picked up the Copper Mirror, and tried to use Fetal Transformation and Shape-shifting.
'Make my eyes a little smaller... huh, now I have squinty eyes.'
'Make my mouth a little bigger... oh no, I think I have sausage lips...'
'My face shape... oh dear, where did this block-headed monster come from?'
Her heart hammered in her chest. Startled, Song Ciwan quickly dispersed her True Qi and returned to her original appearance.
It was just too tragic. The result of her two experience points was a true masterpiece of the Mortal World. Even an abstract master wouldn't dare to be so outlandish.
'It seems I still have a long way to go before I can freely change my appearance!'
But Song Ciwan was able to look on the bright side. After all, it was morning now, and she had to go to work. Cultivation would have to wait until she got back.
Last night had been surprisingly quiet. The Mouse Demon plague didn't seem to have spread any further, which was a little strange, but also a relief.
Song Ciwan mulled it over. If the demon plague had truly subsided, maybe she should take a trip to Lai Mazi Lane after work today.
With her mind made up, Song Ciwan got up to wash and get ready.
She ate, fed the goose, and took another Blood Essence Pill, slowly regulating her breath to heal her injuries as she went about her morning routine.
Without further ado, Song Ciwan soon left with her umbrella.
Her injuries had already recovered by about fifty percent. After digesting the medicine throughout the day, she might even recover to sixty or seventy percent.
The Blood Essence Pills had played a huge part in this.
Unfortunately, she had used three out of five, and now only had two left.
She planned to save the remaining two for emergencies.
Walking through the streets and alleys, she listened to the morning chatter along the way. It was true that there had been no demon disaster last night, or at least no large-scale one.
Some people were even disappointed. "Those Mouse Demons really are cowardly curs! I had my House Protection Talisman ready and my Refined Iron Saber in hand, but the Mouse Demons didn't even show up... Tch!"
'This person only sees the profit from a Demon Corpse, but have they ever considered the devastation of a demon plague?'
'People's perspectives are rarely the same.'