Chapter 12: Qin You’s Personal Enlightenment in Cultivation

After his heartbeat steadied, Qin Anyu rolled over and sat up, pulling out a wine jar. He took several large gulps before standing and saying, "Come on, let's go find some medicinal herbs."

Qin Youqin quickly grabbed a hoe from her bundle, laughing eagerly, "Alright, alright!"

Seeing her like this, he felt a bit dazed.

In the Immortal Realm, there was a little one with such a cheerful spirit… I wonder how she is now?

Before the age of ten, Qin Youqin was carefree and simple-hearted like this. Then she changed, and today she has changed back… this is good.

Taking the hoe from the girl’s hand, Qin Anyu walked slowly toward the small hillside. "In the Lingqiao Dimension, the qi nourishing phase is divided into nine stages."

"Oh? Young master, what are the nine stages?"

"The heart, lungs, spleen, liver, and kidneys make up five stages; the six entrails count as one stage, refining the gallbladder, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, bladder, and triple burner; the skin and membranes, flesh and bones, and tendons and meridians are three more stages."

"Young master, why is the heart ranked first?"

"It doesn’t have to be first, but the heart is not only one of the five organs; it also represents ‘heart power,’ which can elevate your mental state. That mental state is the foundation for how far you can go in the future."

"Young master, that’s so complicated."

"That’s why cultivation must be done step by step, never rushing or reaching too high."

"Oh, I understand. It’s like living day by day, making sure to live each day well."

This explanation was refreshing, making Qin Anyu pause for a moment before saying, "Exactly. Actually, there is a tenth stage, called the ultimate stage: unifying the whole body through the soul."

"Young master, how do you know all this? Are you even more powerful than the master and mistress?"

"?! Your arm is broken; this is a good chance to refine your flesh and bones."

"Alright."

"Do you know why we start with the heart?"

"Maybe it can endure greater pain. Don’t worry, young master, I’m very tough and can endure pain. When they broke my arm, I only cried out once; these past days, the blisters on my feet have kept breaking and reforming, but that hasn’t slowed me down."

"!!! You are very strong, with extraordinary willpower. You have the makings of a great cultivator."

"Hehe, that’s because I have you by my side."

"^^… This is Pearl Bone-penetrating Herb, the main medicine for healing bone injuries. We take the roots. Some here are over a hundred years old, very high-grade in the Lingqiao Dimension."

"Young master, why dig up three plants?"

"You use one, so I don’t have to?"

"Oh, sorry… young master, how did you find this place?"

"Here, take it."

How does he know?

Your young master was hunted by the Eagle Gang to the brink of death on Desperate Cliff, chased relentlessly until he fell. Just then, this Immortal Emperor possessed a clumsy sword and arrived here.

After taking over, knowing the Immortal Emperor’s power, he kept wanting to go out and take revenge immediately. But the Immortal Emperor insisted on healing the injuries first.

Fortunately, there were abundant medicinal herbs here, many of middle quality or better. Otherwise, with such a damaged body, he would never heal, and the Immortal Emperor would be doomed too.

"This is Woodward Fern, also needing to be over a hundred years old…"

"This is Drynaria, take the root…"

"This is Smilacina, take the root…"

They dug up over sixty kinds of medicinal herbs, piling them on the empty spot where they had come from.

Qin Anyu pointed to the cliff ahead, "There are twelve caves there, spacious inside. You take half, I’ll take half. I’ll live in the six on the left."

"Young master, I want to live with you to serve you better."

"You have only one hand now; I am the one serving you. As a cultivator, most of your time should be spent cultivating. Take a bedding set and go tidy up. I’m going to fetch water and brew medicine."

The girl didn’t argue and took out a bedding set from her bundle, carrying it toward the left caves.

Qin Anyu shook his head, snatched the bedding from her hands, and quickly went into the cave.

The girl puffed out her cheeks, glaring at his back, then carried another bedding set to the right caves.

When Qin Anyu came out again, he was carrying two large wooden buckets.

When the girl appeared again, she saw Qin Anyu brewing medicine beside a large pile of dry firewood.

She approached him, surprised: "Young master, can you really heat such a large ceramic pot?"

"There’s no smaller pot; this is the only one we can use."

"But we brought pots and pans; why not use those?"

"Brewing medicine is like refining pills; it’s best not to use metal containers, or it will reduce the effectiveness."

"Oh."

"You add firewood here; I’ll go catch a fish."

"Oh, I forgot something. The fish will be bland without seasoning. Young master, fish without seasoning tastes bad."

"You’ll know once you try."

The girl sat before a stone mortar but kept her eyes on Qin Anyu. She watched him walk to the pond, pull out a plant, toss it into the water, and then saw ripples spread as several fish surfaced and swam toward the plant.

Splashes rippled as fish heads popped from the water, rushing at the plant.

At that moment, Qin Anyu drew the sword embryo from his back and swung it down.

One fish head took a heavy blow, its body flicked out of the water.

A long fish.

It thrashed wildly as it fell to the ground.

Qin Anyu quickly gutted and cleaned it, then grabbed it by the gills and carried it to the stone mortar.

"This fish weighs about fifty jin, enough to fill us up."

"Young master, you’ve never eaten your fill, have you?"

The girl’s thoughts always caught him off guard. "But one pot can’t hold it all."

Qin Anyu could only reply, "Watch me."

He placed the fish on a large stone, then brought over the pots and pans from the bundle.

He stacked the stove, placed the pot, and added water.

The girl lit the fire while Qin Anyu cut the fish until the pot was full.

Then, he chopped bamboo poles and tree trunks to make a roasting rack.

He skewered the fish, had the girl place charcoal underneath to roast, and ran into the forest. Soon, he returned carrying a bulging bundle.

He opened it to reveal flowers, fruits, and tree bark.

With swift, fierce movements, he ground everything into a paste.

Adding some of the paste to the pot instantly filled the air with fragrance.

The girl exclaimed, "It smells amazing!"

After he brushed the paste onto the grilled fish, she repeated the same amazed exclamation.

Qin Anyu laughed, "The first rule of cultivation is don’t let yourself go hungry, and eat as well as you can."

This Immortal Emperor was different from others—he always indulged his appetite, savoring food and never without his wine jar.

The stew had not yet been uncovered, but the grilled fish already smelled delicious.

Qin Anyu cut a small piece to taste and nodded approvingly, "Quite good."

He handed a piece to the girl. She took a small bite, eyes wide, then quickly finished it. This time she asked, "Young master, this is delicious! What kind of fish is it?"

Qin Anyu shook his head, "Clawtooth shark. You can’t see it from outside, but the taste isn’t just from the fish, it’s the seasoning."

The girl stared intently at the grilled fish, nodding vigorously.

Seeing her like that, Qin Anyu smiled knowingly, cut a large piece, and handed her the knife. "If you want more, cut it yourself."

Then he patted his forehead, gave her the big chunk, cut another big piece for himself, and took a swig from the wine jar.

After eating grilled fish for a while, the stew was ready.

The girl took a sip of the fish soup and let out an astonished cry, then quickly finished the bowl.

"When will you learn to cook, young master?"

"Cultivation isn’t just about the basics; you have to be versatile."

He couldn’t answer properly, so he resorted to sounding impressive.

After finishing the stew and eating most of the grilled fish, the medicinal soup was done.

Qin Anyu poured two buckets of clear water into the stone trough inside one of Qin Youqin’s caves, then ladled out half a bucket of medicinal broth, took her inside, and said, "Youqin, are you ready to endure the pain?"

The girl nodded vigorously, "Young master, I’m ready."

Qin Anyu’s expression was calm: "Your arm bones are dislocated; they need to be broken again. Can you endure that?"

The girl showed no fear and answered loudly, "Yes!"

When she said this, a hopeful light shone in her eyes.

Qin Anyu asked again, "This time, refining your flesh and bones won’t follow the usual qi nourishing process. It will be very painful. Can you endure it?"

Her eyes glittered with determination as she excitedly said, "Young master, I can endure it!"

Seeing this, Qin Anyu patted her broken arm repeatedly.

A cracking series of sounds came from her arm. Her face immediately paled, but she gritted her teeth tightly, not making a sound, sweat pouring down.

After feeling the broken area, Qin Anyu fixed her arm in place, then held her and placed her into the stone trough.

"From now on, you must persevere. It’s best if the color of the medicinal broth fades, and you must not faint."

As he poured half the broth into the trough, her face visibly flushed, veins bulged on her forehead, her jaw clenched until her face contorted, yet she did not cry out.

Her will was truly unyielding.

Qin Anyu silently praised her, then brought a bucket of clear water for the final rinse.

After finishing all this, he added more medicinal ingredients to the stone mortar and continued brewing.

His qi for refining flesh and bones had reached a critical point; it was time to advance.

The previous doses were only enough for Qin Youqin. As the Immortal Emperor and with a clumsy body, that amount was far from sufficient.