A night of sweet dreams, oblivious to the world.
It had been a long time since Bai Mo had slept so well.
As his consciousness returned, even before he opened his eyes, he could hear a faint commotion.
It was the sound of pedestrians haggling in the street.
His consciousness was pulled from the depths.
'How long was I asleep!?'
Bai Mo opened his eyes and saw the mild sunlight filtering through the cracks in the window.
It wasn't yet noon.
Before he could think any further, a sharp pang of hunger in his stomach pulled him back to reality.
Bai Mo dragged himself out of bed and, without a second thought, grabbed a dry flatbread and began to gnaw on it.
The aftereffects of the Qi Blood Pill were now on full display. Besides the hunger, his body felt as if it had been completely hollowed out.
Only after stuffing down two flatbreads, each the size of his face, did Bai Mo begin to feel satiated, though his body was still weak.
'There's still a lingering smell of smoke in the room. I must have only slept for one night, until late this morning.'
He opened the window to air out the room, then turned and suddenly saw seven Qi Absorption Pills resting quietly inside the Pill Furnace.
'Right, the panel!'
With a mental command from Bai Mo, the panel materialized. The 'Identity' field scrolled gently before settling on a new display.
[Pill Master: Bai Mo]
[Realm: Qi Refining Second Layer]
[Identity: Pill Disciple (0/900)]
[Aptitude: Insight that reveals the whole from a part; comprehension has begun to manifest.]
Bai Mo's heart trembled. In the next moment, he felt waves of coolness wash through his mind, making his consciousness incredibly lucid.
The process lasted for only three breaths. When Bai Mo came to, he felt more clear-headed than ever before.
Lightly touching his head, Bai Mo savored the lingering sensation.
When he tried to recall his alchemy techniques from the past few days, Bai Mo was startled.
'Gasp! When did my technique become so refined!?'
'I've tried to achieve this before but never succeeded... it's so smooth and fluid...'
Bai Mo could no longer suppress the smile playing on his lips.
'It seems this is the fated opportunity that arose over the past eight days, the one that has so greatly advanced my skills.'
'But there are still imperfections.'
Just a few days ago, Bai Mo would have dared to say that achieving such a level was the pinnacle of his skill.
But looking at it now, Bai Mo could see that the technique still had minor flaws, resulting in wasted medicinal properties.
The ingredient ratio for the Qi Absorption Pill could also be tweaked slightly, saving him some costs without diminishing the pill's efficacy.
'So this is what a higher level of comprehension feels like.'
Bai Mo straightened up, gathered some of the scattered medicinal herbs, placed them in the Pill Furnace, and started a fire.
He placed another portion of herbs into a bronze pot, dry-frying them for a moment before scooping them into the Pill Furnace.
Then, he adjusted the heat of the fire and waited for the Pills to be forged.
In less than a quarter of an hour, seven Qi Absorption Pills emerged from the furnace.
'If my comprehension hadn't soared, completely replicating my previous technique would have been truly difficult.'
Seven Qi Absorption Pills from a single batch was already a high yield.
However, the proficiency points on his panel hadn't increased.
"Do these Pills no longer benefit the panel?" Bai Mo frowned in thought.
A moment later, after tidying up the messy room, he finally left his home for the first time in a long while.
'Whatever. The priority right now is to find some good food to replenish my depleted body.'
Bai Mo knew this street like the back of his hand, so he naturally knew where to find what he was looking for.
"Well, well! Brother Bai, long time no see! We thought you'd lost heart, packed up, and gone off to enjoy the good life somewhere else."
Someone teased him.
"Get outta here," Bai Mo laughed. "What Cultivator hasn't gone into seclusion for ten days or half a month? Mine was nothing special."
As for the "good life" the man mentioned, Bai Mo didn't dare even dream of it.
Cultivators were indeed highly respected among mortals, but nowadays, where couldn't you find a few Cultivators?
Even if you tried to live among mortals, you would inevitably get drawn into the scheming and infighting of other Cultivators whenever interests clashed.
Though he enjoyed the friendly banter, Bai Mo keenly noticed that business on the street was a bit slower than before.
Seeing that the stall owner who had spoken had no customers, Bai Mo squatted down and pretended to pick through his goods.
"How come business is so slow?"
Bai Mo asked.
The stall owner lowered his voice. "The conditions on Celestial Barrier Mountain have gotten worse, and the big clans in the city are fighting tooth and nail with the Demon Hunting Teams."
"You should know, Brother Bai, when folks aren't able to make a proper living, our business always takes a hit."
Bai Mo nodded in understanding and asked,
"Who has the upper hand right now?"
"The men from the Demon Hunting Teams. They're all fired up and being incredibly stubborn."
When those men who scrape by in the mountains get stubborn, things are bound to get bloody.
Bai Mo said, "Then that's a good thing. Once this blows over, everyone will be better off."
"Exactly!" The stall owner laughed. "We Loose Cultivators have to take our own side."
Just then, a few other potential customers saw Bai Mo browsing and started to gather around.
Seeing this, Bai Mo casually picked out a few items and slipped away from the stall.
The stall owner, for his part, just made a show of accepting a few Broken Spirit Stones from Bai Mo.
Walking past the street of stalls and listening to the familiar vendors' calls, Bai Mo arrived in front of a tavern that had no sign.
He glanced at it, saw nothing had changed, and went inside.
The tavern's decor was simple, with just a few plain tables, but the ground floor was bustling and already packed with people.
Bai Mo could tell from their rugged auras that they were members of the Demon Hunting Teams. He could occasionally overhear words like "wiping out bloodlines," "animals," and "vile servants" in their conversations.
To Bai Mo's surprise, he also heard the name Lanshan mentioned a few times.
No one was surprised to see a child here; they just assumed he belonged to one of the families and had tagged along.
Bai Mo went up to the second floor, found an empty table, and had just sat down when a waiter hurried over.
"Well, if it isn't Shopkeeper Bai from the Pill Shop!"
Bai Mo had only been here twice before, but perhaps because they both made their living on the same street, the waiter recognized him.
The man was tactful, addressing him only as Shopkeeper Bai and ignoring his apparent age.
Bai Mo smiled and asked,
"Do you have any Demon Beast meat today? I don't want anything from Chai; I need something restorative."
The waiter tossed his cleaning rag over his shoulder.
"Listen to you! When are we ever out of meat? We've got plenty of good cuts, but the price..."
"It's a bit steep!"
Bai Mo asked curiously, "What kind of good meat do you have?"
"If it's restorative you want, we have Mountain Bear. Five Spirit Stones a catty."
The waiter said, holding up one hand to show five fingers.
Bai Mo didn't have many Spirit Stones on him at the moment, but he could still afford a small amount of meat.
"I'll take two catties. Cook it well; I'm taking it to go!"
"You got it." The waiter turned to leave.
He had no doubt that a Shopkeeper who dealt in Pills could afford a few Spirit Stones. And even if he couldn't, a Pill or two would easily cover the cost.
Demon Beast meat, when stewed over an ordinary wood fire, takes four to six hours before it's tender enough to eat.
Bai Mo didn't want to go to the trouble, so he ordered it cooked to take away.
This tavern was at the end of the long street, making it the first business the Demon Hunting Teams encountered upon their return.
As a result, some of the beast meat they brought back was sold here first.
That's why Bai Mo came here first when he was looking for something restorative.
Bai Mo also knew that the tavern's owner had been a member of a Demon Hunting Team in his youth, only settling down after a serious injury left him disabled.
Due to this natural affinity, over time the tavern had become a gathering point for the Demon Hunting Teams, and most of its patrons were people who ventured into the mountains.
As he was looking around, a slight commotion erupted on the first floor, and Bai Mo heard a familiar voice.
He waited a moment, and sure enough, Lanshan appeared, shouldering half a pig-like carcass. Its hide was still covered in dark, needle-like bristles.
A burly waiter immediately went to greet him, and the two appeared to be chatting cheerfully.
Bai Mo waited until they were nearly finished. Just as they were handing over the carcass, he suddenly called out,
"Senior Lanshan, did you go into the mountains today as well?"
Lanshan was startled for a moment, but when he followed the sound and saw Bai Mo, a broad smile erupted on his face.
He strode over, his heavy footsteps thudding on the floorboards.
"Shopkeeper Bai finally graces us with his presence! And here we were, knocking on your door every day to no avail!"