All Heavens: A Role-Playing System Starting from Tianlong

Chapter 105 The Days When It Came Ahead of Schedule

The old woman turned her head sharply and glared at him: "Why didn't you say so sooner?"

"Didn't you tell me not to talk about those unnecessary things?"

Granny Tong's chest heaved with anger, her face flushed red: "You...you're playing tricks on me, aren't you?!"

Zhang Cheng quickly coaxed her, and after much persuasion, he finally managed to calm Tong Lao down.

"So what's your situation now?" he asked, seeing that the old woman's emotions had calmed down a bit.

Granny Tong hesitated for a moment: "I don't know either. It's not yet time for me to rejuvenate every thirty years. Perhaps the healing of the injury to the Hand Shaoyang Sanjiao meridian triggered some kind of change?"

She raised her hand to touch her face, her tone tinged with annoyance: "Anyway, I woke up this morning looking like this. I've rejuvenated and lost all my powers."

I was going to talk to my junior sister about it, but she wasn't in her room, so I came to find you instead.

Zhang Cheng nodded, then asked, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"I now need to drink fresh blood at noon every day in order to practice my skills. After a day of practice, I can recover my skills from when I was seven years old."

With each day of practice thereafter, he grows one year older. It will take another eighty-nine days to fully recover.

"Is there anything special about the source of this blood?"

"Humans are the most intelligent of all beings, so human blood is naturally the best. If it is unavailable, then we can only settle for second best and find some birds and beasts with vigorous blood and energy to replace it."

Tiger blood is the most potent, bear blood is the most potent, deer blood is the most gentle, and python blood is the longest-lasting. You should take me hunting tigers and bears every now and then.

Zhang Cheng pondered for a moment: "Is it enough as long as your qi and blood are abundant? That doesn't seem to require so much trouble. I have something even more potent here, but I need you to try a little first, so you don't overdo it."

He flicked his left index finger with sword energy, slashing his right palm, and offered it to the old woman, saying, "Try a little."

The old woman glanced at him, and without any hesitation, dipped her finger in the water and put it in her mouth. Then her eyes lit up.

"Have you practiced some kind of strange technique to increase your qi and blood? It's so nourishing."

She licked her lips, a hint of lingering satisfaction flashing in her eyes, but quickly shook her head: "But this isn't a long-term solution. The amount of blood I need each day is considerable. Even if your blood and energy are abundant and you're unaffected for a day or two, how can you possibly endure eighty-nine days?"

"You don't need to worry about that." Zhang Cheng wiped the bloodstains from his hand, revealing that the wound on his palm had stopped bleeding and scabbed over. "Just suck it."

The old woman stared at the healing wound on his hand for a moment, then said thoughtfully, "If your blood is used as nourishment, I think I should recover faster than usual. How much faster, we'll have to wait and see after we try it today."

Zhang Cheng nodded and got out of bed. "In that case, I'll go tell the others that we'll stay here for a few more days."

"Is it necessary?" Granny Tong frowned. "Even if I lose all my power, either you or my junior sister can give me a ride. After I finish my cultivation today, I will regain the power I had when I was seven years old, and then I can ride a horse on my own."

Zhang Cheng didn't answer, but instead reached out and tugged at Tong Lao's cheek. It felt nice, chubby and plump, like a child's.

The old woman was pulled by him and immediately became furious, but at this moment she had lost all her power and could only rage helplessly.

Zhang Cheng loosened his grip and said slowly, "You have the body of a twenty-year-old, but the face of a six-year-old. It would be strange if people saw you like that when you went out."

I could get you a face mask, but you probably wouldn't want to hide your face. Besides, you'll need to drink blood to practice your skills while we're traveling, so you'll have to take it off then, right?

Even if others don't say anything, the Murong family members will definitely see it. Why not wait a few days, let your face grow to be about ten years old, then we can set off.

The old woman snorted, "Let them not look. If they do peek, you can gouge their eyes out for me."

Zhang Cheng said helplessly, "Can we not be so violent? We're not in a hurry anyway, a few days earlier or later doesn't matter."

After comforting Tong Lao again, Zhang Cheng left her in the room and then got up to inform the members of the Murong family.

Then he borrowed pen and ink from the inn and left a note in Li Qiushui's room explaining the situation.

After doing all this, he returned to his room and stared at the old woman.

Annoyed by his stare, the old woman asked irritably, "What?"

Zhang Cheng stroked his chin: "I've been wondering, why does the Eternal Youth and Longevity Technique only allow blood-drinking practice at noon?"

The old woman gave him a disdainful look, as if she were looking at an illiterate man.

"Changchun Gong is based on the principle of the mutual generation of Yin and Yang. Noon is the time of day when Yang energy is at its peak, and it is also the turning point from Yang to Yin."

Drinking blood at this time replenishes the body's yang with the yin of blood, and nourishes the yin of blood with the yang of the body. Yin gives rise to yang, and yang gives rise to yin, in a continuous cycle, endlessly regenerating. This is called "stealing the secrets of heaven."

She explained patiently, as if she were teaching a primary school student: "So the blood you drink before noon is not warm enough because it lacks yang energy; the blood you drink after noon is too yin and suppresses vitality."

After listening, Zhang Cheng suddenly said, "In that case, if my blood and yang energy are sufficient, wouldn't I be able to bypass this illness and accelerate the recovery process? How about it, want to give it a try?"

The old woman thought about it and didn't seem to have any problems. Anyway, Zhang Cheng had that kind of miraculous healing ability, so even if something went wrong along the way, it wouldn't matter. So she nodded in agreement.

Zhang Cheng simply cut off a piece of his index finger and handed it to Tong Lao. Tong Lao took it, put it in her mouth, and silently drank the blood.

Upon trying it out, she discovered that Zhang Cheng's vital energy was so abundant that even outside of midday, it was enough for her to practice. So the two of them began to cultivate together.

Limited by Zhang Cheng's own recovery ability, after Tong Lao held the finger in her mouth for a while, Zhang Cheng would need to take it out and cut it off again.

This went on and on, and I don't know how much time passed.

After going out to contact her subordinates and inquire about the investigation, Li Qiushui returned. Seeing the note in her room, she went to Zhang Cheng's room.

"Sect Leader, Senior Sister, I'm coming in!" Li Qiushui's mischievous voice rang out from outside the door.

Zhang Cheng listened from inside the house, speechless. He used his internal strength to lift the door latch and let Li Qiushui into the house.

The old woman glared at her fiercely, and because she had something in her mouth, she mumbled, "What nonsense are you spouting!"

Li Qiushui was even happier after hearing this, especially since her subordinates had reported only good news today, which made her laugh out loud, a rare occurrence for her.

"Senior sister, don't move yet, let me take a good look at you." She leaned forward and looked the old woman up and down. "I haven't seen you like this in over eighty years."

After saying that, he even reached out and rubbed the old woman's hand.

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