Chapter 8: Medicinal bath, improving Innate Talent

"Is Lu Yun at home?"

One day, after Lu Yun finished a day of cultivation and had bathed and changed clothes, a rough voice came from outside the door.

"Who could it be?" Lu Yun frowned and walked out of the room, only to find a muscular middle-aged man waiting outside.

"Uncle Youxiong?"

This man was the deputy village chief of Spirit Creek Village, Lu Youxiong, whose strength was even greater than that of Lu Meng and the hunting team leader, only second to the village head.

"Uncle Youxiong, what do you want to see me for?" asked Lu Yun curiously.

"Hehe, you lucky boy, follow me quickly." Lu Youxiong said, grabbing Lu Yun's arm and dragging him away like picking up a little chicken.

Bonfires were flickering, and Spirit Creek Village seemed lively. Adults, children, men, and women all had smiles on their faces, and the village was full of laughter.

"Little guys, don't run around. After the medicinal bath, your martial arts will soon achieve great accomplishment," an old man said with a smile.

"No, I don't want to be boiled!" A group of children heard that they were going to be put into a bronze cauldron, and their faces turned pale as they cried and tried to escape. However, they couldn't outrun the adults' clutches and were easily caught and brought back.

"You ungrateful brats, this medicinal bath is a rare opportunity that the village has paid a great price for, and ordinary people don't even have a chance," the adults said, laughing and scolding, after catching the children.

"I'm scared. I don't want a medicinal bath. Can I give my chance to someone else?"

"No way, only those who have achieved small accomplishment in Breaking Wind Saber Technique or Fierce Tiger Fist can enjoy the medicinal bath, others don't have this treatment," one of the old men scolded.

Lu Yun obediently followed Lu Youxiong without resistance and watched the scene with curiosity.

At this moment, he saw another scenario.

On the other side of the open space, nine bronze cauldrons had been set up, with raging flames burning beneath them. The water in the cauldrons was boiling and bubbling, with medicinal herbs floating on the surface.

There was a middle-aged man standing beside each cauldron, each holding a bucket of beast blood, their gazes all focused on the old figure in the middle.

Because this old figure was none other than the village head of Spirit Creek Village and the town's top martial artist, Lu Cangsheng.

"Get ready, pour the beast blood into the cauldrons!"

At Lu Cangsheng's command, the nine strong men simultaneously poured the beast blood from the wooden barrels into the cauldrons.

The moment the dark red blood was added to the cauldron, the originally clear medicinal liquid instantly became murky, slowing down the boiling process.

"Increase the heat!" Lu Cangsheng shouted again, and the strong men hurriedly put prearranged firewood, making the flames blaze and the medicinal liquid in the cauldrons started boiling again.

Looking at the bubbling medicinal liquid in the cauldrons, a group of teenagers turned pale and struggled to escape, but they were tightly held down by a pair of big hands.

"You cowards, look at Lu Yun and Lu Tianhu. Learn from them!"

Lu Meng scolded the teenagers as the valuable medicinal herbs in the cauldrons had been found by the hunting team members deep in Cloud Dream Mountain. They could enhance a martial artist's physique, and when children used them, they could strengthen their foundations, greatly benefiting their future martial arts path.

Later, the added beast blood was obtained by the old village head, who went deep into Cloud Dream Mountain and made a great effort to kill a Meridian Passage Realm Flood Snake to get such much.

Spirit Creek Village had pulled all their resources to hold this medicinal bath not only to lay a solid foundation for the young generation but also to prepare for the upcoming Martial Academy recruitment.

If Spirit Creek Village had one or two young people who entered the Martial Academy, it would be an unparalleled honor.

However, entering the Martial Academy wasn't that simple. In addition to having excellent comprehension, one needed to pass the academy's assessment.

Until now, none of the young people in Spirit Creek Village had mastered a third-rate martial art, which made village head Lu Cangsheng and other village officials headache, leading to this medicinal bath.

Because many things were required for the medicinal bath, even with Spirit Creek Village's resources, it took several years to hold a small-scale medicinal bath.

The targets of the medicinal bath were, of course, potential-filled youngsters.

Those who had cultivated their martial arts to a small accomplishment realm were considered to have great potential.

Once the fire was extinguished and the water in the cauldron had cooled down from boiling, wailing and splashing sounds rang out one after another.

"Ah, I'm going to die!"

"I'm cooked through, I'm all cooked, save me!"

In the bronze cauldrons, several young boys gritted their teeth and grimaced in pain, constantly crying out. However, the adults watch them coldly, showing no sympathy.

Of course, not all children were disappointing. Lu Tianhu and Lu Liangpeng, though showing pain on their faces, gritted their teeth and persevered, sweating profusely but never making a sound from beginning to end.

As for Lu Yun, he was cooperating even better because he had already advanced to a martial artist. With the transformation of his physical quality, his endurance had increased significantly, so he did not feel the heart-wrenching pain that others experienced.

Furthermore, Lu Yun noticed that with the passage of time, the viscosity of the medicinal liquid in his cauldron became thinner and clearer from its initial turbidity.

The old Village Head, who was constantly monitoring the changes in the bronze cauldrons, saw this development and instructed another member of staff to add fire before taking out two more jars to pour into the cauldron containing Lu Yun.

Seeing the big fire rising again under Lu Yun's cauldron, the other youngsters showed sympathetic expressions, suddenly feeling grateful that they only had to endure the pain and torture once.

As for some adults, they couldn't help but cast admiring glances at Lu Yun's performance.

A youngster who could complete a medicinal bath was considered to have an impressive innate talent and would definitely become a martial artist in the future.

Lu Yun, however, not only bore the pain of the medicinal bath but also absorbed the liquid inside his cauldron in a very short time, prompting the Village Head to hold a second medicinal bath. This was truly extraordinary talent.

At the same time, they couldn't help but worry about this.

The second medicinal bath, coupled with the two different types of beast blood added by the old Village Head, was not something that ordinary people could withstand, let alone a boy like Lu Yun who was not even eleven years old yet.

"You don't have to worry. Little Lu Yun has an extremely strong constitution and can bear it. Moreover, this medicinal bath will be of great help to him," Old Village Head Lu Cangsheng said, stroking his beard.

"In less than half a month, the young lad has cultivated the Breaking Wind Saber Technique to a small achievement realm. After this medicinal bath, he will definitely step into the great accomplishment realm, and by then, he will have a great chance of entering the Martial Academy," Lu Meng said with admiration as he watched Lu Yun's persistence inside the bronze cauldron.

"Ah... finally, our Spirit Creek Village has produced a genius," a burly man also sighed.

The medicinal bath lasted for a long time, and the youngsters were soaked until they looked like red monkeys. Unable to bear it any longer, they were eventually pulled out by the adults.

After coming out, they all looked miserable, and with tearful eyes, it was as if they had been tormented by unbearable pain.

As for Lu Tianhu and Lu Liangpeng, they wore joyful expressions on their faces, secretly feeling the surge of power within them.

"The effects are very good. After thoroughly absorbing the medicinal properties, both of them will be able to step into a great accomplishment realm in martial arts," Lu Cangsheng whispered to several other elders, nodding in satisfaction.

On the side, Lu Yun quietly summoned his attribute panel.

[Name]:Lu Yun

[Force]:Spirit Creek Village

[Martial Arts]:Breaking Wind Saber Technique (Perfection, cannot be promoted)

[Innate Talent]:Level 5

[Martial Arts]:Enter Martial Realm Early Stage

[Energy Points]:0.9