Chapter 30: Friends, if you want to read chapters in advance, subscribe to my patreon.

Chapter 30: Knowledge of Herb Refinement

After obtaining his first spirit ring, Yang Potian's daily schedule changed. Each morning, he continued practicing spear techniques, then attended basic classes in the morning. His afternoons now included an additional hour dedicated to learning herb refinement, a lesson personally taught by his grandfather, Yang Wudi.

After studying, he would engage in weighted mountain climbing until he was completely exhausted, followed by a medicinal bath, and finally, meditation in the evening.

Today was his first day of herbal refinement lessons.

After lunch, Yang Wudi took his grandson to the herb refinement chamber. Located in his grandfather's private courtyard, the chamber was actually a large underground room. The basement setup ensured a quiet environment, free from distractions.

The herb refinement room was spacious, with shelves lining the walls. These shelves held a variety of jars, each filled with different herbs.

Yang Potian looked around carefully; the herbs were abundant and diverse. There were even some thousand-year-old herbs, such as ginseng, fleeceflower, and angelica, along with numerous vials of blood, organs, and bile from various soul beasts. There were also many poisons, including the venom of the Jade Phosphor Serpent. Among the collection were some extremely rare ten-thousand-year-old herbs, though only in small quantities.

At the center of the room was a large cauldron, or rather, a pill furnace.

Entering the herb refinement room for the first time felt like stepping into a world of rare herbs.

Today, Yang Wudi didn't immediately start refining herbs. Instead, he began by explaining some foundational principles.

"Potian, our Po Clan is an ancient family of herbal refinement, with unmatched expertise across the entire Douluo Continent."

"In the morning classes, you're learning basic knowledge—information that larger clans outside our family would also know."

"But what I'll be teaching you here is our family's heritage, knowledge known fully only by myself, your Second Uncle Yang Wushuang, and your father Yang Zhentian. This includes some of our Po Clan's secret medicines. Even our other elders only know parts of it."

"Some of the secret medicines are very dangerous. You're not ready for them yet. For now, your task is to read these books, so you can learn to recognize the medicinal properties of herbs."

"To keep this knowledge secure, you'll come here each afternoon to study. If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me. Behind you, there's a shelf with samples of nearly every herb on the Douluo Continent. Examine them carefully, but don't handle the poisonous herbs until you're ready. I'll teach you how to safely work with them once you're ready for practical training."

With that, Yang Wudi pulled several books from his storage ring. Some looked ancient, likely passed down and refined over countless generations.

Yang Potian looked over the titles with excitement. There were books like The Complete Guide to Douluo Continent's Immortal Herbs, Poisonous Herbs of Douluo Continent, A Compendium of Douluo's Serpents, A Guide to Douluo's Spiders, Curious and Rare Flora of Douluo Continent, A Comprehensive Guide to Douluo's Soul Beasts, A Catalog of Poison-Type Martial Souls, Po Clan Alchemical Techniques, and Po Clan Medicinal Baths.

It seemed like the Po Clan had documentation on nearly everything related to medicinal herbs and poisons in the Douluo Continent.

Yang Potian immediately picked up the book he had most anticipated: The Complete Guide to Douluo Continent's Immortal Herbs. The first page featured a pale pink flower, identified as the Odd Fragrance Qiluo Immortal Herb, with information on its uses, environment, harvesting methods, and preservation.

Taking mental notes, he turned to the second page, where he found a white peony-like flower known as the Heartbreak Red Amaranth, another immortal herb. Each page introduced a different herb, many of which he hadn't seen in the original story, each with unique attributes and properties.

The one that captivated Potian the most was the Nine-Leaf Sword Grass, a herb that could enhance metal affinity for sword-type martial soul users, making it invaluable. If someone with the Po Soul Spear martial soul consumed it, the sharpness of their spear would improve dramatically, potentially allowing them to project blade-like energy from their weapon. There was even a chance it could enhance the martial soul's metal affinity to its ultimate level.

"Grandfather, this Nine-Leaf Sword Grass seems perfect for our Po Clan!"

"You have a good eye, Potian. The Nine-Leaf Sword Grass is indeed one of the best-suited herbs for our Po Soul Spear martial soul. However, no one's found it in countless years. Legend has it that the founder of the Seven Kill Sword style once consumed it, reaching a spirit power level of 98. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan has spent decades searching for it without success."

Hearing this, Potian's thoughts raced: I wonder if the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well has the Nine-Leaf Sword Grass. Here's hoping it does!

After an hour of reading, Potian reluctantly left the herb refinement room. The world of herbal refinement was indeed vast and intricate; it was no wonder that Po Clan members throughout history had been so captivated by it.

Reflecting on this, Potian realized something: his second martial soul was his body itself. Poison exposure might help stimulate and awaken it, possibly even granting him immunity to all poisons, like the character "Du Bushi" from the original story.

However, he decided to hold off on practical herb refinement for now. This was the world of Douluo Dalu, where spirit power was fundamental. Without enough strength, he wouldn't even be able to protect himself. After all, in the original story, the Po Clan ended up serving Tang San's Tang Sect, becoming its herb division. If their strength were sufficient, they wouldn't have needed to rely on anyone else; they could have formed their own powerful clan instead.

In addition to his herbal refinement studies, Potian quietly added a new element to his training. Each morning, along with practicing the Po Soul Spear techniques, he began integrating spear techniques he remembered from his previous life. He kept this private, knowing that the Po Clan's spear techniques were the product of countless generations. Practicing a different technique might mark him as an outsider, causing trouble.

He also made another decision: he asked his father to commission a customized set of weights for him. The set weighed around 30 kilograms, with three-kilogram weights for each wrist and a 20-kilogram chest plate. Though not overly heavy, he wore it at all times, except during his medicinal baths.

Once he adapted to this weight, he planned to gradually increase it. His goal was to push himself to the limit each afternoon through strenuous exercise, enhancing his physical strength through both training and medicinal baths, steadily breaking past his body's limits.

(End of Chapter)

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