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Chapter 48: Medicinal Bath
In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Xu Mo was forced to leave his residence. Elder Long had arrived to take him for training, as they had previously agreed. Xu Mo had taken a quick bath to cleanse himself and rinse off the sweat that had accumulated on his body. Afterward, he changed into a fresh set of outer sect disciple robes.
"How was your day?" Long Bai asked.
[I was busy cleaning the residence,] Xu Mo wrote in his notebook. Although the night sky was shrouded in darkness, Long Bai, due to his advanced cultivation realm, could see as clearly as a cat in the night.
"Why? You could have asked the outer sect servants to clean the house for you. Well, never mind. We don't have time for chitchat. Let's go." Long Bai stepped closer to Xu Mo and pulled him in with one hand. Xu Mo did not resist. As he drew near, he caught a strong metallic scent, like that of armor.
It seemed that even at this hour, Long Bai wore armor beneath his clothes, ever ready for battle.
Long Bai activated a technique unfamiliar to Xu Mo, and the two of them soared high into the night sky, disappearing into the darkness.
Xu Mo felt his vision blur for a moment. When he opened his eyes, he had to close them again immediately—for what felt like the hundredth time, one of his eyelashes had broken off and lodged itself in his eye. He couldn't help but let out a groan of pain. The eye is the most sensitive part of any person, whether mortal or cultivator.
However, Xu Mo had grown experienced in handling this issue. He calmly straightened his back, pressed on his closed eyelid, and felt where the eyelash had traveled within his eyeball. With slow, gentle movements of his index finger, he guided the eyelash out. After a few moments, he fluttered his eyes open and tilted his head at a sharp angle. By repeatedly opening and closing his eye, he finally dislodged the eyelash, which fell onto the rough, rocky ground below.
"What happened? Did a stone hit your eye? No, that can't be—I shielded both of us with my spiritual energy." Long Bai grew instantly nervous, unable to see what had happened since Xu Mo's back was turned. He feared that Xu Mo's eye might have suffered irreparable damage.
But then he calmed himself, remembering that Xu Mo was still in the Qi Condensation Realm. As long as Xu Mo successfully crossed the Tribulation of the Golden Core Realm, he would be able to heal and regrow any injury.
Once Xu Mo felt fine again, he turned to face Long Bai. For a moment, Long Bai was taken aback—Xu Mo's left eye was bloodshot, while the other remained normal. It looked as though a demon had taken control of half his body.
Xu Mo channeled his Qi toward his eye to nourish and speed up its recovery. Though he had no mirror, he could infer something from Long Bai's expression and reaction. He gestured with his hands to reassure Long Bai and then bent down to pick up the eyelash that had fallen to the ground. Fortunately, the wind was calm today, and the tiny, thin eyelash was still there, trapped between his thumb and index finger. When Long Bai saw it, he relaxed.
"Hahaha..." Long Bai burst into laughter, his eyes almost glistening with amusement. "I thought it was something serious, but... an eyelash? A single eyelash? Do they even break?" Xu Mo felt a twitch at the corner of his forehead.
What could he do about it? Since birth, his eyelashes had been longer than those of the average male, even making many women envious. This problem had plagued him his entire life. Whenever strong winds blew or the weather turned dry, his eyelashes would often fall out. Most of the time, they fell harmlessly, but when he was unlucky, they became a deadly weapon to his own body.
"Sorry... sorry... Let's get back to what we came here for." Long Bai reined in his laughter and gestured toward a massive cauldron. "This is the Bone Tempering Cauldron. It's used to strengthen bones and enhance their durability. For example, the reason some cultivators can fight opponents one or even more sub-realms above their own is because they've taken medicinal baths since childhood."
We arrived at a secluded courtyard behind Long Bai's residence. In the center stood an ancient, large medicinal vat made of black iron, its surface etched with faint, ancient symbols. It was deep enough to fully submerge a person. Nearby, several large wooden crates were stacked, filled with herbs and strange materials.
Long Bai picked up a bundle of dried crimson roots and tossed them into the vat. Next came spirit ginseng, black marrow leaves, and even a fist-sized beast core that hummed with a faint glow. As he continued adding ingredients, a fragrant yet overpowering medicinal scent filled the air.
With a flick of his fingers, a blue flame appeared beneath the vat, rapidly heating the water. Bubbles began to form, and the once-clear liquid turned into a deep, murky green. The air grew thick with medicinal Qi.
"Get in," Long Bai commanded, his voice firm.
I hesitated for a moment. The water emitted an unusual heat—not entirely physical, but as if it could burn through my very meridians. But I did not waver. Taking a deep breath, I stepped into the vat.
The moment my body submerged, pain erupted across my skin. It felt as though countless needles were piercing every pore, sending waves of fire through my muscles and bones. My instincts screamed at me to jump out, but I clenched my teeth and endured.
"Circulate your Qi," Long Bai instructed, his voice cutting through the haze of pain. "Let the medicinal energy seep into your meridians, temper your bones, and strengthen your physique."
I shut my eyes and focused, guiding my Qi through my body as instructed. Slowly, the pain dulled, replaced by an intense warmth that surged through my meridians. My muscles trembled, and my bones felt as though they were being reforged.
Time blurred. The burning, the suffocating heat, and the waves of pain became something I accepted rather than resisted. My breathing slowed, and my mind entered a strange clarity.
Long Bai's voice reached me again, steady and calm. "Good. This is only the first step. You will remain here until you can withstand the full power of the medicine without flinching. If you want to grow stronger, this is the price you must pay."
I did not respond—because I couldn't. I could only endure.
And so, my training under Long Bai had begun.
Long Bai watched from the side as Xu Mo submerged himself in the medicinal bath, his sharp gaze concealing a glint of satisfaction.
"Not strong enough to take on missions?" he scoffed inwardly. If that were true, half the outer sect would have perished long ago. Xu Mo wasn't weak—his foundation was already firmer than most. With his talent and determination, he could already handle basic missions.
But letting him step into the world so soon? That was out of the question.
Long Bai didn't just want Xu Mo to survive in the sect—he wanted him to reign over it.
"If I let you take missions now, you'll become just another outer disciple struggling for survival. You'll remain mediocre, wasting time on menial tasks." His eyes narrowed slightly. "But if I temper you now... you'll become something far greater. The undisputed No. 1 under Qi Condensation."
Long Bai wasn't one for sentimentality, but there was something about Xu Mo. His silence. His patience. His sheer, unyielding will. The boy reminded him of himself in his younger years, yet Xu Mo lacked the recklessness that had nearly cost Long Bai his life back then.
And that was why he would ensure Xu Mo walked a different path—one not dictated by others.