Casting immortality in the furnace

Chapter 84 Improvement

The sun was at its zenith, making people feel unbearably hot and irritable.

Fan Zhou took off his clothes and practiced his self-created Two Elements Four Phases Palm in the courtyard, sweating profusely from the heat.

After finishing his palm strikes, he stretched his body and did some stretching exercises to loosen up his muscles and tendons.

Today, he specifically asked Chen Sheng about snake blood grass and learned that this medicine is hot in nature and its medicinal power can reach the blood vessels directly. Before taking it, one must activate one's qi and blood, and it is best to take it at noon when yang qi is at its peak, otherwise it may lead to excessive qi and blood and limb spasms.

Only after confirming that his blood and qi were flowing smoothly did Fan Zhou pick up the twisted snake blood grass from the stone table, pluck a piece, and stuff it into his mouth.

Snake blood grass has a sticky, gooey texture and a strong fishy smell.

Fan Zhou looked troubled, quickly picked up the wine jar on the table, tilted his head back and took a big gulp, forcibly swallowing the snake blood grass.

The medicinal properties, mixed with the alcohol, spread rapidly throughout the body, like a raging fire igniting dry grass, causing the blood and qi to boil like hot water, surging through the veins.

In the blink of an eye, his entire body turned crimson, with bulging, menacing veins that snaked across his body, throbbing as if they were about to burst at any moment.

"How potent! No wonder it's a potent medicine!"

Fan Zhou felt a surge of heat churning inside his body, almost cooking him up.

"If such a reaction occurs after only eating a small portion, I'm afraid the body wouldn't be able to withstand it if the entire plant were consumed, and the person would definitely vomit blood."

Fan Zhou dared not delay and immediately began practicing the Two Elements Four Phases Palm, urging his internal energy to guide the medicinal power to all parts of his body and into his blood vessels.

He was drenched in sweat, his muscles undulating like waves, or as if coiled by snakes, his joints creaking and cracking.

The medicinal power of the snake blood grass coursed through his body, stretching his meridians, stimulating his blood and qi, and generating a continuous stream of new energy.

After about fifteen minutes, his restless blood and qi gradually calmed down, and the bulging veins disappeared.

Fan Zhou tried to clench his fist, and the muscles in his arm bulged instantly, the tendons taut like a bowstring. He threw a punch, and a crisp cracking sound rang out in the air.

"The effect is truly immediate."

He regulated his internal energy for a while and felt that his body still had plenty of energy, so he plucked off a piece of snake blood grass, stuffed it into his mouth, and swallowed it with wine.

"Manager Haitang is really generous. He only asked me for three spirit stones for such a precious herb."

However, since the favor has already been owed, it doesn't really matter whether it's a little more or a little less.

Fan Zhou put the matter aside and continued practicing his palm techniques to refine the medicinal power of the snake blood grass.

…………

The third day of the eighth lunar month.

"ha!"

Fan Zhou exhaled and slammed his palms onto a large blue stone that was more than half a person's height. Stone chips flew everywhere, and the large blue stone trembled violently.

Looking at the spot where the palm landed, two palm prints were already dented, and fine cracks appeared around them.

Fan Zhou nodded in satisfaction.

He used only his physical strength and did not activate his internal energy to strike, so the effect was beyond his expectations.

In the past two days, he has refined an entire snake blood grass, greatly improving his qi, blood, and strength. He has boundless energy, and even after a day of blacksmithing, he is still full of energy when he gets home.

"However, let's take it easy for the next couple of days. Once your body has fully adapted, then you can consume the remaining two snake blood herbs."

Fan Zhou glanced at the sky, remembered the work he hadn't finished, quickly fetched some water to take a shower, and hurried back to the workshop.

Arriving at his workstation, Fan Zhou took out the fan that sealed the pine and cypress embers and fanned the furnace vigorously. Once the fire was blazing, he buried the steel billet, which had been forged to the thirtieth level, inside and began the smelting process.

Luo Yu is treating everyone to a fun trip to Happy Forest tonight, so he needs to finish forging this steel billet to the thirty-sixth level before evening.

When Peng Yue arrived, Fan Zhou was already working up a sweat, his whole body covered in sweat.

"Junior Brother Fan, your iron forging skills are becoming more and more proficient."

Peng Yue walked to Fan Zhou's side and watched his movements and the changes in the steel billet.

"I think if you work harder this month, you'll be able to consistently forge 7 jin and 36 jin of steel next month."

A junior blacksmith who receives 36 spirit sands per month is required to forge 7 jin of 36 jin of steel per month.

Don't underestimate seven jin (a unit of weight). It takes Fan Zhou three days to forge seven or eight liang (a unit of weight) of 36-ounce steel.

Over a month, that's about five catties. (One catty is sixteen taels)

There is still a considerable gap between him and a fully-fledged junior blacksmith.

Fan Zhou smiled and said smugly:

"Senior Brother Peng, I don't think I'll need that much time."

Peng Yue laughed heartily, "That's true, after all, you are a genius at iron forging."

He returned to his workstation, pinched his nose, opened his mouth and spat out a burst of flames to light the stove, then pulled the bellows to heat it up.

Peng Yue has now broken through to the seventh level of fetal breathing, the realm of meridian opening, and his internal energy has made a qualitative breakthrough, which can directly transform into flames, greatly increasing his strength.

During a break while the steel billets were being heated, Fan Zhou asked Peng Yue:

"Senior Brother Peng, what improvements did you experience after breaking through the Meridian Opening Realm? What are some things to be careful about when breaking through the Six Barriers? Could you tell me in detail?"

Peng Yue slapped his thigh in delight, "I've been waiting for you to ask me that!"

He had been prepared to show off, and immediately began to speak at length:

"The most important thing in this Meridian Opening Realm is to break through the six barriers. The first one is the coccyx barrier of the Governing Vessel. This barrier starts from the Changqiang acupoint and ends at the Mingmen acupoint. You need to slowly circulate your Qi in this barrier and not be impatient..."

Fan Zhou listened to his explanation while hammering the steel billet.

As the sun set, the steel billet in his hands had completed its thirty-sixth folding and forging, without any surprises.

"very good."

Fan Zhou exhaled a breath of stale air.

This was the third time he had forged thirty-six steels, and he recalled the many iron-forging skills he had learned during this period.

Fan Zhou felt that he was just a little bit away from breaking through that barrier and connecting all his knowledge, experience, and skills.

"Alright, Junior Brother Fan, let's hurry up and clean up, then go back and take a shower before meeting up with Senior Brother Chen and the others at the workshop gate," Peng Yue urged anxiously.

"it is good."

Fan Zhou responded, suppressing the turbulent thoughts in his mind, and picked up a broom to clean his workstation.

As the last golden light faded on the horizon, Fan Zhou was ready. He had changed into clean clothes and arrived at the workshop gate with his sword and jade.

Peng Yue and the other two were already waiting there, each of them dressed up nicely, looking smart and distinguished, quite different from their usual slovenly appearance.

"With Junior Brother Fan looking like this now, which girl wouldn't be captivated?"

Chen Sheng stroked his chin, circled around Fan Zhou, and praised him repeatedly.

Fan Zhou opened his fan, put one hand behind his back, and said disdainfully:

"Even without these vulgar clothes, I can still charm countless girls."

Everyone burst into laughter and walked together toward the south of the market.

The Happy Forest was built there.