The old woman had indeed found a good method for herself.
With an ample supply of blood offerings, Hu Ma no longer experienced the chilling sensation in his limbs.
Instead, his inner fire grew stronger day by day.
He gradually began to understand the connection between his own condition and the Tai Sui.
After consuming the flesh of the Tai Sui, even if it was just the white Tai Sui, a warm sensation would spread through his body.
Of course, it was quite faint, especially if he only ate a small amount, almost negligible.
But after consuming the green Tai Sui, the warmth in his body could last for a day or two.
Of course, this was only if he didn’t practice his cultivation.
If he did, the warmth would be completely consumed within half a day.
As for the blood Tai Sui, it was even more potent.
After consuming it, Hu Ma’s body would remain warm and full of energy for one or two days.
When he practiced his cultivation, the effects were even more pronounced.
During this period, he felt the fire in his abdomen growing stronger every day.
From a faint flicker, it had turned into a blazing fire within just a few days.
After a few more days, it felt as if there was a roaring furnace burning inside his lower abdomen.
His body was always warm, and he felt full of energy, as if he had an endless supply of strength.
Every morning, he would wake up with a certain part of his body standing straight up.
Of course, since Second Master didn’t raise pigs here, and Hu Ma hadn’t returned to the village, he didn’t know if he would still feel the same urge when seeing a pig’s rear…
But with the blazing fire in his abdomen, the bone-chilling cold he used to feel from time to time had indeed lessened.
The strange shadows he used to see occasionally also seemed to have disappeared.
Now, he didn’t need someone to watch over him all the time.
He could even venture out of the manor for a stroll occasionally.
Of course, after dusk, he still didn’t dare to step outside.
And that eerie forest? He wouldn’t dare to go near it, day or night.
The good news was that Second Master’s method worked.
Hu Ma had indeed managed to avoid the harassment of evil spirits to some extent, and his inner fire was growing stronger.
The bad news was that without the Tai Sui, his inner fire couldn’t grow stronger.
In fact, it would slowly weaken.
So, in the end, it all came down to the Tai Sui.
Or rather, the old woman.
But Hu Ma couldn’t figure out where the old woman had gotten so much of the precious blood Tai Sui.
And how much more could she provide him?
Hu Ma didn’t know the answer to these questions.
All he could do was make sure not to waste even the tiniest bit of it.
…
In the quiet side room, Hu Ma sat cross-legged on his bed, slowly practicing his cultivation, drawing the fiery energy into the furnace within him.
Hu Ma wasn’t particularly diligent when it came to practicing martial arts, but he was very diligent when it came to cultivating his inner fire.
Whenever he had the chance, he would practice, drawing the warmth into the furnace within him and storing it there.
This way, if he ever ran out of blood offerings, the accumulated fire in the furnace would allow him to hold on a little longer.
After all, if he didn’t practice, even if his life force was sealed by Liu’er’s talisman and didn’t dissipate, it would still slowly diminish through his daily activities or intense movements.
Only by drawing it into the furnace and storing it could he make effective use of it.
Of course, to others, his behavior might seem like he was just putting on a show.
After all, at his age, most people were full of energy and preferred practicing martial arts or fighting.
Sitting still to cultivate was somewhat against their nature.
But Hu Ma paid no attention to this.
Every day, he would estimate how much warmth he needed to maintain his basic strength and then draw the rest into the furnace.
However, while he was in the middle of his practice, he suddenly heard an annoyed voice: “You two, go and fill the water jars.”
Opening his eyes, he saw a tall, thin young man glaring at him with a commanding air.
“Huh?”
Not far away, Zhou Datong, who had been dozing in a pile of bedding, suddenly woke up, swallowing his drool.
“I said, you two go and fetch some water.”
The tall, thin young man was clearly annoyed at the sight of them.
He said coldly, “Everyone else is practicing martial arts, learning about herbs, or following Second Master to patrol the forest. But you two lazy bums just hide in the room and slack off. Fine, if you don’t want to learn anything, that’s your business.”
“But can’t you at least do some chores?”
“There’s no water in the kitchen. You two go to the spring and fetch a few buckets of water. Fill the jars to the top.”
“…”
The spring was at least three or four miles away from the manor.
Each bucket, when filled, would weigh fifty or sixty pounds.
Hu Ma couldn’t help but frown.
But before he could say anything, Zhou Datong beside him started complaining: “I told Second Master, I caught a cold last night because someone stole my blanket. I’ve got diarrhea…”
“Diarrhea? Even if you’re shitting out your intestines, you’re going!”
The tall, thin young man said coldly, “If you want to learn anything, you have to put in the effort. How can you be so lazy?”
“If you don’t go, just wait and see!”
“…”
With that, he slammed the doorframe and glared at Hu Ma and Zhou Datong before turning and leaving.
The young man’s name was Cui Xie’er.
He was a child from the Cui family in the Dayang Village and the oldest among the group of youths learning from Second Master.
Last year, he had already followed Second Master to pay respects to the Tai Sui.
Because he had learned his skills well, he didn’t need to run around the mountains practicing martial arts with the other youths.
Instead, he helped with cooking and assisted Second Master with various tasks.
He was essentially the senior disciple among the youths.
He had already learned what he needed to learn.
Staying here was more about helping Second Master with chores and handling various matters.
Hu Ma hadn’t been here long and had made few friends.
He was careful not to make enemies.
But for some reason, this Cui Xie’er seemed to have a problem with him.
In the morning, when the porridge was served, Hu Ma’s portion of dried meat was always smaller than others’, and sometimes he didn’t get any at all.
In the first few days after Hu Ma arrived, Cui Xie’er was the one who led the others in making snide remarks.
But because Hu Ma kept a low profile and didn’t interact much with others, and didn’t make a fuss about the missing piece of dried meat in the morning, Cui Xie’er couldn’t find an opening to attack him at first.
But he didn’t give up.
Slowly, his actions became more and more aggressive, and now he was openly ordering Hu Ma around.
“Well, shall we go?”
Zhou Datong blinked, looking uncertainly at Hu Ma.
He was genuinely afraid of this Cui Xie’er.
During martial arts practice, Cui Xie’er could be ruthless with him.
He didn’t have the same treatment as Hu Ma, who was excused from practicing martial arts and thus avoided getting beaten up.
“Alright, let’s go.”
Hu Ma sighed.
Right now, heavy physical labor wasn’t good for his condition, but this level of work was still manageable.
Besides, he wanted to take this opportunity to ask Zhou Datong about some things.
After all, this grandson of the village chief was the first friend he had made here.
As Second Master had said, “You two are bound to become friends.”
Hu Ma had been spoiled rotten in the past and was known in the village for being useless.
Zhou Datong, on the other hand, was just plain bad.
He was always causing trouble in the village and was known as the village troublemaker.
In short, these two were the “geniuses” of Dayang Village.
But before coming here, Hu Ma’s previous self hadn’t been friends with Zhou Datong.
In fact, they had disliked each other.
But now that they were both under Second Master’s care, things were different.
Zhou Datong, being younger than the other youths, had become more subdued.
Hu Ma, on the other hand, had changed on the inside.
His temper was no longer as prickly, and since they were both learning martial arts together, they had gradually become friends.
Of course, Hu Ma had befriended him partly because he thought Zhou Datong was a bit simple-minded but had a lot of gossip, making it easy to get information out of him.
The two of them picked up the carrying poles, hooked the buckets onto them, and walked out of the manor.
“What’s his problem? Why does he seem to have it out for me?”
Once they were alone, Hu Ma asked Zhou Datong in a low voice.
Having lived two lives, Hu Ma was naturally low-key.
Plus, with his poor health, he didn’t want to waste energy on unnecessary conflicts.
Even if he didn’t join the others in running up the mountains or practicing martial arts, that was his own business.
He wasn’t taking anything away from anyone else.
But this Cui Xie’er had had a problem with him from the moment he arrived, and now he was openly bullying him.
Zhou Datong gave Hu Ma a surprised look and said, “You’ve forgotten about Sister Cui?”
“What about Sister Cui?”
Hu Ma felt deeply helpless.
Everyone knew that he didn’t remember much, but they thought he had only forgotten a small part.
In reality, he had forgotten everything!
But he usually didn’t show it, often pretending to understand just enough to get by.
“A few years ago…”
Zhou Datong explained, “Sister Cui, that’s Cui Xie’er’s sister, Cui E. She went out to harvest rice and came back sick.”
“She couldn’t eat or drink anything. They prayed at the old fire pit, but it didn’t help. So the Cui family went to your grandmother.
After examining her, your grandmother said that the Mountain God had chosen her as his bride. She told the Cui family to throw away anything they had recently picked up, to lock Sister Cui in a room, and to tie red threads around the doors and windows.
No matter what noises they heard at night, they were not to open the door. She said she would go and talk to the Mountain God to see if she could resolve the matter.”
“But that very night, Sister Cui cried and screamed for half the night. The next day, they found her hanged.”
“…”
“What?”
Hu Ma was slightly shocked and instinctively said, “Even if they couldn’t save her, they can’t blame my grandmother, can they?”
“Well, the Cui family wasn’t happy about it. Afterward, they went to your house and blocked the door, cursing. It was my grandfather who pulled them back. I heard the Cui family complaining at the time. They said there was no such thing as a Mountain God. They knew all the powerful evil spirits around the village, and even if they didn’t, the ancestors in the fire pit would have told them in their dreams. But this Mountain God, no one had ever heard of him except your grandmother.”
Zhou Datong rambled on, “I don’t know the details. Your grandmother never brought it up with the Cui family again.”
“You don’t know, and I’m even more clueless…”
Hu Ma sighed inwardly, but at least he now understood why Cui Xie’er had it out for him.
“But…”
He looked at Zhou Datong beside him, “Even if he has a problem with me, why is he so rude to you?”
After all, this little fatty was the village chief’s grandson.
Did people in this place not respect the village’s second generation?
Zhou Datong’s expression turned pitiful, “I don’t know why, but it seems like beating me up gives him a lot of face?”
“…”
This village’s second generation was really living a hard life…
Hu Ma silently pondered the dynamics at play, weighing the pros and cons.
Gradually, an idea began to form in his mind.
(End of Chapter)