Half of November has already passed.

Today the weather is warm, and it's the day to receive the monthly salary.

There is a long queue in front of the accountant's office. Li Xian, invited by his roommates Bao Yongkang, Jia Jie, and Kong Sun, heads there together.

The three have the intention of "clinging to a tiger's skin."

Being able to speak with a B-class Nursing Home member is an extremely honorable thing. Martial Artists always strive for strength and are aggressive; bullying the weak is everywhere.

According to the law of the jungle, the weak naturally gravitate towards the strong. This is the way of survival and not shameful.

Li Xian understands the thoughts of the three and doesn't mind taking care of them along the way.

Half an hour later, they arrive at the front of the line and step over the threshold into the accountant's office.

"B-class Nursing Home, Li Xian."

"The total monthly salary is 620 copper coins, plus one Tiger Red Pill."

Accountant Uncle Xiang glanced at him. He recognized Li Xian and had a strong impression of him. Without waiting for Li Xian to speak, he had already handed over a cloth bag.

It contained copper coins and elixirs.

"Thank you, Uncle Xiang." Li Xian weighed the bag, delighted to have an income again, extremely happy.

"Working for the lady, it's something you deserve, no need to thank me," Uncle Xiang smiled, waved his hand, indicating that Li Xian should go on with his business.

Li Xian meticulously counted the money, and with today's salary, he accumulated a total of one tael and 500 coins.

The Tiger Red Pill is standard for the B-class Nursing Home, provided monthly. Since the lady is refining the Extreme Body Pill, and the Tiger Red Pill is a by-product with abundant production, and since the lady didn't use it, it was naturally distributed downwards.

This pill is priced at a little more than one tael. It's made using the tiger beast's internal organs, and its effect is average; after consumption, the whole body feels warm, and the skin turns red.

At this time, practicing martial arts, the body lake ripples, progress comes faster.

"Now that my Qi circulation is complete, I'm not far from A-class Nursing Home."

"If there is another Nursing Home competition, I can advance further."

Li Xian thought to himself while strolling in the courtyard, wandering leisurely to a lake. He drew his knife from its sheath, lightly stirring the lake water.

Combining work and leisure, having a half-day rest today isn't considered lazy. He wandered around the courtyard.

Seeing the lake surrounded by lush green willows, it didn't resemble a winter scene at all.

"It's said that there is a hot spring vein under the village of Zhuangzi, with excellent terrain and warm earthly energy."

Li Xian murmured.

Unknowingly, he wandered to where he saw a fallen tree during his first patrol.

He had some insight into martial arts.

Looking at the broken tree again, the feeling was completely different. He felt a faint stabbing pain in his eyes, as if some invisible sword momentum was piercing through.

"Looking at it this way, the gap is really big."

"I don't know what kind of scene it would be if the lady fully unleashed her power."

"And I heard that martial artists consume essences, some chosen and lucky ones may undergo physical changes and display unique traits."

"These various things can only be heard from Commander Pang, who occasionally reveals bits and pieces. To witness it firsthand, who knows when that will be."

Li Xian sighed, recalling the matter of the "Pot Immortal." Although he had no favor towards Li Haitang and the others, it was indeed good to eliminate the cruel and bloodthirsty Pot Immortal as soon as possible.

He didn't get too close, turning around to leave.

Recently, he had been diligently advancing his martial arts without slacking. His Four Directions Fist, Clear Wind Leg, and Jade Palm had shown obvious progress, but no major breakthroughs yet.

After completing Qi circulation, he began attempting the "Blood Solidification and Aperture Closure," but he lacked a mentor and experience, feeling completely in the dark. He thought about finding Pang Long, but it wasn't easy to ask.

"I'm fifteen this year, and from starting martial arts until now, it's been only two to three months. Completing Qi circulation is inevitably too fast.

The mind of defense must always be kept. The specifics of Blood Solidification and Aperture Closure can only be inquired indirectly, without arousing suspicion from others."

"If I can't find out soon, using this time to settle down for a while is also good. And I persist in practicing martial arts, my accomplishments in martial arts are still progressing."

Li Xian steadied his mind.

...

This noon, Li Xian gathered his team, equipping them with weapons and dry cakes, to patrol the estate.

"Master Li, please lead on first."

The C-class Nursing Home members were flattering and fawning as usual.

"Today's patrol of Dongnong Village, everyone follow me."

"Keep your eyes peeled."

Li Xian shouted, patrolling along the east side, circling the mountain. When hungry, they ate cakes and drank water. If it wasn't enough, they took some bear jerky.

Today the turmoil had subsided.

The road wasn't difficult to travel.

"Master Li, could I get a piece of your jerky to try it?"

One Nursing Home member was very hungry after eating the dry cake. Seeing Li Xian occasionally chewing on jerky, he finally couldn't resist and mustered the courage to ask.

"Hey."

Li Xian opened the food bag.

The meats of bear, tiger, and deer were all cut into strips and smoked into jerky. During this time, he had already eaten most of it.

Only ten pieces of tiger jerky and three pieces of bear jerky remained. As for the deer meat, it was long gone.

Consuming "deer meat" increased the food essence skill level the least, but deer meat had the best taste, carrying a milky aroma, making a delightful snack.

On the contrary, tiger and bear meat; tiger meat had many tendons, making it chewy on the jaws; bear meat had a fishy smell, making it not so delicious.

These two types of jerky still had plenty remaining.

"Deliciousness and food effectiveness cannot coexist."

Li Xian had indeed grown tired of them, so he divided the remaining jerky among the Nursing Home members.

The Nursing Home members, out on patrol, enduring hunger and thirst, naturally cherished them when received, chewing with relish.

"Master Li is generous."

"Master Li is mighty."

The praises continued.

"Eat well and continue patrolling, the sooner we go, the sooner we return."

Li Xian called out.

Arriving at Dongnong Village, this area belonged to the lady, encompassing over a thousand acres of farmland. However, the "Lin Family" and "Huang Family," other large county households, also had lands here.

They lay tightly together.

The key to Nursing Home's patrol was to check if the Lin and Huang families were encroaching on land without permission.

"Grand... Grandfather..."

While patrolling the fields, an old man was suddenly seen approaching tremblingly.

"Hey, are you calling me grandpa? You should say it..."

A C-class Nursing Home member was about to scold.

Li Xian lightly raised his hand, and the C-class member immediately fell silent, quietly stepping back a pace.

"Elder, if there's something to say, please speak." Li Xian said.

"Ah! Great-grandfather." The elder, pleasantly surprised, was about to kneel down and kowtow.

Li Xian raised his hand slightly, the sword sheath touched the elder's knees. The inner Qi circulated, supporting the elder; he wanted to kneel but couldn't.

"Elder, you are quite aged, if you call me great-grandfather, I cannot bear it. Just call me B-class Nursing Home." Li Xian smiled.

"B... B-class Nursing Home?" The elder tentatively called, seeing Li Xian's kind face, he became a bit bolder, "Master B-class Nursing Home, this... this matter, I hope you can report to the lady."

"Oh?" Li Xian asked: "What matter, you can slowly say it, just make it clear."

"It's like this, recently..." The elder said fearfully, "Our village has been haunted, several people have disappeared one after another, without a trace."

"Initially, we thought it was the work of tigers, leopards, wolves, and tried setting traps, but caught nothing. On the contrary, more people vanished. Alas, you see, those missing are young adults, children, and women. We old folks got nothing happening to us."

"What should we do? Come spring next year, even if we want to work, we won't be able to."

"Please tell the lady about the situation, and think of some way!"

Li Xian furrowed his brow, "Is there such a reason?"

"It's absolutely true." The elder nodded.

After some negotiation, Li Xian personally went to investigate on site, finding that there were indeed many missing villagers, but lacking any clues, he had to give up, promising to report back to the estate.

With the patrol over, Li Xian ordered a return to the estate. The elder, fearing Li Xian might not pay heed, brought a basket of eggs as a gift.

Li Xian declined, heading straight back.

On the way, pondering over the strange happenings, he couldn't help but feel a slight coldness inside.

"Could it be... that Pot Immortal is still in Qingning County?"

The feeling was indeed strong.

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