Chapter 17 Xia Wei - A Meal of Gratitude
After crossing the cold wilderness and crossing the frozen ridge, the outline of Qingshi Town finally appeared before Xia Wei's eyes.
Standing on the cliff and looking into the distance, the houses in the city are as small as building blocks, but they are arranged closely, one after another in an orderly manner. A few wisps of smoke rise up, and people come and go to work, which seems to be a prosperous scene.
Xia Wei's cheeks were sunken, her lips chapped. The days of hunger were like a sharp knife churning in her stomach. She held her stomach with one hand, only in this way could she slightly alleviate the pain of hunger.
She dragged her last breath and walked forward step by step, staggering as if a slightly stronger wind could blow her down. Her heavy eyelids kept drooping, and her strength was gradually fading. Even her soul seemed to be sucked away.
Finally, at the edge of Bluestone Town, she could no longer move forward and collapsed to the ground. Before she lost consciousness, she heard a few children's screams.
"Aunt Wang, someone fainted at your doorstep..."
…………
When Xia Wei woke up again, she found herself lying on the bed, covered with a warm blanket. Beside her, a kind young woman scooped a spoonful of warm soup and carefully put it into her mouth.
“Hmm…”
Xia Wei sat up and rubbed her hungry stomach. Seeing this, the woman smiled gently on her pleasant face: "Are you awake? You suddenly fainted at my door. I don't know how long you've been hungry. I prepared some warm food for you. Eat it while it's hot."
The woman brought over a table with a bowl of hot porridge, a bowl of corn rice, and a plate of pickles on it.
Looking at the steaming hot food, Xia Wei's eyes were wide open. She glanced at the woman, and after getting the woman's eye permission, she didn't bother to pick up the chopsticks, but grabbed the rice with her hands and stuffed it into her mouth in big mouthfuls. She gobbled it up like a whirlwind, eating up all the rice and pickles. Finally, she picked up the hot porridge and swallowed it slowly, one mouthful at a time.
"Don't worry, these are all yours." The woman noticed how Xia Wei ate and smiled slightly. "Just call me Aunt Wang. I still have work to do. You're still weak, so rest here for a while."
As she spoke, Aunt Wang stood up. Only then did Xia Wei see her full appearance. She saw that the woman was wearing loose clothes and had a bulging belly. She was pregnant. From time to time, she reached out and stroked her round belly, her face filled with the glow of motherhood.
Seeing Aunt Wang was about to leave, Xia Wei quickly put down her bowl of porridge and said with heartfelt gratitude, "I will definitely repay your kindness today!"
Aunt Wang waved her hand and smiled. "It was just a meal. There's no need to talk about repaying. It's just something I can do. If you really want to repay me, don't forget to help those in need if you encounter this situation next time."
Looking at Aunt Wang's departing back, Xia Wei felt a warmth in her heart. She secretly swore in her heart that if she had the chance, she would repay the favor of this meal a hundredfold or a thousandfold.
Just as Xia Wei was secretly sighing, she saw ripples appearing beside her hand, and Ye Jie's figure moved across the space and came over.
"I brought you some spirit stones and a top-grade human-level skill." Ye Jie said straight to the point. Several sparkling small stones and an uncovered book appeared in his hands.
Seeing Ye Jie coming, Xia Wei's eyes lit up. She reached out her hand obediently, took the small stones, and said in surprise:
"What are these stones? I can sense a very special power hidden within them. Holding them relaxes my tired body and makes my arms feel lighter. If I could absorb this power, it would definitely benefit my body."
Ye Jie explained, "These are spirit stones. Although they are only low-grade, they are worth more than their weight in silver in the mortal world. Absorbing the pure spiritual energy within the spirit stones can greatly accelerate one's cultivation. In order to obtain these spirit stones, a friend of mine fell into a trap set by an evil cultivator and nearly died."
Upon learning that the value of the spirit stone exceeded its weight in silver and that the process of obtaining it was so difficult, Xia Wei opened her mouth slightly, and her bright eyes, looking at Ye Jie, were filled with a bit of speechless emotion.
“Master…”
Xia Wei, who vowed to repay even a meal, was so grateful to Ye Jie for his kindness that she could not express it in words. Any words became redundant at this moment. The only thing she could do was to remember this kindness in her heart.
"Hurry up and practice your skills. With these spirit stones, you should be able to successfully cross a small realm." Ye Jie reminded.
There were four spirit stones in total, each about the size of a goose egg. Xia Wei clutched the spirit stones tightly in her hand and then, following the breathing method Ye Jie had taught her, she sat cross-legged in meditation, rapidly circulating her spiritual energy throughout her body.
After several cycles, the light on the spirit stone completely dimmed. Xia Wei's body glowed with light, and the spiritual energy gathered around her reached its peak. Waves of energy emanated from her body, making her robes whistle. She opened her eyes, a gleam of light flashing in them, and exhaled a long, turbid breath. Her entire aura was different from before, like a sharp blade unsheathed, beginning to reveal its edge.
"In this way, you have entered the middle stage of the first stage of Qi training. The spiritual energy in your body is more refined, and your energy can be more sustained... Someone is coming."
Ye Jie was halfway through his speech when he suddenly changed the subject and looked towards the door, only to hear a scream from outside.
It was Aunt Wang. She'd heard the noise coming from the room and was about to come over to investigate when she saw Xia Wei sitting cross-legged, concentrating on her energy, her eyes blazing with energy. She couldn't help but cover her mouth and exclaim, "I was wondering how you came here alone across the wilderness. You're a cultivator... Your name is Xia Wei, right? I wonder what brings you to Qingshi Town?"
"The bandit Hengshan killed my family. I want revenge on him." Xia Wei said coldly, with flames burning in her eyes.
Even Aunt Wang was surprised when Xia Wei mentioned the name of the bandit Hengshan. "Many people in this town are talking about him, saying he's a ruthless thug. I never thought Miss Xia Wei would have such a tragic past. I heard that the bandit Hengshan is kidnapping newborn babies to practice his evil skills, and he's coming to Qingshi Town soon. If he comes to us, I'm afraid my unborn child will be in trouble too..."
Upon hearing this, Xia Wei said without hesitation, "Aunt Wang, you can rest assured. As long as Xia Wei is here, I will do my best to protect you."
Sensing Xia Wei's concern, Aunt Wang smiled with relief. "My husband, Qi Feng, is the captain of the town's Monster Hunting Team. He's responsible for hunting aquatic monsters on the Bone Burial Beach. He often says that by eating monster meat, which is rich in spiritual energy, one can slowly improve their cultivation. This is much faster than meditating or breathing in spiritual energy. If Miss Xia Wei doesn't have a place to stay for the time being, you can try joining the Monster Hunting Team."
Hearing this, Xia Wei showed some joy, but did not agree immediately. Instead, she turned her gaze slightly and looked at Ye Jie who was waiting on the side, leaving the decision-making power to her master.
Aunt Wang did not react at all to Ye Jie who suddenly appeared in the room. Mortals whose souls had not been tempered could not see the ghost messenger from the underworld, nor could they hear the ghost messenger's words.
Ye Jie said slowly, "Aquatic monsters travel in groups and will not easily act alone. You have just entered the middle stage of the first stage, so it is best to be careful in everything. If you can have some support from other practitioners, it will be much easier."
After receiving her master's approval, Xia Wei finally made a decision: "In that case, I will respectfully obey your command. Where should I go to join the monster hunting team?"
Aunt Wang asked with concern: "I can take you there, but you just woke up, do you need to rest for a few days?"
Xia Wei shook her head: "I'm going now."
Seeing this, Aunt Wang said nothing more and started to lead Xia Wei out. Seeing Xia Wei's belly, which must have been at least seven or eight months pregnant, Xia Wei couldn't help but worry, "Aunt Wang, you should rest at home and don't disturb the baby. Why don't you tell me the location of the monster hunting team and I can go there myself."
Aunt Wang waved her hand and said, "It's okay. I'm not a lady from a wealthy family."
Under the guidance of Aunt Wang, Xia Wei traveled through Qingshi Town. Many people she met on the way greeted Aunt Wang enthusiastically. She was kind-hearted and had a very good reputation in the town.
Ye Jie followed the two of them slowly, and all the mortals he met along the way could not see the figure of the ghost messenger.
Soon, they arrived at a camp. Outside the camp was a fence made of sharpened logs, with many tents in the middle.
After passing several sentries, they arrived inside the camp. In the distance, they saw dozens of men wielding spears, practicing drills. Sometimes they formed a tight formation, their spear tips pointed outward, and sometimes they separated with just the right amount of space, watching over each other. Along the edge of the field stood a variety of training equipment, including plum blossom stakes driven deep into the ground for physical training and immensely heavy bronze tripods for strength training.
Ye Jie reminded Xia Wei, "As the old saying goes, there's strength in numbers. What they're practicing is a spear battle formation. Ten early-stage second-level cultivators forming a battle formation are enough to fight against a peak-level second-level cultivator, provided that cultivator doesn't use advanced techniques or magical weapons. If you're fighting alone, try to avoid engaging multiple enemies at once."
Xia Wei nodded and kept Ye Jie's teachings in mind. Then, she heard an order from the commander in front of the battle formation, and all the soldiers put away their guns and stood up, ending the battle formation drill.
Aunt Wang stepped forward and said, "Commander Zhang Yong, her name is Xia Wei. She has just arrived in Qingshi Town and is a cultivator who has come to join the monster hunting team."
Facing Aunt Wang's introduction, Commander Zhang Yong curled his lips, looked Xia Wei up and down, and reprimanded her mercilessly:
"What cultivator? How dare a mere woman like her call herself a cultivator? Don't think you're invincible just because you've learned a few techniques. With such a frail body, I'm afraid you wouldn't even be enough to fill the teeth of a monster. And you want to join the monster hunting team? I'm afraid you'll be eaten by monsters in a few days!"
Listening to Zhang Yong's comments, the soldiers burst into laughter and echoed:
"Look at her skinny arms. I'm afraid she can't even kill a chicken. And she wants to fight monsters? This is really hilarious!"
"How old is she? I'm afraid she fainted at the sight of blood. We should hurry home and not lose her life in vain at the hands of a monster."
"The Monster Hunting Team is on the front lines fighting monsters. They eat much better meals than we do, so their training speed is naturally faster. Qi Feng from the Monster Hunting Team is Aunt Wang's husband. Could this girl be a relative of Aunt Wang or something?"
"You!" Xia Wei's face lit up at the soldiers' laughter. She couldn't stand hearing them slandering and defaming Aunt Wang any longer. She stepped forward and shouted angrily, "Who among you dares to fight me?"
Hearing this, the soldiers were not angry, but laughed even louder:
"Oh, did I hear correctly? She actually wants to challenge us? Whoever defeats that girl won't be honorable at all. Instead, it would be a joke and they would be laughed at for the rest of their lives."
"She may not be very capable, but she has a bad temper. I really don't know how much I weigh. I'd like to teach her a lesson, but even if I win, I wouldn't be considered a hero."
"Little girl, this is not the place for you. You should go back to where you came from. Home is the safest place."
Faced with the ridicule of the soldiers, Aunt Wang seemed a little helpless, and Xia Wei's face turned pale with anger. However, no matter what she said, no one would listen to her at all, and all she got in return was louder ridicule.
"Come over here."
Just as Xia Wei was stamping her feet in anxiety, she suddenly heard a familiar whisper in her ears.
Under that gentle tone, all the waves and distracting thoughts in Xia Wei's heart calmed down at this moment. As long as she heard that voice, everything around her seemed to be far away from her. She returned to the night when her relatives passed away in the wind and snow. The only person who was with her was her master Ye Jie.
She walked without thinking and came to Ye Jie's side, only to see Ye Jie standing at the edge of the training ground. In front of him was a three-legged bronze tripod used by soldiers to train their strength. It took two people to hold the tripod with their arms outstretched. Its heavy weight even pressed the ground into a depression.
Ye Jie patted the large cauldron in front of him and smiled faintly at her: "As the old saying goes: Strength is more effective than words. They don't believe in your ability, so let them see what you can do."
Xia Wei took a deep breath and stood with her legs apart. Spiritual energy rapidly flowed through her body, making her arms glow with a shimmering, translucent luster. She activated the entry-level, lower-grade Earth-level technique: Turtle Hands. Her arms suddenly increased in strength to the strength of an ox or a horse. For an ordinary person to achieve this level of strength, their arm muscles would bulge, resembling elephant legs from a distance. However, thanks to her innate magical power, Xia Wei's arms remained straight and slender.
"Get up for me!"
Endless power surged from Xia Wei's body. She let out a soft cry and raised her arms tightly. Fine beads of sweat oozed from her forehead and several blue veins protruded from her neck. She actually lifted the extremely heavy tripod!
Seeing this, the soldiers who had just been laughing at Xia Wei were shocked and fell silent. Even the commander Zhang Yong couldn't help but open his mouth wide and his eyes bulged, unable to believe what he saw.