Chapter 73: Like Master, Like Thing

It was already nighttime.

Li Lin returned to his new home and slept soundly through the night.

After waking the next day, he practiced several sets of the White Tiger Turning Over Stance in the oddity hall, steam rising from his forehead.

【Fist Technique +1】

Now, practicing the fist art no longer increased the proficiency of the White Tiger Turning Over Stance itself.

This meant he had completely mastered and integrated this boxing technique.

As for the proficiency category of “Fist Technique,” its growth rate had already become very slow.

In the past, performing a single set of fist techniques could trigger several notifications.

But now, it took several sets before a single proficiency notification appeared.

In other words, the White Tiger Turning Over Stance was no longer providing much benefit to his growth.

He needed to find a better fist technique to learn.

Only...

Things like martial arts manuals were impossible to find even with money.

By comparison, the Yu Clan Spear Technique continued to generate many proficiency notifications as always.

That meant the upper limit of this spear art still lay beyond Li Lin’s current reach.

Xing’er, who had been waiting nearby, handed over a clean towel.

Li Lin wiped himself down for a while.

He was just preparing to rest briefly and let his body recover before beginning spear practice when Zhang A’fu walked in through the second courtyard gate.

“Master, a young lady from a distinguished family has come outside. Judging by her appearance, she should be the County Magistrate’s daughter.”

Huang Qing was quite famous in Yulin County.

After all, she was the only Hu maiden here, and she was a great beauty.

As the county magistrate’s daughter, she was known by practically everyone.

“Invite her in and prepare tea for our guest.”

Li Lin immediately returned to his room and changed into a set of casual home clothes.

When he came back out, he saw Huang Qing seated in the reception hall with a familiar little maidservant beside her.

The moment they saw Li Lin, both stood up.

After giving a slight curtsy, Huang Qing lowered her head and said gently,

“Senior Brother, this little sister has come uninvited and disturbed you.”

Li Lin smiled.

“Sit down. No need to be so polite. Treat this place like your own home.”

The instant she heard that, Huang Qing’s face flushed bright red.

The little maidservant beside her covered her mouth and giggled.

Li Lin knew that while the phrase sounded perfectly ordinary in daily conversation, it carried a rather different implication when heard by the other party.

Only after quite some time did Huang Qing softly say,

“Senior Brother, please stop teasing this little sister.”

She sounded both reproachful and pleased.

Seeing that he had gone far enough, Li Lin stopped.

She looked like a foreign beauty, but inwardly she was still an unmarried Han girl.

This level of teasing was already her limit.

He smiled and said,

“What brings you here today, little sister?”

In truth, Li Lin understood what it meant for a maiden to visit a man’s home alone.

However, their relationship had not reached that point yet.

For now, he could only play dumb.

“I heard that Senior Brother has been traveling for nearly ten days. I prepared some nourishing soup to help restore your strength.”

She opened the lid of an exquisite bamboo basket and took out two lacquered food containers.

“I also made some thousand-layer cakes. I hope Senior Brother will give them a try.”

The maidservant beside her opened the containers.

A rich aroma immediately drifted out.

It was the pleasant fragrance of medicinal soup.

Li Lin cupped his fists.

“Thank you, little sister.”

The maidservant proudly said,

“My young lady’s cooking is excellent. Ordinary people would never have such good fortune.”

Then Huang Qing stood up.

Her face red, she said,

“The items have been delivered, so I should return now. If Senior Brother has time in the future, please visit my home more often. This little sister will do her utmost to receive you properly.”

“Won’t you stay a little longer?”

Huang Qing shook her head.

“It would not be appropriate for me to stay too long.”

That was indeed true.

The fact that she had come alone at all was already somewhat unconventional behavior.

But was that not a form of courage as well?

Li Lin escorted the two of them to the door.

“In a few days, I will pay a return visit and bring a gift in return.”

Huang Qing gave a soft acknowledgment.

Looking at Li Lin, her eyes sparkled.

“This little sister shall await Senior Brother’s honored visit.”

With that, she left.

The little maidservant turned around and said,

“By the way, my name is Hongluan. If Young Master Li ever has any message that needs to be delivered to my young lady, you can come find me first...”

Li Lin watched the two depart.

Then he returned to the inner hall and began drinking the medicinal soup.

Truth be told, it tasted very good.

The thousand-layer cakes were excellent as well.

It seemed Huang Qing had come to make her intentions clear.

Her meaning was simple:

I like you as well, and I am also skilled at cooking.

Li Lin began pondering.

Since she had already expressed her feelings, he would have to make some sort of response as well.

That afternoon, he returned to Shangtikou Village.

The villagers all greeted Li Lin proactively when they saw him.

He returned every greeting.

Then he arrived at the altar.

The Tree Immortal Lady appeared.

The moment she did, she hugged Li Lin’s arm and began licking it.

Li Lin occasionally sucked in a breath.

After quite some time, the Tree Immortal Lady finally covered her mouth and looked at Li Lin with her pair of gray eyes.

Originally, those eyes had been a lifeless gray.

Yet now, Li Lin could see a faint trace of vitality within them.

It was a very difficult feeling to describe.

But Li Lin felt that it was indeed vitality.

“Your Ladyship, this is the Snow Marrow Vermilion you asked for.”

Li Lin handed over the box.

The Tree Immortal Lady accepted it and opened the lid.

When she saw the rouge inside, a smile appeared on her face.

“Thank you.”

Then her figure faded and disappeared.

Li Lin felt somewhat disappointed.

He had wanted to see just how beautiful the Tree Immortal Lady would look after applying the rouge to her little lips.

Instead, she had run off.

Forget it.

Li Lin turned and went home.

After checking the time of day, he headed into the mountains to gather herbs and refine pills.

Back home, he continued refining Shengxi Pills with the newly purchased alchemy furnace.

He had a feeling that he would soon achieve a breakthrough in Alchemy.

Sure enough...

After successfully refining another batch of Shengxi Pills, a new pill formula appeared in his mind.

Beauty Preservation Pill!

This thing...

It was very useful, yet somehow seemed not particularly useful at the same time.

But then Li Lin suddenly slapped his palm.

He had just thought of what gift to prepare in return after some time.

This Beauty Preservation Pill.

He simply did not believe that any woman could resist something like this.

He very much wanted to refine a batch immediately.

But after looking at the sky, he realized there was no longer enough time to go into the mountains.

So he gave up on the idea.

After that, he naturally cooked rice, ate dinner, bathed, and climbed into bed to cultivate.

During the first half of the night, he cultivated the Spring Renewal Health Preservation Art.

During the second half, he cultivated the Nourishing Yin Cultivation Method.

The next morning, after practicing several sets of martial arts, he cut out a paper figurine.

A sudden idea had occurred to him.

Since small paper figures could guide the way, could a nearly life-sized Soul-Guiding Paper Figurine help him perform work?

Using Soul-Guiding Paper Figurines solely to injure or kill people felt like a waste of their potential.

Immediately, he crafted another Soul-Guiding Paper Figurine.

Naturally, he used the Tree Immortal Lady’s appearance as the model and infused it with yin energy.

The Soul-Guiding Paper Figurine came to life.

Li Lin transmitted an order through his spirit, commanding it to gather herbs in the mountains.

The Soul-Guiding Paper Figurine immediately entered the house, picked up a sickle, shouldered a bamboo basket, then curled up its long paper snake tail before forcefully springing outward.

Its entire body floated into the air.

It drifted onto a tree, grabbed a branch with one hand, swung its body, then leapt to another tree.

Repeating the process over and over, it quickly headed up the mountain.

Every time it swung through the air, Li Lin felt as though he could hear a female voice going, Woohoo...

It looked exactly like a female monkey.

Hiss...

Why did all the paper figurines he created seem so strange?

Then Li Lin felt a chill.

Turning his head, he discovered the Tree Immortal Lady staring coldly at him.