Practice[1]

The sun cast its golden light across the earth, while birds chirped melodiously in the distance. Bei Lin sat behind her house on a rock she had placed for her daily practice. The area she lived in had low Qi density, unsuitable for cultivation, but she didn't let that discourage her. It had been over 15 days since she learned about cultivation, and yet she couldn't sense Qi. However, her determination remained unwavering.

This was the 16th day she attempted to grasp Qi. Every morning, she dedicated herself to this task, even though success eluded her. Deep down, she believed her spirit root was of high quality. Once, her blood had been purified by Zhang Meihu's blood essence, which likely altered this body's cultivation potential. Yet she remained uncertain about her elemental affinity. She knew nine-tailed foxes from novels wielded elements like fire, illusion, charm, ice, or moonlight, but her pink nine-tailed fox lineage left her confused. While she carried the bloodline, her human form required cultivation through her spirit root, which would determine her element

She sat with her legs crossed and closed her eyes. She relaxed and focused on her breathing. Minutes passed, but she felt nothing. She was disappointed and thought she had failed. Then, she felt a slight itch on her skin. Surprised, she opened her eyes. She took a sharp breath, and the itch faded. In its place, she felt a gentle energy flowing through her nose and into her body.

She felt excited. She calmed her thoughts and tried to meditate again. Fifteen minutes later, she felt the Qi again, this time more clearly. It entered through her nose and moved to her chest, but it stopped there. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move it further. Still, she was happy. She had finally felt Qi.

Encouraged, she breathed in more Qi and tried to send it into her right hand. It only reached the start of the muscles before stopping. She felt frustrated but kept trying, noticing the Qi around her getting weaker. Realizing she had used up the area's Qi, she stopped meditating and opened her eyes.

Joy sparkled in her black eyes. For the first time, she had sensed and guided Qi, even if just a little. But her happiness did not last long when she smelled something bad. Looking down, she saw black impurities on her chest and right shoulder from the Qi cleansing her body.

Without delay, Bei Lin stood up and went to Lei Wang's house. After washing up, she returned to the rock behind her house, feeling refreshed and ready to continue her journey.

Bei Lin picked up her wooden sword and practiced hard. For over three hours, she repeated her forms and techniques. Her movements were sharp and precise. She knew practice was key to building a strong foundation for her cultivation.

Her routine didn't just include swordplay. She did 50 squats, 100 push-ups, 50 pull-up and lifted rocks to strengthen her arms. Each movement was careful, her determination strong. She also did chores that helped her stay fit.

Every morning, Bei Lin ran to the stream to get water. After filling a scoop, she sprinted back without spilling any. She poured the water into a large wooden tank at Lei Wang's house and did this many times until the tank was full.

Once finished, she carried two wooden buckets of water as makeshift dumbbells to build strength. Her body, though trained hard, stayed soft and smooth, like polished jade. She believed this was due to her nine-tailed fox bloodline.

In her past life, she had a muscular body and liked being strong. Now, as a girl, she was happy with her new look.

Feeling the faint traces of Qi during meditation pushed her to work harder. She saw every moment of training as a step toward mastering her cultivation.

After finishing her sword training, Bei Lin sat down on the rock she had placed behind her house. She inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, calming her heart and soothing her nerves. After some time, she opened her eyes, feeling more composed. Stretching slightly, she jumped lightly ten times to loosen her body before heading to Lei Wang's house.

Once there, she washed herself again and changed into her old black dress. Feeling refreshed, she entered the kitchen, where Lei Wang had already prepared food before leaving. Lei Wang wasn't home; he had gone to the nearby town early that morning with the village chief and two young warriors, Qin Ming and Ye Chen.

The previous day, the two warriors had successfully hunted a large boar and a deer in the nearby forest. The four of them decided to take the deer to the market to sell, a task that would take two days before their return.

After eating her meal, Bei Lin tidied up, then returned to her house. She placed her wooden sword and the two old dresses neatly in their spots before walking to Aunt Mei's house.

As Bei Lin walked to Aunt Mei's house, she thought about her promise to find the parents of the girl whose body she now inhabited. She hadn't lied to Aunt Mei when she said she would search; she intended to. When she first came to this world five years ago, she looked for clues about the girl's past because she believed no child would choose to be abandoned.

Bei Lin wanted to ask her host's parents why they had left their child. If she couldn't find them, at least she would have tried. She felt guilty for taking over the girl's body and wanted to honor her by searching for her family. She suspected that Zhang Meihu's will had somehow pulled the girl's body into the pendant, and that the girl's soul couldn't handle the power of the bloodline, leading to its end. By the time Bei Lin's soul took over, the host's body was close to collapse, and she might have saved it.

Another thing troubled Bei Lin—killing. In her past life, she had only been in small fights and had never taken a life. But this world was different. To survive, sometimes one had to kill. While she feared this idea, she decided that if someone attacked her, she would protect herself.

The cruelty of this world weighed on her. The village seemed safe, but the outside world was harsh. She had read many stories of betrayal—husbands and wives harming each other for treasure, disciples attacking their masters, and friends betraying one another. Power was everything, and justice had no value. Though her instincts told her to help others, she knew she couldn't afford such goodwill. In this world, helping the wrong person could lead to her death.

Deep in thought, Bei Lin arrived at Aunt Mei's house. She knocked on the door, and moments later, An Min opened it with a bright smile. "Bei, what a beauty you are!" An Min exclaimed, pretending to be jealous. "I'm really jealous!"

Bei Lin just smiled at An Min's playful remark and followed her to the kitchen. Aunt Mei sat there, cutting the boar meat.

The boar that the young warriors had caught yesterday had provided a feast for the village, but there was still some meat left. Eight households received the leftover meat, but not Lei Wang's or Bei Lin's. Lei Wang usually cooked for Bei Lin, and even though she was learning, he rarely let her help. Since he was in town with the chief, no one could cook or preserve the food at their house. Without refrigeration, they needed to eat the meat quickly—maybe it would last a day if they were lucky.

Village Chief Qi Lei gave Aunt Mei some extra meat because she was cooking for Bei Lin for the next two days.

Mei was getting the meat ready for lunch and dinner.

Bei Lin asked her, "Aunt Mei, won't the meat spoil?"

Mei stopped and said, "No, we're lucky. We can eat it for lunch and dinner. Oh! You had breakfast, right?"

Bei Lin nodded.

Aunt Mei then said, "Good. Help me boil some water. An Min, go wash the vegetables and cut them."

Bei Lin went to the mud stove. She lit it, put a pot on, and filled it with water. Soon, the water was boiling. She called out, "Aunt Mei, the water's boiling!"

Mei replied, "Good! Come and take the cut meat, put it in the boiling water, and wash it again."

Bei Lin was confused about washing the meat again, but she didn't ask. She went to the backyard to follow the instructions.

Bei Lin took the meat from Aunt Mei as she explained, "The meat was from yesterday. Even though it hasn't spoiled, it's better to wash it with boiling water. It also improves the taste. After five minutes, take the meat out of the pot, okay?"

Bei Lin nodded, understanding, and returned to the kitchen. Using a small cloth to handle the pot, she carefully placed the meat into the boiling water. After five minutes, she took it out despite the heat still radiating from the water and placed it on another plate.

While Bei Lin worked, Aunt Mei brought over the remaining meat and placed it in the boiling water as well. Just then, An Min arrived with the washed and cut vegetables. Aunt Mei took another pot, placed it on the mud stove, and boiled water in it. After about three minutes, she added some of the vegetables to the boiling water.

After washing the meat in the boiling water and taking it out, Aunt Mei placed it in the pot with the meat Bei Lin had prepared earlier. Once all the meat was boiled and ready, Aunt Mei put it into the pot on the stove. She let it cook for some time, then added salt , preparing a flavorful curry for both lunch and dinner.

After their chores, Aunt Mei, Bei Lin, and An Min chatted for a while about daily matters. Bei Lin frequently visited Aunt Mei's house after her morning routine. This was mainly because Aunt Mei's house was one of the few places in the village with only women living in it. Many other houses had men or boys, and ever since Bei Lin's beauty began to attract attention, even married men occasionally cast lingering glances at her. To avoid unnecessary trouble, she preferred spending her time at Aunt Mei's.

Later, they left the house, they walked to Bei Lin's house to take her old dress for washing. Then, they walked to the stream.. While they could wash the clothes nearby, An Min enjoyed the trip to the stream, so they decided to go. Their village was located at the foot of a mountain range with six or seven peaks. At the base of each mountain were four or five small villages like theirs.

The two made their way to the stream, where the clear water flowed steadily, eventually merging into a river about 5 kilometers away. The stream was dotted with smooth rocks both in and around the water. They set about washing their clothes, chatting and laughing as they worked.

Suddenly, a rustling noise came from the bushes near the stream. Both of them turned to see a black snake slithering out, its yellow eyes fixed on them. An Min gasped in fear and quickly moved behind Bei Lin for protection. The snake hissed, its forked tongue flicking out as it alternated its gaze between An Min and Bei Lin. Bei Lin's heart raced with nervousness, but she tried to remain calm, shielding An Min from the snake's piercing gaze.

Even though Bei Lin had practiced combat, she had no experience with real-life encounters. The snake hissed loudly, its yellow eyes gleaming with menace, and in an instant, it lunged toward Bei Lin. Despite her nerves, she instinctively grabbed the dress in her hand and threw it at the snake. The fabric landed squarely on the snake's head, temporarily entangling it.

The snake struggled, twisting and thrashing until it freed itself from the dress. But in that brief moment, Bei Lin had already grabbed a sturdy stick lying nearby. Without hesitation, she swung it down on the snake's head, hitting it hard. She struck it again and again—ten times in total—until the snake stopped moving. It was dead.

An Min, still shaken, stared wide-eyed at the scene. An Min looked at her and said: Bei Lin you're too powerful. Bei Lin just smiled back at her. After they decided to take the snake back with them as food. After washing their dresses again to remove any dirt or debris from the encounter, they gathered their belongings and started walking back to the village.

The noon sun blazed above them, casting its relentless heat over the land, as though drinking the energy of all living beings.

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