"I will definitely sense the flow of Qi!"

Xu Changshou nodded with absolute conviction. It was obvious this Daoist was extraordinary, perhaps even a true immortal. If he could take him as a master, he too would have the chance to step onto the path of Cultivation.

Zhang Zhengyuan then began to impart the breathing technique.

The Six-Character Breathing Technique sounded simple, but putting it into practice was entirely different.

Each syllable required a corresponding posture and a specific rhythm of breath.

For instance, when reciting the 'Xi' syllable for inhaling, he had to expand his belly like a drum.

When chanting 'Hu' to exhale, his stomach had to be hollowed out.

There were also bizarre instructions to draw in his abdomen, lift his pelvis, and contract his lower muscles-contortions that made Xu Changshou incredibly uncomfortable.

It took two full hours of agonizing practice before Xu Changshou barely managed to memorize the sequence.

"Oh crap, the fields. I'm dead, I'm dead. That wicked shrew is going to skin me alive."

Xu Changshou slapped his forehead and shot to his feet, rushing to untie the ox.

"Daoist, I need to go till the fields. Please, whatever you do, don't go to the front courtyard. If that shrew finds out you're here, we're both done for. She's vicious..."

Zhang Zhengyuan cut him off. "Starting today, your days of labor are over. Where is this Landlord Wang? Take me to him."

"Huh?"

The mere mention of confronting Landlord Wang made Xu Changshou's calves cramp in terror. He was supposed to be out plowing right now. If that shrew caught him slacking, a brutal thrashing was guaranteed.

"Why are you dallying? Lead the way," Zhang Zhengyuan frowned.

Xu Changshou offered a bitter, trembling smile. "I don't dare. I'm terrified of that shrew."

"Peace. With my presence here, she will not dare touch a hair on your head."

"O-okay..."

Zhang Zhengyuan strode out of the cowshed with sweeping grace, and Xu Changshou nervously trailed behind him.

The main estate consisted of three spacious, tile-roofed buildings enclosed by high earthen walls. This was Landlord Wang's personal residence, a paradise compared to the rotting cowshed.

Zhang Zhengyuan led the boy straight into the central courtyard. At that moment, Landlord Wang was casually sipping tea while Wang Xushi lounged beside him, cracking melon seeds between her teeth.

Seeing Xu Changshou waltz in, Wang Xushi exploded like a stepped-on cat. "You little bastard! You're not out tilling the fields, and you dare sneak into the main yard?! Let's see how I skin your hide today!"

Spitting out a melon seed shell, Wang Xushi snatched a heavy bamboo broom by the door and charged furiously at the boy.

"Insolent!"

Zhang Zhengyuan tapped a small cloth pouch at his waist, casually drawing out a yellow talisman.

"Swift as the Heavenly Decree, ignite!" Forming a mystic seal with one hand, Zhang Zhengyuan chanted a brief incantation and flicked a finger at the yellow paper. In mid-air, the talisman spontaneously combusted, transforming into a fist-sized orb of roaring flame that shot straight toward Wang Xushi.

The fireball struck Wang Xushi square on the head, and her hair ignited instantly, sending up a brilliant, crackling blaze.

"Aiya! It burns, it burns! My hair, my hair!"

Thrashing in blind panic, Wang Xushi slapped at her head, only to find her scalp scorched bare and her eyebrows entirely incinerated. She collapsed into a blubbering, wailing mess.

Xu Changshou stood rooted to the spot, his jaw slack in utter disbelief. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined Zhang Zhengyuan possessed such terrifying power.

Conjuring fire from thin air-these were the true methods of an immortal!

"Mercy, Exalted Immortal! Spare our lives!"

Landlord Wang, a shrewd man who knew when the winds had shifted, violently yanked his weeping wife to her knees. He began kowtowing frantically, his forehead slamming against the dirt.

Watching the shrew's charred, bald head smack against the cobblestones over and over, a dark, immensely satisfying thrill washed over Xu Changshou.

That's what you get, you old hag. Let's see you bully me now. Karma's a bitch.

"Changshou has been taken under my wing as an honorary disciple. If you, a mere mortal shrew, dare to raise a hand against him again, the next fireball will take your head entirely!"

"I wouldn't dare! This lowly woman would never dare again! Mercy, Exalted Immortal!"

Face twisted in absolute terror, Wang Xushi kowtowed even more violently, leaving bloody smears on the stones.

"You are Landlord Wang," Zhang Zhengyuan stated, his gaze shifting to the trembling man.

"This humble one is indeed he."

"Hmph."

Zhang Zhengyuan nodded slightly, exuding the transcendent, untouchable aura of a Daoist master. "I am on the verge of breaking through a Cultivation bottleneck and require a quiet place to enter seclusion. This manor of yours will suffice."

Landlord Wang caught the hint immediately and nodded like a pecking chicken. "We will vacate to the cowshed at once! The main house is completely at the Exalted Immortal's disposal!"

"During this period, I shall leave the matter of my and Changshou's daily sustenance in your hands," Zhang Zhengyuan said smoothly. "Fear not. I do not take mortal offerings without recompense. Before I depart, I will bestow a sliver of immortal fortune upon your household."

"Thank you, Exalted Immortal! Thank you!"

Landlord Wang wept tears of sheer joy.

"Rise. Gather your things and depart."

"At once!"

........

Within the hour, Landlord Wang and Wang Xushi had cleared out, surrendering the pristine estate to Zhang Zhengyuan and Xu Changshou.

The main house consisted of three rooms, including a secluded inner chamber. Zhang Zhengyuan claimed the inner sanctum for his meditation, leaving Xu Changshou to sleep in the central parlor.

Though it was merely the parlor, it boasted a real wooden bed draped in thick, soft bedding-a luxurious upgrade from the rotting hay of the cowshed. Ever since his parents passed, Xu Changshou hadn't slept on a proper mattress or felt the warmth of a quilt.

By midday, Landlord Wang personally delivered a freshly roasted chicken, glistening with fat.

Xu Changshou wiped away hot tears as he gnawed on the bone. It was so incredibly delicious. He couldn't even remember the last time meat had touched his tongue.

The next day, at the first light of dawn.

Zhang Zhengyuan ordered Xu Changshou to face east, strictly supervising the boy as he sat in the lotus position to practice.

The purple-golden hues of morning sunlight fell across the boy's small, determined face. He inhaled and exhaled in a measured rhythm, earnestly puffing out and hollowing his stomach.

After barely an hour of this agonizing posture, Xu Changshou was drenched in sweat, his limbs trembling with sheer exhaustion.

This damn Six-Character Breathing Technique is even more exhausting than plowing the fields!

Frustration clawed at Xu Changshou's mind, and his breathing involuntarily lost its steady rhythm.

Smack!

A vicious flick of a finger struck his skull like a cracking whip. The pain was so sharp Xu Changshou nearly blacked out. "Ow, ow, ow..."

"If it hurts, then focus your mind. If you do not maintain this stance for a full four hours, you will get no food."

The threat of starvation struck Xu Changshou's ultimate weakness. He had just tasted the good life; he absolutely refused to go hungry again. Furthermore, if Landlord Wang delivered another roast chicken and he was forbidden to eat it, the loss would be unbearable.

Fortunately, his suffering was well rewarded.

At noon, Landlord Wang brought in over two pounds of braised beef. Desperate to secure his immortal fortune, the landlord was sparing no expense, serving decadent meat dishes at every meal-luxuries he would normally deny even himself.

Later that afternoon, Wang Xushi arrived, gingerly presenting Xu Changshou with two sets of pristine clothes and two pairs of sturdy, hand-sewn shoes.

"Changshou, your auntie was blind and foolish before. Please accept my deepest apologies. I stayed up to sew these garments especially for you."

"Ah... th-thank you."

Xu Changshou took the clothes, deeply unsettled. He never imagined a day would come when this vicious shrew would speak to him with such sickening sweetness.

"Changshou, what might the Exalted Immortal be doing right now?" she probed softly.

"I don't know."

"Oh, well, your auntie will take her leave then. If you need anything at all, just say the word."

Watching the shrew's retreating figure, Xu Changshou's expression slowly darkened into a thoughtful frown.

Right now, he was living like a king, but that was solely because he was riding Zhang Zhengyuan's coattails. The Daoist was merely a temporary guest. Sooner or later, he would depart. The moment he left, Xu Changshou's borrowed prestige would vanish like smoke.

Knowing that venomous hag's true nature, there was no chance she would remain docile once her fear of the immortal was gone. She would drag him straight back to the cowshed and work him to the bone.

I have to sense the flow of Qi!

A crushing sense of urgency weighed on Xu Changshou's chest. Zhang Zhengyuan had promised to formally accept him as a disciple only if he sensed the flow of Qi. For a lowly cowherd, this was the sole, fleeting chance to rewrite his miserable destiny.

In the days that followed, Xu Changshou trained with a terrifying, almost fanatical desperation.

He slept no more than six hours a night. Every waking moment outside of eating and relieving himself was poured entirely into practicing the breathing technique.

Young as he was, the harsh realities of the world had taught him well: this was his one and only ticket out of hell.

He had to sense the flow of Qi before Zhang Zhengyuan abandoned him.