Chapter 20: with translation of chapter title

At the break of dawn, the morning sun exhaled rosy clouds.

Liu Fengchun departed, driving an ox cart that hauled two corpses.

The white-clad swordswoman also departed, cradling the girl who had not yet awakened.

After the three left, Niu Dingtian saw that Han Xiao Ying had not yet awakened, so he crossed his legs, closed his eyes, and circulated the Arhat Subduing Demon Skill to continue nursing his injuries.

The old eunuch's palm strike that had landed on him earlier contained piercing cold energy, and later he had absorbed a large amount of yin-type internal force from him; although Niu Dingtian can still forcefully strike now, if his internal qi breaks balance, the eight extraordinary meridians will suffer the torment of this cold energy's impact.

The most important thing now is to completely dispel this cold energy.

The Arhat Subduing Demon Skill, though also a profound Buddhist internal art, has always progressed slowly and yielded little effect; this is also why Niu Dingtian has hesitated to let Han Xiao Ying cultivate it to heal her injuries.

This martial art represents the culmination of Buddhist internal cultivation, extremely subtle and marvelous, and also incorporates the use of Yin-Yang Firmness and Softness; it is not a purely rigid and yang art, which may also be why dispelling the internal cold energy proceeds slowly.

Moreover, cultivating this art is extraordinarily difficult; just the first step, 'gathering the mind and returning to the origin,' requires the practitioner to discard all worldly thoughts and distractions, and even this single requirement is something perhaps only one in a million can achieve.

Practitioners must not become overly obsessed with training, lest they give rise to the three poisons of greed, hatred, and delusion, ultimately violating the Buddhist Dharma.

Those with considerable aptitude, when practicing, inevitably have many thoughts and cannot help but wholeheartedly devote themselves to martial arts.

But those of dull aptitude, when cultivating, cannot comprehend the myriad changes with countless threads in this martial art.

When Niu Dingtian first practiced this martial art, if not for the breathing technique that helped him calm his mind and spirit, he would likely have struggled to make progress even in a short time.

A set of scrolls, containing eighteen Arhat illustrations within, constitutes the Arhat Subduing Demon Skill.

When cultivating the first Arhat illustration, one feels that every blocked meridian inside the body suddenly opens up, flowing unimpeded.

Subsequently, while practicing the eighteen Arhat illustrations, a white vapor continually begins to gather above the head.

After initial minor success, he feels refreshed and invigorated, his internal energy flows smoothly as desired, the yin and yang forces within his body mutually generate and support each other; half a year later, his strength advances greatly.

In the following years, Niu Dingtian has been devoted to merging yin and yang internal arts into one, achieving the state where yin and yang within his body are in harmonious balance.

In the final year of his secluded practice of this art, he again felt that his interior was like a household treasure trove, piled up like mountains; his internal energy was full and abundant, as if there were a substantial yet intangible force, his true qi seeming inexhaustible and never depleted.

But the ultimate state of this art—where the body follows the mind's turn, nothing is impossible, left and right, high and low, all is as desired—he is still slowly exploring it.

If he achieves mastery, he is absolutely confident he can remain invincible in the hands of that old eunuch.

About half an hour,

After Niu Dingtian finished his practice, the vapor above his head gradually dissipated, and his complexion became slightly ruddy.

Turning his head, he discovered that Han Xiao Ying had already awakened, staring at him in a daze.

After she regained her composure, noticing Niu Dingtian's gaze, she hastily dodged away, her pale pretty face involuntarily blushing.

Perhaps feeling that her earlier gaze had been somewhat rude, a young lady's thin skin made her inevitably a bit embarrassed; she endured the discomfort, wanted to rise, and softly said to Niu Dingtian:

"Thank you, Young Master Niu, for your rescue yesterday; if"

Just as she was about to say more, Niu Dingtian hastily reached out to support her, laid her down, and continued speaking warmly:

"Miss Han, quickly lie down; do not further injure yourself. The thanks should be mine to give. I never expected Miss Han to be beautiful in appearance and even kinder in heart. If not for you, I would not know where my wounded body would be lying now."

As he spoke these words, he gazed directly into Han Xiao Ying's eyes, his face breaking into a gentle smile, his voice very tender.

A scoundrel's smile?

Scholar Niu snorted at this! After all, he had genuinely been moved; a person who moves others but feels nothing is trash—care should not be lacking at all! At the very least, he must make the other feel warmth.

Han Xiao Ying found this gaze hard to get used to; upon hearing such frank praise of herself, her face grew warm, and hearing the words 'wounded body' and 'lie down,' she involuntarily thought:

Am I not a wounded body? Am I not lying here right now? And now this person is attending to me personally.

Then she felt a heat in her face, her head swelled and she felt dizzy, and she wanted to fall asleep again.

Seeing Han Xiao Ying's abnormal state, Niu Dingtian dared not press too hard; he thus changed the topic and spoke softly:

"How does Miss Han feel about her injuries? Breakfast will still require the lady to wait a bit longer."

"I am preparing to take Miss Han into Luoyang City, first find a place to stay, then seek some physicians for her to examine her injuries."

"Hmm."

Seeing Niu Dingtian avert his gaze, Han Xiao Ying felt somewhat relieved, and she replied in a mosquito-like whisper.

After covering his iron sword behind him and hanging his wine pouch at his waist, Niu Dingtian crouched beside Han Xiao Ying.

He reached out to gently tidy the disheveled hair before her lovely forehead, and then tightened the robe wrapped around her delicate form.

Han Xiao Ying did not resist, perhaps also because she lacked the strength to do so.

A light horizontal embrace, and soft fragrance entered his arms.

After stepping out of the temple gate, Niu Dingtian immediately employed the Light Wave Microstep, swiftly racing toward Luoyang City.

On the early morning official road, travelers began to appear slowly, most of them rural farmers.

Some went to the city for work, some transported agricultural produce into the city for sale, and some delivered supplies to inns and restaurants.

Speaking of labor, at this time the Song and Jin states had already seen the rise of dual occupations; strictly speaking, it should be called 'combined work'.

"All people desire wealth; as for farmers, merchants, and artisans' households, none fail to labor day and night in pursuit of profit."

The rise of combined work: some are forced by livelihood, having no choice; some arise from shifting concepts, seeking to escape poverty and become wealthy; in short, it has driven the commercial prosperity of this era.

At this moment, most travelers on the official road suddenly felt a swift wind pass by their side, saw a phantom fly off into the distance, thought they had hallucinated; after another blink, everything returned to calm, they shook their heads, and dismissed it from their minds.

To avoid delaying the breakfast of the beauty in his arms, Niu Dingtian also exerted his full strength, entering the city in less than half an hour.

He walked and turned, arriving at a three-story pavilion where he stopped, looked up, and saw three characters:

"Drunken Immortal Pavilion."

Please remind of any misspelled or garbled sentences.

(End of chapter)