Lai Xiaoxia turned around in anger, her ponytail swinging, and with a slight wiggle, she walked towards the door.
It was obvious she was upset about Jiang Xiaobai watching those kinds of videos at home.
Fat Tiger was going to be discharged from the hospital and come back tomorrow.
Jiang Xiaobai could feel that the usually peaceful Nanwan Village was brewing a storm.
If Liu Changhe still had some reservations, then the teenage Fat Tiger was like a mad bull, unafraid of anything.
At night, Jiang Xiaobai closed the courtyard door and arranged the stones he had bought from the county town into a strange shape according to the memory in his mind, then sat cross-legged in the middle of the stones and looked up at the sky.
Tonight, the moon was bright and the stars were sparse, the moonlight was exceptionally good.
The courtyard was bathed in a silver glow, with the starlight above accompanied by the occasional chirping of insects by the wall.
A gentle breeze blew by from time to time.
What a beautiful midsummer night it was.
Taking a deep breath, Jiang Xiaobai closed his eyes.
He began to practice the Cultivation Method according to his memories, performing the breathing and exhaling techniques.
Using this three short, one long breathing method, Jiang Xiaobai quickly felt his body and mind become completely calm, a feeling he had never experienced before.
Jiang Xiaobai had never felt so tranquil; his mind was free of those chaotic and complex thoughts, peaceful like the still water of an ancient well, without a single ripple.
The stones he had picked up from the stalls and arranged formed a peculiar pattern, but Jiang Xiaobai did not realize that this pattern was actually the Tai Chi Yin Yang Fish Diagram.
He sat at the center of this circle, right at the intersection of Yin and Yang.
The moonlight and starlight spilled onto the earth, shining into the quiet little courtyard, illuminating the stones on the ground.
Unnoticed, the stones arranged in the Tai Chi Yin Yang Fish pattern began to change, slowly moving, and then picking up speed.
Jiang Xiaobai only felt two forces slowly entering his body.
One was as hot as fire, surging through him like a raging river; the other was as gentle as water, nurturing everything on earth like the gentle rains of early spring.
Jiang Xiaobai had completely entered a state of self-forgetfulness, feeling as though these two forces were traveling along his Meridians, flowing through all parts of his body, and finally converging in his Dantian.
The stones surrounding Jiang Xiaobai spun faster and faster, eventually lifting into the air, with a faint white light emanating from them and then entering his body.
Jiang Xiaobai only felt his body becoming lighter and lighter, almost as if floating in mid-air.
He did not know how much time had passed before he heard the sound of stones cracking around him.
The stones were breaking and soon turned into small stone fragments falling to the ground.
The white light disappeared along with the falling stones, and Jiang Xiaobai no longer felt the two forces entering his body.
Shortly after, he opened his eyes.
Looking at his hands, Jiang Xiaobai clearly felt that his strength had increased.
He discovered something even more significant: his body had expelled some unknown substance, leaving lots of black gunk stuck to his clothes, turning his once white T-shirt black, and it had a stinky smell.
“Could this be the ‘Body Refining’ mentioned in those memories?” Jiang Xiaobai wondered.
Body Refining, as the term suggests, means refining the body to make it purer and stronger.
Using the Tai Chi Gathering Spirit Array, the Yin and Yang energies of heaven and earth are absorbed into the array and then into the body, to be used by oneself.
Of course, Jiang Xiaobai’s current abilities were limited.
The Tai Chi Gathering Spirit Array he had set up was the simplest form, absorbing only a limited amount of energy.
Currently, his cultivation level was not even on par with a rookie.
Even if he had enough jade to set up a complex Tai Chi Gathering Spirit Array, it would not benefit him; rather, it would harm him.
At his cultivation level, if too much energy was gathered in the array and suddenly entered his body, it could burst his Meridians.
It was like a balloon, which, when expanded to its limit, would burst with just a little more blow.
Cultivation must be done gradually and steadily, without rushing for success, or it would lead to dire consequences.
Looking at the shattered stones around him, Jiang Xiaobai exclaimed and picked up a piece of broken stone, jumping up with joy.
He checked several more fragments and found jade in all of them.
Although it was just ordinary White Jade, if sold, this pile could fetch a six-figure sum.
“Oh my God!” Jiang Xiaobai touched the dragon-shaped copper pendant hanging on his chest, overjoyed.
When he was selecting stones at the jade stall on the antique market today, whenever he touched a stone containing jade, the dragon-shaped copper pendant around his neck would vibrate slightly to alert him.
In the future, as long as he wore the dragon-shaped copper pendant, he would definitely pick the right stones.
Jiang Xiaobai was ecstatic.
This was another way to get rich.
He put the stone fragments into a snakeskin bag, planning to sell them in the county town tomorrow.
After finishing cleaning up, Jiang Xiaobai stripped off his clothes and stood naked in the courtyard, scooping a few basins of cold water from the water tank and pouring it over his head, then lathering himself with soap and humming a little tune while scrubbing.
“Little sister sending her lover off, oh…”
While singing, he heard a few knocks on the courtyard door.
“Who is it?”
Jiang Xiaobai shouted towards the door.
“Xiaobai, it’s me.”
The voice outside was Qin Xianglian’s, Moron’s mother.
“Auntie, do you need something?” Jiang Xiaobai asked.
“Open the door,” Qin Xianglian said quickly.
“Auntie, why don’t you wait a few minutes?” Jiang Xiaobai said.
“Just open the door and let me in first!” Qin Xianglian urged.
She was anxious to get inside, worried that standing outside might give rise to some gossip.
“Auntie, remember, you insisted on coming in,” Jiang Xiaobai chuckled.
Qin Xianglian didn’t think much, urging him, “Hurry up, open the door!”
Jiang Xiaobai, covered in soap suds and completely naked, went to open the door.
Qin Xianglian pushed the door open from the outside, and the sight of the naked Jiang Xiaobai greeted her eyes.
Her bright and pretty face instantly turned red.
“Jiang Xiaobai, what are you doing!”
Qin Xianglian quickly turned around, her back facing Jiang Xiaobai.
But in those few seconds, she had seen Jiang Xiaobai’s body thoroughly.
After turning around, her temples felt hot, and her heart raced.
“Auntie, don’t accuse me of being a pervert.
I intended to rinse off and get dressed before opening the door for you, but you insisted I do it right away,” Jiang Xiaobai laughed, defending himself with his usual excuses.
“Hurry and put on your clothes!” Qin Xianglian stomped her foot, clearly angry.