"This, this, this..."
The elder of the Su Family stared at the bizarre piece of meat in Su Heng’s hand, feeling that his worldview had been greatly shaken, unable to speak for a long while. After a moment, the elder regained the ability to organize his speech.
He turned his head to Zhao Hu beside him, "Martial Master Zhao, during your younger days when you traveled everywhere, have you ever come across something like this?"
"In my days wandering the martial world, indeed I have heard plenty of taboos and legends related to demons and evil spirits," Zhao Hu also had a strange expression on his face, and he spoke slowly, "But if you’re asking about personal experiences, this is also a first for me."
"However..."
Zhao Hu’s gaze toward Su Heng carried a trace of respect, "Second Young Master Su is truly brave extraordinary, to have such courage after such a short time of martial arts training. Truly, a hero emerges from youth, remarkable, absolutely remarkable."
"What’s important is how to deal with this situation." Su Heng had not a hint of pride, his gaze calmly resting on the elder of the Su Family.
"First, let’s block this well." The Su elder twirled his goatee chin as he cautiously spoke, "Also, we shouldn’t let anyone live in this courtyard anymore. Su Shang, there are two rooms in your second brother’s courtyard; you and your brother can stay together in one courtyard."
"Nearby there’s Xionger Mountain, and upon it lies Dinglin Temple. It is said that the monks in Dinglin Temple possess Divine Skills and are virtuous ascetics of high practice. I plan to donate a sum of Silver to the temple and invite the monks to perform a ritual at our residence."
But compared to the safety of his progeny, this amount of money counted for nothing.
"Right!"
The Su elder accidentally yanked out a whisker from his chin, grimacing in pain.
He looked up at Su Heng, who had grown much taller and sturdier since starting his martial training, his vitality and spirit visibly abundant. "And you..."
The elder stretched out his finger toward Su Heng, taking a deep breath as if he had made up his mind, "Starting now, I will give you a thousand... no! I’ll give you one thousand five hundred Silver Taels every month for you to use for your martial arts training. You can use this Silver as you see fit."
"Good!" Su Heng’s eyes lit up.
In this world, Silver had strong purchasing power, with one Silver Tael being roughly equivalent to a thousand units of currency from his former life.
One thousand five hundred Silver Taels meant a personal expenditure of 1.5 million a month. Although the Su Family was wealthy and influential, it was not easy to take out such a large sum of Silver every month. Nevertheless, the Su elder’s attitude when making this decision was very firm.
Where there are ways to save, one should save, but one should not hesitate to spend where it is necessary.
Since Su Heng had already proven his extraordinary martial talent, and given the various strange events occurring in Changqing County, it indicated that some dangerous, yet unknown changes were taking place.
Therefore, he was willing to prepare in advance, sparing no expense to support Su Heng’s martial arts training.
And for Su Heng...
Whether it was searching for martial arts manuals, seeking out famous masters, or purchasing a large amount of precious medicinal materials for supplements to gain attribute points, it all required money to be spent.
Since the elder of the Su Family was willing to provide strong support, Su Heng naturally would not refuse.
...
After having breakfast, the hunger in Su Heng’s belly was finally quelled.
As his level of cultivation improved, Su Heng’s appetite became even more astonishing. Just for one breakfast, to feel satiated, Su Heng had to consume around four to five jin (approx. 2-2.5 Kg) of meat alone, not to mention various amounts of vegetables, soups, and medicinal dishes stewed with various precious Chinese medicinal ingredients.
The meat that Su Heng consumed was not common pork or beef but more precious deer meat.
Deer meat can nourish the spleen and stomach, benefit qi and blood, support vital energy, strengthen yang and benefit essence, and warm the waist and spine. It’s truly a substantial tonic, and with the same amount, Su Heng could gain more attribute points from deer meat.
And like this meal, Su Heng had to eat seven to eight times a day.
Luckily, the Su Family had substantial wealth and savings.
Otherwise...
If Su Heng had transmigrated into an ordinary family, where even getting enough food to stay warm was a problem every day.
Even with such a Golden Finger, it would be impossible to exert its effect in a short time.
Bang!
He closed the door and returned to his room.
On the red lacquered long table in front of him stood a brass brazier, its charcoal fire burning vigorously.
Above the brazier was a delicate blue and white porcelain teapot. Su Heng wasn’t intending to brew tea, rather, he planned to research the demon flesh he had torn from the water ghost.
This piece of demon flesh weighed about half a pound and one could faintly discern the muscle lines in it.
The flesh, placed on the cutting board, had its hair plucked out and its dark green blood cleaned off, leaving behind a piece of meat that was neat and tidy, save for the irregular tear marks at the edges due to violence.
Su Heng picked up a sharp knife.
He carefully sliced off a small piece.
The resistance he felt through the knife handle was tough, making it feel to Su Heng like he was cutting a small piece of tanned cowhide.
He placed the small piece of flesh into the teapot.
The liquid inside had started boiling, gurgling and bubbling, and the demon flesh was quickly cooked, changing color and emitting a faint, pleasant fragrance.
Su Heng thought there must be some problem with his sense of smell.
Because he had asked others, and they said that demons carry a strange odor, somewhat similar to the smell of a corpse.
But to Su Heng’s senses, it was a tempting aroma, like a dish meticulously cooked by a master chef. Even though Su Heng had just had his breakfast and wasn’t hungry, the special scent still made him involuntarily swallow his saliva twice.
He took a pair of chopsticks and lifted the cooked piece of demon flesh out of the boiling water.
Su Heng examined it closely, his eyebrows slightly furrowed, hesitating in his mind, somewhat indecisive.
He recalled the terrifying and hateful face of the demon in the well and its elongated and deformed body, then looked at the fragrant piece of flesh in front of him.
It seemed impossible to associate the two with each other.
Furthermore, Su Heng was also concerned about the risk of poisoning from eating something haphazardly, but considering that the water had been boiling for so long, and it was only a small piece, there shouldn’t be too much of a problem.
With this thought,
Su Heng made up his mind, stuffed that small piece of flesh into his mouth, and began to slowly chew.
Crack!
It was like a golden flash of lightning exploding in his mind.
In his previous life, Su Heng had watched some cooking-themed anime. The top-notch delicacies in those shows would give off a golden glow when finished, and tasting them was likened to being struck by lightning, able to bring a person to joyful tears.
Of course, those were all exaggerated artistic expressions; such foods simply could not exist in the real world.
But now it was different.
Su Heng truly felt as if he were experiencing it firsthand—this demon’s flesh was unbelievably delicious.
But it wasn’t just delicious. Su Heng could feel the muscles in his intestines writhing as if stimulated, rapidly absorbing the nutrients from his breakfast. Even his previously dormant Pure Yang Skill had begun to operate automatically, producing a tingling sensation throughout his muscles, a sign that all the meridians in his body were being stimulated to transform and grow further.