2: Surprising discovery

On the bus.

"Ganchao, do you have any money right now?"

Sitting beside Li Canglan, Zhang Ganchao, who was worriedly concerned for his friend, opened his WeChat balance.

"I still have two hundred. Why?"

Li Canglan sighed.

The cheapest Blood-Tempering Medicinal Pill cost five thousand yuan!

What use was his Gluttony Desire talent if he couldn't get Medicinal Pills and Heaven And Earth Treasures?

Li Canglan had grown up in an orphanage, not knowing who his biological parents were.

After turning sixteen, the authorities assigned him a welfare apartment.

It served as his place to live.

Apart from that, he also received a monthly subsidy of three thousand yuan.

However, a Martial Artist's appetite was far greater than an ordinary person's.

Although he hadn't yet become a Martial Artist, his appetite was no smaller.

These three thousand yuan could barely keep Li Canglan from starving.

He simply couldn't afford a bottle of Blood-Tempering Medicinal Pills that cost five thousand yuan!

More than ten minutes later, the bus stopped.

"Golden Street Commercial Center has been reached. Passengers who need to disembark, please do so in order."

After saying goodbye to Zhang Ganchao, Li Canglan got off the bus with the flow of people.

To fill his ever-growing appetite,

three months ago, Li Canglan started working part-time at a bubble tea shop.

He didn't need to stay at the shop all the time.

He just needed to make bubble tea for two hours after school, during the busiest period.

Although this era revered martial arts, the usual leisure enjoyments weren't lacking.

Martial Artists had high daily calorie expenditure, so they didn't have to worry about gaining weight from drinking bubble tea.

This was a definite advantage for some Martial Artists with a sweet tooth.

For Li Canglan, it also meant earning about three thousand yuan a month, allowing him to occasionally improve his meals.

"Canglan, you're finally here."

An Jianan, who had already changed into her work uniform, took a moment to greet Li Canglan.

The area around the bubble tea shop was bustling with people. Before Li Canglan arrived, An Jianan alone had been swamped.

Li Canglan apologized and started helping, which finally let An Jianan breathe a sigh of relief.

Both of them were considered people who practiced martial arts, so they made bubble tea much faster than ordinary people.

The busy peak hour passed quickly, and the two of them were still sweating from the work.

"Here."

An Jianan made an extra cup of kumquat lemon tea and handed it to Li Canglan.

"Thank you."

Li Canglan's throat was already parched with thirst.

He took a big sip of the kumquat lemon tea and let out a long, comfortable sigh.

[Ding, 10 kcal of energy ingested. Temporarily insufficient to convert into Qi and blood. Host is advised to continue ingesting energy.]

"Huh?"

Seeing the illusory text appear before his eyes, Li Canglan was first stunned, then overjoyed.

"So, 'energy entities' don't just refer to Medicinal Pills and Heaven And Earth Treasures!"

"Even bubble tea counts!"

In the definition of Martial Artists, calories were also categorized.

High-protein foods like beef were considered beneficial calories.

But bubble tea was generally considered negative calories.

Li Canglan had originally thought this talent could only convert beneficial energy into Qi and blood.

He never expected it could convert negative energy as well!

Like a water buffalo drinking, Li Canglan gulped down the kumquat lemon tea in two big mouthfuls.

[Ding, 100 kcal of energy ingested. Converted into 0.1 points of Qi and blood. Host is encouraged to keep up the good work.]

"It really works!"

Li Canglan's eyes lit up.

One hundred kcal was 0.1 points of Qi and blood.

Proportionally, he needed to ingest about 3000 kcal of energy daily.

Doing the math, that was close to 3 points of Qi and blood!

Through half a year of relentless day and night training, Li Canglan had only managed to reach 75 points of Qi and blood, comparable to those with money.

At his previous rate of progress, improving by one point of Qi and blood in two or three days was already the limit!

Gaining 3 points of Qi and blood in a single day was something he had never dared to imagine before!

Thinking of this, Li Canglan hurriedly made himself an unnamed bubble tea loaded with calories!

Watching Li Canglan toss various high-calorie toppings into the bubble tea, An Jianan, who was sipping her drink nearby, twitched at the corner of her mouth.

"Aren't you afraid of making yourself sick from all that richness?"

"As long as it doesn't kill me, I'll drink it like there's no tomorrow."

Li Canglan grinned, mixed it, and took a huge gulp.

After briefly chewing the various toppings, he swallowed them all.

An Jianan couldn't help but feel speechless.

Others lived by "as long as the training doesn't kill you, train like you're trying to die!"

But you, you've changed 'train' to 'drink'!

The owner of the bubble tea shop was a second-grade Martial Artist and had said during hiring that part-timers could drink as much as they wanted.

Strictly speaking, Li Canglan's behavior didn't violate the rules.

However, although people who practiced martial arts burned more calories than ordinary people and didn't have to worry too much about gaining weight,

what Li Canglan was consuming was mostly fat and sugar. Even Martial Artists couldn't fully utilize all of it.

Just because it wouldn't make him fat didn't mean it was good for his body!

Watching Li Canglan chug three cups of bubble tea one after another and look ready for a fourth, An Jianan couldn't help but facepalm.

Meanwhile, Li Canglan's eyes held irrepressible joy.

Because his Qi and blood value had increased again!

[Ding, 1400 kcal of energy ingested. Converted into 0.5 points of Qi and blood. Host is encouraged to keep up the good work.]

"The calories increased so much, but the Qi and blood gain decreased."

Li Canglan pondered, "Could it be due to the composition of the calories?"

Although kumquat lemon tea also had little protein content,

it was at least healthier than this high-calorie, high-sugar bubble tea.

"One cup of Osmanthus Jade Orchid, please."

A customer arrived, forcing Li Canglan to temporarily stop his testing and get back to work.

Another hour or so passed, and other staff members for the next shift had arrived.

After bidding farewell to An Jianan, Li Canglan prepared to scan a shared bike and ride home.

"Um, Li Canglan."

An Jianan hesitated for a moment but still offered some advice.

"You should really drink less bubble tea in the future. It doesn't help with martial arts practice."

Unless one took additional pure energy like Blood-Tempering Medicinal Pills, the amount of energy a martial arts practitioner could ingest daily was also limited.

Even though bubble tea was a liquid, it would still take up space meant for normal meals.

In the long run, it was harmful, not beneficial.

"Thank you, I'll remember that."

Li Canglan knew An Jianan meant well. He nodded and then rode away.

Back home, Li Canglan immediately started experimenting.

Because of his daily energy intake needs, he spent almost all his monthly income on meat like beef.

Actually, there was a better choice: Yao Beast meat.

But that Yao Beast meat cost several hundred yuan per pound.

Given Li Canglan's circumstances, he simply couldn't afford it.

He wasn't a great cook. He just boiled a pound of beef simply, added some sauce he bought online, and made do.

Like a whirlwind devouring the clouds, he finished the entire pound of beef.

"Burp~"

Li Canglan let out a satisfied burp and looked contentedly at the illusory text before his eyes.

[Ding, 537 kcal of energy ingested. Converted into 1 point of Qi and blood. Host is encouraged to keep up the good work.]

"Not easy."

Li Canglan looked at his Qi and blood value, now close to 77 points, feeling very satisfied.

"I shouldn't have drunk so much bubble tea earlier. My stomach feels a bit too full."

Although Gluttony would never be full—that was its energy-converting talent—

he was still a being of flesh and blood. The capacity of his stomach was limited.

Li Canglan could only temporarily stop eating, return to his room, and start practicing the Five Animal Frolics.

This was an improved version of the Five Animal Frolics created over two thousand years ago by the famous medical Great Master Hua Tuo, adapted by Shenxia Country.

It was the Cultivation method best suited to the Physique of the people of Shenxia Country.