24: Hunyuan Qi Jue

The next morning, Qin Feng asked Doctor Chu for leave, stating he needed to go out and purchase some items, and headed straight for the Refugee Settlement Area in the west of the city.

The closer he got to the settlement, the more miserable the scene became. Dilapidated shacks stretched out in a line, crooked and barely providing shelter from the wind and rain. The air was thick with dust, the stench of sweat, and the faint smell of illness. Many gaunt, sallow-faced refugees stood in long lines, waiting with hollow eyes for the thin porridge distributed by the government or charitable souls. All along the roadside, so-called "possessions" were laid out for sale—a few broken bowls, patched old clothes, rusted farm tools. Some even had straw markers attached to themselves, selling their sons and daughters, with the sound of weeping echoing incessantly, like a living Hell.

Qin Feng's heart was heavy, but he knew that in these chaotic times, an individual's power was meager and what he could do was limited. He suppressed his emotions and, guided by the blue intelligence, his sharp gaze scanned the shanty town on the west side.

Third row, second shack.

He slowed his pace and drew closer.

The shack was low and crude, housing a family of four huddled inside. A couple in their mid-thirties, haggard and in rags, were huddled around a weak small fire to warm themselves, their bodies trembling slightly from cold and hunger. Beside them, a boy of about seven or eight and a girl of five or six were so starved they lacked even the strength to shiver; they leaned limply against their parents, eyes half-closed, breathing weakly.

The man had a scar on his face that hadn't fully healed, and fear still lingered in his eyes, but when he looked at his children, they were filled with despair and pain. They seemed to have had better luck, escaping the bandits' blades, yet they could not escape the suffering of this displacement.

Qin Feng sighed inwardly, "How pitiful," and stepped toward them.

The couple looked up warily at this clean-clothed, extraordinary young man, their eyes filled with fear and confusion.

Qin Feng said nothing. He took a money pouch from his robe and poured out twenty gleaming gold coins onto the dry ground in front of the man. In the dim morning light, the gold coins shimmered with an alluring and warm glow.

The couple, named Zhao Si and his wife, their eyes widened instantly. They looked at the gold coins on the ground and then at Qin Feng in disbelief, their lips trembling, unable to speak. To farmers like them, twenty gold coins was an unimaginable fortune, enough to rent a small house in the city, start a small business, and re-establish themselves!

"Thi... This Young Master, you... what is this..." Zhao Si's voice was hoarse and trembling.

"Take this money." Qin Feng's voice was calm as he pointed to the bundle of moldy luggage wrapped precariously in rags behind them—mostly a few dark, old quilts and some patched clothing. "I will use this money to buy all of your luggage."

"Ju... Just these old cotton coats and quilts?" Zhao Si's wife blurted out, almost thinking she was dreaming. She suddenly grabbed her husband and whispered, "Father of my children, thi... this benefactor must see how pitiful our children are and is finding a way to help us!"

Zhao Si was also a sensible man and understood the situation instantly. He pulled his wife down to kneel and kowtowed to Qin Feng with a series of thuds, tears and snot streaming down his face. "Benefactor! Your great kindness is something I, Zhao Si, will never forget! Take these rags! I only beg you to tell us your name. If I, Zhao Si, can make a comeback in the future, I will surely work like an ox or a horse to repay your life-saving grace today!"

"No need for such formalities, get up quickly. Take the money, buy some food for the children, and find a place to stay." Qin Feng helped them up. He didn't leave his name, but simply picked up the bundle of old, sour-smelling luggage, turned around, and left without hesitation.

The Zhao Si family watched Qin Feng's departing back, clutching the life-saving twenty gold coins as if they were their last straw, sobbing with emotion.

Carrying the luggage, Qin Feng felt little joy; instead, his heart was somewhat heavy. Following the green intelligence's guidance, he soon found the old man at the edge of the refugee gathering who held the blood lingzhi but didn't recognize its value. With only five gold coins, he successfully obtained the lingzhi, which was the size of a palm and dark red like blood.

Returning to his newly purchased residence and closing the door, Qin Feng took a deep breath. He opened the bundle of old luggage, ignored the smelly clothes, and picked up the heaviest and oldest quilt, which was so worn that the cotton inside had almost become hard and matted.

He infused a trace of Internal Energy into his fingertips and carefully picked apart the coarse threads sewing the quilt cover. His fingers felt around the hardened cotton layers for a moment, and sure enough, he touched a hard object!

His heart stirred, and he slowly pulled it out. It was a flat object wrapped tightly in thick oil paper. Unwrapping the layers of oil paper, a thin, yellowed booklet with fragile pages and many damaged corners appeared before his eyes.

On the cover of the booklet, five large characters were written in Ancient Seal Script—"Primordial Unity Qi Art"!

An Earth Rank Low Grade Cultivation Technique!

Even though he was prepared, Qin Feng still felt an uncontrollable surge of excitement when he actually held this legendary Cultivation Technique in his hand. He suppressed his excitement and gently turned the pages.

The opening passage explained the essence of this Cultivation Technique. It did not pursue extremes in attributes but emphasized all rivers flowing into the sea and primordial unity as one. The Internal Energy (or True Qi) cultivated was extremely pure and vast, far exceeding those of the same rank. To Qin Feng's surprise, the Cultivation Technique also recorded a unique "Breath Concealment" method. It could highly compress and condense Internal Energy in daily life, which not only restrained one's aura, making it difficult for outsiders to detect one's true cultivation, but also further purified the Internal Energy and solidified the Foundation, increasing the power when it erupted!

"Good stuff! As expected of an Earth Rank Cultivation Technique!" Qin Feng's eyes sparkled. This Primordial Unity Qi Art was practically tailor-made for him! The vast Internal Energy Foundation, coupled with the characteristic of compressing and hiding his strength, and combined with the sword techniques he cultivated, would definitely produce an unexpected effect against enemies in the future.

Unfortunately, this booklet was indeed only a fragment; its content stopped at the third level, roughly corresponding to the peak of the Martial Master Realm. The subsequent parts of the Cultivation Technique were lost somewhere.

He tried to circulate his inner breath according to the first level's method and immediately felt a sluggishness and difficulty completely different from when he cultivated the Green Wood Art or the Five Poisons Inner Breath Art. His Meridians seemed unable to bear the grand will that sought to encompass and refine all attributes, and the flow of his inner breath became exceptionally slow and heavy.

"As expected, Earth Rank Cultivation Techniques are not that easy to Cultivate." Qin Feng was not discouraged; instead, his fighting spirit was ignited. "If an ordinary person obtained this, they would likely find it hard even to get started, but I have the 'Sword Heart'!"

He settled his mind and guided that mysterious "Sword Heart" power, not to comprehend sword techniques, but to feel and understand the Concept of "Primordial Unity" within the Primordial Unity Qi Art. Gradually, the sluggishness began to fade, and his understanding of the inner breath's circulation path became clear.