Chapter 15: Fasting (Part 2)

It was already late, and there was no entertainment in this place. Zhao Cheng had no choice but to maintain his good habit of going to bed early and getting up early. He slept in the inner room, while Jianxi slept in the outer room to attend to him at any time. Before going to bed, Jianxi first checked the incense and candles in the main hall, and, as Zhao Cheng had instructed, sent a brazier to the two young eunuchs. After he entered the room, the lamp in the inner room was turned off, and the prince had already fallen asleep. He tidied a spot on the soft couch and lay down fully clothed, snoring shortly after, as he was quite exhausted today.

In the inner room, Zhao Cheng did not lie down. He sat cross-legged, eyes half-closed, inhaling and exhaling. As he exhaled, the true qi flowed from the Niwan Palace down through the Heavenly Eye and the Magpie Bridge, then split into two paths to the shoulders, traveling along the inner sides of the shoulders to the palms and fingers. From the fingertips, it traveled up the back of the hands and along the outer sides of the arms to the Tian Tu point, where it converged and continued down the Conception Vessel to the Lower Dantian. It then circled the body along the Belt Vessel, passing through the Huan Tiao points on the outer sides of the legs to the Yong Quan points, where it expelled the sick and turbid qi. As he inhaled, he drew in the earth's spiritual energy from the Yong Quan points, traveling up the inner sides of the legs to the Hui Yin point, passing over the Lower Magpie Bridge, up the coccyx, through the Mingmen, Jia Ji, and Yu Zhen points, and up to the Niwan Palace, where it paused briefly. At this point, he felt the Niwan Palace open, and the true qi entered, completing one cycle. This process repeated continuously.

After about an hour, Zhao Cheng slowly finished his practice, using his mind to gather the true qi in the Lower Dantian. This set of qigong exercises was taught to him by a comrade who was proficient in Bajiquan during a training session. They had only been together for a short time, so he had only learned the conditioning exercises and a set of basic movements, which were all foundational.

This internal qigong could nourish the body, strengthen the internal organs, regulate the blood and qi, and cultivate the spirit. It progressed gradually, increasing one's power. It also included a set of auxiliary exercises, which, it was said, could enable one to see tiny objects and clearly see in the dark, and to hear subtle sounds around them. Now, he could use this set of exercises to strengthen his body. The events of today had left him very frustrated. In ancient times, if he couldn't draw a bow or wield a sword, he wouldn't be able to achieve anything, and even survival would be threatened. He needed to train his body, at least to be prepared to run in the coming 'chaotic times'!

Jianxi slept soundly all night. The prince treating him like family gave him a sense of comfort in the cold palace. When he woke up, he found himself covered with the prince's quilt, and the charcoal in the brazier was still red, indicating that the prince had gotten up during the night to tend to it. Jianxi blamed himself for sleeping too deeply and quickly got up. The inner room was already empty, so he hurried out and saw the prince practicing horse stance in the courtyard as Meng Tao had taught him the day before.

Jianxi stopped the young eunuchs who were about to sweep the courtyard, not wanting to disturb the prince's practice, and quietly stood by. Zhao Cheng maintained the correct posture, his muscles trembling, his legs shaking uncontrollably, and a layer of hot steam enveloping his head. He really wanted to stand up and move around, but he knew he had to get through this. After about the time it took for an incense stick to burn, his strength reached its limit, and Zhao Cheng finally finished his practice and stood up.

"Second Young Master, don't overdo it. Take it slowly; your body is still weak!" Jianxi, seeing Zhao Cheng finish his practice, quickly came forward to support him, wiping his sweat with a silk handkerchief, and said with concern.

"Jianxi, it's fine. Everything has a price. Just grit your teeth and you'll get through it!" Zhao Cheng, moving his sore legs and feet, smiled and said.

The days of fasting were very lonely. After washing up, Zhao Cheng lit incense again and sat in the main hall for a while. Bored, he wandered around the courtyard twice and then sat on a stone bench under a tree, lost in thought.

"Second Young Master, let's go check out Qingyun's alchemy room. Maybe there's something interesting there!" Jianxi whispered, coming over. With nothing else to do, Zhao Cheng followed Jianxi without hesitation to the alchemy room in the rear hall. He had been to the back courtyard many times, but he had never entered the alchemy room, which was a forbidden area that Qingyun did not allow anyone to approach. Now that Qingyun had fled, it was a good opportunity to explore.

Jianxi walked in front, carefully pushing the door. It creaked open, and the door was not locked, just slightly ajar. Inside, it was pitch black, and he couldn't see anything. Fortunately, Jianxi had a flint with him, and he lit the wick to illuminate the candles inside. Only then could Zhao Cheng see the interior of the alchemy room. The room was about 3 zhang long and 1.6 zhang wide, with walls smoothed and sealed with mud, making it solid and airtight. The door and windows were on the east and south sides, and when closed, they were completely lightproof.

In the center of the alchemy room was a dantai about eight inches high and two feet wide, with a stove below and a crucible above. Around it were piles of charcoal and various bottles and jars, as well as alchemy tools. In a corner was a soft couch, a low table, and a few books scattered about. This was the resting area, as alchemy often required long periods of time. It was said that some highly skilled alchemists only produced a batch of elixirs once a year, and those who consumed the elixirs would ascend to immortality.

Zhao Cheng was skeptical of these legends. In this sealed alchemy room, the smoke and fire would be intense, and without proper ventilation, one could easily develop silicosis, carbon monoxide poisoning, or chronic fatigue syndrome. He picked up a book and flipped through it. It turned out to be Qingyun's alchemy notes, detailing each of his alchemy sessions. This was first-hand material, and the fact that Qingyun had left it behind indicated that he had fled in a hurry.

"Achoo!" A loud sneeze startled Zhao Cheng. He turned around to see Jianxi holding a jar, sneezing continuously, with snot and tears streaming down his face. A pungent smell was emanating from the jar.

Zhao Cheng knew that these alchemists were called 'chemical pioneers' in modern history. They would put anything into their crucibles, concocting strange substances and then consuming them, leading to their 'ascension.' Seeing Jianxi's condition, he knew he had been affected. He quickly snatched the jar from Jianxi's hands, closed the lid, and opened the windows and doors to ventilate the room and disperse the smell.

"Damn it, that Qingyun fled and left this behind to harm others. If I catch him, I'll strip him and beat his ass!" Jianxi, sniffing, cursed.

"Hehe, who told you to rummage around? You got what you deserved!" Zhao Cheng teased.

"Second Young Master, I was just trying to see if he had any finished elixirs. If we ate them, we could live forever. Who knew the stuff in this jar would be so pungent!" Jianxi, wiping his face, said in frustration.

After the smell had dissipated, Zhao Cheng noticed the notes he had thrown on the ground in a hurry. A thought struck him, and he quickly picked them up. With Qingyun gone, his source of red phosphorus was cut off. If the notes contained the method for producing it, he wouldn't have to worry anymore. Excited, he hurriedly flipped through the pages, searching carefully.

The notes were clearly unorganized and written in a messy manner, all in plain language. Even though Zhao Cheng could recite the periodic table backward, Qingyun had no such knowledge. After much effort, he finally found a few lines: "Mix greenish-white stone, white sand, and charcoal powder, place in the crucible, seal the crucible, and heat until the crucible turns red. This will produce a dark red powder that explodes when struck with a hammer."

"That's it, but what is greenish-white stone? The white sand and charcoal powder are easy to understand, but there are many greenish-white stones. Which one is it?" Although he had found the method, he was still frustrated. Did he have to recapture Qingyun? Zhao Cheng was annoyed.

"Second Young Master, what's wrong?" Jianxi, seeing Zhao Cheng's changing expressions, asked with concern.

"This old man didn't specify which stone to use. It's as if he wrote it for nothing!" Zhao Cheng, angry, slapped the notes and cursed.

"Hehe, Second Young Master, you're the one who's being silly. While you were reading, I checked Qingyun's storage room next door. It's full of various stones, all labeled with their names!" Jianxi, still not having learned his lesson, teased him.

"Quick, take me there!" Zhao Cheng, finding the right materials, was in high spirits and pulled Jianxi along. When he found the greenish-white stone in the storage room, he couldn't help but laugh. It was none other than the phosphate rock used in the production of phosphorus fertilizer in his previous life! The white sand was actually quartz sand.

"Jianxi, how about we try alchemy ourselves?" Zhao Cheng, in a good mood, asked with a smile.

"Second Young Master, you know alchemy? Great!" Jianxi, having seen Zhao Cheng's pistol, had developed a blind trust in him. He thought the prince had really learned alchemy from the book and was eager to try.

The two of them got to work immediately. They ground the stone and charcoal into powder, mixed them in the right proportions, and placed them in a crucible. They sealed the crucible with mud and placed it in the furnace, lighting the charcoal. Once the crucible turned red, Zhao Cheng pulled Jianxi outside, unsure if the substance would explode.

The two, full of enthusiasm, forgot about the cold and hunger. They waited until evening, when the charcoal burned out and the crucible cooled. They carefully removed the seal and opened the lid. Zhao Cheng carefully used a bamboo stick to pick out a small amount of dark red crystals, took them outside, and struck them with a hammer. A flash of light and a loud explosion confirmed his success.

"Second Young Master, did it work?" Jianxi asked cautiously.

"Hehe, it worked! This is exactly what we need, but you can't eat it or touch it, or it will blow us sky-high!" Zhao Cheng, elated, said excitedly.

This 'alchemy' session was a great success for Zhao Cheng. He obtained about a pound of red phosphorus, enough to last him for a long time. He carefully poured the red phosphorus into a jar, added water, sealed the lid, and buried it in a cool corner of the wall, both to prevent oxidation and to reduce the risk of explosion.