It was indirectly proven through practice that even without physical dual cultivation, the yin-yang arts still help with clearing meridians and acupoints. Using those principles during breakthroughs not only speeds up the process of opening the acupoints but also improves the conversion efficiency of true qi.

With Sister Qing’s help, Liu Xiaolou managed to clear the Neiguan acupoint two to three days earlier than planned.

Excited, he moved on to tackle the seventh acupoint, the Daling acupoint. But by then, he only had one spirit stone left. Half a month later, that last one was gone too, and he had no choice but to wrap up this round of focused cultivation.

When Sister Qing visited again, Liu Xiaolou thanked her, saying, “Sister Qing, I really appreciate all your guidance these past few days. I have nothing much to offer in return, so please accept this jade pendant as a small token of thanks.”

She blinked in surprise. “You’re done cultivating?”

“It's about time I headed back to the mountain,” Liu Xiaolou said. “I wonder if the Qingyu Sect has already left…”

“They haven’t,” she quickly replied. “They’re still here. You can stay put. Didn’t you say your cultivation had made real progress? Why not push through while you’ve got the momentum?”

Liu Xiaolou scratched his head. “They’re still here? It’s been three months…” Then he gave a wry smile. “Either way, I have to go. I’m out of spirit stones. I’ll need to head out and see if I can find some opportunities, maybe earn a few.”

Sister Qing laughed. “I’ve actually been thinking about that for you. A couple of days ago, a steward from the Qingyu Sect’s outer branch came by for drinks. He had a bit too much and started ranting about Zhanglong Mountain, Dongyang Mountain, and Tianmu Mountain. Said because of those three, the stewards like him got scolded by the sect and had to travel thousands of li, running themselves ragged. One of my girls asked him what happened, and he said those three mountains refused to sell them spirit wine and spirit rice. So they had no choice but to go look elsewhere. He’s being sent all the way to Qiandong. And he’s not even sure if the sects over there will be willing to sell either.”

In Jingxiang, each sect has its own specialties. Zhanglong Mountain produces spirit rice. Tianmu Mountain brews spirit wine. Dongyang Mountain brews some too, though not much. As for the rest of the sects, noble families, and rogue cultivators, their output is so limited that it barely covers their own needs; forget about selling any.

“Why won’t those three mountains sell to the Qingyu Sect?” asked Liu Xiaolou.

Sister Qing let out a cold laugh. “The Qingyu Sect came to western Xian claiming they’re here to ‘cleanse the region of evil’ on behalf of all Jingxiang cultivators. They accuse the three mountains of being jealous and say all the local sects are too territorial to appreciate their so-called good intentions. They act all indignant about it. But even we know; business has its boundaries. You’re a sect from eastern Xian, suddenly showing up in the west, claiming to be eliminating bandits. Sure, people might not say anything to your face out of politeness, but causing a little trouble behind the scenes? That’s nothing. Refusing to sell spirit rice and wine is honestly nothing. If it were us, we would've gone straight to their doors already!”

Liu Xiaolou gave her a thumbs-up. “Sister Qing, you really hit the nail on the head.”

She went on. “So what if those Qingyu Sect folks don’t get their wine and rice? Can’t live without it? What a bunch of… ugh, never mind. No use getting into that. Anyway, while I was listening to all this, something came to mind. I remember an old client, someone from the Zhang family of Jinping Mountain. He had a pretty high status, I think. I’ll see if I can find a way to get in touch. Pretty sure their family brews spirit wine too.”

Liu Xiaolou thought it over. “That’s a solid idea, Sister Qing. I’ll see what I can do on my end about the spirit wine. If all goes well, I’ll be back in two or three days; maybe five or six at most. If you get the chance, help me make contact with one of Qingyu’s stewards. Let’s see if we can find a way to sell the spirit wine to them.”

Sister Qing agreed right away. “Sounds good! Let’s squeeze a few more spirit stones out of them. Help you break through your five meridians faster!”

Of course, Liu Xiaolou’s connection wasn’t with the Zhang family of Jinping Mountain. Without wasting time, he locked up and headed straight to the marketplace at Tianmen Mountain. Who else but Wei Hongqing, the owner of Hongji Tavern, could be the biggest contact he had?

When he arrived, Wei Hongqing wasn’t in, but the manager recognized Liu Xiaolou right away. He knew Xiaolou was a friend of Master Wei, so he politely invited him to the private room in the back and had food and wine brought in.

Liu Xiaolou took the opportunity to ask about prices, and the manager filled him in.

Hongji Tavern sold three types of spirit wine. The most basic was Lu Clan Spirit Cellar, going for forty taels of silver per jar. That was the one Liu Xiaolou had when he first arrived in town and was footing the bill himself. Its spiritual energy was so weak that even someone like him at the third layer of Qi Refinement barely felt anything. It was more like a mouth rinse than a real drink.

The higher-end option was Bamboo Leaf Green, the same wine Wei Hongqing had served him before. It cost over a hundred taels per jar, or you could get two jars for a single spirit stone. The spirit wine brewed by the Zhang family of Jinping Mountain was on par in flavor and quality.

The top-tier product was Tianmu Spirit Terrace Wine, said to be brewed with water from the spiritual spring of Tianmu Mountain. Liu Xiaolou had never even seen it. The Lu Clan kept it for their own use and never sold it to outsiders.

If they were going to supply wine to the big shots of the Qingyu Sect, the Lu Clan Spirit Cellar wouldn’t cut it; it wasn’t good enough and wouldn’t fetch a decent price. Only the Bamboo Leaf Green would do.

But the manager was only willing to sell a single bottle. When Liu Xiaolou asked why, the man explained that this batch had been brewed in very limited quantities, just enough for Tianmu Mountain’s own consumption. There was nothing left for outside sale. If not for Liu’s connection to Master Wei, he wouldn’t have dared to offer even this one bottle.

Just as expected. Liu Xiaolou didn’t press further. He sat back and waited patiently for Wei Hongqing to return.

It was late at night, and the tavern was about to close when Wei Hongqing finally rushed back. He didn’t look surprised to see Liu Xiaolou waiting. He just waved off the staff and any lingering guests, then lowered his voice.

“Xiaolou, have you heard? Second Young Master Lu has gone missing.”

Liu Xiaolou stayed calm. “What have you heard on your end?”

“According to the Qingyu Sect, he forced his way into Taoyuan with two others. Once they entered the mountains, they just vanished. They couldn’t be tracked, not even with Shape Absorbing Technique. I suspect one of the men with him was one of my stewards. He’s missing too. No idea who the third person was.”

Liu Xiaolou asked in return, “So is his disappearance good news or bad news for you?”

Wei Hongqing smiled. “Good, of course. That guy’s always caused me trouble. These past few months have been the most peaceful I’ve had in a while.”

“Then isn’t that a win?”

Wei Hongqing nodded. “Sure, but now his older brother, Lu Yuanlang, is causing problems. He’s acting like a mad dog; suspicious of everyone, convinced someone killed his brother. He’s pointing fingers all over the place. Still, I’ve got a clear conscience. Let him kick up dust if he wants. But now, it seems he’s turned his anger back toward the Qingyu Sect…”

Liu Xiaolou seemed to catch on. “So that’s why Tianmu Mountain cut off their supply of spirit wine and spirit rice?”

Wei Hongqing nodded. “Exactly. It was Lu Yuanlang’s idea, but the Zhanglong Sect also reached out on their own. The elders agreed to cut off the spirit wine supply, and Zhanglong decided not to sell them spirit rice either. The Qingyu Sect folks are used to eating spirit rice and drinking spirit wine, suddenly switching to ordinary stuff? They can’t take it. Let’s see how long they last in western Xian... So—”

“Actually,” Liu Xiaolou cut in, changing the subject, ”that’s why I’m here. About the spirit wine. I wanted to ask if you could spare some Bamboo Leaf Green?”

Wei Hongqing gave a small smile and nodded. “How much do you need?”

“I don’t want to trouble you,” Liu Xiaolou said. “How about four jars to start with?”

“Lately, we’ve stopped selling spirit wine to outsiders... But here’s what I can do: come by every two days and take one jar each time. I’ll give it to you at eighty taels per jar, but you can’t tell anyone you got it from me.”

Liu Xiaolou lit up. “Thank you, Brother Wei. I really appreciate it.”

He emptied his pockets, scraping together everything he had: the gold hairpin and jewelry Big White had picked up, plus the silver ingot Sister Qing had given him. Altogether, it came to just over eighty taels, which he handed over to Wei Hongqing.

Wei Hongqing had been planning to cover the cost for him, but Liu Xiaolou firmly refused. Since it was just enough, there was no reason to make a good friend pay out of pocket.

With the jar of Bamboo Leaf Green in his arms, Liu Xiaolou set out that same night, heading straight back to Wuchao Town.