Early in the morning, Tang Hao rode on his little three-wheeled motorcycle to Azure Sky Gardens.
"Lil Tang!"
President Biao was already waiting for him. He excitedly ran toward Tang Hao when he was in view, as if he had just seen a long-lost relative.
He was visibly slimmer. His potbelly probably lost a couple of pant sizes. Even so, his original corpulence meant that he still had a long way to go before being considered healthy.
"Lil Tang, that thing you made is wonderful. Your ancestors must have been miracle workers." President Biao said passionately while gripping Tang Hao's hands tightly.
His weight was a problem that plagued him for the longest time. He had always wanted to lose some weight, though unfortunately, his willpower was too weak. He despaired after trying and failing a few times.
The weight-loss potion was a new ray of hope.
He had never encountered a herbal concoction as miraculous as that before. Its effects were seen immediately, losing twenty pounds the same day he drank it. He did not feel ill after drinking it. In fact, he felt a lot more energetic.
This was a miracle!
No slimming pill or herbal tea in the market could compare to this.
"You have any more, Lil Tang?" President Biao looked at Tang Hao with eager eyes.
"Yes! No rush, President Biao!" Tang Hao smiled and produced five bottles from his backpack.
He had diluted the four portions of his herbal concoction into twenty-odd bottles of tea to reduce its incredible potency. He brought only five of them this time.
"Five bottles!" President Biao's eyes sparkled. His joy was palpable. "One bottle can lose me twenty pounds. Five bottles, that's a hundred pounds! I'll be a stylish man again after drinking all that!
"Haha, Lil Tang, I have to tell you. Don't look at my sorry state now. When I was your age, I'm actually popular among the ladies because of my looks.
"Give me a moment! I'll get your money. Such a good thing shouldn't be cheap."
He ran into the house and retrieved a bag. From it, he took out three stacks of banknotes.
"Here's thirty thousand for you!" He shoved the stacks of cash into Tang Hao's hands.
"That's… a little too much, no?" Tang Hao was shocked.
"Hah, not at all! If this isn't enough for you, just name your price and I'll pay for it! Six thousand for a bottle of this miraculous potion is too cheap! I'm not short of money anyway!"
"Alright then!" Tang Hao realized that he could not reject the money and therefore took it. He pinched the three stacks of banknotes and felt incredibly excited. 'That's thirty thousand yuan! I toiled for an entire year and only saved a little more than ten thousand.'
This was the easiest thirty-thousand yuan he had ever earned.
"Thank you, President Biao!"
"Eh, don't call me President Biao, just Bro Biao will do! Do you have any more of this stuff, Lil Tang? My wife has been complaining about her weight. That'll be perfect for her."
"I still have some more, I can send them over tomorrow," Tang Hao said.
"Alright, it's promised then! Right, Lil Tang, are you interested in marketing this miracle weight-loss potion? I don't think anything in the market now can compare to this."
President Biao, shrewd entrepreneur he was, could sense the business opportunity in this herbal tea.
Tang Hao had of course thought of that. However, he did not want to rely on someone else.
"I've thought of it before, but it's tricky to gather the ingredients and difficult to produce. I can't mass produce this."
"Oh!" President Biao was a little disappointed. "Alright then, if you have some more of this stuff, I'll buy them off you. Your Bro Biao has many friends and a lot of them are fatties. Don't worry about the money, you'll get your fair share."
"Roger that. Thank you, Bro Biao."
After delivering packages, Tang Hao clutched the thirty-thousand yuan in his hands and took another trip to the medicinal herb market.
He gathered medicinal components for another potion called the Liquid of Spiritual Condensation.
In ancient times, spiritual energy permeated the heavens and the earth. Qi masters of ancient times could inhale and exhale spiritual energy to cultivate their powers. In modern times, spiritual energy has been depleted, and only traces of it could be found in the air. Cultivators would find it very hard to extract spiritual energy from the air.
The only way to cultivate one's qi in modern times was through elixirs.
The Liquid of Spiritual Condensation was not quite considered an elixir, but it suited his purpose.
Before he could embark on his journey in cultivation, he had to ascend two states of being. The first was the State of Qi Channeling, and the second the State of Foundation Establishment. In the hospital, Tang Hao had sensed the presence of qi through practicing qi techniques. However, spiritual energy was weak in the heavens and the earth, and he could not ascend into the State of Qi Channeling.
With the Liquid of Spiritual Condensation, he could finally ascend into the State of Qi Channeling and embark on his path of qi cultivation.
The most important ingredient in making the Liquid of Spiritual Condensation was the lingzhi mushroom. Ideally, it would have to be more than fifty years of age.
Lingzhi was a popular component in traditional Chinese medicine in modern times. It was very expensive and was usually sold in grams. A whole lingzhi mushroom could cost four or even five digits.
He saw several shops selling lingzhi during his last trip to the herb market. He took another spin around the area and finally settled on a whole sixty-year-old mushroom which cost him fifteen thousand yuan. The other components cost him nine thousand yuan in total.
The thirty-thousand yuan that he had just acquired only had nine thousand left.
'This money won't last too long!' Tang Hao thought to himself. He felt that he needed to make more money so that he could successfully cultivate his qi.
After gathering the ingredients for the Liquid of Spiritual Condensation, he went around the medicinal herb market one more time to gather the components of beauty enhancement potions and aphrodisiacs. He would try to concoct them tonight.
He returned home and sat down in front of the table. First, he had to concoct the Liquid of Spiritual Condensation.
The method of production was the same as the weight-loss potion. Activate the potency of the various medicinal components with the qi in his body, then mix them in a bowl and pound with a pestle until a liquid is produced.
That was the Liquid of Spiritual Condensation.
Two hours later, he was finally done.
Tang Hao sat with his legs crossed. He inhaled deeply, then picked up the bowl, tilted his head back and drank this golden liquid.
The liquid touched his throat and turned boiling hot. He felt like there was a fire burning in his stomach.
He urgently aligned the qi gates in his body to fully absorb the liquid's effects.
The liquid was refined into qi in his body and permeated every cell. In this process, his body underwent changes and became stronger. A thick, black liquid oozed from his pores.
Meanwhile, his physiology changed to become stronger. Even his face underwent minute changes.
This was like being reborn.
A full six hours later, Tang Hao opened his eyes. His eyes were full of spirit and shone like the stars.
He had never felt so energetic before. His body was filled with strength and felt lighter. His surroundings were not illuminated but he could see everything clearly.
Even his hearing had become more acute than before. His ears twitched as he could hear the sounds of heavy breathing and a shaking bed a few houses away.
Tang Hao immediately blushed. He wondered why those people were not sleeping at such a late hour.
Then, he smelled something that stank really bad. He frowned hard.
He realized that the stink came from the black ooze that coated his body. He ran into the bathroom and gave himself a thorough shower. After the ooze was washed away, his skin was as fair and smooth as a newborn baby.
He stepped in front of the mirror to look at himself. He was still himself, though his body looked somewhat unfamiliar. Tang Hao was shocked.
After that, the shock became delight.
He now knew that the journey on his life had diverted toward a different path.