STNS: Chapter 524 (Patreon)

Just because Wu Jian’s legs had been restored, that didn’t mean he was able to walk again. He’d gone so long without legs that his body was no longer used to having them. He was forced to undergo several months of physical therapy just to regain full use of his regrown limbs.

During his first two weeks, Wu Jian focused on reactivating his nerves, muscles, and meridians. His limbs had been experiencing periodic phantom pains that disrupted the flow of Qi to his legs, forcing him to carefully readjust his Qi output. This was something that his body should have been doing naturally. However, his body no longer considered his calves, shin, or feet a natural part of his body.

Qi Circulation therapy was, oddly enough, the easiest. He spent hours sitting in meditation, focusing on sending Qi through his meridians to reestablish the flow of energy in his legs. Zhou Lihua had also taken on the role of personal medical expert. She was technically an alchemist and not a healer, but she knew enough about the human body to aid him. She did this by stimulating his accupoints to accelerate his recovery.

“How do your legs feel?” asked Zhou Lihua.

“Mmm. They feel fine. Nothing wrong here,” said Wu Jian.

“That’s good. Please let me know if you experience any pain.”

“Will do.”

Wu Jian sat in the main room of their residence, several pillows under his bottom and his legs on Zhou Lihua’s lap. This scene should have been intimate and romantic. They were alone in a room together, in close proximity. Had their positions been reversed, he would have given her thighs a massage. What killed the moment were the numerous acupuncture needles sticking out of his skin. There were several dozen poking through the skin of each leg, visibly gleaming as though to remind him of his situation.

Wu Jian was also busy observing his the flow of Qi in his legs. While some part of him wished they could have this time to themselves, he knew that they were on a timer. Hou Jingshu had given him one year of time, and they couldn’t afford to waste it.

“The flow of Qi is being blocked here, here, and here,” Wu Jian pointed out each area of blocked Qi as he discovered. Zhou Lihua was just as fast and precise, swiftly sticking a needle in those spots and infusing the needle with her Qi. This stimulated his meridians and helped the Qi flow more smoothly.

“How does that feel?” asked Zhou Lihua.

Wu Jian took a moment to observe the flow of Qi, then nodded. “Better. There’s nothing blocking my meridians now.”

“Good. I’m going to begin the second step then.”

The second step involved using what Wu Meiying called fire and ice therapy. Zhou Lihua could adjust the temperature of her flames, which she did, first producing heat with her flames that spread through his body, then creating a chilling cold. The combination of hot and cold stimulated his nerve endings. It had been painful the first few days, but the pain had gradually faded as they continued.

“Does anything feel off?” asked Zhou Lihua.

Wu Jian shook his head. “No, everything feels fine.”

“Good.”

“You’re very careful,” he observed.

Zhou Lihua could only shrug helplessly. “Of course, I am. You’re very livelihood is in my hands. I can’t bear the thought of what might happen if I make a single mistake and you lose your ability to walk forever.”

It took several hours to finish the fire and ice therapy, and afterwards, she removed the needles and helped him stand up. The final step of the therapy was assisted walking.

When he first got his legs back, he had started walking on his own, which caused his muscles to suffer extreme pain. It was akin to muscle atrophy, but it was also wholly different. Muscle atrophy happened after muscles went through prolonged periods of disuse. Wu Jian’s muscles were newly formed. They hadn’t been completely restored either, which meant they were like brand new muscles. To make matters more complicated, the flow of his Qi had been disrupted and his nervous system needed to readjust to having legs.

He leaned on Zhou Lihua as she placed an arm around his waist and slowly helped him walk around the room. The scent of her hair was slightly distracting. He ignored it for the first hour of walking, but once his legs became too tired to keep moving, he sat heavily on the bed of pillows and pulled the startled Zhou Lihua with him.

“W-Wu Jian?!”

“I’m tired. Let’s take a break.”

Wu Jian had pulled the young woman into his lap and held her close, nuzzling his nose into her hair. She had bathed last night, and her hair smelled of lilacs and a few medicinal ingredients that not even a bath could remove the scent of. He loved the smell, personally. Wu Jian felt like he would never be able to get enough of it.

“We… we can’t take a break for long. You need to recover your strength,” Zhou Lihua lifted her head to look him in the eyes. They were narrowed ever so slightly. “But… rest is also an important part of recovery…”

Wu Jian felt desire crash into him like the waves of a tsunami crashing against a rocky cliff. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d slept with Zhou Lihua or Hou Jingshu, but it had been a long time. His situation had kept him from being able to even think about it. However, now that his legs were back, all those thoughts and desires that had been held in check were coming to the fore, slipping through the cracks of his resolve.

He slid his hands through Zhou Lihua’s hair, cupped her cheek, and rubbed her skin with his thumb. She had such plump cheeks. They were smooth and elastic like a peach. Unable to resist, he leaned down and kissed her other cheek. Zhou Lihua bit her lip as she tilted her head to give him better access. The scent of her skin was invigorating and made Wu Jian desire her more, and so he trailed kisses down her cheek, to her jawline, then slipped over to her neck.

Zhou Lihua’s breathing hitched.

“Wu… Jian…”

Her voice was breathy and lyrical like a guqin--a seven-stringed zither with over 12,000 years of history. Renown for producing gentle, lingering notes with rich overtones that were often described as spiritual, elegant, and profound, it was often considered the most beautiful and ethereal sounding instrument on the Xaio Continent.

That voice spurred him on.

Wu Jian slowly slipped his hand between her parted hanfu. She wasn’t wearing breast bindings, so he could feel her stiffen under his touch. Her entire body seemed to shudder beneath his ministrations. He slowly tweaked and pinched her--

“Are you two about to have sex?”

--when a voice dumped a metaphorical bucket of cold water on them.

Zhou Lihua squawked as she tumbled off his lap and away from him. Wu Jian grimaced as he turned to Youmei.

“Where did you learn about that?” he asked. Up now, she had always described the act of sex as “naked hugging,” which led him to believe she didn’t know what the act entailed.

Youmei grinned. “I learned a lot while I was away.”

“So it seems.”

“Anyway, can I watch? I’m curious to see how it’s done.”

“Absolutely not.”

Wu Jian sighed. It looked like his desires wouldn’t be satisfied any time soon.

***

Several weeks had passed. Once Wu Jian was able to walk properly without experiencing pain, he began rebuilding the strength and balance he had lost.

That meant training.

Training had been Wu Jian’s bread and butter back when he was young. He had spent most of his days training, increasing his physical prowess. Young boys and girls below eighteen could not become cultivators. However, in order to achieve a breakthrough upon reaching the Age of Majority, they needed to have a certain level of physical strength, which could be measured using a Measuring Stone. Wu Jian had been quite diligent when it came to his physical training. He had achieved a level of strength unheard of, not only in the Wu Clan, but in the entire continent--well, according to Wu Meiying.

 He started his training with low-impact strength training. This involved staying in the horse stance for at least one hour, and gradually increasing that time until he was able to stay like that for a full day… and then he began holding jars full of sand while keeping his arms stretched out. It was rough, but the deep squats and added weights increased his leg, core, arm, and shoulder strength.

After that came sprints and explosive training. This involved short bursts of sprinting--first five zhang, then ten zhang, slowly increasing the distance when it became too easy.

The zhang was a unit of measurement that was about ten chi in distance. It was first introduced by none other than Zhou Clan. According to legend, their leader had introduced it after the Guardian Deity War that destroyed the Four Guardian Deity Sects and ushered in the Three Celestial Sects.

Of course, he didn’t just do sprints. Wu Jian also did weight training… which involved strapping weights to his arms, legs, and chest, and gradually increasing the amount of weight as he lived his everyday life. There was also his platform training. He set up a series of very small platforms in the middle of a lake and leapt from one platform to another. The platforms were tiny. He couldn’t even plant his foot fully on the surface, so he had to stand on his toes, which increased his calf strength along with his explosive strength. Wu Jian also did wall-running, which he began doing near the later half of his strength training.

After two months, Wu Jian was ready for a full combat readjustment.

His leg strength was fully restored, which meant he needed to reintegrate his fighting style. That meant sparring. He fought against Zhou Lihua and Youmei while blindfolded. Fighting blindfolded forced him to re-sensitize his foot positioning and awareness, and sparring with multiple opponents ensured his movements became second-nature.

Sometimes Loong Mei would join them. At first, she had only watched his training from a distance, but she eventually decided to actively take part in his rehabilitation. Wu Jian didn’t know if she admired him, or if she simply wanted to get Hou Jingshu back, and he honestly didn’t care. Her help was a welcome addition.

Loong Mei was strong.

Really strong.

He had already known that her cultivation was far above his own, but he didn’t realize just how far above him she was until their first sparring session, when she beat him black and blue.

“If you want to rescue Hou Jingshu Xiaojie, then you need to at least be able to defeat me. If you cannot even do that, then forget about saving her.”

According to Loong Mei, Xie Longshan was at the first subrealm of the Perfection Realm. That was the pinnacle of cultivation in this world. There were only a handful of people at this realm. Loong Chen and Zhe Dāozhe were at this realm. Zhou Shíwēi was also sorta at this realm. He was, technically, at the next realm up, the so-called Divine Origin Realm, but his cultivation was being forcefully suppressed so he could remain on this small sealed world. The world itself would eject him if he became too powerful, according to Wu Meiying.

In any case, Loong Mei was to be Wu Jian’s measuring rod. He needed to be able to defeat her before the year was up, or they would have no hope of rescuing Hou Jingshu.

Wu Meiying also focused on regaining her former strength, and she did it much faster than Wu Jian once they found a suitable cauldron for Zhou Lihua. Loong Mei had allowed the woman to borrow their alchemist’s cauldron. It was not as good as the one she used to have, but it was good enough to refine the pills Wu Meiying needed, and Loong Mei graciously provided the ingredients--much to the displeasure of the elders.

Just as Wu Jian and Wu Meiying regained their original strength and switched their focus to increasing their strength, the Flood Dragon Clan came under attack by none other than a phoenix who lived nearby, and there was someone familiar with him.