Drawing inferences from one instance to others, he attained enlightenment within the serpent.

In our daily lives, we often see monks and Taoist priests in temples and monasteries burning incense to pay respects to the divine, spending their days chanting scriptures and cultivating the Way amidst the swirling smoke of incense.

The "incense" used in these settings helps calm the mind, bringing a sense of peace and tranquility that allows one to enter a state of deep meditation more quickly.

When Chen Jue worked in Hangzhou, he was a mid-level manager responsible for overseeing the company's background risk control data. Occasionally, when there were important documents requiring approval from higher-ups, he would personally visit the boss's office.

That wealthy boss had a penchant for incense. He liked to lock his office door and burn aromatic resins, sometimes using high-end varieties like sandalwood, agarwood, or even ambergris. These were exquisite substances costing thousands or even tens of thousands of yuan per gram—a luxury pastime for the city's wealthy that ordinary people would never encounter.

When Chen Jue delivered documents, he would occasionally feign ignorance to flatter the boss’s hobby, discussing it just enough to leave a good impression and secure his standing in the company. That was how he learned about the "incense" culture from him.

However, Chen Jue had underestimated the brutality of corporate office politics; no amount of flattery could save him.

One day, the boss would be smiling, explaining the nuances of a newly purchased incense worth ten thousand yuan. A few days later, he would put on a show of being on the verge of bankruptcy and layoffs, pulling Chen Jue into a heart-to-heart talk about how the company was struggling and could no longer afford to keep him. He even went so far as to make fake phone calls in front of Chen Jue to "recommend" him to other companies, just to appease him so he would sign the departure papers without a fuss.

As it turned out, those leads for jobs at other firms were nothing but dead ends.

Once he left the company, no one cared about the dignity of a worker like Chen Jue. After signing the papers, he was promptly given his N+1 severance package and sent back to his hometown, which led to everything that happened afterward.

Of course, most "incense" can be used medicinally, much like the musk often mentioned in traditional Chinese medicine.

Musk is a medicinal substance used to "open the orifices," known for its ability to refresh the mind, invigorate blood circulation, dispel swelling, and relieve pain.

Beyond that, fragrance is a fascinating phenomenon perceived through the body’s olfactory and gustatory organs.

Fragrance is a type of scent, and the "scent" here does not refer to the internal "Qi" of blood and energy mentioned earlier, but rather to volatile gaseous compounds—it is a physical substance, usually consisting of small molecules.

"Taste" is sensory perception, acting much like a sensor. Only when these small gaseous molecules land on the surface of the sensor and cause a change in physical quantity (which could be electrical, magnetic, optical, ionic, or molecular flow) does the resulting signal travel through the nerves to the body’s "CPU," the brain, to produce the sensation of "fragrance."

Therefore, a scent is not a substance itself, but a process of interaction between substances.

Just as Chen Jue once sensed the "innate Qi" from the fetus in Sister Biao’s womb while in the state of embryonic breathing, one must stimulate specific senses to perceive the existence of this innate Qi.

And these special senses can only be awakened by a master who has formed a "Golden Elixir," embraced the "Taiji," or cultivated a "Sarira."

As for the scent of the Golden Dew in Chen Jue’s hand, it was far more refreshing and invigorating than any of the expensive, high-end incense he had smelled in his former boss’s office.

Even the medicinal scent of the Shaolin Strength Pill he had previously commissioned from Ye Tong Ren Tang was nowhere near as "stimulating" as this bottle of Golden Dew.

After all, Chen Jue’s physical fitness had improved twofold since he first consumed the Strength Pill.

Combined with his great progress in martial arts and his success in internal alchemy, his internal Qi and blood were now highly restrained; ordinary medicine could hardly disturb his internal equilibrium.

"Is this Golden Dew made from herbs gathered in the mountains?" Chen Jue looked again at the crystal-clear, golden-tinged liquid in the bamboo tube, feeling that this ancient, secret recipe of the Dulong people was truly extraordinary.

"Yes, it is!"

"This bottle is what was left over from before. If we used herbs bought in town, it wouldn't smell nearly as fragrant," Sister Yun explained with a smile as she saw Chen Jue’s look of intoxication.

When she first smelled the Golden Dew, her reaction had been even more exaggerated than Chen Jue’s; she had wanted to drink the whole bottle immediately.

"Then I won’t stand on ceremony. Please thank your grandmother for me!" Chen Jue thanked her, putting aside any pretense. He capped the bamboo tube and wrapped it carefully with the golden silk cloth. Still worried about spilling such precious medicine on the road, he placed it inside a plastic bag, tied it tightly, and tucked it back into his backpack, intending to test its properties during his meditation sessions that night.

...

The two sat on the pebbles of the shallow riverbank to eat lunch and rest for a while. Suddenly, Chen Jue heard the cry of an eagle. He looked up and saw the black kite he had encountered earlier descending from the sky, clutching a writhing wild snake, which it dropped in front of Sister Yun.

Sister Yun was not afraid; she took a bag of mealworms from her basket and fed them all to the black kite.

As for the wild snake, Sister Yun gently picked it up and returned it to the slippery grass by the riverbank.

The whole process felt like a barter; the kite provided the snake, and Sister Yun reciprocated with mealworms, while the snake kept its life and was returned to the deep mountains. Watching from the side, Chen Jue couldn't help but marvel, "You can play like this?"

However, as he watched the snake slither through the grass, Chen Jue had a sudden flash of inspiration. "Sister Yun, since you have learned the Tiger-Form Thunder Sound and the Turtle-Form Turtle Breathing, have you learned any skills from the snake?"

"I have, Brother Chen Jue!"

"These little snakes are so much fun. When they climb trees to steal bird eggs, they shake their bones. It took me a long time to learn, but when I practice it, my whole body feels warm and comfortable." As she spoke, Sister Yun demonstrated the snake-form bone-shaking technique.

From her spine to her entire body, she displayed an extremely supple, rhythmic movement.

One must realize that a snake’s spine can have over 500 vertebrae—much more complex than a human’s. If one is not careful, shaking them incorrectly could cause the body to fall apart, which would be fatal for a snake.

If the "Tiger-Leopard Thunder Sound" produced by the tiger-form’s force is like a fierce, penetrating high-voltage current, then the sound of the bones produced by the snake-form’s drilling force is like a soft, quiet, low-voltage current.

One strong, one weak; one hard, one soft—each has a distinct style.

Furthermore, the snake is the only animal besides the tiger that naturally bears the character for "King" on its head. One is the king of the forests, the other the king of the caverns, subtly echoing the Taoist duality of Yin and Yang.

Due to practicing the Dragon’s Roar Iron Shirt all night, Chen Jue had just grasped the essence of controlling the spine to emit a "Dragon’s Roar." Observing Sister Yun’s snake-form bone-shaking now, he experienced a moment of clarity—it was as if the clouds had parted to reveal the sun, and he finally understood the path to tempering the bones and marrow!

He looked at Sister Yun with sincere gratitude and said, "Sister Yun, thank you for your guidance! Wait for me a moment!"

Standing where he was, he began to practice the Dragon’s Roar Iron Shirt as if no one were watching. When he first unleashed his strength, his spine rose and fell with fierce power, emitting a "Dragon’s Roar" even more intense than when he practiced on the peak of the Wa Village mountain the night before.

However, this "Dragon’s Roar" did not remain fierce; it suddenly retracted, as if one could only hear the sound but see no form—much like the legendary true dragon, able to soar through rivers and lakes or hide within clouds and mountains!

Borrowing the essence of the snake-form from Sister Yun, Chen Jue had realized the true meaning of "Subduing the Dragon"!

Just as the I Ching states, "The dragon has ascended to the highest point and has cause for regret." "Ascended" means reaching the limit; when the dragon reaches the highest point, its momentum must inevitably decline. To know how to advance but not how to retreat is to invite regret.

Hardness cannot last forever, and Yang cannot end alone; one must use the Yin of the snake-form to complement the Yang-ascension of the dragon-form!

In the rising and falling of his spine, Chen Jue’s mind was as clear as a mirror. At that moment, he felt he had formed a simulated dynamic map in his mind for the movement of every bone in his body.

As mentioned in the Xingyi Fist Manual: "The dragon-form searches the bones; the tiger-form penetrates the spirit."

He used the vibration of his spine to further link his entire skeletal system. Through this interconnected force, Chen Jue deeply realized the essence of the marrow-tempering method.

Chen Jue felt better with every movement. His bones began to glow with warmth and vibrate, his blood surged like a tidal wave, and his old teeth began to loosen. Unbeknownst to him, the proficiency of his [Dragon’s Roar Iron Shirt] rose to Lv2 (500/500).

The skill bar on his interface flashed, and the secret technique of the Wudang Taihe Sect—the Dragon’s Roar Iron Shirt—had finally been perfected by Chen Jue!