Chapter 6, Mutation

A crisp sound of "ka-cha"!

By now, this time has only slightly increased his strength, which is far from comparable to the initial few times.

The two palms are long and sturdy, yet no matter how one looks at them, they do not resemble a flesh-and-blood body capable of exerting a thousand pounds of force

However, some genuine scions of powerful families can increase their chances of comprehending Qi by collecting rare auxiliary elixirs, but the cost is significantly higher, far exceeding that of acquiring Qi Spirit Pills by several times

In a sparsely furnished large room, the heavy wooden door is locked from the inside

Shi Mu pondered in a daze, and soon came to a decision in his heart

Drink

Additionally, Shi Mu also confirmed from Li Cang Hai that even if one comprehends the sense of Qi and meets the age requirements, entering the Martial Academy still requires undergoing a highly intense competition.

Listen carefully, the power of the Stone Shattering Fist is directly related to one's own strength, but the toughness of the fist itself is crucial in unleashing its maximum potential. Otherwise, no matter how great the strength, striking a stone will result in severe injury to one's own hands. You are merely a beginner; although you have mastered the Body Tempering Technique, the strength of your fists can at most strike some wood. I will now have you wear multiple layers of fish skin gloves to strike these soybeans, which will gradually stimulate the muscles, bones, and flesh in your hands, preventing excessive initial injury while rapidly increasing your hand strength. Once your fists can penetrate an entire water tank with a single strike, I will replace the soybeans with larger fragments of stone and remove one layer of the fish skin gloves from your fists. When you can also strike through the stones in the water tank, I will switch to real iron sand, and only after you can penetrate the iron sand will you be able to practice with actual large rocks... Be aware, your left hand is swinging a bit too much!" Li Canghai stood nearby with his arms crossed, expressionless as he spoke.

Shi Mu was well aware that his talent was average, and even with the consumption of the Qi Spirit Pill, his chances of comprehending the Qi sensation would not be significantly higher than those of ordinary people

However, even so, Shi Mu's strength is now over 1,000 pounds, and his reaction speed is several times that of an ordinary person

Li Canghai initially cultivated the body tempering technique to the twelfth level. After the age of twenty, he barely advanced to the acquired stage after consuming the Qi Spirit Pill for the second time. Whenever this matter is mentioned, this mid-acquired martial artist still feels an immense sense of regret

With a whoosh, a white ribbon surged forth, engulfing a nearby wooden stake within its embrace

Only then did Shi Mu raise his hands and take a careful look.

After all, the entire process of the mutation was greatly similar to the sensation of his blood boiling upon awakening by the seaside that day, only the pain had increased by more than tenfold

One breath, six cuts

For Shi Mu, with his current modest wealth, the acquisition of auxiliary elixirs is simply out of the question; he can only pursue the path of enhancing his body refinement level.

The seemingly sturdy solid wood bed frame cracked and broke apart with a sound

His knife skills are so swift that they are already on par with the previous demonstration by Li Canghai

Moments later, a flurry of blade shadows erupted in the square, resembling flying sand and rolling stones, as well as a dragon emerging from the sea

Danger? Ever since he made the vow to become a strong person before his mother's grave, he knew that he would embark on a difficult path filled with thorns, so how could he fear any danger

With a loud bang!

Thus, over the past few months, he has experienced more than ten such transformations, each episode resulting in remarkable benefits to his body

With the aid of the physical transformations he has undergone over the past few months, Shi Mu has directly advanced the Body Tempering Technique to the ninth level of mastery, and is even approaching the tenth level.

After an unknown period of time, his cries of pain gradually ceased, his limbs slowly stretched out, his skin gradually returned to its normal color, and he opened his weary eyes.

Upon hearing this, Shi Mu took a deep breath and walked over to the wooden stake, slowly beginning to circle around it.

The first onset of the mutation occurred during the first month of his stay at the manor, where he was tormented for an entire night

Regarding such extraordinary encounters, he had heard quite a bit from the biographies of strong figures recounted by storytellers, and he had once envied them greatly

After a quarter of an hour, Shi Mu suddenly let out a loud shout, and with a powerful punch, he struck deep into the water tank, penetrating more than a foot, almost burying half of his forearm in the yellow beans

After shaking his shoulders, Shi Mu suddenly threw a punch, directly breaking the thick wooden stake in half. The upper half of the stake flew out of the square with a whoosh and crashed heavily against the outer wall of a nearby house, causing the entire building to sway slightly.

Shi Mu responded with a promise, his arms swinging vigorously, each punch penetrating more than half a foot into the water tank. His upper body was drenched in sweat, every muscle bulging and twitching like a mouse, and he was enveloped in a peculiar frenzy.

According to Li Canghai, this method of body tempering was obtained by him inadvertently from a master. Although it is quite simple and crude, the effects of body tempering are surprisingly remarkable. However, the entire process is exceedingly dangerous and painful, with a significant possibility of failure during cultivation. Therefore, it is rarely taught to other apprentices. If Shi Mu is willing to spend a large sum of money, he would be more than happy to impart this knowledge.

... ...

Seven days later, in the center of the manor square, there stood a three-foot-high blue water tank filled with densely packed yellow soybean grains

At this moment, he was flushed all over, drenched in sweat, and curled up into a ball. Intermittent moans escaped his lips, and his limbs twitched uncontrollably, leaving him in a semi-conscious state

According to normal judgment, it should not be a big problem for him to reach the tenth layer of body tempering after more than half a year. However, if he wishes to enter the eleventh layer, it remains a distant prospect. Moreover, a one-third chance of comprehending the aura naturally does not allow Shi Mu to feel truly at ease.

After a moment of contemplation, Shi Mu walked over to the wooden rack again and took down the long knife once more

"Master Li, it's nothing." Shi Mu grinned, pulling his arm out from the soybeans.

The entire square swayed slightly

After all, the Kaiyuan Martial Arts Academy has limited resources and can only enroll a specified number of students within its quota. Based on the experiences of previous years, the number of applicants from all the states in the Kaiyuan Prefecture often exceeds this number by several times.

His retracted fist was remarkably unscathed

The strength has increased a little again, but it is not as astonishing as the last few times. It has been a month since the last episode, and it only lasted for a quarter of an hour. It seems that the possibility of further improvement in the future is not great.

In the evening

Shi Mu muttered to himself a couple of sentences, then raised his hand, and with a loud bang, threw the stone lock onto the nearby ground

The occurrence of such an extraordinary adventure in his own life naturally filled him with great joy, and it also significantly boosted his confidence regarding the test at Kaiyuan Martial Arts Academy scheduled for more than half a year later

It is indeed the case that realizing the essence of energy at such an advanced age signifies a complete waste of the golden period for martial artists' training. The difficulties in continuing the cultivation thereafter are evident, and even advancing to the mid-stage of acquired martial arts will become exceedingly challenging, with the possibilities in the later stages becoming almost negligible.

Shi Mu stood in front of the water tank, his upper body bare, wearing only a pair of loose black trousers. On each hand, he wore a thick silver leather sleeve, and with clenched fists, he vigorously pounded the grains of wheat into the water tank.

"Stop! Didn't I tell you not to use too much strength? Let me see if your hand is injured?" Li Canghai witnessed this scene, his expression changing drastically, and he shouted sternly, quickly pulling out a medicine bottle from his pocket.

Hmph, is there something going on? I am the one who decides. Take off the gloves!" Li Canghai snorted and said without a moment's hesitation

Two nights later, the second mutation began again

As the blade's shadow retracted, Shi Mu stood in place, holding the long knife upside down, gazing at the wooden stake before him, his face filled with a contemplative expression

Shi Mu took a few deep breaths, walked to the edge of the bed to stretch his limbs, and with a movement of his arm, unexpectedly grasped the edge of the bed firmly with his fingers.

Upon hearing this, Shi Mu could only swing his arm once more before peeling off the layers of the leather cover from his fist, casually moving his slightly reddened fingers in front of Li Cang Hai a few times

It is somewhat light; I should be able to lift something heavier.

Shi Mu lay with his eyes tightly closed on the large bed in the middle of the room

Hmm, it seems that nothing is wrong after all. Strange, based on my years of experience in teaching, using such great strength all at once should normally leave all five fingers covered in blood. You come over and hit this wooden stake directly with your fist, and this time use all your strength!" Li Canghai carefully examined Shi Mu's palm, revealing a look of surprise, and after thinking for a moment, pointed to a nearby thick wooden stake.

These are also some martial practitioners of low qualifications, who, even after reaching their thirties or forties, can still rely on the perfection of body tempering and the repeated consumption of Qi Spirit Pills to successfully advance to the realm of acquired martial artists. However, the time and money expended during this process are not something that ordinary martial practitioners can bear

However, once the body tempering technique surpasses the ninth level, the time required to cultivate to a higher level will far exceed what ordinary people can imagine. Only those truly monstrous geniuses can achieve the twelfth level of perfection in body tempering before the age of fifteen. Throughout the history of the Great Qi Kingdom, there have been only a few such individuals.

After a few sounds of "pa" and "pa", the wooden stake was instantly chopped into seven pieces and fell apart.

However, as the duration of the mutations continues to shorten and the intervals between occurrences lengthen, the increase in strength and reaction begins to gradually weaken

It seems that if he wishes to make further progress in the art of body tempering, he can only resort to the extreme cultivation methods that Li Canghai once mentioned

An astonishing transformation occurred just now, which has been happening since he took residence in this manor, and it has happened more than once. This is the reason behind his remarkable strength and exceptional swordsmanship displayed during the day

According to Li Canghai, once one surpasses the ninth level of body tempering, each subsequent level significantly increases the probability of comprehending Qi. If one can cultivate body tempering to the tenth level, even individuals with ordinary aptitude will have a comprehension probability of over one-third. If one achieves the complete mastery of body tempering at the thirteenth level, the failure probability will be reduced to less than half.

Even if Shi Mu were to be slow-witted, he could still surmise that this anomaly was most likely related to the giant clam rescued from the seabed that day

However, the next day, after he returned to normal, he found that both his strength and physical reactions had greatly increased compared to before

However, what he needs to do now is to first master the technique of Shattered Stone Fist, and only then can he wholeheartedly cultivate the Body Tempering Art

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