lcionline Chapter 46 Celestial Inherent Bones
Chapter 46 Celestial Inherent Bones
"Congratulations!"
Before Lin Zhuo could fully experience the changes his newly practiced internal energy had brought to his body, Shu Yuliu and Jin Xiaohu began to celebrate. The girl clapped her hands like opening and closing bean pods, while the tabby cat took out its copper gong and banged it loudly.
The air in the courtyard suddenly felt incredibly festive.
The giant panda watched the lively newlyweds with a smile. It began to tidy up the incense burner, just like a chef wiping down the tableware after serving a feast, while enjoying the happy smiles of the diners.
Lin Zhuo clasped his hands in greeting to his two companions, saying, "Congratulations to you both." He had clearly noticed a significant change in their spirit and energy, a sign that they had both achieved success in internal cultivation.
He bowed deeply to Zhu Baixuan, saying, "Captain, we are extremely grateful for your assistance."
"You're so easy to take care of," the panda chuckled. "Those two are the real trouble."
Shu Yuliu and Jin Xiaohu stuck out their tongues shyly.
"If it weren't for your incense and this Dharma seat, I'm afraid it would have taken me a long time to even begin to understand it." Lin Zhuo picked up the Dharma seat and handed it back to Zhu Baixuan with both hands.
The panda simply waved its hand, "You can take these for now. And the incense burner too, I'll just leave it in the yard and light it myself every day when I practice."
"I'm so touched, Senior Brother, you're so kind!" Shu Yuliu cupped his hands around his heart.
Jin Xiaohu raised his paws and jumped around, "Boss, we love you so much!"
Lin Zhuo was used to the sharing of information among group members, but he was also well aware that such selflessness had always been rare throughout the long history of civilization, occurring only a small percentage of time and within a small group. In his real world, the world outside of human communities was still dominated by private ownership.
The infinite multiverse involved in the network is largely influenced by the backgrounds of players who are born and raised with a strong sense of selfishness and self-interest. However, the fact that such a group of cheerful and friendly players has been able to be cultivated is enough to reflect the network's own orientation and atmosphere.
After a round of laughter and commotion, the smoke in the courtyard dissipated, and everyone said goodbye and returned to their rooms.
As dawn broke, Shu Yuliu could see the pale light of the eastern sky through her room window. At this hour, early risers were already busy in Liquan Town; wisps of smoke rose from the tofu shops, stalls at the morning market were being set up, and porters were pulling their manure carts to the villages.
Not only was she yawning, but the whole town seemed to be yawning, preparing to perk up for a new day.
Qigong masters often use practice to replace sleep, but this night's practice left him very tired. Shu Yuliu boiled some hot water downstairs, washed himself briefly, and then snuggled back into bed for a good nap.
Lin Zhuo was hungry, so he took out some of the dry food he had brought and ate some. He then reviewed his findings in his room and made plans for the future.
Once the "Marrow Refining and Blood Transformation Longevity Method" is mastered, the resulting changes are quite significant.
Open the panel.
Health condition: Perfect (Adequate nutrition↑, Effective conditioning↑↑, Natural talent and physical constitution↑↑↑)
Since birth, Lin Zhuo had never felt the vitality, agility, and strength of his body so vividly. His muscles and bones were as perfectly aligned as instruments precisely manufactured in a laboratory, his joints were smooth and supple, his ligaments were elastic and flexible, his blood flow was abundant, his bones were light and hard, and his nerve coordination and recruitment abilities were greatly enhanced.
He tried bending his fingers and toes, flipped over, and supported himself on his index finger to stand upside down, maintaining his center of gravity steadily without swaying or moving. With a flick of his finger, he was slightly lifted into the air, flipping in mid-air like a hawk doing a somersault, one foot on the ground like a ballet dancer, bending down to squat, and then slowly standing up. The muscles in his body were taut and stretched under the skin like cast iron, and then returned to softness after the strength was released.
A perfect body represents the ultimate state that a species can reach.
With such physical attributes, even if one's intelligence is the same as that of the red starfish in Bikini Bottom, one could still achieve great things in human society.
Lin Zhuo then looked at the skill panel.
The proficiency of the "Supreme Dragon Transformation and Qi Control Method" has increased from 30% to 40%. The first 30% was accumulated by using six gray-quality cultivation methods to reach 100% proficiency, while the last 10% was given by the newly learned "Marrow Refining and Blood Transformation Longevity Method".
It's unknown how much progress "Refining Marrow and Changing Blood" can provide for "Supreme Dragon Transformation" once it's perfected, but it's definitely considerable.
After feeling satisfied, Lin Zhuo lowered his head and sniffed his clothes, which had a faint smell of sweat.
In the future, as the effects of the "Marrow Refining and Blood Transformation" become more and more obvious, the smell of his sweat will become lighter and lighter, and the cleanliness of his body will increase significantly. As long as he doesn't eat those strange foods or poisons, he won't end up with a smelly body and slovenly hair.
In ancient times, bathing was a troublesome affair. Lin Zhuo carried his change of clothes and soap, went out to the Qingshui River in the suburbs, and took advantage of the fact that no one was around to quickly wash himself.
After washing the clothes, I used my spiritual energy to evaporate most of the moisture. The clothes were only slightly damp to the touch, and they would dry completely in the sun.
As the sun slowly rose, its warmth was comforting. Lin Zhuo sat on a large rock on the riverbank, enjoying the view. Before long, he heard deliberately heavy footsteps behind him.
He turned around and saw a lazy young man carrying a wooden basin walking over. The man was not yet twenty years old, with a dignified appearance, but he didn't seem very energetic.
"Hey, buddy, you really know how to pick a spot. This is my bathing throne. I didn't expect someone to come here even though it's so out of the way." The young man nodded and greeted him generously.
Lin Zhuo recognized the man immediately upon seeing his appearance: Tie Yingjie, the protagonist of the storyline of "Cangcheng Rain and Snow Demon Blade Record," one of the main characters in the entire dungeon world. His portrait was on the first page of the strategy guide.
The duration of a player's stay in the "Cangcheng" instance is unpredictable and depends on the date of the final battle. Although Tie Yingjie is not the main character in this battle, as the sole survivor of the Cangcheng massacre, he is the key figure who triggers the Wulin Alliance's intervention in local affairs.
If Tie Yingjie dies unexpectedly, the time spent in the instance will be limited to fourteen days. However, if he survives until the end of the story, the time limit will be nearly three months. From mid-autumn, late autumn to early winter, until the snow falls in Cangcheng, the great battle will end, and the players will have to leave.
According to this logic, players should constantly monitor Tie Yingjie's mental and physical health to prevent him from encountering accidents or suddenly suffering a depressive episode and committing suicide. However, this is not actually necessary, because Tie Yingjie is quite powerful.
In the historical timeline selected for the "Cangcheng" instance, according to the normal timeline without player intervention, the notorious bandit Ye Toufeng of Haoyi Manor was killed by Tie Yingjie in cooperation with Liu Cang, and his strength was even greater than that of Dai Xianyong.
With such skills, one can roam the martial world safely, as long as one doesn't encounter the leader of a major sect or a top expert.
Moreover, in terms of character, he witnessed the tragic death of his entire family at a young age, wandered for many years, and was left all alone after the unexpected death of his last loyal servant from the sect. He has endured more hardship than many people do in their entire lives, yet he can still smile all day long, which shows that his ability to withstand pressure is also top-notch.
Lin Zhuo looked at the protagonist who was hiding his identity and pretending not to know martial arts. At this moment, Tie Yingjie probably did not expect that his peaceful life would end in the next two days, encountering assassins from the Rain Blade Hall in Cangcheng and being forced into the vortex of grudges that had not been resolved for many years.
Tie Yingjie, who was using the alias Mu Xiaofan, was also observing the man sitting on the rock basking in the sun.
He witnessed the battle at Haoyizhuang yesterday in the crowd and paid special attention to these out-of-towners. Liquan Town is a peaceful place where bloodshed is rare, but these guys have caused dozens of deaths in less than an hour since they arrived.
He was curious about the player's background and also wanted to make friends with him, but he still needed to test the waters.
Pretending to be ignorant of martial arts, he wanted to observe how these people treated ordinary citizens. This method proved very effective, because one's attitude towards the weak often reveals their true stance. Tie Yingjie had witnessed countless martial arts practitioners who were amiable to the strong and their own kind, yet readily resorted to violence and abuse against ordinary people.
Lin Zhuo replied, "The scenery here is nice. Do you come here often?"
"That's right, the big rock under your butt has a small hole in it. I put a stone inside that's perfect for rubbing your feet. Here it is." Tie Yingjie indeed pulled out a rough, calloused volcanic rock from under the rock.
Lin Zhuo was amused by this guy's interesting lifestyle.
"Liquan Town has beautiful scenery, and meeting someone as interesting as you suggests the local customs are quite pleasant. My name is Lin Zhuo, the 'Zhuo' in 'clumsy.' May I ask your name?"
"My name is Mu Xiaofan. Hehe, Master Lin, our names are destined to be together." Tie Yingjie announced the pseudonym he had used for more than ten years, beaming with joy.
"It is indeed a coincidence that two trees form a forest. If you would like, we can become friends. I have been staying at the Sishui Guitang courtyard over there recently. If you have time, you are welcome to come and visit."
"Wow, I am unworthy of such praise. You are truly unconventional, sir." Tie Yingjie sincerely bowed and flattered him.
Lin Zhuo smiled. "Do you think I'd consider it unconventional of me to befriend an ordinary person who doesn't know martial arts?"
"Uh, isn't that right?" Tie Yingjie was startled, but pretended to be confused.
"There are many good people in the world who don't know martial arts but are still respectable, but you are clearly not one of them. I see that you have considerable skills. What is your purpose in deliberately approaching me?"
"Master Lin, you have a sharp eye! How did you see through it?" Tie Yingjie never expected that his years of disguise would be seen through by a stranger at a glance, and he was now starting to doubt his life.
"When you're tired of pretending, you can come find me. We can discuss martial arts and improve together." Lin Zhuo stood up, cupped his hands in farewell, and headed towards the town as the sun rose higher and higher, leaving Tie Yingjie alone, watching his retreating figure, lost in thought.