47: Chapter 47 Introduction to Body Training and the Discovery of the Pangolin

Half an hour later, he stood up and walked over to that pile of bluestones.

Without using any Spiritual Qi, he pressed his right hand into a palm blade and exerted force from his waist—

"Snap!"

The basin-sized bluestone split in two at the sound, its cross-section smooth.

Lin Xuan looked at his slightly reddened but intact palm: "My strength has increased by about twenty percent."

Ten days ago, he could only leave marks on the stone; now, he could split it.

At this rate, in another month, he should be able to withstand the ordinary strikes of a Low Grade Magical Artifact.

He sank his consciousness into the Spirit-Taming Tower Space.

The pale golden flower bud at the top of the thunder-attracting vine had grown a size larger, and the Purple Lightning Glow Insect was resting on a leaf.

The Herb-Seeking Mouse was digging at the roots of the vine, while the Pangolin crouched in the corner—its calf-sized body covered in iron-gray scales with dark golden thunder patterns flowing across them, with faint sparks of electricity leaping about.

"You have recovered well," Lin Xuan conveyed a thought of praise.

The Pangolin looked up and responded with a "gurgle."

Lin Xuan's heart stirred: "Try your Earth Perception. First, burrow underground and investigate beneath this courtyard."

Lin Xuan summoned the Pangolin out. Upon receiving the order, the Pangolin flickered and dove into the ground—the earth was like flowing water to it.

Lin Xuan sensed it diving downwards, stopping at a depth of about forty zhang.

The dark golden thunder patterns lit up, and invisible ripples permeated downwards.

Through their shared contract, Lin Xuan "saw" the structure of the soil layer: sand and stone mixed together, with the occasional small creature passing through.

Fifty zhang, sixty zhang, seventy zhang...

The Pangolin's perception continued to sink. When fully unleashed, the depth of this innate ability surprised Lin Xuan.

At ninety zhang, an anomaly appeared.

An area completely different from the natural soil layer—the structure was dense and uniform, with clear boundaries and regular artificial patterns on the surface.

It was hard and cold, about three zhang long, two zhang wide, and no more than one zhang high, like a rectangular box deep underground.

The material was not pure rock but mixed with metal, and it slightly absorbed thunder-attribute fluctuations.

If not for the Pangolin's dual Earth and Thunder attributes, it would have been hard to detect this subtle difference.

Lin Xuan's heart beat slightly faster.

Man-made construction, buried ninety zhang deep, special material...

"A secret chamber? A storage point? Or the remnants of a Senior's Immortal Cave?"

Emerald Bamboo Peak had a long history, so it was entirely possible for secret remains to exist. It made sense for them to be buried deep underground due to the passage of time.

He suppressed the urge to investigate further. Ninety zhang deep—with his current Earth Escape Technique, he couldn't get down there, and the noise of digging would be impossible to hide.

"I need to at least be in the Middle Stage of Qi Refining, with my Earth Escape Technique practiced to Perfection, and combined with the Pangolin's digging ability, to reach it silently," Lin Xuan analyzed calmly, memorizing the location—directly beneath the northwest corner of the small courtyard, ninety zhang deep.

"I'll wait until I have enough strength."

He withdrew his consciousness. The Pangolin emerged from the ground, looking up and waiting for instructions.

"Let's practice combat coordination." Lin Xuan walked out of the Quiet Room, and the Pangolin appeared beside him.

He pointed to the scarred bluestone pillar in the courtyard: "Simulate an enemy. You attack from underground to disturb its lower stance."

The Pangolin understood and dove into the ground.

Three breaths later, the ground at the base of the stone pillar exploded! Amidst flying dirt, the Pangolin burst from the earth, its thick forelimbs striking the base of the pillar!

"Boom!" The stone pillar shook, and cracks spread from the root.

At the same time, Lin Xuan moved. Utilizing the Thunder Flash Step, a pale purple streak of light surged to within three zhang of the side of the stone pillar!

He whipped out the startling thunder whip, and the moment the tip touched the stone pillar, his Thunder Spiritual Energy erupted—

"Snap—Boom!!"

The stone pillar exploded with a basin-sized crater, and stone chips and charred powder splattered everywhere.

Almost simultaneously, Lin Xuan condensed Palm Thunder in his left hand, and a small-power thunder ball shot out, hitting the top of the pillar.

"Bang!" The top of the pillar was sheared off.

From the Pangolin breaking through the ground to Lin Xuan finishing his combo, it took only two breaths. The stone pillar was teetering.

"The coordination is passable, but the Pangolin's noise when breaking through the ground is still too loud," Lin Xuan said, retracting the whip and inspecting the result. "There is a half-breath interval between my Thunder Flash Step and the strike; in actual combat, I could be caught in a weak spot."

The Pangolin crawled out of the dirt, shook its head, and looked at him expectantly.

"Not bad, keep practicing." Lin Xuan patted its head and fed it a small piece of lightning-struck stone powder.

The Pangolin chewed contentedly, its thunder patterns glowing slightly.

For the next half day, the man and beast repeatedly practiced their coordination.

The Herb-Seeking Mouse also joined in—its task was to use "Spirit Energy Tracking" to sense the position and Spiritual Qi fluctuations of the imaginary enemy.

The little guy scampered and jumped around the courtyard, occasionally using its claws to draw marks indicating "strong Spiritual Qi here" or "possible weak point."

The coordination among the three partners was getting better and better.

Lin Xuan noticed that the range of the Herb-Seeking Mouse's "Spirit Energy Tracking" had expanded from thirty zhang to thirty-five zhang, and it could now roughly distinguish the concentration of Spiritual Qi, being particularly sensitive to the thunder attribute.

"If used for prospecting and herb-seeking, the efficiency would be even higher," Lin Xuan mused. "When the Pangolin is more familiar with Earth Perception, the two working together—one above and one below—will be a perfect match for treasure hunting."

He remembered the thunder-patterned iron Ore vein near the Pangolin's nest.

"Perhaps... I don't have to wait until my cultivation is too high. As long as the Pangolin fully masters its talent and the Herb-Seeking Mouse can locate the enrichment points, I can try small-scale, covert mining of the surface Ore."

This thought energized him.

In the evening, the setting sun dyed the bamboo forest golden red.

The courtyard gate was knocked on with a "bang bang," and Chen Hao's voice came through: "Lin Xuan! Open the door! Good news!"

Lin Xuan stopped his cultivation and opened the door. Chen Hao rushed in, full of excitement: "It's done! We accepted a Grade C High-Level mission today to clear out a newly discovered 'Iron-Claw Mountain Bat' nest on the east side of Black Wind Cliff!"

He gestured wildly: "Senior Brother Zhang Meng and I were the main attackers, and Senior Brother Li Ming provided interference with wind techniques—the coordination was seamless!

There were over thirty mountain bats, the strongest being at the Peak of the Low Grade First Tier, and we finished them all in half an hour!

The Mission Hall gave us two hundred and sixty contribution points, sixty-five for each person, and we also got three pairs of complete Iron-Claw Bat claws, which can sell for forty points!"

He took out his identity jade tablet and shook it: "Look, I have over three hundred contribution points now! I just broke through to the third level of Qi Refining and really need to consolidate my cultivation!"

Lin Xuan smiled: "Congratulations on the Breakthrough. The third level is a small hurdle; after passing it, the circulation of Spiritual Qi will be much smoother."

"That's right!" Chen Hao said proudly. "Senior Brother Zhang Meng said that my Breakthrough speed can rank in the top five among the new Disciples of Flame Peak. However..." He leaned in to look at Lin Xuan, "You seem to have gotten stronger?"

Lin Xuan was wearing a single garment today; ten days of Body Refining had made his muscle lines more defined, lean, and sturdy.

"I've been practicing a Body Refining Cultivation Technique," Lin Xuan said frankly. "By practicing both magic and body, my ability to save my own life in the future will be stronger."

"Body Refining?" Chen Hao's eyes widened. "Isn't that the path of a Body Cultivator? It's bitter and tiring... but it's definitely tough. Good for you!" He suddenly lowered his voice, "Over at the border... the conflict has escalated again."

"The Xuanyin Sect has brought in more Foundation Establishment Disciples. There have been three battles on the periphery of the ruins, with casualties on both sides. Our Sect drafted many more Foundation Establishment Disciples and dozens of Late Stage Qi Refining Disciples yesterday; they are all elites from various Peaks."

Lin Xuan was silent. Sect wars, even local conflicts, put pressure on low-level Disciples. Resources are skewed, mission risks increase, and the future is unpredictable.

"That's why increasing one's strength is the hard truth," Chen Hao patted Lin Xuan's shoulder. "Your path of Dual Cultivation is the right choice! One more bit of skill means one more chance to survive."

Lin Xuan nodded: "You just broke through to the third level, so consolidate your Realm first. If your cultivation is more stable, you will have more security."

"Don't worry, I'll use my contribution points to exchange for some Medicinal Pills and consolidate properly!" Chen Hao said confidently, chatted for a few more sentences, and then took his leave.

After seeing Chen Hao off, Lin Xuan returned to the Quiet Room.

The oil lamp was lit, and a dim yellow halo filled the small room.

He sat cross-legged and sorted through what he had gained today: the Body Refining entry was significantly effective;

The Pangolin's discovery of the underground secret was a potential Opportunity;

The Herb-Seeking Mouse's talent had improved to thirty-five zhang; the Spirit Beast team's coordination was getting better; the situation outside was tense.

"One step at a time," Lin Xuan closed his eyes and circulated the Purple Heaven Divine Thunder Art.

Pale purple Thunder Spiritual Energy gathered, and under the guidance of the "Thunder Gathering" talent, it flowed gently into his Meridians.

The Dantian vortex rotated slowly, becoming more solid with every turn.

Deep in the night, the bamboo shadows swayed outside the window, rustling.

Ninety zhang deep underground, that cold and hard rectangular structure lay quietly in the darkness, waiting to be awakened again.

And above ground, the youth's breathing was steady, with tiny electric sparks flickering around his body.

The night passed without incident.