15: Chapter 15 Fiery Roots and Counterforce

As soon as the morning physical education class ended, Lin Qi felt that something was wrong with his entire body.

That sense of hunger was no longer confined to his stomach; it had spread to every inch of his skin and membranes throughout his body.

It was like parched earth longing for a rainstorm.

Ordinary meals could no longer fill this deep-seated deficiency; he needed something with a higher energy density.

Taking advantage of the lunch break, Lin Qi climbed over the wall and slipped out of school.

He familiarly made his way to the back door of Huichun Hall in the black market.

Zhang Wei was dozing off on the counter. Hearing footsteps, he looked up in a daze.

"Brother Qi? It's the middle of the day, why are you here again?"

Lin Qi didn't waste words, his gaze sweeping over a pile of miscellaneous items in the corner of the counter.

"Is that new stock?"

Zhang Wei looked in the direction of his gaze and scratched his head.

"Oh, that. Just received a batch of Fire Lizard skins. Those are associated plant roots; they're useless, I was just about to throw them away."

They were a few withered and twisted rhizomes, their surfaces appearing scorched black, looking no different from fire pokers.

On the System panel, these things were displayed as [Withered Weeds], with a note saying they were inedible.

But in Lin Qi's eyes, a faint circle of red Qi was entwined around the surface of these things.

Fiery Root.

Grown near the nests of fire-type Source Beasts, they absorb earth fire and beast breath year-round, containing trace but pure fire poison.

This was exactly the potent medicine needed to temper skin membrane resistance.

"Don't throw them away, I'll take them."

Lin Qi walked over and reached out to grab one.

It felt warm to the touch, even a bit hot.

Zhang Wei immediately perked up, his fat face squeezing together.

"Brother Qi, although this stuff is free, you can't just eat it recklessly. This thing is very inflammatory. An apprentice ate some by mistake before and had a nosebleed for an entire day."

"I know what I'm doing."

Lin Qi fished twenty yuan out of his pocket and slapped it on the table.

"Consider this a cleaning fee."

Just as Zhang Wei was about to decline, Lin Qi's gaze fell on a row of potions on the counter.

They were several bottles of pale blue liquid, labeled [Elementary Mana Recovery Potion].

"Don't sell this batch of medicine."

Lin Qi suddenly spoke.

Zhang Wei froze for a moment.

"What's wrong? These were just brought in from the Alchemist Guild, through official channels."

"The ratio of Violet Flower juice is three percent too high."

Lin Qi picked up a bottle, shaking it gently while watching the rising speed of the tiny bubbles inside.

"Drinking it will indeed restore mana, but the side effect is that it will cause temporary paralysis of the optic nerve—basically, you'll be blind for ten minutes."

Zhang Wei was startled and hurriedly took it to examine it.

Although he couldn't see anything regarding flower juice ratios, he trusted Lin Qi.

"I'll have someone check this immediately! If it's true, those alchemists are going to lose a fortune this time!"

Lin Qi didn't stay any longer, tucking the "fire pokers" away and turning to leave.

Back at school, he found an abandoned sports equipment room and locked the door.

No boiling, no mixing.

Lin Qi picked up a Fiery Root, wiped off the dirt, and stuffed it directly into his mouth.

Crunch.

The withered rhizome was crushed, and an extremely spicy juice exploded in his mouth.

The feeling was like swallowing a mouthful of molten iron.

Lin Qi's face turned red instantly, and the veins on his neck bulged.

He didn't spit it out; instead, he sped up his chewing, his Adam's apple bobbing as he forced the fire-poison-laden residue down.

Pain.

It burned from his throat all the way to his stomach, then flowed through his blood to his entire body.

A layer of eerie red light surfaced on his skin, and his pores were forced open, venting heat.

Lin Qi gritted his teeth, using this fire poison to stimulate the nerves under his skin.

He was adapting.

Adapting to this high temperature, adapting to this stinging pain.

Only by letting his nerves get used to this intensity of stimulation would his body not freeze up due to pain when facing an enemy's fire Spells or high-temperature attacks.

Half an hour later, the burning sensation gradually receded.

Lin Qi wiped the sweat from his face; the sweat was red, carrying a faint scent of blood.

But he felt great.

His skin membrane seemed to have become even denser; when he pressed his finger against it, the tough sensation was even greater than yesterday.

The afternoon was for practical combat training.

Instructor Su Qing brought the whole class to the combat hall and divided them into pairs.

"Free sparring, stop when you've made your point."

Instructor Su Qing stood by the sidelines, her gaze sweeping over Lin Qi intentionally or otherwise.

Lin Qi's opponent was a tall, thin boy, an Agility-type Awakened, holding two rubber daggers used for training.

"Lin Qi, although you have great strength, fighting isn't just about brute force."

The boy spun the daggers in his hands, his footwork light and quick.

Lin Qi stood in place, his hands hanging at his sides, not even assuming a defensive posture.

"Come."

The boy's eyes turned cold, and his figure suddenly accelerated.

He circled in a wide arc, using his speed advantage to cut into Lin Qi's blind spot.

The back.

This was the weakness of all living creatures.

A successful smile appeared at the corner of the boy's mouth as he thrust the dagger in his right hand fiercely toward the center of Lin Qi's back.

Even though it was a rubber dagger, if this hit landed solidly, it would be enough to make Lin Qi hurt for half a day.

The surrounding classmates watching the fight let out a cry of surprise.

Lin Qi didn't move.

Just at the moment the dagger was about to touch his clothes.

The muscles in his back suddenly contracted, and his spine, like a waking python, gave a violent shake.

Bang!

A muffled sound rang out.

The boy felt as if his dagger hadn't stabbed into flesh, but rather into a high-speed vibrating tire.

A huge counter-shock force was transmitted back through the dagger.

His palm went numb, and the dagger almost flew out of his hand.

"What?"

Before the boy could react, Lin Qi had already turned around.

The movement was simple and direct.

His left hand reached out, grabbing the boy's wrist.

With a twist and a throw.

Whoosh.

The boy was launched into the air, tracing a graceful arc before slamming heavily onto the mat two meters away.

Thud.

The entire hall went silent.

The boy lay on the mat, looking at the ceiling with a face full of confusion.

What just happened?

He clearly hit him, so why was he bounced back?

And that counter-shock force... his hand was still shaking even now.

"You cheated!"

The boy scrambled up, pointing at Lin Qi and shouting.

"You must be wearing inner armor under your clothes! Otherwise, it's impossible to deflect an attack!"

Li Shaobai also frowned; that scene just now indeed defied common sense.

With a blank-slate Physique, how could he possibly tank an Agility-type's backstab?

Instructor Su Qing walked over quickly.

"What's going on?"

"Instructor, I want to check his equipment!"

The boy said indignantly, "Just now my dagger was bounced back, just like I stabbed a steel plate."

Instructor Su Qing looked at Lin Qi.

"Take it off."

Lin Qi didn't hesitate and directly took off his shirt.

His lean upper body was revealed before everyone.

There were no exaggerated muscle blocks, but the lines were smooth and distinct, and his skin showed a healthy bronze color.

On his back, there was a faint white mark.

That was the trace left by the dagger just now.

There wasn't even any redness or swelling, let alone broken skin.

A collective gasp sounded from the surroundings.

This defensive power was even more ridiculous than ordinary leather armor.

Instructor Su Qing walked behind Lin Qi.

She reached out, her fingertips touching the skin on Lin Qi's back.

Hard.

Rough.

It didn't feel like touching human skin, but rather like touching some kind of specially tanned old ox hide.

Moreover, beneath the skin, there seemed to be a kind of tension waiting to be released.

Instructor Su Qing withdrew her hand, her expression becoming complex.

She stared into Lin Qi's eyes, her voice kept very low.

"Are you practicing some kind of ancient Hard Qigong?"