40: Chapter 40 The Pain of Meat Refining and the Midterm Announcement

By the time he returned to the safe house in Tianhai City, the horizon was already turning a pale, fish-belly white.

Lin Qi leaned against the somewhat moldy old sofa, holding a bottle of mineral water. He didn't drink it, but instead pressed it against his burning temples to cool down.

Inside his body, there was a hollow, floating sensation.

This was a sign of Qi and blood depletion.

"Brother Qi, here is the canned beef and glucose water you wanted."

Zhang Wei, like a diligent little helper, piled a heap of high-calorie food on the coffee table, glancing at Lin Qi's slightly pale complexion in the process.

"You're already drained?"

"Dark Jin consumes too much fuel." Lin Qi twisted open the bottle cap and downed half of it in one go. "It's like installing a Ferrari engine in a tractor; it can run, but the fuel tank can't handle it."

That battle last night, especially the last few bursts of Penetrating Force, had burned through half of the Qi and blood reserves he had accumulated over the past two weeks.

Skin Refining at Perfection could lock in physical strength, but it was ultimately just the skin and membranes.

Without a strong muscle group to support it, Qi and blood were like water without a source; every bit used was a bit less.

He had to start Flesh Refining as soon as possible.

Only by training his entire body's muscles to be like twisted steel wires could he store massive amounts of Qi and blood like a sponge, supporting even higher-intensity bursts.

Zhang Wei watched Lin Qi's serious, contemplative look from the side and couldn't help but click his tongue.

"Others level up by fighting monsters and doing quests, but you treat yourself like a monster to be trained. Brother Qi, you're practically cultivating immortality."

Lin Qi put down the water bottle, grabbed a can of beef, and pried it open.

"In this world full of data, developing the body to its extreme makes little difference between martial arts and cultivating immortality."

The next day, a legend appeared in the black market.

It was about a ruthless person wearing a school uniform who, without any weapons, could dismantle two Berserker tanks with his bare hands.

Some called him the "Black-Clad Reaper," while others called him the "Bone Crusher."

Especially those mercenaries who had witnessed the gruesome sight of the Berserker's knees bent backward; when mentioning this name, their faces carried an unconcealable fear.

This kind of fierce reputation, built purely on physical violence, was far more intimidating than any Rank leaderboard.

Lin Qi didn't care about this at all.

He didn't even go to the black market to verify the results of his intimidation, but instead went straight to the Special Training Class office at school.

"Asking for leave?"

Instructor Su Qing sat behind her desk, twirling a tactical pen in her hand, her gaze sweeping over Lin Qi.

"Reason."

"I'm feeling unwell and need to recuperate." Lin Qi brought out the reason he had prepared long ago, without blushing or skipping a beat. "I had a bad stomach last night."

Instructor Su Qing stared at him for three seconds.

The kid's complexion was indeed a bit poor, but it definitely wasn't from a bad stomach; it looked more like the weakness following some kind of high-intensity overexertion.

Connecting this to some rumors coming from the black market last night, Instructor Su Qing understood.

"Three days."

Instructor Su Qing signed the leave slip and pushed it over.

"There is an important mock test in three days, don't be late."

"Thank you, Instructor."

Lin Qi took the leave slip and turned to leave, quick and decisive.

Back at Dorm 404, the first thing Lin Qi did was lock the door, then weld shut the two anti-theft bolts that Zhang Wei had brought.

He pulled the curtains tight, not letting a single ray of light in.

That iconic old-fashioned pressure cooker was set up once again.

The commotion this time was bigger than ever before.

Century-old tiger bone powder, cloud-pattern herb, and several other potent medicines for promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis were mixed together in specific proportions.

Half an hour later, the pressure cooker's valve stopped venting steam and instead emitted a dull roar.

Wearing heat-resistant gloves, Lin Qi carefully lifted the lid.

A wave of heat rushed toward his face, almost singeing his eyebrows.

Inside the pot was a golden-red paste, as viscous as molten lava, with small bubbles even rising on the surface, releasing a suffocating, pungent smell when they burst.

This was the true Tiger Bone Body-Forging Paste.

Lin Qi poured this pot of "lava" into the extra-large bathtub he had prepared in advance and added three buckets of scalding hot water.

The water temperature instantly heated up to near boiling, and the originally clear water turned a bizarre dark red.

In addition to the medicinal bath, a strange device stood in the middle of the dormitory.

It was a "striking trainer" that Lin Qi had temporarily welded together using old tires, springs, and a few steel pipes. It was crude, but sturdy.

Everything was ready.

Lin Qi took off his clothes and stood in front of the full-length mirror.

The person in the mirror had a lean build with smooth, natural muscle definition; although it lacked the exaggerated proportions seen in gyms, every muscle looked like a precisely calculated hydraulic actuator.

Skin Refining at Minor Achievement had given his skin a bronze texture, which gleamed with a cold, hard luster under the dim light.

"Let's begin."

Lin Qi took a deep breath and stepped into the bathtub.

Sizzle.

The moment his skin touched the medicinal liquid, it made a sound like roasting meat.

Pain.

Piercing, agonizing pain.

If Skin Refining was like being whipped, then Flesh Refining was like having one's flesh cut open bit by bit with a dull knife, then sprinkled with salt.

Lin Qi let out a muffled groan, his hands gripping the edge of the bathtub so tightly his knuckles turned white.

The veins on his forehead bulged like earthworms, and the sweat that emerged was instantly evaporated by the high heat.

This pain didn't act on the surface of his skin; instead, it drilled directly into the deep layers of his muscles through his pores, frantically tearing at every single muscle fiber.

"Inhale… Exhale…"

Lin Qi forcefully adjusted his breathing rhythm and began to circulate the nameless Internal Skill Mind-Cultivation Technique in his mind.

He couldn't resist this pain.

He had to accept it and guide it.

As the Mind-Cultivation Technique circulated, the previously restless Qi and blood in his body began to become orderly.

The violent medicinal power was peeled away bit by bit, flowing along his blood vessels to every part of his body.

Lin Qi felt as if his muscles had come alive.

Deltoids, pectorals, latissimus dorsi... all muscle groups were uncontrollably twitching and spasming.

It was a process of destruction and reconstruction.

The old, fragile muscle fibers broke and dissolved under the medicinal power.

New, tougher fibers were rapidly generated under the nourishment of the cloud-pattern herb.

This feeling was like having countless ants gnawing inside his body; it was both painful and itchy.

Lin Qi closed his eyes and sank his consciousness deep into his body to feel that minute transformation.

For that unreachable Peak of the Martial Saint.

This bit of pain didn't even count as an appetizer.

Time passed very slowly in the sealed dormitory.

Day turned into night, and night turned into dawn.

Except for the occasional dull thudding of strikes and the sound of water, Dorm 404 was as quiet as a tomb.

On the morning of the third day, the campus of Tianhai No. 3 High School became lively.

Many students gathered in front of the bulletin board under the main teaching building, pointing at a giant poster that had just been posted.

The poster's design was quite bloody, with a backdrop of ruins, and in the center, a line of large, bold red characters read: [Midterm Mock Test: All Hands Prepare for Battle!]