41: Chapter 41: A Complete Transformation, S-Rank Dungeon Descends

The temperature inside Dorm 404 was high, like a steamer.

The water in the wooden barrel had turned completely clear.

Those dark red medicinal liquids, along with the essence of the hundred-year-old tiger bone and the cloud-pattern herb, had seeped into Lin Qi's pores without a single drop remaining.

Lin Qi stepped out of the barrel.

Barefoot, he stepped onto the wet floor, and the water stains quickly spread.

The person in the mirror had changed.

His originally bronze skin was now completely crimson, like a piece of iron billet just pulled from a steel-smelting furnace.

As long as he moved his finger slightly, the muscle groups beneath his skin would roll like waves.

This was "fullness."

Every muscle fiber throughout his entire body was gorged with energy, existing in a state of extreme, hyper-excited saturation.

This feeling was very bloated, like a balloon ready to burst at any moment.

Lin Qi clenched his fist, and his knuckles let out a crisp popping sound.

Not enough.

Having quantity without quality made these muscles like water-injected pork; they looked big, but would break with a single poke.

If he wanted to forge this mortal body into a Dao body, he had to hammer these superficial energies into his bones, just like forging iron.

Lin Qi walked to the center of the dorm.

Standing there was that ugly, self-made training device.

It consisted of three layers of old truck tires stacked on top of each other, stuffed with high-strength industrial springs in the middle, with the base welded onto steel pipes.

Without any warm-up.

Lin Qi pulled his right foot back, exerted force from his hips, and his spinal Dragon gave a violent jolt.

Bang!

His fist slammed into the tire.

A dull, thunderous sound echoed in the cramped space.

The tire dented violently, the springs inside compressed to the limit, and then rebounded crazily.

A massive counter-shock force surged back along his fist.

An ordinary person's wrist would be ruined by this one hit.

Lin Qi did not retreat, nor did he dissipate the force.

He allowed that violent power to conduct along his arm bones, vibrating every inch of deep muscle in his upper arms, shoulders, back, chest, and abdomen.

That was it.

External force striking, Internal Energy vibrating.

Only this pressure of a pincer attack could completely compact the medicinal power.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The speed of his punches grew faster and faster.

At first, one could still distinguish the path of the punches, but later, all one could hear was a continuous sound of muffled thunder.

The anti-theft bolts rattled loudly on the door panel.

The crimson color on Lin Qi's body began to fade at a speed visible to the naked eye.

That was a sign of the energy being forcibly compressed.

The previously somewhat bloated muscle blocks began to shrink, becoming tighter, with lines as sharp and distinct as if carved by a knife.

Sweat dripped down his chin, pooling into a puddle on the floor.

This high-intensity counter-shock was tearing his muscle fibers every second.

The pain spread from his arms to his entire body, as if countless dull saws were tearing at him.

Not until his arms were so sore and swollen that he couldn't lift them did Lin Qi stop.

He leaned against the wall, his lungs heaving violently, the hot air he exhaled condensing into white mist on the glass.

Almost there.

Lin Qi turned and walked to the desk, picking up that transparent box.

Inside lay that cloud-pattern herb he had snatched.

He picked up the herb and stuffed it into his mouth like he was eating a snack, not even sparing the roots and stems.

Chewing.

Bitter.

It was like chewing a handful of coptis and soil mixed together.

Lin Qi swallowed it without changing his expression.

At that second, a ball of cold air exploded in his stomach.

This coolness flowed through his blood to his whole body, specifically seeping into those sore and torn places.

It was like parched land welcoming a rainstorm.

The broken muscle fibers, nourished by the medicinal power, grew, connected, and reorganized frantically.

The newly grown fibers were thicker and tougher, like strands of tightly twisted steel wire.

Lin Qi closed his eyes, feeling the transformation at a microscopic level within his body.

This was Flesh Refining.

First destroy, then reorganize.

After repeating this a few times, this flesh would be harder than a bulletproof vest.

He didn't know how much time had passed.

When Lin Qi opened his eyes again, it was dark outside the window.

He moved his neck; that feeling of superficial swelling had completely disappeared.

Replaced by a heavy, solid feeling.

Although the muscle dimensions looked a size smaller than before, the explosive power contained in this body had at least tripled.

On the table sat a glass for drinking water.

Lin Qi picked it up casually.

He gripped it lightly with his five fingers.

He didn't use too much force that would cause the glass to shatter.

Crack.

After a subtle, crisp sound, he released his hand.

The surface of the originally intact glass was covered with countless fine cracks, like a piece of exquisite ice-crackle porcelain, but it remained intact as a whole, not shattering into shards.

Power control, entering the micro-level.

Not only could he exert force, but he could also retract it.

Knock, knock, knock.

Urgent knocking came from outside the door.

"Brother Qi? Still alive? The food delivery is here!"

It was Zhang Wei.

Lin Qi walked over, pulled out the two bolts that had been shaken loose, and opened the door.

Zhang Wei stood at the door carrying two huge food containers; the second he saw Lin Qi, he froze.

He looked Lin Qi up and down, placed the food containers on the table, and gestured with his hand.

"Brother Qi, did you shrink?"

Zhang Wei looked puzzled.

"Before, I felt that although you were thin, you were upright. How come after three days of seclusion, you look a size smaller?"

Lin Qi sat down and opened the food containers; the fragrance was mouth-watering.

It was all high-calorie spiced beef and special nutrient solution.

"This is called concentration."

Lin Qi picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a large piece of meat, and stuffed it into his mouth.

"Do you understand muscle density? Stop talking nonsense. What's up?"

Zhang Wei plopped onto that rickety chair, his expression a mix of excitement and anxiety.

"The sky has collapsed."

Zhang Wei took out his phone, pulled up a notice, and shoved it in front of Lin Qi.

"The rules for the midterm test have changed."

Lin Qi glanced at the screen.

The notice was written in bold red letters: This test will utilize the military's latest holographic projection technology to construct an S-Rank high-risk dungeon scenario.

"How did they change it?"

Lin Qi didn't stop chewing.

"In previous years, it was always shooting at fixed targets, measuring stats, and even in actual combat, it was just stopped at the point of contact."

Zhang Wei lowered his voice, his tone exaggerated.

"The Academic Affairs Office went crazy this year; they actually replicated that 'City of Ruins' battle from three years ago. It's a holographic simulation, but the pain System is turned up to 30%."

He swallowed his saliva and continued.

"The most outrageous part is, the grapevine says the final BOSS is a projection of an S-Rank creature."

"Although the stats were weakened to a level suitable for students, it's still S-Rank! Even if it only has 1% of its original strength, it could still easily crush us newbies into dust with a wave of its hand."

S-Rank creature.

In this world, this means a natural disaster.

Lin Qi's hand, which was picking up food, paused for a moment.

"S-Rank?"

"Yeah! Isn't it hopeless?"