17: Chapter 17: Increased lifespan, increased strength

What did that host say? This Cultivation Technique progresses slowly, and an ordinary person might not produce a trace of Qi sensation even after ten years of Cultivation?

That was for "ordinary people."

In these chaotic times, commoners barely have enough to eat and work all day. Their bodies are severely depleted, and their potential value probably isn't even 1 point. Asking them to practice this kind of time-consuming, meticulous work that requires extreme mental tranquility would naturally result in failure even after ten years.

But he was different.

He had 6 points of potential.

This was the gift bestowed by the Heavenly Dao after he slowly ground up his life expectancy using the Five Animal Frolics.

That warm current just now, though as faint as a strand of hair—what did it mean? It meant that after practicing just once, he had already produced a Qi sensation!

How was this ten years? This was clearly just an instant!

"Continue!"

Chen Mo had tasted the sweetness of success; how could he possibly sleep now?

He resumed the Black Tortoise Stance, curling up on the bed planks like an old turtle.

If anyone else saw him, they would surely find the posture comical, even a bit ugly. But to Chen Mo, it was the most wonderful posture in the world.

Inhale... Exhale...

This time, with the previous experience, he entered a meditative state even faster.

That feeling of absolute silence and self-oblivion washed over him once more.

Time passed quietly in the darkness.

Once, twice, three times...

Every time he woke from meditation, he could feel the warm current in his Dantian grow a bit stronger. Although this growth was minuscule, like a drop of dew falling into a parched pond, as long as the water kept flowing, the pond would eventually overflow.

Before he knew it, the sky outside the window had begun to turn the color of a fish's belly.

Chen Mo slowly finished his practice and stretched his stiff limbs.

"Crack, crack..."

The joints throughout his body let out a series of crisp pops, like beans roasting.

He hurriedly summoned his panel.

[Name: Chen Mo]

[Age: 17]

[Life Expectancy: 17/47 years]

[Potential: 6→7]

[Mastered Martial Arts: Five Animal Frolics (Entering the Hall 89.5%), Turtle Breathing Longevity Art (Uninitiated 15%)]

Wait.

Chen Mo's pupils constricted sharply as he stared intently at the "Life Expectancy" column.

47 years.

Overnight, his maximum life expectancy had increased by a year!

"This..."

Chen Mo felt his head buzzing; a massive surge of happiness instantly overwhelmed his reason.

Practicing the Five Animal Frolics until now usually required two or three months of hard work to increase his life expectancy by a year.

Yet this Turtle Breathing Longevity Art had added a year to his life in just one night, even before he had reached the initiation stage!

Is this what an Internal Skill Mind-Cultivation Technique is like?

Is this what it means to have specialized expertise?

After all, the Five Animal Frolics is an external fist style, primarily training the muscles, bones, and skin, with longevity being merely a byproduct. But this Turtle Breathing Technique, though looked down upon by those in the Martial Forest, is a genuine internal method aimed specifically at "prolonging life"!

"Potential... has become 7 points."

Chen Mo clenched his fists, feeling the faint but ceaseless vitality within his body.

The closed loop has accelerated.

If relying on the Five Animal Frolics before was like walking on foot, then with the Turtle Breathing Technique, he was now riding a fast horse.

Increased life expectancy brings improved potential, improved potential accelerates the Cultivation of techniques, and a Breakthrough in techniques brings even more life expectancy...

This snowball is finally starting to roll.

...

In the days that followed, Chen Mo lived an even more secluded life.

Aside from going to the yamen to clock in and handle his duties, he spent all his time on Cultivation.

One evening, Chen Mo took out a set of ingredients for the "body strengthening decoction" from a medicine bag he had bought at Zhengqi Hall.

Angelica, Astragalus, Goji berries, and several other shriveled roots and stems whose names he didn't know.

Following the instructions on the prescription, he found an old clay pot, placed it on a small stove, added water, and simmered it over a low flame.

Before long, a thick, pungent smell of Chinese medicine filled the cramped little room.

The smell wasn't pleasant, carrying a hint of fishiness and bitterness that made one frown.

An hour later, the water in the clay pot had boiled down to a bowl of dark, viscous liquid as thick as ink.

Chen Mo picked up the bowl, looked at the bubbling black liquid, and gritted his teeth.

"One tael of silver a bowl—even if it's poison, I have to drink it."

He tilted his head back and gulped it down in a few large swigs, pouring the scalding medicinal soup into his stomach.

"Hiss—"

Once the soup entered his stomach, it didn't feel like water, but rather like a lump of swallowed charcoal.

A domineering heat instantly exploded in his stomach, wildly surging through his intestines toward his limbs and bones.

Pain.

A searing, burning pain.

Chen Mo felt as if his skin were being pricked by needles; the blood vessels all over his body were throbbing, and his face instantly turned the color of pig liver.

"Is this the body strengthening decoction? The medicinal properties are too intense!"

He didn't dare delay. Enduring the internal heat, he quickly climbed onto the bed, assumed the Black Tortoise Stance, and forced himself into the "Turtle Breathing" state.

"Calm... Calm down..."

He chanted in his mind.

As his breathing gradually became long and slow, the heat current crashing around inside him seemed like a tamed wild horse, beginning to flow slowly along a peculiar path.

The "Stillness" and "Concealment" of the Turtle Breathing Technique perfectly neutralized the "Intensity" and "Dryness" of the body strengthening decoction.

The medicinal power was decomposed bit by bit, seeping into his muscles, bone marrow, and internal organs.

Chen Mo could clearly feel that his body was undergoing a wonderful transformation.

It was like a piece of pig iron thrown into a furnace to be forged repeatedly; Impurities were removed bit by bit, leaving behind tougher refined steel.

That night, Chen Mo slept very deeply.

When he woke up the next day, it was already broad daylight.

As soon as he moved, he smelled a sickening, sour stench.

Looking down, he saw that his skin was covered in a thin layer of grayish-black, greasy grime, sticky like filth squeezed out from his pores.

"Is this... Cleansing the Marrow and Refining the Essence?"

The phrase popped into Chen Mo's mind, but he immediately shook his head.

It probably wasn't that exaggerated; it was likely the body strengthening decoction forcing out some accumulated moisture and toxins from his body.

He quickly boiled some water and took a bath.

When he washed off the grime and stood before the water basin to see his reflection, Chen Mo was stunned.

The youth in the water, though his face remained the same, had a completely different temperament.

His originally rough and dull skin had become fair and tight, with a faint luster.

His eyes were clear, as deep as an ancient well, with an occasional flash of brilliance that was soul-stirring.

He tried clenching his fists.

"Crack, crack!"

A popping sound came from his knuckles.

He walked to the corner of the yard, where a large stone millstone used for pressing pickle jars sat, weighing over a hundred catties.

Previously, to lift this millstone, he had to assume a horse stance, sink his Qi into his Dantian, and hold his breath just to barely pick it up.

But now...

Chen Mo grabbed the edge of the millstone with one hand, took a deep breath, and the muscles in his arm bulged slightly.

"Rise!"

The hundred-plus catty stone mill was actually lifted by him with just one hand!