Chapter 131: Ten Days

The heat was intense.

When the Bone Forging Pill entered his stomach, it instantly dissolved, turning into a warm current that surged through his entire body, quickly penetrating deep into his bones, adding a layer of warmth to his bone structure as it flowed.

The heat from the silver-gray viscous medicinal soup that coated his body was secondary, the key was that after each layer was applied, the medicinal power felt like needles piercing his skin, frantically seeping in through his pores.

Through the skin membrane.

Through the muscles.

Finally reaching the bones.

The expected pain of needle pricks didn’t come, instead, a dull sensation as if being pounded by an iron hammer began to resonate from every inch of his bones.

Even with Chen Mu’s current tolerance, he could barely suppress the urge to cry out, he could only grit his teeth and endure.

"This is Bone Forging…"

In reality, this medicinal power also worked on his skin membrane and muscles, but his skin membrane and muscles, which had long been tempered to their limits, remained unmoved by this medicinal power, as firm as steel, unaffected.

This was why the Tendon Transformation Realm had to be cultivated to perfection before one could attempt Bone Forging. If the tendons and membranes were only at the Great Accomplishment level of Tendon Transformation, they would not be able to withstand the impact of the Bone Forging medicinal power and would be directly damaged.

Only when Skin Grinding, Flesh Training, and Tendon Transformation reached perfection could one resist the corrosive nature of the Bone Forging medicinal power.

Furthermore.

The process of resistance would still consume some qi and blood.

This is why the more abundant a martial artist’s qi and blood, the easier it was to enter the Bone Forging Realm.

But in Chen Mu’s case, his foundation of the three realms at their limits meant that the medicinal power had almost negligible effect on his muscles and skin membrane, barely depleting his qi and blood. All of his qi and blood was mobilized, concentrating within his bones, cooperating with the medicinal power to temper and forge every inch of his bone structure.

Finally.

After about a quarter of an hour, the pain from his body gradually lessened.

Chen Mu took a deep breath, feeling the lingering heat throughout his body, he followed the movements of the Tiger Demon Bone Forging Fist, suddenly throwing a punch that stirred up a gust of wind in the practice room.

When this punch was thrown, he staggered, the discomfort from all over his body nearly causing him to fall to the ground, but he managed to steady himself, and then, with a calm expression, threw a second punch.

This time he staggered again.

The third punch,

The fourth punch,

…

With each punch he threw, Chen Mu’s stance gradually stabilized, no longer shaky or faltering. Each punch was more solid than the last, until every punch flew out with the force of a gale, making him look like a Tiger Demon hunting its prey, moving between the trees with sharp claws, both agile and ferocious.

After going through a full set of the Tiger Demon Bone Forging Fist, Chen Mu did not stop, but started from the beginning again, performing the second set, the third set, and continued without stopping, his speed and ferocity increasing.

And just like this.

Until several hours had passed, and the sky outside was completely dark, while the quiet room had become pitch black, did Chen Mu finally slowly stop his movements.

His eyes shone in the darkness. Even in the pitch black quiet room, his vision was clear, with little to no impediment.

"Haa…"

Chen Mu exhaled slowly.

He felt that the heat in his bones had receded. His immensely profound qi and blood had also been depleted a lot during the previous medicinal forging and fist practice and needed to be replenished with meat.

He didn’t hurry to leave the quiet room.

Chen Mu moved his mind, calling up the system panel.

Soon, he found several new lines of text at the bottom of the system panel.

【Tiger Demon Bone Forging Method (0%)】

【Experience: 11 Points】

"It feels like my bone strength has increased quite a bit, and the upper limit of my qi and blood has also expanded, but it’s still not even one percent…" Chen Mu looked at the data on the system panel, shaking his head slightly.

He hadn’t relied entirely on the system panel to make progress during Tendon Transformation. The medicinal power he had absorbed during his own tempering was also effective. There was once that he saw the system panel increase by one percent out of nowhere after a practice session.

The three realms at their limits, tiger and leopard thunder sound, muscles resonating.

For him, the threshold of Bone Forging should have been almost non-existent. It would have been normal to directly obtain one percent progress with one forging, but it seemed that he had slightly overestimated himself.

But in any case, Bone Forging didn’t seem to be too different from Tendon Transformation. It was good as long as it could be improved.

Chen Mu moved his mind, directly trying to upgrade it.

As expected, it was the same as when he was in Tendon Transformation; the change happened after consuming ten experience points.

【Tiger Demon Bone Forging Method (1%)】

【Experience: 1 Point】

Buzz!

The rich medicinal power exploded within his bones, instantly covering his entire body, causing Chen Mu to lose his balance and fall back to the ground. Then he couldn’t maintain his seated posture either, and was forced to lie back.

It felt as if his bones had instantly endured a tempering and forging that was several times more intense than before. The exaggerated degree of the process should have made even the Bone Forging Pill unable to protect his marrow, and would have injured it already, but the power of the system panel was still unbelievable. It forcefully controlled the medicinal power on the surface of his bones without affecting the fragile marrow.

And just like this.

Almost a quarter of an hour had passed.

When Chen Mu sat up again and stood up with a slight stagger, he felt that his bones had changed more significantly than before. After swinging the Tiger Demon Bone Forging Fist and adapting to the changes in his body, he looked at an iron plate set up behind him, picked it up from the ground, bent his middle finger, and knocked it with his knuckle.

Clang!

A dull sound.

A dent was clearly formed on the iron plate.

This was different from Chen Mu’s previous hand-to-hand steel breaking. Back then, he relied more on the power of his muscles, but this time it was a collision based on the strength of his finger bone.

Chen Mu slowly put down the iron plate, took two steps back, and then rubbed his middle finger.

"Hmm, it still hurts a bit, I was too reckless."

The strength of one percent Bone Forging was indeed markedly different from before he entered the Bone Forging Realm, but it had not yet reached the level of steel bones. They were just harder. If he hadn’t had abundant qi and blood to protect his finger bones during the strike, that blow would probably have caused some damage.

However.

Soon Chen Mu lowered his hand and smiled.

Based on this progress, he could raise his Bone Forging progress by one percent in just one day of Bone Forging training, which meant that he could complete thirty percent of his Bone Forging in less than a month!

The Bone Forging Realm, like the Tendon Transformation Realm, was mostly considered a small success at thirty percent. This progress was even faster than he had expected!

"A small success in Bone Forging in one month? Very good."

Chen Mu exhaled lightly, shook his hand, and walked out of the quiet room.

…

Time passed quickly.

In the blink of an eye, almost a month had passed.

Just when the four major families in the Inner City were all restraining themselves, the first change in Yu City finally arrived. First, an important figure descended from the prefecture to Yu City. City Lord Xue Huaikong personally greeted him, respectfully welcoming him into the Inner City Lord’s Mansion. Soon, a new area was established among the various yamen in the Inner City, designated as the ‘Supervisory Division.’

The important figure from the prefecture was a fourth-rank inspector of the Yu Prefecture!

In the Great Xuan Dynasty, there were only three first-rank official positions, the ‘Three Dukes,’ namely the Grand Tutor, the Grand Guardian, and the Grand Protector. The first-rank had only three positions, the ‘Three Solitaries,’ namely the Junior Tutor, the Junior Guardian, and the Junior Protector.

All six of these positions were honorary titles, often held concurrently.

In other words, second-rank was the pinnacle of officials during the prime of the Great Xuan Dynasty.

And a fourth-rank official, the Yu Prefecture Inspector, would also have been a true ‘high official’ in the past. One who was able to go to the Central Prefecture to meet the emperor!

Of course.

Now that Yu Prefecture was governed by the Seven Profound Sect, this inspector was not from the Great Xuan Dynasty, but was still a figure of the Seven Profound Sect, but his status was even higher than that of a deacon.

Without a doubt, this was a figure sent by the Seven Profound Sect to control the situation in Yu Prefecture. By letting him be in charge in Yu Prefecture, directly setting up a ‘Supervisory Division’, their intentions were obvious, to supervise the four sects that would be entering Yu Prefecture.

And right after the Supervisory Division was set up.

The four sects also began to show their means.

In the depths of a street in the southeast corner of the Inner City, there was a building that originally sold jade. Overnight, it changed completely. Black curtains were hung everywhere, hiding the interior. The courtyard had also undergone a complete transformation. From being open to customers, it had turned into a place filled with a bloody and sinister aura. A plaque that looked like it was written in blood hung on the building. Each word seemed to contain a terrifying power that made one’s heart palpitate.

The Blood Shadow Tower!

In fact, compared to the other three sects, the Blood Shadow Tower was the most special. The Heavenly Sword Sect, Joyous Union Sect, and Xuanji Pavilion came from different prefectures, and ruled over different regions, but no one knew where the main branch of the Blood Shadow Tower was located. It was only known that it had branches in almost every prefecture and city.

"Blood Shadow Without Trace, Heaven Leaves No One…"

"A sect that specializes in assassination can openly set up a branch in the open."

In an elegant gazebo, Chen Mu was holding a red fruit, peeling it carefully with a knife, while shaking his head slightly, and saying, "With this, I don’t know how much trouble will be stirred up."

As long as one had money, they could hire an assassin from the Blood Shadow Tower to kill someone. The purpose of the Blood Shadow Tower was to be blatantly ‘there is no one that we can not kill’. One could imagine that if the He and Yu families put bounties on each other’s people, then their future travels would be a great problem.

Compared to this.

The Heavenly Sword Sect was rather good. It didn’t even enter Yu City, but occupied a place directly outside the city, established a Heavenly Sword Sect branch, openly stating that anyone under the age of sixteen could be tested for their aptitude. If their aptitude was sufficient, they could become disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect. Although it was also openly competing with the Seven Profound Sect for talent, it at least wasn’t too negatively impactful.

As for the Xuanji Pavilion, it also established a branch in the Inner City. Corresponding to the Blood Shadow Tower, they claimed to be able to "Control the Xuan Court and speak the mysteries of heaven," able to calculate everything under the heavens. It sounded like a street fortune teller’s deception, but it was said that the divination techniques of the Xuanji Pavilion did contain some of the mysteries of heaven and earth, and weren’t empty lies.

Lastly, there was the Joyous Union Sect.

At first, there was no sign of them, as if they hadn’t entered Yu City. But later, Chen Mu heard that the largest two brothels in the Inner City’s red-light district, ‘Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion’ and ‘Red Sleeve Pavilion,’ had gained a large number of beautiful women, comparable to the courtesans, attracting countless local gentry who enjoyed the brothels.

Other smaller brothels had, in just a few days, become deserted and almost devoid of customers.

Needless to say, this was undoubtedly the work of the Joyous Union Sect. In Chen Mu’s memory, the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion and the Red Sleeve Pavilion seemed to be the properties of the ‘Xie Family’, but whether they still belonged to the Xie Family now was hard to say.

"Yes, a sect like the Blood Shadow Tower is really a bit terrifying. No one knows if they’ll suddenly become their target. The Joyous Union Sect is better. I heard that the red-light district has been packed every evening lately," Xiao He suddenly said quietly from the side.

Chen Mu snorted, "The Joyous Union Sect and the Blood Shadow Tower are both demonic sects. What’s the difference? The cultivation techniques they practice involve taking away a person’s yang and exploiting their qi and blood. What’s the difference between that and demons eating people?"

He knew that Xiao He wanted to remind him, but he didn’t need Xiao He’s reminders. Even if he had been in seclusion for the past month, focusing on his cultivation and not leaving his house, he still knew about the Joyous Union Sect’s doings just by hearing its name.

"So young master knows so much," Xiao He said with a giggle, looking at Chen Mu. She knew that Chen Mu hadn’t been out much these past few days. The information she told him about recent changes in the Inner City was what she had asked around for.

But at this moment, Xu Hongyu, who had been pondering quietly beside them, suddenly said, "The Joyous Union Sect… I heard that they also have unique dual cultivation methods that are derived from the way of yin and yang, and can do so without damaging qi and blood… Hmm, why are you all looking at me?"

Xu Hongyu looked strangely at Chen Mu and Xiao He who suddenly looked over with strange expressions.

Xiao He put a small hand on her chin, as if thinking about how to reply: "Uh, well, it’s nothing. It’s just that the Joyous Union Sect’s techniques probably wouldn’t be passed down to outsiders."

"Hmm, that’s true."

Xu Hongyu said with a trace of regret, "These techniques are probably the foundation of the sect, so they can’t be passed down."

Chen Mu looked silently at Xu Hongyu, and asked, "Hongyu, do you know how that kind of technique is practiced?"

"Yin and yang union?"

Xu Hongyu looked at Chen Mu strangely. What was there not to know about that? Well, it seemed like something not suitable for casual discussion, but since it was just her, Chen Mu, and Xiao He here, it should be fine.

Chen Mu looked silently at Xiao He, who covered her face.

She really wanted to say that her young miss wasn’t someone who didn’t know about shame, she also knew about things, and didn’t lack in this area. In fact, a few days ago, she had even carefully studied the Inner Palace Diagram that she had sent over. However, while she was looking at those things, it was as if she was reading an ordinary biography, with no reaction. She could even look at her with a clear and calm expression, asking, "Is that all there is to it?"

But it was really hard to tell Chen Mu…

Chapter Body

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