Chapter 5: A Cancerous Growth

This speed is too slow. After all, Chen Fei is no longer young, and the older one gets, the harder it is to increase one's cultivation. More importantly, ever since Chen Fei killed Qi Chun, the black line on his wrist has become increasingly thick.

【Status: Bone-Eating Gangrene】

This new change appeared on the panel a day ago. The most direct effect Chen Fei felt was that his physical stamina began to deplete at an accelerated rate.

After breaking through to the Skin Tempering Realm, Chen Fei’s stamina and sensory perception had improved significantly compared to before. But with this "Bone-Eating Gangrene," Chen Fei found that his stamina was now no different from that of an ordinary person, or perhaps even worse.

Faced with this situation, Chen Fei dared not take it lightly. He immediately made subtle inquiries among the physicians at the medical hall and eventually arrived at a conclusion.

This is a mark left by a "weirdness." Either kill the weirdness, and the mark will naturally dissipate, or possess a cultivation base strong enough to directly grind away the mark.

Failing that, one could also take pills that strengthen blood and qi to resist this yin-based power.

Chen Fei certainly dared not go looking for that weirdness now, and he couldn't afford the pills either; the only path left was to improve his cultivation. Furthermore, Chen Fei dared not let the medical hall know he had been marked; heaven knows if the medical hall would find him troublesome and simply abandon him.

"It's time to find Pu Liao."

In the evening, Chen Fei arrived at Pu Liao’s door and knocked gently.

"Who is it?" Pu Liao’s hoarse voice came from within.

"Pu-tou, it’s me," Chen Fei said in a low voice.

"What is it!"

The door opened, and Pu Liao looked down at Chen Fei, showing no intention of letting him inside.

"Pu-tou, is there any time to teach me the techniques of our Qingzheng Medical Hall?"

"Oh, so it’s about this."

Pu Liao looked at Chen Fei’s empty hands, and a trace of dissatisfaction appeared in his eyes. His voice grew louder: "Didn't I tell you a few days ago that I’ve been busy lately? I’ll teach you when I have free time. Why can’t you understand that?"

"I wonder when Pu-tou will have time?"

"There are so many things to do, how would I know? When I have time, I will naturally call you."

Pu Liao appeared somewhat impatient, waving his hand and saying, "Alright, if there’s nothing else, go back first. I have things to attend to; I won't be entertaining you!"

As he finished speaking, Pu Liao turned to enter the room and closed the door. However, before the door could latch, a hand blocked it.

"Are you looking for death!" Pu Liao widened his eyes, glaring viciously at Chen Fei.

"Pu-tou, I’ve thought about it. You’ve been busy lately, and I shouldn't disturb you. I wonder if you have any technique manuals? I can practice them on my own."

Chen Fei acted as if he didn't see Pu Liao’s expression and said calmly.

Chen Fei had figured it out today: this Pu Liao just wanted money. But Chen Fei had only been a guard for three days; where would he get money? Even the guard’s wages were only five taels of silver a month.

How could Pu Liao be interested in such a small amount? Since that was the case, he might as well lay it all out.

"You want to practice on your own? Hahaha!"

Pu Liao laughed loudly, his eyes full of mockery. Breaking through to the Skin Tempering Realm in over four months—this talent was near the bottom among martial artists.

And yet, he dared to dream of relying on his own talent to practice higher martial arts techniques? It was simply a pipe dream, a sign of someone who didn't know the immensity of heaven and earth.

"Fine, I have techniques here. Return them to me by noon tomorrow. If you can't learn them by then, don't say I, Pu Liao, am bullying you!"

Pu Liao returned to the room, grabbed two manuals, and tossed them into Chen Fei’s hands. With a sneer, he slammed the door shut.

Some onlookers in the distance shook their heads slightly as they watched Chen Fei’s back. A new guard, and he already dared to clash with an old guard like Pu Liao.

And now he wanted to practice martial arts on his own?

If martial arts techniques were so easy to practice, what would be the need for a master? Without guidance, the intricacies within a technique could easily lead one astray. In the end, one would find they had wasted time for nothing and achieved nothing.

Even worse, those who practiced incorrectly might never make progress for the rest of their lives, or worse, suffer internal injuries. In their eyes, Chen Fei was just a fool who didn't know anything.

Chen Fei didn't care about the gazes of those around him and returned to his room with the manuals.

An hour later, Chen Fei put down the manuals and began to practice the two techniques. Another half-hour passed, and Chen Fei looked at his panel.

【Techniques: Qingfeng Sword (Entry 1/100), Fengxuan Strength (Entry 1/100), Jishan Fist (Grand Completion), Jishan Breathing Method (Grand Completion)】

Relying on the foundation of the Grand Completion Jishan Fist and Breathing Method, Chen Fei had easily brought the two new techniques to the Entry level.

The Qingfeng Sword was an offensive technique, while Fengxuan Strength was for increasing cultivation. The panel could still simplify these two techniques, but the only issue was that the cost of simplification was quite high—ten taels of silver for each.

Chen Fei didn't have ten taels; he only had a little over two taels, which was far from enough for simplification.

Chen Fei looked at the Grand Completion Breathing Method, then at the Fengxuan Strength, blinked, and subconsciously wanted to merge the Breathing Method into the Fengxuan Strength. The next moment, both techniques vanished, and a brand-new technique appeared.

【Fengxuan Breathing Method (Proficient 107/1000)】

"It really works!"

A hint of joy appeared in Chen Fei’s eyes. He had just followed a feeling; he hadn't expected that a technique at Grand Completion could truly be merged with others.

But thinking about it, it made sense. After all, a Grand Completion technique meant you had mastered everything about it and knew it inside and out, so it could naturally be integrated into other techniques.

This way, even if Chen Fei’s cultivation increased in the future, techniques that couldn't keep up wouldn't be wasted; they could be combined with new moves to become even more powerful techniques.

The Jishan Fist was also merged with the Qingfeng Sword. This time, Chen Fei intentionally preserved more of the essence of the Qingfeng Sword, only incorporating some of the force-generating methods of the Jishan Fist.

【Qingshan Sword (Proficient 13/1000)】

The originally elegant and graceful Qingfeng Sword had become a sword technique of wide, sweeping movements, but its power was not diminished in the slightest; in fact, it had increased.

Half an hour later, after testing both new techniques, Chen Fei felt a sense of joy, but also some dissatisfaction.

The joy came from the fact that both new techniques were stronger than the originals. If practiced to the Grand Completion level, they would definitely far exceed the previous ones, especially since they were currently only at the Proficient level.

The dissatisfaction was because, after trying several times, Chen Fei found that the proficiency of the two techniques hadn't increased at all. If he had to practice them like this without simplification, he estimated he could only gain one or two points a day—and that was only thanks to the original techniques merged within them.

This was likely the limit of this body’s talent. To break through this limit, the usual step-by-step methods were somewhat difficult for Chen Fei.

"Money, money, money!"

Chen Fei’s brows furrowed tightly. Various ways to make money floated through his mind, and it was hard to decide.