Gravity

After leaving Zhao Wuji's room, Shi Yi went to Suotuo City to purchase a batch of tungsten steel. Naturally, all of it had been forged by ordinary blacksmiths. Though it was already considered premium material for making ordinary weapons, it still contained a great many impurities waiting for Shi Yi to remove.

When Shi Yi returned to his little house, Zhu Zhuqing was already panting heavily, each slow step accompanied by ragged breaths.

Shi Yi could not help nodding at the sight. In his view, although Zhu Zhuqing's talent was somewhat inferior to the others', excluding a transmigrator like Tang San who had lived two lives, her willpower was undoubtedly the strongest.

Talent might determine a person's upper limit, but will determined whether they could reach it.

Shi Yi did not disturb her. Instead, he headed into his own house. Apart from the room where he rested, he had already converted the other room into a small Blacksmith Shop.

Afterward, Shi Yi spent one Gold Coin to hire a villager as an assistant. He had the man stack the pieces of tungsten steel to one side, then casually picked up a piece with tongs and tossed it into the furnace before having him begin working the bellows.

As time passed, the tungsten steel gradually reddened and softened in the furnace.

Shi Yi took out his self-made Iron Essence forging hammer. The hammer danced in his hand, and with a deafening bang, it crashed down upon the red-hot tungsten steel. Sparks scattered everywhere as the tungsten steel visibly shrank beneath the constant swings of his hammer.

Since he was hiring an assistant, Shi Yi had naturally chosen someone who understood blacksmithing. The villager working the bellows beside him was rather stunned as he watched Shi Yi's artistic movements and techniques.

"Make the fire hotter," Shi Yi said calmly.

The villager snapped back to his senses and hurriedly worked the bellows with all his strength. Soon, rhythmic booming sounds began ringing out around Shi Yi's house.

Hearing the loud sounds coming from the little house, Zhu Zhuqing could not help peeking inside as she passed the door. Only then did she discover that Shi Yi was forging iron in the room.

What Zhu Zhuqing did not know was that Shi Yi was making new weights. This time, he was using tungsten steel, determined to forge armor with even greater density. Yes, armor.

Shi Yi's body had now reached a mature stage of development, and he had also consumed Immortal Herbs. He could begin comprehensive weighted training. If possible, he even wanted Zhao Wuji to increase the Gravity on him, squeezing out the medicinal power of the Immortal Herbs buried within his body.

As for Zhu Zhuqing, how far she could train would depend on her own fortune.

From that day onward, Zhu Zhuqing fully understood where Shi Yi's extraordinary speed came from. Lacking Shi Yi's immense strength, she had fainted on the first day, and by the second, she could not even get out of bed and walk.

Of course, as her teacher, Shi Yi had anticipated this. Early the next morning, after finishing his own breakfast at the Cafeteria, he packed a serving for Zhu Zhuqing.

When he arrived at the girls' dormitory, Ning Rongrong and Xiao Wu were both out undergoing Yu Xiaogang's training.

Only after knocking on the door several times did Shi Yi hear Zhu Zhuqing's reply. "Come in."

He pushed open the door and slowly entered. Seeing Zhu Zhuqing lying in bed, Shi Yi could not help smiling. "Well? Didn't I tell you? There was no way you'd be able to walk normally today."

Zhu Zhuqing merely glared at him without speaking.

Suddenly, a strange sound rang out, especially distinct amid their silence. Grrr... grrr...

Shi Yi burst out laughing, while a flush crept onto Zhu Zhuqing's cool face.

"Alright, I won't tease you anymore. Since I could guess that you wouldn't be able to train today, of course I brought you something," Shi Yi said with a light laugh.

As he spoke, Shi Yi took out a breakfast from his Soul Tool. It was still steaming hot, and he set it beside Zhu Zhuqing's bed.

"I had someone arrange today's Medicinal Bath for you in advance. You can soak in it and meditate. If you'd rather meditate tonight, you can play around with this first."

As Shi Yi spoke, he gently placed a small Grip Strengthener beside her.

"What is this for?" Zhu Zhuqing asked somewhat curiously.

"A Grip Strengthener. I made it casually from the leftover materials yesterday. It trains grip strength, finger strength, and arm strength. For a Beast Soul Master, these are all effective means of harming enemies. Besides, the Agility Attack System often emphasizes killing with a single strike," Shi Yi said with a smile.

As he spoke, Shi Yi demonstrated it for Zhu Zhuqing.

Zhu Zhuqing nodded slightly. "Thank you."

Shi Yi shook his head lightly. "No need to thank me. This is all the result of your own effort. Since you chose my training, I naturally have to be responsible for the results."

Hearing this, Zhu Zhuqing looked at Shi Yi silently, seemingly lost in thought.

Sensing a trace of awkwardness, Shi Yi said to Zhu Zhuqing, "If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."

With that, Shi Yi left on his own.

Watching Shi Yi's hurriedly departing back, a complicated glint flashed through Zhu Zhuqing's eyes.

Before long, Shi Yi returned to his little house, just in time to see Zhao Wuji approaching with a delighted expression.

"Teacher Zhao, it seems the effects were quite good," Shi Yi said with a smile.

Zhao Wuji also nodded with a smile. "It truly is a rare treasure. My entire body feels clearer somehow. After consolidating it yesterday, my cultivation improved a little as well—about half a rank, I'd say. It saved Old Zhao more than a year of hard cultivation. Where did you get something this good, brat?"

"Little Ant went to the Soul Hunting Forest quite often before and discovered it there. The ganoderma wasn't mature at the time, so I covered it up for the moment. I got lucky—no one found it after all these days," Shi Yi explained casually.

Zhao Wuji nodded and did not ask further. Smiling, he said, "If anything comes up at the academy in the future, Old Zhao will have your back."

"Then thank you, Teacher Zhao. There actually is something I'd like to trouble you with," Shi Yi said with a light laugh.

Zhao Wuji looked at Shi Yi as though he had known it all along. "I knew you brat had something else to ask of me. Go on."

"I'd like to borrow your soul skill for training," Shi Yi said slowly.

Zhao Wuji looked Shi Yi over and said slowly, "Your body is sturdy enough. You're better developed than those other little brats, too. But do you have the money?"

"Would two hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins be enough?" Shi Yi asked with a smile.

Zhao Wuji looked at Shi Yi in surprise. "Where did you rob someone?"

Shi Yi shook his head with a light laugh. "Ning Rongrong is the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. A little leakage from her fingers is enough."

"If that's the case, you really can train with me, brat. Since you thought of using Gravity for training, you should understand how I got the title Immovable Bright King, right?" Zhao Wuji said, smiling somewhat maliciously.

"Teacher Zhao, I'm not only a soul master but also a blacksmith. I'm very familiar with forging. I'm guessing your method is to continuously compress yourself with Gravity, making your tendons, bones, skin, and flesh denser. That's why you can preserve the power of the Attack System while also possessing the solidity of the defense system. Your short stature is probably a side effect of Gravity as well," Shi Yi said with a smile.

The fact that Zhao Wuji, a Soul Sage, had escaped the siege of sixteen Spirit Hall bishops was proof enough of his exceptional abilities. Shi Yi did not believe it was solely due to his martial soul. Since Shi Yi himself could think of using this method for training, Zhao Wuji, as the owner of that ability, would naturally have thought of it as well.

"Not bad. As expected of Master's disciple—you saw through it at a glance. This method really is like forging. Back then, I wasn't as rich as you. I offended who knows how many people for money, but in the end, I still lacked funds, which is why I ended up a bit short. Flattening yourself is easy, but making yourself swell back up is difficult. If your nourishment is insufficient, you'll end up like me. Still, with two hundred thousand, you can train for a long time," Zhao Wuji said with a laugh, praising him.

"Would you let me experience it?" Shi Yi asked with a flattering smile.

"You'll need to prepare a Medicinal Bath too. The diluted stuff those little brats soak in won't do," Zhao Wuji said to Shi Yi.

Shi Yi was somewhat surprised. "What they soak in is diluted?"

"Brat, Blue Lightning's Medicinal Bath is no simple thing. How do you think Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon soul masters get such powerful bodies?" Zhao Wuji asked in return.

"Lightning?" Shi Yi asked uncertainly.

"That's right, lightning. Their Medicinal Bath can even heal the injuries from tempering the body with lightning. Back then, I was incredibly envious," Zhao Wuji said.

Shi Yi nodded. Taking the Shrek and Huangdou Team battle from the original story as an example, none of Yu Tianheng's first three soul skills provided any bodily enhancement, yet he could still fight Dai Mubai evenly and even suppress him to some extent. Dai Mubai's Third Soul Skill, on the other hand, doubled his resistance to abnormal conditions, attack power, defense, and strength for half an hour while transformed. Even against such a straightforward, all-around enhancement, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon could still suppress its opponent. This showed the gap between the two in physical strength.

In a one-on-one fight, Shi Yi was even willing to believe that Yu Tianheng could easily defeat Dai Mubai. Dai Mubai needed to consume a great deal of Soul Power to maintain his Third Soul Skill. He might be able to hold steady for a short time, but as time went on, he would easily reveal openings.

"Don't worry about that. I prepared the medicinal ingredients long ago," Shi Yi said with a smile.

Zhao Wuji looked at Shi Yi and smiled. "You've already prepared the medicinal ingredients? You brat had your eyes on Old Zhao all along, didn't you? Want to try?"

"Let's try," Shi Yi said with a smile.

"Brat, I'll let you enjoy yourself." Zhao Wuji gave Shi Yi a malicious grin and immediately placed his broad palms on Shi Yi's shoulders.

"Third Soul Skill, Gravity Enhancement."

The moment the words fell, Zhao Wuji's Third Soul Ring lit up.

Shi Yi suddenly felt as though his entire body had fallen into a swamp. His body instantly became heavy.

"Brat, how does it feel?" Zhao Wuji asked as he observed Shi Yi's reaction.

"Hmm... how should I put it? It's only your Third Soul Skill, after all. I can manage for the time being, but if it goes on longer, I should be able to feel the effects," Shi Yi said as he sensed his condition, moved around on the spot, and made his estimate.

Zhao Wuji nodded. "Your body is quite good, brat. You can try moving around."

Shi Yi nodded. Under Zhao Wuji's surprised gaze, he took out Iron Essence Leg Weights from his Soul Tool and slowly strapped them to his legs, lightly stomping his feet.

"Not bad. This is stronger than before," Shi Yi said with a smile.

"You're ruthless with yourself, brat." Zhao Wuji nodded approvingly.

Shi Yi then began doing frog jumps in front of his little house. Every landing was exceptionally heavy, while Zhao Wuji moved a recliner beneath the eaves.

With Gravity affecting me, I need to use much more strength—perhaps more than twice as much as before. My control over my strength has also worsened considerably. It seems I still have plenty of room to improve, Shi Yi thought to himself.

Very soon, a tingling numbness spread throughout Shi Yi's body. Watching Shi Yi exercise with intense focus, carefully adjusting his breathing and posture with every jump, Zhao Wuji felt deeply moved. He suddenly understood why Shi Yi could surpass the limits of his talent. It was because Shi Yi had never stopped climbing upward. Even though he was no longer the weakest at Shrek, he still strove tirelessly to improve. Clearly, Shi Yi's sights were not limited to Shrek alone.

No teacher disliked a student who actively sought improvement, and Zhao Wuji was no exception.

Time slowly passed amid the training. Shi Yi could feel himself approaching his limit, so he took a large bag of medicinal ingredients from his Soul Tool and tossed it to Zhao Wuji.

"I'll have to trouble you, Teacher Zhao," Shi Yi said weakly.

"You really are rich, brat. These medicinal ingredients are all of excellent quality. Rest here for a while. I'll go arrange it for you," Zhao Wuji said with a smile.

With that, Zhao Wuji withdrew his soul skill. Shi Yi's entire body immediately felt lighter, and he casually sat down on the ground.

Before long, Zhao Wuji tossed Shi Yi into a Medicinal Bath. Once he had finished everything, Zhao Wuji left.

Feeling the incomparable warmth and the medicinal power continuously flowing into him, Shi Yi could not help letting out a contented groan.

This feeling of growing stronger intoxicated Shi Yi. He did not remain idle. The reason he had left himself a trace of strength rather than training until he fainted was so that he could continue circulating his Internal Cultivation during the Medicinal Bath. This would allow him to recover faster. As his Internal Cultivation rapidly circulated, his body would also become like a massive millstone, continuously squeezing out the medicinal power of the two Immortal Herbs within him.

Before he knew it, night had fallen. Shi Yi dressed himself, washed up briefly, and headed toward the Cafeteria. By coincidence, he ran into Yu Xiaogang leading the Shrek students back from training.

In an instant, Dai Mubai's hostile gaze landed on Shi Yi, as though Shi Yi had stolen something precious from him.

Yu Xiaogang asked Shi Yi, "How has the training been these past two days?"

Shi Yi smiled faintly. "Zhuqing's foundation is a little weak. After training for a day yesterday, she can't even get out of bed today. She should recover by tomorrow."

The Shrek students all looked at Shi Yi as though he were a demon. Even though Yu Xiaogang had trained them until they fainted on the first day, they had not been unable to get out of bed the next day.

By then, everyone had entered the Cafeteria and taken their seats at the dining table. Yu Xiaogang quietly said to Shi Yi, "Is the Medicinal Bath potent enough? Should we add more for Zhuqing?"

Shi Yi shook his head slightly. "There's no need. What they use has already been diluted. It wouldn't be right to take up more of their share. Since I arranged this kind of training for Zhuqing, I'll provide her portion myself. Consider it this cheap teacher's support for his student."

Yu Xiaogang smiled and nodded slightly. He had forgotten that Shi Yi's assets were no small sum now.

"As long as you know what you're doing," Yu Xiaogang said slowly.