The Panel

Lin Feng looked at the virtual panel before him, shook his head, then rubbed his eyes.

He was checking whether he had drunk a few cups of horse urine and started hallucinating!

After all, since coming to this world, he had never properly drunk alcohol.

Could his first time drinking have given him alcohol poisoning?

Name: Lin Feng

Method: Formation Breaking Art

Cultivation level: Outer Refinement Realm—Skin Tempering Realm (0/100)+

Supernatural Ability 1: Ingestion

Techniques:

Tiger Roar Fist (0/20)+

Upgrade Points: 1

Lin Feng looked at the simple panel. It seemed to truly exist.

Excitement surged in his heart!

His Golden Finger had arrived! It had finally arrived!

Like many transmigrators, he had begun exploring ways to trigger his Golden Finger while still in the womb.

But none of it had worked.

Yet after downing several cups of wine today, it had appeared.

After discovering that the people around him could not see it, he began studying it.

Having read countless novels in his previous life, he naturally knew what this panel represented and roughly understood its functions.

Seeing the "+" behind his cultivation level and techniques, he knew this was a panel capable of rapidly increasing his cultivation level and techniques.

And those Upgrade Points were naturally the points to be added.

"But how do these Upgrade Points come about?"

"Could it be the 'Ingestion' under 'Supernatural Ability 1'?"

Lin Feng thought to himself.

The instant he thought of it, the panel seemed to learn what was on his mind.

It fed a piece of information into his mind.

"So that's how it is! No wonder I had one Upgrade Point. In short, eating things can increase my Upgrade Points.

The more energy something contains, the higher its grade, the more Upgrade Points it can provide!

Simple!"

Lin Feng had finally figured out the panel's function!

"Big Brother, what are you spacing out for? Eat some food! Don't just drink!"

Lin Yu thought his big brother was still immersed in his earlier failure and wanted to distract him!

He piled quite a bit of food into his bowl!

"Oh, okay!"

Lin Feng responded, eating while checking the panel!

Then the two began wolfing down their food.

An hour later, they were full from food and drink!

The brothers left the tavern, walked back to the Shantytown outside the city, then went their separate ways.

Lin Yu had to return to the territory controlled by the Great Saber Gang.

These days, joining a gang was something one did out of necessity. Though he was only a henchman, he often risked being injured in gang brawls or even losing his life.

But at least others would not casually bully him!

Lin Feng looked at his panel. Its Upgrade Points had already risen to 3!

Though the meal was not cheap, and wine was the essence of grain!

Still, gaining three points at once was far too fast, wasn't it?

"At this rate, with three meals a day, wouldn't I reach Skin Tempering Grand Completion in ten days or half a month?!"

Lin Feng thought to himself, utterly startled by such speed!

He knew his father had already been considered quite good!

With scarce resources, his father had spent more than a decade cultivating Skin Tempering to Skin Tempering Grand Completion, able to throw a punch with at least a thousand jin of force.

And he could achieve that in half a month?

"Let's see how effective it is!"

As he spoke, Lin Feng carefully put all three Upgrade Points into the "Cultivation level" column.

Name: Lin Feng

Method: Formation Breaking Art

Cultivation level: Outer Refinement Realm—Skin Tempering Realm (3/100)+

Supernatural Ability 1: Ingestion

Techniques:

Tiger Roar Fist (0/20)+

Upgrade Points: 0

As soon as Lin Feng finished clicking, he actually comprehended the Formation Breaking Art, the basic military Skin Tempering cultivation method he had previously been unable to cultivate due to lack of food and clothing!

Then he felt a warm current of energy constantly coursing through his body.

After it dissipated, the strains in his body had recovered, and his sallow, emaciated appearance caused by hunger had improved somewhat.

His whole person seemed more spirited!

"Skin Tempering is divided into early, middle, late, and completion stages. I should now be at the equivalent of the early stage!

I feel as though my body is brimming with strength.

I really want to let it out!"

Lin Feng muttered to himself.

Then he swept his gaze around and found a medium-sized millstone weighing two to three hundred jin nearby.

The people of the Shantytown used it together to grind things.

Lin Feng walked over to the millstone, placed both hands on either side, and exerted a little force. He actually lifted it!

Though it took some effort, he had still lifted it!

When testing himself earlier, a hundred-jin stone lock had nearly made him choke to death. Now, he was going to make this two- or three-hundred-jin millstone weep!

Seeing bits of residue left on the millstone falling away, Lin Feng did not dare continue.

He set it back down.

Having finally confirmed the panel's effectiveness, he felt utterly exhilarated!

The next moment, he happily headed home.

His steps were light.

After all, with the panel, he now had the capital to survive in this chaotic age of monsters.

Although any slightly stronger person or monster could still kill him, it was better than having no hope at all!

Before he had walked far, Lin Feng was nearly home.

At that moment, a burst of noisy clamor drifted over from afar!

"Sister-in-law Lin, I heard your Lin Feng didn't become a constable. About the money I lent you yesterday, how about paying it back first?

Er Niu's Father still needs that money to treat his leg!"

"Lin Family Member, same here. We're nearly out of food at home. Without those thirty copper coins, our whole family will be drinking the northwest wind tomorrow!"

"Eldest Sister, our family is marrying a wife. That one qian of silver needs to be saved to get the new bride some new clothes.

We can't have her marry into the family without even a set of clothes, can we?"

The noisy voices carried over. Though Lin Feng only caught bits and pieces, he already understood what these neighbors were doing!

The two taels of silver he carried on him were precisely the money these neighborhood residents had voluntarily brought over yesterday after hearing that he was taking the constable examination.

After all, everyone knew that in these times, without money to grease palms, no one would spare a second glance for commoners like them.

As a military family member, Lin Feng already had an advantage in taking the constable examination, and the number of constables being recruited this time was not small.

It could be said that entering the yamen and living off public grain was as certain as ten birds in the hand.

Thus, these neighbors hurriedly brought money over as an early "investment," hoping that after Lin Feng became a constable, he would look after them a little.

But now, somehow, news that he had failed the examination had spread.

Every one of them had actually rushed over that very day, impatient to get their money back!

Such an ugly way of eating was simply unbearable to look at!

They had absolutely no shame!

Though his mother looked delicate on the outside, she was strong within.

She could only force a smile and promise everyone that once Lin Feng returned, she would repay them.

Yet tears faintly glimmered in her eyes.

At that moment, her heart was in utter turmoil. Her husband had not been dead long, and the family had relied on a small pension, along with the money she earned from work.

They had barely managed to get by for several months.

Her son had finally gotten the chance to obtain a good job!

Yet it had vanished!

How were they supposed to live from now on?

She kept forcing a smile while turning away to secretly wipe the tears from her eyes whenever no one noticed.

Little Sister Lin, standing beside her, was frightened by such a huge commotion.

She merely clutched her mother's clothes, eyes wide as she looked at the neighbors in all their different guises.

She did not understand how neighbors who had been perfectly fine before had now become like this.

Like monsters!

As Lin Feng approached and saw this scene, rage shot straight to his head.

He set down the food he had brought back for his mother and little sister.

Then he grabbed the pig-slaughtering knife by Butcher Zhu's door and walked over.