Back home, Lu Jue got straight to the point and handed his father the agreement he had signed with the martial arts school.
"What is this?"
His father carefully wiped his hands on the corner of his clothes before taking the weighty agreement.
He turned the densely packed clauses over and over, confusion in his eyes, but even more than that, an indescribable excitement.
Though he did not know exactly how this "Seed Student" agreement differed from the sponsorship agreement Zhang Lu had signed, he vaguely remembered that quite a few famous martial artists he had seen on television had a line in their biographies saying, "Former Seed Student of such-and-such martial arts school."
That alone was enough.
"Good, good! My son has made something of himself!" His father looked up, his eyes slightly red, clutching the agreement tightly as though he were clutching the hope of the family's future.
He did not understand profound martial arts, nor did he understand the complicated resource clauses within. He only knew that for the martial arts school to value his son so highly was a tremendous blessing, a pride that let them hold their heads high before his fellow workers!
Lu Jue took the opportunity to ask, "Dad, did you secretly find another job again?"
Seeing that he could no longer hide it, his father let out a heavy sigh. "Xiao Jue, Dad knows you care about me. Even though you're a 'Seed Student' now, there'll be plenty of places to spend money in the future! Every bit counts. Dad doesn't have much skill—this strength is all I have left to help you a little."
"You focus on training in martial arts and making a name for yourself. Even if Dad has to work harder, I'll feel at ease!"
Lu Jue drew a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the sting in his nose. His voice was low, yet carried an unquestionable resolve:
"Dad, quit that odd job. And at the factory, see if you can switch to the day shift."
His father still wanted to refuse, but under Lu Jue's insistence, he could only nod and agree to settle the wages from his second job early the next morning.
Eight o'clock the next morning.
Lu Jue arrived at the nearby location agreed upon with the supplier, transported a full eight hundred pounds of Spirit Beef home, and eagerly took out pots, bowls, ladles, and pans to start cooking.
This time, Lu Jue did not plan to add Energy Powder. The energy contained in Spirit Beef lay between Spirit Pig Meat and Giant Horned Barbarian Beef. Eight hundred pounds would be enough to rapidly master the Iron Bone Stance to perfection.
His knife rose and fell, swift and precise, cutting the large slabs of Spirit Beef into minced pieces.
Into the pot, add water, light the fire.
Two hours later, the rich aroma of meat had filled the entire little house. The broth in the pot had turned a mellow milky white, a sign that the essence of the Spirit Beef had completely melted into the soup.
Looking at the more than twenty large bowls, basins, and jars lined up before him, all filled with steaming meat broth, Lu Jue sat cross-legged and summoned the panel.
"Panel, begin rapid completion!"
Boom—!
The instant the command was issued, a familiar suction force erupted from within him. It was as though every cell had become a greedy black hole, crazily demanding energy!
Lu Jue immediately picked up a bowl of meat broth beside him and gulped it down!
Pure, gentle Spiritual Energy instantly exploded inside his body. Like sweet rain falling upon parched earth, it swiftly supported that terrifying expenditure.
The energy in this Spirit Beef truly was extraordinary. Though it was not as domineering and wild as Giant Horned Barbarian Beef, it was far stronger than the Spirit Pig Meat he had eaten before.
Vast energy surged and circulated through his body, while the progress bar for Iron Bone Stance on the panel rose steadily!
At the same time, the bones throughout his body began to emit a low, dense hum. It was as though countless ants were gnawing and restructuring deep within his marrow, and a bone-deep pain came crashing down on him.
"Something's wrong. The Basic Body Tempering Exercise had previously strengthened muscles, fascia, bones, and even overall qi and blood in every aspect. But the Iron Bone Stance was like an incomparably precise scalpel, focusing all energy entirely upon the two hundred and six bones throughout the body!"
"It was like forcibly compressing the bone tempering and transformation that would normally take someone ten years of cultivation into this single hour or so."
Pain!
Bone-etching, heart-searing pain!
It was as though countless red-hot steel needles were viciously piercing and stirring through the gaps in his marrow. Every hum of his bones came with a teeth-grating creak, like rusted metal being forcibly reforged.
"Aaargh—!"
Lu Jue clenched his teeth, veins bulging from his forehead as sweat the size of beans instantly soaked through his clothes.
He felt every bone in his body letting out a cry of unbearable strain, only to be supported by the vast energy and forcibly shattered from its old form, restructuring toward something tougher and more perfect.
This was the cruel ascension of life itself, the nirvana one had to endure on the road to becoming stronger!
He desperately held on to consciousness. His hands trembled slightly from the extreme pain, yet he still mechanically lifted bowl after bowl of meat broth and tilted his head back to gulp them down.
Time became incomparably long at that moment. Every breath was accompanied by the shattering and rebirth of his bones.
Who knew how long passed before the energy from the last bowl of meat broth completely fused into his bones, and that maddening agony suddenly receded like the tide.
Buzzz—!
An incomparably solid, weighty sensation erupted from the deepest depths of every bone in his body!
Rapid completion complete! For this rapid completion, you mainly consumed Spirit Beef. Your talent Barbarian Ox Strength has been enhanced! Please select one additional enhancement from the following options! 1. Barbarian Ox Elite: Sinews and bones sing in unison, strength carries a thousand jun! The strength gained through your talent Barbarian Ox Strength is permanently increased by twenty percent. 2. Barbarian Ox Hide: Skin like tanned leather, toughness like oxhide! Your skin's toughness is significantly enhanced, increasing resistance to punches, kicks, and blunt weapon strikes. 3. Heart of the Savage Bull: Weakens pain perception and strengthens willpower. Your injuries will find it difficult to affect your strength.
"Additional enhancement? A growth-type talent actually had something like this!"
Lu Jue's pupils suddenly contracted as he looked at the options appearing before him.
In truth, he had already had quite a few doubts when he first obtained Barbarian Ox Strength.
In terms of growth potential, the Hundred Tough Fat Armor he had gained from eating Spirit Pig Meat would likewise grow stronger along with his own Qi and Blood Value.
How could the Barbarian Ox Strength bestowed by mighty Calamity Beast Meat only fuss over a basic strength increase?
At this moment, the suddenly appearing additional enhancement options instantly resolved his doubts—not that the talent from Calamity Beast Meat was weak, but that its true potential required reaching a specific stage before it could be awakened!
"The Hundred Tough Fat Armor brought by Spirit Pig Meat grows steadily, while Barbarian Ox Strength needs to 'break its limits' as it grows!"
Lu Jue's thoughts raced, his burning gaze fixed on the panel.
Of the three options, Barbarian Ox Elite was naturally the first to be eliminated.
The vast majority of cultivation methods and Calamity Beast Meat had effects that enhanced strength. This seemingly straightforward twenty percent increase would instead appear mediocre in the long run.
The same went for Barbarian Ox Hide. By cultivating some Hardening Kung Fu aimed at the skin, he could achieve the same effect.
Strength could be accumulated through arduous cultivation, and defense could be compensated for with cultivation methods. What was truly precious lay in those unique traits that were difficult to obtain!
His gaze finally locked firmly onto Heart of the Savage Bull.
In battles between opponents of the same level, temporary superiority or inferiority might depend on strength and speed, but what ultimately decided life and death was often who could endure more, who was tougher, and who could unleash their final combat power in desperate circumstances!
"Panel!"
"Choose Heart of the Savage Bull!"
Before you continue