Prices Soar! Spirit Pig Meat!

A family banquet ended on a sour note.

Grandfather's face turned livid. After confirming that Lu Guowei was not seriously hurt, he snorted coldly, flicked his sleeve, and left.

Uncle's family, as though granted a pardon, hurriedly supported the groaning Lu Guowei and rushed him to a nearby clinic, terrified that he might be left with some lasting aftereffects.

Lu Jue solemnly assured his father once again that he absolutely had what it took to compete for those twenty Exemption Quotas, completely dispelling his father's intention to sign up for the Scavenger Team.

Just as he was about to leave after saying goodbye, Third Uncle and Third Aunt approached him with smiles piled across their faces.

"Little Jue! Your Third Uncle always knew you were no ordinary child! You're fine martial material!"

Third Uncle affectionately patted Lu Jue's shoulder, secretly stuffing a thick wad of cash into his hand as he lowered his voice.

"Here's eight thousand! Consider it a little support from your Third Uncle and Third Aunt. Keep it. If we don't give it to you, it'll all end up filling that bottomless pit Guowei! Your Third Uncle thinks much more highly of you!"

Lu Jue paused slightly. Without putting on a false show of refusal, he accepted the money cleanly. "Thank you, Third Uncle, Third Aunt!"

He understood that Third Uncle was placing a bet on him.

Just for the help Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle's families had given when his mother was sick all those years ago, once he rose like a dragon and leaped like a phoenix, he certainly would not forget them.

This money was an investment. He accepted it with a clear conscience.

Third Aunt struck while the iron was hot. "By the way, Little Jue, there's a girl in our neighborhood who's as fresh and lovely as dew! She goes to East City Martial School too. I heard she's even some kind of School Belle! Want your Third Aunt to play matchmaker? If it works out, don't forget Third Aunt's contribution!"

"School Belle?"

The corner of Lu Jue's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly.

There were plenty of girls at their school who called themselves School Belles.

Those who waved the banner of martial arts while doing suggestive livestreams—three hundred, one thousand—were everywhere.

Who knew whether this was a proper School Belle or not!

Besides, he had really eaten too much Energy Powder.

"Third Aunt, I've only just turned eighteen. Right now, I only want to focus on martial arts!"

"You're not young! Your Third Uncle and I were already engaged at eighteen!"

"Really, no need!"

After bidding farewell to the overly enthusiastic Third Uncle and Third Aunt, the first thing Lu Jue did was find a pawnshop and exchange the Jade Thumb Ring in his hand for forty thousand yuan.

The heavy cash in his hands did little to ease Lu Jue's heart.

Though he had temporarily reassured his father with his strength, he knew better than anyone how difficult it would be to seize an "Exemption Quota."

There might not be many students at his level who had trained Basic Fist Arts to mastery, but those classmates from wealthy families had either practiced Family Cultivation Techniques since childhood or hired famous teachers for one-on-one instruction at great expense. The outstanding ones had even begun cultivating advanced techniques long ago. Their foundations were far beyond his.

By his rough estimate, his current strength should place him somewhere above three hundredth in the grade. But to securely claim one of the mere twenty slots, he needed to break into the top fifty at minimum! Between them lay a vast chasm.

Only seven days remained!

He had to immediately turn the resources in his hands into tangible combat power!

His two remaining basic cultivation techniques were the Basic Body Tempering Exercise and the Basic Breathing Technique.

The Basic Breathing Technique was an auxiliary cultivation technique. By breathing in and out spiritual energy, it gradually improved the body's constitution. It was the foundation of martial arts and the most important of all.

However, it required the slow work of grinding water through stone and showed results slowly. Even if he pushed it to mastery, the improvement over a few days would be no more than a drop in the bucket. He could only set it aside for now.

His most urgent task was to push the Basic Body Tempering Exercise to mastery as well!

This cultivation technique focused on tempering the sinews, bones, flesh, and skin. Once mastered, it could greatly improve physical fitness and had enormous practical value in battle!

Moreover, with his previous experience, Lu Jue had developed new ambitions for the Cultivation Technique Rapid Mastery Panel.

When fast-tracking Basic Fist Arts, he had consumed Energy Powder mixed with impurities. The panel had granted him the Tough Hands passive, making the skin on his fists tougher.

This time, when fast-tracking the Basic Body Tempering Exercise, he intended to eat something better!

Arriving at the noisy, bustling market in the Commoner District, Lu Jue did not rush to buy anything. Instead, he quietly wandered through the crowded streams of people and stalls.

Soon, from the scattered conversations of several butcher shop owners, he pieced together a piece of news that made his heart sink.

Early that morning, the Tianhai City government had mobilized nearly all its forces to forcibly requisition nearly forty percent of all kinds of resources held by the city's major warehouses and suppliers.

Prices had soared!

Such an abnormal large-scale move by the government meant that something earth-shaking must have happened behind the scenes!

Thinking of the academy's sudden emergency order for "Student Diversion" yesterday, the two were almost certainly caused by the same reason.

A suffocating sense that mountains and rain were about to come, with the wind already filling the tower, quietly spread through Lu Jue's heart.

In the days ahead, obtaining Cultivation Resources would come at an even steeper price.

He walked up to a stall and asked about the price of Spirit Beef. The owner immediately quoted a number that made his eyelids jump. "Two hundred and ten per pound! Take it or leave it. At this rate, it'll be out of stock soon!"

Lu Jue fell silent.

The Spiritual Energy Revival had changed far more than humanity.

Birds and beasts, flowers and trees, even the entire ecological environment, had all been affected to varying degrees.

Some livestock and poultry had undergone beneficial mutations, their meat containing denser energy. They were thus collectively known as "spiritual meat."

This type of meat could not compare to Calamity Beast Meat, but it cost several times more than ordinary meat and was the staple food of many middle-class martial artists.

Now that even Spirit Beef had risen to such an outrageous price, he did not dare imagine the cost of meat truly taken from low-level Calamity Beasts.

Lu Jue touched the not-so-substantial savings in his pocket, his brows knitting tightly together.

He opened the panel and placed the Basic Body Tempering Exercise into the Fast-Track Slot.

After deducting all other losses and focusing on the optimal cultivation path, the Basic Body Tempering Exercise still requires 135 days to reach mastery.

Based on the host's current physical strength, time required for fast-tracking: 50 minutes!

Activate fast-tracking?

"Don't be fooled by the fact that the Forging Exercise only needs 135 days. Its requirements may seem similar to Basic Fist Arts, but my vitality and blood have surged now, and the energy required for daily cultivation is greater."

"Not enough. Far from enough!"

He had originally planned to buy three hundred pounds of Spirit Beef and use genuine Energy Powder to make up the remaining gap.

Now that prices had soared, fifty-two thousand could only buy a little over two hundred pounds, making the gap even larger.

He could not be sure whether, if he used too much Energy Powder, the panel would judge it to be the primary energy source and give him something like Tough Feet.

"Forget it. I'll give up on Spirit Beef for now and look at other options!"

Very quickly, Lu Jue found a suitable target.

Spirit Pig Meat!

As the spiritual livestock with the highest current output, even with soaring prices, Spirit Pig Meat was kept at one hundred and forty per pound, and larger purchases could be even cheaper!

"Although Spirit Pig Meat has a lower energy density, fifty-two thousand can buy three hundred and seventy pounds. In terms of total quantity, that isn't much worse than three hundred pounds of Spirit Beef. I'll use Energy Powder to make up the rest."

After some haggling, he successfully purchased three hundred and seventy pounds of Spirit Pig Meat at one hundred and thirty-eight per pound.

He then bought four cans of genuine Energy Powder and several iron basins before quickly returning home.

"I wonder what kind of talent Spirit Pig Meat will grant me?"

"Just don't give me some huge stomach!"