Peak Skin Refining

After leaving Wanchun Hall, Lu Chuan casually bought a roast duck—his younger sister Lu Wangshu's favorite—from a stall by the street, then hurried home in high spirits.

"Brother, you're back..."

The moment he stepped through the door, Lu Wangshu came running over with a smile. The instant she saw the roast duck in Lu Chuan's hand, her eyes lit up.

Before Lu Chuan could even say anything, she immediately took the bag from him and said with a cheerful grin, "Thank you for buying me roast duck, Brother."

"If you like it, I'll buy you one every day from now on." Lu Chuan chuckled.

"Really? That's wonderful! Thank you, Brother... Brother, you're the best..."

The smile on Lu Wangshu's face grew more and more intense, and she danced about in excitement. Children were so easily satisfied; one roast duck was enough to make her this happy.

"Don't encourage her. How can she eat that every day? It's a waste of money..."

Just then, Mother Liang Ya came out of the kitchen with a ladle in hand. She shot Lu Wangshu a fierce glare, then turned to Lu Chuan. "Xiaochuan, don't spoil your sister all the time."

"Mom, don't worry! It's only one roast duck. It's nothing."

Lu Chuan smiled lightly. "Forget roast duck—one day, even flying fierce beast meat, I'll bring it back for you."

"Flying fierce beast meat? I've never even thought about something like that. The market does sell properly prepared fierce beast meat, but even First Rank meat costs a fortune—easily thousands per pound. It's absurd."

Liang Ya gave a bitter smile. "That isn't something a family like ours can afford."

"And you, be extremely careful when you go out hunting. You must never take risks.

"I don't want one day for you to end up like your father..."

As she spoke, tears were already welling in Liang Ya's eyes.

"Mom, don't worry. I'll be careful." Seeing this, Lu Chuan hurriedly comforted her. "As for Dad, we must see the person if he's alive, and see the body if he's dead. As long as we haven't seen his body, there's still a chance he's alive..."

"Ah..."

Liang Ya sighed, shook her head, and said nothing more before turning back into the kitchen.

In truth, both she and Lu Chuan knew very well that after so long without any news, how could he possibly still be alive?

As for finding the body, the Wilderness was overrun by wild beasts and Fierce Beasts.

To leave not even bones behind was all too normal.

"Brother... did I do something wrong? Did I make Mom angry? I won't eat roast duck anymore..." Lu Wangshu walked over and spoke in a small voice.

"It's fine. This isn't your fault—it's the fault of this world."

Lu Chuan shook his head, his gaze deep.

He gently rubbed Lu Wangshu's little head and smiled. "Hurry up. Roast duck has to be eaten while it's hot. It won't taste good once it gets cold."

"Mm-hmm!"

Lu Wangshu hurriedly nodded. "I won't finish it all. I'll save some for you and Mom."

"Alright!"

Lu Chuan smiled faintly and did not refuse Lu Wangshu's kindness.

After settling his younger sister Lu Wangshu, he immediately returned to his room.

He eagerly took out the half-meter-thick Great Medicine Compendium.

"White Jade Dragon Rock Fruit..."

Lu Chuan murmured to himself as he opened the Great Medicine Compendium and carefully searched for information on the White Jade Dragon Rock Fruit.

"Found it..."

After flipping through more than half of the main index, Lu Chuan finally found the information on the White Jade Dragon Rock Fruit.

[White Jade Dragon Rock Fruit: Tempers the fleshly body and physique, nourishes the soul and spirit...]

Lu Chuan quickly scanned the information on the White Jade Dragon Rock Fruit, the light in his eyes growing ever more brilliant.

It tempers the fleshly body and physique, nourishes the soul and spirit. As expected of a Hundred-Year Great Medicine infinitely close to a Spirit Medicine... Lu Chuan thought to himself. In that case, let's see how effective it is.

With that thought, Lu Chuan stopped wasting words. He tossed the Great Medicine Compendium aside, swiftly took out the box containing three White Jade Dragon Rock Fruits, and casually picked up one fruit and swallowed it.

The fruit, no bigger than three fingers, turned into a warm current the instant it entered his mouth, flowing into every limb and bone in Lu Chuan's body.

"Fuck..."

The next instant, a searing pain swept through his entire body.

As the medicinal power spread, it churned like magma, burning his entire body and coursing through every inch of flesh and blood.

It was even scorching his spirit and soul.

The intense pain made his entire body convulse.

This was fucking painful! The Great Medicine Compendium hadn't said that taking this thing would hurt this much!

"No, it's too painful, too hot—I can't take it..."

Lu Chuan gritted his teeth and growled. With a sudden carp leap, he sprang up from the floor and began practicing the Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method.

As he performed one move after another, he immediately felt that the agonizing pain had actually eased somewhat.

Even better, wherever those streams of heat passed, his body felt a wave of comfort. He could clearly sense that both his fleshly body and physique, as well as his soul and spirit, were transforming and steadily improving.

The sensation was far too obvious—simply horrifying.

[Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method +10]

[Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method +10]

[Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method +20]

Lu Chuan began practicing the Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method over and over again, while information on the Attribute Panel refreshed without pause.

The proficiency of the Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method soared at rapid speed, as though riding a rocket.

Time passed second by second.

Lu Chuan continued practicing the Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method in his room, refining the medicinal power of the White Jade Dragon Rock Fruit as he felt his fleshly body and physique, soul and spirit undergo a double transformation.

Before he knew it.

Suddenly, after completing the nineteenth form of the Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method, Lu Chuan did not stop and begin again. Instead, as though divine inspiration had descended upon him, he suddenly performed the twentieth form.

Then came the twenty-first form.

At that moment, the Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method finally reached Perfection.

"Whew..."

As he exhaled a breath of stale air, a sharp gleam erupted from Lu Chuan's eyes, like a bloodthirsty Fierce Tiger whose presence lingered without fading.

The aura around him grew more and more majestic, like a savage elephant treading upon the earth.

"As expected of a Hundred-Year Great Medicine. I haven't even fully refined its medicinal power, yet the Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method has already reached Perfection, and my Martial Dao cultivation has risen to the Ninth Rank Peak..."

With a thought, Lu Chuan glanced at the Attribute Panel.

[Name: Lu Chuan]

[Martial Dao: Ninth Rank Skin Refining Realm (Peak)]

[Spirit: Mortal Grade High Rank]

[Martial Arts: Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method (Perfection, 20/5000), Five Elements Stance Training (Limit Breaking—Fierce Tiger Intent), Basic Archery (Limit Breaking—Rapid Speed)]

...

Sure enough, his cultivation had improved, and the Savage Elephant Skin Refining Method had reached Perfection.

However, the proficiency needed to go from Perfection to Limit Breaking was actually as high as 5000. It would not be easy.

Lu Chuan casually threw a punch.

Crack!

The sound of air splitting exploded at once, like muffled thunder.

His pupils abruptly contracted, and the shock in his heart deepened. He could feel that his physical strength had increased enormously—by more than double.

Before this, my physical strength was roughly eight thousand jin. Under normal circumstances, advancing from the late Ninth Rank to the peak should have brought it to somewhere between ten and twelve thousand jin. But now it has increased by at least twice, reaching sixteen thousand—perhaps even twenty thousand jin...

Lu Chuan was secretly astonished, excitement rising in his eyes.

He silently thought that after some time had passed, he absolutely had to visit the Martial Artist Association in the Inner City and properly test his overall strength.