Treasure Sea

Sun Chengshan gave a light cough, composing his tumultuous thoughts, and said apologetically, "I misunderstood you. Oh, right—what was your name again?"

"This disciple is Wang Yu," Wang Yu replied.

"Wang Yu, you've just broken through to the Body Tempering First Level. Your Qi and Blood are depleted, so you must be hungry by now." Sun Chengshan's attitude changed so quickly, becoming so pleasant and amiable that Wang Yu nearly failed to recognize him.

Wang Yu's expression remained unchanged. He was still respectful toward Sun Chengshan and nodded.

Indeed, soon after his breakthrough that morning, he had begun to feel hungry. Even after eating a great deal—nearly spending the last of his savings—the hunger had only eased somewhat, not disappeared completely.

Even now, he could feel that the strength in his body had not been replenished and seemed to have ebbed away somewhat.

"Master, I've clearly eaten a lot of food. Why do I still feel this way?" Wang Yu truthfully described his discomfort.

Sun Chengshan clearly knew the inside story, and Wang Yu needed this Master to clear up his doubts.

It truly was a strange matter.

Sun Chengshan smiled. "Hunger is merely the outward appearance. In truth, the instant you broke through to the Body Tempering First Level, your body supplied an excessive amount of energy at once to strengthen your physique.

"This caused your Qi and Blood to become severely depleted. Replenishment from food ultimately requires time for digestion and absorption, and ordinary food does not convert its nutrients efficiently, so recovery is not so fast. That is why you have remained in this state of 'hunger.'"

Wang Yu pondered this, then asked, "Is there no way to quickly restore this depletion?"

Sun Chengshan chuckled and gestured for Wang Yu to sit. "Of course there is. I was just about to give it to you."

With that, he went over to a large medicine cabinet against the wall.

The cabinet was lined with rows of drawers, each carefully secured with a heavy lock. They seemed to contain many valuable items.

Sun Chengshan unlocked a drawer from one of the rows to the side and took something out.

Out of the corner of his eye, Wang Yu saw what looked like a dried flat fish, about the size of a palm. A tiny dorsal fin on it was a bright purple, exceptionally eye-catching.

There appeared to be four or five more such flat fish in the drawer, all dried or roasted dry and well preserved.

After taking one out, Sun Chengshan immediately locked the drawer again, as though afraid someone might steal his pile of treasures.

Sun Chengshan returned with the flat fish in hand.

"You should recognize this. It's a Poison Fish from the Silver Belt Sea. It's quite a good thing for you. Eat it."

Just like that, Sun Chengshan handed the so-called Poison Fish to Wang Yu.

The smell of salted fish, mixed with a hint of fishiness, rushed into his nose with a heady force.

"This..." A strange look crossed Wang Yu's face as he hurriedly searched his memories for relevant information.

At intervals, the Silver Belt Sea would become a terrifying, deathly silent Poison Sea. He had already seen that on his previous journey home.

Yet although most marine creatures living within it would be killed and decomposed by the germs during those times, some creatures immune to the Silver Belt Sea's toxins would survive.

At first, the people of Island Town had not studied this closely. They had mostly treated the Poison Sea with reverence and kept their distance.

Until government officials came to investigate and accidentally discovered that certain surviving fish and other marine creatures contained not only complex and potent toxic germs, but also extraordinarily rich nutrients.

For Martial Artists in cultivation, such nutrients were first-rate restorative supplements.

This was especially true during the Body Tempering Realm, when one needed vast amounts of nutrients to strengthen the body.

As long as they were properly processed and stripped of their toxic germs, they could be eaten without concern. They were several times better than ordinary ingredients.

As a native of Island Town, Wang Yu had a strong impression of the expensive fish from the Silver Belt Sea.

Because they were simply far too expensive. He had never been able to afford the seafood here.

Once he recalled this information, the heart he had been holding in his throat finally settled. The flat fish in his hand no longer seemed quite so salty and fishy.

This Flatmouth Fish truly was a good thing. A single palm-sized fish like this was likely worth quite a bit on the market.

No wonder Sun Chengshan had stored them so carefully before.

"Master, this is such a valuable item..." Wang Yu hesitated.

"Eat it. Since you have entered my school, how could I possibly treat you poorly? In the future, I still hope you can carry my Shadowless Fist forward and make it flourish."

Sun Chengshan gave a broad, generous wave of his hand and spoke with a hearty laugh.

It was completely unlike the cautious way he had locked up the drawer earlier.

Seeing this, Wang Yu stopped standing on ceremony. He truly did need this salted fish to replenish his energy.

He bit down. The dried fish was crisp, without a trace of moisture, though the taste was not much to speak of. The salty fishiness clung stubbornly to his mouth.

In two or three bites, he finished the salted fish, leaving not even the bones or spines behind.

Very quickly, the fish meat took effect within his body. Waves of warmth spread out from his stomach, deeply comfortable, and only faded after several minutes.

At the same time, the feeling of depletion in his body eased considerably. By evening, even his spirits had become much more vigorous.

"How is it? You felt the effect, didn't you?" Sun Chengshan said leisurely.

"Yes. This truly is good stuff," Wang Yu exclaimed sincerely.

In his previous life, he had never eaten anything this fine.

"Yes. Who would have thought that such a Poison Sea could also be a Treasure Sea? The seabed contains vast quantities of precious materials, all great restorative supplements for those who practice martial arts.

"It was precisely because I had my eye on this Treasure Sea that I traveled thousands of miles to develop myself here."

At this point, Sun Chengshan was also rather moved.

"The six heavens of the Body Tempering Realm—each level is harder to cross than the last. I have tempered myself at the Body Tempering Fifth Level for many years, and my cultivation has stagnated for just as long. After practicing martial arts for over twenty years, perhaps I can rely on this Treasure Sea to break through my own limits here!"

This was the hope he had placed upon this Treasure Sea.

Wang Yu smacked his lips. The saltiness in his mouth had yet to fade and was already beginning to turn bitter.

Sun Chengshan extended two fingers and pushed the tea he had prepared in advance before Wang Yu, as if he had long anticipated the discomfort after eating the fish.

Wang Yu immediately lifted the cup with both hands in accordance with etiquette and drank, washing away the salty bitterness in his mouth.

"Master, is Body Tempering cultivation this difficult from here on?"

Neither he nor the previous owner of this body knew much about the path of martial arts. They only knew that martial artists were people one could not afford to offend.

Some hot-tempered, bloodthirsty people would cut off someone's head at the slightest disagreement. They were extraordinarily dangerous.

It was worlds apart from the peaceful environment of his previous life.

Sun Chengshan increasingly valued Wang Yu, the genius disciple he had newly acquired. Now that they had opened up, he sighed and said,

"You are in Island Town and do not know how vast the world beyond is. People differ from people, and Cultivators differ from Cultivators.

"I was born in humble circumstances, much like you. At the start of my cultivation, I had no precious materials to support me, so my progress was slow. That I have reached the Body Tempering Fifth Level today also contains elements of luck and chance.

"Opportunities are crucial. You must strive for them yourself, but you must also receive Heaven's favor. To take another step forward is difficult, difficult, difficult."

Sun Chengshan said "difficult" three times in succession. It showed that the glory he now enjoyed in Island Town had been purchased with incomparable hardship in the past.

Thinking it over, Wang Yu found it only reasonable.

Everyone knew that practicing martial arts to strengthen the body was a broad and excellent path forward, yet the strong ones in others' eyes were always few in number.

If this road were truly easy to walk, it would have long been packed to the brim. How could it ever have been his turn?

Afterward, Sun Chengshan explained much common knowledge about cultivation to Wang Yu in detail.

After all, Wang Yu could be considered to have stepped onto the road of cultivation. These were things he absolutely had to know.

"Starting tomorrow, I will personally teach you the subsequent cultivation of Shadowless Fist. All you need to do is work hard and diligently. Do not let your talent and aptitude be buried, understand?"

The two talked deep into the night. At last, Sun Chengshan assumed the manner of a strict teacher and gave Wang Yu this instruction.

"This disciple will remember!" Wang Yu immediately rose and bowed.