Sturdiness (Please Bookmark)

Xu Xiaoshou was indeed quite wealthy.

His courtyard had a small pond stocked with spirit fish, a rockery, and several tall spirit trees.

Once he shut the courtyard gate, Xu Xiaoshou had intended to go back and catch up on sleep, only to discover that a new section had appeared on the red interface in his mind: the Store.

His gaze moved downward.

Passive Value: 64.

Xu Xiaoshou immediately grinned. This harvest had been seriously profitable. Could it be that the Store had only unlocked once his Passive Value broke into double digits?

He clicked into it and found the Store completely empty, save for a single red gift box.

Passive Gift Box (Purchase: 10 Passive Value).

Xu Xiaoshou had tried using Passive Value to upgrade his skills last night, but he had not been able to make heads or tails of it. Only now did he realize that Passive Value was meant for buying things.

Without a second thought, he immediately clicked Purchase and opened the gift box. The information panel updated at once:

Skill Points, +10.

Passive Key, +3.

At the same time, the Store trembled, and a Red Roulette appeared. It was one size smaller than the Black Turntable from last time, and a hazy gray mist shrouded its top, concealing its contents.

The moment Xu Xiaoshou saw it, the corner of his mouth twitched unconsciously, and his eyes dimmed considerably. He instantly recalled the pointer he had broken last time.

Two gray items had also appeared inside the Store's slots.

Skill Points (Purchase: 1000 Passive Value).

Passive Key (Purchase: 1000 Passive Value).

Xu Xiaoshou jumped when he saw those two messages. That expensive?

So he had just spent 10 Passive Value to buy items worth over ten thousand?

"Holy crap!" Xu Xiaoshou's eyes widened. He realized that this gift box was something like a beginner's package, the kind that did not even scale with growth. It was practically being given away for free!

Awesome!

"The Passive Key... should be used to activate this roulette?" Xu Xiaoshou pondered. After the devastation it had suffered last time, had the roulette upgraded? No more spinning it by hand?

As for the Skill Points, there was no need to think about it. They were definitely for upgrading passive skills.

So, should he upgrade the Breathing Method?

Xu Xiaoshou quickly dismissed the idea. He would try the Passive Key first. Maybe it could spin out other passive skills.

In three days, it would be the outer court's Wind and Cloud Tournament. To those big shots aiming to fight for the top hundred spots on the Wind and Cloud Ranking, it was a tournament for supremacy; to Xu Xiaoshou, it was an elimination assessment.

If the Red Roulette could give him a somewhat stronger passive skill, perhaps he could remain at Tiansang Spirit Palace and continue cultivating. If he was truly driven out, he would not have even half a place to shelter himself.

Xu Xiaoshou inserted a key into the small hole at the bottom of the Red Roulette. The mist above it grew even denser, and he could not see a thing.

"Give me a chance—give me something that can make me stronger instantly!"

As the key turned, Xu Xiaoshou clasped his hands together and began to pray. "No cultivation methods, no cultivation methods. They can't help much right now..."

Gray mist swirled. No one knew what was happening inside. Soon, the information panel updated:

Thanks for Your Patronage!

Xu Xiaoshou's face instantly darkened. What the hell was that?

There was actually something called "Thanks for Your Patronage"?

Could it not give him something normal people could actually use? It kept churning out these utterly wicked things, exactly like the pointer on the last roulette!

After venting inwardly, Xu Xiaoshou still had two keys left. He inserted another one and shouted like a madman, "Begone! Luck Emperor, possess me!"

The gray mist churned as Xu Xiaoshou stared at the information panel expectantly.

One More Key!

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

Hey, what was the point of that?

One went in and one came out. He got nothing. Was this purely for the sake of messing with him?

Xu Xiaoshou rolled his eyes so hard they nearly reached the heavens. Did it think it was cola? One More Key?

He did not even feel like burping, all right?!

He had used two keys, and still had two keys...

Xu Xiaoshou could no longer bear this torment. He inserted one key first, did not even look at the information panel, then estimated that enough time had passed. Once he saw the key disappear, he viciously jammed in another.

"No good drop, no good drop..."

While reverse-jinxing himself, he secretly glanced toward the information panel.

Obtained Extended Passive Skill: Sturdiness!

Thanks for Your Patronage!

The reverse jinx had worked?

Seeing the long line of text, Xu Xiaoshou slapped his thigh in wild excitement. Something had finally dropped.

But when he looked closely...

Sturdiness?

Xu Xiaoshou nearly spat out a mouthful of blood. What kind of random nonsense was this?

Why not give him Scrawniness instead?

"Uh, wait, something seems off?"

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly remembered that the Breathing Method's name had been misleading too, yet its effect had been excellent. Perhaps this Sturdiness also had some unexpected use?

"Let's hope so!" Xu Xiaoshou pulled himself together and looked at the red interface, only to find that it had changed again.

One, Basic Passive Skills.

Two, Extended Passive Skills.

Three, Store.

"There's an extra Extended Passive Skills section?" He checked the information panel again and only then noticed that Sturdiness had been categorized under Extended Passive Skills, placing it in a completely different category from the Breathing Method.

"The categories are pretty detailed..."

He clicked it open and saw a line of small text below:

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.1).

"Could it be a cultivation method for strengthening the physical body?" Xu Xiaoshou squeezed his arm. It had not become any firmer because of the appearance of this passive skill.

Perhaps the level was not high enough?

Xu Xiaoshou hesitated. He still had ten Skill Points. Where should he put them?

The Breathing Method was his fundamental mental cultivation method, so it was naturally worth investing in. Yet its advancement required long-term accumulation; yesterday's breakthrough had only come because water had accumulated behind the dam before bursting through.

But if Sturdiness truly was, as he suspected, a passive skill that strengthened the physical body, then it was undoubtedly more suitable for upgrading at this moment.

If his physical body improved noticeably, he could fight for a place in the Wind and Cloud Tournament. At the very least, he would not be eliminated.

When weighing the two benefits, one chose the weightier. Xu Xiaoshou ultimately decided to use his Skill Points on Sturdiness. What if a miracle happened?

He used the Skill Points on the panel, and the information panel promptly updated:

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.2).

Xu Xiaoshou watched his body closely. He did not know whether it was an illusion, but he felt as though he had become stronger. The change was not obvious, so he continued charging ahead with the skill levels.

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.3).

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.4).

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.5).

This time, it was quite obvious. Xu Xiaoshou felt the lines of his muscles swell slightly. His previously thin and scrawny body now at least looked like that of a normal person.

"There's hope!"

Xu Xiaoshou was overjoyed. He punched the ground, and it actually sank slightly with a dull thud.

"Good heavens, this boost is way too obvious. Could it be that this passive skill's Houtian levels correspond to a spirit refiner's Tenth-Realm Spirit Refining?" Xu Xiaoshou murmured absentmindedly.

A spirit refiner's initial cultivation realm was Tenth-Realm Spirit Refining. After that came the Innate Stage.

Thus, calling Tenth-Realm Spirit Refining Houtian was not wrong in the slightest.

This was only Houtian Lv.5, yet it already had such force. If he punched someone with it, he would definitely break several ribs!

And if it truly matched realms as he thought, then if he poured all his Skill Points into it, would his body not enter the Innate Stage?

"Damn!" Xu Xiaoshou's heart burned. An Innate physical body was far more difficult to attain than becoming an Innate Spirit Refiner!

He had originally planned to split the Skill Points evenly, but he immediately decided to stack them all onto Sturdiness. He wanted to see what effect it would have.

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.6).

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.7).

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.8).

The strength of his physical body continued to soar. Xu Xiaoshou felt as if he had taken some kind of drug, his energy inexhaustible.

By this point, his muscles no longer bulged. Instead, after reaching what ordinary people called the level of "sturdiness," they continued to be polished and carved little by little, gradually outlining perfect muscular lines.

Xu Xiaoshou took off his shirt, revealing a solid body brimming with aesthetic beauty.

Bang!

With one punch, the ground cracked apart!

Strength enough to rival an eighth-realm spirit refiner!

Xu Xiaoshou clicked his tongue in amazement. "Too strong. This is too strong!"

With this punch alone, he might qualify to contend for one of the top several hundred places on the Wind and Cloud Ranking. He definitely would not be eliminated now!

A sharp light flashed in Xu Xiaoshou's eyes. He was not satisfied with merely this. He still had three Skill Points left. Charge ahead!

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.9).

Sturdiness (Houtian Lv.10).

Sturdiness (Innate Stage Lv.1).

When Xu Xiaoshou saw the final line, happiness struck his mind blank with a buzz. "Innate Stage... it really is the Innate Stage!"

Every muscle on his body began to writhe violently. The next moment, his flesh expelled thick black impurities, reeking foully.

Xu Xiaoshou threw back his head and let out a long howl, then fiercely slapped himself.

Slap!

Not a dream!

He punched the ground. With a bang, a fist-sized crater appeared, and cracks spread from it like a spiderweb, covering several feet.

Only fifty percent of his strength!

Xu Xiaoshou froze. That had only been fifty percent of his strength. If he punched someone in the head...

Heh heh.

Xu Xiaoshou felt that this year's Wind and Cloud Tournament was about to become very interesting...