Deep in the abandoned factory, in a corner of a maintenance workshop covered in thick grease and rust.
The air was filled with the stuffy smell of motor oil, metal filings, and dust.
Several explosion-proof lamps hung from rusted steel beams, casting a dim, flickering light that barely dispelled a small patch of darkness and enveloped Lin Xiao and Fatty Wang in a faint halo.
Fatty Wang huddled on a pile of tattered, oil-stained sacks. His chubby face was still pale with fright, and his beady eyes warily swept across the deep darkness outside the workshop, as if a vicious beast ready to devour them might pounce out at any moment.
The stark law of the jungle in the black market, where human lives were as worthless as weeds, had been branded deeply into his mind like a cold iron mark.
"Brother Xiao..." Fatty Wang's voice was thick with lingering fear, and he kept it extremely low. "Skinny Monkey said that even the cheapest Energy Stone Shard in the black market costs twenty or thirty thousand per piece, and it's impossible to tell the real ones from the fake ones. They'll scam you to death without batting an eye! How... how are we supposed to get that much money?"
He looked worriedly at Lin Xiao, who was sitting against the wall.
Lin Xiao leaned against the cold, rough wall, his hat brim still pulled low and covering most of his face.
His right arm was hidden beneath his oversized hoodie. A stubborn, dull ache came in waves from the fractured bone beneath the binding cloth.
But what unsettled him even more was the feeling of depletion clinging to the depths of his soul like a parasite—Source Energy Points: -1.3.
Their trip to the black market had not only failed to solve his predicament; it had instead become a cold mirror that reflected his current insignificance and fragility.
Without Source Energy Points or strength, he did not even have the right to struggle in that chaotic, bloody world.
Scarface Qiang and the shadow of the Blood Wolf Gang hung over him like a sword suspended above his head, while Su Qingxue's protection as a "shield" would not last forever.
Become stronger! He had to become stronger as quickly as possible!
Even if it was only the slightest improvement!
Money? He had none for now.
Energy Stones? They were beyond his reach.
Lin Xiao's gaze, like a wolf lurking in the darkness, slowly fell on his outstretched left hand.
The joints of his fingers were distinct, and his palm was covered with a thin layer of calluses.
That hand had just been unable to afford even the most inferior Energy Stone Shard in the black market.
But... it could still throw punches!
"Long Fist"! The most basic fist technique taught throughout the martial arts classes at Tianhai Third High School. Its moves were simple and direct, broad and powerful, emphasizing the principle of drawing strength from the ground and sending the fist out like a dragon.
Lin Xiao had practiced it for several years and had long since mastered it by heart, but that was all.
In the eyes of a true martial artist, this fist technique was riddled with flaws and had limited power, making it as useless as chicken ribs.
Yet at this moment, this useless fist technique had become the only lifeline Lin Xiao could grasp!
Could the Modifier modify it?
The thought ignited instantly like a wildfire!
He suddenly straightened up, the movement tugging at his injured right arm and making the corner of his mouth twitch in pain. But the light in his eyes grew brighter and brighter.
"Fatty, watch the door."
Lin Xiao's voice was low and hoarse, carrying an unquestionable tone of command.
Fatty Wang was startled by Lin Xiao's sudden movement. Seeing the dangerous glint in his eyes beneath the dim yellow light, he instinctively nodded, then scrambled behind a pile of discarded parts by the workshop entrance and nervously poked his head out to keep watch.
Lin Xiao took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his physical fatigue and excruciating pain as he concentrated all his mental strength!
Buzz!
Deep within his mind, that dark-blue screen struggled to emerge. It was even dimmer than before, its edges flickering with unstable glimmers like a candle guttering in the wind.
The glaring Source Energy Points: -1.3 in the center kept flashing, while the cold warning seemed to rumble once more deep within his soul: Core functions restricted... energy consumption increased...
Lin Xiao clenched his teeth and ignored the warning.
His will, like invisible tentacles, struggled toward the gear icon at the bottom of the screen that represented basic modification and that he could barely still sense.
"Target... locked onto self..."
He silently recited the words in his mind, his will struggling to guide the process. "Martial technique 'Long Fist'... full scan... optimize!"
The screen shook violently, as if bearing immense pressure.
In the central area, a humanoid outline traced by countless dim lines slowly emerged, practicing "Long Fist."
The outline's movements were somewhat stiff, and its lines were crude, representing the inferior nature of the fist technique.
Target locked: Lin Xiao—martial technique "Long Fist" (Basic Beginner Level)
Deep scan initiated... Scanning...
Multiple minor flaws and redundant energy circulation points discovered (17 in total)...
Proceed with full optimization? Estimated effect: Slightly increase the technique's fluidity and instantaneous explosive power (approximately 5%–8%), eliminating some obvious flaws.
Source Energy Points required: 0.1 (Due to restricted core functions, energy consumption increased by 50%)
0.1 points! It was still an exorbitant price while he was already overdrawn!
Lin Xiao's heart clenched painfully!
He already owed 1.3 points. If he spent another 0.1, that would make it -1.4! It was practically adding frost to snow!
Was it worth it?
The indifferent gazes in the black market, the glaring pool of blood on the ground, Scarface Qiang's savage face, Su Qingxue's cold protection... flashed before his eyes like scenes from a revolving lantern!
Damn it! Do it!
Every little improvement counted!
He could earn more Source Energy Points after losing them, but once his life was gone, he would lose everything!
"Optimize!" Lin Xiao let out a low roar in his mind, his will crashing into the confirmation option like a heavy hammer!
Command received! Source Energy Points deducted: 0.1!
Source Energy Points: -1.3 - 0.1 = -1.4
Parameters being modified... 1%... 20%... (speed significantly slowed)... 60%... 100%... Optimization complete!
The notification tone carried a heavy, sluggish delay.
Buzz!
A faint yet incomparably pure, strange warmth surged into Lin Xiao's mind!
Countless details and insights regarding "Long Fist," along with the seventeen flaws and redundant points precisely detected and optimized by the Modifier, were branded clearly into the depths of his consciousness as if poured into his mind from above!
He seemed to see the humanoid outline practicing the fist technique within the screen. Its movements suddenly became far more fluid and natural!
The minute delays when exerting force, the barely perceptible stiffness when shifting his footing, and the several dead angles along the fist's trajectory that an opponent could easily exploit... were quietly smoothed out, corrected, and connected by a force originating from the level of rules!
The circulation of the entire fist technique seemed to have been reorganized by an invisible hand. It became simpler and more efficient, faintly revealing a sense of perfect harmony!
"Whew..." Lin Xiao abruptly opened his eyes, and a glimmer of dark-blue light seemed to flash through the depths of his pupils!
An indescribable sense of enlightenment filled his entire body!
He felt that his mind had never been so clear regarding every detail of "Long Fist"!
His body even developed a powerful urge to practice it immediately!
He sprang to his feet!
Ignoring the pain in his right arm and the waves of dizziness brought on by his overdraft!
His left fist clenched tight!
Buzz!
A faint yet far more concentrated sensation of qi rose from the soles of his feet along the modified and optimized route of force, passed through his waist and hips and up his spine, and finally gathered at the edge of his left fist!
The entire process was smooth and natural, at least half a beat faster than before, while the loss in transmitting power was greatly reduced!
"Ha!"
A short shout exploded through the empty workshop!
Lin Xiao's left foot suddenly stepped forward half a pace. His waist twisted, and his left fist shot out like a cannonball, tearing through the stuffy air with a forceful gale far sharper and faster than before as it slammed into a relatively thick concrete brick on the wall ahead, one covered in rust and grease!
The fist shot out like lightning!
Its trajectory was straight and completely free of ornamentation, yet it carried the simplicity and power forged through endless tempering!
Bang!
A dull, heart-shaking boom!
Fragments flew everywhere! Rust and dust pattered down!
The thick concrete brick instantly filled with fine, spiderweb-like cracks centered around Lin Xiao's fist!
The cracks spread and deepened as if alive. Several small fragments even broke off and shot straight out!
Lin Xiao's left fist remained firmly stopped before the wall, his knuckles slightly red and stinging faintly from the impact, but that was all! There was none of the bone-splitting pain he had expected!
There was not even any noticeable discomfort from the recoil!
The force was more concentrated! The exertion was smoother! The recoil was weaker!
Fatty Wang shuddered at the sudden boom and hurriedly poked his head out from behind the discarded parts, his beady eyes wide. "Brother Xiao... Brother Xiao! Are you... are you tearing down the building?"
When he saw the concrete brick covered in cracks and Lin Xiao's unharmed left fist stopped before it, his jaw nearly dropped in shock!
"Holy crap... Brother Xiao! That punch of yours..."
Fatty Wang was speechless. He had seen Lin Xiao practice boxing before. Although Lin Xiao had been fierce even then, there was no way he could have cracked such a thick wall brick with a single punch!
And judging from Lin Xiao's appearance, he seemed completely relaxed?
Lin Xiao slowly withdrew his left fist and held it before his eyes, opening and then slowly clenching his five fingers.
His finger joints gave off faint cracking sounds. An unprecedented sense of strength and control flowed through the muscles and bones of his left arm along the optimized route of force.
He looked at the shocking cracks on the wall, then lowered his head to glance at his fist. That trademark roguish smile once again surfaced on his grime-covered face.
This time, there was less flippancy in the smile and more genuine excitement and confidence, tinged with wildness!
It worked! The effect was remarkable!
Although it was only a basic fist technique, although it had improved by only 5%–8%, and although it had consumed a precious 0.1 Source Energy Points, increasing his debt to -1.4...
This tangible improvement was like tearing open a ray of light in the darkness of despair!
It proved that he was on the right path!
It proved that Lin Xiao did not have to rely solely on that strange and unpredictable Modifier to "modify" others!
He could modify himself as well! He could dig out his own potential!
Source Energy Points! The key to increasing his strength!
The greedy light in Lin Xiao's eyes, like oil poured onto a fire, instantly burned even more fiercely!
He licked his slightly cracked lips. His gaze seemed to pierce through the walls of the abandoned workshop and once again reach toward the depths of that chaotic and dangerous black market.
"Fatty," Lin Xiao said, his voice carrying barely restrained excitement and hoarseness, "money... Energy Stones... I'm damn well going to get my hands on them!"
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