The Panel

That was also why Zhao Ping'an had awakened before dawn today: his master, Zheng Hetong, was going to start teaching him martial arts.

After a moment of confusion, Zhao Ping'an quickly climbed out of bed. Once he had washed up, he headed out.

The Blazing Blade Sect was only a second-rate sect, located on Feather Mountain, thirty li outside South Ridge City.

Feather Mountain stood 1,300 meters tall and covered roughly two hundred mu—less than two hundred meters across. Three sides were sheer cliffs, impossible for even the strongest to cross. Only the eastern side had a path leading up and down the mountain.

It was easy to defend and hard to attack. One man could hold the pass against ten thousand!

The entire mountain and the surrounding five li belonged to the Blazing Blade Sect.

Its holdings included two timberyards, three mines, and five medicinal herb gardens.

All the inner and outer disciples lived at the foot of the mountain. Only the stewards, elders, sect master, a small number of family members, and direct disciples were allowed to live on Feather Mountain.

Of course, most of them lived halfway up the mountain. The summit wasn't exactly a pleasant place: the temperature was low, getting up and down was difficult, and the night winds howled.

"Well, Little Fifth! What got you up so early today?"

"Yeah, Little Fifth. Ever since you came up the mountain, I don't think you've ever climbed out of bed before sunrise!"

"You all know Little Fifth's health is poor. Why are you still making fun of him? Master might give you a hiding later!"

"We're only joking! Life on the mountain is so dull. All we do every day is practice martial arts, practice martial arts, practice martial arts. I'm about to suffocate! I really envy Senior Disciple Brother..."

"If you can become a Houtian Martial Artist, you can go down the mountain too! Too bad..."

"Junior Sister, what do you mean by shaking your head? My internal organs are already near their limit. Give me half a year at most, and I'll definitely break through to the Martial Artist Realm!"

"Greetings, Second Senior Disciple Brother, Third Senior Sister, Fourth Senior Disciple Brother! Master agreed to start teaching me martial arts today, so..."

Zhao Ping'an scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed.

"No wonder! Your health has pretty much recovered. If you don't start practicing martial arts now, it'll be too late!"

Third Senior Sister Mu Yunmeng nodded slightly.

"Exactly! We all started conditioning our bodies when we were twelve. Come on, let's eat first, or Mistress will scold us again..."

Second Senior Disciple Brother Cui Kang'an chimed in, then suddenly shivered and urged them along.

"Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!"

The three people standing before Zhao Ping'an were his senior disciples. None of them had any conflicting interests, and under the guidance of Master Zheng Hetong and Mistress Zhao Xiuyun, they had all grown into cheerful people. They got along quite well.

Senior Disciple Brother Ji Xiangming, meanwhile, had broken through to the Houtian Martial Artist Realm three years ago, at the age of twenty, and gone down the mountain to gain experience.

Of course, he wasn't wandering around aimlessly. He was helping the Blazing Blade Sect manage some of its more distant holdings. He returned twice a year, and each time brought his junior brothers and sisters all sorts of things that could only be found in the city.

Snacks, toys, clothes, and more...

Second Senior Disciple Brother Cui Kang'an and Third Senior Sister Mu Yunmeng were about the same age. Both were just over nineteen, in the prime of their youth.

Their cultivation had also reached the ninth level of the Warrior Realm, and either of them could break through to the Martial Artist Realm at any moment.

Last was Fourth Senior Disciple Brother Liu Zhe, only three years older than Zhao Ping'an. He was seventeen this year, but had the best talent among the senior disciples. His cultivation had already reached the seventh level of the Warrior Realm, and he had a good chance of breaking through to the Martial Artist Realm at eighteen.

Years of practicing martial arts had made their bodies develop noticeably faster than their peers'. They were all impressively fit.

After the meal, Zhao Ping'an stood before Master Zheng Hetong on a Training Ground that covered only five hundred square meters.

The other senior disciples were practicing nearby. But their movements were off, and they kept glancing over at him. It was clear they weren't focused.

"Ping'an! Today I'll teach you the Blazing Blade Sect's Body Tempering Art. It's a path every martial apprentice must take!"

"The Body Tempering Art has three major stages, for a total of nine levels. Each stage comprises three levels!"

"They are: tendon training for levels one through three, bone tempering for levels four through six, and skin polishing for levels seven through nine."

"Once your tendons, bones, and skin have each been tempered to their limits, you'll undergo Blood Exchange. Once that's complete, you'll break through to the Warrior Realm!"

"But there's one thing you must remember: you have to temper your tendons, bones, and skin to their individual limits! Only then can you expel the greatest amount of impurities from your body during Blood Exchange, which will greatly benefit your future cultivation!"

Zheng Hetong then took out a thin booklet and handed it to Zhao Ping'an, telling him to familiarize himself with its contents first.

When Zhao Ping'an's soul merged with the body of that unknown beggar, he had learned a little of this world's language from the beggar's residual soul. That was what allowed him to understand other people.

Over the next four years, he had recuperated while learning to read and write under Mistress's guidance.

Now it was time to put those lessons to use.

Body Tempering Art!

Three bold characters, their strokes as sharp as iron hooks, stood on the fresh booklet's cover. Zhao Ping'an could tell at a glance that Master Zheng Hetong had written them himself.

A crude technique like this was long past useful to Zheng Hetong, who had already reached the Innate Realm. Clearly, he had copied it out especially for Zhao Ping'an.

Sitting cross-legged on a mat on the ground, Zhao Ping'an opened the first manual he had ever encountered.

Inside, he found not only instructions for practicing the Body Tempering Art, but also dense notes in red ink, carefully marking out all the precautions in great detail.

Before he knew it, Zhao Ping'an was engrossed, turning page after page.

By the time he reached the last page, it was already noon.

Suddenly...

"Ding! Crude technique Body Tempering Art detected. It has been imprinted onto the attribute panel!"

"Simple Deduction Panel officially activated! We wish you a pleasant journey!"

"Hm? What was that sound? A panel?"

The sudden voice in his mind startled Zhao Ping'an. It was an emotionless, synthesized computer voice.

He hadn't heard one in many years.

As the word "panel" appeared in Zhao Ping'an's mind, a blue screen immediately materialized before him. The rows of Chinese characters on it left him stunned.

[Name: Zhao Ping'an]

[Realm: Ordinary Person]

Techniques:

[Body Tempering Art (Crude): 0/100 (Not yet mastered, simplified), 100 jumping jacks increase proficiency by one point]

[Deduction Points: 100%]

(How to obtain Deduction Points: eating, absorbing outside energy, and other actions can all grant Deduction Points!

The higher your cultivation, the greater your total Deduction Points!

Once a technique is fully mastered, you can spend Deduction Points to deduce and advance it to a higher grade!)

"Isn't this the Game Panel I designed? It actually traveled through time with me?"

Staring at the attribute panel before him, Zhao Ping'an's eyes widened, and he couldn't hide his delight.

There might not be much on the panel, but he knew just how absurd this thing could become.

His design had no limits on deduction.

In other words, even the most worthless crude technique could, with enough deductions, eventually become divine—no, even stronger than divine.