Attributes

Li Pin did not heed Zhao Yuan's advice to stay in Jiangzhou City.

After buying a house and arranging the renovations, he returned to Hidden Dragon City.

It was not that he refused to take responsibility for his own safety, but because he believed that running away had never been the best way to solve a problem.

However, since the Five Elements Sect claimed they could handle the trouble caused by Xiang Yi's team, it would not be appropriate for him to overstep his bounds.

Ring, ring, ring!

A burst of ringing pulled Li Pin from sleep.

He opened his eyes and picked up his phone.

9:41.

"So late?"

He had made some gains in his visualization technique the night before. Through observation pushed to the utmost limit, he could tell that his mental attribute had increased, so he had practiced visualization a little longer.

And as a result, he had slept until this hour the next day?

Li Pin answered the call, and Li Yunyao's voice soon came through. "Brother, we're here!"

"Hm? You've arrived?"

Li Pin asked.

Over the past few months, Li Yunyao and Lin Xiaolu had come to Hidden Dragon City every Saturday and Sunday, letting Li Pin adjust their training plans according to their martial arts progress.

"Yes, yes. We'll be downstairs at your apartment in another ten minutes. Brother, did you just get up? Do you want us to bring you breakfast?"

"Fine. No need. I'll come down in a moment."

Li Pin hung up.

He glanced at the date displayed on his phone.

Saturday, April 16.

"There are less than half a month left before the Jiangzhou Tournament officially begins."

Li Pin muttered.

At the same time, he briefly sensed his own condition.

[Blood Qi: 33.41], [Vital Energy: 27.55]

[Gang Force: 107/143]

[Innate Nourishing Qi Art: Qi Nourishment Chapter: 64/102]

[Blood-Burning Secret Art: 29.41%]

"That was about it."

More than a month after stepping into the Dan Embrace realm, his physical strength had already risen.

After continual improvements during this period, the Blood-Burning Secret Art had become as effective as taking Blood-Burning Powder.

Its side effects had not vanished completely, but they had weakened significantly.

"With nearly a million in funding invested each month, along with medicinal nourishment, the Innate Nourishing Qi Art has improved greatly. Once the Jiangzhou Tournament is over, I should be able to enter the Foundation Establishment Chapter."

Li Pin lingered for a moment on the value of "Vital Energy."

Then he recalled the anomaly from his visualization the previous night.

He could now grasp the growth of his mental attribute.

Of course...

The efficiency was extremely low.

"To a certain extent, martial arts cultivation in this world placed great emphasis on science. Values like blood qi and physical strength had been distilled through countless refinements by research departments. Blood qi and the physique were easy to measure, but mental will was too intangible and elusive. The values fluctuated greatly depending on one's state of mind."

Li Pin had gathered relevant information. "Scientists once proposed collecting mental values in imitation of martial arts blood qi values, but after tens of thousands of trials, the discrepancies were absurdly large. Countries burned hundreds of billions on the project, yet no authoritative standard has emerged to this day."

Without enough numerical references, he could only use himself as the benchmark.

"Taking my state before visualization as the standard and defining it as 10, after this period of accumulation..."

Li Pin quickly summarized a new attribute.

[Mental: 10.53]

Sensing these numbers, he nodded in satisfaction.

"The attribute panel was simply this clear and tidy."

He quickly brushed his teeth and washed his face.

Just as he finished tidying himself up, the doorbell rang.

Li Pin opened the door, and Li Yunyao, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt and brimming with youthful energy, leaped inside.

Behind her was Lin Xiaolu, who seemed to have grown up a little.

After several months of martial arts training, both girls' spirits and bearing had changed considerably.

Coupled with their young age, they gave off a sunny, refreshing feeling at first glance.

"You're here?"

Li Pin said, "Then let's get moving."

"Brother, you just got up. Are you okay? Won't you be so tired you have no strength left later?"

Li Yunyao asked.

"How much strength could checking your training progress possibly take?"

Li Pin said helplessly.

"Okay!"

Li Yunyao strode into the training room and performed a set of boxing techniques right before Li Pin.

She had already trained them to a fairly accomplished level. Her twin ponytails danced through the air, spilling youthful vitality everywhere, a pleasing sight to behold.

From time to time, Li Pin reached out to examine her condition and correct her cultivation.

After instructing Li Yunyao, he switched to Lin Xiaolu.

Lin Xiaolu's progress was far faster than Li Yunyao's. She had already touched the threshold of force.

However...

After watching for a while, he paused.

Lin Xiaolu's balance...

His gaze swept across her chest, and only after a long while did he say, "Are you really planning to continue down the path of martial arts? Your aptitude is good, but certain conditions will limit your early development."

"Mm."

Lin Xiaolu nodded. "I used to... be very afraid of talking to people. Whenever someone came close to me, I would get nervous. But after I began practicing martial arts, I feel... a little better."

"Is that so."

Li Pin said nothing more, merely telling her, "Then drink less milk."

Lin Xiaolu quickly understood what he meant, and her little face immediately flushed with embarrassment.

Li Yunyao instantly burst into giggles. "Hahaha! I told you, Xiaolu, your conditions aren't good enough. You're not suited for martial arts. The martial arts world of the future will still need me, Li Yunyao, to shield you from wind and rain!"

Then she turned to Li Pin. "Brother, what about me? My conditions are fine, right?"

Li Pin glanced at her and calmly nodded. "You're fine."

"I knew it."

Li Yunyao looked rather pleased with herself.

But after being pleased for a moment, she seemed to realize that the "conditions" Li Pin had mentioned just now seemed to refer to...

Her smug smile stiffened.

Then she lowered her head, looked at the little white shoes on her feet, and then at Lin Xiaolu...

She immediately became depressed.

At that moment, she truly did not know whether she should be happy or sad.

"Xiaolu should be able to develop force this month. As for you... next month should be about right. Last month, I went to Jiangzhou City and found someone to ask about Jiangzhou University's admission policies. As long as you two develop force and score above four hundred on the exam, you can enroll."

Li Pin said.

"Four hundred!?"

Li Yunyao's eyes widened. "That much!?"

"?"

Li Pin looked at her. "Isn't that roughly a passing score out of the total?"

"But... but do you know how hard it is to pass?"

"You can't score that high?"

Li Pin frowned.

Though he would not be able to score that high himself if he took the test...

"Li Pin" had scored over six hundred!

"I... I..."

"Useless."

"You... don't bully a poor young girl..."

Li Yunyao said angrily.

"You really are poor."

Li Pin nodded.

Li Yunyao really was rather useless. He did not even know how she would support herself after entering society...

After a moment, he looked at Li Yunyao's face, which was so adorable even when she was angry that it made him want to give her cheeks a pinch...

Perhaps...

Maybe...

Like Li Yunyan, she would not need to worry about that problem.

For a moment, Li Pin could not help reaching out and pinching her fair, flawless, almost unfairly perfect cheek. "All right, I'll think of a way, but you still need to score as high as possible."

"Big Brother Li?"

At that moment, a voice came from outside. "The door wasn't closed, so I..."

Then Liu Yingying walked in carrying some medicinal ingredients.

But when she saw the intimate interaction between Li Pin and Li Yunyao, her nose immediately tingled, and she lowered her head.

"I'm sorry... I came at the wrong time."

"No, you came at exactly the right time."

Li Pin stepped forward. "Help me decoct the new medicine I bought. I need Yunyao and Xiaolu to take it."