The Thirteen Great Protectors' Adamantine Bell Shield

After Bai Lang took down his twin maces, he discovered a set of straps on the deer antler rack, with a fitting that seemed designed to allow the user to carry the maces on their back. He happily put these items away, and when he turned to look, he saw that the others had also begun their exchanges—they were perhaps more familiar with each other, having gone through life-or-death battles, so there was a little bit of communication, but it seemed they were all exchanging for what they desired.

"Right, can we exchange points with each other?" Bai Lang asked casually. The voice immediately replied, "Not allowed, but exchangeable items can be traded." Bai Lang immediately pouted, "As expected, a pointless extra step."

Everyone exchanged their items quite quickly, but it seemed that apart from Bai Lang, no one else exchanged anything that looked conspicuous—they all seemed to have exchanged for elixirs and divine medicines. At this point, Bai Lang also spoke, "What's the deal with the little monk Ci'en? As for me—this trial is definitely problematic!" His words caused the eyes of the two women to redden slightly, and the two men also sighed.

"What a pity about the little monk." It turned out that this little monk was indeed a diligent and courageous practitioner. If he hadn't sacrificed himself to break through the target's defenses, everyone here would likely have died. The words were filled with endless regret and hatred for their own insufficient Martial Arts. Bai Lang blinked. Although he had only known the little monk for a short time, he was talkative and easy to get along with, definitely a good monk. He was an even better monk for wanting to return to secular life—yet his death like this was truly regrettable.

"Right, can we revive?" Bai Lang asked loudly. "Talk about it when you have enough points and heavenly treasures." The voice sounded quite annoying, but what it said also boosted everyone's spirits. So, they all said they would keep in touch, and then, following the voice's instructions, they walked out of the palace, entered the mist, and disappeared. Murong Hua winked at Bai Lang, "I'll come find you later." Then she left first.

Bai Lang was the last to leave the palace. He touched the Jade Fish and looked back one last time before stepping into the mist.

His vision blurred again, but Bai Lang immediately saw a strange, ghoul-like head on his chest, its eyes flashing before disappearing back into his chest. "Huh?" Bai Lang didn't want to say more for the moment. After walking a few more steps, the white mist simply vanished, and he found himself standing in his own room. The twin maces were still behind him, and his clothes were still tattered, but there was no other abnormality.

"This is..." Bai Lang touched the Jade Fish. "Could it be that this fish didn't cause this?" When he brought the Jade Fish closer, Bai Lang noticed that it looked much more hydrated, as if it were about to become a live fish. "So soon?" Bai Lang muttered.

He quickly changed into new clothes, then put away the Purple Gold Mace, and cursed a few times, "The weapons I just got finished with haven't even warmed up yet, and they're gone. Even my short sword is broken, what kind of situation is this!" But there was also an unexpected gain. This battle had significantly improved his Golden Bell Shield's internal energy in impacting his meridians. Perhaps within a few months, he could open up the Twelve Primary Meridians and the Eight Extraordinary Meridians, and then he could truly break through the second stage.

As he expected, three months later, he had indeed opened up all the meridians in his body, and his Martial Arts advanced greatly. His internal energy was as vast as a bell, but he had not yet opened the Ren and Du Meridians, so he could not step into the Innate Realm. And the second stage of the Golden Bell Shield had quietly been broken through on the day he opened all his meridians. However, Murong Hua, who said she would come find him soon, still hadn't appeared—Bai Lang didn't mind. He was in a very good state now. If Murong Hua came to find him, it would be difficult for him to hide himself.

Bai Lang had absolutely no interest in standing out in the Changle Gang.

Bai Lang was happy that Murong Hua didn't come to find him—after all, he might encounter her again in the next trial. Now that Bai Lang had broken through the second stage of the Golden Bell Shield, he found that the third stage was also within reach. The three stages of the Golden Bell Shield formed one section, and the initial three stages were meant to be broken through like a storm. Bai Lang gritted his teeth and prepared to directly break through the third stage.

After breaking through the second stage of the Golden Bell Shield, his internal organs were already covered by a layer of True Qi, making it difficult to suffer internal injuries under normal circumstances. The protective True Qi also gradually took shape, and he no longer needed to deliberately circulate his energy to defend a specific part of his body; his body was now integrated as a whole, rather than requiring him to circulate energy to resist blows. Only after this second stage could it truly be called the "Thirteen Great Protectors' Adamantine Bell Shield." Furthermore, the internal energy of the Golden Bell Shield, combined with the power-nurturing of the Thirty-two Forms Long Fist, further increased Bai Lang's strength.

In these past few months, he had also tried to find a set of fist and foot skills stronger than the Thirty-two Forms Long Fist, but he had a prerequisite: he couldn't let the Tiger Form True Intent he had cultivated go to waste. Therefore, he had requirements for his fist techniques, which was that they should ideally include the Tiger Form. Fortunately, there were tigers in this world, and they were likely top-tier beasts, so Tiger Form Fist definitely existed. It was just that Bai Lang hadn't found a suitable one. He couldn't afford a suitable one with his contribution points, and he didn't want an unsuitable one.

However, one good thing was that his Iron Mace Technique had made some progress. Anyway, it was simpler to use than swords and sabers, involving nothing more than smashing, hooking, wiping, coiling, and thrusting. The most commonly used were smashing and thrusting. If he could borrow the power of a mount... "But my Lightness Skill is already very fast over short distances, so I don't really need to borrow the power of a mount." Bai Lang thought this, but it didn't stop him from practicing with mules and horses handled by the real estate agency—he did have that bit of privilege.

Of course, people at the real estate agency and in the gang knew that Bai Lang had found his preferred weapon. However, most people just laughed—using swords and sabers made one a martial artist, but using an iron mace really didn't fit the image. This country didn't prohibit armor, but martial artists didn't wear it. At most, they wore soft armor to defend against assassination. For martial arts experts, it was better to use that money to acquire precious swords and sharp weapons rather than wear armor.

Bai Lang ignored them. One day, fueled by a surge of energy, he began to attempt the third stage. This third stage also required external force. Since Bai Lang didn't want anyone to know he was practicing the Golden Bell Shield, he had to do it himself. This involved wielding the iron mace and smashing it against his own body—this was the Striking Technique. Practicing the third stage was precisely about using the Striking Technique to strengthen the skin, flesh, tendons, and bones, making the meridians tough and the skin and flesh difficult to be cut by blades. Even if injured, it wouldn't hurt much, preventing him from losing combat effectiveness due to pain.

The heavier the blows in this stage, the faster he would break through—of course, not too heavy, as smashing himself to death or causing severe injury would be foolish. However, after three days of striking, Bai Lang had achieved the third stage—this stage was actually the easiest and fastest. As for the fourth stage, Bai Lang flipped through the Secret Manual. "It will basically take time." And at this very moment, the Jade Fish leaped up again, splashing and creating a void. Bai Lang, bare-chested and holding his iron mace, fell into it.