His first spirit ring's soul skill was called Hand of Thieving, but it wasn't a golden finger for stealing things. It was a special ability that belonged to the Traveler's Diary.
It was called Traveler's Diary.
Its effect was that it could prevent the protagonist from being ambushed during his journey.
Besides that, Tang San's Diary had another special feature—the Traveler's Light.
In short, when the protagonist was traveling, he was protected by a peaceful mode. He wouldn't be ambushed or attacked unless he actively provoked someone.
Once Luo Mo was certain the protagonist wasn't in any danger, he felt at ease.
Now that he had awakened his martial spirit—and had Innate Full Spirit Power—this was the perfect time to find Old San a golden finger.
But with the strength he currently possessed, he still couldn't take on Tang Hao and his son. The best golden finger he could give Tang San for now was a reward for the hardship he'd endured.
The first thing Luo Mo thought of was the two ten-thousand-year spirit bones that were closely connected to Tang San.
One was the right leg bone of the Blue Silver Emperor.
The other was the spirit bone of the Soft Bone Rabbit, Xiao Wu.
Since Xiao Wu was still alive, he wasn't sure he could obtain that particular bone.
As for the first one, it would be a long time before it appeared in Spirit Hunting Forest. It wouldn't show up in Suotuo City anytime soon.
But Tang Hao was guarding Spirit Hunting Forest, and getting his hands on the Blue Silver Emperor's right leg bone was a tall order. It'd be best to wait until Tang Hao went hunting for spirit beasts.
It would be even harder to get Xiao Wu's bone. As long as she was in the academy, all Luo Mo would have to do was offer her food and hide a trap beneath it. That would lure out the ten-thousand-year-old Soft Bone Rabbit spirit bone.
He didn't have enough strength to deal with a ten-thousand-year spirit bone, so there was no point considering it.
There was still some time before the rabbit's spirit ring reached its limit. Luo Mo decided to first awaken the spirit in his body.
While he was at it, he could also test the uses of his innate skill.
With that decided, Luo Mo left the Wooden House and headed to the courtyard.
There wasn't much in the courtyard, just a sparse ring of trees. A small patch of land had been turned over on the right, where he usually grew vegetables and chili peppers.
Luo Mo began practicing in the empty space on the left. He completed a hundred push-ups, then got up and ran in place before moving on to sit-ups and long-distance running.
Tang San had the Mysterious Heaven Skill. He had the Jadeite Secret Method.
As soon as he started practicing, Luo Mo followed the Jadeite Secret Method. But he hadn't been able to reach the first stage, even after such a long time.
Now, he could complete a full cycle in half a day.
But awakening his martial spirit only took him an hour.
He didn't feel tired or weak, and he wasn't even sweating much. Luo Mo was extremely pleased. He decided that instead of practicing one full cycle a day, he'd raise it to three.
After one week, Luo Mo had grown three centimeters taller.
His muscles were defined, but not overly bulky. Even with his clothes on, you could tell he was well-built.
At the same time, he had developed a couple of special features from his innate skill.
The first was Nami's Martial Arts. The full set of Nami's mechanical gloves had been assembled, with functions that included instantly equipping them, transforming them, and self-repair.
However, the transformation function could only switch them into cold weapons, and they couldn't be fitted with firearms.
That was a bit disappointing for Luo Mo.
The second was the Innate Spirit Stone. It could gather and condense spirit energy into spirit stones. If a spirit stone was embedded in a groove, its energy could be used.
He didn't know exactly how it worked yet. He'd have to find some spirit energy and try it out.
"Hey, Xiao San, at it again."
Every day, after finishing his exercises, Luo Mo would deliberately pass by Tang San's place. He hoped Tang San would start practicing the hidden weapons with his father. The thought of getting his hands on those techniques made him excited.
But whenever he tried to sneak a look, Tang San would stop practicing at just the right moment. It was obvious he was on guard against him.
Luo Mo didn't mind. That was only natural. Who would want someone spying on their family's secret techniques?
"Mm." Tang San stopped what he was doing and looked calmly at him.
Luo Mo circled around him, pretending to look around. Then he asked curiously, "Where's Uncle Tang? Isn't he home?"
"My father went out early this morning."
Luo Mo gave a vague reply, but Tang San didn't know where his own father had gone, either.
Since Tang San wasn't going to give anything away, Luo Mo slowly headed home. Along the way, he suddenly remembered that he had no idea where his own protagonist had run off to, either.
He opened the Traveler's Diary and checked its travel record.
This was the second time he'd checked the diary's contents.
[The protagonist set out for Spirit Hunting Forest, but got lost. He encountered a mantis and asked for directions. The mantis ignored him, so he used his spirit energy to... ]
Luo Mo: "..."
What a strange fellow. The protagonist's personality was pretty odd, too.
[The protagonist saw a mountain in the distance and decided to venture inside. But after traveling for ages, he still couldn't reach it. After walking all day, he hoped he could trade his short legs for a pair of long ones...]
Luo Mo's mouth twitched.
You're seriously going to make a whole thing out of those short legs?
[The protagonist found a cave and decided to spend the night there. Before long, a mouse came out and bit him. He then chased the mouse all around, but still failed to catch it. The mouse eventually took him to its home...]
Luo Mo sighed. The Traveler's Light really was a pain.
Was the diary going to make him watch the protagonist chase a mouse around and get bitten?
Would the Traveler's Light always end up like this?
Too bad the protagonist was just an ordinary person, while the martial spirits here were way too powerful.
[The protagonist followed the mouse into the mountain, but got lost. He encountered the Soft Bone Rabbit as it hopped around. When he got hungry, he ate Immortal Herbs. When he got thirsty, he drank stream water. When he got tired, he slept against the Soft Bone Rabbit's leg...]
Luo Mo couldn't help but wonder whether the diary understood what a vehicle was.
[The protagonist befriended the Soft Bone Rabbit. But the next day, his new friend was eaten by a wolf. The protagonist was heartbroken for three seconds, then jumped onto the wolf's back. He became a new mount, traveling even faster...]
"Ha! You fool!"
Luo Mo couldn't help laughing out loud.
[The protagonist rode the wolf around the mountain for three days. He accidentally entered a valley. There was a pool in the valley, and a waterfall beside it. The first time he saw the waterfall, something stirred deep in his heart...]
Luo Mo was stunned. He suddenly felt that the protagonist was going to...
He was going to try "bravely challenging the Water Grotto"!
Wait. Luo Mo seemed to remember reading a novel with a familiar-sounding story.
A mountain, a pool, a waterfall...
And it wasn't far from the village where he was staying.
Could this be the place where Tang Hao had hidden his secret techniques and spirit bones?
[The protagonist dismounted from the wolf, shook the mountain and river with his great strength, and stood firm beside the pool. He faced the waterfall as if he were Tang San, who had been reborn into this world. His heroic spirit soared as he rose up to the waterfall, seemingly ready to split heaven and earth apart. Then he cried, "Oink!" and leaped into the pool...]
Luo Mo: "..."
You said you were making a big move, and then you pulled something like that.
The Traveler's Diary seemed to have some strange sense of humor.
[The protagonist picked up a spirit stone, swam to the waterfall, and leaped out of the water. He tried to grab the rock wall, but by some stroke of luck, landed on a flat rock. He struck the rock again and again, trying to make a dent in it...]
He really did it!
That was Tang Hao's secret base!
Luo Mo was thrilled. If he could get his hands on the Blue Silver Emperor's right leg bone, he'd be able to act for himself.
[The protagonist entered the cave. It was very dark. He walked to the deepest part, where he found a bright stone chamber. The light came from a hole in the stone wall. Right below the hole was a small mound of earth, and growing on it was a blue Immortal Herb...]
That was an Immortal Herb!
Luo Mo was impressed by the Traveler's Diary. He had no idea it could be this useful.
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