Practicing Martial Arts Until Your Underwear Wears Through

Jianghai City, by the coast of Moon Bay.

Before the sun had even risen, Lin Ao sat cross-legged on a private beach, eyes closed, facing the vast ocean.

He wore nothing but a pair of trunks, his breathing rhythmic and controlled, revealing his lean, powerful muscles.

His facial features appeared even more resolute, mature, and filled with strength.

The slender physique he once possessed had been replaced by robust muscle; his shoulders had broadened, and his well-defined muscle lines exuded an aura of masculinity and confidence.

The proportions of his limbs were now more balanced, shedding any trace of fragility in favor of a healthy, muscular aesthetic.

This physical transformation granted him an air of authority and charm that made others naturally gravitate toward him.

As the sun began to crest the horizon, the morning light shimmered, and the hazy orange-red orb rose slowly in the distance, casting rays of brilliant light across the sky.

Lin Ao shifted his hand gesture, and a faint golden glow seemed to flicker across his body.

Upon contact with the morning rays, Lin Ao's entire body turned crimson, and the faint golden light intensified significantly.

For the past month and a half, Lin Ao had been staying alone on this private beach he had purchased.

Father Lin and Mother Lin had moved back into the family residence temporarily, as the Lin Family Manor was currently undergoing renovations.

Lin Ao, however, had slipped away here in secret, telling no one.

First, he needed a place to stay during the house renovations.

Second, he needed to escape the temptations of Gu Wanqing.

Third, and most importantly, he needed to cultivate a technique he had previously mastered up to the True Martial Realm.

[Sun God Art]

He had obtained two techniques simultaneously: the [Sun God Art] and the [Moon God Art]. The Moon God Art could only be cultivated by women, while the Sun God Art was the opposite, restricted to men; thus, he had no choice but to cultivate the highly dangerous Sun God Art.

The entry requirements for the Sun God Art were incredibly harsh: one had to absorb the first ray of the rising sun for forty-nine consecutive days without interruption.

During the absorption process, one's body would feel as if it were being incinerated by raging fire, and with each passing day of cultivation, that agony would increase tenfold or even a hundredfold.

An energy source resembling a sun would form within the body, circulating endlessly through the limbs.

Those without the proper aptitude who attempted this technique would, at best, suffer shattered meridians and become cripples, or at worst, explode and die.

Most practitioners couldn't even last ten days. Lin Ao had previously cultivated it with a death-defying resolve, and to his surprise, he had succeeded. With that past experience, he felt he could do it again.

And so, he had come here. Whether it was an illusion or not, the cultivation felt easier than before. Although the burning sensation remained, by the second day, he felt his meridians were already as good as new and even more resilient—unlike the past, when he had to grit his teeth through the pain just to cultivate.

If one could endure the forty-nine days, reaching the entry level of the Sun God Art meant becoming a Grandmaster—not an ordinary one, but one capable of fighting a typical Great Grandmaster to a draw. It was truly terrifying.

Once initiated, there was no longer a need to draw the sun's energy into the body at dawn, as the "fire seed" was already established within. One only needed to bask in the sun to grow stronger, as the flowing power would constantly temper the meridians and enhance one's strength. If one continued to absorb the sun's essence daily, it would only accelerate the cultivation speed.

In truth, the best method was to engage in dual cultivation with someone practicing the Moon God Art, which would grant a year's worth of power in a single day.

Today happened to be the final day of Lin Ao's initiation into the Sun God Art. His skin was now bright red, and tiny cracks had appeared on his surface, with wisps of golden light leaking from within.

He felt as if he were being scorched in a furnace, glowing like a miniature sun and emitting a blinding radiance.

"Withdraw!"

Lin Ao let out a sharp shout and changed his hand gesture once more. In an instant, all the light retracted into his body, and his cracked skin healed in the blink of an eye.

Lin Ao continued to sit in meditation for a while longer before exhaling a breath of stale air.

"Damn~ that final step is still so dangerous; it almost blew me apart."

Lin Ao opened his eyes. He was completely naked, as his last remaining pair of trunks had long since been incinerated to nothing.

He clenched his fist, feeling the surging power concentrated within it. He stood up and slammed a punch into a nearby rock.

The two-meter-tall boulder was shattered into dust by his strike.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. I have to say, the power is still as fierce as ever. But why, with such power, couldn't I beat those jerks before?"

Lin Ao had been at the True Martial Realm back then, and how many people in the world could reach that level? Yet, every time he fought them, they would at most be heavily injured; he had never managed to kill a single one. Then, they would all turn around and reach the True Martial Realm themselves. It was absurd—truly absurd.

Perhaps things would be different now that he had his own plans and actions?

He asked himself this in his heart, because this time, he had reached the entry level of the Sun God Art much earlier than before.

Although Lin Ao was burned like a red shrimp every day here, life was actually quite comfortable.

Gu Wanqing, that madwoman, would go crazy looking for him every day, demanding he report his safety. If Lin Ao didn't reply, she would bombard him with photos of black silk stockings and lace.

From time to time, this would leave Lin Ao heading out to cultivate with dark circles under his eyes.

However, Lin Ao seemed to sense a change in Gu Wanqing. She... she really seemed to like him?

Lin Ao didn't dare to give a definitive answer. He was waiting—waiting for the moment he could truly kill Xiao Fan!

As for Qin Yun, she was the easiest to appease. He told her he was away on business, and they would chat every night, looking at various high-slit cheongsams. During this time, it seemed as if a new door had been opened for Qin Yun.

She was tireless in changing outfits for Lin Ao to see, becoming increasingly bold. She no longer called him "Howling" anymore—she called him "Darling" directly, having switched to a more affectionate nickname.

She would also send him shy, bashful voice messages from time to time, which Lin Ao found almost impossible to handle!

At the same time, he could discern Xiao Fan's movements from their chats. Xiao Fan was pestering her every day, leaving her exhausted and struggling to cope.

Sometimes she would simply refuse to leave her house, but Xiao Fan would still go to her courtyard gate and call out to her, leaving Qin Yun feeling incredibly annoyed.

At the same time, it seemed she was discussing some kind of cooperation with her grandfather; Qin Yun didn't specify the details, but Lin Ao figured she was likely trying to use Elder Qin to deal with the Lin Family.

A cold sneer curled the corners of Lin Ao's lips. Large-scale commercial warfare wasn't something you could just launch on a whim. Previously, he had Qin Yun's support, but now that Qin Yun spent every day just changing outfits for him to see, how could she expect to pull off such petty tricks when she couldn't even get through the door? What a joke!

The quietest of them all was Liu Menghan. During this period, they had only video chatted a few times—yes, video chatted—because of Liu Nian. Every time they spoke, it was Liu Nian chatting with Lin Ao while she was responsible for holding Liu Nian. Lin Ao felt she seemed quite nervous, though he didn't know why.

The renovations for the Lin Family estate would likely take another half a month, so he could still spend half a month living it up here.

He shouldn't waste this rare opportunity for relaxation and peace.

After finishing breakfast in the villa, Lin Ao changed into casual clothes and headed to the small town near the beach to look around. Having been here for several days, he had spent almost every day cultivating and had never once gone out.

As he walked along the road, preparing to reach the town, he encountered a film crew; they were likely there to scout locations for a movie.

One of the girls passed by him, and she felt somewhat familiar.

Lin Ao scratched his head. Who could he possibly know in a place like this?

He turned his head and continued walking toward the town with great interest.

"Yunyun, I've arrived~ This place is so remote; the director insisted on coming here to film, it's so annoying!"