Ape Demon Iron Body Technique

A tall, burly old man sat in a broad wooden chair twice the height of an ordinary one.

It was none other than Martial Uncle Yuan Hong.

His short hair was white, and his fierce-looking face made him resemble a giant ape in human form.

"Wang Zhengyang called me. You must be Li He, the one with fifth-grade bone structure... Hmph, that brat sure knows how to make trouble for me."

"Go on, what did he send you to see me about?"

Li He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but when Martial Uncle Yuan Hong mentioned Wang Zhengyang, his voice held not only impatience but also a hint of gritted teeth.

But Li He wasn't one to gossip. He got straight to the point. "My master once said that Martial Uncle is deeply versed in martial arts and has extraordinary insight. This disciple has only just joined the martial arts hall, and his foundations are shallow. I hope to browse the books here in the Scripture Pavilion to broaden my knowledge, and I also hope Martial Uncle might offer me some guidance. I would be most grateful."

Yuan Hong's expression didn't change at all. He only narrowed his eyes slightly, as though weighing Li He's sincerity.

"Guidance? That brat Wang Zhengyang sure knows how to make a good deal. You're far too weak right now. There'd be no point in guiding you."

He made no effort to be polite and pointed toward the back of the hall. "Over there, the few bookshelves against the wall. Go look through them yourself."

"Remember! You may only look at those few shelves. Don't go near the others, don't touch anything, don't make noise, don't get anything dirty or damage it. Put every book back where you found it, and don't come bother me unless you have to."

"This disciple will remember your teachings, Martial Uncle. Thank you."

Though Martial Uncle Yuan Hong was ill-tempered and strict with his rules, he had still given Li He a chance. Simply being allowed into the Scripture Pavilion to browse its books was already an enormous gain.

Yuan Hong paid Li He no further attention. He picked up an old book from the table and began reading intently.

Li He walked softly toward the area Yuan Hong had indicated.

He thought back to what had just happened.

So this is the strength of a Third Realm Great Martial Master? That momentary suction force just now—I gave it everything I had, yet I couldn't hold on for even half a second. The gap is simply too great.

He couldn't help thinking of his father, Li Jianguo, and his work in the Safe Zone. The inspector the Federation had recently sent there was also a Third Realm martial artist.

Do all Third Realm martial artists possess such power? Father will be back safely in three weeks. I hope nothing goes wrong at the mine.

Li He shook his head, pushing those thoughts aside.

The area Yuan Hong had designated had three or four bookshelves, mostly filled with theoretical works and essays such as Essentials of Basic Stake Technique, Miscellany of Ancient Martial Arts Schools, and Outline of Federation Martial Arts Development.

Li He wasn't in a hurry. He scanned the shelves one by one.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a thin booklet bound with coarse thread. He pulled it free. A few vigorous, unadorned brush-written characters marked the cover.

Ape Demon Iron Body Technique

Li He immediately thought of the Ape Standing Stake that Hall Master Yuan Shan had taught him. The martial arts of Yellow Mountain Martial Arts Hall seemed to have countless ties to apes.

Could this be a hardening technique meant to complement the stake technique?

He carefully opened the booklet.

The first page featured an illustration of a black ape standing upright, its arms crossed before its chest, its stance as steady as a mountain. Dark, iron-colored energy swirled around its body, forming a protective force around it.

The caption read: "The Ape Demon glares in fury; an iron body arises of its own. Blood and qi become iron, and no evil can penetrate!"

Li He's spirits soared. He continued reading.

The Ape Demon Iron Body Technique described an external hardening method for tempering the muscles, bones, and skin throughout the body and condensing a protective force. Its core principle was to imitate the berserk blood and qi and resilient physique that the exotic beast Vajra Demon Ape inherited through its bloodline.

The technique had nine layers. The first three were Iron Skin, corresponding to beginner, proficient, and expert. The middle three were Iron Bone, corresponding to minor mastery and great mastery. The final three were Iron Body, culminating in perfection. Each layer was harder to overcome than the last.

The training method consisted mainly of three steps: stake-technique guidance, strikes from an external force, and soaking in a medicinal bath!

The more Li He read, the more excited he became.

Looking at the martial arts he currently knew, he had stake techniques, fist techniques, and lightness skills, but not a single hardening technique for defense. The Ape Demon Iron Body Technique was just what he needed.

He turned to the section on medicinal bath recipes, only to have his excitement instantly doused. Iron Bone Grass, Blood-Activating Vine, Tendon-Strengthening Grass, Hundred-Refinement Flower, and bone meal from a First-Rank demonic beast, an Iron-Backed Mountain Boar—all of them were expensive ingredients.

"One medicinal bath lasts about a day. It'll cost... around ten thousand Federation dollars. Ten thousand a day."

"Based on my past experience, learning a new martial art takes seven days to go from beginner to minor mastery. I'll need to take the medicine accordingly. In other words, I need seventy thousand Federation dollars!"

Li He frowned slightly.

His family could afford that much.

But something else weighed on his mind.

If he managed to scrape together the money for the ingredients this time, what about next time? There were far too many martial arts that required special medicinal ingredients to master. He just hadn't encountered many at this stage.

As his realm improved, he would only need more and more of them—not to mention that his appetite was growing by the day.

When he had gone home a few days ago, he had seen his mother, Zhang Xiujuan, secretly calculating the household expenses. His father, Li Jianguo, was still in the Abyss Safe Zone, fighting for his future...

I have to earn money!

The thought was unshakable in Li He's mind.

He was no longer a student who could only rely on his parents. He was a First-Rank Martial Artist, qualified to take on missions and explore the Abyss!

Li He took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in his heart. He studied the booklet closely, committing the details of the Ape Demon Iron Body Technique to memory—especially its stake postures, breathing methods, routes for circulating blood and qi, and medicinal bath recipes.

Time flew by.

Should I ask Hall Master Yuan Shan for guidance on practicing the Iron Body Technique? The thought flashed through his mind.

He remembered teaching himself martial arts online before. He had copied what he saw in the videos, but never managed to get it right. His stances were always only vaguely correct, and he had no idea how to circulate his blood and qi. In the end, he could only give up.

Without a master there to correct his stance, identify problems, and fine-tune the details, it was almost impossible to teach himself advanced martial arts successfully.

This time, however, felt completely different.

As he read the Ape Demon Iron Body Technique, a strange sense of familiarity had lingered over him the whole time.

The stake postures described in the book differed somewhat from the Ape Standing Stake, but their core essence was remarkably similar: lowering the waist and settling the hips, keeping the spine taut like a bow, and circling the arms protectively around the body.

The routes for guiding blood and qi to nourish the skin and bones also echoed the Old Ape Stretches Arms technique he had learned.

They're all techniques from the Yellow Mountain school. They share the same roots, so there must be common ground between them! Li He was certain of it.

Since he had such a foundation, why not try practicing on his own first? If he ran into a problem he couldn't solve, he could ask the hall master for help then.

He glanced around. The Scripture Pavilion was silent, with only the faint sound of pages turning from Martial Uncle Yuan Hong's side. Yuan Hong had his head bowed over the old book in his hands, completely immersed in his own world and paying Li He no attention at all.

Li He took a deep breath and decided to try the entry-level stake technique of the Ape Demon Iron Body Technique, the Iron Body Stake, right there in a corner of the Scripture Pavilion.

He slowly assumed the posture. At first, his movements were stiff, and his breathing and circulation of blood and qi were sluggish. But thanks to the foundation he had built through the Ape Standing Stake and Old Ape Stretches Arms, minor mastery in both, his breathing and circulation soon grew smoother.

Suddenly, Li He felt something stir.

His head lifted slightly, his gaze steady, and an unyielding, ferocious intent spread from him.

[Ape Demon Iron Body Technique: Beginner (0%)]

[Without the support of an "Iron Body Medicinal Bath," proficiency increase failed]

"It worked!" Li He slowly ended the stance and straightened up. Though he regretted that his proficiency hadn't increased, succeeding on his first attempt was enough to fill him with delight.

He glanced out the window. The sun had set, and the Scripture Pavilion had grown even darker. Only the small lamp on Martial Uncle Yuan Hong's desk cast a dim yellow glow.

"I gained a lot today. I should head back."

Li He bowed to Martial Uncle Yuan Hong. "Martial Uncle, it's late. This disciple will take his leave. Please get some rest soon."

Yuan Hong kept his head lowered, as if he hadn't heard.

Li He didn't take offense. He bowed once more, then quietly left the Scripture Pavilion.