I Thought This Was a Slice of Life

After the medicinal power was fully absorbed this time, Li Shuhong did not add any more, because he had already run out.

Shuya's Qi had grown from a mere wisp at the beginning to the size of a fist, and his physical body had also strengthened several times over.

He was still in the initial stage of cultivation, which was precisely the time when progress was easiest to make.

"Come out once you've soaked enough."

Li Shuhong said, turning his back to look at the scenery of the outskirts.

"Alright."

Shuya jumped out of the water with a splash, sending droplets flying.

His bare feet, white as jade, stepped onto the ground, and his soft, ink-black hair clung wetly to his face and back, with water beads dripping continuously down his smooth, delicate skin.

Shuya channeled the Qi within his body and gave a slight shake, causing the water clinging to his skin and hair to fall to the ground.

Only then did he put on his clothes.

"Hm?"

Shuya frowned, discovering that his clothes no longer fit.

He had grown taller again, and he took the opportunity to observe himself.

...Why had his skin become so much fairer?

He scrunched up his small face, touching his skin with a bitter expression.

Mm, it was very soft and elastic, and also smooth and fair.

What was this supposed to be...

Ice-Skin Jade-Bone? A natural beauty that one cannot abandon?

Or perhaps a gentleman as refined as jade?

Should he also add a line about a man like jade on the path, a young master peerless in the world?

"This is normal. After cultivating Qi, it begins to reshape your body, making it more perfect. The most obvious manifestation is becoming more handsome or beautiful."

After Li Shuhong finished speaking, he held out his hands for Shuya to see.

They were long, slender, and fair hands, looking as if they were tender enough to drip water.

They were nothing like the rough, calloused hands of a martial artist.

Shuya carefully observed Li Shuhong's appearance and discovered that his skin was also fair and tender, looking like warm, top-tier jade.

...Come to think of it, this old man was truly handsome, and his physique was also incredibly good.

Of course, Shuya was not bad either.

Li Shuhong said, "You should have felt it too; a significant portion of the medicinal power you just absorbed was used to reshape your body, while the rest went into strengthening your Qi."

Shuya nodded; the growth of his Qi was indeed far less than the strengthening of his physical body.

He clenched his fists and kicked his legs; based on his subjective feeling, his physical body had likely strengthened by more than three times, roughly.

His eyes could see further and more clearly, and his ears could hear further as well.

Not only was his body strengthened in every aspect, but the impurities within him had also been purged; Shuya felt completely transparent and extremely refreshed.

Because he had been detoxified, he had become even more handsome.

Beyond his skin being fair to the point of translucence, his eyes were bright and spirited, and his physique was even more perfect.

Overall, his temperament was spirited and sunny, and the first impression he gave was one of freshness.

With ink-black hair, sword-like brows, and star-like eyes, combined with his ethereal temperament, he was a living, breathing beautiful youth... or rather, a beautiful young boy?

"Not bad, you have the bearing of Ikeda Ichinosuke back in the day, it's just that your clothes are too short, making you look comical."

Li Shuhong also gave a nod of approval.

Shuya gave a bitter smile; lately, Hanazawa Sakura had been driven nearly mad buying clothes for him.

Now she had learned her lesson and would only buy three or four sets at a time, waiting for him to grow taller before buying more.

Shuya's height was now one meter forty-five.

But compared to his previous growth spurts, this current rate was actually just alright; most of the energy had gone into strengthening his physical body, and the height increase was just a side effect.

Shuya looked thin in his clothes, but his physique was quite well-defined when he took them off.

In any case, he didn't look like a six-year-old at all; people would believe him if he said he was ten.

Fortunately, martial arts were common knowledge in this world; while his height was a bit unusual, it hadn't exceeded people's imaginations.

Shuya's looking left and right finally exhausted Li Shuhong's patience:

"Enough, if you want to look at yourself, do it at home. Now, practice all the stances I taught you before!"

"You got it."

Shuya set aside his thoughts about his body and replied.

Shuya and Li Shuhong continued training until twelve o'clock in the afternoon before finishing.

Li Shuhong disappeared after bringing Shuya back to his house.

Shuya had no idea where he had gone.

But he figured he was out having a blast; Shuya had previously spotted a mysterious lipstick mark on his clothes.

Shuya couldn't be bothered to manage him anyway.

He rummaged through the room for a while and found some clothes one size too big that Hanazawa Sakura had bought just in case.

After changing into the casual wear, he immediately stood in front of the mirror to check his current appearance.

Heh! What a refined young gentleman, a dashing and handsome youth!

Senior Shu-chan has become even more handsome!

As it turns out, whether or not one is strong at martial arts is one thing.

But being handsome is a lifelong commitment!

Shuya tossed his long hair and gave a slight smile to the mirror.

Very good, absolutely perfect.

If he were on a certain video site, he would definitely be called a natural talent for cross-dressing.

He didn't dare look for too long, fearing he might fall in love with his own magnificent beauty.

Shuya shook his head and hummed a tune as he walked into the living room: "Let's learn to coo like pigeons together, coo-coo-coo-coo-coo..."

He walked to the refrigerator and took out a bento box.

"Ehehe."

He stared at the bento with a silly grin.

This bento wasn't bought from a convenience store; it was made by Rena.

"Love bento~ love bento~ so yummy~ so pretty~ filled with~ love!~ oh~ yeah~ hehehe."

Shuya sang his self-composed song in a goofy, adorable way.

The fact that Rena made bentos for Shuya actually had nothing to do with love.

It was thanks to an assist from Hanazawa Sakura a few days ago.

Hanazawa Sakura knew Shuya's training was intense and didn't want him eating unnutritious street food, so she thought about cooking for him.

But just as Hanazawa Sakura was about to start, her clever little mind had a flash of inspiration, and she went next door to ask Rena for help, using the excuse that she didn't have time to make a bento for her "son" and asking her to lend a hand.

Of course, Hanazawa Sakura would pay her.

This move killed three birds with one stone.

It helped Shuya, saved her the trouble, and gave a hand to the financially struggling Ms. Rena.

Hanazawa Sakura felt she was a goddamn genius.

Most importantly, she was spending the advertising money Shuya had earned, so she had gained a huge favor from both Shuya and Rena without losing a single cent herself.

A total victory.

Regarding this matter, Rena agreed without much thought.

Making a bento didn't take much time, and she was very close with Shuya's family, so it was hard to refuse.

Besides, she really did need the money.

Shuya happily finished every bit of the "loving wife" bento, rested for a while, and then set off for the gym.

Although he no longer had any reason to go, as Mai-chan's good friend—the "only" one, at that—how could he bear to see her exercising all alone?

He would just treat it as going out to play; besides, the gym wasn't completely useless to him. If he didn't use his internal energy, his physical stats weren't exactly heaven-defying, so the gym equipment was still useful.

Of course, the main reason was that Mai-chan was cute and easy on the eyes.

Having to deal with Li Shuhong all day, Shuya desperately needed a girl to balance things out.

Shuya leisurely took a ride and walked his way to the gym, where Mai had already arrived.

She froze the moment she saw Shuya.

She said in disbelief, "Shuya, did you have a sex change?"

"???"

Listen to that! Is that something a person should say?!

Shuya choked.

"What the hell! Can you use your brain before you speak?"

"No... eh? Then why have you become so much prettier?"

Mai-chan leaned in incredulously, her little hands wandering onto Shuya's face.

She pinched his cheeks.

"So, so smooth...! And it feels so good, so elastic...!"

Shuya: "???"

Mai looked utterly defeated: "Damn it, I lost!"

"No, what kind of competition are you even in?"

Shuya brushed her hands away and took a step back to put some distance between them.

He said irritably: "I've just made progress in my training, I haven't been to Siam!"

"That's so nice, I want to practice martial arts too."

Mai looked at Shuya with envy and reached out to touch his arm again.

She muttered: "So smooth and fair..."

As she touched him, she suddenly leaned in close and sniffed at Shuya's body.

"And it smells pretty good, too."

"Go, go, go, are you a puppy or something?"

Shuya pressed his hand against her forehead and pushed her away.

He retorted: "Besides, you smell better than I do."

"...Wha?... I-idiot! Pervert! H!"

Mai's face turned completely red.

It seems she is truly weak when it comes to topics like this.

ps2: I thought of another new title for the book. I really think this one is good, so please go give me your opinions.

ps3: Considering this chapter is 2,700 words long... I'm begging for everything...