Three Bone Quenchings!

March 25, 1996.

Demon City.

"Hoo~, finally broke through."

Su Yi finished his Standing Meditation, paying no mind to the dried blood caked onto his body.

"Third Bone Tempering. After nourishing my Blood Qi for a while longer, I'll be able to break through to become a martial artist."

Su Yi had no intention of aiming for a fourth Bone Tempering; for non-martial artists, the higher the Blood Qi, the harder it is to improve.

If he were to keep pushing for further breakthroughs, there was no telling how much time and resources it would cost.

Most importantly.

He lacked the Energy Points to optimize his Tempering Method any further.

The first optimization cost 100 energy, the second jumped to 1,000, and the third would likely require tens of thousands!

He had only managed to accumulate a little over 1,200 energy in the past two years.

It would be better to break through to a martial artist sooner and begin tempering his lower limbs.

He didn't have a system as good as Fang Ping's, which could add points to Blood Qi and Spiritual Power without fear of loss.

Envy.

The path to becoming a martial artist is not easy; talent and resources are both crucial.

Perhaps because both his parents were martial artists, this body's talent was quite decent, and his parents' inheritance and pension allowed him to not worry about the consumption of resources.

Of course, the biggest reason he could achieve the Third Bone Tempering now was the Book of Knowledge.

Though called a book, its appearance was merely a tattered piece of parchment that had merged into Su Yi's mind, transforming into a library.

He had found it tucked inside a book he bought at a street stall, and it had followed him to this world.

Or rather, it had brought him to this world. Although Su Yi had all sorts of guesses, regardless, being able to live a second life was a good thing.

Because the Book of Knowledge was damaged, only Deduction, Optimization, Recording, and the core function, Conversion, remained.

Conversion: A core function that can convert the faith of others into energy.

Deduction: Can deduce the directions and Battle Arts he needs. The more knowledge he possesses, the less energy it consumes.

Optimization: Can optimize the knowledge he has mastered to make it better suited to him.

Recording: Recording knowledge facilitates the repair of the Book of Knowledge.

Name: Su Yi
Realm: Third Bone Tempering
Blood Qi: 147 cal / 205 cal
Spiritual Power: 189 Hz / 299 Hz
Knowledge: Basic Cultivation Method—Tempering Method {Optimization +2}; Horse Stance {Optimization +1}—Solid Stance Realm; Basic Fist Technique—Entry;
Basic Leg Technique—Minor Achievement; Basic Sword Technique—Major Achievement {Optimization +1};
...
Energy: 51 points
Damage Status: 3.75%

The data recorded in his mind was the result of his efforts over the past three years.

It wasn't as simple and brutal as the point-adding of the future Human King, nor could he replenish his Blood Qi and Spiritual Power at will like him.

Optimization only reduced the loss of Blood Qi, allowing it to temper bones more efficiently, lowering the difficulty of breakthroughs and accelerating the absorption of medicinal pills.

The two optimizations of the Tempering Method cost 100 points and 1,000 points respectively, and combined with the optimizations of the Horse Stance and Basic Sword Technique, they consumed a total of 1,300 energy points.

Yet, this energy was the accumulation of nearly three years. It was only two months ago that he finally gathered enough energy for the second optimization of the Tempering Method, and even then, it took him two months to successfully break through.

The third optimization would require 10,000 energy, which was truly something Su Yi could not afford.

It was a pity that the optimized Tempering Method and Horse Stance were not suitable for others; otherwise, if he could promote them globally, there was no telling how many energy points he would gain.

According to Su Yi's research, the origin of energy did not necessarily require devout faith; any fluctuation in emotions directed toward him could be absorbed and converted by the Book of Knowledge.

It was just that the conversion ratios differed; the conversion rate of positive energy was about 10 times that of negative energy.

Martial artists also emitted much higher levels of emotion than non-martial artists, especially the Old Principal, who gave him a full 10 energy points after hearing he wanted to apply to Magic Martial Academy.

Based on his two years of research into the Book of Knowledge, the accumulation of energy might be related to the fluctuations of Spiritual Power.

Compared to ordinary people, a martial artist's Spiritual Power is much more active.

But quantitative changes lead to qualitative changes.

Over these three years, the persona he projected had become the consensus everyone held of him: a genius, gentle and mild-mannered.

It was exhausting, but Su Yi enjoyed it.

His Spiritual Power was what Su Yi was most proud of—299 Hz, a level of Spiritual Power usually only possessed by a Third Grade martial artist. Perhaps it was because of the Book of Knowledge in his mind.

Su Yi's Spiritual Power reached nearly 200 Hz upon his first inspection. This formidable Spiritual Power significantly enhanced his learning ability, even allowing him to capture subtle movements, including the twitching of muscles.

As he sank his consciousness into his mind, a massive Library appeared before his eyes, filled with dense, endless rows of bookshelves that stretched beyond his field of vision.

The shelves were completely empty, save for the front-most row, which held a dozen or so books regarding the martial path.

Only the extraordinary may be recorded.

The Library could only record knowledge related to the martial path; Su Yi had once attempted to catalog scientific knowledge as well.

But he failed.

Those books only increased the repair progress by 0.01%.

The percentage figure in the Damage Status line represented the repair progress.

Su Yi walked up to the bookshelf and gently brushed his right hand over the books, a faint smile curling his lips: "One day, I will fill this place."

This was not only for the restoration of the Book of Knowledge but also for the Deduction that Su Yi viewed as immensely valuable. Without sufficient knowledge and an understanding of oneself, it was impossible to deduce the most suitable Tempering Method and Battle Art.

Optimization could indeed make a technique more suitable for oneself, but ultimately, the most suitable technique is the one one creates personally.

Su Yi stretched his body casually, freshened up, and picked up his phone to make a call.

The ringtone didn't last long before it was answered.

"Hello, Xiao Yi, is something the matter?"

A steady voice filled with a hint of concern rang out.

"Uncle Qin, I've broken through! Third Bone Tempering!"

Su Yi made no effort to hide his joy.

"Really? It's only been two months!"

Uncle Qin on the other end was somewhat startled; breaking through a bottleneck in just two months was unheard of.

For non-martial artists, increasing Blood Qi becomes increasingly difficult the further one progresses, not to mention the limits of bone tempering. Countless people remain stuck between the first and second bone tempering stages.

Let alone reaching Third Bone Tempering in a mere two months.

Across the entire country, there are only a handful of Third Bone Tempering breakthroughs each year, and in some years, there aren't any at all.

With such a massive base of practitioners, this only proved one thing: it was too difficult.

"It's true, Uncle Qin. I broke through just now while practicing my Tempering Method and Stake Standing."

Su Yi's tone was sincere and earnest.

"Good, good, that's great. I'm at Magic Martial Academy right now; I'll be back soon. Come over for dinner later, I'll have your aunt make a few extra dishes."

"Alright, Uncle Qin."

"Good, hanging up."

After ending the call, Uncle Qin didn't care that he was still in the principal's office and burst into loud laughter.

"Nansheng, did Xiao Yi break through?"

With the keen hearing of a Grandmaster, the Old Principal asked with a squinting smile.

Qin Nansheng stopped laughing, his throat tightening, and he replied with a sigh: "Yes, Third Bone Tempering. The child has been very determined. Ever since Mingjie and Xiuyuan died, he's been like a different person, training so hard."

"I still remember the day we returned the belongings of Mingjie and his wife. After we left, he hid under his covers and sobbed quietly. Hearing that sound, my heart nearly shattered."

"Three days. He cried until he was exhausted enough to fall asleep, only to wake up and cry again. If he hadn't finally come out on the third day to find something to eat, I wouldn't have been able to stop myself from rushing in."

Qin Nansheng slumped in his chair, murmuring as if lost in memory: "Mingjie and Xiuyuan once said that if they could, they would rather Xiao Yi not become a martial artist; the life of a martial artist is too bitter."

"I didn't dare tell him the truth, so I could only claim they died on a mission. But that day, he knelt before me with red, swollen eyes, begging me to tell him the truth, saying he wanted to become a martial artist too."

"He was so firm, so serious. At that moment, I didn't even dare to look him in the eye. I was afraid."

At this, Qin Nansheng laughed at himself; who would have thought that the so-called Fatal Blade—Qin Nansheng—could ever be so afraid?

The Old Principal said nothing, listening silently with half-closed eyes, as if recalling something of his own.

"I didn't tell him the cause of his parents' death, but I promised to teach him martial arts, and we made a pact that I would tell him everything only after he reached the Third Rank."

Qin Nansheng let out a long breath, braced his arms against the back of his chair, and said slowly: "After all, I couldn't think of any reason to stop a child from chasing the truth of his parents' death. I couldn't dissuade him; even if I hadn't taught him, he would have walked this martial path regardless."

"Seeing him is like seeing Feng Qing. If I die in the Underground Cave one day, perhaps he will end up the same way."

"Nansheng, Magic Martial Academy has been established for over forty years, and we have guarded the Demon Capital Underground Cave for just as long. I don't know how many children have lost their lives in the cave because of my decisions, nor how many have walked this path just like Xiao Yi."

The Old Principal stood up, somewhat shakily, his eyes moist, his voice gentle yet raspy.

"One school guarding one cave—it is truly difficult! Through all these years of wind and rain, so many students have been kept here at Magic Martial Academy by me. Nansheng, do you hate me?"

"I do."

"Then why don't you leave?"

The Old Principal laughed heartily, unbothered, and looked at Qin Nansheng to ask.

"Leave? Why would I leave? Back then, I intended to go to the Investigation Bureau, but you intercepted my resume and tricked me into staying at the school."

"Now you want me to leave? Not a chance!"

Qin Nansheng spoke with an air of indifference.

Hatred existed, of course, but there was far more reverence.

Since he hadn't left back then, it was even less likely he would leave now.

The Old Principal shook his head with a smile; this brat.

"Alright, Teacher, I won't disturb you any further. I'm going to head back for a bit; I've been in the Underground Cave for so long that I haven't been home to check on things in ages."

Martial artists rarely returned home once they descended into the Underground Cave.

Many even lived directly in the Underground Cave, only surfacing to break through and recuperate, or dying down there.

Qin Nansheng also spent most of his time in the Underground Cave cultivating and slaying enemies, returning only occasionally for a day or two.

Going home was for rest, and perhaps to let his family know he was safe.

"Very well."

The Old Principal was also very busy; although the various affairs of the school were handled by the Vice Principal and the Deans of the various colleges, with the Martial Arts Club assisting from below, there were still countless matters that required his attention.

There were the files regarding the Ministry of Education, as well as the various affairs concerning Hope City.