Blood Scorpion Warrior

Throughout the afternoon, Zhang Tie, much like the other animals, remained in a state of inexplicable agitation. Teacher Daina's biology class today was something everyone would remember for the rest of their lives. Even by the afternoon, some were still in a daze, seemingly unable to believe that miserable, green youths like themselves had actually made such a pact with Teacher Daina. Could that goddess-like, unattainable Teacher Daina really, one day, have even the slightest chance of becoming their woman?

Even the slightest possibility was enough to make all the animals erupt with unprecedented morale on the training ground. Everyone was so pumped up, as if they had been injected with chicken blood, that even the instructors on the field were taken aback.

As for Zhang Tie, from the afternoon through the end of school, and even after returning from his part-time job at Tang De's grocery store, his mind was occupied by only two things.

The first was the Flawless Fruit. According to Teacher Daina, the human body loses a tremendous amount of energy in daily life: urine counts, semen counts, sweat counts, and even the energy contained in food that isn't fully digested and absorbed due to digestive issues counts. No one could say for sure how much this total energy amounted to. After thinking it over carefully, Zhang Tie realized that if what Teacher Daina said was true, then excluding today, he hadn't had a wet dream in five days. In the past, he would have had at least three in that time, but now, not a single one. Could it be that the life energy from those three times—the life energy that would have created billions of little tadpoles—had all been converted into the energy of the Flawless Fruit? Zhang Tie didn't know how strong this energy was, and neither did Teacher Daina. The only information Teacher Daina could provide was that, supposedly, in the East, the ancient secret cultivation system of the Qi Practitioner contained descriptions of "refining essence into Qi"—transforming tangible human body matter into powerful, intangible life energy called "Qi"—which seemed related to the massive life energy produced by the reproductive system. And this was just one source of the Flawless Fruit's energy. Recalling carefully, Zhang Tie noticed that his urine had been much clearer than before, his appetite had surged, and he seemed to sweat much less during exercise. Could these all be the effects of the Flawless Fruit?

Teacher Daina said these were only the tangible, visible energy losses. There were even more invisible ones, such as the heat our bodies radiate every moment, the magnetic fields and human auras discovered by humans before the Great Cataclysm, and the energy called electric charge that Zhang Tie didn't quite understand, which was also discovered before the Great Cataclysm to be generated in the human body every second. But the greatest invisible energy loss was the chaotic, ever-changing thoughts and ideas in our minds every second—that is, human mental and conscious activity. These activities also cause massive energy loss. Some of these are conscious, known as the conscious mind, while others are imperceptible, known as the subconscious or superconscious. When Teacher Daina mentioned that dreaming or letting one's mind wander were also channels for this conscious or mental energy loss, Zhang Tie remembered how surprisingly well he had been sleeping lately, and how clear his brain felt every morning. Could it be that the conscious energy he usually lost was being converted and absorbed by the Flawless Fruit?

What kind of miraculous effects would the Flawless Fruit, which gathered the sum of his body's tangible and intangible energy over a week, actually have?

Thinking of this, Zhang Tie grew even more expectant for the Flawless Fruit, which would be ready in three days. At this moment, Zhang Tie still couldn't fully grasp the significance of the word "Flawless" in that small fruit. To him right now, no matter how great the meaning, it couldn't compare to the rank badge of a Blood Scorpion Warrior right in front of him.

How could he become a Blood Scorpion Warrior before the age of 20, possess the strength to protect Teacher Daina, and thus make her his woman? This was the second thing Zhang Tie had been considering all afternoon. And no matter how much he racked his brains, there didn't seem to be the slightest possibility.

Blood Scorpion Warrior—the fourth tier of the warrior profession. Before the warrior tier, there were five levels of Battle Soldier. Therefore, a Blood Scorpion Warrior was a ninth-tier high-level professional recognized by the Continental Warrior Guild, a powerhouse who had ignited the Thought Fire in 34 Divine Palace Bright Points on their spine. It was a high-end combat power that many could only look up to for a lifetime, a powerful existence even surpassing One-Eyed Dragon. A 20-year-old Blood Scorpion Warrior—what a dazzling existence that would be. And if he weren't such a dazzling existence, how could he be worthy of a goddess like Teacher Daina?

To go from a miserable, green youth who hadn't even ignited the Thought Fire of a single Divine Palace Bright Point to rising eight levels in five years, before the age of 20—that was the only possibility of winning the heart of the goddess Daina in this lifetime. What kind of genius would it take to achieve that...

However, for Teacher Daina, he would go all out! Don't forget, he still had the Castle of Black Iron and that magical little tree...

Thinking of Teacher Daina's promise, Zhang Tie's heart burned with fervor.

On the way home from Tang De's grocery store, looking at the streetlights gradually flickering to life, the 15-year-old's gaze grew resolute. He began to look up toward a goal he had never imagined he could reach in this life before today—to become a powerful warrior with the Blood Scorpion as his totem before the age of 20...

Gurgle, gurgle. His stomach began to growl again. Zhang Tie muttered that he seemed to be becoming more and more like a bottomless pit. Then, urged by his stomach, he picked up his pace and started running toward home...

Upon reaching home, Zhang Tie was surprised to find the door unlocked, even slightly ajar. Could there be a thief? Knowing his parents' habits, Zhang Tie felt a stir in his heart. He pushed the door open gently, snuck inside, grabbed a stick hidden in the house, and tiptoed toward the inner room. Before he even entered, he heard a strange voice.

"I raised a girl this big to twenty, and your son got her pregnant. How is she supposed to face people, how is she supposed to get married in the future? Today, I've brought her to you Zhang Family. If you don't admit that the child in her belly is the seed of the Zhang Family, fine. You can beat her to death, and I'll pretend I never gave birth to her; everyone will be at peace. If you do admit it, your Zhang Family must give our Wang Family an explanation..." The voice was furious. As he spoke, Zhang Tie faintly heard a "slap" from inside, followed by the voice of the person who had just spoken, cursing, "Beat you to death, you shameless thing that ruins the family reputation..."

A woman's crying followed. Just as Zhang Tie was about to enter the inner room, the curtain was pulled aside, and the owner of the tailor shop, Boss Wang, and his woman walked out. Boss Wang looked furious. Seeing Zhang Tie, Zhang Tie quickly hid the wooden stick behind his back and squeezed out a smile, "Uncle Wang, staying for a while longer?"

"Hmph, there isn't a single good thing in your Zhang Family!" The man slammed the door and left in a rage. The woman following him took a serious look at Zhang Tie, sighed, and followed him out. Seeing them leave, Zhang Tie followed behind to lock the door from the inside, put away the stick, coughed twice at the doorway, and walked into the living room...

There were three people in the living room. His father sat to one side, smoking with a furrowed brow; the acrid smell of the low-quality tobacco grown in Black Flame City filled the room. Usually, his mother would have nagged his father, but at this moment, she was comforting another woman who was crying with her head bowed. Seeing this woman, Zhang Tie remembered the "slap-slap" sounds from his older brother's room over the past two months, and everything became clear. His parents were naturally aware as well.

He hadn't expected his brother, who had been a playboy his whole life, to finally slip up and get caught. Heh... heh...

"Your food is kept warm, go eat it yourself!" Seeing Zhang Tie return, his mother raised her head with difficulty and said to him, then went back to comforting the girl.

His father gave Zhang Tie a look. Zhang Tie, being extremely sensible, said, "You guys talk, I'm going to eat!" Then he ran to the kitchen and brought out the food kept warm in the pot. The meal was simple, but his mother's cooking was delicious, and Zhang Tie ate his fill.

After eating, Zhang Tie washed the dishes and tidied up the kitchen. Another Merit Value was in the bag. As Zhang Tie thought about this happily, he saw his father walk in. It seemed his parents had made a decision.

"Zhang Tie, come here, I have something to tell you..."

"What is it, Dad?"

"That bastard brother of yours, he and that girl..." It was hard for a father to talk about such things, and he didn't know how to start.

"Am I going to have a new sister-in-law?" Zhang Tie asked with a cheeky grin.

"Don't be flippant!" His father glared and gave Zhang Tie a hard knock on the forehead, making him jump, "Anyway, that bastard brother of yours won't be home for a while, so that girl will be staying with us. She'll stay in your brother's room. Behave yourself, call her sister when you see her, you hear? Don't make her feel uncomfortable..."

"What's uncomfortable about it? It's not the first time she's stayed in my brother's room..." Zhang Tie rubbed his head, aggrieved, and muttered under his breath.

"What?" His father's eyes widened again.

Zhang Tie quickly stuck out his tongue, "Nothing, just thinking that Dad is going to be a grandfather in a year or so, I'm really happy for you!"

Before his father's foot could kick his butt, Zhang Tie had already run off. He had already figured this out while eating. With his parents' personalities, how could they force a girl to abort the child? That would be a massive sin. Besides, the girl wasn't ugly, her family background was decent, and they lived on the same street; his parents had watched her grow up, so there wasn't much to complain about. If anyone was to blame, it was his brother for being too quick to act and failing to handle the aftermath.

By the time his brother returned, the two families would likely be discussing the marriage. And why did Zhang Tie feel that when he mentioned his father becoming a grandfather, although his father looked angry on the surface, there was an unmistakable joy between his brows?

Zhang Tie didn't intend to cause trouble. After dinner and washing up, he greeted his mother and future sister-in-law, who were whispering in the living room, and returned to his small room.

Back in his room, Zhang Tie sat on the bed and began to practice the Abacus Mental Calculation. Through his research over the past few days, he found that if he visualized the Abacus Mental Calculation before and after practicing the Divine Palace Bright Point, the effect seemed to be slightly better. After practicing the visualization method of the Abacus Mental Calculation, his mental power seemed a bit more refined than usual when practicing the Divine Palace Bright Point. And after his mental power was exhausted from practicing the Divine Palace Bright Point, visualizing the golden abacus from the Abacus Mental Calculation allowed his mental power to recover faster than usual. Zhang Tie felt he had discovered the wonders of the visualization method in the Abacus Mental Calculation.

In his practice over the last few days, Zhang Tie found it particularly easy to enter the state. Previously, it took a long time, and sometimes when his heart was restless, he couldn't enter it for an hour or two. But these past few days, as soon as he sat down and closed his eyes, the feeling came. His mind was free of distracting thoughts, feeling clear and pure. Under the "polishing" of this pure mental power, the cyan light of the Divine Palace Bright Point at his navel was becoming brighter and brighter, and his resonance with the crystal was getting stronger. It seemed that in a few more months, it could be completely transformed into blue, taking his cultivation a step further. Could this also be the credit of the Flawless Fruit? Zhang Tie wasn't sure, but it was always a good thing, so he didn't care about the details. The only thing that annoyed Zhang Tie was that the bottleneck of the crystal he used for cultivation was becoming apparent. It wasn't obvious before, but now, as his cultivation deepened, he felt more and more that the energy provided by that ordinary crystal could no longer meet his needs. This feeling was quite frustrating, like a thirsty person putting their mouth to a water pipe, turning on the tap, only to find the outlet was only the size of a needle, with the water leaking out in a mere trickle, unable to provide the satisfaction of quenching one's thirst. This was the reality that poor people had to face. If he had a Pyramid Crystal, Zhang Tie believed his Divine Palace Bright Point might have already cultivated a purple light by now.

After more than two hours of practice, Zhang Tie stood up from the bed, stretched his slightly numb legs, and sighed. He put the white crystal back into the Crystal Sand on the windowsill to recharge, looked at the pitch-black, deserted street after curfew, and closed the window again—there were no streetlights on the streets of this residential area at night.

I wonder what my brother is doing right now? The question flashed through Zhang Tie's mind.

Before going to sleep, Zhang Tie habitually checked the Castle of Black Iron.

--Close eyes... Lock on... Enter.

The process of entering felt smoother and smoother...

Zhang Tie opened his eyes and found himself standing inside the Castle of Black Iron.

--Handsome and majestic Lord of the Castle, welcome to the Castle of Black Iron!

Zhang Tie tapped open the basic attribute panel of the Castle of Black Iron.

--Castle of Black Iron

--Length: 1 Krosha

--Width: 1 Krosha

--Spirit Qi Value: 7.3

--Merit Value: 52

--Basic Energy Reserve: 0.5

--Special Output: None

The Merit Value was as expected; he had earned 5 today, 2 from home and 3 at school. However, the increase in Spirit Qi Value surprised Zhang Tie slightly. After closing the attribute panel, Zhang Tie thought for a moment and went to his own plot of land, squatting down to examine it carefully.

He didn't know until he looked, but there was a real surprise. On the plot where he had planted the Corn, a row of sturdy, tender sprouts had broken through the soil.

The planted Corn had sprouted—Zhang Tie's heart was instantly filled with joy. The Corn had sprouted three days earlier than he expected. It seemed the soil here was very suitable for plant growth. Thinking of the rising grain prices when he bought rice over the weekend, and looking at the empty, nearly 1,000-mu plot of land in the Castle of Black Iron, a somewhat crazy idea suddenly popped into Zhang Tie's mind: if he planted 100 mu of grain and fruit in the Castle of Black Iron, he wondered if he could get rich from it...