Cultivation

The "Hidden Weapons" skill... he had really unlocked it!

Seeing the description for "Hidden Weapons" clearly appear on the Panel, Qin Fang's eyes lit up with delight.

...This golden finger was real!

Through his own efforts, it could genuinely be developed!

Over the past three or four months, although he had the dagger skill, its progress had been slow. He had also tried other methods to obtain more skills, but every attempt had ended in failure.

To be honest, he had begun to doubt the effects of this golden finger.

He could not help but worry over gains and losses.

But now, through his own efforts, he had actually unlocked an entirely new skill!

That joy was beyond words.

This was not merely a "Hidden Weapons" skill...

It represented that the golden finger was real beyond doubt!

After clenching his fist in delight, he could not wait to test what was different about these Initiation Stage flying darts.

The moment he pinched a dart between his fingers, he immediately felt something completely different.

They were the same darts, but before, when he threw one, he had no idea where it would land or what effect it would have.

This time, however, the instant he held the dart, an indescribable certainty rose in his heart.

He could clearly sense what strength to use and at what angle to throw it in order to achieve a certain result.

Following that feeling, he threw the dart without hesitation!

Whoosh!

Thud!

The second flying dart traced the same arc and struck the wooden board in an instant!

Qin Fang's eyes shone brightly.

He still had one dart in hand, and using that same feeling, he flicked it out directly.

Whoosh... thud!

The third dart embedded itself in the wooden board once more!

Qin Fang's eyes gleamed. He hurried forward, removed all four darts, and returned to his original position.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

Thud, thud, thud!

The darts flew out one after another.

Every one of them struck the wooden board, sinking three inches into the wood!

Qin Fang was stunned.

Although their accuracy still left something to be desired, and they had not hit the bullseye...

After "Hidden Weapons" appeared on the Panel, at the very least, every dart could now embed itself firmly in the wooden board!

...This was simply unbelievable!

Qin Fang stared wide-eyed as a trace of realization surfaced in his heart...

"Is this... the effect of 'Eternal Fruit of Dao'?"

"As long as I master something, can I always bring the skill I possess to its best possible state?"

Even Qin Fang was shocked when that realization emerged.

After all, a person's condition always rose and fell.

It was like playing a game. When you were in top form, even a Silver-ranked player could pull off King-level plays.

But when you were in poor form... you would get beaten so badly your mother would not recognize you.

Just because you had learned a skill did not mean you could remain at your peak forever.

Why did acrobats endure dull, repetitive practice day after day? Was it not to maintain their best condition?

The same was true for competitive games, and the same was true for acrobats...

Clearly, cultivating martial arts followed the same principle!

When your condition was good, the force behind a punch might be greater.

When your condition was poor, it might be merely average.

But now, every dart Qin Fang threw remained at the best state he had mastered for exerting force with flying darts!

How could Qin Fang not understand what was happening?

It had to be the effect of "Eternal Fruit of Dao" within this golden finger!

Qin Fang sucked in a cold breath.

This effect might seem inconspicuous, but it was undoubtedly terrifying.

Because it meant Qin Fang could remain in his best state at all times!

Even if he stopped cultivating from this moment onward, after ten days, half a month, or even a year... he could still pick up a dart and use it just the same!

This...

Qin Fang was shaken to the core.

Then, his eyes grew brighter than ever before.

In an age of chaos like this, with such a golden finger, as long as he had enough time...

Qin Fang's body trembled faintly.

Only after a long while did he let out a deep breath.

The excitement in his heart gradually subsided.

Then he raised his head and realized that, without him noticing, night had already fallen, and his stomach had begun to rumble.

A wave of exhaustion immediately washed over him.

...Without realizing it, he had actually spent several hours "smashing" darts.

While he had been completely focused just now, he had not felt it too strongly.

But now that he came back to his senses, the exhaustion flooding through his body became overwhelming. His arms were so sore that he could barely lift them...

"Hiss..."

Qin Fang grimaced, his eyelids twitching. "This body is still too weak... I need to nurse it back to health as soon as possible."

He thought to himself.

Then he let out a light breath and glanced at the wooden board. Forget it—haste made waste. He would stop here for today.

Dragging his exhausted body, he headed toward the kitchen...

Naturally, the house had a kitchen. There was also quite a bit of firewood piled inside. Qin Fang had already cleaned it out today, so he could cook now.

The staple food Elder Wu had brought him was coarse flour and sorghum rice... but kneading dough was beyond him right now; he was too tired. He could only rinse the sorghum rice, put it into a pot with water, and boil it into porridge.

Elder Wu had been very thoughtful. The supplies he brought included flint and tinder, and Qin Fang naturally had never lit a fire this way before...

Fortunately, he had the original owner's memories. The original owner had often done manual labor, so this was naturally no challenge for him.

After deftly getting the stove going, Qin Fang began cooking.

Sorghum rice porridge would do for dinner.

While he waited, he held a flying dart and kept rubbing it between his fingers, a flickering light in his eyes.

...Qin Fang felt strange.

After mastering a technique, he could not help wanting to use it.

It was like when you were a child and had a long, straight, slender stick in your hand, then passed a field of golden rapeseed flowers... what would you do?

...Qin Fang was holding that "stick" right now.

But he also knew the condition of his body. His hands were weak and limp, so in the end, he did not mess around...

An hour later, after eating, Qin Fang returned to his room.

Every now and then, he glanced at the Panel.

A small skill like "Hidden Weapons" was nothing much.

But the meaning behind it was immense.

This thing was called hope!

Ever since arriving in this world, Qin Fang fell asleep peacefully and securely for the first time...

Over the next few days, Qin Fang settled into an extremely stable routine.

Every day, he threw flying darts in the courtyard.

Now, every dart could hit the wooden board, but his accuracy was not very good. Only one out of every three or five darts could hit the bullseye.

"Eternal Fruit of Dao means that mastered techniques will not be forgotten. Force can be applied smoothly and thoroughly, without low-level mistakes. But there are many factors that affect accuracy; it is not merely a matter of force application... It still needs to be polished carefully..."

A realization surfaced in Qin Fang's heart.

After all, he was only at the Initiation Stage right now. Naturally, he could not immediately reach the level of "hitting the mark every time, never missing a shot."

But as he devoted himself wholeheartedly to it, his understanding of flying darts deepened, and the number behind Hidden Weapons climbed quickly as well.

"Hidden Weapons (Initiation Stage): 63/500..."

"Hidden Weapons (Initiation Stage): 64/500..."

In just three short days, he had raised it beyond sixty.

At this rate, it would take less than a month for him to train Initiation Stage to Minor Accomplishment Stage.

This speed was only because he could cultivate for one or two hours each day...

Why?

His body was too weak.

That severely limited how long he could cultivate each day.

After practicing for half an hour each time, he would exhaust all his strength and need to spend a great deal of time recovering his stamina.

And the further he went, the lower his efficiency became.

"This won't do."

Qin Fang frowned.

But the most crucial thing for nursing his body back to health...

Was food.

But what was he eating every day now?

Sorghum rice porridge, coarse-grain steamed buns, and some boiled vegetables...

There was not even a hint of oil.

Such food could at most ensure that he did not starve to death.

But if he wanted more energy to nourish his body?

He need not even think about it.

But what could he do?

In his current state, he did not even dare step outside. Without Elder Wu at his side, the moment he went out, someone might recognize him as a refugee. If things went badly, he might even lose his life...

With a sigh, Qin Fang could only continue like this for now.

He would first treat the sunburn on his skin.