Ten Days

"Okay, brother must keep his word."

Chen Yue giggled.

Although a poor man's child matures early, she was only fifteen years old after all. Plus, in the years since her father passed away, Chen Mu had practically raised her single-handedly, so she still had some childishness about her.

Chen Mu patted Chen Yue's little head, chatted with Xiao He for a while, and then watched Xiao He lead Chen Yue away.

He turned around.

He saw Wang Ni hiding half her small figure behind the door.

Chen Yue going to the Inner City to practice martial arts, with Wang Ni following as a maid, Chen Mu asked himself if he had that much face, not to mention Wang Ni was too young, only ten years old.

"Your Yue-jie is gone, go back to the house."

"...Okay."

Wang Ni responded timidly and returned to the courtyard.

Chen Mu stood at the door, watching the direction Chen Yue left for a while, then returned to the house.

He didn't know if Chen Yue could show some talent going to the Inner City to practice martial arts. He didn't quite understand things like natural endowments yet. Last night, he slightly felt Chen Yue's body, and it felt like it should be better than his, but he wasn't sure if it was excellent.

Chen Mu naturally hoped that Chen Yue could achieve something in martial arts. Although he didn't mind Chen Yue being a little vase sister who was always sheltered by him, it was always better to be outstanding.

In fact,

no matter how outstanding Chen Yue was, it would be difficult to truly leave his protection, because probably in this world, even the most outstanding and talented people, those heroes who topped the Great Xuan Dynasty, were probably no match for his system panel.

Unless he could be nipped in the bud, like the Ambush yesterday, otherwise, as long as he was given enough time, he would definitely climb step by step, eventually reaching the top of the world.

"Practice."

Chen Mu took a deep breath, returned to the backyard, and practiced his saber techniques.

Now that he had Mo Pi Minor Accomplishment, his physique had improved significantly. The daily Mo Pi process could be changed from twice to three times, which he could fully withstand, and the other spare time was used to practice saber techniques.

As for the City Guard, he planned to occasionally say hello these days. Anyway, there was nothing he needed to do, and Min Baoyi probably didn't want him to do anything either.

For Chen Mu to practice Mo Pi Minor Accomplishment or even Great Accomplishment as soon as possible was the most important thing in Min Baoyi's view. With Chen Mu's skill in comprehending Saber Intent, as long as he practiced to Mo Pi Great Accomplishment or even Perfection, even if he didn't step into Lian Rou, at least ordinary people would find it difficult to threaten him again. That kind of Ambush in the alley was only for dealing with people who had not yet achieved success in Body Tempering.

Once Mo Pi was perfected, quicklime would be useless at all. Even the knives and weapons of those ordinary villains who had never practiced martial arts might not be able to cut through the tough skin after tempering, so naturally, there was no threat.

Just like that,

ten days passed in a flash.

These ten days could be said to be uneventful. The previous Ambush also directly disappeared, and the entire Nine Stripes Ward became peaceful... Of course, this peace was only for people with status like Chen Mu. For the bottom-level poor, they were still struggling with the government's taxes and the gang's extortion, as well as the bandits and thieves' disasters.

As a Yamen Runner Captain, Chen Mu was well aware of these things, but he was not yet to the point of being indignant about it and immediately establishing a grand ambition to change the world. It was not that he was indifferent, but that he would not do things beyond his duty.

If one day he achieved great feats and became a person of great importance in the Great Xuan Dynasty, then he might rewrite the world according to his own ideas, but now he was just a Yamen Runner Captain and did not have that ability.

"Enough."

Getting up from the sandpit again.

Chen Mu summoned the system panel and couldn't help but nod slightly when he saw that the accumulated experience points had finally exceeded three hundred points.

Three hundred experience points were enough for him to break through from Mo Pi Minor Accomplishment to Major Accomplishment. This kind of speed and progress, I am afraid that even the most amazing geniuses in the Inner City would sigh in inferiority.

No rush.

He still cleaned the mud and sand off his body first, then returned to the house. After his body recovered, he adjusted his thoughts and breathing before summoning the system panel and choosing to upgrade the Gold Jade Mo Pi Fa.

This time, the tactile sensation was not as intense as the last time. Although there was still a surging change that exploded in his body all at once, as if a ball of hot blood exploded from the heart and rushed to the skin all over the body, and an unspeakable pain occurred, Chen Mu did not faint like last time, but stubbornly endured it.

Of course.

In his opinion, it would be better to faint, because this kind of pain was too much stronger than when improving his skills. He curled up into a ball, almost biting the pillow to pieces, and stubbornly endured it for an unknown amount of time before the pain of ten thousand needles piercing from all over his body gradually subsided.

His whole body was almost soaked in sweat, and even the bedding underneath was wet in a large area.

His whole body was even more limp and weak, almost exhausted.

"Huff..."

Chen Mu released the pillow and exhaled a mouthful of turbid air. He barely stretched his body, and after a while, he accumulated a little strength and sat up from the bed.

After his body recovered a little more, Chen Mu got up, poured a bowl of the prepared soup to replenish his Qi and blood, and drank it down in gulps. Then he called Wang Ni over to change the wet bedding.

Wang Ni was raised by Chen Yue to be obedient and well-behaved, and she didn't ask what was going on at all. She just took the quilt and sheets to change them. She was a little curious as to why Chen Mu would 'wet the bed', but the smell wasn't that strange.

Chen Mu didn't care what Wang Ni was thinking.

He went to the side room to rest and adjust his breathing. After about half an hour, the soup to replenish Qi, blood, and moisture gradually took effect, and the strength of his body slowly recovered. When he clenched his fist, it had become steady and powerful again.

"Major Accomplishment."

Chen Mu could now feel the changes in his body more clearly.

Compared to before, the Qi and blood in his body were more vigorous. If he used the Power of Saber Intent with all his strength, his breath would be longer. Even if he faced the siege of thirty or forty thugs, he could kill them all with one breath, without the need to catch his breath or overexert himself midway.

Secondly, his skin was more resilient. On the surface, it didn't seem to have changed much, only that his skin tone had become a little darker, showing a healthier wheat complexion, but in reality, its toughness was comparable to the hide of a wild bull.

How tough is bullhide?

If you chop down with a slightly dull knife, you may only be able to chop out a layer of white marks, unable to split it open.

If the human skin becomes as tough as bullhide, the resistance and endurance will naturally be much stronger than ordinary people. It can be said that even if Chen Mu doesn't know saber techniques, just wielding a saber and hacking randomly, facing ten thugs who also don't know saber techniques and haven't practiced body refinement, after a fierce battle, the last one standing will definitely be him.

"Saber Intent, in the Mo Pi Lian Rou stage, can almost make up for the gap of a major realm."

Chen Mu whispered in his heart.

A few days ago, he had consulted Min Baoyi about his skills, and learned some things from Min Baoyi. For example, if a Mo Pi Major Accomplishment practitioner masters Saber Intent, then even if he is dealing with a Lian Rou Minor Accomplishment character, as long as the other party has not mastered Saber Intent, he can still match him.

There are fewer people who master Saber Intent than martial artists who have entered the Lian Rou realm.

But as you go further up, the gap between physiques will gradually increase. For example, Min Baoyi said that he is Lian Rou Perfected, and also has Saber Intent. If he faces a character who has reached 'Yi Jin Minor Accomplishment', even if the other party does not know Saber Intent, it will be difficult for him to win.

And in fact, there are relatively few people who can cultivate the body tempering method to the third realm 'Yi Jin' without Saber Intent.

The reason is also very simple. There is a unique gap between Lian Rou and Yi Jin, which requires relying on a specific 'Qiang Jin Powder' to cross over. This medicinal powder is extremely expensive. Usually, people who have not mastered 'Power of Intent' find it difficult to obtain this medicinal powder, unless they are direct descendants of those large families.

These are all the situations that Chen Mu learned from Min Baoyi. For him, it is neither too close nor too far, because he will at least step through the Mo Pi realm soon, and after Lian Rou, he will have to consider Yi Jin.

"Mo Pi Major Accomplishment, even an Ambush by dozens of people is of little significance to me. Ordinary people can hardly do anything to me, but against characters like Min Baoyi, I still can't block even one round."

Chen Mu was very clear about his position and was not complacent about his current small achievements.

Even if he didn't reach the level of Min Baoyi, he would at least have to achieve Lian Rou Minor Accomplishment and master 'Dual Power of Intent' before his strength could be considered someone in this outer city. Before that, he still had to be cautious.

"Reaching Mo Pi Perfection requires one thousand experience points."

With my current physique, I can probably perform Mo Pi four times a day, and I can absorb one more portion of Medicinal Power. It probably won't take a month to collect these one thousand experience points.

Chen Mu nodded secretly in his heart. Although the two medicinal powders for internal and external use were relatively expensive, he was not consuming them excessively. At most, it would cost dozens of taels of silver, which he could completely afford, and it was even much more economical than others.