Stake Standing Perfection (Two-in-One)

Three days later, Li Jinshui walked out of the bathroom.

In these three days, he had consumed a total of twelve catties of D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat.

The first nine catties had already pushed his Basic Stance Technique to the Great Success stage. The subsequent three catties showed a slight decline in effectiveness, but the margin was small, still granting him 90 points of proficiency.

[Basic Stance Technique (Great Success 90/2000)]

"With the stance technique at Great Success, I've opened six of the Twelve Standard Meridians. Only six more to go, and the technique will be perfected."

Li Jinshui changed into a new set of clothes, his expression solemn.

As expected, pushing the Basic Stance Technique to perfection was truly a drain on time and resources.

Even with Heaven Rewards Diligence, it was this demanding; those who relied solely on their own training, even with unlimited dietary and medicinal supplements, would need at least several years to reach this point.

"My advantage is clear: I progress faster than them, and their self-training is far less effective than the boosts I get from Heaven Rewards Diligence."

Li Jinshui curled his lips into a smile.

However, thinking about the proficiency required for the Basic Stance Technique, he couldn't help but sigh.

"The remaining exotic beast meat is clearly not enough. I should have asked for more back then."

After reaching Great Success, each catty of D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat only provided 30 points of proficiency. With 48 catties remaining in his quota, consuming them all would only yield 1440 points of proficiency.

"I need at least another 16 catties of exotic beast meat, but that's over three hundred thousand yuan..."

He frowned, feeling a bit troubled.

Trouble aside, everything would have to wait until he finished the current supply of meat.

If it really came down to it, he would just have to reveal a bit more of his talent and fleece Old Huang and the others again.

After all, they had already coughed up two million; scraping together another three hundred thousand shouldn't be too hard, right?

Thinking of this, a smile returned to his face, and the heavy stone in his heart felt as if it had settled back into place.

Relying on his own wit, he had solved a major problem in less than a single breath.

"As expected of me, a typical high-IQ protagonist of a satisfying novel!"

Li Jinshui was very satisfied with his situation and turned to walk out of the room.

A moment later, he entered the testing room alone to check his current blood energy value again.

He still had to hold back, however, so he only exerted thirty percent of his blood energy.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

After a few ordinary punches and kicks, the results quickly appeared on the Blood Energy Tester.

[Blood Energy Value: 900!]

"Huh, it hit a round number this time."

Li Jinshui raised an eyebrow, mentally calculating his total blood energy.

If thirty percent was 900, then his full-power output would be exactly 3000.

"Damn, is the growth rate really that explosive?"

Li Jinshui was startled himself.

He felt that after the Basic Stance Technique reached the Small Success stage, the blood energy boost brought by each breakthrough in realm had become significantly exaggerated.

At the beginning, during "Small Success," the test result was 508.

After the stance technique reached "Proficiency," the result was around 1700.

Now that the stance technique was at "Great Success," his blood energy had soared straight to 3000.

If he perfected the stance technique, what level would his blood energy reach?

Would it really be comparable to the Thousand-Jun Realm?

"At this rate, do I not even need to run away next month? Why not just go and wipe out the security company?"

Thinking of this, Li Jinshui immediately pulled out his phone to search for information related to "Weihu Security Company."

It would have been better if he hadn't checked; the results were shocking.

Weihu Security Company was a local company in Rong City, established over 100 years ago.

The company had only one line of business: security.

Their property security division was the largest, covering almost every residential and commercial building in Rong City.

At the same time, they provided private security, a high-end service that even hired Thousand-Jun Realm personnel as personal bodyguards.

The company's senior executives were also at least at the Thousand-Jun Realm.

As for higher-level positions, while the internet didn't disclose their specific strength, it was clearly not lower than the Thousand-Jun Realm; after all, netizens' comments were the most authentic.

One netizen mentioned having dinner with a vice president of Weihu Security Company five years ago, and the person was already in the Wing-Folding Realm back then.

The Wing-Folding Realm was the realm beyond the Thousand-Jun Realm!

Weihu Security Company has no fewer than six vice presidents.

The kicker is that they also have ten board directors and one big boss.

Some netizens have even leaked on forums that there are several large vagrant gangs in Rong City, and the largest among them, the "Color Gang," is suspected to be funded by Weihu Security Company.

Tsk, they're getting too big for their boots. Even the Youth Training Camp and all those delivery stations in Rong City can't do anything about them; what the hell am I supposed to do, wipe them out?

Li Jinshui dismissed the thought, put away his phone, and turned to leave.

In the days that followed, Li Jinshui returned to his routine of going between his room and the cafeteria.

He would pick up his D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat in the morning, and by the afternoon, he couldn't even be bothered to attend classes. He told Huang Lichen he was going into seclusion to practice martial arts, then hid in his room to watch TV.

After reaching Great Success in his Basic Stance Technique, his body's capacity to absorb and digest had increased significantly, going from four catties of D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat a day to eight.

And so, in just six days.

The final forty-eight catties of D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat were completely consumed, and his proficiency had improved drastically.

[Basic Stance Technique (Great Success 1530/2000)]

Finally finished it. If nothing goes wrong, they'll be coming to question me again today.

Li Jinshui lay on his bed, idly playing with his phone.

Last time, it took ten days to finish sixty catties of E-Grade Exotic Beast Meat; this time was even more intense, as he'd polished off sixty catties of D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat in just nine days.

It was easy to imagine that Ye Mei and the others couldn't sit still anymore.

Sure enough, a moment later, his phone rang—it was another call from Huang Lichen.

"Hello?"

"Hello my ass! You kid can really eat. I haven't kept an eye on you for a few days, and you've already finished all the exotic beast meat?" Old Huang sounded very agitated on the other end.

"But my blood energy value broke a thousand. To be precise, it's around 1200 now," Li Jinshui replied calmly.

"..."

The other end of the line fell into instant silence, leaving only the sound of somewhat rapid breathing.

"Blood energy value... 1200?" After a long pause, Old Huang asked, stuttering slightly, "So... you... completed the conversion for the Ninth Grade Stance Technique, and... and you actually broke through to Great Success?"

"Yeah, that's right."

Li Jinshui no longer had any concept of those small numbers in the one or two thousands, so he answered offhandedly.

"Damn it!"

The sound of Old Huang's crude cursing and the slap of a thigh came through the phone, followed by an urgent, frantic urging: "You kid, get to the testing room right now! Hurry, hurry! We're all waiting for you here; I can't even wait a second longer!"

"Alright. Actually, I have something—ahem—that I'd like to discuss with the leadership," Li Jinshui said, giving Old Huang a heads-up to avoid his request for "more meat" seeming too sudden later.

"What? What did you just say? The signal is bad here. Just get over here, that's all!" After shouting a few exaggerated lines, Old Huang hung up the phone.

Heh, what a childish tactic!

Li Jinshui curled his lips, shook his head, got up, put on his shoes, and left the room.

Soon, he arrived at the testing room.

Ye Mei, Huang Lichen, and the others were already there.

The moment Li Jinshui stepped through the door, four burning gazes instantly locked onto him.

Huang Lichen opened his mouth several times, as if he had countless questions to ask but didn't know where to start.

"You're here?"

Ye Mei was the most composed. She simply greeted him and pointed to the Blood Energy Tester on the side: "Test your blood energy first."

"Alright."

Li Jinshui nodded and stepped forward.

Bang!

After a flurry of fast-moving punches and kicks, the result appeared on the Blood Energy Tester.

[Blood Energy Value: 1200!]

This time, he had used forty percent of his blood energy, landing exactly on the round number of 1200.

"Hiss!"

Huang Lichen gasped.

Even though he had known the result in advance, witnessing it with his own eyes was still shocking.

"A monster, he's simply a monster!" He exclaimed repeatedly, rubbing his hands together in excitement.

"It's only been nine days since the last time!" The silver-haired Chen Yu nodded slightly, his gaze full of scrutiny as he stared at Li Jinshui, as if he wanted to dissect him to see what was going on inside.

The last test result was 681, and this time it had nearly doubled to 1200; it was well worth studying.

"I've lived for so long, I never expected to have my eyes opened again and witness a true genius. Hahaha!" Zhang Li, while happy, pulled a cigarette from her pack to calm her nerves.

Although Ye Mei maintained a calm and composed expression with her arms crossed, her fingers were gripping her own arms tightly; clearly, she was not as indifferent as she appeared.

"Leaders, I, Li Jinshui, have always been a man of my word. Last time, I said that with 60 catties of D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat, I could break through a thousand in blood-qi value by next month. And look what happened..."

Li Jinshui tossed his hair, brimming with confidence. "Not only did I achieve it ahead of schedule, I exceeded the goal. Now that my Stake Standing has reached Great Success, I think we should press our advantage and make a direct sprint toward perfection."

"No need, absolutely no need."

Huang Lichen was the first to object, rising abruptly. "A-Shui, your strength is already at the mid-tier of the second-rate. There is no need to rush into the first-rate; you should focus your energy on martial skills."

"Oh? Practice martial skills? Sure, I'll listen to the leaders."

Li Jinshui immediately flashed an innocent, adorable smile and nodded readily.

"But..." He scratched his head, his expression turning distressed. "My C-Grade Supplement Potion seems to be running low, too."

"..."

Huang Lichen's mouth twitched instantly.

The moment Li Jinshui called them "leaders," he knew nothing good would come of it.

He never expected that if he didn't provide exotic beast meat, this guy would just pivot to asking for supplement potions.

That stuff was even more expensive than D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat!

"How much exotic beast meat do you need to reach perfection in Stake Standing?" Ye Mei asked suddenly.

Huang Lichen and the others turned to look at her in astonishment.

Before Li Jinshui could speak, Huang Lichen said with a bitter face, "Wait, Supervisor Ye, don't get carried away. I want this kid to be as strong as possible too, but it's not that I don't want to invest—I really don't have any money left."

He then launched into a litany of complaints, mentioning everything from paying tuition for his three children to his wife buying several bottles of beauty serum.

Chen Yu looked equally embarrassed, offering a wry smile. "Actually, I don't have much cash left either. Most of the money I brought out this time was intelligence funding I collected from others in advance."

Zhang Li remained calm, slowly exhaling a ring of smoke. "This old woman still has a bit of savings, but it's my retirement fund. I can't give it all away, but I can sponsor another hundred thousand at most."

A hundred thousand!

Li Jinshui's eyes lit up; a hundred thousand would work.

"Supervisor Ye, give me another three hundred thousand. I'll figure out the rest myself. Before the Youth Training Camp ends, I will reach perfection in Stake Standing." Li Jinshui looked at Ye Mei with burning intensity.

"I only have two hundred and fifty thousand. With Camp Leader Zhang's hundred thousand, that's three hundred and fifty thousand total. Are you sure that's enough to reach perfection?" Ye Mei frowned, looking skeptical.

Li Jinshui had spent two million just to raise his Stake Standing to Great Success.

For a normal martial artist, the resources and time required to break through from "Great Success" to "Perfection" would inevitably be even greater.

Yet Li Jinshui was saying that with another three hundred thousand, he would handle the rest—it was incomprehensible to her.

"What kind of way could you possibly figure out? Even if you took out a loan, you wouldn't get much. If you ask me..." Huang Lichen also furrowed his brows.

"Forget it."

Ye Mei suddenly shook her head, cutting Huang Lichen off.

She seemed unwilling to dwell on the issue, instead looking at Li Jinshui with a hint of seriousness. "I know you have your secrets, so we don't intend to pry. Regardless, I'll say it again: we are all in the same boat. I can give you the money, and I won't force you to reach perfection, but I have one condition."

"Oh? Supervisor Ye, please, name your condition. I promise I'll agree to it." Li Jinshui patted his chest in assurance.

"Heh."

Ye Mei let out a sudden laugh, her eyes carrying a playful glint. "The condition is simple: stop climbing the window sills. The monitoring room reported that you've triggered the alarm over thirty times this month. What? Is the view outside that good? Is it worth you constantly climbing out there?"

"..."

The smile on Li Jinshui's face froze instantly.

Damn it!

So every time I prepared to make a run for it, I was caught on camera?

That's impossible; I checked everything... Damn it, it must be hidden pinhole cameras!

"Don't worry, I'm not blaming you. After all, you have a mental illness, so doing abnormal things is normal for you. In any case, I believe you aren't trying to escape."

After saying this, Ye Mei took out her phone and transferred two hundred and fifty thousand yuan to Li Jinshui.

Her words were clearly a warning, letting Li Jinshui know that he shouldn't waste his energy plotting an escape—he couldn't get away.

"Haha, Li Jinshui, you really are a mischievous child!" Old Lady Zhang Li laughed heartily at the sight of Li Jinshui's ugly expression, though she still took out her phone and transferred him the hundred thousand.

Just like that, Li Jinshui had three hundred and fifty thousand in his pocket.

But he couldn't feel happy at all; the escape route he had meticulously planned had been cut off from the very beginning.

If he couldn't even escape this building, thinking about going to Southeast Asia was a complete joke!

"Fine, since we're all in the same boat, I'll go all in. Get me a Ninth-Grade Martial Skill. I'm really lacking in offensive means right now. As long as I don't die, I guarantee you a satisfactory new station."

Li Jinshui gritted his teeth; he was truly going for broke.

Once he reached the new station, if they were short-staffed, he—as the station master—would eventually have to go out to deliver food. When that time came, he would have plenty of chances to run.

Huang Lichen and Chen Yu agreed to his final request.

There were many types of offensive Ninth-Grade Martial Skills, and the price was generally around a hundred thousand; the two of them could manage to scrape that together if they put their minds to it.

The next day, Li Jinshui received the Ninth-Grade Martial Skill—Meteor Chasing Moon—delivered by Old Huang.

It turned out to be a projectile weapon martial skill.

"I've discussed it with Old Chen. Given your current strength and the situations you'll face once you head out, learning projectile weapons offers the best cost-to-benefit ratio."

Huang Lichen said as much, then proceeded to explain a combat style that combined projectile weapons with lightness skills.

Especially since Li Jinshui had already achieved minor success in Basic Lightness Skill and had also learned Lightning Pulse Step, he could unleash projectiles while running, whether facing a powerful enemy or being surrounded by many.

If he encountered a weaker enemy trying to flee, he could also throw projectiles while giving chase.

In short, a projectile martial skill was currently the most suitable one for Li Jinshui.

Li Jinshui accepted this gladly; although it wasn't a flashy martial skill involving long spears or great swords, projectile weapons weren't bad either—using them to kite enemies would be nothing short of exhilarating.

Without a moment's hesitation, he learned the manual, recorded it into his panel, and didn't forget to activate the genuine registration code.

Afterward, he hurried straight to the cafeteria upstairs.

Of the three hundred and fifty thousand sponsored by Ye Mei and Zhang Li, Li Jinshui spent three hundred and twenty thousand without hesitation to order sixteen catties of D-Grade Exotic Beast Meat from the cafeteria.

He had already consumed eight catties yesterday.

Only the final eight catties remained for today!

"Eight catties of beast meat swallowed into my belly, only now do I know my fate is not determined by the heavens!"

In the bathroom, Li Jinshui stood under the showerhead, letting the cold water slap recklessly against his face.

He sank his legs, arched his back slightly, and grabbed a large piece of Deep-Fried Blood Thorn Bug, stuffing it into his mouth: "Stake Standing perfection, it happens today!"