Realm-Breakthrough Gift Pack

Zhou Wei, seated in the center of the front hall, saw Zhou Cheng arrive and asked with a stern old face, "You've been staying in the study yesterday and today. Why haven't you been practicing?"

Zhou Cheng choked up.

For a moment, he had no answer.

"Speak! Why aren't you practicing?" Zhou Wei's tone grew harsher.

Zhou Cheng could only force himself to say, "I don't like practicing."

He couldn't exactly say that his martial arts could now cultivate themselves.

With Zhou Wei's violent temper, he would probably whip him with his Iron Sand Palm.

Of course, the former Zhou Cheng truly hadn't liked practicing either.

Hearing Zhou Cheng say he didn't like practicing, Zhou Wei immediately slammed his palm onto the table. A huge palm print appeared in the tabletop, which was five or six centimeters thick.

This was Zhou Wei's Crimson Sun Palm, even fiercer and more forceful than the Iron Sand Palm.

Smoke rose from the palm print.

Wisps upon wisps.

As though it wanted to catch fire, yet could not.

"Even if you don't like practicing, you still have to practice!" Zhou Wei shouted sternly. "In this world, how many people get to do what they like?"

"If you fail to break through to Body Refining Level Four before the end of the year, I'll break your legs!"

Zhou Cheng's legs had always been innocent. Recently, they had been threatened by Zhou Wei time and again.

"What if I break through to Body Refining Level Four before the end of the year?" Zhou Cheng suddenly asked.

Zhou Wei was stunned for a moment, then laughed in anger. "Fine. If you break through to Body Refining Level Four before the end of the year, I won't interfere with your cultivation anymore."

It was already noon when the system's voice suddenly rang out in Zhou Cheng's mind.

"Congratulations, Host. After one day of arduous cultivation, your Indestructible Vajra Divine Technique has broken through to the second level!"

The system had activated at noon yesterday, and now, exactly one day later at noon, the Indestructible Vajra Divine Technique had broken through to the second level.

The instant the Indestructible Vajra Divine Technique broke through, Zhou Cheng could clearly feel the muscles throughout his body and his internal organs becoming much more refined.

Even his bone marrow had undergone obvious changes.

Naturally, Zhou Cheng was the only one who could feel all this.

Feeling the changes in his body, Zhou Cheng smiled in delight.

Zhou Wei was the General of the Nation and had slain countless enemies, carrying an imposing aura about him. Whenever he had flared up in the past, Zhou Cheng would tremble in fear. Yet now, seeing his son standing there with a foolish grin on his face, Zhou Wei frowned. What was this brat trying to pull?

Luo Shui spoke up to interrupt him. "Brother Wei, it's noon already, and Cheng'er must be hungry too. Let's eat first." Luo Shui's voice was sweet and pleasant, soft enough to melt into water, completely unlike Zhou Wei's rough, boorish voice.

When Zhou Wei heard Luo Shui speak, his taut expression eased. He nodded and had the servants bring out the dishes, along with wine, of course. Zhou Wei could not go without wine at any meal.

Zhou Wei could go a day without eating, but not a day without drinking.

Since Zhou Cheng's eldest brother, Zhou Li, was cultivating at the Sun Moon Sword Sect, only the three of them ate together. During the meal, Luo Shui kept placing food into Zhou Cheng's bowl, and Zhou Wei's face darkened as he watched.

Only after Luo Shui gave Zhou Wei a large chicken drumstick did his dark face gradually lighten. Luo Shui shot Zhou Wei a look. At his age, he was still jealous of his own son.

During the meal, Zhou Wei mentioned that the Mongol Kingdom was causing trouble at the border and that he would be heading there.

Zhou Cheng felt greatly relieved upon hearing this.

Once Zhou Wei left, he would not return for at least several months. At last, he would not have to face his father's frosty old face for those months.

Seeing the relieved look in Zhou Cheng's heart, Zhou Wei snorted. "You brat, don't think I don't know what you're plotting. While I'm gone these next few months, I'll have Chang Qing watch over you. If you dare slack off and stop practicing, just wait until I return and see how I deal with you."

Seeing Zhou Wei scold their son even while they were eating, Luo Shui glared at him with her beautiful eyes and said to Zhou Cheng, "Cheng'er, there's been a plague around the Capital City lately. Even people within the Capital City have been infected. Don't go out these days."

"A plague?" Zhou Cheng asked.

Luo Shui gave a soft hum. "This plague is quite serious. It spreads extremely quickly, and ordinary medicine has difficulty curing it."

Zhou Wei said, "This plague is not so simple. It is likely the remnants of the Demonic Cult stirring up trouble. His Majesty has already sent the Six Fan Sect to investigate."

Then he said coldly, "Prince of Southern Ming is digging his own grave!"

"Prince of Southern Ming? Who is Prince of Southern Ming?" Zhou Cheng could not help asking.

Luo Shui explained the matter of Prince of Southern Ming and the Demonic Cult to Zhou Cheng.

After the meal, Zhou Cheng chatted with the two of them about family matters for a while before returning to his own courtyard.

"Looks like the Great Feng Dynasty isn't peaceful either." Zhou Cheng thought of what Zhou Wei and Luo Shui had said during the meal about the Mongol Kingdom and the Demonic Cult.

For the first time, Zhou Cheng desperately wanted to increase his strength.

Returning to the study, Zhou Cheng summoned the system panel and kept a close eye on the cultivation progress of the Black Tortoise Divine Technique.

Time passed swiftly. The sun gradually sank westward. At sunset, the fading sunlight was pale, and the courtyard seemed to have been brushed with a thin layer of golden light.

As the sun set, the system voice Zhou Cheng had long awaited finally sounded once more.

"Your Black Tortoise Divine Technique has undergone thirty hours of arduous cultivation. Its third-level progress has reached one hundred percent and has automatically broken through to the fourth level!"

Within the system panel, the Black Tortoise Divine Technique blossomed with a ring of light.

The instant the Black Tortoise Divine Technique broke through, Zhou Cheng's skin, muscles, tendons, bones, and internal organs were greatly refined once again. He could feel his muscles becoming much firmer, his tendons more resilient than before, and his bones harder than before.

A day ago, if a Body Refining Level Four expert had struck him with one punch, he would definitely have coughed up blood. But now, even if a Body Refining Level Four expert hit him ten times or even dozens of times, they probably could not injure him.

Because he cultivated both the Black Tortoise Divine Technique and the Indestructible Vajra Divine Technique, two God Grade techniques, the defensive strength of his physical body had already far surpassed that of a Body Refining Level Four expert.

He had finally reached Body Refining Level Four!

Body Refining Level Four was an important watershed in the Body Refining Realm. Many martial artists remained stuck at Body Refining Level One, Level Two, or Level Three.

Thinking of Zhou Wei's promise that he would stop interfering with his martial arts cultivation if Zhou Cheng broke through to Body Refining Level Four before year's end, Zhou Cheng smiled.

He wondered what expression would be on Zhou Wei's stern old face when he learned at the end of the year that Zhou Cheng had broken through to Body Refining Level Four.

"Congratulations, Host, on breaking through to Body Refining Level Four. You have obtained a Realm-Breakthrough Gift Pack."

"Would you like to open the Realm-Breakthrough Gift Pack now?"

Just as Zhou Cheng was rejoicing over reaching Body Refining Level Four, the system's voice suddenly sounded.

A Realm-Breakthrough Gift Pack?

Zhou Cheng was stunned.

Breaking through a realm came with a gift pack reward too?

He just did not know what the Realm-Breakthrough Gift Pack contained.

Curious, Zhou Cheng silently said in his heart, "Open the Realm-Breakthrough Gift Pack."

At once, the Realm-Breakthrough Gift Pack flashed with light and opened.

"You have obtained the Wind-Facing Willow Steps manual."

"You have obtained the Demon-Subduing Saber Technique manual."

"You have obtained the Roaming Dragon White Tiger Fist manual."

"You have obtained one Low-Grade Spirit Artifact, the God-Slaying Saber."

"Although the God-Slaying Saber is a Low-Grade Spirit Artifact, it can cultivate automatically. The more enemies it kills, the faster its rank will rise."

Zhou Cheng had not expected the Realm-Breakthrough Gift Pack to reward martial technique manuals: the Wind-Facing Willow Steps, the Demon-Subduing Saber Technique, and the Roaming Dragon White Tiger Fist, as well as a Low-Grade Spirit Artifact, the God-Slaying Saber.

Moreover, like the Earth Cauldron, this God-Slaying Saber could cultivate automatically.

(When I got up this morning, I received the editor's contract-signing message. I'll mail the contract this afternoon. Everyone should be able to send rewards next Monday.)