The instant both men shouted,
Lin Tian's fist collided with Ma Dalong's.
A deafening boom tore through the forest!
The moment Ma Dalong felt the force behind Lin Tian's fist,
his expression changed drastically!
He had never imagined this young man could possess such strength!
But it was not over.
While Ma Dalong was still reeling,
a sinister, elusive force
slithered into his body like a venomous snake
and surged through his organs.
Ma Dalong spat blood and flew backward!
He crashed to the ground, eyes wide,
his gaze filled with disbelief.
Dark... Dark Force!
This young man was a Dark Force expert?!
Who was he?
Why did he want to kill me?
When had I ever offended someone this powerful?
Countless questions churned through Ma Dalong's mind.
But he would never voice them.
The moment that strange Dark Force entered his body,
it had destroyed his organs.
All he could do now was open his mouth once more and spit out blood.
The next instant,
Ma Dalong lost consciousness, and the last of his life drained away.
Seeing this,
Lin Tian did not hesitate. He drove another vicious burst of Dark Force into Ma Dalong's head
to make sure he was not playing dead.
Only after doing that
did Lin Tian move on.
He took everything of value from the body,
then immediately left.
Firelight blazed across the forest.
After Lin Tian departed,
the sounds of the fight soon drew the Black Axe Gang's attention...
Lin Tian quickly reached a safe place.
He did not go straight home.
Instead, he entered an abandoned house.
By moonlight,
he laid out everything he had taken.
There were banknotes and a little loose silver.
Together, they amounted to around a hundred taels.
There were other things as well.
Two black iron pellets?
He picked one up and examined it. A strong smell of gunpowder reached his nose.
Looking at the pellets,
Lin Tian recalled the massive explosion Ma Dalong had caused before fleeing.
Had these things caused it?
Lin Tian examined them carefully.
If they had, they were extremely dangerous.
He remembered how Ma Dalong's explosion had sent the entire sea of flames surging upward.
The thought still left Lin Tian shaken.
He put the iron pellets away for the time being.
Then his gaze shifted again.
This was the last thing he had found on Ma Dalong tonight.
A... copper plate?
Ma Dalong had hidden it inside his sleeve.
If Lin Tian had not glimpsed something there out of the corner of his eye during the fight,
he might never have found it.
For Ma Dalong to hide it so carefully,
it was clearly no ordinary object.
Hm? There are words on this plate?
He looked at the largest characters.
"This is... Demon-Subduing Golden Body?"
"Hm? What does that mean? Is this a Cultivation Technique?"
As Lin Tian studied the writing on the plate,
he discovered he had been right.
It was a Cultivation Technique,
and a body-tempering technique at that!
What was more, it tempered both the internal organs and the muscles, bones, and skin!
Lin Tian's eyes flashed!
Delight welled up inside him.
He had never even heard of a body-tempering technique that trained both inside and out.
Traditional body-tempering techniques generally left the organs untouched.
It was not that they could not be trained. They were simply too fragile.
Training them the same way would only injure him!
That was why internal and external training were usually kept separate.
Yet this technique trained both at once!
It did more than give the organs the same resistance to blows as the rest of the body.
It strengthened the organs themselves.
The difference was immense.
Strong organs would not only grant greater powers of recovery, but also Hundred Poisons Immunity.
The text also described another benefit... improved aptitude!
That was right. This technique could improve his aptitude!
And not just once.
According to the technique,
once he cultivated it to an advanced stage,
he would undergo three transformations. His flesh would be reconstructed,
and his aptitude would improve enormously!
Holding the technique in his hands,
Lin Tian felt as though he had found a priceless treasure.
On the surface, he did not care much about his aptitude.
With his Fate Grid,
he could become powerful even without exceptional aptitude.
But who would turn down another advantage?
The next moment, however, hesitation entered his eyes.
The requirements for cultivating this technique seemed exceptionally strict.
To begin, he apparently needed something called a Bodhi Fruit?
Without it, he could not cultivate the technique at all?
But what was a Bodhi Fruit?
He knew nothing about it.
Then he looked at his Fate Grid.
Learning Leads to Success?
Perhaps...
With that thought, Lin Tian immediately began.
A short while later,
his Fate Grid flashed in his mind once more.
Fate Grid: Learning Leads to Success Mountain-Shaking Fist (Limit-Breaking) 3485/10000 Demon-Subduing Golden Body (First Layer: Stone Garment) 5/800
"It worked! It really worked!"
"Heh. Who would've thought this Fate Grid could let me ignore a Cultivation Technique's requirements and start training right away?"
After a moment of excitement,
Lin Tian put everything away and vanished into the darkness again.
The next day,
Lin Tian returned to the Martial Academy.
After obtaining Demon-Subduing Golden Body the previous night,
he had adjusted his training schedule.
Now that he wanted to practice two techniques,
he needed to divide his time sensibly.
Of course, Mountain-Shaking Fist would remain his absolute priority.
His martial cultivation was the foundation. Everything else was merely a supplement.
So he decided to spend part of each morning on Demon-Subduing Golden Body
and devote the rest of his time to Mountain-Shaking Fist.
By the time Lin Tian arrived at the Martial Academy that day,
the courtyard was already full of Outer Academy disciples.
As he entered,
they all greeted him respectfully.
But once he had gone,
their discussions started up again.
"Hey, did you hear? A new Senior Brother joined the Inner Academy yesterday. Apparently, Master had him serve tea during the apprenticeship ceremony!"
"What? Really? I thought that Senior Brother would be like Senior Brother Lin Tian and wouldn't need to serve tea."
"Hah! How could they be the same? I heard the newcomer trained alone at home and broke through to Bright Force in just over a month! He's a genius!"
"And they say he's the son of a wealthy merchant! With both connections and talent, how could Master not take him seriously?"
"Hey, haven't you noticed?"
"Senior Brother Lin Tian seemed to arrive a little late today."
"Don't tell me he heard what happened yesterday and is sulking..."
The disciple seemed to realize he had said something he should not have.
He glanced fearfully toward Lin Tian.
Fortunately, Lin Tian had already disappeared into the Inner Academy.
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