Enhancement

"Fang Xing, how are you?"

Seeing Fang Xing at the doorway, Xu Le hurried over. When he saw the bandages around Fang Xing's head, he supported him with one hand, his face full of concern.

Fang Xing shook his head. "I'm fine. I was only unconscious for a while. I'm much better now."

Hearing this, Xu Le let out a slight sigh of relief. Looking at him, his face was full of frustration at his failure to live up to expectations. "You brat, you really don't value your life at all! That guy may have been seriously injured, but he was still a martial artist. You charged in alone—weren't you afraid of dying?"

Fang Xing forced out a smile and changed the subject. "Did you catch the fugitive?"

Xu Le shook his head. "No. That guy still got away."

"What a pity..." Fang Xing sighed.

Xu Le rolled his eyes at him. "Pity, my ass. Even if you want to earn merit, you have to judge the situation first. I searched for half the day before I found you. I thought you were dead."

"I'm fine. I've got a tough life." Fang Xing smiled.

Xu Le: "..."

"Enough. You're injured too. Come back with me first. I'll put in a word with Uncle Xu for you later, and you can rest for two days."

Fang Xing nodded at that.

Then he left the dilapidated farmhouse with Xu Le.

At dusk, Fang Xing and Xu Le returned to the county town.

Within the county town, shops and houses stood row upon row—restaurants, blacksmith shops, apothecaries...

Though it was already dusk, the streets were still crowded, with people constantly coming and going. The air brimmed with lively bustle.

Qingshan County was a county under Jiang Province, with a population of more than four hundred thousand.

Qingshan County was divided according to the four main directions—east, west, south, and north—and was further split into multiple districts.

East City was the best area, where local powerful clans and wealthy people lived.

The security and environment there were both the best.

Next came South City and West City.

The last was North City, where all sorts of people and displaced refugees lived. It was also the most chaotic part of Qingshan County, breeding countless criminal forces!

After parting with Xu Le, Fang Xing first went to an apothecary to have his wounds treated, then headed toward the home of the original owner of this body.

Tong District was one of the districts in North City.

After passing through several streets and alleys, Fang Xing arrived at his destination.

A row of small courtyards roofed with gray tiles stood alongside a stream, where the sound of flowing water could be heard.

The stream was not wide, but its water was so clear that the bottom was visible. Several willow trees stood along the bank, their branches drooping into the water and stirring ripples.

Arriving before a standalone courtyard to the east, Fang Xing opened the gate and entered.

The courtyard was not large. It had two main rooms, a side room, and a small kitchen. Some miscellaneous items were piled beside the walls, while an old locust tree stood in the middle of the courtyard.

The original owner's parents had both died. He was now all alone, and living by himself, this was more than enough.

After eating something simple, Fang Xing went inside to rest.

He was still injured, and though the journey back had not been far, today had exhausted him.

Lying on the bed in the room, he quickly fell into a deep sleep.

The night passed until dawn.

The next morning, Fang Xing got up early.

After a night's rest, his injuries had improved considerably, and he felt more energetic overall.

He got up, washed, and then began making breakfast.

A bowl of white rice porridge had little flavor, but for ordinary people, it was something most families could not afford.

Most common households ate coarse rice, millet, and the like. Fine white rice was something they could only eat a few times on rare occasions.

As a man alone with the government pay of a Yamen Runner, he was doing reasonably well.

After breakfast, Fang Xing swept his gaze around, and one enhancement prompt after another appeared before his eyes.

"I wonder how these Enhancement Points are obtained..."

He knew the method of enhancement, but to enhance anything, he needed Enhancement Points. That was the key.

After glancing around, Fang Xing summoned the Crimson Panel.

Name: Fang Xing

Cultivation: None

Enhancement Level: One Star (0%)

Enhancement Points: Eleven

"Hmm?"

Seeing the change in his Enhancement Points, Fang Xing immediately perked up.

"It increased by one..."

After examining it carefully, he could confirm that it had indeed increased by one.

He had deliberately checked before going to sleep yesterday, and it had still been ten points. Yet after waking from one night's sleep, it had increased by one.

"Could it be that I gain one Enhancement Point every day?!"

As he looked at the Crimson Panel, a thought flashed through Fang Xing's mind.

One point a day meant that in a year... there would only be a little over three hundred and sixty points.

How many things could that enhance...

"One point a day... accumulated over time, that's not too little. But next, I need to consider what to enhance..."

Fang Xing came back to himself. After thinking for a moment, he looked toward a small wooden cabinet beside the bed.

He immediately got up and walked over to it.

Opening the cabinet, he took out a small bottle.

Opening the bottle, he found some milky-white powder inside.

Blood-Qi Powder!

It was a medicinal aid for cultivation.

It could be used to increase one's accumulation of qi and blood, strengthening the muscles and bones.

Though it was only such a tiny bottle, its price was not low. It cost a full tael of silver.

An ordinary Yamen Runner's monthly salary was only one tael of silver!

Even with some gray income, he could earn less than two taels of silver a month at most.

This tiny bottle of Blood-Qi Powder was worth an entire month's salary.

The original owner had bought this bottle only by scrimping and saving, and had not yet had the chance to use it.

[A bottle of ordinary Blood-Qi Powder possesses a certain enhancement value. Enhancement requires ten Enhancement Points.]

As his gaze rested on it, an enhancement prompt appeared before his eyes.

Seeing the prompt, Fang Xing's heart gave a sudden leap.

Ten Enhancement Points!

This was the item requiring the most Enhancement Points he had encountered so far.

"I'll treat it as an experiment..."

Gritting his teeth, Fang Xing immediately chose to enhance it.

In the next instant, a wisp of crimson light spread from inside the bottle.

When the crimson light faded, the Blood-Qi Powder in the bottle had vanished.

In its place were small white pills!

[A bottle of Blood-Qi Powder has been successfully enhanced. You have obtained a bottle of Blood-Qi Pills!]

Words appeared before his eyes, and Fang Xing's breathing grew noticeably quicker.

Blood-Qi Pills!

These were high-grade medicinal pills!

A single Blood-Qi Pill was worth several taels of silver, far surpassing the value of an entire bottle of Blood-Qi Powder.

There were at least ten Blood-Qi Pills in this bottle!

That was several dozen taels of silver!

Using Blood-Qi Pills for cultivation was absolutely extravagant for ordinary people.

Only powerful clans and wealthy people had the means to afford such a thing.

For common people, even a single Blood-Qi Pill was an extravagant hope.

Cultivating with Blood-Qi Pills was more than ten times as effective as using Blood-Qi Powder.

An entire bottle of Blood-Qi Powder could not compare with even one Blood-Qi Pill.

"A transformation of essence..."

Fang Xing's eyelids twitched.

This enhancement ability truly turned decay into magic.

With medicinal pills to aid cultivation, would improvement still be a problem?

"Can this thing be enhanced further?" A bold thought surfaced in Fang Xing's mind.

If it could continue to be enhanced, wouldn't that be like stepping on his own left foot to soar straight into the sky?!

At that thought, Fang Xing once again stared at the Blood-Qi Pills in the bottle. As his gaze settled on them, words appeared again.

[Current Enhancement Level does not meet the requirement. A second enhancement of this item cannot be performed.]

"Enhancement Level does not meet the requirement..."

Looking at the words of the prompt, Fang Xing turned his gaze toward the Crimson Panel.

Now, he understood the purpose of Enhancement Level.

In theory, as long as his Enhancement Level met the requirement, he really could step on his own left foot and soar into the sky.

However...

Fang Xing looked at the panel. After enhancing the Blood-Qi Powder into Blood-Qi Pills, it had increased by only one percent.

At this rate, he would need to...

Enhance Blood-Qi Pills a hundred times!

"Hiss..."

With only one Enhancement Point gained each day, enhancing Blood-Qi Pills a hundred times would require at least a thousand Enhancement Points.

Converted into time, that would take nearly three years.

"Forget it. I won't think about that for now..."

Fang Xing sighed, then poured out a Blood-Qi Pill from the bottle.

The snow-white pill gave off a refreshing fragrance that seeped into his heart and spleen.

His throat moved, and Fang Xing opened his mouth and swallowed the Blood-Qi Pill.

"No reaction? Why isn't this like in novels and movies?"

After swallowing the Blood-Qi Pill, Fang Xing did not feel any special changes.

Was the procedure wrong?

There did not seem to be any prerequisite for taking a Blood-Qi Pill, right?

Just as Fang Xing was beginning to feel puzzled, warmth rose in his abdomen. Within only a few breaths, it spread through all four limbs and every bone in his body!

It was here!