Two Months Later, Greatly Increased Strength

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, more than two months had passed.

At this moment, Zhao Ya stood in the courtyard practicing the Eight-Part Vajra Art.

Every movement he made seemed as effortless as lifting a heavy weight with ease, filled with a wondrous rhythm.

Zhao Ya could clearly feel that, with his unceasing hard training, his body was undergoing marvelous changes.

His qi and blood had grown more vigorous, his strength more abundant, and even his hearing and vision had become increasingly keen.

After finishing a set of the Eight-Part Vajra Art, Zhao Ya did not stop. Instead, he smoothly transitioned into the Five Tigers Fist.

Slap! Slap! Slap!

That was the howl of his fists cutting through the air.

Within the small courtyard, fist shadows overlapped in layers. Zhao Ya darted and shifted, sprang and leaped; when his fists struck, he was like a fierce tiger descending the mountain, and when they withdrew, he was like a civet cat treading upon snow.

If Chief Escort Meng Lei had witnessed this scene, his jaw would surely have dropped.

The Five Tigers Fist Zhao Ya displayed was exquisitely refined. Though it had not yet reached the pinnacle of perfection, it had already entered the hall.

In an instant, he had completed the set. Zhao Ya stopped where he stood, wisps of white vapor rising from the top of his head.

It was moisture steamed out by the boiling qi and blood within his body.

Zhao Ya slowly drew in his technique. Only after a long while did he exhale a breath of stale air, feeling refreshed and clear-minded, as though his entire body had fallen into a warm stove—comfortably warm all over.

[Stomach unlock progress increased by 2%]

[Eight-Part Vajra Art proficiency increased by 2]

[Five Tigers Fist proficiency increased by 3]

Zhao Ya's heart stirred as he opened the Attribute Panel.

Name: Zhao Ya. Age: 16. Remaining lifespan: 25 years (+257 days)

Skills: Eight-Part Vajra Art (Entered the Hall 143/500) Five Tigers Fist (Entered the Hall 483/500)

As for the human body outline, its changes were even more gratifying. The glow around the stomach region had already become exceptionally radiant.

[Stomach unlock progress: 72%]

Looking at these changes, Zhao Ya's heart surged with emotion.

Over the past two months, the Prosperity Escort Agency had indeed kept its word, providing them with a nutritious meat meal every noon.

The key was the bowl of potent nourishing soup after the meal. It had sent Zhao Ya's cultivation soaring forward, changing almost every day. That was how he had reached such heights in barely two months.

Zhao Ya was now tall and sturdy, with solid bones and strong teeth. He was already close to the realm of Bone Forging Completion.

Such progress would make him a genius among geniuses not only in the small Prosperity Escort Agency, but even throughout vast Dancing Elephant City and Cloudsky Commandery.

Zhao Ya also understood clearly that the reason his progress had been so rapid was largely due to the human body outline.

Though his stomach had yet to be unlocked one hundred percent, it had already given Zhao Ya tremendous benefits.

Setting aside everything else, that terrifying rate of digestion and absorption alone had put Zhao Ya far ahead of others.

Others might only make use of thirty or forty percent of a bowl of nourishing soup, while Zhao Ya could make use of seventy or eighty percent, or even eighty or ninety percent.

The difference did not seem great at first glance, but over time, it would build into an immensely terrifying advantage.

At the same time, Zhao Ya discovered that after practicing the Eight-Part Vajra Art, both the reaction speed of his nerves and the coordination of his body had improved greatly. For cultivating fist techniques, this was simply crucial.

That was why Zhao Ya had been able to bring the Five Tigers Fist to the level of Entered the Hall in only two months, leaving him just one step away from the next realm.

After finishing his practice, Zhao Ya washed his face, then took out the stewed meat he had prepared earlier and began eating it in large mouthfuls.

Zhao Ya had bought all this meat himself from the market. Though it was far inferior to the Earthworm Jerky Tan Dong had given him, and could not compare to the lunch provided by the Escort Agency, it was still meat at least—a little extra meal for the evening.

Just as he was eating, someone knocked on the door outside.

Zhao Ya rose and went to the gate.

"Who is it?"

"Brother Ya, it's me." A timid voice came from outside.

Tang Zuier?

Why was this little girl coming to see him in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?

Zhao Ya opened the courtyard gate, and Tang Zuier was indeed standing outside.

She stood there timidly. The instant she saw Zhao Ya, her face flushed scarlet with embarrassment, and she hurriedly lowered her head.

Only then did Zhao Ya realize that he had taken off his shirt while practicing martial arts to cool down, so he was bare-chested at the moment. He could not help feeling a little awkward as well.

He quickly put on the outer garment draped over his shoulder.

"Zui'er, what is it? Do you need something?"

Tang Zuier's heart was racing like a startled deer.

Zhao Ya had already been tall and broad, and after these days of relentless martial training, the muscles on his body looked as though they had been carved with knives and axes, sharply defined.

One could imagine what an impact that would have on a young girl who had barely seen the world.

Tang Zuier felt dizzy and lightheaded. Only when Zhao Ya spoke did she come back to herself, hurriedly pulling out a small bundle from behind her back.

"Brother Ya, you've taken such good care of me lately, and Zui'er has no way to repay you. I made these shoes for you whenever I had spare time. Could you see if they fit?"

Zhao Ya accepted the shoes. The materials were far from fine, and scraps of cloth had even been stitched onto some of the edges and corners. Yet every stitch and thread was neat and orderly. It was clear that she had put her heart into them.

Meeting Tang Zuier's eyes, filled with expectation, Zhao Ya smiled. Without refusing, he took off his own shoes and tried them on.

"Mm, not bad. They fit perfectly."

"Really? That's wonderful. I was afraid they wouldn't fit." Tang Zuier was overjoyed.

Seeing Tang Zuier's sleep-deprived red eyes and thin chin, Zhao Ya felt a pang of tenderness.

He had merely helped her a little within his means, yet this girl had kept it in her heart.

"Wait here a moment," Zhao Ya said, then turned and went into the house.

A moment later, Zhao Ya came back carrying a small basket. Inside were twenty or thirty eggs and two pieces of cured meat.

"Zui'er, these are for you."

Tang Zuier froze when she saw what was in the basket.

Grain prices were soaring in the market these days, let alone eggs and cured meat.

"No, I can't accept this, Brother Ya. I made you those shoes purely to repay you. How could I take your things as well?" Tang Zuier immediately refused.

But Zhao Ya gave her no chance to argue and directly stuffed the basket into her hands.

"If I tell you to take it, then take it. Don't overthink it either. This isn't payment for you; it's merely a return of courtesy. You gave me a pair of shoes—how could I let you go back empty-handed?"

Tang Zuier still refused to accept it.

"That still won't do. This is too precious."

"What's so precious about it? The Escort Agency handed all this out. I can't finish it alone anyway. Besides, look how thin you are. You can't keep eating rice porridge every day. Take it."

Tang Zuier still wanted to resist, so Zhao Ya pretended to be angry.

"If you keep this up, I won't pay attention to you anymore."

Only then did Tang Zuier accept the basket, mist once more welling up in her large eyes.

"Brother Ya, thank you."

"What are you thanking me for? Hurry back. Don't come out late at night in the future. It's too dangerous."

"Mm-hm!"

Zhao Ya stood at the gate and watched Tang Zuier return home before turning around and closing the courtyard gate.

Those eggs and cured meat had actually been prepared by Zhao Ya for Tang Zuier.

He had simply used this opportunity to give them to her.

Zhao Ya did not consider himself a good person. After all, there were too many injustices under heaven; no single person could possibly handle them all.

But if he were expected to remain indifferent to everything happening around him, Zhao Ya could not do that.

Besides, for him, this had only been a matter of lending a hand.

(End of Chapter)