Foundation Repair

After the excitement of successfully activating the furnace came an even more cautious and lengthy calibration phase. Shaye knew better than anyone how dangerous it was to apply insufficiently tested energy to his own body. Over the next three days, rather than hastily lying down inside the furnace, he and his father conducted an exceptionally meticulous "test run."

He made several simple biological tissue simulants—mainly chunks of animal meat with varying densities and levels of vitality—and placed them inside the furnace chamber. His father, Shaliu, then injected an extremely minute amount of chakra into the Puppet Core to activate the energy field.

Shaye focused completely on sensing every change in the energy field, recording the data with a pen:

"Energy output at five percent. Duration: ten breaths. Simulant surface temperature increased by 0.3 degrees. No obvious changes."

"Output increased to eight percent. Microscopic observation of muscle tissue shows faint signs of increased cellular activity, accompanied by slight dehydration..."

"Attempting to adjust energy output frequency to imitate the fluctuations of the Medical Ninjutsu, Mystical Palm Technique... The energy field is showing unstable oscillations. Stop immediately!"

Every test came with risks. Once, a frequency adjustment error caused the energy field to destabilize instantly, and a piece of animal meat in the furnace even gave off a burnt smell. Shaliu was so startled that he immediately cut off the chakra supply. Shaye rushed to the furnace at once, carefully inspecting the Core and its internal circuits, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

Failure, adjustment, then another test. Father and son worked almost without sleep, sustaining themselves on dry rations and water. Shaliu never complained. Though he did not understand the profound principles involved, he could see his son's focus and rigor. He followed Shaye's instructions strictly, precisely controlling every bit of force and timing in the chakra output.

Three days later, the test data had piled into a thick stack. Shaye had finally found a relatively stable, gentle, and effective range of parameters. The energy field's output was set to its lowest power, while its frequency was adjusted to the band closest to life's natural rhythm.

"Father, we can begin." Shaye's voice was somewhat hoarse from staying awake for so long, but his eyes shone with startling brightness.

Shaliu nodded solemnly, took a deep breath, and pressed both hands against the furnace's designated chakra input nodes. This time, it was no longer a test, but actual treatment.

Shaye removed his outer clothes, leaving only a thin inner garment. With a feeling almost like pilgrimage, he slowly lay down inside the slightly cold metal chamber of the First-Generation Body Tempering Furnace. Gentle white light from the chamber walls enveloped him, and a strange warmth seeped in through his skin.

"Begin." Shaye's voice came from inside the furnace, carrying a faint, almost imperceptible tremor.

Shaliu closed his eyes and steadied his mind. The relatively abundant chakra of a Chunin began flowing steadily from within him, passing through the nodes and entering the Puppet Core.

Hummm—!

The furnace let out its steady roar again, lower and more powerful than it had been during the tests. The white light within the chamber deepened, and the temperature slowly rose to a comfortable level.

Shaye held his breath and sensed the changes in his body with all his strength.

At first, there was only warmth, as though he were soaking in a hot spring. Then he felt the balanced, gentle energy transformed by the Puppet Core begin to penetrate his skin like countless tiny hands, spreading through his muscles and deeper toward his bones and internal organs.

An indescribable numb itch began to emerge. It did not remain on the surface, but came from the deepest parts of his body, from every single cell! Like parched, cracked earth finally receiving long-awaited rain, each cell greedily absorbed this pure life energy and let out a joyous moan.

He could clearly "see" within himself how those weak, low-vitality cellular tissues—frail due to premature birth and congenital deficiencies—were slowly being nourished and activated by this energy. Bodily functions that had long run sluggishly from lack of energy were like rusted gears receiving lubricant, beginning to try operating more efficiently.

The process was not entirely comfortable. Whenever the energy touched congenital, underdeveloped meridian nodes or atrophied tissues, waves of faint yet profound soreness and swelling would spread through him, sometimes accompanied by a slight stabbing pain. That was the inevitable cost of repair and reconstruction.

Shaye clenched his teeth and endured in silence. Sweat seeped from his forehead, only to be quickly evaporated by the energy field. His body trembled slightly, but his mind was in a state of extreme clarity and excitement.

He could feel it! He really could!

The congenital foundation that had plagued him for nine years, binding him like shackles, was being repaired and strengthened bit by bit by this foreign yet incomparably gentle power!

The process was incredibly slow, and the effect minuscule, but for Shaye, who had never known what a "normal" body felt like, it was nothing less than a miracle!

Outside the furnace, Shaliu maintained a steady chakra output with all his strength. He could see the furnace operating smoothly and hear his son's faint, tightly suppressed breaths. He did not know exactly what was happening inside, but from the chakra consumption and the furnace's stable operation, he could infer that the process seemed to be going smoothly. His heart was filled with indescribable anticipation and tension.

Time slowly passed.

When Shaliu felt that nearly half his chakra had been depleted and prepared to stop according to the plan, the energy field inside the furnace began to weaken gradually, and the humming slowly faded.

The white light receded, revealing Shaye lying inside the furnace chamber.

His entire body was soaked in sweat, his face pale, and even his lips had turned somewhat white from how hard he had bitten them earlier. He looked as though he had just suffered through a serious illness. Yet in his open black eyes burned a brilliance more dazzling than ever before!

He slowly sat up, flexed his fingers, then tried clenching his fist.

A tangible, unprecedented sense of "strength" quietly surged up from deep within his body. It was still weak, nowhere near what an ordinary person possessed, but he could clearly feel that the ever-present weakness rooted in the very source of his foundation had lessened!

It was no longer a psychological effect, but a genuine physical improvement!

"Father..." Shaye's voice carried the exhaustion that followed his excitement, yet it was full of joy. "It worked... It really... works!"

Shaliu hurried forward and supported his son's slightly swaying body, carefully sensing his condition. Though Shaye was weak, his breathing really did seem a little deeper and stronger than before!

Seeing the radiance nearly overflowing from his son's eyes and sensing the unprecedented vitality in his tone, the silent, steadfast puppet master's eyes grew slightly hot.

He knew that the road his son had taken was incomparably difficult. But today, he had finally seen the dawn.

Repairing his foundation was no longer an unattainable dream, but a reality that could be achieved step by step through effort!

(End of chapter)