Ji Zhixing walked out of the office building. He had just reached the campus path when he spotted a familiar figure waving at him.
"Zhixing! Over here!"
It was Liu Qifan.
Back on the bus, Liu Qifan had mentioned that he had ultimately chosen to fuse with the Ironback Wolf gene.
Ji Zhixing hurried over.
Liu Qifan grinned and punched him lightly. "So? What did Teacher He want with you? Don't tell me he wanted to chew you out for picking the Three-Inch Stone Monkey Gene?"
"No." Ji Zhixing shook his head. "Teacher He helped me apply for a piece of Gene Equipment to help me develop my ability."
"Gene Equipment?" Liu Qifan's eyes widened, his face full of envy. "You've got it made! We only just fused with our genes, and you already get to use Gene Equipment?"
"Man, we both fused with first-order genes, but you're already about to develop a new gene ability. I haven't even heard my gene's voice yet. That Twin-Core Gene Aperture of yours really is badass."
Every piece of Gene Equipment cost a fortune.
Like Ji Zhixing, he came from an ordinary family. If he wanted Gene Equipment, he would pretty much have to earn it himself.
"Don't get too excited. It's only a loan, and I can only use it for a month," Ji Zhixing explained.
"That's still awesome!" Liu Qifan smacked his lips. "Anyway, where are you headed next? Want to go home together?
"The school's giving us three days off to get used to the power of a full-fledged Gene Cultivator. I hear training starts when we come back in three days."
"I need to stop by the Equipment Vault first to pick up the equipment," Ji Zhixing said.
"Come on, I'll go with you!" Liu Qifan immediately said. "I can check out the Gene Equipment and see what it's like."
The two chatted as they headed toward the school's Equipment Vault.
My first piece of Gene Equipment... Ji Zhixing thought to himself. I wonder what it'll be like.
The Equipment Vault was a small, three-story building, with a teacher stationed at the entrance.
Ji Zhixing stepped forward and gave his name. The teacher flipped through the register and nodded. "Ji Zhixing, right? Teacher He has already registered you."
With that, he turned and entered the storeroom. A short while later, he came out carrying a long staff.
"This is what we've prepared for you."
The teacher handed the staff to Ji Zhixing.
Ji Zhixing paused in surprise. "Sir, wasn't I supposed to be allowed to choose one?"
The teacher glanced at him and said flatly, "You need to master a First-Order Two-Star Staff Art. This staff is the best fit for you. Take it."
Ji Zhixing accepted the staff without saying anything more.
He knew the school was only lending him equipment as a favor to Teacher He. If they would not let him choose, so be it.
He lowered his gaze to the staff in his hands.
The staff was black from end to end and two and a half meters long, with a slight heft to it. Faint patterns covered its surface, which had a rough, frosted texture.
"Thank you, sir." Ji Zhixing put the staff away and thanked the teacher.
The teacher waved him off and went back to reading his documents.
The two walked out of the Equipment Vault.
Liu Qifan looked thoroughly envious. "Zhixing, hurry up and refine it! I've never seen what refining Gene Equipment looks like."
Ji Zhixing nodded.
With a thought, he activated the Gene Furnace inside him.
An invisible force spread out from his body and enveloped the staff in his hands.
The staff trembled slightly, then turned into a faint streak of light that plunged straight into his body and vanished.
He sank his consciousness into his body and looked at the Gene Furnace.
Within the furnace's misty gray space, the Black Longstaff floated silently.
At Ji Zhixing's command, the eight-trigram pattern on the furnace's inner wall suddenly lit up and began rotating slowly.
Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen, and Dui-the eight trigrams each shone with a different color, enveloping the staff.
"Humm..."
The staff trembled gently, a hazy glow rising over its surface. The glow grew brighter and brighter, as though resonating with the furnace's power.
Ji Zhixing could clearly feel a strange connection forming between him and the staff.
That connection grew deeper and tighter.
My Gene Furnace is different from everyone else's. Refining the Three-Inch Stone Monkey Gene improved its compatibility with me. Now that I'm refining Gene Equipment, will anything change here too?
Ji Zhixing waited quietly.
Before long, he finished refining the staff.
The staff floated silently within the furnace, giving off a soft glow.
Meanwhile, information flooded into his mind: the training method for the Basic Staff Technique, various ways of generating force, and the fundamental chops, sweeps, jabs, and upward strikes...
Everything was clear, as though etched into his memory.
More importantly...
He raised his hand, and with a thought, the staff instantly emerged from his body and appeared in his grasp.
At that moment, a strange sensation swept through his entire body.
He could clearly sense that a deep connection had formed between him and the staff.
This feeling...
Ji Zhixing's eyes flickered.
He had heard that refining Gene Equipment established a connection with its user, making it effortless to wield.
Yet the connection he sensed now seemed far deeper than anything he had heard about.
Holding the staff, he felt an indescribable sense of familiarity.
It was as though...
The staff had become part of his own body.
He could distinctly perceive every inch of it, down to the smallest detail.
At the same time, with a thought, the staff's information appeared clearly in his mind.
[Black Longstaff: Order: first order Quality: one star Ability: Basic Staff Technique Refining this staff automatically grants the training method for the Basic Staff Technique. While holding this staff, the user can perform the first-order one-star Basic Staff Technique and train in the Basic Staff Technique more quickly.]
First order, one star...
Ji Zhixing repeated the words silently.
He knew Gene Equipment was divided into orders and star ratings, just like gene abilities.
The Stone Heart Ability that came with his Three-Inch Stone Monkey Gene was a first-order one-star ability.
It belonged to the weakest tier.
Still, the Basic Staff Technique was the foundation of all staff arts.
If he mastered the Basic Staff Technique first, then found a First-Order Two-Star Staff Art to train in, he would achieve twice the results with half the effort.
This Black Longstaff really was a good fit for him.
Ji Zhixing took a deep breath, gripped the staff, and gave it a casual swing.
Whoosh!
A sharp rush of air rang out as the staff traced a perfect arc through the air.
The movement was smooth and natural, its force flowing all the way through. It was as though he had practiced the Staff Technique thousands of times, with an effortless grace and not a trace of awkwardness.
So this is the first-order one-star Basic Staff Technique!
Anticipation surged within Ji Zhixing. If I can't go straight to training in a First-Order Two-Star Staff Art, I'll master this Basic Staff Technique first!
Watching from the side, Liu Qifan's eyes lit up. "Zhixing, that Staff Technique of yours...?"
"It's the staff's ability," Ji Zhixing said with a smile. "As long as I hold it, I automatically master the first-order one-star Basic Staff Technique."
"Awesome!" Liu Qifan was green with envy. "I wonder when I'll get a piece of Gene Equipment of my own."
Ji Zhixing smiled and withdrew the staff into his body.
"Come on. Let's go home."
The two left school side by side and headed toward the Rain-Listening Garden.
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