Mu Chen's voice sounded a little weary over the phone.
"Sect Master Mu? Is Guan settling in all right with you?"
Mu Ye's tone instantly turned unbearably grave.
"He's settling in, yes, but... sigh!"
Mu Chen's heart lurched.
"What's wrong? Did something happen?"
Mu Ye lowered his voice.
"Mu Chen, there's something I need to tell you, but you mustn't get worked up. That old bastard Zhen Hua found out Lu Guan was in Heaven Dou City. He just called me, insisting on snatching Guan away to be his disciple!"
"What?!" Mu Chen exploded on the spot. "Zhen Hua, that old fucking geezer! Lu Guan is my disciple!"
"Exactly!" Mu Ye fanned the flames furiously. "I rejected him in no uncertain terms! I told him my good friend Mu Chen had shown Guan kindness as weighty as a mountain, and I, Mu Ye, would never poach someone else's disciple!"
Mu Chen was moved beyond words.
"Sect Master Mu, you're a true friend! A true friend!"
Then Mu Ye changed tack.
"But Zhen Hua actually tried to win Lu Guan over with resources."
"You know our Body Sect is so poor you can hear the empty pockets rattling. For Lu Guan's sake, I couldn't exactly refuse..."
Now Mu Chen understood.
"Say no more, Sect Master Mu!" Mu Chen declared firmly. "Whatever Zhen Hua can provide, I can provide too!"
Mu Ye said, "Well... I'd feel terribly bad about that."
"There's nothing to feel bad about! Guan is my disciple. I'll smash my pots and sell the iron if that's what it takes to support him! I'll send you the first batch of resources tomorrow!"
"My friend Mu, how generous!"
After ending the call, Mu Ye looked at the communicator in his hand and slapped his thigh in satisfaction.
He had just put the communicator away when a muffled boom suddenly came from the basement.
Even the floor beneath his feet trembled twice.
Mu Ye's expression changed.
This is bad!
That medicinal bath was incredibly potent. A first-time soak could easily make someone's body burst.
He flashed away, leaving an afterimage as he raced toward the basement.
The instant he pushed open the heavy metal door, a scorching wave of air hit him in the face.
Mu Ye froze where he stood.
The scene he had expected-Lu Guan howling in agony or bursting apart and dying-was nowhere to be seen.
Inside the wooden tub.
Lu Guan's eyes were tightly shut, his upper body bare.
Dark red light flowed over his skin.
Four thick arms had burst from beneath his ribs, their muscles knotted and dark blue veins bulging.
The pair of bone wings on his back were fully spread, their sharp edges even carving several deep notches into the rim of the tub.
Fortunately, none of the medicinal liquid had spilled.
At the center of his forehead, two shadowy eyes had snapped open, radiating a primal wildness.
His War Lord Demon Body was fully unleashed.
But that was not what shocked Mu Ye most.
The most outrageous thing was the tub of medicinal liquid!
The liquid, originally dark purple and thick as magma, was turning clear at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Its bubbling never stopped.
The savage medicinal power was pouring madly into Lu Guan through his six arms, his bone wings, and even every inch of his skin.
"What the fuck..."
Mu Ye swore.
This medicinal bath contained thousand-year-old dragon blood vine and earth-core fire marrow.
According to the experience of generations of Body Sect masters, no matter what, a first soak should have lasted at least three days.
This tub of undiluted concentrate had originally been intended for Lu Guan to absorb slowly over five days.
And how long had it been?
Not even an hour!
The medicinal liquid was almost spent!
Mu Ye stared fixedly at Lu Guan's body, which resembled a demon god descended upon the world, and something suddenly clicked in his mind.
The Innate Secret Method focused on completely integrating a body martial soul into the flesh, turning the body into the ultimate weapon.
Ordinary Body Sect disciples had martial souls that were either a hand, a leg, or an eye.
In short, they were localized parts of the body.
When practicing the Innate Secret Method, they had to concentrate the medicinal power in the part corresponding to their martial soul, then painstakingly spread it throughout their bodies.
But Lu Guan was different.
The War Lord Demon Body was already a complete body in itself!
The extra arms, bone wings, and eyes were all parts of that demon body.
In other words, Lu Guan did not need to go through the process of "spreading" it at all.
Every part of his body was greedily devouring the medicinal power!
!
"Phew-"
A long exhalation came from the wooden tub.
The final trace of dark purple faded, and the liquid in the tub became completely clear water.
Lu Guan opened his original pair of eyes.
All six hands clenched in unison.
Crack, crack, crack, crack-
A series of popping bones echoed through the basement.
With a thought, he drew in the dark red light.
The four arms retracted into his body, the bone wings folded away and vanished, and the eyes on his forehead closed as well.
Lu Guan stood up in the wooden tub.
His skin had taken on a healthy wheat-colored tan, with a faint metallic sheen.
"How do you feel?"
Mu Ye stepped forward and looked Lu Guan up and down, his voice trembling.
Lu Guan did not answer immediately.
He raised his right hand, spread his fingers, and abruptly clenched them.
A crisp pop rang through the air.
"It's amazing."
Lu Guan looked up at Mu Ye. "Teacher, I feel like I have endless strength throughout my body."
He paused, then grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.
My fists want a drink of blood. (๑•ૅω•´๑)
Mu Ye paced back and forth in excitement, rubbing his hands together incessantly.
"That boy A Ruheng may be slow in the head, but his physical foundation is exceptional. He has a chance of achieving the immaculate golden body."
"And now I have you too!"
Mu Ye stopped and looked at Lu Guan, his eyes shining.
"With the War Lord Demon Body combined with the Innate Secret Method, your potential is even greater than A Ruheng's!"
"If both of you fellow disciples can achieve the immaculate golden body..."
Mu Ye drew a deep breath and swung his fist fiercely.
"The day the Body Sect regains its former glory will be within reach!"
Lu Guan rolled his neck, hopped out of the wooden tub, and picked up a nearby towel to dry himself.
"Teacher, I'm done soaking. What's next?"
Mu Ye snapped out of his wild joy. Looking at the tub of clear water, his face twitched sharply.
Happy as he was, this rate of consumption was terrifying.
Five days' worth burned through in a single day.
How long could he keep fleecing those two suckers, Mu Chen and Zhen Hua?
"What's next?"
Mu Ye gritted his teeth and said viciously.
"A beating!"
"You've absorbed so much medicinal power. If I don't hammer it all the way into your marrow, it'll all be fucking wasted!"
After that, screams rang out without end.
Time flew by amid this almost self-torturous training.
Heaven Dou City, the Body Sect's temporary headquarters.
Three years passed in the blink of an eye.
Over those three years, the Body Sect's basement practically became Lu Guan's money-devouring lair.
Fortunately, Zhen Hua provided support.
Of course, Zhen Hua was not running a charity.
Zhen Hua had once stood beside the forging table and watched six-year-old Lu Guan activate his War Lord Demon Body.
Each of his six hands held a Thousand-Refined heavy silver hammer.
Clang, clang, clang, clang-
The hammers fell like a torrential downpour.
Under the alternating blows of Lu Guan's six arms, a rare piece of starry sky meteoric iron was worked without a single pause or flaw.
Hundred Refinement!
Thousand Refinement!
All in one uninterrupted flow!
Zhen Hua's eyes had nearly popped out of his head as he watched.
Tempered by the Innate Secret Method, Lu Guan was an absolute monster of physical stamina.
He forged for three straight hours without even breathing hard.
Medicinal baths, forging, actual combat.
A routine that ran between those three points.
And so it went for three years.
"Brother Lu Guan! I'm here to see you!"
Before you continue