Bamboozling His Little Senior Sister

"How did your skin get so nice?"

Her eyes wide, Yue Lingshan circled Tian Hao several times, scarcely able to recognize him.

He used to have bronze skin all over, but now it was fair and delicate-even nicer than hers.

Although she knew the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt could make people shed their skin, his new skin had still been red and ugly two days ago. How had it changed color after just two days apart?

That complexion made even a girl like her jealous. It was far better than anything nurtured by internal energy.

"Once you practice the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt, you can look like this too. At the very least, it'll shed the dead skin and calluses on your palms."

Smiling broadly, Tian Hao coaxed her with patient earnestness.

His master's wife had indeed told him not to teach his little senior sister the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt, but if she asked for it herself, that was another matter entirely.

"Really?"

Yue Lingshan was tempted. Though she often nourished her hands with internal energy, years of sword practice had inevitably worn a layer of dead skin and calluses onto her palms, especially her frequently used right hand.

She had never minded before, but now that there was a way to change it, she naturally couldn't let the opportunity slip by.

"My palms used to be much rougher and uglier than yours. Look at them now."

Holding out his palms as proof, Tian Hao knew his plan to lure in the young woman had succeeded perfectly.

I'm not afraid you'll be tempted-I'm afraid you won't be.

Looking at the large hands before her, fair as jade, Yue Lingshan was indeed even more tempted.

She had seen Tian Hao's palms before. Years of gripping a hammer to forge iron had left them covered in thick, ugly calluses.

But now the skin on those palms was fair as jade, much prettier than her own.

"But the way you practice the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt..."

She hesitated. Tempted though she was, the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt's brutal training method made her shrink back.

She didn't want to torture herself like that to train.

"Actually, the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt works by using external stimulation to make our skin cells evolve, becoming tougher and more delicate. You don't necessarily have to be beaten to succeed.

"After years of devoted research, I finally discovered another way to practice it."

Having anticipated this, Tian Hao presented the results of his research. Ever since learning that innate attributes could be improved, he had been pondering how to entice his little senior sister into practicing the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt.

The original Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt certainly wouldn't do, so he had cobbled together a modified version. Though more painful, it was just as effective.

"Haven't you only been practicing for a month?"

Yue Lingshan looked at him suspiciously, feeling that he might be pulling the wool over her eyes.

"That's not important. What matters is that the Iron Shirt training method I created really can be mastered without external beatings. Of course, combining it with a certain amount of beating works even better. I even tried it myself last night."

He continued his straight-faced bamboozling, though he really had tried it the previous night. It was indeed effective, just somewhat painful-far more agonizing than being whipped.

He wasn't sure whether his little senior sister could endure it.

"Then I'll give it a try."

After a moment's hesitation, her love of beauty finally gained the upper hand. Yue Lingshan decided to try it. If it really worked, she would keep practicing.

Skin as fair as jade was simply impossible to resist!

Watching from the side, Lao Denuo covered his face, speechless.

He couldn't shake the feeling that Junior Brother Hao was setting a trap for their little junior sister, yet the silly girl had actually taken the bait.

She really was easy to fool!

"Come on, Little Senior Sister. Go inside and apply the A San Divine Oil first. There's an oil lamp in there. Let me know when you're done."

Beckoning Yue Lingshan to follow, Tian Hao led her to a sealed chamber deep inside the cave. She would practice the alternative version of the Iron Shirt here.

He closed the forged steel door and secured it firmly, then excitedly added firewood and lit the fire to make his preparations.

Inside the chamber, Yue Lingshan paid it no mind. She lit the oil lamp with a fire stick, took off her clothes, and spread the A San Divine Oil evenly over her skin.

For skin as fair as jade, she had decided to go all out!

"Junior Brother Hao, open the door. I've finished applying the medicinal oil."

After applying the A San Divine Oil and rubbing her skin red all over, Yue Lingshan put her clothes back on and called out from inside the chamber.

"There's no need to open the door. You can practice in there now, Little Senior Sister. Remember to keep circulating your internal energy to withstand the steam's heat.

"Also, there's a bamboo tube beside the iron door. You can use it to get fresh air. I'll let you out after two hours."

After calling back, Tian Hao connected the steam boiler to an opening in the stone wall.

He had specially modified that chamber for Yue Lingshan to practice the altered version of the Iron Shirt.

Fortunately, Yue Lingshan had also practiced the Jade-Breaking Fist and could condense internal force. With her internal energy assisting it, that was enough to practice the Iron Shirt and temper her skin.

Bang, bang, bang...

"Little Rat, let me out! I don't want to practice this kind of Iron Shirt!"

Seeing steam jet into the chamber from above, Yue Lingshan panicked.

If this continued, she would surely be steamed alive.

Unfortunately, the young woman's cries received no response whatsoever. They could barely even reach the outside, because Tian Hao had covered the iron door with several layers of quilts, leaving only that single bamboo tube for ventilation.

And the door was made of refined steel. Unarmed, Yue Lingshan had no way to break it open.

Tian Hao himself had already left the cave and asked Lao Denuo to help him practice the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt.

Of course, to keep precise track of the time and prevent his little senior sister from exhausting her internal energy and being steamed alive inside, he had specially prepared a water clock. He would open the iron door after two hours.

"Junior Brother Hao, will Little Junior Sister really be all right?"

Holding a softwood rod, Lao Denuo looked toward the cave and asked worriedly.

Martial artists already had sharp eyes and keen ears. With his internal energy enhancing them, he naturally heard the commotion inside the cave.

It didn't sound too good.

"She'll be fine. I made a conservative estimate. With her internal energy, Little Senior Sister can last at least four hours. There definitely won't be any problems within two."

Tian Hao was utterly confident. He had specifically asked Lao Denuo before: martial artists could strengthen their bodies' resistance with internal power and internal energy. Some masters of internal cultivation could even make themselves as indestructible as diamond through its enhancement.

The fully mastered Nine Yang Divine Art was one example. Although the Mount Hua Heart Method wasn't as badass as the Nine Yang Divine Art, it wasn't bad either. At the very least, resisting steam wouldn't be a problem.

Besides, after his adjustments, the steam inside the chamber would stay at only around eighty degrees. He had spent four hours inside the previous night, so Yue Lingshan could definitely withstand it.

"As long as you know what you're doing!"

Glancing at the water clock Tian Hao had brought out, Lao Denuo pressed no further and swung the softwood rod down.

Although practicing the Horizontal Crab Iron Shirt required beatings with wooden rods after reaching the beginner level, those rods came in different grades too. One had to start with softwood before moving on to hardwood-a gradual progression of sorts.

While Tian Hao endured blows from the wooden rod to practice the Iron Shirt, Yue Lingshan saw that pounding on the door of the cave's sealed chamber accomplished nothing. She could only swallow her frustration and resign herself to her fate.

She quickly sat cross-legged and circulated her internal energy to resist the external heat. At the same time, she channeled her not particularly proficient Jade-Breaking Fist internal force according to the Iron Shirt's method, helping the heat temper her skin.

Though she knew perfectly well that she had been duped, this method of training through external heat did seem to make some sense.

Since she had already fallen into the trap, she might as well give it a try. If it really worked, she would grit her teeth and endure it for a while.

Unfortunately, what the young woman didn't know was that hot steam wasn't so easy to endure. Without tremendous willpower, there was simply no withstanding such an extreme training method.