On the day when one month expired, Qin Tiexin heard the news in the lecture hall.
The deacon teaching the class stopped halfway and looked around at the crowd of disciples sitting in the hall. "It's been a month since I started, and there are some things I should let you know."
The hall became quiet.
"According to the sect's rules, there will be a small competition for new disciples six months after entering the school; there will be a big competition for newcomers after one year." The deacon's voice was steady, but his words were clear. "Those who excel in the small competition will receive sect resources - elixirs, Spirit Stone, Cultivation Method, depending on the ranking. And the big competition one year later..."
He paused and said, "If the handyman disciples can enter the top ten in the newcomer competition, they can be promoted to outer disciples as an exception."
There was a low sound of breathing in the hall.
Outer disciple!
This means better treatment, higher-level Cultivation Method, and more opportunities. For the vast majority of handyman disciples, this is the most direct way to change their destiny.
Qin Tiexin sat in the corner, his back straightened unconsciously.
Exterior door...
Only by entering the outer gate can you gain access to more advanced weapon refining knowledge, and only then can you have the opportunity to inquire about the Tiannan Territory, and only then can you possibly find Lin Household.
This is the road he must take.
The deacon continued, "The small competition is a warm-up before the big competition. The content of the competition is eclectic - fighting skills, breaking formations, alchemy, weapon refining, and hunting monsters are all possible. But one thing remains unchanged: the stronger one wins."
Discussions began gradually in the hall.
Some are excited, some are worried.
Qin Tiexin is calculating silently.
There are still five months until the small competition, and there are still eleven months before the big competition. With his five Spirit Root qualifications, it is almost impossible to catch up with those geniuses with single Spirit Root and double Spirit Root in qi refining. It will take at least two or three months for Qi Refining First Layer to reach the second level at the current speed; from the second level to the third level, I am afraid it will take even longer.
But physical training is different.
He has now stabilized the third level of Body Tempering, and is only one step away from the fourth level. If he can break through to the fourth level of Body Tempering, or even higher, he will have a huge advantage in close combat - especially when most new disciples do not have Foundation Establishment and cannot fly with weapons.
"Body training." Qin Tiexin made a decision in his heart.
***
That night, Qin Tiexin returned to the stone room and opened the "Basic Body Forging Technique".
The fourth level of body tempering, muscles and bones.
To be precise, it starts from the phalanges and metacarpal bones, laying the foundation for subsequent whole-body bone training.
There are three methods of cultivation:
The first is finger force penetration - poke iron plates and stone walls with two or one finger a thousand times a day. Finger fractures are common in the early stages, and need to be fixed with "bone-fixing paste" and then continue practicing to strengthen the bones during healing.
The second is the Eagle Claw Skill - grasping red-hot iron balls, slippery loaches, and flying flies to train finger strength, gripping power, and precision.
The third is soaking in medicinal wine - soak your hands in "bone-strengthening wine" for two hours every day, so that the medicinal power penetrates into the bone marrow. The trick is specifically stated: the bones are sore and itchy, like ants biting.
Sign of success: Five fingers can easily make finger holes in the bluestone.
Qin Tiexin closed the book and frowned.
He was not afraid of pain, but what he was afraid of was delaying his work - once his fingers were broken, his speed of holding iron pliers and dismantling utensils would definitely be affected.
After thinking for a moment, he came up with an idea: practice his left hand first.
The right hand has to work and cannot be abandoned; although the left hand is also commonly used, it is less important. Wait until the left hand is somewhat mature, and then practice the right hand.
On the second day, Qin Tiexin dug out an iron plate from the scrap pile in the Waste Equipment Pavilion.
This is a fragment of half a shield, with incomplete "strong" spiritual patterns still remaining on it. Although the spiritual patterns are damaged, the material is much harder than ordinary iron plates. It is perfect for practicing finger strength.
He stood the iron plate in the corner of the stone room, took a deep breath, and raised his left hand.
Stretch out your index finger and aim it at the iron plate.
poke.
The first time, there was a dull impact feeling on the fingertips, the iron plate did not move at all, and the finger bones were slightly numb.
The second time, the third time...
Qin Tiexin maintained a steady rhythm, using all his strength every time. He could feel the skin on his fingertips rapidly red, swollen and heated up, and there was a vague pain deep in the bones.
But he didn't stop.
After fifty strokes, the knuckles begin to swell.
Eighty times, the skin on the fingertips was torn open and blood oozed out.
When it was more than 100 years old, I heard a soft "click" sound - the finger was broken.
Qin Tiexin stopped and looked at his twisted index finger. The severe pain surged in at this moment, but there was no expression on his face. He just walked aside and took out the "Bone Ointment" that had been prepared long ago.
The ointment was dark brown and exuded a strong herbal smell. He skillfully applied the ointment to the fractured area with his right hand, and then carefully wrapped it with a cloth strip to fix it.
The whole process only takes a dozen breaths.
Then he raised his left hand and extended his middle finger.
Continue.
Middle finger, ring finger, little finger, thumb.
An hour later, all five fingers on his left hand were fractured. They were covered in thick ointment and looked like five small black rice dumplings.
Qin Tiexin then stopped and dipped his left hand into the "bone-strengthening wine" that had been prepared long ago.
The wine was amber in color, soaked in pangolin scales, drynariae and other medicinal materials, and the smell was pungent. The moment my left hand was immersed in it, a burning sensation spread up my arm, followed by a sore itching deep into the bone marrow -
It's really like countless ants crawling in the bones.
Qin Tiexin gritted his teeth, and beads of sweat oozed from his forehead.
He sat cross-legged, closed his eyes and adjusted his breathing, forcing himself to ignore the unbearable itching feeling.
This soak lasts for two hours.
During the night, Qin Tiexin barely slept. The itching in the bones of his left hand surged up, making it impossible for him to sleep. He simply got up, holding the iron pliers with his right hand, and continued to trace the "sharp" spiritual patterns in the Void Realm.
When he opened the strip of cloth the next morning, he was surprised to find that most of the swelling in his finger had subsided. Although the fracture was still painful, he could already move slightly.
I don't know if it's because I have strong recovery power or because the medicinal wine is too effective.
He moved the five fingers of his left hand. Although he still couldn't use strong force, the basic grip was fine.
Very good.
Qin Tiexin Change your right hand and start practicing.
Same process, same pain.
This cycle continues.
Ten days later.
Qin Tiexin stood in front of the iron plate and stretched out his left index finger.
The fingertips were covered with thick calluses, and the skin was dark red, looking rough but tough.
He poked the iron plate gently.
"Pfft."
With a muffled sound, the index finger sank half an inch into the iron plate, leaving a clear finger hole.
Withdrawing your finger, a round hole with smooth edges was left on the iron plate.
Qin Tiexin looked at his fingers and then at the iron plate, a trace of satisfaction flashed in his eyes.
Next is the right hand.
It's the tenth day again.
When Qin Tiexin can poke an iron plate with his left and right hands alternately a thousand times without breaking a bone, the "finger force penetration" of the fourth layer of the tempered body has been considered a success.
But he didn't stop.
Next is the "Eagle Claw Kung Fu".
He begged a few loaches from the dining hall, caught some flies from the valley, and went to the Waste Equipment Pavilion to pick out a few iron balls of different sizes.
Catching a loach is a practice of finger strength and skill - the slippery thing twists between the fingers, and if you are not careful, it will fall out of the hand, and if you use too much force, it will be crushed to death. Qin Tiexin can run seven or eight times after catching ten times at the beginning. After three days of practice, it has become possible to make the finger like an iron hoop, and it can be grasped accurately.
Catching flies requires precision and speed - flies fly irregularly, and you must have good eyesight and quick hands. Qin Tiexin couldn't even touch the fly's wings at first, but after practicing for five days, he was able to pinch the fly the moment it stopped without damaging its body.
The most painful thing is catching the iron ball.
He burned the iron ball red and then grabbed it with his bare hands. Although the skin's resistance to high temperatures had increased after three layers of quenching, the moment he held the red-hot iron ball, he still felt severe burning pain in his palm, and the smell of burnt flesh filled the air.
Qin Tiexin surface does not change color, wait for the temperature of the iron ball to drop slightly, then change to another red-hot one to continue.
After practicing every day, the palms of both hands are covered with blisters and burn marks. When soaking in medicinal wine at night, the soreness and itching spreads from the bones to the skin, which makes people almost crazy.
But he survived.
Another six days passed.
Qin Tiexin stood in the stone chamber, holding his hands in vain, and when his fingers opened and closed, there was a faint sound of breaking through the air.
The tempered body has four layers and the finger bones are small.
But he was still not satisfied.
"Basic Exercise Techniques" says that the fourth level of body tempering mainly focuses on training the finger bones, and the metacarpal bones and wrist bones can be trained on the fifth level. But Qin Tiexin thought about it and decided to do it all at once - since you want to do it, do it thoroughly.
He spent another ten days using the same method to temper the metacarpal bones, wrist bones, and even the toe bones of both feet.
In addition to working, eating, and attending classes every day, there is cultivation.
All day long, the stone chamber was filled with the sound of poking and squeezing, the sound of grabbing, and his suppressed groan.
Finally, one month later, Qin Tiexin completed all the training of the fourth level of body tempering.
Standing in the center of the stone room, he slowly clenched his fist.
The palm of his hand looks the same as before, but when he clenches it, he can feel the solidity coming from deep inside the bones. The five fingers can open and close flexibly, but the finger strength is surprisingly strong - he has tried it, and now he can crush a piece of bluestone with two fingers.
The changes in the feet are even more obvious - the steps are more stable when walking, the explosive force is stronger when kicking, and the feet can jump more than ten feet with just a tip of the toes.
Although the strength has not increased significantly, the strength, flexibility, and toughness of the palms and feet have all been greatly improved.
What surprised Qin Tiexin the most was that it was of great help to him in dismantling materials and writing spiritual patterns.
Now when he dismantles and scraps Law Artifact, his fingers can find the nodes of the spiritual power circuit more accurately, and the knife is more stable and faster. When writing spiritual patterns, his fingertips can also control Spiritual Qi much more precisely.
As efficiency increases, income will naturally increase.
Now his daily income from the Waste Equipment Pavilion has stabilized at around forty spiritual crystals.
***
On this day, Qin Tiexin was dealing with a batch of discarded half-Law Artifact when he discovered a knife.
The blade is long and narrow, and the blade is full of gaps, as if it has experienced countless fierce battles. The handle is completely broken, leaving only the bare blade. The most fatal thing is that the "sharp" spiritual pattern on the blade is cut off from the middle, and there is no Spiritual Qi at the broken spiritual pattern.
This is a completely useless weapon, just smelt it according to the rules.
But Qin Tiexin picked up the knife and carefully looked at the fracture of the spiritual pattern, and his heart moved.
He is very familiar with the "Feng Rui" spirit pattern - in Illustrated Catalog of Ten Thousand Artifacts's Void Realm, he has copied it no less than ten thousand times, and he knows every turn and every node by heart.
Although the spirit pattern of this knife was cut off, the break was not at a critical node. Moreover, there were no missing parts in the entire knife. Although there was a gap in the blade, the material was intact.
"It is possible to repair it." This thought flashed through Qin Tiexin's mind.
And to repair it, there is no need to add additional spiritual materials - just repair the blade completely and continue the spiritual pattern.
The cost is almost zero.
Once this thought arises, it can no longer be suppressed.
That night, after completing four hours of work, Qin Tiexin did not leave the stone room.
He placed the broken knife on the anvil, lit the oil lamp, and looked at it carefully.
After simulating the repair process three times in the Void Realm, he took a deep breath and started to work.
First, repair the blade.
Qin Tiexin lit the furnace and burned the blade red. Now that he has four layers of tempered body, his fingers are extremely resistant to high temperatures - as long as he is not continuously exposed to extremely high temperatures, he will not be burned if he touches red-hot iron with his bare hands.
This allowed him to feel the temperature and condition of the blade more accurately.
When the blade of the blade was burned to just the right orange-red color, he fixed the blade with iron pliers in his left hand, held the hammer in his right hand, and began to beat it.
Ding, ding, ding...
The sound of hammering echoed in the stone chamber with a steady rhythm.
The gap was closed little by little under the heavy hammer, and the blade gradually returned to flatness. Qin Tiexin's movements were not fast, but each hammer landed on the most critical position, which was extremely efficient.
Half an hour later, the repair of the blade was completed.
Next is the most critical step: continuing the spiritual pattern.
To repair the spirit pattern normally, you need to use a professional spirit pattern knife or spirit pattern pen, use Spiritual Qi as ink, and re-engrave it along the path of the original spirit pattern. But Qin Tiexin doesn't have those tools - and he doesn't need it.
He held out his right index finger.
After four levels of tempering, his fingers were as tough as iron, and his control over Spiritual Qi was also exquisite. At this moment, he slowly guided the weak Spiritual Qi in Dantian to his fingertips, and his index finger suddenly shimmered.
Use your fingers as knives.
Qin Tiexin Hold your breath, touch the blade lightly with your index finger, and slowly walk along the original "sharp" spiritual pattern.
Wherever his fingertips passed, traces of pale golden Spiritual Qi remained on the metal surface and penetrated into the interior of the blade. He was so familiar with this spiritual pattern that every turn was natural and without any hesitation.
Soon, he came to the first breaking point.
This is the place where the spiritual pattern is cut off, and the Spiritual Qi circuit is interrupted here. Qin Tiexin does not pause, the Spiritual Qi on the fingertips suddenly intensifies, and continues to extend along the trajectory of the break--
Zi.
An inaudible sound sounded, and the traces of Spiritual Qi were perfectly connected with the original fracture.
Qin Tiexin Sweat broke out on his forehead.
Continuing the spiritual pattern consumes a lot of Spiritual Qi. He has just completed the first part, and he feels that nearly 20% of the Spiritual Qi in Dantian has been lost.
But he can't stop.
The second place, the third place, the fourth place...
When the fourth breaking point was connected, the Spiritual Qi in Qin Tiexin Dantian was completely exhausted. His fingers went limp and he almost collapsed to the ground.
Fortunately, there are only four broken spiritual patterns on this sword, and they have all been completed.
Qin Tiexin held the anvil to breathe for a moment, sat down cross-legged, and began to adjust his breath and recover.
An hour later, he recovered a little Spiritual Qi and couldn't wait to hold the knife.
The blade is complete and the weight is appropriate.
He took a deep breath and injected a trace of Spiritual Qi into the blade--
Spiritual Qi swam smoothly along the path of the spirit pattern without any hindrance. When Spiritual Qi completed a circle, a faint cold glow suddenly appeared on the blade, and a slight "hissing" sound sounded in the air.
That's Dao Gang.
"It's done!" Qin Tiexin's eyes lit up.
He checked it carefully and confirmed that the spirit pattern was complete and Spiritual Qi was unobstructed. This was a complete half-Law Artifact.
Add a new handle and you have a usable weapon.
Qin Tiexin did not handle it without authorization. He took the knife and knocked on Old Wu's door.
When Old Wu opened the door, he was holding a tea bowl in his hand. Seeing the knife in Qin Tiexin's hand, he squinted his eyes. "Is something wrong?"
"Uncle Wu, I have repaired a half-Law Artifact, please take a look." Qin Tiexin handed the knife over.
Old Wu took the knife, gently stroked the blade with his fingers, and then tried it on the blade, a trace of surprise flashed in his eyes.
He raised his head and looked at Qin Tiexin carefully. "Did you repair it?"
"Yes."
"You also inherited the spiritual pattern?"
"Yes."
Old Wu was silent for a moment and handed the knife back. "No problem. Give it to Manager Sun. It's worth at least thirty spirit crystals."
After a pause, he added, "If you have time in the future, you can rent a stone room and repair weapons for those disciples who can't afford to go to the Weapon Refining Pavilion. Five spirit crystals every hour."
Qin Tiexin bowed. "Thank you, Uncle Master, for your guidance."
***
The next day, Qin Tiexin handed the knife to Manager Sun at the entrance of the Waste Equipment Pavilion.
Manager Sun was a thin old man in his fifties, who was usually responsible for statistical tasks and distributing spiritual crystals. He took the knife and looked at it carefully, with a look of surprise on his face.
"Is this... did you fix it?" He raised his head and looked at Qin Tiexin.
"Yes."
"The spiritual pattern is well connected." Manager Sun weighed the knife, "According to the rules, if you repair half of Law Artifact, you will be rewarded with thirty spirit crystals. This knife is made of ordinary material and is worth sixty spirit crystals if it is intact, but now after repair, the sect's recycling price is thirty."
He counted thirty spiritual crystals from the cabinet and pushed them to Qin Tiexin.
Then he said, "Boy Qin, you've only been here for a little over a month, right? You're making rapid progress. According to this progress, you should be the highest paid among this batch of newcomers."
Qin Tiexin took the spirit crystal. "Thank you, steward."
"Old Wu told you about renting a stone room, right?" Manager Sun asked.
"I told you, five spirit crystals every hour."
"Well, come and register if you need it." Manager Sun waved his hand, "Go ahead."
Qin Tiexin walked out of the Shanggong Hall with another bag of spiritual crystals in his arms.
He touched the bag of spiritual crystals in his arms and thought in his mind: Now that his daily stable income is about fifty spiritual crystals, plus the extra income from repairing weapons, he can save money to buy spiritual materials and forge Edgeless much faster.
But...
Qin Tiexin reminds me of Xiao Bi and Dabi.
Strength alone is not enough, you must also have fighting skills.
The next step is to find a sword technique.