"Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao, don't you think we're like a couple having an argument right now? You're angry, and I'm chasing after you."
Seeing Mu Nujiao walk faster and faster after noticing him following her, Lu Wu laughed.
At those words, Mu Nujiao stopped outright and glared at Lu Wu. "Stop following me."
"I wasn't trying to follow you. I just happen to have something I want to ask you about."
"What is it?"
"Ah, it's a long story. How about we eat while we talk?" Lu Wu showed her the skewers in his hand.
"You chased after me just because you wanted chili powder?" Mu Nujiao gritted her teeth repeatedly in anger.
"What else?"
"You, you, you..."
Mu Nujiao stared at the shameless man before her. "Get lost!!!"
"Go eat someone else's grilled meat. What's so great about my lousy chili powder?"
Striding back to her earthen hut, Mu Nujiao slammed the door hard. Lu Wu did not leave.
No chili powder, then. For now, he had better think about how to cheer Mu Nujiao up.
Zu Yanzhi, oh, Zu Yanzhi. We've never had any dealings or grudges. If I said I didn't want the prize, then I didn't want it.
Why did you have to join in the fun?
"Look at those fiery clouds stretching a thousand miles. You don't often see scenery like this in Magic City." Sitting on a rock, Lu Wu called out to Mu Nujiao.
But after he waited a while, Mu Nujiao still did not come out.
Lu Wu sighed. "What a shame. You're missing such beautiful scenery."
"Could you be quiet for a moment?!!"
"Don't be angry. Grandpa Shen and the others are still over by the bonfire." Finding that Mu Nujiao had answered him, Lu Wu hurriedly tried to ease the atmosphere. "I really wasn't planning to take that prize. What's so good about grilled meat? You know chili peppers are my favorite."
"I'm not angry. What right do I have to be angry?"
"Then come out and watch the sunset with me."
"No."
"Oh, right, I just remembered some training to improve combat strength. Grandpa Shen told me before that I could temper my body here or something. It seems to be really helpful for cultivation." Lu Wu looked as though realization had dawned on him. "I'll go ask him now."
At those words, the tightly shut door opened.
Mu Nujiao did not look angry. Without saying a word, she headed straight for the bonfire.
Lu Wu followed while eating. For now, he had better not make Mu Nujiao angry again.
Watching Mu Nujiao reach the bonfire and sit there warming herself without a word, Lu Wu found it a little amusing.
She was probably still holding on to that determination to surpass him in strength.
Only on his way back to the bonfire did Lu Wu notice that Nangong Pei had already arrived.
He kept tending the fire, and happened to look over just as Lu Wu looked at him.
Their eyes met, and Nangong Pei gave Lu Wu a slight nod of acknowledgment.
"You recovered pretty fast," Lu Wu teased.
"Not bad." Nangong Pei did not get angry at Lu Wu's teasing. "You're very strong. At your age, I was nowhere near your level. You're stronger than me."
Everyone around them froze at those words.
Those who knew Lu Wu and Nangong Pei felt rather surprised.
Especially Shen Shitian. Lu Wu and Nangong Pei had clashed more than once, and Lu Wu had not held back when casting his magic.
"I offended you quite a few times before," Nangong Pei said earnestly.
"It's fine. It's in the past. Besides, you're the one who lost the most." Lu Wu was even more surprised inwardly.
From the way Nangong Pei looked, it really did not seem to be an act.
It was just that the change was so drastic that Lu Wu found it a little hard to get used to.
"I brought it on myself," Nangong Pei said bitterly.
If I hadn't underestimated Lu Wu back then, I might have had a chance to become Master Shen's disciple now.
"What's past is past," Luo Long spoke up. "Let's not talk about any of that anymore."
He was the one who had called Nangong Pei over. If another conflict broke out and delayed the tool-refining process, he might regret it for the rest of his life.
"Grandpa Shen, what method did you mean when you talked about tempering my body earlier?" Lu Wu asked.
He did not want to delay his cultivation with the Thought Stone. After all, his soul was growing stronger right now, and his cultivation efficiency was extremely high.
He dared not ignore Grandpa Shen and Elder Luo's words.
If his soul grew stronger than his body could withstand, it would damage his body.
He did not want his body to become crippled instead while he was growing stronger.
"Let me explain that." Luo Long took over. "About three kilometers from here, I found a patch of sludge..."
There had originally been nothing special about that patch of sludge.
But to temper Lu Wu's body, Luo Long had fashioned a training site there. As long as he was in the mire, the surrounding sludge would continually squeeze him.
As long as he withstood the pressure of the sludge and broke free of the swamp's binding force, he would complete one round of training.
Moreover, that mire was very large. If he exhausted his strength before getting out, he could very well sink into the swamp.
"So isn't that essentially making me cycle back and forth between exhausting my strength and recovering?" Lu Wu raised an eyebrow after hearing the explanation.
It did not sound like anything special.
Ordinary running and exercise could strengthen the body too.
"Try it and you'll find out." Luo Long smiled mysteriously at his words. "If that were really all there was to it, would I have needed to search for it myself?"
"Elder Luo, is there something you're still keeping from us?" Zu Yanzhi asked.
Tempering the body-the greatest weakness all mages had compared with Demon Beasts was their frail bodies.
Without using magic and magical energy to recover, even a Super-tier mage would suffer serious injuries or even die from a single attack by a Servant-class Demon Beast.
Many Demon Beasts had no demonic power. They could injure and kill mages purely with their powerful bodies.
Generally speaking, mages would not deliberately temper their bodies.
With that time, they would be better off cultivating magic!
"Some things become meaningless once I tell you and you know to prepare for them."
"I'll go give it a try now." Hearing that, Lu Wu was eager to try.
"This body tempering isn't suitable for everyone." Shen Shitian looked at the others. "We won't stop you from going, but cultivating magic might be more useful for you."
Shen Shitian and Luo Long both knew that Lu Wu was sharing the Stardust Magic Tool with Mu Nujiao.
After all, it had been given to Lu Wu to use for the time being, so he could use it however he liked.
As long as he did not deliberately damage it, they would not interfere.
Seeing Mu Nujiao, Zu Yanzhi, and Nangong Pei all rise when Lu Wu wanted to go, Shen Shitian spoke up.
He had warned Lu Wu not to tell anyone about the Thought Stone, not even Mu Nujiao.
He himself had only obtained this Thought Stone through a chance coincidence.
Something like this, with a price but no supply, would tempt even Super-tier mages.
Telling others would only bring trouble upon Lu Wu.
"If they want to try, let them try." Luo Long did not stop them. "It isn't a bad thing to give it a try when they have time."
Hearing that, Mu Nujiao gave Lu Wu a long look.
She always felt that Lu Wu's cultivation methods were somewhat different.
Mu Nujiao had not had much contact with Lu Wu's Grandpa Shen, but he certainly was not someone who casually gave people advice.
But it was so far away, and she felt uneasy letting Lu Wu go alone.
It was dusk now, and many lurking Demon Beasts would come out to forage. Wouldn't it be too dangerous for Lu Wu to go alone?
"Jiang Chun, take them there. Two hours of training each time will be enough." Shen Shitian looked at Jiang Chun and had him take Lu Wu and the others away.
Naturally, what Mu Nujiao could think of had occurred to him all the more.
"Sorry for the trouble, Uncle Jiang." Lu Wu felt the same way.
Outside the Safe Zone, he dared not be careless.
But he did want to try that body-tempering swamp.