Mystic Water Pill, a Boost in Strength

Ever since Tang San had cultivated the Mysterious Heaven Skill all those years ago, later generations had used their wisdom to work out similar cultivation methods bit by bit. Thus, over the past ten thousand years, Soul Masters had gained more and more ways to advance their cultivation, and their progress had grown faster and faster.

Once, Titled Douluos had been geniuses among geniuses, a realm only those with level-nine innate Soul Power had qualified to reach. Now, there were heaps of powerhouses who had broken through to Titled Douluo with level-seven or level-eight innate Soul Power.

"Knock, knock, knock..."

A soft knock woke Lu Cheng from his immersive cultivation. Mother Jiang's voice came from outside the door. "Xiao Cheng, are you asleep?"

"No, I'm cultivating."

Lu Cheng opened the door to Mother Jiang's kindly face. Though she was nearly forty, she still retained her charm, and traces of her youthful beauty remained visible. No wonder she had given birth to Jiang Nannan-she really had good looks to begin with.

Lu Cheng was a little taken aback, since Mother Jiang normally would not disturb him lightly after nightfall.

"This... is a pill Mom asked someone to find through the Black Tortoise Sect. They say it can improve your cultivation."

Her gaze gentle, Mother Jiang handed him a jade bottle and pressed it into Lu Cheng's palm.

"Don't tire yourself out too much. Get some rest early."

"..."

With that, she turned and left.

Only Lu Cheng remained, standing in a daze for a long while.

His eyes grew a little moist. After all, he had been an orphan in his previous life. When had he ever experienced a mother's love? Now that it had come so suddenly, he really was not quite used to it.

"What kind of pill is this...?"

Lu Cheng gathered his thoughts and opened the jade bottle, but his eyes gradually filled with astonishment.

The moment he opened it, a faint medicinal fragrance wafted into his face. He poured the pill into his palm. It was round and smooth, with a lustrous sheen. In mere moments, Lu Cheng concluded that this pill was definitely expensive.

If he actually swallowed it and absorbed its medicinal power, he might even shoot up three or four levels.

Could this be... a Mystic Water Pill?!!

It had been Xu Sanshi's stake when he lost to Bei Bei in the dueling arena in the original story. Though it could not compare to the Black Tortoise Divine Pill, it was still anything but cheap.

Never mind emptying the Jiang family's coffers-even if she did, Mother Jiang probably could not afford it.

Could Jiang Nannan have contributed some too?!

That girl was already working her way through Shrek Academy, scrimping and saving, and now...

"..."

Lu Cheng remained speechless for a long time.

He studied the pale green pill, his gaze complicated.

This mother and daughter really were... adorably foolish.

They had given such an important resource to a "good-for-nothing" like him rather than a genius like Jiang Nannan.

I have to take them away and free them from the Black Tortoise Sect's control.

Lu Cheng's gaze grew ever more resolute.

Without further hesitation, he swallowed the pill and sat on his bed to begin refining it. As the pill entered his mouth, a warm sensation spread throughout his body in an extremely short time. Seconds later, its medicinal power began to disperse. Scorching flames slowly rose around him, yet did not burn the bed. Lu Cheng was wrapped in a large mass of flame, his eyes tightly closed.

And his cultivation soared...

Level four!

Level six!

Level eight!

After a night had passed, Lu Cheng opened his eyes again and discovered, to his delight, that he had actually gained five levels...

In the original story, Huo Gua had gained two levels overnight after absorbing it. The Mystic Water Pill was said to raise innate Soul Power by one level-in other words, talent, not merely Soul Power. Thus, when Lu Cheng woke after that night, he found his whole body stinking, his skin covered in grime.

Along with his improved physique, his cultivation speed had also increased by a tiny bit.

It was rather interesting, really. Though he had only level-two innate Soul Power, his talent and cultivation speed were at least equivalent to innate level ten. Thus, while Huo Gua's cultivation speed had quadrupled after absorbing the Mystic Water Pill, his own improvement was negligible.

After all, he was already maxed out, with scarcely any room for improvement.

Still, at the end of the day, gaining these five levels of Soul Power really felt amazing...

Lu Cheng clenched his fists, feeling his Soul Power, now more than ten times as abundant, his eyes glittering with excitement.

"Mom, I'm going outside the city to chop firewood..."

Lu Cheng hastily swallowed a couple of mouthfuls of porridge, then rose eagerly.

Soul Tools were widespread nowadays, but that was for the privileged Soul Masters and Soul Engineers. For the common people at the bottom of the original continent, life remained extremely primitive. They still had to chop wood and light fires to cook, and this was also Lu Cheng's daily work.

Though he was only eight, he had already reached a height of 1.55 meters. Mother Jiang was frail, and Jiang Nannan was away, so physical chores like chopping wood fell to him.

He left Black Tortoise City and headed deep into the mountains outside it.

He still remembered that later in the original story, when Huo Gua infiltrated Dragon City, which had already fallen to the Sun Moon Empire-a city in the northern Heaven Dou Empire bordering the Far North, home to the Heavenly Dragon Sect and Earth Dragon Sect-he learned that the Sun Moon Empire was introducing various Soul Tools that benefited people and made their lives easier, such as heating and bathing devices.

To Lu Cheng, this should have been a good thing. He even felt glad for the common people. After enduring several thousand years, they finally got to live decent lives.

But in Huo Gua's eyes, it became the sinister, cunning people of the Sun Moon Empire corrupting the common people of the original continent.

Lu Cheng: "..."

What did it mean to beware of the enemy's sugar-coated shells?

Thus, in the simulator, he would rather entrust the future to the Sun Moon Empire and achieve unification than let old powers like Shrek Academy continue running roughshod over the people.

If these common people knew that their hero, Huo Yuhao, had risked his life to charge into the enemy camp and stop the Sun Moon Empire's advance at any cost, they would surely be so moved that tears streamed down their faces.

Heh...

Lu Cheng could only roll his eyes at that.

Who could that move? Probably only Huo Gua himself and the nobles of the original continent's various powers.

Within the Star Dou Great Forest.

The Black Tortoise Sect lay in the eastern Heaven Dou Empire and also bordered the outermost reaches of the Star Dou Great Forest. Though it was far from the core region, quite a few Soul Beasts roamed a little deeper in.

Thus, a few Soul Masters or mercenary groups hunting Soul Beasts would also spawn here from time to time.

Lu Cheng lowered his head and walked quickly past.

Only after using his Blood Pupils to confirm that there was no one within a hundred meters did he draw a deep breath and summon the Sun-Shooting Bow with considerable excitement.

Last night, he had been inside Black Tortoise City, their home base. If they noticed anything amiss, he would be in trouble.

Here, however, he was at least several dozen kilometers from Black Tortoise City. Those fellows would not go to such lengths for a good-for-nothing with level-two innate Soul Power.

That familiar feeling...

Brimming with excitement, Lu Cheng raised the Sun-Shooting Bow. Two fingers of his right hand curled slightly together, and a fiery red arrow slowly condensed.

He drew the bowstring taut, aimed the arrow at an ancient tree roughly a meter in diameter, and sent it blasting forth.

Boom!

With a thunderous crash-

The ancient tree instantly snapped at the waist. Its upper half toppled with a crash, crushing a swath of bushes.

"So this is the damage I can do at level eight..."

Lu Cheng's eyes burned.

As expected of top-tier Martial Souls like the Sun-Shooting Bow and Fire of Essence Sun, he felt that even without using Soul Skills, he could at least fight a level-fifteen Soul Master to a draw.

And even hunting for his first Soul Ring was something he could easily handle himself.