Free Web NovelChapter 125: Chapter 124: Hardening Accomplished, Impervious to Weapons, Entering Zhabei
「Three days later.」
Five cars drove smoothly through a light, misty snowfall. The convoy came to a stop after crossing an old bridge and passing through a crude wooden checkpoint.
The door of a luxury sedan, marked with a gold emblem, swung open. Two colossal twins, both over two meters tall, stood flanking the car. One held a black umbrella aloft as the passenger slowly emerged.
A handsome young man with a slender, well-built physique stepped out of the car.
He wore a dark gray vested suit with a white Windsor-collared shirt and a dark silk tie. A pure black lynx-fur coat was draped casually over his shoulders—the standard look of a powerful young scion.
The young man’s posture was exceptionally dashing. Beneath the fabric of his tailored suit, the undulating lines of his shoulders and arms were faintly visible. Beyond his elegance, he exuded the suffocating pressure of being watched by a ferocious beast.
This young man was none other than Fu Juemin, who had just spent three days being brutally trained by Li Tong at Ink Garden after successfully reaching the Entry Level of the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal.
At this moment, a new Cultivation Technique had appeared on Fu Juemin’s character panel: [Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal (Entry Level: Attack +4, Defense +4)]!
It was truly worthy of its reputation as one of the four great Iron Body Strange Skills of the former dynasty, and worthy of the suffering Fu Juemin endured during his Seven Days of Three Transformations. The bonus Attributes from mastering the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal far exceeded his expectations.
Just at the Entry Level realm, it had given him a full 4 points of Attack and 4 points of Defense. In terms of raw numbers alone, this was already double what the Entry Level of the Pharmacist Skill offered!
Of course, the Pharmacist Skill increased Life and focused on "Purification Body," so the two couldn’t be directly compared based on their numerical values.
’According to Uncle Tong, of the four great top-tier Iron Body Strange Skills, Pharmacist focuses on "Purification Body," the Dragon Elephant Seal represents "divine strength," the essence of the Bright King Skill is "Binding and Breaking," and the Bodhi Vajra symbolizes the "Wisdom Heart of Bodhi."’
’Although each has a different focus, they are all Iron Body Methods. However, the ones truly renowned for their defense are the Dragon Elephant and Bright King skills.’
’The former focuses on physical defense, while the latter focuses on Vitality defense... It’s basically the difference between Physical Defense and magical defense...’
Although these Iron Body Strange Skills were ranked together as the "four greats," the ones truly famous for their sheer power were the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal and the Bright King Shackles Skill. It wasn’t that the other two were inferior, but rather that the Pharmacist Skill and the Bodhi Formula were far more mysterious and profound than most people could comprehend. Throughout history, very few had ever managed to master them, so their reputations were slightly less prominent.
Fu Juemin could now begin to feel the sheer power of the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal.
The 4 extra points of Attack from the Entry Level stage, although 1 point was overwritten, still pushed his Attack to a high of 30 points.
As a result, Fu Juemin, who had maintained a slender and well-proportioned physique since achieving minor success in the Pharmacist Skill, had once again become "strong and brawny." He had even grown two inches, reaching a height of nearly 1.9 meters. Even standing next to Big Cat and Kitty, his presence wasn’t the least bit overshadowed.
Then there were the 4 points of Defense, which were "fully absorbed." With his Defense breaking through the 20-point mark, Fu Juemin finally felt like his Iron Body training was starting to pay off.
Now, whenever he assumed the Fundamental Seal and tensed his muscles, he could feel his skin and flesh becoming "perfectly integrated."
If he had to describe it, it was like the Whole Body Qi Membrane of the Tongxuan Realm. The only difference was that for Fu Juemin, it was his skin and muscles that were integrated. This was why he considered the Dragon Elephant Skill’s primary effect to be an increase in "Physical Defense."
Fu Juemin had conducted a private test. A Martial Artist at the Blood Refining Realm, someone on par with Cao Tian, would have to strike with their full power just to cut the surface of his skin with a blade. From fifteen paces away, a bullet from an ordinary pistol could only penetrate half an inch into his flesh before he could eject it with a simple flex of his muscles.
’After transmigrating and practicing martial arts for over half a year, I finally have some ability to protect myself...’
Fu Juemin placed a hand on his chest, feeling a sense of relief.
Just like how the Pharmacist Skill was complemented by the Pharmacist Master Purifying Light Saber, unleashing the full power of the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal required coordinating it with the Cultivation Technique’s own Six Great Seals.
The first was the Fundamental Seal, which included not only the Body Seal practiced daily but also a "Solid Seal Method" specifically for defense in combat.
Then there were the "Covering Sea" and "Bengshan" seals, which could only be practiced after reaching the Entry Level.
Covering Sea disperses power, while Bengshan concentrates it. The latter was more difficult than the former, but Fu Juemin had yet to completely master even the simplest Sea Covering Seal.
’By combining the special power-generation techniques of my Soft Bone Talent with the Six Great Seals, my application of them will surpass all past and present masters of the Dragon Elephant Skill!’
A gleam flashed in Fu Juemin’s eyes. The Pharmacist Master Purifying Light Saber was, after all, a Saber Technique. Although it combined orthodox and unorthodox methods, its overall style leaned toward lightness and agility, which didn’t perfectly match his Soft Bone Talent. The great seals of the Dragon Elephant Skill, on the other hand, could integrate flawlessly with his Soft Bone Talent, allowing him to display their effects to the fullest.
’Cultivating the Dragon Elephant Skill also requires an understanding of Buddhist Teachings, but the requirement is much lower than for the Pharmacist Skill.’
’I wonder if I use Skill Points on the Dragon Elephant Skill, will I be able to instantly comprehend the "Covering Sea" and "Bengshan" seals?’
As Fu Juemin pondered, his gaze returned to the scene before him.
He was currently in Zhabei, the most chaotic district in all of Shenghai and a gathering place for people from all walks of life.
The group of "men willing to sell their lives" that he had Big Cat recruit lived in this area.
Shenghai was currently in an uproar over the "White Dragon’s missing Gold." Because of this, vagrants from Zhabei had to pass through multiple checkpoints to enter the main city districts, and anyone even slightly suspicious was driven away. This was especially problematic since Fu Juemin was looking for freelance mercenaries and ruffians—the exact type of people who would arouse the most suspicion.
Bringing these sixty-odd people into the Western Realm would be very troublesome, so Fu Juemin had decided to come and "interview" them in person.
"..The cars can’t go any further. It’s still a fair distance to where that group lives.
Why don’t you switch to a sedan chair, Young Master?"
A man from the Qinglian Gang in his forties, with a slightly pointed chin, bowed and walked over. Eager to please, he called for his men to bring forward a four-bearer wooden sedan chair. It was covered on all four sides with thick black curtains, a decent measure against the cold.
Fu Juemin glanced at the rather archaic form of transportation. For a moment, the novelty of it made him want to try it out.
But then he looked at the size of the chair, then at his own brawny physique, and imagined he would probably be squeezed uncomfortably inside. Shaking his head, he refused.
"Forget it. We’ll walk."
"Please, Young Master, you should ride."
The Qinglian Gang member who had prepared the chair, perhaps desperate to curry favor and not let his preparations go to waste, earnestly tried to persuade him. "The road ahead is in bad shape, and with the snow falling, it’s not an easy walk..."
"The Young Master said he’s not riding, so he’s not riding.
Why are you spouting so much nonsense?"
Big Cat, still holding the umbrella, spoke calmly and shot the man a cold glance.
Big Cat’s two-meter-plus frame and the oppressive aura of a Tongxuan Martial Artist bore down on the man. His face instantly paled, and not daring to utter another word of persuasion, he obediently stepped aside.
Fu Juemin couldn’t be bothered with such a trivial matter. He had someone lead the way and proceeded into the Zhabei City Fortress with Big Cat, Kitty, and the rest of the Qinglian Gang members.
However, no one noticed that the thin-faced man who had been so eager to have Fu Juemin take the sedan chair did not immediately follow the group. Instead, he stood in place, watching Fu Juemin’s party enter the fortress with a flicker in his eyes. A moment later, he darted off alone in a different direction and vanished from sight in the blink of an eye.
