In the mountain forest.
Crackle
Sparks flew as the rabbit roasting over the fire sizzled, its aroma filling the air.
Jiang Ning rotated the wooden stick, ensuring the rabbit cooked evenly.
After a while, he poked the rabbit with a clean piece of wood. Seeing it pierce through easily; he nodded in satisfaction.
"It should be done! Time to eat!"
He let the roasted rabbit cool for a bit before tearing off a leg.
After the first bite, Jiang Ning frowned slightly.
It looked delicious, but the taste was rather bland.
He shook his head. "Oh well, without seasoning, I can't expect much. Filling my stomach is what matters!"
In no time, the entire rabbit was devoured.
For his current appetite, a full-grown rabbit only left him about 80% full.
After satisfying his hunger, Jiang Ning went to the stream to wash the grease off his hands.
Then, he opened a box of skin-tempering sand prepared by Shen Congyun.
"It's time to start tempering my skin membrane," Jiang Ning muttered to himself.
He quickly stripped off his clothes.
The first stage of skin tempering involved rubbing the skin-tempering sand all over his body until his skin turned red and began to bleed slightly.
Only then could he circulate his Qi and blood throughout his body, allowing the medicinal properties of the sand to be absorbed with the help of his Qi and blood.
This process would be repeated until a membrane formed beneath the skin, connecting the entire body.
Only by achieving this could he truly step into the ninth rank of martial arts.
To do all this, he had to remove his clothes.
Without removing his clothes, he couldn't rub the sand over every part of his skin.
This was why Jiang Ning had chosen not to return to the city today.
In the mountains, he could safely strip and begin the skin-tempering process.
If he were back at the martial arts hall, in a space that wasn't his own, how could he do this?
After removing his clothes, Jiang Ning grabbed a handful of skin-tempering sand and began rubbing it on his arm.
A moment later, he gritted his teeth, his mouth twitching slightly.
The process was excruciatingly painful.
The gritty particles of the sand rubbed against his skin repeatedly until it broke the surface.
The pain was as you can imagine, unbearable.
After more than half an hour, Jiang Ning, enduring the pain, had rubbed the sand all over his body.
His skin was now red all over, with faint traces of blood seeping out.
Next, Jiang Ning assumed the first posture of the [Indestructible Golden Body].
According to the manual, there were eighteen postures in total.
Each posture corresponds to a specific path for circulating Qi and blood to temper the body.
After assuming the first posture, he began circulating his Qi and blood to temper his entire body.
Time passed slowly.
Fifteen minutes later, he felt his body heating up.
He then switched to the second posture.
Another fifteen minutes passed, and he assumed the third posture, changing the path of Qi and blood circulation once again.
[Indestructible Golden Body experience +3]
After completing the three postures, a notification appeared before Jiang Ning's eyes.
He quickly opened his status panel to check.
[Skill]: Indestructible Golden Body (Not Yet Initiated 3/100)
"Not bad!"
Seeing the panel, Jiang Ning breathed a sigh of relief.
He then muttered to himself, "It requires ten times the experience points of ordinary techniques, just like the Inner Alchemy Cultivation technique. That's not too outrageous."
Next, he inspected his body.
As he peeled off the scabs, he saw that the skin beneath was still red.
Although it had stopped bleeding, the skin was still fragile.
Jiang Ning then touched it with his finger and felt a sharp, needle-like pain.
"It seems I can't continue tempering my skin today. I need some time to recover."
Afterward, Jiang Ning jumped into the nearby pond.
This was a spot he had specifically chosen.
Located at the side of a cliff, it had a spring flowing from a crevice in the rocks, providing him with drinking water.
Next to it was a semi-flowing pond where he could bathe.
During the skin-tempering stage, after each training session, he had to wash off the scabs and apply medicinal ointment to speed up the healing process.
Only then could he continue applying the skin-tempering sand and resume training.
This cycle would repeat until a membrane formed beneath the skin, connecting the entire body, marking his official entry into the Skin-Tempering Realm and the ninth rank of martial arts.
In the pond, Jiang Ning endured the pain and quickly scrubbed off the scabs.
A few minutes later, he climbed out of the pond.
After drying off, he saw that his body was covered in red spots.
These red spots were the wounds left after his skin had been broken.
The skin-tempering sand contained some healing agents, which allowed the wounds to heal quickly, but it wasn't enough.
The faster the external injuries healed, the faster he could progress in his skin-tempering.
Next, Jiang Ning went to a nearby tree and retrieved a bundle hanging from a branch.
He took out a round jar, removed the seal, and opened the lid.
Inside was a jar filled with a white, jade-like ointment.
"This is it!" Jiang Ning said.
After applying the ointment to all the wounds on his body, he felt a cool, refreshing sensation spreading across his skin.
By now, the sun had completely set, and the light reflecting off the clouds grew dimmer.
Jiang Ning put on his clothes, added a few more pieces of firewood to the fire, and began practicing his fist techniques.
The next day, Jiang Ning rolled off the rock he had been sleeping on.
Crackle
He stretched his limbs, feeling refreshed.
[Source Energy]: 29.6
"Yesterday, I only gained 1.8 points. As expected, eating less means slower energy growth."
Jiang Ning thought to himself.
He then looked at his arms and the rest of his body, his lips curling into a slight smile.
"The medicine Shen Congyun left for treating external injuries is indeed good stuff. It healed me overnight, so I can continue tempering my skin membrane today."
After more than half an hour, his entire body was covered in skin-tempering sand, and his skin was rubbed raw and bleeding.
"That should do it," Jiang Ning said, inspecting his body.
He then assumed the first posture of the [Indestructible Golden Body].
He circulated his strength, pushing his Qi and blood to temper his entire body.
In an instant, his Qi and blood surged, and his body heated up.
"It is different!" Jiang Ning's eyes lit up. "No wonder they say that mastering Jinli greatly improves the efficiency of skin tempering. It's true."
Next, he assumed the second posture of the [Indestructible Golden Body], followed by the third.
After completing the three postures, he felt that most of his Qi and blood had been depleted.
[Indestructible Golden Body experience +5]
Seeing this notification, Jiang Ning couldn't help but smile.
"With the assistance of Jinli, the efficiency has nearly doubled. That's a significant improvement."
Afterward, Jiang Ning washed his wounds and applied the medicinal ointment.
He then began practicing his fist techniques again.
When the sun fully rose, during the Chen hour (7-9 AM), he absorbed the solar essence to temper his internal organs and increase his Inner Alchemy Cultivation experience.
[Inner Alchemy Cultivation experience +1]
[Inner Alchemy Cultivation experience +1]
[Inner Alchemy Cultivation experience +1]
[...]
By the end of the Chen hour, at the start of the Si hour (9-11 AM):
[Skill]: Inner Alchemy Cultivation (Proficient 28/2000)
Looking at his status panel, Jiang Ning muttered, "28 experience points a day. It'll take about two more months to break through to the next level. Not bad!"
He nodded in satisfaction.
After all, the Inner Alchemy Cultivation technique was a supreme technique and one that was extremely difficult to master.
Once he broke through to the next level, he would master internal breathing.
In other words, in just over two months, he would master internal breathing. What more could he ask for?
After absorbing the solar essence, Jiang Ning continued practicing his fist techniques.
In the blink of an eye, evening arrived.
By dusk, Jiang Ning saw that the external injuries on his body had completely healed.
He began applying the skin-tempering sand again, rubbing it all over his body until his skin turned red and began to bleed.
He then assumed the postures of the [Indestructible Golden Body], using Jinli to circulate his Qi and blood to temper his skin membrane.
After completing the three postures:
[Indestructible Golden Body experience +5]
[Skill]: Indestructible Golden Body (Not Yet Initiated 13/100)
"Nine more days, and I'll step into the ninth rank of martial arts!"
"Since that's the case, I won't return to the city until I reach the ninth rank."
"By then, the uproar in Luoshui County over the deaths of Hong Chengtao and Xu Yunfeng should have died down."
"Moreover, by that time, having stepped into the ninth rank, with my accumulated strength, I won't fear even eighth-rank Divine Strength Realm experts!"
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