Chapter 48: Chapter 43: Improvement
Gah~
A tingling sensation originating from the deep marrow, making Tao Yu feel as if ants were crawling all over his body, unreachable by the scratch of his nails.
It took a while before he recovered from this reaction, and then he felt a completely different sensation.
Unified strength!
After the Deification of Stance Skill, he had already unified all body forces into one, but now Tao Yu clearly felt a force brewed by Qi-Blood fluctuate with its ebbs and flows.
Whenever there was a need, he could integrate it by harnessing Qi-Blood!
Although it couldn’t pierce through the body, but…
With a casual flick of Tao Yu’s finger, although he felt a sharp pain, tiny fissures had already appeared on the stone lock in front of him.
The cracks were not very obvious, but to effortlessly make them with a flesh-and-blood body was indeed a terrifying effect!
An ordinary person would have their throat bone shattered by such a flick!
“Clear strength and dark strength? Not quite, but they seem somewhat similar…”
Tao Yu pondered at the bottom of his heart, all the while comprehending the information from his newly Deified skill.
[Five Forms as One – Modified] lv1: Integration of strength, can significantly enhance the physical limits.
Source: NovelFull.com, updated on ƝονǤᴑ.сօ
Strength, to a certain degree, could achieve some feats that originally seemed incredible, such as controlling and strengthening internal organs, detoxifying and purifying blood.
However, it was different from the internal strength Tao Yu knew; this was a latent power spread throughout the entire body—the stronger the body and Qi-Blood, the stronger the force!
It was activated and harnessed through Qi-Blood when used, and it could also train the body and even the internal organs.
If one didn’t count the Shadow Force that combined [Stealth] and [Ambush], this was the first technique Tao Yu had mastered that could be barely called supernatural!
After all, the Shadow Force was too extreme and couldn’t be used to strengthen oneself.
Whereas [Five Forms as One] could significantly enhance the physical limits!
It was also more balanced and controllable.
The previous stackable enhancement had begun to show diminishing returns, with effects getting weaker; this was undoubtedly a timely assistance.
“Haha, the hardest step is from zero to one, this feeling is truly delightful.”
Tao Yu was very exhilarated in his heart.
This might also be one of the ways a normal flesh-and-blood body could rival mechanical and mutated bodies.
Although the mode might be different, the pressure that Li Hui initially gave him, and the head of Wanliu Dojo, Liu Yi, they probably used this kind of power.
“Normally, integrating Myriad Streams Five Forms, should be about seizing control over Qi-Blood, and maybe combining it with that secret Breathing Technique to catalyze it into force?”
Tao Yu had some guesses in his heart.
Because of the special nature of his own Deification, there were some questions that would not be good for him to ask directly.
Otherwise, being misunderstood for stealing others’ secrets could lead to a bloodbath.
The head of the Dojo was actually quite generous, offering skills for free; Tao Yu felt a bit remorseful.
Besides, apart from [Five Forms as One – Modified], which brought him the greatest benefit, each singular Fist Technique also brought its own decent additional abilities.
The cost of Deifying a single Fist Technique was actually lower than that of the Stance Skill, ranging from two to three hundred, and they were not as enhancing to the body as the Stance Skill, but they each had their own specializations for combat.
For example, the most effective [Crane Form of Myriad Streams – Modified], besides its intrinsic training method and combat style increasing training efficiency and combat skills.
It mainly also came with ‘Spirit Perception,’ which is similar to the capture of clear murderous intent and malice, although the world’s will information warned that it could be concealed through certain methods, but it was still quite impressive.
Tiger Form primarily provided explosive power, adding to the Assassin’s arsenal.
Bear Form enhanced resistance to hits and endurance.
Python Form was flexibility and strength in the tendons, greatly enhancing locking and strangling capabilities.
Ape Form was about balance and comprehensive abilities, and ultimately Five Forms as One relied mainly on the Ape Form to coordinate.
Beyond that, the [Swallow Essence Technique – Modified] that Tao Yu had been yearning for had also been learned and Deified.
[Swallow Essence Technique – Modified] greatly increased digestion and absorption capacity, moderately increased energy storage capacity, and offered a degree of poison resistance.
Although this skill seemed ordinary and Deification only consumed a hundred Yuan Force, Tao Yu felt that its effects were no less than [Five Forms as One], holding strategic value.
[One Proof Forever Proof] allowed him to recover from injuries through Yuan Force and eating!
The vast consumption of Yuan Force for recovery, Tao Yu had already experienced.
Now with stronger power, the cost of recovery was even greater!
In contrast, just a few bowls of Qi-tonic Soup and some time could equal a few hundred Yuan Force replenishments.
[Swallow Essence Technique – Modified] greatly enhanced this digestive and absorption ability, making it the perfect match for [One Proof Forever Proof].
When necessary, even if it was sewage, he could drink it directly like those animals.
Uh, of course, as a normal person, Tao Yu would not actually try these things on a regular day…
“Spending money like water.”
Looking at his remaining Yuan Force, now less than eight hundred units, Tao Yu deeply missed the feeling of having tens of thousands at the beginning.
Initially, the extravagant multiple acceleration Stance Skill was to have more time to grasp the basics of Fist Technique. Later, Tao Yu adjusted it to a higher cost-performance ratio according to his total amount of Yuan Force.
Even so, since he had been practicing Breathing Technique and Stance Skill in tandem, his Yuan Force had been pouring out unstoppably over these days.
Fortunately, in terms of results, he was quite satisfied. He had mostly achieved his goals, though he felt some regret that he was still some distance from reaching the physical limits he could currently attain.
“The drop in Yuan Force efficiency after increasing strength, even though ‘Five Forms as One – Modified’ has increased the limit, the marginal effect has diminished. I’m afraid that even with three to four times the Yuan Force, the efficiency would not match my previous Yuan Force improvement.”
Tao Yu sighed inwardly. Initially, Blood Orchid, Basic Breathing Method, and Stance Skill had all enhanced his physical potential and limits, making training incredibly swift.
But as his physical quality improved, just like professional athletes who find it harder to further enhance their abilities, he too experienced an increasingly pronounced diminishing returns effect.
“Although I have ‘One Proof Forever Proof,’ even when I reach the theoretical physical limit, I should be able to continue breaking through and upgrading, but the speed will certainly be touchingly slow.”
Although the Five Forms as One provided some relief, he still had to consider subsequent issues.
The remaining potential could only be honed through persistent effort. If he wanted another period of explosive growth, he would have to find additional ways to raise his limits!
“If I get a chance to save money, maybe I can consider a second Deification of my skills.”
Tao Yu may lack knowledge of the outside city, but based on his abilities, he could judge that specializing in anything and everything could cause conflicts, and that skill enhancements should be complementary like Myriad Streams Five Forms, at the very least non-interfering, or with minimal acceptable conflict.
Exactly how, he still lacked the knowledge at this point.
But at least stacking another Deification on top of his current one would not be a big problem!
After reflecting for a moment, he leaned towards “Basic Breathing Technique – Modified.”
This Skill was the cheapest way to improve physical limits, requiring only about thirty thousand Yuan Force for a second enhancement. The most effective ‘Five Forms as One – Modified’ needed over two hundred thousand, more expensive than the innate “Bullet Time.”
But maintaining his day-to-day training while saving up thirty thousand Yuan Force was not a small sum; his parents would have to save for ten years without eating or drinking to afford it, roughly equivalent to the looting of four Li families…
Quickly dismissing some thoughts in his head, Tao Yu also slapped his cheeks.
His ideas were a bit dangerous.
“The Yuan Force items and skills in the new gathering area haven’t flooded the market yet, which is a decent source of income. It’s just that there’s still a risk of being besieged now…”
The money in his pocket pushed Tao Yu to find Smith.
“Senior brother, I’m almost ready to go to the Abyss. I won’t be coming here for a while.”
Tao Yu found Smith and greeted him.
This was quite normal. In fact, Smith himself had taken five days off to go to the Abyss over the past half a month, but his base was in the real world, and his trips to the Abyss were purely to avoid going crazy.
“Alright, I think it’s time you went too, haha. I don’t know how much money you’ve spent, but full-time training is really draining.”
Smith wasn’t surprised. He had a job and income at the dojo, which could support his use of Yuan Force acceleration in reverse.
This junior brother, even if he found someone willing to invest, was still depleting his reserves.
“Your Crane stance is at lv3; you could apply to be a Teaching Assistant. The dojo’s benefits are pretty good.”
Smith suggested, feeling this junior had talent and could try a part-time training approach.
Tao Yu’s Crane stance was actually only at lv2, but thanks to Deification, he could easily pass off as lv3. Because of ‘Five Forms as One,’ his skill matched lv4, which allowed him to learn “Swallow Essence Technique – Modified.”
“I’ll consider it, but without working hard in the new Development Zone, I won’t have a stable place even for five days, so I can’t do it.”
Actually, Tao Yu had nearly emptied the Wanliu Dojo, and his consumption was not something that could be covered by being a Teaching Assistant there; only if the head of the dojo gave up his position would it be sufficient.
However, Tao Yu naturally wouldn’t casually turn down a gesture of goodwill, and he had a fairly harmonious relationship with Smith.
“Tao, are you preparing to go to the Abyss, too? Together?”
Zhang Wei perked up his ears at this point; the two had teamed up before, and indeed, it was much more convenient for two people in the Abyss than for one alone.
“Our locations are too far apart. Let’s leave it to fate. I’ve got to go prepare some things.”
Tao Yu waved to the two, declining Zhang Wei’s team invitation.
“Alright, safe travels. You can buy a few Qi Replenishing Pills from the dojo to take with you.”
Smith started his sales pitch again, though the items he recommended were indeed very effective.
“Sure.”
Tao Yu indeed planned to bring a few Qi Replenishing Pills. These pills had effects similar to Qi-tonic Soup, but were more convenient to carry and preserve. They were also a lot more expensive, costing fifty Yuan Force units.
They weren’t really meant for daily training, but for emergency recovery of strength in the wild.
The absorption rate was much faster than eating meat, and the effect was further enhanced with “Swallow Essence Technique – Modified.”
With so many inherently energy-intensive Deification skills, if money wasn’t an issue, he would fill his backpack without a second thought.
Compared to directly using Yuan Force for recovery, it was far more cost-effective…