Chapter 39 - 35: Cowhide Realm

Chapter 39: Chapter 35: Cowhide Realm

The sallow yellow of his skin gradually faded, returning to its normal color. But when he touched it, he could feel an unprecedented toughness and thickness, as if it were covered by an invisible layer of old cowhide. His muscle definition was sharper, filled with explosive power. His bones also seemed harder and denser.

Xu Mo raised his hand, looking at his palm. The texture of his skin did seem a little coarser, but the power it contained far surpassed what he had before the breakthrough. He gently clenched his fist, and his knuckles let out a series of crisp CRACKS. An unprecedented sense of fullness and power flooded his entire body.

He had succeeded.

He had truly stepped into the First Realm of the Thirteen Grand Protectors’ Cross Training—the Cowhide Realm!

After a trip to the Ghost Gate and back, relying on the precious resources he had accumulated and his decisiveness at the critical moment, Xu Mo had managed to withstand the most dangerous energy backlash of the breakthrough, replenishing his depleted life essence.

Now, feeling the surging, ceaseless flow of qi and blood—far greater than before—and the reborn toughness and strength of his body, Xu Mo knew that all the risks had been worth it.

Slowly getting to his feet, Xu Mo stretched his limbs. His joints let out a series of pops, like beans crackling in a hot pan. He looked out the window at the still-deep night, a slow smile spreading across his lips.

This winter didn’t seem so long anymore.

However, after the brief moment of joy, a powerful wave of lingering fear washed over him like an icy tide.

He looked down at his hands, a mess from frantically gulping down medicinal herbs. Then, he felt the qi and blood within him—immense, but finally docile. A fine layer of cold sweat beaded on his back.

’That was too dangerous!’

The past ten-odd minutes had been a desperate dance on the edge of the Ghost Gate. If he hadn’t been lucky enough to have scavenged a sufficient quantity of high-quality restorative herbs right before his breakthrough; if he hadn’t decisively, at the very instant he felt his life force draining away, started frantically consuming them regardless of the cost; if his body hadn’t been tempered for over two months, giving him a solid enough foundation to withstand the violent medicinal shock... he would probably be a cold corpse curled up in a corner right now, his life essence completely drained.

"In the end, this is all because I have no master, no one to guide me..." Xu Mo murmured, his voice laced with a bitter understanding.

Xu Mo was now completely certain of one thing: his distant second grand-uncle, who had bragged so much about the Thirteen Grand Protectors’ Cross Training, had absolutely never reached the Cowhide Realm himself. He probably hadn’t even scratched the surface! Otherwise, there was no way he would have failed to mention such a dangerous, life-or-death breakthrough while he was boasting. He had probably just passed on what he had learned by rote. It was a good thing he *had* passed it on by rote. If his second grand-uncle had decided to get creative and "improve" the technique...

Xu Mo didn’t even want to imagine the consequences!

He had only managed to force open this gate to the extraordinary through his own desperate fumbling, driven by a thirst for power and the pressure of surviving the apocalypse. That, plus the ample resources provided by "the door." The entire process had been a fluke, a one-off adventure filled with incredible luck.

’The path of cultivation is truly fraught with peril at every step.’ Xu Mo now understood on a profound level that having a Golden Finger and resources didn’t mean he could just relax. Without proper theory and experienced guidance, a seemingly wonderful breakthrough could instantly become a deadly trap.

At this thought, Xu Mo’s desire for knowledge—especially systematic knowledge of Martial Arts cultivation—grew even more urgent.

As Xu Mo’s thoughts raced, an idea flashed through his mind like a bolt of lightning.

’Hundred Days of Foundation Establishment...’

Xu Mo murmured the phrase, mulling it over. It was something he had heard in scattered rumors about the Daoist School or traditional martial arts. It referred to using a hundred-day period to build an incomparably solid foundation, paving the way for all future training.

At this thought, Xu Mo subconsciously began to calculate how long it had been since he started practicing the Thirteen Grand Protectors’ Cross Training.

From the time he’d recovered from a high fever, when his body could barely support the most basic Posture Stance, until now... Xu Mo carefully recalled the marks he’d made on his calendar and the changing of the seasons.

’From late autumn to the dead of winter... It’s been almost exactly one hundred days!’

The realization sent a jolt through Xu Mo’s heart.

’Could this not be a coincidence? Could this seemingly crude External Hard Skill actually align with some ancient training cycle? The Hundred Days of Foundation Establishment... it’s not a metaphor, but a literal time-gate for establishing one’s foundation of qi and blood and triggering a qualitative transformation?’

All of his previous efforts—the breathing exercises in his Posture Stance, the striking and tempering, the medicinal nourishment, even the ample food and extreme physical training—had all been in preparation for this "hundred-day" mark, accumulating power and solidifying his base. Tonight, everything had come to fruition. The quantitative change had led to a qualitative one. That nameless restlessness had been the signal that his qi and blood had reached their peak, and his body was spontaneously seeking a breakthrough.

And the so-called "bottleneck" wasn’t just about the accumulation of qi, blood, and physical conditioning, but also involved a breakthrough in "intent." His epiphany about "Quenching," which he’d gained from watching the fire, had been the very key to piercing that final veil. Without that insight, he would have likely been stuck outside the gate for much longer, and might have even injured himself from the long-term stagnation of his qi and blood.

’So that’s how it is... "Foundation Establishment" isn’t just about the body, but also about the intent. After a hundred days of work, when it’s time to break through, one must use intent as the guide to ignite the qi and blood and complete the final Quenching. And the breakthrough itself is incredibly draining. Without sufficient resources to replenish what’s lost, there’s a real danger of perishing completely...’

Drawing from his own experience, Xu Mo gained a deeper, blood-soaked, personal understanding of the Hundred Days of Foundation Establishment. It wasn’t just a measure of time, but a complete stage of cultivation that included the entire process of accumulation, insight, breakthrough, and consolidation.

Xu Mo walked to the stove and looked at the fire within. It had re-ignited and now seemed to burn even more vigorously than before. In his heart, everything became clear.

This near-death breakthrough had not only massively increased his strength and allowed him to officially take the first step toward the extraordinary, but it had also given him a clearer understanding of, and a deeper reverence for, the path of cultivation ahead.

He had the near-limitless resources guaranteed by "the door," and his comprehension didn’t seem too bad either, enabling him to seize those flashes of inspiration at critical moments.

And willpower was the fundamental requirement for survival in this apocalyptic world.

The road ahead was still long and dangerous. The breakthroughs to the Iron Bone Realm and Golden Body Realm would likely be even more perilous than the one to the Cowhide Realm. But Xu Mo had now found his direction and had a preliminary grasp of the principles involved.

Taking a deep breath, Xu Mo felt the ceaseless, surging qi and blood within him, and the reborn toughness and strength of his body. His heart swelled with elation.

Now that he had reached the Cowhide Realm, he finally had a true, solid foundation of his own in this apocalyptic world.

The next step was to thoroughly familiarize himself with and master this newfound power. Then, he would face the world after winter—a world that was both vaster and inevitably more dangerous.