Chapter 115 - 98: Triggering Method for the Martial Saint Tag

Chapter 115: Chapter 98: Triggering Method for the Martial Saint Tag

Gu Qing slept until noon, the sun shining brightly outside.

Sunlight streamed through the curtains, casting a wide patch of light over him and making him look rather yellow.

He didn’t rush to get up.

Instead, he habitually picked up the phone beside him.

He planned to scroll through Douyin for a bit before getting up.

As soon as he unlocked his phone, Gu Qing saw several WeChat messages from Xia Shuran.

He opened them to take a look.

The earliest messages were sent at eight in the morning.

She said she was going to find her ancestor to learn how to control her Martial Soul.

The later messages were about her experiences learning to control her Martial Soul.

She had also sent a selfie of herself holding the Dragon Spear.

The selfie was very eye-catching.

Her small hand holding the large spear created a stark contrast that was particularly memorable.

Gu Qing replied to his junior.

He praised her for being so self-disciplined, waking up so early to train.

He also complimented her on how she looked holding the Dragon Spear, saying she had the air of a true swordswoman and a captivating personality.

Afterward, he stared at his junior’s WeChat profile picture—her holding a Red Tassel Spear—and fell into thought.

’What do I have to do with my junior to trigger the [Martial Saint] label above her head?’

’Wait!’

’Why don’t I just ask the amazing Magic Mirror?’

Gu Qing belatedly realized that he possessed a Magic Mirror that claimed to know all secrets.

So he immediately pulled out the Magic Mirror and eagerly asked:

"Magic Mirror, how do I trigger Xia Shuran’s [Martial Saint] label?"

The Magic Mirror didn’t convulse as violently as before. Its frame just trembled slightly as text appeared on its surface:

[Engage in combat with her using Ancient Martial Arts.]

"Engage in combat with her using Ancient Martial Arts?"

Gu Qing raised an eyebrow. "So, you’re saying that as long as I spar with her using Ancient Martial Arts, I can get Attributes to drop from her label?"

The Magic Mirror twitched again: [Sparring won’t work. You must be united against a common enemy, using Ancient Martial Arts together against others.]

Gu Qing understood. He had to team up with Xia Shuran and use Ancient Martial Arts to fight other people with her.

This method wasn’t hard to trigger, but it would affect the efficiency of farming Attributes.

But he had to look on the bright side.

The harder a label was to farm, the more powerful the Attribute would likely be after maxing it out to 100 points.

It was worth investing more time to farm it.

"If I bring Xia Shuran with me to seize Extraordinary Resources tonight, will it be dangerous for her?"

Gu Qing asked, looking at the Magic Mirror.

The Magic Mirror did not answer this question.

’This damn mirror is just trying to mess with my head, always refusing to answer at the drop of a hat...’

Gu Qing complained internally.

He shoved the Magic Mirror back into his phone case and sent a message to Xia Shuran on WeChat instead.

[Gu Qing: Junior, what’s your Physical Strength like after awakening? Are you impervious to blades?]

Before long, his junior replied.

[Xia Shuran: I don’t know, I haven’t tested it yet.]

[Gu Qing: Is it convenient for you to test it now? For example, try cutting your skin with a knife or something. I want to get a sense of your Physical Strength.]

[Xia Shuran: Sure, it’s convenient. I’ll go do a simple test right now.]

On the other end of the phone, Xia Shuran immediately put down her bowl and chopsticks and ran to the kitchen.

Her parents were puzzled as to why she suddenly dropped her utensils and ran to the kitchen, but they didn’t ask.

「A few minutes later.」

Xia Shuran came out of the kitchen clutching her finger and looked at the still-charming, beautiful woman at the dining table.

"Mom, where are the bandages? I accidentally cut my finger with a knife."

"Ranran, what were you just doing in the kitchen? How did you cut your finger?"

Father Xia asked, his brow furrowing slightly.

Xia Shuran gave a casual excuse, "Nothing. I went to the kitchen to wash my hands, saw the knife was a bit dirty, and thought I’d wash it too. Then I accidentally cut myself."

Father Xia was speechless. "You child, you’ve been practicing martial arts since you were little, and you still managed to cut yourself washing a knife? Aren’t you afraid of being laughed at?"

Just then, Mrs. Xia returned with bandages and iodine, carefully tending to her precious daughter’s wound.

"Ranran, does your hand hurt?"

"It doesn’t hurt."

"Be more careful next time, okay?"

"Mhm, I know."

Xia Shuran replied distractedly, her uninjured hand rapidly typing out a message to Gu Qing on WeChat.

[Xia Shuran: Senior, I just tried it with a fruit knife. If I just slide it with a little force, it only leaves a white mark on my skin. I have to use about eighty percent of my strength to actually break the skin and draw blood.]

[Gu Qing: That’s already amazing. After all, you just awakened less than a day ago. After a few more months of development, you’ll probably be completely impervious to blades.]

[Xia Shuran: Senior, how long did you have to develop before you became impervious to blades?]

[Gu Qing: I’m an Extraordinary Contactor. Normally, it would take at least a few years of development to become impervious to blades.]

He didn’t answer Xia Shuran’s question directly, only stating the development speed of a typical Extraordinary Contactor.

He couldn’t help it. His development speed was just too monstrous.

Unprecedentedly monstrous.

In less than a month, he had already become impervious to blades.

The kind of impervious that could withstand a Barrett sniper rifle, no less.

He couldn’t tell anyone about a development speed that sounded so fake. Even if he did, no one would believe him.

[Gu Qing: By the way, your finger isn’t badly hurt, is it?]

[Xia Shuran: It’s fine, just a tiny little bit of blood. A bandage is all it needs.]

[Gu Qing: That’s good.]

[Gu Qing: By the way, junior, can you get stronger and gain Extraordinary Power just by practicing martial arts or using your Martial Soul?]

[Xia Shuran: Yeah! This morning, while I was learning how to control my Martial Soul with my ancestor, I realized my body was getting stronger and more powerful.]

[Gu Qing: It’s great to be an Extraordinary Awakened. Not only do you have Superpowers, but leveling up is also twice as effective with half the effort.]

[Xia Shuran: Senior, I’m sure you’ll awaken someday too! I’m certain of it!]

[Gu Qing: I hope you’re right! If I really do awaken someday, I’ll definitely give you a big red envelope.]

[Xia Shuran: In that case, Senior, you’d better prepare that red envelope in advance. Don’t awaken suddenly and have no cash to give me. I’d be very disappointed, you know.]

[Gu Qing: Don’t worry, your senior will go prepare a super-sized red envelope for you right now.]

The two chatted like this for a while.

Soon.

Gu Qing said he had things to do, ending the idle chat with Xia Shuran.

’My junior just awakened less than a day ago. She can’t even take a knife cut. She’s pathetically weak. I’d better not take her on the operation tonight, just in case something happens.’

’It’s almost twelve-thirty.’

’Time to order some takeout first.’

Gu Qing opened a food delivery app, wondering what to order.

His parents both worked on weekdays and didn’t have time to come home for lunch. Since he was too lazy to cook for himself, ordering takeout was the only option.

As for just skipping the meal...

Although he possessed the [Devouring] Attribute and could go days without feeling hungry, the habit of eating three meals a day was ingrained in his bones. When it was time to eat, he ate.

Otherwise, it always felt like something was missing.

[Roll Out! Egg Fried Rice!]

[Never Pre-Made! I’d Bet My Career on This Bowl of Fried Noodles!]

[Hai City’s Number One Roast Chicken!]

Gu Qing scrolled through several takeout restaurants.

The names were all ridiculous.

He could tell at a glance they were the kind of small, delivery-only ghost kitchens.

He didn’t need to look to know their hygiene standards were questionable.

Rats and cockroaches scurrying everywhere.

Not even a dog would order from them.

Gu Qing only ordered from dine-in restaurants that he had eaten at in person, the kind frequented by countless delivery drivers.

Of course, with his current high Physical Strength, eating garbage takeout wouldn’t do any harm to his body.

But if he could eat well, why eat garbage?

"Zhongran Bucket Rice, I choose you."

"I’ll have the Mapo Tofu, and an order of Stir-fried Tomato and Egg. Two dishes and rice, perfect."

Gu Qing had eaten at this bucket rice place in person before.

The owner cooked everything fresh over a high flame, and many delivery drivers liked to eat there. It was trustworthy.

...

「1:00 PM」

The food arrived.

As he ate, Gu Qing asked the Magic Mirror a few things.

Mainly, he asked how to trigger the labels of other Extraordinary Beings.

For example:

Wu Jiahao’s [Genetic Fusionist].

Liu Yue’s [Spiritual Mind Master].

Jiang Wanqiao’s [Magical Girl], and so on.

After a round of questioning, the answers Gu Qing got from the Magic Mirror were pretty much what he had expected.

Perform a Genetic Fusion with Wu Jiahao to get Attributes from his [Genetic Fusionist] label.

Hone his Spiritual Power with Liu Yue to get Attributes from her [Spiritual Mind Master] label.

Study Magic with Jiang Wanqiao to get Attributes from her [Magical Girl] label.

Additionally, Gu Qing asked the Magic Mirror one more question.

He asked why Jiang Wanqiao, who was clearly not an Extraordinary Being, had an Extraordinary label floating above her head.

The Magic Mirror remained silent.

’There it goes again, refusing to answer a difficult question.’

...

「1:10 PM」

After finishing his meal, Gu Qing went out to farm Attributes from Liu Zhiyi.

As he walked into the Little Fairy Pet Shop, he saw Liu Zhiyi. She was wearing a pair of black silk stockings and a purple dress, sitting sideways on the floor training a few hamsters.

"Sister Zhiyi, have you eaten?"

Gu Qing greeted Liu Zhiyi with a smile.

Liu Zhiyi raised a hand to brush her hair back from her ear. The gesture was elegant and alluring as her red lips parted.

"I just had a salad."

"By the way, Sister Zhiyi, do you know anything about monsters like the Fox Woman?"

Gu Qing spoke as he walked over and sat down in front of Liu Zhiyi, very naturally joining her in training the hamsters.

Liu Zhiyi’s voice was cool and distant, but very pleasant to the ear. "I know a little, but not much."

Gu Qing: "Can you tell me about them, Sister Zhiyi?"

Liu Zhiyi picked up a nearby teacup, took a delicate sip of coffee, and began to speak slowly:

"Fox Women are monsters with seductive figures and gorgeous faces. At the same time, they are sly and treacherous, acting without any moral compass. They constantly operate in the gray areas of the world, hunting handsome men to abduct and use as Furnace Cauldrons for their cultivation, absorbing their vital essence to increase their strength."

"The defining traits of their race are high Spiritual Strength and a proficiency with various Spiritual Attack methods, such as Illusion Techniques, Charm Techniques, Demon Sound Ear, and so on. They are extremely effective against those with low Spiritual Strength."

"Conversely, their Physical Strength is very low, making them practically the weakest among their peers. As long as you can counter their spiritual methods, it’s not uncommon to see them killed by someone of a lower rank."

...