Chapter 36: Extreme Turtle Shell Skill, Injury Recovery

Chapter 36: Chapter 36: Extreme Turtle Shell Skill, Injury Recovery

The overbearing nature of the penetrating power far exceeded Su Chen’s imagination.

Like a lingering curse or a venomous centipede that refused to die, it stubbornly remained within his body, refusing to dissipate.

It darted around from time to time, aggravating his nerves and damaging his internal organs, tormenting both his body and soul.

However, Su Chen noticed that this residual power rarely traveled to his arms.

At first, he thought the power simply couldn’t reach them, but later he realized it was confined to circulating in other areas.

Su Chen vaguely guessed that it wasn’t that the power didn’t want to extend to his arms, but rather that it couldn’t—or perhaps, it was afraid to.

Why would it be afraid?

He thought of his arms, which had been strengthened by four Cultivation Techniques: the Iron Cloth Shirt, Ape Arm Skill, Iron Sand Palm, and Iron Wire Fist. Even if the penetrating power reached them, it likely wouldn’t be able to cause any damage.

This was why Su Chen had rushed to the goldsmith to exchange for gold. He planned to elevate his Turtle Shell Skill to the extreme while the power was still darting around his body, to see if he could eliminate it.

However, after he topped up his Krypton Gold and activated the Simple Mode, he realized his oversight:

[Simple Mode Activated: Bask in the sun for one hour to train the Turtle Shell Skill to the extreme.]

He slapped his forehead, a helpless look crossing his face. "It’s the middle of the night! Where am I supposed to find sunlight? Looks like I’ll have to wait until tomorrow morning."

Because of the surging power, Su Chen was in no mood to study his medical books or research the Disguise Technique tonight. He had no choice but to lie in bed and struggle to fall asleep.

By the time he woke up the next day, Su Chen’s face was noticeably pale, and the bags under his eyes were somewhat swollen.

He couldn’t wait to get out of bed. Opening the door, he let out a relieved smile. Fortunately, it wasn’t a cloudy day.

The rays of the rising sun, bringing warmth and hope, spilled across the earth and onto the faces of the people.

Su Chen dragged over an armchair. Without even bothering to wash up, he lay back leisurely.

He picked up a medical book, reading while basking in the sun.

[Martial Arts: ...Turtle Shell Skill (Extreme)]

[Simple Mode: ...Turtle Shell Skill 0 times (None)]

The moment the panel refreshed, Su Chen felt his body instantly become warm and comfortable. His abdomen pulsed slightly, and within a few seconds, it completely quieted down.

"The power is gone!"

Su Chen touched his stomach and took a deep breath. Upon feeling no more pain, he let out a long sigh of relief.

"Just as I thought. The Turtle Shell Skill strengthened my body and simultaneously obliterated that residual power. It’s a good thing the power was weak, too. Otherwise, the Turtle Shell Skill alone might not have been enough to destroy it."

With the power eliminated, Su Chen was in a great mood.

He got up, washed, and changed into clean clothes. After having a hearty meal at a street stall, he returned home.

"I originally wanted to upgrade the Ape Arm Skill, but now I only have over sixty taels of silver left. I’m afraid that’s not enough to upgrade it."

Su Chen thought as he looked at the silver on the table.

Although he had reversed his planned order, he felt no regret. After all, improving the Turtle Shell Skill was also of great help to him.

"Then I’ll just train the Bone Shrinking Skill to perfection."

After pondering for a moment, Su Chen made up his mind. He activated Simple Mode and spent an hour swinging his arms five hundred times.

The panel refreshed again:

[Martial Arts: ...Bone Shrinking Skill (Perfection 1%)]

[Simple Mode: ...Bone Shrinking Skill 0 times (10 taels of gold/time)]

He still had over fifty taels of silver left, but there were no more Cultivation Techniques he could upgrade. Su Chen’s attention shifted to his broken saber.

He murmured, beginning to summarize his recent experiences.

"This clash with a Power Training Martial Artist has impacted me greatly. I’ve finally experienced their formidable strength firsthand.

"If not for the fact that his power was thin, I would have already been severely injured by it. If I encounter another Power Training Martial Artist in the future, I must be extremely careful.

"However, it ultimately comes down to strength. My strength is still not high enough; otherwise, I wouldn’t have been hurt by this trace of power.

"With my current strength, I probably have no rivals left in the Power Training Realm. It’s time to see if I can find a way to break through and generate my own power.

"Senior Li Mo knows very little about breaking through. It seems I can only ask Master Hong. Yes, I’ll find a time to ask him.

"Furthermore, during this encounter, my severed-arm saber draw clearly fell short. In the past, no one could react in time when I drew my blade.

"This time, the bandit not only reacted but also swiftly moved to stop me. Although he failed to block it, it still proves that my severed-arm saber draw has flaws.

"If I meet a Martial Artist even stronger than him in the future, this kind of deceptive move might not work at all.

"It seems I need to find an opportunity to improve my sneak attack methods. For instance, hiding a saber in my sleeve to make it a Sleeve Saber for easier ambushes? I have two sabers now anyway. One to confuse others, and one reforged to hide in my cuff. It’s completely feasible!

"In addition, I can coat the blade with poison. Even if I can’t secure a one-hit kill, it will still cause massive damage. Especially with a highly toxic poison—once the enemy is infected, I can simply drag the fight out until they drop dead.

"Although I haven’t started studying the medical manual yet, I’ve gained a preliminary understanding of medicine recently. I should be able to begin targeted learning. I don’t aim to become a renowned doctor; I just want to develop poisons that can aid me in battle."

After this summary, Su Chen finalized his upcoming plans.

First, improve his sneak attack methods. He would find a blacksmith to modify his weapon, temporarily continuing to use his ’Yang Guo’ persona, employing both an overt and a concealed weapon for support.

Second, study the medical manual to see if he could develop poisons to coat his weapons.

Third, use the remaining fifty-odd taels to buy high-grade blood-replenishing medicine and push his progress to the maximum.

Fourth, and most importantly, find Hong Ming and ask him how to generate internal power.

With his mind made up, Su Chen left the house and found a relatively reliable blacksmith shop.

"Sir, I’d like to forge a custom weapon."

The Daqian Dynasty did not place strict restrictions on weapons like swords and sabers, so Su Chen spoke directly without any reservations.

Upon hearing this, the old blacksmith’s eyes lit up slightly, and the wrinkles on his face smoothed out a bit. "May I ask what kind of weapon you’d like to forge, sir?"

Su Chen didn’t speak. Instead, he took out the blueprint he had drawn and handed it over. The weapon depicted was similar to a Yanling Saber, but both the blade’s length and width had been modified.

The old blacksmith studied it carefully for a long time, then asked Su Chen about a few details before saying, "To forge it according to your requirements... I’m afraid the price will be quite steep."

"What if I can provide the materials?" Su Chen asked, then took out the broken saber.

The old blacksmith took a look, pondered for a moment, and said, "If you provide the materials yourself, it will be much cheaper, but it will still cost thirty taels."

"That expensive?"

Su Chen frowned slightly upon hearing this. He had thought that by providing his own materials, it would cost twenty taels at most. He hadn’t expected the price to exceed his expectations.

The old blacksmith shook his head. "You might not know this, sir, but the prices of copper and iron have risen recently. Not only has the cost of forging weapons gone up, but even farming tools have become much more expensive. My quote is already the lowest you’ll find. If you don’t believe me, you can go ask at other blacksmith shops."

"There’s no need. Let’s go with this price. How soon can it be finished?" This blacksmith shop was already one of the fairer ones he had found after comparing prices; the others would likely charge even more.

"Five days at the earliest, ten days at the latest," the old blacksmith mused.

"Alright, I’ll come pick it up in five days."

After saying that, Su Chen paid the deposit, ignoring the blacksmith’s hesitant expression, and turned to leave.