The strength-testing device was a rather crude instrument used to measure physical power. It wasn’t very precise—just good enough to give a rough estimate of a martial artist’s strength.
Bang!
Ian Song braced his waist and hips, then slammed a heavy punch onto the strength-testing device.
Immediately, a column of red liquid shot up from the bottom of the strength gauge and stopped at the eight-hundred-jin mark. In other words, Ian’s punch registered eight hundred jin of force—meeting the standard for Body-Refining tier one.
Harold Huang, who had been looking on absentmindedly, suddenly widened his eyes in surprise and stared at Ian. "Try it again!"
Bang!
Without hesitation, Ian unleashed another punch at the strength-testing device.
Once again, the column of red liquid rose to the eight-hundred-jin mark.
Harold stared at the strength gauge, still unable to believe it. He’d only taught that little rascal the cultivation art yesterday—how could he have reached Body-Refining tier one in just a single day?
"Could there be something wrong with the strength-testing device?"
At the same time, after stepping into Body-Refining tier three, Ian's weight dropped from three hundred jin to two hundred and twenty jin. He looked much slimmer, and his once chubby face now had a hint of handsomeness.
Training Hall.
Harold glanced at his still-chubby son, but somehow found him much more pleasing to the eye. Smiling, he said, "Good son, now that you've reached Body-Refining tier three, I'll teach you three martial techniques."
On Darkwing Star, both cultivation arts and martial techniques are extremely precious.
Let me briefly explain the ranking system for cultivation methods and martial techniques.
Cultivation methods are divided into four ranks: Heaven, Earth, Black, and Yellow. Each rank is further split into upper, middle, and lower grades.
As for martial techniques, they're ranked from one-star to nine-star. One-star techniques are common and basic, while nine-star techniques are the highest tier. Rumor has it that above nine-star, there are even legendary divine-rank techniques.
As the lord of a city, Harold's martial techniques for teaching his son are anything but ordinary.
The three martial techniques are: White Tiger Pounce, Black Tiger Heart-Strike, and Grey Eagle Swoop.
After demonstrating all three moves, Harold looked at Ian and asked, "Good son, how much did you remember?"
"I remembered everything!" Ian replied lazily.
Harold was stunned at first, then his face fell. "Really remembered it all?"
Ian nodded.
"Alright, show me!"
"Sure! First move—White Tiger Pounce!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ian's lazy aura suddenly sharpened. Power surged through him as he kicked off the ground, leaped into the air, and struck with a rapid pounce. The whole sequence was smooth and flawless—he captured both the form and spirit of White Tiger Pounce perfectly.
Harold's eyes nearly popped out of his head. He muttered, "A genius, a true genius! My son really is a prodigy. Who would dare call me the father of a dog son now?"
"Black Tiger Heart-Strike!"
Ian changed his stance and flawlessly executed the second move.
"Grey Eagle Swoop!"
Ian leaped again, his body soaring through the air...
After finishing all three moves, Ian looked smugly at the dumbfounded Harold. "How was that?"
Harold pursed his lips. "Not bad, I suppose!"
"Tsk!"
On the twelfth day since Ian started cultivating, he broke through again—advancing from Body-Refining tier three to tier four, punching out four thousand jin of force in one go.
That afternoon, after his breakthrough.
Harold called him into the pharmacy.
Inside the pharmacy stood a large wooden tub, about a meter tall, with firewood burning underneath and filled with a dark, murky liquid.
"Take off your clothes and get in the tub!" Harold ordered, pointing at the barrel.
"What's this for?" Ian asked, feigning ignorance.
Harold explained, "This medicinal bath was made at great expense. It'll help you temper your tendons and bones faster."
Ian stripped down to his underclothes and stepped into the steaming tub.
The water was scalding hot—at least seventy or eighty degrees Celsius—but Ian didn’t scream. Instead, he looked perfectly comfortable.
Harold told the servants to stoke the fire higher.
As the temperature climbed toward boiling, Ian felt his skin itch, his pores opening wide as waves of medicinal power drilled into his body.
Harold reminded him, "Focus your mind and circulate Sunflare Art."
When Ian did as instructed, he instantly felt all the medicinal energy rushing into his bones, being absorbed completely.
After an hour, the once-black medicinal liquid had turned clear, fully consumed by Ian's body.
He climbed out of the tub, and with every movement—raising his hand or lifting his foot—his bones crackled loudly like firecrackers, proof that his tendons and bones had been significantly strengthened.
Harold's investment in medicinal baths, combined with Ian's cheat-like comprehension and Sunflare Art, set him up to soar rapidly through the Body-Refining stages.
This laid the groundwork for him to enter the Pristine Way Sect as an undeniable martial prodigy, reshaping both his ‘wastrel’ fate and, eventually, the destiny of humanity on Darkwing Star.
—End of Chapter—