Early morning. 5 AM.
Before the first glimmer of light had penetrated the thick atmosphere of the Morning Star, Qin Feng had already finished his Meditation and woken up on time.
He didn’t get up right away. Instead, he habitually raised his wrist, activated his terminal, and started its built-in miniature body data scanner.
A soft blue light shot out from the terminal, scanning his entire body.
A few seconds later, a new line of data appeared on the light screen.
[Life Force Index: 11.007]
Thanks to a night of high-quality sleep, combined with the continuous recovery and strengthening from the Intermediate Imperial Body Refining Method, his Life Force Index had once again seen a minor increase.
’Maintaining efficient training and high-quality sleep really does speed up my progress,’ Qin Feng thought, calculating silently as he stared at the number.
’My current physical foundation is still a major handicap in the private domain. Once my Life Force Index reaches 15.0, that physical weakness should be mostly shored up. If I can also master the third killing move, the defensive "Thousand Soldiers Guarding," I’ll have a fighting chance against the senior students. I should be able to break into the top ten thousand by then.’
He had set a clear goal for himself.
’I hope I can do it this month.’
Without any further delay, he quickly got up, washed up, and headed once more to the public Martial Arts Dojo in the Class A Area to throw himself into another day of arduous training.
Inside the vast Martial Arts Dojo, he practiced the Intermediate Imperial Body Refining Method over and over again.
From his initial awkwardness and struggle, he was now gradually becoming fluid.
His body was adapting at an astonishing rate to this cycle of being pushed to the absolute limit and then reborn.
Every time he reached exhaustion, the vast Spiritual Energy of a Mid-Level Life Potion would replenish him.
Every time his muscles were deeply fatigued, a medicated bath would repair the internal damage to his body.
[Intermediate Imperial Body Refining Method Proficiency +1]
[Intermediate Imperial Body Refining Method Proficiency +1]
...
The system notifications became the most pleasant accompaniment to his otherwise monotonous training.
His proficiency was increasing steadily.
When the progress bar finally reached 10 points, he had at last crossed the "beginner" threshold for this profound refining method.
’The rate of improvement is even faster than I expected.’
Qin Feng realized this as he felt the surging qi, blood, and power within him.
This month marked one full month since his promotion to a C-rank contract, and the resources he could claim were a third more than the previous month.
Three Mid-Level Life Potions and three middle-level healing baths—these were the foundation of his confidence, allowing him to push himself so relentlessly.
Although the training process for the Intermediate Imperial Body Refining Method was excruciating and stressed the body far more than the basic version, it was for this very reason that the improvements from each "breakthrough after destruction" were also far beyond what the basic version could offer.
With these two factors combined, his rate of growth didn’t slow down; on the contrary, it only got faster and faster.
He didn’t slack off in the slightest, continuing to throw himself into this monotonous yet fulfilling cycle day after day.
His daily life was carved into distinct blocks: morning, extreme body refining; afternoon, crushing defeats in the private domain; evening, more body refining; and before bed, Meditation.
Time flew by in this regimented lifestyle.
In the blink of an eye, ten days had passed.
...
Class A Area, private bathroom.
Swirling steam filled the spacious room.
Qin Feng and Shi Potian, both clad only in underwear, stood before a massive alloy bathtub.
Qin Feng stood before a full-length mirror, examining the changes in himself over the past ten days.
The young man in the mirror was already close to 1.9 meters tall, his figure as straight and imposing as a spear.
His muscles were powerful and well-defined, with smooth lines that weren’t the least bit bulky, possessing a kind of explosive aesthetic.
On his flat stomach, his eight-pack abs were as sharp as if carved by a knife, like a perfect bar of chocolate.
When he tensed slightly, his quadriceps showed clear striations.
And that was just the exterior.
Internally, his organs had been repeatedly tempered by Spiritual Energy, becoming exceedingly tough.
His cardiopulmonary capacity, blood production, and recovery speed had all reached a level several times greater than that of an ordinary person.
’I’ve heard that the Martial Artists qualified to become Interstellar Warband Warriors have extremely high Life Force Indexes, and their physical bodies reach an unimaginable state.’
Qin Feng mused. ’To be able to adapt to most of the harsh environments in the Cosmos with just their physical bodies... I wonder how long it will take me to get there. One step at a time. I’ll just have to keep moving forward steadily.’
"Back in the Dark Age, if an ordinary person wanted to build a body like this, who knows how many synthetic hormones they’d have to inject,"
Shi Potian said, looking at his and Qin Feng’s reflections in the mirror. "And the Potions from that era were all ’non-Spiritual Energy’ products. The side effects were huge, and they’d burn through your life’s potential. Not like what we have now. Spiritual Energy Potions are gentle and nourishing, with all benefits and no drawbacks."
As he spoke, he tore open his [Middle-Level Healing Bath Package] and poured the dark red powder inside into the bathtub.
The clear water was quickly dyed a crimson red, like blood, and began to emit a faint, fresh scent of herbs and wood.
Qin Feng did the same, and then the two of them stepped into their respective tubs, immersing their entire bodies in the warm Medicinal Liquid.
Streams of pure energy surged into their bodies through their open pores, scrambling to repair the hidden injuries and fatigue from days of grueling training.
"What’s your Life Force Index at?"
Qin Feng asked casually, his eyes closed.
"11.03."
Shi Potian answered, then asked in return, "What about you?"
"12.62."
Qin Feng said.
Shi Potian’s eyes flew open.
He whipped his head around to look at the perfectly calm Qin Feng beside him, his face a mask of disbelief.
12.62!
In ten days, Qin Feng’s Life Force Index had reached 12.62.
Yet he and Qin Feng had the same starting point, the same extreme training regimen, and the same C-rank contract resources. In ten days, he had only just managed to raise his to 11.03.
The gap was enormous!
Shi Potian had always believed that the difference between him and Qin Feng lay mainly in their aptitude for killing techniques.
He had never imagined that even in the most fundamental Body Refining Technique training—something thought to yield results as long as you put in the effort—his own rate of progress would be so much slower than the other’s!
As he reeled in shock, something even more incomprehensible happened.
He watched, wide-eyed, as the Medicinal Liquid in the tub next to Qin Feng—originally as thick and red as blood—began to fade at a visible rate, growing paler and paler.
Ten minutes, and the color had faded by half.
Twenty minutes, and it had turned a pale pink.
In less than half an hour, the Medicinal Liquid in Qin Feng’s tub had become completely clear water.
This meant that Qin Feng had completely absorbed all the Spiritual Energy from the entire middle-level healing bath.
Qin Feng stood up from the tub, water droplets tracing paths down his well-defined muscles.
"I’m off. Going to train a bit more. Let’s grab lunch together in a bit."
He smiled at Shi Potian.
"Okay."
Shi Potian nodded, forcing the words out with some difficulty. "Go ahead and train for a bit. I figure I’ll still be another half hour."
After Qin Feng left, Shi Potian was the only one left in the bathroom.
He stared silently at the still-rich, crimson Medicinal Liquid in his own tub. Another full half-hour passed before the red color finally faded completely.
A full hour.