In the water, a slender figure darted back and forth, swimming swiftly through the depths.
On the rocks nearby, crabs waved their claws, adding to the scene's liveliness.
After a while, the figure quickly surfaced to take a breath before diving back down.
"Looks like I can hold my breath for about half an hour now," Liang Qu estimated, feeling a surge of excitement.
In his past life, the world record for holding one's breath underwater was twenty-four minutes—and that was in a state of near stillness, with an extremely low heart rate, almost like a turtle in hibernation.
Yet here he was, swimming vigorously and still managing to go half an hour without needing to breathe.
This was beyond human capability—even a Martial Master couldn't achieve this.
"My sensory range has expanded to about ten meters, with a detailed perception radius of five meters. That's a significant improvement, and my ability to remain hidden has also increased. Fish can't detect me unless they're within a meter."
The larger his sensory range, the greater his control over water.
Within his detailed perception radius, manipulating water felt as natural as moving his own limbs.
Thus, expanding his sensory range directly enhanced his water manipulation abilities.
Liang Qu spread his fingers, and an invisible current of water began to shift and change shape in his palm under his mental command.
He formed a swirling vortex, which grew smaller and spun faster until it shrank from half a person's height to the size of a human head.
Even so, it was still far from being able to cut like a water blade.
Initially, Liang Qu had thought that developing a water blade would be an incredibly powerful technique, but he soon realized it wasn't worth the effort.
The skill was too inefficient.
The force he could exert with water was roughly three hundred pounds, which could be compressed into ten liters of water—meaning each liter carried thirty pounds of force.
While that sounded impressive and was more than enough for catching fish or moving objects, it was nowhere near the power needed for a water blade.
A low-pressure water blade at thirty megapascals could only cut through foam or thin wood, requiring three hundred kilograms of force per square centimeter—about six hundred pounds.
To cut through flesh, at least fifty megapascals were needed, and cutting steel required one hundred megapascals, along with the addition of fine sand.
It was simply impossible.
Adding blades or needles to the vortex might give it some killing power, but the cost would be astronomical.
In this era, there was no mechanical manufacturing—every blade would have to be handcrafted, making the idea impractical.
Liang Qu suspected that even the Green Spirit Marsh Monkey couldn't compress water into a blade.
That level of control might only be achievable by the Purple Spirit Water King Ape.
But if he could reach that level, it would be more efficient to simply crush his enemies with water pressure.
Unless the Marsh Spirit underwent some kind of transformation at a certain point, unlocking new abilities.
Liang Qu felt there was reason to hope for this, as he could vaguely sense that something would change once his fusion rate surpassed fifty percent.
As for controlling blood, which was eighty-five percent water, Liang Qu actually had some ideas and had even experimented once.
Back at the martial hall, he had managed to reverse the blood flow in an attacker's heart, successfully countering their assault.
However, he could only control blood in the most concentrated areas, like the heart's aorta.
The spleen, for example, was out of reach—its blood was too dispersed across tiny vessels.
He also noticed that when he was near Senior Brother Hu or Senior Brother Xiang, he couldn't sense the blood flow in their hearts.
Without sensing it, he couldn't control it.
Was it because Senior Brother Xiang hadn't broken through the Blood Barrier yet? Or did the Skin Barrier block his perception? He wasn't sure.
Liang Qu had even considered whether he could control his own blood to enhance his physical strength, but he hadn't dared to try.
It was too dangerous—one wrong move, and he could end up shortening his lifespan.
He practiced martial arts and fished to live a longer, better life.
Experimenting with blood control wasn't worth the risk.
He communicated with the Marsh Cauldron.
[Cauldron Master: Liang Qu]
[Refined Marsh Spirit: Water Monkey (White) (Fusion Rate: 49%)]
[Water Essence: None]
[River Affinity: None]
[Commanded Water Beasts: Grand Marsh Crocodile, Six-Whiskered Catfish, Stone-Claw Crab]
**[Evaluation: The Water Monkey Marsh Spirit originates from the great Huai Whirlpool Lord.
Currently underdeveloped, a minor figure with weak potential.]**
After absorbing the Red-Blood Perch, his Marsh Spirit fusion rate had reached 49%, nearly halfway.
Even the evaluation had changed slightly, no longer saying "underdeveloped" but "underdeveloped and incomplete."
The White Spirit Water Monkey was just the beginning.
Above it were the Green Spirit Marsh Monkey and the Purple Spirit Water King Ape.
And who knew? Perhaps even the legendary Wu Zhiqi wasn't out of reach.
Currently, Liang Qu could only control the blood of ordinary people, but he hadn't even been able to do that at first.
As he continued to grow, the future looked promising.
In just two months, he had gone from a starving orphan to a true disciple of a Tiger Hunting Realm Martial Master.
In a few more days, he would break through the Skin Barrier and become a true Martial Artist.
Liang Qu was more than satisfied.
When the tax collectors came for the summer tax in May, would they still dare to kick his measuring bucket? The thought brought a smile to his face.
After practicing his water manipulation and familiarizing himself with his abilities, Liang Qu began inspecting the growth of the lotus roots.
He had been trying to cultivate Treasured Lotus Roots by replanting sections in different areas, but none had survived—they all rotted in the water, wasting precious plants.
It seemed that the lotus roots could only grow in a specific area of the water.
Liang Qu had considered digging up the mud to see if something was buried beneath, but he was afraid that there might be nothing there after all.
If that were the case, he'd lose both the treasure and the lotus roots.
So he had held off.
The healing properties of the Treasured Lotus Roots had played a crucial role in Liang Qu's growth.
They had slowly replenished the damage done to his body by long-term starvation, allowing him to progress as he had.
After defeating the Crab Monster, Liang Qu had buried its shattered shell in the mud to see if it would help the lotus roots grow.
So far, there was no visible effect—the crab shell was too hard and hadn't decomposed after three days.
After checking that the lotus roots hadn't been affected by the Crab Monster's earlier rampage, Liang Qu began clearing away debris to expand their growing area.
Just as he was about to surface for air, he noticed a strange, glowing spot in the distance, moving erratically.
The mental link with his two beasts told him they were also in that area, rapidly approaching as if chasing something.
"Damn it, did those two idiots bring back something they can't handle?" Liang Qu thought, ready to flee.
But then, through the mental link, he received sensations of "hot," "burning," and "cooked."
This wasn't what he had expected.
He paused, deciding to wait and see.
As the two beasts drew closer, Liang Qu realized they hadn't brought back an enemy.
Instead, they were carrying a glowing object in a bizarre manner—tossing it back and forth between their heads.
The Fat Catfish would catch it with its head and toss it to the Immovable, who would then toss it back.
The sight reminded Liang Qu of how he juggled roasted sweet potatoes between his hands to keep from burning himself.
When the two beasts reached him, they dropped the glowing object into the water.
A large, crimson feather slowly sank to the bottom.
Liang Qu raised an eyebrow.
"Is this... the feather of a Great Flamebird Demon?"
(End of Chapter)