The city of Righteous Prosperity was buzzing with excitement, and Liang Qu's "heroic deeds" were still making waves.
However, Liang Qu himself had hurriedly shut his door and gone into seclusion to cultivate.
Before heading out to fish with Uncle Chen on the river, Liang Qu had tempered his skin once at the martial hall.
At that time, he felt his skin had reached its limit.
It wasn’t the tightness he had felt during previous tempering sessions, but rather a swollen, bloated sensation.
It was like the swelling of frostbitten fingers in winter, where the joints turn purple and swollen, though on the surface, there was no visible abnormality.
Hu Qi had once told him that the transition from tightness to swelling was a sign that the skin barrier had been tempered to its limit.
Breaking through would happen within one or two more tempering sessions.
In the morning, he went out on the boat, and by the afternoon, he returned.
After most of the day had passed, his depleted blood energy had replenished itself.
Liang Qu placed the water vat in the middle of the room and broke the ice on its surface.
This vat had originally been a rice storage vat, but Liang Qu had never cooked rice.
After paying the autumn tax, the vat had been empty, so he had been using it as a water vat.
Liang Qu assumed his stance and began practicing his fist techniques.
His blood energy was guided to flow through his body, and under his invisible control, it spread to every limb and joint.
A scorching heat, more intense than ever before, surged through him in an instant.
Liang Qu quickly stripped off his clothes and plunged into the water, completely naked.
A large amount of icy water spilled out of the vat, soaking the dry, yellow ground.
This final breakthrough would generate far more heat than before, and if he wasn’t careful, it could burn his brain.
To prevent this, he had to physically cool himself down.
The searing heat flowed through his entire body, and the intense heat radiating from him was quickly carried away by the cold water.
As the heat and cold alternated, every breath he took opened his pores, releasing thick white mist.
Inside the room, the mist was so dense it resembled a white curtain, hiding the terrifying scene within the vat.
If someone were to pull back this curtain, they would see Liang Qu's entire body swollen, his skin raised to the thickness of a finger.
His entire body looked as if it had been soaked and expanded in water, growing larger by a full size.
Liang Qu himself felt no discomfort.
Instead, he felt a warm, comforting sensation in his skin, as if it was undergoing some incredible transformation.
Fine oils and sweat were secreted from his skin, only to be washed away by the flowing water.
After a long period of transformation, the swollen skin suddenly deflated like a punctured balloon, instantly flattening and reattaching itself to Liang Qu's frame.
An unprecedented sense of relief washed over him, like drinking a chilled sour plum drink on a scorching day.
He had succeeded!
Liang Qu exhaled a heavy breath of turbid air.
He leaped out of the water and landed on the ground, his body now tall and robust, with clear and well-defined muscle lines.
The once skinny and frail figure was nowhere to be seen.
Looking at the layer of oil floating on the surface of the water, he waved his hand lightly.
The clean water in a nearby wooden bucket split into two parts.
One part scooped up some soap, creating foam that washed over his body, cleaning him thoroughly.
The other part of the water then rinsed him off, leaving him feeling refreshed.
Putting on a new undershirt, Liang Qu felt more comfortable than ever before.
The sensation of his skin rubbing against the cotton fabric was almost ticklish.
He clenched his fist, his spirits high.
He hadn’t expected the difference between success and failure to be so vast.
Although his skin looked and felt no different from an ordinary person's, if he were attacked, it would become apparent that his skin was as tough and thick as several layers of old cowhide.
Ordinary swords and knives wouldn’t be able to pierce it.
His blood energy had also reached a new level.
Although it hadn’t fully condensed yet, he could already feel the strength in his chest.
His body felt lighter, as if he had shed a layer of iron armor.
The lightness he felt was even more pronounced than when he wore the Cloudstride Boots gifted by his fifth senior sister.
Controlling water had also become easier.
With a single thought, Liang Qu made the entire vat of water float in mid-air.
It was effortless, far easier than before.
Based on the amount of water in front of him, he estimated that his water manipulation ability had increased to five hundred pounds!
When he communicated with the Marsh Cauldron, he noticed that the fusion rate with the Water Monkey hadn’t changed—it was still at 49. So, even with the same fusion rate, the effects could vary depending on the foundation of the body?
Liang Qu was overjoyed.
Initially, he had thought that maxing out the fusion rate and gaining the ability to control six hundred pounds of water was incredibly powerful.
But after learning about the potential of the martial path, he had started to feel that the white Water Monkey Marsh Spirit wasn’t all that impressive.
Now, it seemed that the one who wasn’t impressive was himself? If he could break through all four barriers and max out the fusion rate with the Water Monkey, he would likely be able to control several tons of water.
What pleased him even more was that he discovered his mental link had been compressed—or rather, his mental strength had grown.
There was now an additional empty slot in his mind, the size of the Immovable, meaning he now had the capacity to command another water beast!
This was a double blessing.
Suddenly, he realized that his two abilities complemented each other perfectly.
By putting in half the effort, he had gained double the rewards.
There was nothing more satisfying than this.
Liang Qu tied up his hair and looked at the puddles of water on the floor.
He pushed open the door, intending to clean up, but he felt something collide with the door.
"Ouch!"
Liang Guangtian, clutching his nose, stumbled backward and fell to the ground, landing flat on his back.
The tightly tied bag in his hand fell to the ground, and its contents spilled out—white, gleaming rice.
Liang Qu looked down, unsure of what was going on.
He leaned against the door with his arms crossed and chuckled, "Well, well, if it isn’t my dear uncle! What brings you here today? Something important?"
Liang Guangtian's nose was red from the impact, and tears were welling up in his eyes.
Hearing Liang Qu's voice, he quickly scrambled to his feet.
When he looked up and saw Liang Qu, he was so shocked he couldn’t speak.
Wait, was this really his nephew?
How could he have changed so much in just a few hours?
Liang Guangtian ran outside, looking around.
Yes, this was definitely his brother’s old, rundown house!
He moved closer to Liang Qu and examined him carefully.
It was indeed his nephew, with the same facial features, but his skin was much fairer now.
Though still tanned, it was no longer dark—more of a wheat color.
His face was smooth and rosy, completely unlike the son of a fisherman.
Even his height had increased slightly.
This was different.
Really different.
Liang Qu tilted his head slightly, "What are you looking at?"
Liang Guangtian quickly averted his gaze and forced a smile, "Ah Shui, last time you came to my house to borrow some grain, we really didn’t have any to spare. But you have no idea how worried I’ve been these past few days. I couldn’t eat or sleep, thinking about you, all alone with no one to rely on but your uncle. Now that the autumn tax has been paid, we’ve finally managed to save a little, so I rushed over to bring it to you. How are you? You haven’t starved, have you?"
After returning home, Liang Guangtian had felt increasingly uneasy.
How could a poor boy who was on the verge of starvation suddenly become so capable? After much deliberation, and under his wife’s urging, he had hurriedly grabbed some grain and come over, hoping to pretend that nothing had happened.
Of course, Liang Qu didn’t believe a word of this nonsense.
Only a fool would.
He had seen Liang Guangtian in the crowd earlier and hadn’t planned to acknowledge him.
But now, here he was, pretending as if nothing had happened and showing up at his door again.
Liang Qu had to admire his audacity.
When Liang Qu had gone to Liang Guangtian’s house to borrow grain, not only had his uncle refused, but he had publicly called him a jinx, blaming him for the deaths of his parents and driving him away, saying he was bad luck.
Liang Guangtian didn’t mention any of this, but Liang Qu hadn’t forgotten a single word.
"You can keep the grain. Take it back and eat it yourself. I don’t need it anymore."
"That’s great! I was really worried—"
Liang Qu was about to close the door, not wanting to waste any more time with Liang Guangtian or listen to his excuses.
Things were different now.
There was no point in arguing—it would only be a waste of time and dignity.
"Wait, wait, don’t close the door!"
Liang Guangtian quickly stuck his hand between the doors to stop them from closing.
Liang Qu couldn’t force the door shut—not because he was afraid of hurting Liang Guangtian, but because the door was too flimsy.
It would break before it hurt anyone.
So, he simply opened the door wider and stared coldly at his uncle.
Liang Guangtian felt a chill run down his spine under Liang Qu’s gaze, but he still mustered the courage to speak, "My sixth son is about fourteen or fifteen now. You’ve become a disciple of Master Yang, and you’ve made something of yourself. Do you think you could take your younger brother under your wing? He’s been smart since he was a child, as you know. He’ll definitely be successful in the future and could be a great help to you!"
(End of Chapter)