Chapter 40 Eighth Rank
Crane Claw Print Sand.
Red Cliff Copper Wall.
Ten Miles of Thunder.
Zhong Lin's every punch and kick stirred up a violent wind flow, while his chest issued a sound like bellows breathing.
The essence of "Iron Mountain Skill" isn't in the moves themselves, but in the breathing skill inherent between the moves, which, when combined with the moves, truly unleashes the body refining effect of "Iron Mountain Skill".
Zhong Lin, with full level experience, could always fully exert the training effect of "Iron Mountain Skill". As he stretched his fists and feet, the tendons and bones inside his body constantly tensed and released, with the medicinal power continuously enhancing them.
Within seven days, the Blood Replenishing Pill was adequately supplied, and combined with Zhong Lin's nearly perfect absorption of the medicinal power, his martial arts cultivation advanced at a swift pace.
Zhong Lin, standing shirtless in the courtyard, found that his once skinny body had become fuller, with muscles tightly packed together, making his limbs supple yet powerful.
On the outside, he merely seemed more robust than before, but only Zhong Lin knew how much more tightly knit his muscles and bones had become, with his body weight increasing by twenty to thirty jin.
Suddenly, Zhong Lin shouted loudly, and the style of his fist technique suddenly changed, his body embodying the intent of a fierce tiger, with a faint roar emanating from within.
"Fierce Tiger Descending the Mountain."
Zhong Lin stomped his foot fiercely, and his once slender legs swelled instantaneously, with muscles surging and veins protruding.
Zhong Lin exploded into a kick, sweeping through the air.
One rush, one kick, one
The force of the leg tore through the air, emitting a heartbreaking sound that reverberated far away, exceptionally sharp.
Zhong Lin fell back to the ground, standing still, his eyes slightly closed, and after a while, he slowly reopened his eyes.
"Eighth Rank Muscle Strengthening Realm, it's achieved."
"The sinews are fortified, the skin is tougher, and the strength has increased substantially. Now my strength should be five hundred jin."
"And this is just the initial entry into the Eighth Rank Muscle Strengthening Realm. The focus of 'Iron Mountain Skill' is also on strength, so the strength should increase further in the later stages."
Zhong Lin was wildly ecstatic in his heart and had a sufficient understanding of the Eighth Rank Muscle Strengthening Realm.
It's important to know that in this era, when ninety-nine percent of people don't even have enough to eat and suffer from malnutrition, a strength of five hundred jin is considered Herculean.
Sometimes, when he glanced at the empty bottles on the ground, Zhong Lin felt a pang of heartbreak.
"The saying 'wealth nurtures martial arts' is indeed correct. In just seven days to complete Muscle Strengthening Realm training, the cost was consuming twenty-three Blood Replenishing Pills, which is two hundred and thirty taels of silver… damn."
The silver earned in recent days was basically all spent on Blood Replenishing Pills. It's a pity that Zhong Lin still hasn't cracked the elixir recipe for the Blood Replenishing Pill.
He's identified all the medicinal ingredients, and Zhong Lin even tried to combine them and concoct them over a fire, only ending up with a pile of residue that smelled poisonous, let alone thinking about consuming it.
After contemplating for a while, Zhong Lin donned his gear again, packed the thirty sachets of Eight Treasures Blood Building Soup he got from Xu Le, bent his knees slightly, and leaped over the courtyard wall.
The sinews in the Eighth Rank Muscle Strengthening Realm expand and contract vigorously, with fierce bursts and agility, allowing him to leap over a two-meter-high courtyard wall effortlessly.
Familiar with the way, he reached a hollow in the mountain, paid three large coins, and began setting up a stall to sell medicine.
"Young man, want a secret manual?"
A familiar figure approached Zhong Lin again, none other than the skinny monkey who tried to sell him a secret manual the first time he visited the black market.
This guy is a regular in the black market, arriving promptly every day to sell his secret manuals, and believe it or not, some people actually get scammed.
Zhong Lin couldn't be bothered to warn others, since the more you warn them, the less they believe you; only hitting a dead end would make them turn back.
Although Zhong Lin never spoke to him, after selling medicine here for seven days, he became familiar with faces, though he couldn't see theirs.
But he didn't expect that guy to try selling to him again—was he looking for a beating?
Before Zhong Lin could get angry, the guy quickly said, "Young man, don't be mad. Listen to me first. This time I'm not selling cultivation techniques or weapons; it's a side skill, genuinely, are you interested?"
"Not interested, scram."
Zhong Lin cursed and directly chased the skinny monkey away.
The skinny monkey left reluctantly, not daring to offend Zhong Lin, mainly because he recognized the Ghost Head Blade in Zhong Lin's hand, and its owner hadn't appeared in a long time, suggesting he likely met his end.
Soon regular customers arrived.
"I want three packs."
"I'll take five packs."
Business was booming as usual, mainly because the Eight Treasures Blood Building Soup Zhong Lin sold had gained a reputation over the past few days, attracting repeat customers.
In less than half an hour, all thirty packs of Eight Treasures Blood Building Soup were sold out, and the silver was tucked into his money bag. He didn't need to buy elixirs anymore as the masked elixir seller stopped coming two days ago, leaving Zhong Lin disappointed as he hoped to see if he could buy the recipe for Blood Replenishing Pill to study it.
While collecting the silver, Zhong Lin suddenly sensed a feeling of being watched from afar. He immediately turned his head, scanning in the direction of the sensation.
The person avoided his gaze in panic, turned away, and bent over a stall as if asking for prices, appearing perfectly normal.
"It's the last day of the month for the black market. Seems like someone finally couldn't hold back," Zhong Lin sneered.
These days, Zhong Lin's sale of Eight Treasures Blood Building Soup had already incited jealousy from others, and the surveillance just now wasn't the first time. During the last few visits to the black market, Zhong Lin could faintly sense someone spying on him.
The opponent was discreet, but knowing his predecessor was a hunter, extremely sharp, there's no way he wouldn't notice—it was just a pretense of ignorance.
After cleaning the words off the sign, Zhong Lin got up and strolled through the black market with the crowd, purchasing a few things he needed.
An hour later, Zhong Lin left the black market, and soon after, several figures vanished from the black market, even causing a buzz.
Onlookers are clear-minded.
With Zhong Lin's business booming, it wasn't just one group watching him.
"Damn, someone got there before us, and the fat sheep got away."
"Who were those people just now?"
"What people? Open your eyes; there were two groups. One was from the Black Tiger Gang, led by a giant like a towering iron tower named Dong Yan, who can take on Eighth Rank Martial Artists with his 'Mixed Iron Palm.' The other group was brought by the skinny monkey, a messy bunch I couldn't recognize, but they shouldn't be weak either."
"Hiss! So, the medicine seller is surely doomed? It's a pity for his Eight Treasures Blood Building Soup, though expensive, it worked well."
"Haha, not necessarily. If that medicine seller gets caught, anyone would definitely try to get the recipe from him. Then it'll just be a change of stalls to buy from."