inspire-indiana Chapter 15 Acupoint Anomaly - Experience Surge! Hidden Giant - Zhang Yan)
Chapter 15 Acupoint Anomaly - Experience Surge! Hidden Giant - Zhang Yan)
He quickly glanced at the top of Jiang Wei's head...
Damn it! There's nothing there!
A deep sense of regret welled up in Su Chen's heart.
Jiang Wei scored 709 points in the joint exam of ten schools, ranking first in her grade.
It absorbed the spiritual pearl of the water god Gonggong, mastered powerful spiritual arts, and even killed a queen ant at the level of a warrior general.
If I could make a contract with her...
Just thinking about it made Su Chenguang's heart pound.
In terms of speed-based martial arts, Jiang Wei also practices the Shadowless Step!
However, her cultivation progress was on a completely different level from Wang Yichuan's.
Su Chen remembered that a year ago, Jiang Wei had already cultivated the Shadowless Step to the fourth level.
Nine months ago, the Shadowless Step technique broke through to the fourth level, "Mastery of All Skills".
no way!
Her classmate, and their homeroom teacher, Mr. Zhou, used her as an inspiration to everyone every day, so Su Chen couldn't help but remember her!
According to the system's level conversion, the fourth level corresponds to level 6, but that was nine months ago.
Jiang Wei's Shadowless Step is now at least Lv7!
If he could experience this level of Shadowless Step, his cultivation speed could increase by at least two or three times.
In less than three days, he was able to step into the third stage - achieving some minor success!
"However, if we really form a contract with Jiang Wei just to practice the Shadowless Step, that would be a complete waste of her talent! Or even a sign of intellectual problems..." Su Chen thought to himself.
Jiang Wei has now overcome the most crucial hurdle in the Opening Acupoint Realm.
She has now successfully absorbed the spirit pearl and mastered spirit techniques. The next month or two will be her true period of rapid advancement!
How many skills will she have by then?
Thirty? Forty? Fifty?
Every skill was something he secretly learned.
"What a pity..." Su Chen sighed inwardly. "It's really going to be difficult to win her favor!"
"If I'm too attentive, she might really think I'm clinging to her or pursuing her. Then our homeroom teacher, Mr. Zhou, might actually contact my dad!"
"What's even more tragic is that you might get friend-zoned before the teacher even has to lift a finger..."
"What should we do?"
But No. 1 High School still has a wealth of talented people.
Besides Jiang Wei, there are two other guys who scored over 700!
"But sometimes, it's harder to win a guy's favor. Especially with my grades..."
In addition to the joint exam of ten schools, the school also holds various inter-school competitions, weekly tests, and monthly tests.
These occasions were his opportunities to come into contact with those geniuses.
"I need to find opportunities to meet more talented people," Su Chen secretly resolved, "to achieve a seamless transition between high-quality humanoid pets."
...
After finishing their meal in the cafeteria, the group returned to their respective classrooms to begin their training and prepare for the evening's exam.
The senior year's training room is located in Teaching Building No. 5.
The entire teaching building, eight stories high, is filled with individual training rooms.
Half of the students are in the honors class, and the other half are in the regular class.
The meditation room is spacious, about 20 square meters.
Each cubicle is equipped with basic training facilities: a meditation cushion, a spiritual energy concentration regulator, a meditation timer, and a vital signs monitoring screen.
Su Chen arrived at a cubicle at the very end of the fifth-floor corridor.
He pushed open the door, put his backpack in the corner, and Xiao Zi consciously lay down on the mat by the door, yawned, and closed her eyes.
It was tired, and now it finally has a chance to rest.
Su Chen sat cross-legged on the futon, took a deep breath, and his consciousness sank into the pet space.
[Energy Points: 28]
He turned on the learning machine, selected the "Shadowless Step" mode, and directly renewed for another hour.
Then...she closed her eyes.
Familiar feelings welled up again.
The warm air current rises from the Yongquan acupoint on the sole of the foot, passes through Taixi, Zhaohai, and Yinlingquan, goes all the way up, then to Xuehai and Jimen, and finally merges into the Dai Mai meridian.
The psionic trajectory of the Shadowless Step's threefold power was repeated again and again within his body.
This time, Su Chen didn't rush to follow that trajectory. Instead, he completely relaxed, like a piece of wood floating on the water, letting that force guide him.
One trip!
Two trips!
Three trips!
[Shadowless Step Experience Points +1]
[Shadowless Step Experience Points +1]
【….】
This afternoon, including the time when we ate dinner in the cafeteria.
For six hours straight, his learning machine never stopped running.
I gained a full 109 experience points!
【Shadowless Step Lv3 (292/3000)】
The speed did slow down a bit later, but only by 10% to 20%.
Now that he's in the training room and has calmed his mind, Su Chen feels that his experience gain is happening even faster!
Gradually, Su Chen sensed something was amiss.
This unusual feeling came from his own body.
On his left leg, on the inside of his knee, slightly behind the knee, a spot started to itch.
It's not an itch on the surface of the skin, but an itch deep in the bones and meridians.
It felt like something was gently poking inside, trying to peek out.
Yingu point!
The acupoints on the Foot Shaoyin Kidney Meridian are located on the inner side of the knee.
This acupoint is related to the third level of the Shadowless Step technique, and its activation can significantly improve leg stability when changing direction.
"Could it be that it's about to open?"
Su Chen immediately focused his consciousness on the location of the Yin Gu acupoint.
He could feel the power emanating from the learning machine washing over this acupoint again and again.
Just like water washing over a stone!
At first, it was gentle, flowing slowly.
Gradually, the force increased and the flow rate increased.
The rock started to shake!
"Could it be... that one acupoint can really be activated every day?" Su Chen wondered to himself.
"This speed is outrageous!"
"If opening acupoints were that easy, how come the top student in the grade only opened around seventy acupoints?"
At the normal pace, it would take Su Chen at least half a month to activate this acupoint, and he couldn't stop taking pills during that time!
The qualifications are what they are; there's nothing we can do about it.
But now, after just one acupoint was opened last night, this Yin Gu acupoint is showing signs of loosening again.
Su Chen immediately took out a Qi-Nourishing Pill from his waist pouch and put it in his mouth.
The pill melted instantly upon entering the mouth, its warm medicinal power spreading from the throat to every part of the body, eventually converging in the dantian.
He guided the medicinal power, directing it towards the Yin Valley acupoint on his left leg.
once!
twice!
three times!
The itch became even stronger, like ants scratching an itch inside your bones.
You can't reach it, but you can clearly feel its presence.
But it also feels like something is missing.
This situation made Su Chen restless and even a little impatient.
Fortunately, the sound of increased experience is quite pleasant!
[Shadowless Step Experience Points +1]
[Shadowless Step Experience Points +1]
【…】
........
Time slips away unnoticed.
Su Chen was awakened by a knock on the door.
"Su Chen? It's time. Get ready to go to the exam hall!"
It was the voice of our homeroom teacher, Ms. Zhou.
Su Chen paused for a moment and glanced at the time.
20: 23.
He sat cross-legged for nearly two hours.
Time flies so fast.
"They're here! They're here!"
Su Chen quickly glanced at the experience points.
【Shadowless Step Lv3 (438/3000)】
In less than two hours, I actually gained 146 experience points!
"So fast?"
"Is it because you practiced long enough today that your meridians and other systems have formed a memory of it?"
"Did he suddenly have this burst of insight, entering a brief period of enlightenment?"
"This cheat is insane! Won't they get banned?"
"When I first signed Wang Yichuan's contract today, how much was it again..."
"It seems to be... 126?"
"Holy crap! It went up by over 300 in one day???"
Su Chen was truly shocked.
This...this...this...this...
The word "perverted" is not even enough to describe it.
"Having gained so much experience, my stamina has recovered considerably. What will my score be tonight?"
"How am I supposed to explain if I finish in under 8 minutes?"
Su Chen felt somewhat perplexed.
Maybe we should switch to a different cheat program.
This cheat is too ruthless! The child is scared...
Su Chen started brainstorming, thinking that this kind of small test didn't offer much reward.
He doesn't lack that.
"The joint entrance exam was only three days ago, and in just three days, he improved his time by more than twenty seconds—that's astonishing!"
"When we run later, let's fake it a bit. Improving by three to five seconds should be enough, seven or eight seconds is fine too."
"After the exams, I can ask Wang Yichuan to help me finish Task One..."
Su Chen excitedly stood up and walked out of the training room.
.......
In the corridor, Teacher Zhou was knocking on doors one by one to call people.
Teacher Zhou, whose full name is Zhou Qingguo, is in his early forties, of medium build, and has a square face.
He was the homeroom teacher of Class 6, and had been with him for more than two years.
Su Chen's father always maintained good relationships with the teachers, so Zhou Qingguo paid considerable attention to Su Chen.
"Teacher Zhou!" Su Chen called out.
Zhou Qingguo turned his head, looked him up and down, lingered on his face for a moment, and then smiled.
"Looks like you're in good shape!" he said. "You did exceptionally well in this joint exam, keep it up! Stay calm."
"Yes, absolutely!"
"How's your preparation for the upcoming exam?" Zhou Qingguo asked.
"It's alright!" Su Chen said. "I'm still quite confident."
Zhou Qingguo smiled, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Confidence is good! Then strive for a good result!"
The teacher and student chatted for a few more minutes before Zhou Qingguo went to call other students.
Su Chen returned to the cubicle, woke Xiao Zi up, and then went downstairs.
.......
The running track is located behind the teaching building and is a standard 1,000-meter track.
When Su Chen arrived, a long queue had already formed outside the venue.
Students from regular classes left the venue one after another.
The students in the top classes were waiting for the 8:40 session.
Su Chen ran into a few acquaintances and stood by the flower bed, chatting casually.
After chatting for a while, Su Chen noticed Zhang Yan, who was squatting on the ground.
She hugged her knees with both hands, buried her face in her arms, and seemed lost in thought.
Seeing this, Su Chen walked over and gently kicked her shoe with his toe: "What are you doing? Squatting here like a quail."
Zhang Yan looked up and glared at him.
"Is this... nervousness?" Su Chen asked.
"Who's nervous!" Zhang Yan's voice rose eight octaves, but she was clearly lacking in confidence.
Su Chen glanced at her and smiled.
He looks really nervous!
"This little girl actually gets anxious sometimes?"
At this moment, Su Chen was extremely confident!
They were even afraid that getting good grades would cause trouble.
Su Chen bent down, leaned close to her ear, and whispered, "Groups A, B, C, and D, which group did you draw?"
"..." Zhang Yan glared at him for a moment before replying, "Group C, what about you?"
"Me too! What a coincidence! Haha~"
Zhang Yan suddenly looked up, her face instantly turning red: "Who said we have any connection! You pervert!"
"Hey~ How rude! Don't you want your sparring fee back?"
"you--!"
Zhang Yan wanted to get angry, but she swallowed it back.
Suddenly, as if she had thought of something, her expression changed from anger to suspicion: "You liar, you're always lying. Who knows if you're just trying to fool me?"
"You...you need to pay a deposit first!"
Su Chen smiled, and without any further words, directly tossed him a Qi-replenishing pill.
Is that enough?
Zhang Yan hurriedly agreed, nodding repeatedly, "Enough, enough, enough!"
She didn't waste any words and just started eating.
"You're eating so soon?"
"Of course! You've been training for so long today, your body must be sore, okay? Besides... once you eat it, you can't take it back, can you?"
As she said this, she glanced at Su Chen, observing his reaction.
"Tch~ Do you think I'm that bad? I wouldn't come back! You'd better tone down your temper, behave yourself, and follow me, you'll get what you deserve, understand?"
"Hmph!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the scene before him stunned Su Chen.
Zhang Yan
Affection level: lv5
Status: Available for contract (Time limit: 5 days)
Strength Level: Third Realm - Acupoint Opening Realm (46 acupoints)
Pet Energy Points - Acquisition Speed: 55 points/day
skill:
Overlord Body Technique Lv6 (3250/6000): Passive skill that greatly enhances physical strength and resilience after cultivation. Strength attribute permanently increases with each level advancement.
……
Mountain-Splitting Fist Lv4 (2850/4000): A high-difficulty power-type martial art that concentrates all the body's strength into a single point of the fist, resulting in extremely explosive power. When mastered, it can split a mountain with a single punch.
this...
Su Chen glanced at Zhang Yan, who was still squatting, and didn't know how to describe his current feelings.
"This girl is way too materialistic!"
"I thought it would take a week or two to get used to each other."
"You think one Qi-replenishing pill is enough?"
Tsk tsk~
"However, we've known each other for ten years, which is a long time, so the foundation of our friendship is still there."
"Zhang Yan has a childlike nature; if you get along well with her for several days in a row, your feelings for her will develop quickly."
Su Chen roughly figured out what was going on.
It has also been confirmed that the standard for forming a contract is that the favorability level reaches lv5!
and many more! ! !
Su Chen carefully examined Zhang Yan's skill panel.
What does that mean?
How come your Overlord Body Technique is already level 6?
Based on the current data, wouldn't this mean we've entered the fourth stage – mastery and comprehensive understanding?!
Keeping quiet, huh?
And... what's with that "Mountain-Splitting Fist"? How come you're already level 4? And you've already progressed more than halfway through your experience points.
The Mountain-Opening Fist is a highly difficult martial art, on par with Wang Yichuan's Seven Star Fist, Snow-Treading Without a Trace, and Wind and Thunder Palm!
Wang Yichuan's three martial arts skills were all only at level 1, just beginning to grasp the basics.
but...
Wang Yichuan also practiced the Mountain-Opening Fist and even reached level 3 (827/3000).
"Both of them are practicing this advanced boxing technique, excellent! Brilliant!"
Su Chen was unaware that Zhang Yan was practicing the Mountain-Opening Fist, as he hadn't paid much attention to it.
But being able to train to level 4 is definitely big news!
Especially the level 6 Invincibility skill!!!
If it were revealed, Su Chen would have an inescapable knowledge of it.
Moreover, given Zhang Yan's personality, she would definitely make a scene everywhere.
Wow! I got a hidden one.
"He's really hiding his true abilities!"
Anyone who didn't know better would think you were the main character!
"Next week... I'll make a contract with you, Pikachu~"
"This week, I really need to maintain this level of favorability; I absolutely can't let it drop."
"By the way, will the affection level drop, and then it become uncontractable?"
Su Chen thought about it carefully and felt that this situation should exist.
Otherwise, given his past social connections, he could have made contracts with five times more people.