Cultivating in a Bizarre World

The several squads of Government Constables who had left Sanxiang City at the same time as Ren Qing’s group only began arriving at the temporary camp on Camel Peak Mountain two days later.

As expected, they were ambushed by wild beasts along the way. Not many Government Constables survived, and all of them were injured.

This was only because a Forbidden Guard had intervened. Otherwise, they would have been completely wiped out.

After that, the beasts suddenly stopped their indiscriminate attacks. Perhaps Song Rong realized his efforts were futile, or maybe he had other plans.

At Ren Qing’s direction, the Government Constables gradually joined the excavation work on Camel Peak Mountain.

The wheelbarrows he designed had also been built. Using these tools to transport sand and soil greatly increased their efficiency.

The temporary camp was already starting to look like a small village.

Since the military tents were damaged by the wind and rain, the Government Constables began building simple wooden houses around the cavern.

The problem of a water source was solved by several mountain springs within Camel Peak Mountain. However, transporting the water was a hassle due to a lack of large-capacity containers. They would have to find clay to fire some pottery later on.

The only good thing was that one of the Government Constables actually had experience with firing pottery.

...

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

Ren Qing’s eyes opened. He spent a few minutes maintaining his Great Miao Blade.

He then left on his own to search the vicinity for tracks of a wolf pack, intending to hunt a few to cultivate his Divine Sutra.

He had reaped significant benefits from using Wolf Blood as an aid these past two days.

Ren Qing had secretly tested it in the forest. His Werewolf Transformation had already reached his waist, and he estimated it wouldn’t be long before he could transform completely.

His strength would increase significantly then. Once he adapted to wielding his blade with two hands post-transformation, his slashing speed would likely be several times faster.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t consume too much of it, or his body would be corrupted, leading to complete Beastification.

The progress on his other Magic Techniques, however, was merely average. The Human Skin Book in particular had completely stagnated without the medicinal baths.

This left Ren Qing feeling a bit helpless, but he knew he couldn’t have it all. ’If I run into real danger, I’ll just have to burn some Lifespan to force an advancement.’

He crept away from the camp, using his Double Pupils to scan for animal tracks.

But after searching for nearly an hour, it seemed the wolves had learned their lesson. All he found was a wild boar rolling around in a mud pit.

Ren Qing shattered the boar’s spine with a single, clean punch, then hoisted the animal—which weighed well over a hundred pounds—onto his shoulders and strode back to camp.

He tossed it into an open area and gestured for Xiaowu to come deal with it.

The other Government Constables in the camp looked on, unfazed.

They were partly used to such sights, but more so, after witnessing the bizarre techniques of the Forbidden Guards, nothing could stir them anymore.

Ren Qing was about to find a place nearby to practice his blade work when he noticed a commotion in the inner section of the camp.

"Hehehehe..."

The purplish-green frogman, a Forbidden Guard named Huang Ziwang, had just emerged from the cavern and was rinsing dust off his body with fresh water.

When Huang Ziwang spotted Ren Qing, his gaze turned mocking, and he let out a string of odd chuckles.

Ren Qing didn’t immediately understand, so Huang Ziwang quickly gestured with his eyes for him to look at something nearby.

He saw Song Zongwu standing there, his four arms folded across his chest. "Take a pickaxe and wait for me in the cavern," he said coldly to Ren Qing.

"Yes, Elder Song."

Ren Qing’s expression froze. ’The inevitable has arrived.’

’Song Zongwu had already hinted two days ago that mining could temper one’s body. I just pretended not to understand. I didn’t think the payback would be this swift.’

With a wry smile, Ren Qing picked up a pickaxe and headed into the dark cavern.

Along the way, he saw Guo Qing and a few others, their faces streaked with grime, pushing wheelbarrows. They didn’t spot Ren Qing in the dim light.

Since he was there to mine, Ren Qing continued deeper into the cavern, eventually stopping at a fork in the path.

Before him were five tunnel entrances, which he figured must belong to the five Forbidden Guards. The constant sound of striking echoed from two of them.

He took a closer look. The third entrance didn’t seem to have been chiseled out; large patches of the rock bore marks of corrosion.

’That’s probably the frogman Forbidden Guard’s tunnel,’ he thought.

As for the other tunnels, one was covered in claw marks, while another looked as if it had been punched out by a half-meter-wide fist.

Only the first tunnel looked relatively normal.

After a short wait, Song Zongwu walked over, carrying five or six shovels.

"Elder Song..."

Ren Qing offered a sheepish greeting. He was just about to explain himself when he heard Song Zongwu speak in an earnest tone.

"Ren Qing, I know your talent is good, but because..."

Mindful of the other Forbidden Guards inside the tunnels, Song Zongwu only hinted, "...the more you must hone your body and gain precise control over all your strength."

Ren Qing wanted to tell him that he could advance his Human Skin Book at any moment, but he opened his mouth, then thought better of it and closed it.

"Ren Qing, let me borrow your blade."

Ren Qing quickly handed over the Great Miao Blade.

Song Zongwu unsheathed the blade and examined it for a long moment before exclaiming, "That kid, Liu Hu, his craftsmanship has improved. I almost didn’t recognize his work."

"Elder Song, you use a blade too?"

"I don’t. But this will suffice."

While Ren Qing was still confused, Song Zongwu stroked the flat of the blade with his palm, then swung it forcefully at the stone wall.

SPARKS FLEW!!

A two-meter-square block of stone slowly broke away and fell, sending dust flying.

Ren Qing’s heart leaped into his throat. ’The Great Miao Blade is good quality, but it’s certainly not sharp enough to cut through stone like butter. The edge has to be damaged.’

Song Zongwu handed the Great Miao Blade back to Ren Qing. "Don’t worry," he said. "I’m no swordsman, but I know enough not to damage the blade."

Ren Qing glanced at his Great Miao Blade. The edge was still pristine, and he could even see traces of the Blade Oil he had applied.

A smile touched Song Zongwu’s face. "Start with the pickaxe. Once you get used to it, you can switch to using your blade."

"Thank you, Elder Song."

Ren Qing said with sincerity. ’I’ve been relying on the Information Flow so much that I’ve really neglected my training. It’s a good thing Elder Song gave me this wake-up call.’

"It’s nothing."

Song Zongwu waved his hand dismissively.

The reason he held Ren Qing in such high regard was only partly due to his talent. The main factor was how Ren Qing stayed true to his principles when practicing Magic Techniques.

Practitioners of the No-Eyes Technique who swallow a human eye inevitably mutate into a Hundred-eyed Man. Even if they were to see the error of their ways, the resulting mutation should have been into a Single-eyed.

Yet Ren Qing had advanced into an unheard-of Repeater, proving he had never even considered taking the shortcut of consuming a human eye.

The same was true for the Taotie Technique. The Food Eater and Giant Stomach paths were relatively easy to cultivate, as one could grow stronger simply by eating massive amounts.

But Ren Qing had still chosen to become a Secondary Stomach User, the path of mutation that Song Zongwu himself believed had the most potential.

Song Zongwu patted Ren Qing’s shoulder. "As you dig deeper, the rock inside the mountain will become increasingly hard. It’s not easy, even for me."

Ren Qing couldn’t help but ask, "Elder Song, why do you use a shovel? Wouldn’t it be faster to use your bare hands?"

Song Zongwu picked up a shovel and crushed it into a ball of scrap metal with a light squeeze.

"To me, this shovel is as soft as tofu. By using it, I can learn to ’lift the heavy as if it were light,’ which allows me to better control my own strength."

With that, he walked toward the first tunnel, leaving Ren Qing completely dumbfounded.

Huang Ziwang cackled as he walked past Ren Qing and strode into the third tunnel.

"Tsk, tsk. As expected of Elder Song. After a speech like that, even I feel like digging all night."

A moment later, a pungent odor drifted out from the tunnel, accompanied by the sizzling sound of corrosion.