Chapter 5
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Chapter 5: The Feather Book
As the black symbol on his palm shifted, a thick, ink-black book materialized in Zhang Yu’s hand.
“Feather Book?”
Looking at the two large words on the cover, Zhang Yu was taken aback for a moment.
Then, as if responding to a flicker of his will, the dark book in his hand opened to the first page without any gust of wind.
“Is this the table of contents?”
He saw that apart from the first line, which read “Prologue”, all the following lines were a blurry, unreadable script, as if they had been censored with a mosaic effect.
Zhang Yu thought to himself, Does this mean only the prologue is available right now?
With another thought, he flipped to the prologue. What appeared before him was a portrait on the left page and rows of data and information on the right.
“Is this a portrait of me?”
The portrait on the left page showed Zhang Yu himself, sitting cross-legged with his eyes gently closed as if in deep meditation.
Its expression was so lifelike that it gave the impression that the person in the picture was still breathing.
A faint glow seemed to circulate within the image, which Zhang Yu guessed must represent the flow of magic power in his body.
The right page was filled with his data and attributes. It listed his name and other info
Zhang Yu
Dao Heart – Level 1
Magic Power – 7.7
Physical Strength – Level 0.83
Martial Arts – Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening (Level 1) Freehand Combat (Level 1)
Dao Arts – Basic Breathing Method (Level 1) Basic Heart Refining Method (Level 1)
“This is me?”
“The top section shows my Immortal Dao attributes. The Dao Heart level matches the school’s tests and isn’t precise enough to show decimals.”
“And the bottom lists the martial arts and Dao arts I’ve learned so far?”
Among the four skills listed, there was the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening used to improve physical strength, Freehand Combat from Martial Arts Class to train practical fighting ability, the Basic Breathing Method from the magic power class to refine Magic Power, and the Basic Heart Refining Method to cultivate his Dao Heart. All of them were at the beginner’s Level 1.
Staring at the numbers, Zhang Yu thought, “Is this the potential the Evil God awakened? Can this book really measure all my attributes?”
“But there must be more to it than this, right?”
“According to that Evil God, it unlocked my potential, but what kind of potential is just measuring things? I can get tested at school every day.”
“There must be some other special function.”
With this in mind, Zhang Yu decided to test it. He focused his attention on the attribute numbers and mentally commanded, “Feather Book! Add points!”
Seeing the data on the page remain completely still, Zhang Yu sighed inwardly. That Evil God was completely useless. It had not unlocked any real potential at all.
He tried turning to the next page, only to find three large words written there: “To be continued.”
Recalling the blurred entries in the table of contents, Zhang Yu speculated, What does this mean? Can this ability be upgraded? Do I have to upgrade it to unlock the other functions?
He could only flip back to the previous page and focus his attention again on the rows of data and skills, hoping to trigger some effect.
Just as he concentrated on the line that read “Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening Level 1,” he suddenly felt the text give a slight twitch. It could be dragged, wandering across the page in response to his thoughts.
Just as Zhang Yu was dragging the ‘Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening Level 1’ across the page and wondering what use it could have, it suddenly froze when it touched his portrait. The text was then absorbed directly by the figure of Zhang Yu within the image.
As it was absorbed, Zhang Yu felt as if a clear spring had been poured over the crown of his head. An indescribable sensation surged within him, making him feel a strange connection to the Zhang Yu in the portrait.
At the same moment, the seated figure in the portrait abruptly stood up and began demonstrating the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening, executing each movement with precision.
The words ‘Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening Level 1+’ then appeared as a line of small text above the portrait.
Seeing the tiny ‘+’ at the end, Zhang Yu’s excitement surged. “It’s here! It’s here! My potential has truly been unlocked!”
He focused intently on the ‘+’, feeling as if he were pressing it with his mind.
In the next instant, the ‘+’ blurred slightly before transforming into ‘(0/10)’.
Then, a new understanding arose in Zhang Yu’s mind. He realized that practicing the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening ten times was all it would take to complete his Martial Arts upgrade.
Staring at the ‘Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening Level 1 (0/10)’ on the Feather Book, Zhang Yu exclaimed inwardly, “Just ten repetitions to level up this martial art?”
He had practiced the Thirty-Six Forms countless times since the semester began, yet he had never felt even a hint of leveling up.
“Ten times, huh?”
Zhang Yu eagerly began to try it out. He took a step forward with a thunderous boom, his flesh and blood coiling like a giant python as layers of power erupted from within.
While he had used training equipment during school practice, that was merely to enhance the training’s effectiveness.
In truth, as the most fundamental body refining martial art, the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening could be practiced with or without equipment. Practitioners could even focus on specific areas like strength, speed, or agility based on their personal inclinations.
The original Zhang Yu, for example, had chosen a balanced approach to developing strength and speed, which was why he had avoided becoming overly bulky.
Zhang Yu was now moving swiftly around the small room, his feet striking the floor with loud thuds. His flesh and blood expanded and contracted rhythmically, and his body gradually began to warm up.
But before he could practice more than a few moves, a barrage of angry shouts erupted from the neighbors. “Are you crazy?! Tearing down the house in the middle of the night?!”
Zhang Yu stopped immediately, sighing to himself in resignation. “The soundproofing in this rental is terrible. I can’t practice martial arts at night.”
Staring at the Feather Book floating in his palm, Zhang Yu could barely contain the urge to train. He desperately wanted to practice the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening ten times in a row just to see the results.
“Maybe I should find another place?”
“I remember there’s an abandoned, unfinished building nearby…”
In the pitch-black abandoned building, thudding sounds echoed continuously through the stairwell.
As the neon lights from the distant streets flickered, a young man’s figure appeared and disappeared in the shadows.
It was Zhang Yu, who had come to the abandoned building to practice the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening.
His gaze was grave as he meticulously performed each movement of the training method. Within moments, he was drenched in sweat and his body was radiating heat.
Zhang Yu had already trained all morning and had collapsed from exhaustion. Without the aid of injections, medicine, or dietary supplementation, practicing the Thirty-Six Forms now left his muscles aching and weak. Every motion and exertion of strength brought a pain like his muscles were tearing.
However, thinking of the changes in the Feather Book rallied his spirits. He persevered and completed one full cycle of the Thirty-Six Forms.
Panting heavily, Zhang Yu eagerly opened his palm. The Feather Book materialized again at his mental command.
Seeing the entry “Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening Level 1 (1/10)”, a hint of delight crept onto his face.
“Is this my true potential?”
“Advancing the Thirty-Six Forms to Level 2… might actually be possible.”
“I’m going to complete all ten repetitions tonight!”
Zhang Yu eagerly began his second set of the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening.
But moments later, he collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. His arms and legs felt as if they no longer belonged to him.
“I can’t go on. I’ve reached my limit. I guess I’ll have to try again tomorrow.”
Just as Zhang Yu decided to stop training, rest, and go home for a good night’s sleep, a dreadful chill suddenly surged from his heart.
At the same time, a voice echoed in his mind.
“Please uphold the ritual covenant, strive to fulfill your wish, and do not deliberately slack off or delay. 10.”
“Please uphold the ritual covenant, strive to fulfill your wish, and do not deliberately slack off or delay. 9.”
“Please uphold the ritual covenant, strive to fulfill your wish, and do not deliberately slack off or delay. 8.”
As the voice’s countdown continued, the dreadful chill in Zhang Yu’s heart intensified. It felt as if something was about to violently burst forth from within him and rip his body apart.
“Ritual… covenant… wish…” He quickly realized what was happening. “Could this be the power of that Spirit Summoning Ritual?”
The doll’s words immediately flashed through Zhang Yu’s mind.
“If you refuse to fulfill my wish, or intentionally delay or fail in the process, you will suffer the ritual’s backlash. Your body will explode and your soul will be scattered.”
Zhang Yu thought to himself, “So, it’s because I planned to study hard, get into a prestigious university, join a Great Sect, and earn money to fulfill the second wish.”
“Does that mean any laziness along the way would be considered deliberately slacking off or delaying?”
“If I don’t obey, will I really die from the ritual’s backlash?”
Before he knew it, the countdown had reached three. Zhang Yu leaped to his feet.
With a cry of agony, he forced himself to endure the tearing pain in his muscles and began practicing the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening.
The moment he started, the countdown vanished without a trace.
