At this moment, Lin Wanzhu was so excited her chest was heaving violently. The proud waves, tightly bound by her clothes, rose and fell in succession, enough to make one dizzy.
Her delicate hand gripped the Dragon Tendon, stroking it gently.
"Its color is a lustrous, jade-like white, with threads of dark gold blood within... This is absolutely no ordinary Dragon Tendon. Its toughness and substance likely place it in the upper echelons of the Profound Tier!"
Lin Wanzhu murmured to herself, her beautiful eyes filled with disbelief.
If she used an ordinary Exotic Beast tendon to break through, she would only have a fifty percent chance of success. But with a Dragon Tendon of this quality, her odds would skyrocket by at least twenty percent, reaching over seventy percent!
The Dragon Tendon she had yearned for for so long, the one the entire Lin Family and all their allies couldn’t find, was now lying right before her eyes.
At this thought, she couldn’t help but raise her glistening eyes and gaze adoringly at Su Yu.
Su Yu, however, remained as calm and unconcerned as ever, simply raising his teacup for a light sip.
’If I hadn’t watched him rise from the very bottom, I’d suspect this boy was some monstrous prodigy, a reincarnated old master who seized a new body!’
"Senior Sister, what do you think of the Dragon Tendon? Will it help you break through successfully?" Su Yu asked, setting down his teacup.
After all, his knowledge of the dangers involved in breaking through to the Muscle Forging Realm was purely theoretical.
"It will!"
Lin Wanzhu answered without a hint of hesitation.
She was a proud and exceptionally talented genius to begin with, once renowned as one of the three great beauties of Black Stone City. She had reached the ranks of the Flesh Refining Realm’s experts at a young age! Now, with such a Dragon Tendon to guide her path, she would despise herself if she still failed to break through.
Seeing his Senior Sister’s confidence, Su Yu breathed an inward sigh of relief.
In the precarious political climate of Black Stone City, if his Senior Sister successfully advanced to the Muscle Forging Realm, it would not only stabilize the Lin Family’s trade routes but also give him another powerful ally he could trust with his life.
"Ah Yu, what is your current Realm?" Having suppressed her emotions, Lin Wanzhu’s gaze suddenly grew solemn as she stared intently at Su Yu.
"I’m in the Late-stage of the Flesh Refining Realm. I’ll soon begin opening the Juque acupoint," Su Yu replied without hiding anything.
"Late-stage of the Flesh Refining Realm..." Lin Wanzhu gasped, a mix of shock and delight filling her heart.
’How long has it been? A cultivation speed this terrifying is simply unheard of!’
"With your monstrous rate of progress, you’ll probably open all the flesh and skin acupoints within a few months and reach Flesh Refining Perfection. When that time comes, you’ll also have to face the life-or-death ordeal of breaking through to the Muscle Forging Realm."
As she said this, a trace of conflict and sadness flickered in her eyes. She bit her lip hard as if steeling her resolve, then pushed the Dragon Tendon on the table back toward Su Yu.
"Ah Yu, I got a little carried away. This Dragon Tendon... you should be the one to keep it! With your peerless talent, you can’t afford to have your breakthrough delayed for lack of a Dragon Tendon!"
Seeing her act this way, Su Yu’s heart clenched for some reason.
He didn’t doubt his Senior Sister’s intentions. After spending so much time together, he knew what kind of person she was. Her saying this meant she genuinely meant it.
"Senior Sister, I have no use for this Dragon Tendon. Just take it and make your breakthrough."
"Who says you have no use for it, Ah Yu! Breaking through to the Muscle Forging Realm is no joke!"
When he refused, Lin Wanzhu’s expression turned stern. "Ah Yu, you haven’t reached that stage yet, so you don’t understand the immense danger!" she explained gravely. "After reaching Flesh Refining Perfection, the amount of Qi and Blood in one’s body is staggering. To break through, you must channel that Qi and Blood to force open the Dragon Gate acupoint at the base of the tailbone!"
"The moment that acupoint opens, a torrent of unbelievably violent Qi and Blood will flood your entire network of tendons and meridians like a bursting dam. A normal person’s Great Tendons are as fragile as hemp rope; they can’t possibly withstand such an impact.
"That’s why you must first refine an Exotic Beast’s Dragon Tendon into your body, embedding it in the Dragon Gate acupoint! During the breakthrough, the Dragon Tendon’s essence will form a tough, protective film around all of your Great Tendons, allowing you to complete the metamorphosis, like a carp leaping over the dragon gate! If you try to force a breakthrough without a Dragon Tendon to protect your meridians, there’s only one outcome: your Great Tendons will snap!"
After hearing his Senior Sister’s explanation, Su Yu finally understood and nodded in realization.
’No wonder Dragon Tendons are so crucial. Without one, a breakthrough is impossible.’
’But that’s for ordinary people. My peerless talent has never known a bottleneck.’
’Take acupoints, for instance. They just open on their own. So-called unbreakable bottlenecks are nothing to me; it’s all just a matter of course.’
’As for the rush of Qi and Blood impacting my tendons, that will probably be a natural process too, without any of the ’snapping’ she mentioned.’
’Otherwise, what kind of peerless talent would it be?’
He couldn’t say that to his Senior Sister, though.
A flash of light emanated from the Storage Ring on his hand, and an instant later, an identical Dragon Tendon appeared on the table.
"Senior Sister, what do you make of this?"
Lin Wanzhu’s mouth fell open into an "O," her beautiful eyes wide with utter shock.
Su Yu chuckled and reached out, gently cupping her smooth, fair chin to close her gaping mouth. He then smoothly took her cool, delicate hands and pressed them onto the second Dragon Tendon.
"How does it feel, Senior Sister? It’s real, isn’t it? On my trip to the Gold Waterway, I happened to wipe out a nest of Black Dragon Fish and caught two of them. So, naturally, I got two Dragon Tendons."
Lin Wanzhu finally snapped back to reality. She snatched her hands back, pressing them against her heaving, snowy-white chest as she took several deep breaths.
"You monster... is there anything at all that’s difficult for you?"
Lin Wanzhu shot him a flirtatious glare. "Well, since you’re so rich and have a spare, I won’t be modest!"
She tucked one of the Dragon Tendons into her robes, a fierce fighting spirit igniting in her eyes. "Tomorrow, I will seal off the rear courtyard and enter seclusion to break through to the Muscle Forging Realm!"
"Then I wish you a successful leap over the dragon gate! Once you become a lofty master of the Muscle Forging Realm, you’ll have to keep looking out for your little junior brother," Su Yu teased.
Hearing his words, an ineffable sweetness and a strange feeling bloomed in Lin Wanzhu’s heart.
Not so long ago, he was the little junior brother who needed her protection. Now, he had grown into a towering tree, capable of sheltering her from the wind and rain.
"Ah Yu, meeting you is the luckiest thing that has ever happened to me in this life."
Lin Wanzhu’s eyes were as gentle as water. As her gaze flowed, the mature, feminine charm normally hidden beneath her valiant and heroic demeanor poured out, completely unrestrained.
Gazing into his Senior Sister’s eyes, which were brimming with deep affection and tenderness, Su Yu felt himself completely ignited by the romantic atmosphere.
He lunged forward, pulling Lin Wanzhu into his embrace and lowering his head to kiss her luscious, crimson lips.
"Mmph..."
Lin Wanzhu struggled for only a moment before melting completely into Su Yu’s masculine embrace, her arms wrapping around his neck as she responded with equal passion.
Su Yu’s mischievous hands, of course, did not stay idle, bravely scaling the twin peaks...
"Mmm... Ah Yu, don’t..."
Su Yu didn’t press further. He was content with the thrill for now, as he didn’t want to injure his Senior Sister and make her bleed today.
After all, she still had to break through to the Muscle Forging Realm tomorrow!
’Besides, wouldn’t it be even more exciting to conquer a Senior Sister who’s in the Muscle Forging Realm?’
The two embraced tenderly for a while longer.
Lin Wanzhu gradually calmed her roiling Qi and Blood, her expression returning to its usual sharpness and competence. She sat up from his embrace, tidied her hair, and said in a serious tone:
"Ah Yu, enough playing around. I have something serious to tell you. In the few days you’ve been away from Black Stone City, the situation at the Public Security Bureau has changed."
At her words, Su Yu’s gaze sharpened.
"The Inner City sent over a new Vice Mansion Master. He came with a contingent of Silver Dragon Guards, all elite Martial Artists of unfathomable strength."
"Furthermore, a new Great Commander has been appointed. He’s been summoning the Vice Commanders, and he’s already asked for you once. For the time being, you should start showing up for roll call and not be a no-show all the time."
"Got it, Senior Sister. I’ll go check it out tomorrow."
He had enjoyed an excessive amount of freedom with the Golden Qilin Guard before, rarely ever needing to show up for roll call.
But that was because he had repeatedly performed great services and was on brotherly terms with Li Jingxuan, so no one dared to boss him around.
As for the matters in his jurisdiction, his Senior Sister had helped handle all of them. Among his subordinates, Song Mirror and Zhao Tie were also very capable and managed things well, which was why he had so much free time.
But now that a new Vice Mansion Master had arrived and had apparently summoned him, it wouldn’t be wise to keep staying away.
"Senior Sister, I’m going to head back for today. Remember to let me know as soon as there’s news about your breakthrough tomorrow."
"Mm, don’t worry. If I succeed, you’ll be the first person I find."
"Success or failure, you come find me first thing. Got it?" Su Yu stared at her, his tone growing serious.
For some reason, her heart fluttered, and she nodded obediently.
...
「The next day.」
The morning dew was cool. Su Yu stood bare-chested under the Iron Locust Tree in the rear courtyard, steam rising from his body as his Qi and Blood churned.
He had just finished four hours of training his Fist Technique, and his progress with the Mountain-Shaking Demon Ape Fist had grown considerably.
[Martial Arts]: Mountain-Shaking Demon Ape Fist (Great Success 4,300/10,000)
’Excellent. I’m almost halfway there. The Muscle Forging Realm is just around the corner!’
After finishing his training, Su Yu sat with Zhen’Er at the stone table for a short while, waiting for breakfast.
A few moments later, Mu Ying emerged from the kitchen, striding quickly with a white jade porcelain basin. Inside was the Black Dragon Fish, steamed with several kinds of Spirit Medicine.
Her steps were light and her breathing was deep and even, giving her an air of brisk competence.
Su Yu gave her a single glance and nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad. Your Qi and Blood is contained, and your steps are as steady as stakes driven into the ground. Though you’ve only just broken through, your foundation is solid. It seems the medicinal power of that Profound Tier fish meat was a great help to you."
"It is all thanks to your grace, My Lord! I, Mu Ying, would go through fire and water for you!" Mu Ying’s eyes grew red. She set down the basin and prepared to perform a grand bow.
Su Yu waved a hand to stop her, then turned to Zhen’Er. "Zhen’Er, now that Mu Ying has officially become a Martial Artist, her monthly stipend should be raised accordingly. Also, go select a suitable Martial Arts technique for her to practice. It’s not enough to just have Qi and Blood; she needs a combat Skill."
"Yes, Brother Su. I’ll take Sister Mu to choose one later," Zhen’Er agreed in a gentle voice.
"My Lord! I cannot accept!" Mu Ying waved her hands in a panic. "Receiving the medicine from you to break through was already an immense blessing. How could I dare ask for a higher stipend and a Martial Arts technique? I absolutely cannot accept!"
"There’s no need to refuse. You’re a Martial Artist now, so you deserve a Martial Artist’s pay. I, Su Yu, do not mistreat my own people. Besides, the world is growing more chaotic. In the future, the safety of the Su Mansion will also depend on your strength. How can you contribute if you don’t continue to improve?"
Hearing this, Mu Ying’s expression grew solemn, and she no longer tried to refuse. She stood ramrod straight, her eyes filled with gratitude and resolve.
Su Yu smiled faintly, picked up his chopsticks, and began to enjoy the Black Dragon Fish.