Chapter 309: Zhang Yu, You're Scaring Me

Seeing the second effect of the Earth-Wood Saint Body, Zhang Yu smiled slightly and swallowed the No. 20 Secret Steel in his hand.

He then activated the Gluttonous Earth God Cultivation Technique. The streaks of gluttonous vital energy, refined in his dantian, surged forth, striking the No. 20 Secret Steel in his abdomen. Immediately afterward, all the muscles in his body tightened abruptly, his heart began to pound violently, and streams of blood burst forth from his heart like a raging flood. This surge of vital energy and blood made Zhang Yu's skin turn crimson, as if it were about to drip blood.

It was the Level 20 Demon Slayer Longevity Severing Art that had been unleashed, and not just a normal burst, but a double burst. This was a state Zhang Yu had never fully activated since mastering the Demon Slayer Longevity Severing Art to Level 20, simply because he knew at the time that this form was too life-consuming. But now, with the second effect of the Earth-Wood Saint Body significantly reducing the lifespan consumption of Foundation Establishment stage cultivation techniques, Zhang Yu finally resolved to unleash the second burst of the Demon Slayer Longevity Severing Art.

He saw veins bulging all over his body, his internal potential exploding as if forcibly detonated by dynamite, and his physical strength temporarily skyrocketing by 2.0 levels. Surging power exploded within his internal organs, turning his repeatedly strengthened stomach into what felt like a vast grinding mill of heaven and earth, fiercely pressing down on the No. 20 Secret Steel in his abdomen. At the same time, the Level 20 Boundless Tremor Meditation was also unleashed, and upon activation, it brought super-frequency oscillations, a hallmark of its Level 20 effect.

Yet, this was still not the end. Zhang Yu struck himself with both palms, unleashing the Formless Cloud Gang in conjunction with the pre-military grade martial art, Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force. Amidst crackling explosions, the Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force, using the empty apertures within its vital energy, frantically absorbed the super-frequency oscillations unleashed by the Boundless Tremor Meditation, then released them to create further resonance. At this moment, Zhang Yu had concentrated all of his cultivation on the No. 20 Secret Steel in his abdomen.

Ten seconds... one minute... three minutes! After a full three minutes of all-out exertion, the previously incredibly solid and undamaged No. 20 Secret Steel gradually began to crack, vibrate, and shatter. Zhang Yu watched this scene with a grimace, grunted softly, and continued his efforts to refine the No. 20 Secret Steel.

Suddenly, he felt his internal organs grow weary, realizing he had severely depleted his physical strength and needed to rest. So, he temporarily halted the cultivation technique, switched the Earth-Wood Saint Body to the Great Learning Saint Body, and began resting while continuing to refine the Secret Steel with his peak Foundation Establishment stage digestive power. By continuously switching between saint bodies, sometimes bursting forth, sometimes resting, Zhang Yu finally completely refined the No. 20 Secret Steel in his stomach. He integrated it all into the bones of his right hand, making the Secret Steel and his own hand bones one, no longer distinguishable.

Feeling his hand bones suddenly become heavier, along with the incredibly solid, indestructible sensation within them, Zhang Yu smiled with satisfaction. The difficulty of refining the No. 20 Secret Steel indicated the magnitude of his bone strength improvement after successful refinement.

"Excellent. This way... before this outdoor construction project ends, I'll have enough time in these remaining two months to reinforce all the bones in my body with No. 20 Secret Steel."

In the following days, besides his work at the construction site and cultivation, Zhang Yu dedicated most of his energy and strength to refining the No. 20 Secret Steel. To replenish his consumption and further accelerate his cultivation progress, Zhang Yu, relying on the second effect of the Earth-Wood Saint Body, also began consuming many more potent, aggressive, and life-shortening medicines.

Inside the room, as Zhang Yu selected his meal, a 10-dish combo set was delivered directly to him. Beside him, the white-haired Che Yufei watched as Zhang Yu consumed the Spirit-Splitting Blood-Bursting Pill, Life-Corroding Heaven-Snatching Powder, Hundred Tribulations Heart-Devouring Gu, and Longevity-Damaging Heavenly Machine Powder, one by one. Che Yufei couldn't help but gasp. "Are new students this reckless now?"

Fu Ji, also witnessing the scene, couldn't help but say, "No... Zhang Yu, aren't you pushing yourself a bit too hard?"

Zhang Yu thought to himself, "Fu Ji, you know that the sect might stop recruiting at any time, right? To survive, and to defeat this accursed ritual in the future and gain true freedom... I must seize every moment." With that, Zhang Yu swallowed all the remaining medicines.

Five days later, seeing Zhang Yu double his dosage, Che Yufei couldn't help but ask, "Brother, are you alright?"

Zhang Yu grinned and said, "I'm fine, what could possibly be wrong?" Feeling the surging vital energy, the roaring blood, his heart that felt like it could fall apart at any moment, and his brain beginning to boil, Zhang Yu exclaimed excitedly, "I've never felt better!"

Zhang Yu's drug evaluation data consequently skyrocketed. Sudden death rate: 32%! A long list of various ailments followed, resembling scarlet death warnings, urging him to reduce his medication intake.

Fu Ji couldn't help but say, "Zhang Yu, can we please not eat like this anymore? I'm scared." Fu Ji was unaware of the Earth-Wood Saint Body or the Great Learning Saint Body. Zhang Yu didn't explain, simply thinking, "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing." Fu Ji cursed internally, "You call this 'knowing what you're doing'? I'm afraid you'll eat yourself to death! Won't all my investment go down the drain then?"

Zhang Yu paid no mind to those numerical warnings. By using the Earth-Wood Saint Body to withstand the initial wave of medicinal side effects, then periodically switching to the Great Learning Saint Body to digest the medicine's potency, combining it with the Spring and Autumn Boundless Meditation to metabolize toxins, and constantly maintaining body activation and accelerating full-body self-healing with the Level 20 Maimed Ox Sacrifice Mantra, Zhang Yu understood that the sudden death and illness rates displayed were completely inaccurate for him.

As for revealing his unique physique, after consulting with Zhang Pianpian, he realized it wasn't a significant problem. After all, compared to the astonishing talent of advancing a cultivation technique to Level 20 in just half a month, a special physique that allowed him to take large amounts of medicine and push himself to the limits was not nearly as incredible. Such physically powerful individuals were not uncommon in the history of the ten top universities. Just as when True Immortal Xinghuo discovered his exceptionally strong self-healing physique, he was only surprised, not finding it inconceivable or illogical. Although Zhang Pianpian advised against him revealing himself this way, Zhang Yu knew his time was limited and he could only seize every moment, opportunity, and resource to grow stronger while trying to protect himself.

Outdoors, Zhang Yu's arm bones had both been refined with No. 20 Secret Steel. His arms, already increased in weight, became even heavier under the influence of the Nine Prisons Mountain-Suppressing Belt, applying 21 times the normal gravity. Zhang Yu diligently adapted to his body, which grew heavier each day, allowing his physical form to constantly adjust. Although the gravity amplification from his Nine Prisons Mountain-Suppressing Belt hadn't increased further, Zhang Yu could feel that with the activation of his body refinement techniques and the intense infusion of various medicines, his entire musculature was constantly being squeezed for greater strength—both to adapt to his new weight and because of his stronger bones acting as a more robust foundation.

Inside Zhang Yu's room, Tu Lishan smiled and said, "Zhang Yu, have you been in a bad mood lately? Did something upsetting happen? You haven't been gambling, have you?" Zhang Yu's increasingly large medicine dosages had attracted his teacher's attention, making Tu Lishan suspect the young man might be deeply in debt and no longer wish to live.

Faced with his teacher's suspicions, Zhang Yu knew that being evasive would only make him seem guiltier. So, he decided to do the opposite: be open and honest about his extensive consumption. Zhang Yu simply said, "Teacher, my physique is rather special. It was like this even in high school; I require unusually large doses of medicine. Teacher, please rest assured. I can sense my own condition, and if anything feels off, I won't continue taking them."

Tu Lishan looked at Zhang Yu with a mix of belief and doubt, saying, "Go get some blood drawn. Let the team doctor check if there's anything wrong with your health."

On the rooftop of the newly constructed factory building, disliking the unpleasant smell in his room, Zhang Yu had come here alone and was holding a Profound Creation Relic, absorbing and expelling vital energy from it. Besides improving in other aspects, he had also consistently worked on enhancing the quality of his vital energy, waiting only to return to assist Le Mulan in improving hers.

Inside the medical room, the doctor looked at the sample in his hand, and after smelling its strong medicinal fragrance, asked, "Is this a new medicine? Do you need its composition tested?"

Tu Lishan replied, "That's blood drawn from a student."

The doctor exclaimed, "This is blood?"

Tu Lishan said, "Please examine it. This student claims to have a special physique and takes large doses of medicine. See what the situation is."

The test results, naturally, showed no abnormalities; Zhang Yu's body was perfectly healthy. Tu Lishan was not surprised by this. After all, Kunxu was vast, and the history of immortal cultivation was long and profound, with various special physiques constantly emerging. Many of their mysteries remained unexplained even by the Ten Great Sects.

When Tu Lishan reported the situation to Director Gao, the over 800-year-old Nascent Soul True Monarch calmly stated, "The recommended medication dosages are, after all, calculated based on general templates. Individual differences are very normal, and this also indicates his physique is indeed unique. A student with a strong physique is a good thing. Zhang Yu's physique is also very suitable for the Earth-Wood Department. While his upper limits might be somewhat lower, he's perfect for construction work. Not only can he grow faster than others, but he can also help us work for a few more years."

Director Gao casually remarked, "If he wants to take them, let him take them. Oh, by the way, ask him if he'd be willing to sell some samples to people from the biology and medical departments. They might be interested." With that, the Nascent Soul True Monarch turned his attention to the learning progress of Gongshu Jin, Mo Shangjin, and others. Compared to Zhang Yu, he was more concerned with the wealthy students' status, as in his eyes, these students were the face of the Earth-Wood Department for the next few years.

After hanging up the call, Tu Lishan mused, "Sell some samples to other departments, huh? Well, a considerable amount of resources have been invested in Zhang Yu, so any profit is good. But... as expected, the director is still more focused on Gongshu Jin and the others. After all, Zhang Yu's special physique just means he can take more medicine. But money... besides allowing for more medicine, it can achieve so much more. There are two more months until this project ends. It will be the end of the semester when we return. I wonder if Gongshu Jin will be able to catch up to Ji Yuanxu."

In the blink of an eye, another month swiftly passed. Two full months had now elapsed since Zhang Yu first arrived at this construction site.

Inside the room, Che Yufei and Shi Yunxiang watched Zhang Yu noisily consume his medicines. Seeing his robust physique and how little his appearance had aged, their eyes filled with shock and envy. "Ah, I'm full!" Zhang Yu patted his stomach and left the room. "I'm going to digest this." Arriving at the construction site, he continued his cultivation of the Earth-Wood techniques. Today was the day he would advance the tenth Earth-Wood Saint Body cultivation technique to Level 20, completely finishing the Earth-Wood Saint Body.