Chapter 33: Copper Skin
Chapter 33: Copper Skin
As Chen Mu mastered the Skin Polishing Technique, he found peace within himself. He spent most of his days in his backyard, diligently practicing the technique and honing his blade skills, rarely visiting the City Guard Headquarters or involving himself in their affairs.
Time flew by, and nearly half a month had passed in the blink of an eye.
When Chen Mu's medicinal powder ran out, he decided to make another trip to the medicine shop. As he stepped out, he noticed several patrol officers hurrying past, seemingly busy with something. They were carrying corpses, two or three at a time.
Despite Chen Mu not wearing his inspector's uniform, the officers immediately recognized him and greeted him respectfully.
"Sir," they said.
"What's going on here?" Chen Mu asked, his eyebrows furrowed as he glanced at the corpses being carried.
This area, located in the central region of the Nine Li Street, was not only close to the City Guard Headquarters but also patrolled day and night by officers. The residents here were mostly wealthy and influential locals. It was rare for a murder to occur in this neighborhood.
"It's Zhang Xiangshen's family," one of the officers whispered. "All twenty-three of them are dead."
Chen Mu knew Zhang Xiangshen; he had visited Chen Mu not long ago and even brought gifts for his housewarming. Zhang Xiangshen's ancestors were once influential, but the family had gradually fallen on hard times in recent generations. Still, they remained one of the wealthiest in the area.
Zhang Xiangshen's residence was just across the street from Chen Mu's home. The sudden death of the entire family startled Chen Mu, and he wondered if the chaos of the world had reached their neighborhood.
Just as he was about to inquire further, a familiar figure appeared.
"Brother Chen," Min Baoyi, dressed in his patrol officer's uniform, approached from a distance. He seemed to be here regarding the incident with Zhang Xiangshen's family and greeted Chen Mu before walking towards him.
Chen Mu acknowledged him and walked alongside Min Baoyi, asking, "Brother Min, what happened to Zhang Xiangshen's family?"
"It's not a big deal," Min Baoyi replied casually. He then waved at the officers carrying the corpses, signaling them to come over.
The officers were carrying a robust-looking corpse. The skin of the corpse was a deep bronze color, appearing incredibly resilient. There was no blood on the body except for a faint trace of blood around the heart, which seemed to be the cause of death.
"Take a look," Min Baoyi said, pointing at the wound. "This is Zhang Xiangshen's third son. He was born with copper skin, and his Skin Polishing Technique was perfected to a level beyond that of ordinary people. Sharp blades struggled to inflict injuries on him. With such a formidable physique, even a group of five or six people of equal strength would find it challenging to defeat him."
Chen Mu's gaze intensified as he examined the wound. "A person like this was killed with a single strike."
"Indeed," Min Baoyi sighed. "This is a sword wound, a swift and decisive kill. The attacker must have mastered the Sword Aura and reached perfection in muscle training, resulting in an explosive and unmatched power."
Chen Mu nodded slightly after hearing Min Baoyi's explanation.
Min Baoyi was a man of considerable status, and it was unlikely for him to be a wandering thief or rogue. After all, he could easily find a place in any faction. Zhang Xiangshen's wealth was not enough to attract someone of Min Baoyi's caliber.
Chen Mu approached the corpse and drew his patrol officer's saber, casually slashing at it. Although he didn't use any sword aura or excessive force, he easily sliced through the tough hide of the corpse, leaving only a white mark on its skin.
"What resilient skin," Chen Mu said as he sheathed his saber, his eyes glinting with admiration.
Chen Mu had mastered the Skin Polishing Technique, but compared to the toughness of this man's skin, he knew he still had a long way to go. Even if he perfected the Golden Jade Skin Polishing Technique, he doubted he could match this man's resilience. Min Baoyi's praise of the man's 'copper skin' was no exaggeration.
"Indeed," Min Baoyi smiled. "This is a natural trait, hard to replicate. For ordinary people like us to achieve such genuine steel-like skin, we would need to cultivate multiple Skin Polishing Techniques simultaneously."
"While it is indeed formidable to cultivate multiple skin-tempering techniques alongside muscle training, it is also extremely time-consuming and energy-draining. The more time one spends on various skin-tempering methods, the longer it might take to enter the realm of Sinew Transformation."
Min Baoyi patted Chen Mu's shoulder as he spoke, then gestured for a few patrol officers to carry away the corpse.
Chen Mu's expression turned pensive upon hearing this.
For ordinary people, the path of skin-tempering, muscle training, and Sinew Transformation was an urgent and time-sensitive journey. Every second counted, and once they passed the age of thirty, their progress would slow down significantly. By the time they reached forty, it would become extremely challenging to make further advancements, and they might even regress.
Cultivating multiple skin-tempering techniques could easily delay one's progress by several years, potentially robbing them of the chance to ever enter the realm of Sinew Transformation.
However, Chen Mu's situation was different. Due to the existence of the system panel, age was not a significant factor for him. Moreover, his cultivation speed far surpassed that of ordinary people, allowing him to have more free time to push each level to its limit.
Just as Min Baoyi had said, those with exceptional natural physiques who trained their bodies to the point of having copper-like skin might not match the power of a single strike from someone who had perfected muscle training. But if they only faced opponents who had achieved major or minor success in muscle training, they might find themselves helpless against such a copper-skinned opponent.
However, no one would waste their precious time on tempering their skin and muscles, delaying their progress in Sinew Transformation. Hence, such individuals were rare, and if they existed, they were like Zhang Xiangshen's third son, born with natural talent and not hindering their normal body tempering progress.
But Chen Mu...
In just half a month, he could achieve major success in skin tempering, and within a month, he could perfect it!
"Perhaps I can also polish each level like this person and train my body to the point of having copper skin, iron bones, and a mystic gold body."
Chen Mu's mind was filled with ideas.
Finding an excuse, he bid farewell to Min Baoyi and hurried to the medicine shop. He purchased more internal and external recovery potions for the Jade-Gold Skin Polishing Technique and then returned home to continue his blade practice and skin tempering.
The annihilation of Zhang Xiangshen's family seemed to be just a coincidence, and indeed, no similar incidents occurred in the following half month. Initially, people would occasionally discuss it, but gradually, they forgot about the Zhang family's tragedy.
Chen Mu, however, remained indoors, only occasionally visiting the City Guard Headquarters. The rest of the time, he secluded himself, focusing on blade practice and skin tempering.
...
"This Blazing Wind Blade Technique has reached the stage of mastery."
Chen Mu swung the patrol saber in the backyard, exhaling a puff of white mist before slowing down and nodding in satisfaction.
After obtaining the Blazing Wind Blade Technique, he hadn't used experience points to improve it but relied solely on his abilities to practice. Since he already possessed the Gale Swordsmanship and had cultivated a blade aura, mastering another blade technique was relatively easy for him.
[Martial Arts: Gale Swordsmanship (Perfected), Blazing Wind Blade Technique (Mastered)]
"With the foundation of my perfected Gale Swordsmanship, the experience gain from practicing the Blazing Wind Blade Technique is much faster than before. In just over a month, I've accumulated over a thousand experience points, which means I can master another blade aura in less than three months."
Chen Mu observed the data on the system panel, nodding to himself.
Initially, it had taken him nearly half a year to raise his Gale Swordsmanship from mastery to perfection. But now, to perfect the Blazing Wind Blade Technique, it would take no more than three months, indicating that his experience gain was also related to his cultivation level.
With a thought, he switched to another page on the system panel.
[Jade-Gold Skin Polishing Technique (Mastered)]
[Experience: 990 points]
In a short time, the experience gain for the Jade-Gold Skin Polishing Technique had also skyrocketed. He was now just a single step away from reaching a thousand points.
Chen Mu looked up at the sun hanging high in the sky, estimating the time. After practicing his blade for a while, it was now close to noon, the perfect time for another round of skin tempering using the Jade-Gold technique.
(End of Chapter)
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