Chapter 73: Unexpected Harvest, Little Life Spring Water

Chapter 73: Chapter 73: Unexpected Harvest, Little Life Spring Water

"It’s done!"

Ji Zhixing took a deep breath.

The changes within his body were like a flash flood. After countless clashes and adjustments, his four abilities finally merged completely. A brand new surge of strength erupted from the depths of his body, instantly spreading through his limbs and bones.

That was the power of the Boulder Physique.

It wasn’t a simple addition, but a qualitative change. He could feel his bones becoming denser, as if forged from fine steel. His tendons grew tougher, like hundred-tempered steel wires. His muscles became firmer, every fiber brimming with explosive power.

Even in its normal state, his skin gave off a feeling of absolute toughness. Once he actively mobilized the power of the Boulder Physique, he would be unfathomably stronger.

"Is this... the Boulder Physique?"

Ji Zhixing clenched his fists, feeling the surging power within him. He could tell that his defense power had at least doubled. Not only that, but his strength, speed, and reflexes had also significantly improved thanks to the enhancement of the Boulder Physique.

"A four-star ability..."

An uncontrollable wave of joy welled up in Ji Zhixing’s heart. A four-star ability was considered powerful even to many Cultivators who had fused with Tier 3 genes. It was even a standard ability in the hands of Cultivators who had fused with Tier 4 genes.

And yet, as a Cultivator who had only fused with a Tier 2 gene, he already possessed a four-star ability.

Ji Zhixing took a deep breath. At that moment, he felt the gravity acting on his body begin to decrease bit by bit.

Five times... four times... three times...

The invisible mountain pressing down on his shoulders was slowly lifting.

Two times... one time...

Finally, the gravity completely returned to normal. Ji Zhixing’s body felt incredibly light, as if a thousand-pound burden had been removed. However, his legs turned to jelly, and he could barely stand firm.

He leaned the Tide Listening Rod against the ground, panting heavily. With every breath, his internal organs ached. It wasn’t a sharp, piercing pain, but a dull, heavy ache, as if someone were repeatedly pounding their fists inside his chest.

"Haa... haa..."

Ji Zhixing hunched his back, supporting himself with both hands on the Tide Listening Rod. Sweat rolled down his forehead and dripped onto the floor, making faint SPLAT sounds.

His clothes were completely soaked and clung tightly to his skin, outlining his muscles. Under normal circumstances, he didn’t look particularly bulky, yet he exuded a sense of immense strength.

He thought, "The burden on my internal organs is a bit too much. I’ll probably need to buy a healing potion..."

He had known all along that training so maniacally in the gravity room would inevitably damage his body. But injuries could be healed. If he had failed to develop the Boulder Physique this time, he’d be entering the Blood Beast Secret Realm tomorrow totally unprepared. Even if Xiao Mingyue allowed him to use this place a second time, there was no telling when that would be.

CLICK.

At that moment, the gravity room door opened. Xiao Mingyue walked in from outside. Her footsteps were light as she approached Ji Zhixing and looked him up and down.

"Congratulations on successfully developing the Boulder Physique ability," Xiao Mingyue said approvingly. She had truly never seen anyone capable of evolving a gene and developing a new genetic ability in such a short period.

"I have you to thank for it," Ji Zhixing said sincerely, raising his head. "If not for your gravity room and you helping me adjust the gravity, it would’ve been impossible for me to develop the Boulder Physique this quickly."

"Don’t mention it." Xiao Mingyue waved her hand dismissively. With a flip of her right wrist, she pulled a bottle of potion out of thin air and handed it over.

The potion bottle was transparent. The liquid inside gleamed with a pale blue luster, swirling with a soft light beneath the lamps.

"Here, drink this."

"What is this?" Ji Zhixing accepted the potion instinctively. As his fingers brushed the bottle, he felt a faint chill.

"A healing potion," Xiao Mingyue said. "Although you developed the Boulder Physique ability this time, cultivating continuously in the gravity room for so long is extremely harmful to your body.

"I checked the monitoring data. Your body has reached the brink of collapse. If you aren’t treated promptly, it will leave hidden injuries that will be very troublesome to cure later."

She paused, her gaze sweeping over Ji Zhixing as her tone grew serious. "Especially your internal organs. You absolutely must heal them."

"Thank you. How much is this? I’ll transfer the money to you later," Ji Zhixing said with a nod, looking up to ask.

"I’m not sure. Just pay me ten times the price of a standard healing potion," Xiao Mingyue said casually.

"Is... is it really that expensive?"

Just as he was about to uncork the bottle, Ji Zhixing’s hand trembled at her words. A standard healing potion cost about 20,000 gene coins a bottle. Ten times the price meant 200,000. He felt that his body probably wasn’t precious enough to warrant such an extravagant item; using something so premium seemed like overkill.

"Relax, there’s no rush for the money." Seeing Ji Zhixing’s hesitation, Xiao Mingyue chuckled. "With your capabilities, if you manage to evolve your Staff Soldier Stone Monkey gene again, do you really think you’ll ever be short of money in the future?

"You can pay me back whenever you want. I have plenty of these things anyway." She spread her hands, acting every bit the part of someone with deep pockets.

"Alright!"

Ji Zhixing gritted his teeth and pulled out the stopper. A refreshing scent wafted from the bottle. Just smelling it invigorated his mind, and it felt as if his body was cheering, hungering for it.

Ji Zhixing threw his head back and downed the entire bottle. The liquid was slightly cool on his tongue and carried a faint sweetness. It slid down his throat and quickly merged into his body.

"Refine!"

With a thought, Ji Zhixing activated his gene furnace, drawing the medicinal power into it. The Eight Trigrams Map within the gene furnace slowly rotated, bursting with eight different colored lights. They enveloped the medicinal power, beginning to refine it bit by bit.

Time passed, minute by minute, second by second. As the refinement progressed, the medicinal energy slowly integrated into his body.

The energy flowed out from his gene furnace like a trickling stream, tracing along his meridians to spread through his limbs and bones, permeating every cell. An indescribable sense of comfort welled up from deep within him. It felt like soaking in a hot spring, or basking in the morning sun. The sensation was so blissful that he almost moaned out loud.

He closed his eyes, immersing himself in the comforting feeling.

Right at that moment, the Willow Tree gene in his other genetic acupoint suddenly shuddered.

"Hmm?"

Startled, Ji Zhixing immediately sank his consciousness into the Willow Tree Genetic Acupoint. Inside, the phantom projection of the Willow Tree was slowly lighting up. The originally dim branches began to emit a faint glow. The light was emerald-green and brimming with vitality.

What surprised him even more was that the emerald light was siphoning the medicinal power of the healing potion, absorbing it bit by bit and converting it into its own strength.

"This is..." Ji Zhixing’s heart skipped a beat. He thought, "The Willow Tree gene is absorbing the medicinal power?"

Holding his breath, Ji Zhixing listened to the voice of the Willow Tree gene. A moment later, a message entered his mind.

"Self-healing ability... the Willow Tree gene is developing a basic self-healing ability!"

Ji Zhixing took a deep breath. Self-healing was an incredibly difficult ability to develop. Typically, it required consuming massive amounts of self-healing genetic ability development potions. He hadn’t expected Xiao Mingyue’s potion to have this effect as well. Moreover, the effect was astonishingly potent.

Feeling that his body had mostly recovered, he suppressed his excitement and went all out to push his gene furnace, accelerating the refinement of the medicinal power. The Eight Trigrams Map in the gene furnace spun madly, channeling all of the medicinal power straight into the Willow Tree Genetic Acupoint.

The Willow Tree phantom absorbed the energy frenziedly. Its branches swayed and its leaves unfurled, like a parched sapling welcoming the sweet rain.

Time steadily slipped away. After an unknown amount of time, Ji Zhixing suddenly felt a slight tremor originating from the Willow Tree Genetic Acupoint. Immediately after, a brand new power surged from the genetic acupoint, instantly spreading throughout his entire body.

He could sense his body undergoing a subtle transformation. Every cell became more active, pulsating with greater vitality.

"The basic self-healing ability... is done!"

Ji Zhixing silently familiarized himself with this new ability.

He thought, "Although it’s only of one-star quality, with this ability, as long as the injury isn’t severe, I can slowly recover on my own even without healing potions.

"Now, all that’s left is to develop the Root of the Earth ability and the Five-Colored Spiritual Light ability, and then I can evolve the Willow Tree gene."

Ji Zhixing shook his head, marveling at this fortuitous stroke of serendipity. He genuinely hadn’t been in a rush to develop the basic self-healing ability, yet it had simply fallen into his lap.

He thought, "The gains from coming to Xiao Mingyue’s place this time are massive.

"Not only did I develop the Boulder Physique, but I also unexpectedly unlocked the basic self-healing ability.

"Although I’ve racked up two hundred thousand in debt—no, it’s probably more than two hundred thousand—it was completely worth it!"

He looked up at Xiao Mingyue, who was standing to the side. Xiao Mingyue was staring right at him, a hint of astonishment in her eyes.

"Why do I feel like your aura has shifted again?" she asked, her tone tinged with guesswork and disbelief.

"Mhm." Ji Zhixing nodded, hiding nothing. "I have you to thank for it again. The potion you gave me was too potent. It directly allowed me to develop the basic self-healing ability through my Willow Tree gene."

"You..."

Xiao Mingyue opened her mouth, entirely at a loss for words.

The potion she had given Ji Zhixing was indeed quite expensive. After all, it was the Little Life Spring Water. But to think that Ji Zhixing had managed to develop an entirely new genetic ability simply by consuming it... she was thoroughly astounded. Especially since she knew that Ji Zhixing had only just fused with the Willow Tree gene a few days ago.

Developing a genetic ability right after fusing with the gene?

"Oh no!"

Once her shock wore off, Xiao Mingyue’s expression suddenly changed. As if realizing something, she asked with concern, "You fused with the Willow Tree gene too recently; you shouldn’t have been able to hear its voice yet, right?

"If you haven’t heard its voice, haphazardly developing a genetic ability like this will very likely impact your future gene evolution!"