Chu Mu flipped through the book page by page, the dense illustrations and text clearly reflected in his eyes.

By now, the great hurdle of literacy was all but gone for Chu Mu.

He wouldn’t claim to recognize every single character, but at the very least, he could now read a specialized book like this one with no significant hindrance.

The book’s contents were much as Chu Mu had anticipated.

The fundamental theory of the Yin Yang Five Elements corresponded to the body’s internal organs. Combined with structural theories of meridians and acupoints, it formed the foundation of the medical system in this era—and, for that matter, in his past life as well.

Though he had only read through less than half of the medical text, Chu Mu was becoming increasingly certain that he had made the right decision. ’It couldn’t have been more correct!’

Qi and Blood Cultivation, within the theoretical framework of Essence, Qi, and Spirit, was a process of slowly evolving the human body.

He could imagine that higher levels of the Extraordinary, whether they fit into the Essence, Qi, and Spirit framework or not, would also inevitably involve the body’s evolution to a higher plane.

And the foundation of it all had to be the human body!

True, one only needed a general understanding of the human body to practice Qi and Blood Cultivation by the book. Perhaps the same was true for higher-level Extraordinary cultivation.

But if one could gain a deeper, more detailed understanding of the human body—and of the external forces that acted upon it—then the combination of the two...

...the effect would be the difference between knowing *that* something works and knowing *how* it works.

The human body was the self; medicine was the external force he could currently access.

The medical knowledge described in the book made it clear his assumptions were correct.

The medicinal formulas in the Body Refining Technique he practiced were clearly universal, meaning they were suitable for anyone.

Anything designed to be universally applicable inevitably involves significant compromises.

The same was true for medicinal formulas.

It was like treating a patient: prescribing medicine based on a specific diagnosis versus simply following a textbook were two entirely different things.

’Besides...’ Chu Mu even had his doubts. ’Are the formulas in the Body Refining Technique truly the most effective? Is there no room for improvement?’

It was an unknown.

If he never studied it, it would remain an unknown forever.

But if he studied and researched it, he could judge for himself what was right and what was wrong.

Dialectical thinking had been crucial in the scientific age of his past life. In Chu Mu’s opinion, it was bound to be just as important in this unknown, Extraordinary era.

He continued flipping through the pages, slowly committing the contents to memory and pondering their meaning.

Time slipped by as he remained completely absorbed.

In the days that followed, Chu Mu’s life seemed to fall back into a familiar rhythm.

The storm at the mine, the Rebels in town—none of it seemed to have anything to do with him anymore.

Chu Mu’s daily routine consisted of practicing his martial arts at dawn, going on duty, reading and practicing more during his breaks, getting off duty, and then heading to Mingxin Hall to study medicine and continue his training.

Everything was methodical and orderly.

Of course, this methodical order was limited to Chu Mu’s own life.

The turmoil roiling Nanshan Town, however, had not subsided in the slightest.

Under a strict quarantine, the situation at the mine was now unknown to outsiders.

In fact, under Li Jinghong’s orders, several mining districts had been completely locked down. No one was allowed out, only in. This applied to the men performing Forced Labor and the Inspectors alike.

But the black smoke from burning corpses, visible daily from the mine pits, was a clear testament to the cruel reality.

At the memorial archway in the Northern District, the corpse still hung high. Below it, Nanshan Town remained under heavy, round-the-clock guard.

Yet, after more than half a month, no further trace of the Rebels had appeared. The town was so calm it felt as if things had truly returned to normal...

...

Snow drifted through the early morning air.

Chu Mu was bare-chested, wearing only a pair of shorts. His attire looked jarringly out of place amidst the falling snow.

As if oblivious to the cold, Chu Mu swung his blade, and faint wisps of steam rose from his body.

His blade moved slowly, even deliberately. Compared to his previous practice sessions, it almost looked as if he had regressed.

Slash after slash, he moved slowly through the swirling snow.

After about a quarter of an hour, Chu Mu finally lowered his weapon. He relaxed his grip, and the blade’s tip sank into the snow, standing upright in the ground.

A thoughtful look on his face, Chu Mu then assumed the Pile Skill stance. As he calmed his mind, his Qi and Blood surged, and the steam rising from his body grew noticeably thicker.

Another quarter of an hour passed, and his Qi and Blood Cultivation session ended. Chu Mu stood motionless in the snow, lost in thought.

Standing nearly naked in the snow wasn’t due to some peculiar fetish. It was merely an experiment based on his recent medical studies.

And the results were quite promising.

The cold stimulated his senses, improving his perception and circulation of Qi and Blood. Even its refinement and nourishment were slightly enhanced.

While the effect wasn’t significant, it was undoubtedly a step in the right direction.

After taking a moment to savor the feeling, Chu Mu turned his attention to the Light Curtain Panel in his field of vision.

[Name: Chu Mu.]

[Skill: Basic Blade Technique (Initial Glimpse) 463/500]

[Body Refining Technique (54/1000)]

[Spiritual Radiance Value: 508.1%]

Over the past half-month, his Blade Technique had progressed by leaps and bounds as usual. In contrast, his Body Refining Technique cultivation remained as slow and arduous as ever, only improving by about two Skill Level points per day on average.

Of course, this was also because Chu Mu had returned to a normal cultivation rhythm. After gaining some medical knowledge, he had a much deeper appreciation for the dangers of overusing medicinal aids.

With his new mindset and goals, he had abandoned his previous frenzy of consuming a new dose of medicine every single day. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

This return to a normal cultivation rhythm naturally resulted in such slow and difficult progress.

However, his greatest gain over the past half-month had been in the field of medicine.

In a little over twenty days, he had used a "Spiritual Radiance Blessing" to gain a comprehensive understanding roughly every five days, consuming nearly five hundred points of Spiritual Radiance Value in the process.

Combined with his own diligent studying, he had gained a foundational medical expertise that was already beginning to show results.

Unfortunately, medicine, being a knowledge-based category, did not appear on the Light Curtain Panel.

As a result, Chu Mu couldn’t be certain what level his studies had reached.

However, making a rough comparison, Chu Mu suspected his theoretical knowledge of medicine already surpassed that of the apprentices at Mingxin Hall who had been studying for nearly a year.

Of course, this expertise was purely theoretical, not practical.

His official duties as an Inspector meant he couldn’t observe Elder Li diagnosing patients, much less see patients himself.

For now, he could only rely on his own contemplation to gain any sort of practical experience...

...