Jiang Xu glanced around, only to realize the smell was coming from his own body.

Looking down, he was horrified to find a thin layer of exceptionally foul-smelling black grime covering him.

’What is going on?!’

In a panic, Jiang Xu rushed to his washroom, wanting to rinse himself clean.

’Right, I still have Dust-removal Talismans!’

At this thought, he pulled four or five Dust-removal Talismans from his Storage Bag and slapped them onto his body all at once.

Instantly, four or five gusts of cleansing wind circled Jiang Xu’s body, their powerful suction sweeping away every trace of the grime.

But even though his body felt fresh, he was still mentally uncomfortable. He rinsed himself off a few more times before finally returning to his bedroom.

Back in his room, Jiang Xu began to think about the foul-smelling grime that had covered his body.

’This must have all come from inside me. I never expected that perfecting the Cangmu Skill would also expel the toxins from my body. Is this the legendary Bone Marrow Cleansing Scripture?’

A flash of inspiration struck Jiang Xu. He assumed the Vajra Pillar stance, and a wisp of Inner Strength was born from his Inner Viscera, growing stronger and stronger.

’I’ve actually crossed from the Bone Root Realm into the Inner Viscera Realm! Once I upgrade the Vajra Indestructible Divine Skill to the Mastery level, I’ll soon be able to break through to the True Qi Realm, which is equivalent to the Body Refining Early Stage!’

The multitude of changes left Jiang Xu ecstatic.

’These last three months of waiting were more than worth it. I wouldn’t even mind waiting another three months!’

Next, Jiang Xu began to test the recovery ability of his new Cangmu Skill.

This time, Jiang Xu switched to the other leg to make it symmetrical.

SLASH!

Fresh blood splattered.

But in just a second or two, the Cultivation Seed formed by the Cangmu Skill in his Qi Sea released a stream of pale green Magical Power that wrapped around his leg.

The pain vanished instantly. The wound healed at a visible rate, scabbed over, and then the scab fell off.

It made Jiang Xu feel as if he had just cut someone else’s leg.

Sensing the consumption of Magical Power in his Qi Sea, Jiang Xu estimated that for an injury of this severity, his Magical Power could sustain at least twenty such recoveries.

As for life-threatening injuries, Jiang Xu hadn’t tested one personally and didn’t dare make a definitive claim, but he conservatively estimated he could probably recover from two.

After using another Dust-removal Talisman to clean up the bloodstains, Jiang Xu sat down on the spot and began to cultivate.

The moment the Great Cycle began to circulate, Jiang Xu felt the Cultivation Seed, which the Cangmu Skill had transformed into, start to spin slowly within his Qi Sea.

The suction created by its rotation accelerated the gathering of external Spiritual Qi into his Qi Sea, where it was then refined by the Cultivation Seed and finally expelled as Magical Power.

Jiang Xu felt the process was twice as fast as before; his Cultivation speed had suddenly soared.

Previously, after advancing to the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer, his Cultivation had begun to feel like a struggle.

Now, after advancing to the perfect stage, that feeling had vanished completely.

’This is too powerful! I never thought advancing to the perfect stage would bring such massive, all-around changes. It makes me look forward to what my other Skills will be like even more!

’But I still have to wait more than three months. Sigh. No, wait. I’m getting 0.12 Limit-Breaking Points per day now, so ten points should only take eighty-three days!’

But in the Cultivation session that followed, Jiang Xu simply couldn’t calm his mind and focus. He was far too excited.

Cultivating in such a state could easily lead to problems.

So, Jiang Xu decided to go out for a walk to calm his spirits.

「...」

Jiang Xu left his residence and walked into the bamboo forest.

Light filtered through the dense bamboo leaves, casting mottled shadows on the ground.

A gentle breeze rustled through, making the bamboo leaves sway and whisper, a sound both tranquil and melodic.

Standing in the forest, Jiang Xu closed his eyes and savored the feeling. A sense of comfort washed over him as the Cultivation Seed in his Qi Sea began to operate slowly, resonating with its surroundings.

’My Cangmu Skill is a Wood Element Technique. It’s naturally more active in a place with dense Wood Attribute Spiritual Qi.’

Jiang Xu stroked a green bamboo stalk, and it trembled slightly, as if greeting him.

’And I can sense the spirituality of this bamboo forest. They seem to feel a great affinity and reliance on me. Is this another ability brought by the Cangmu Skill? Maybe I’ll be able to control forest plants in the future.’

As Jiang Xu strolled through the woods, his excitement gradually settled, and he felt at ease, as if he had become one with nature.

He wandered through the bamboo forest for an unknown amount of time until he reached the place where he usually did his Body Cultivation. From a distance, he saw Zong Ziqi, still practicing a set of slow-moving Swordsmanship.

’I don’t remember seeing him practice his swordsmanship before. Why is he practicing every day recently, and something so strange at that?’

Jiang Xu walked forward, about to greet him, when Zong Ziqi’s Sword Intent suddenly flared. He aimed his Profound Dragon Sword directly at Jiang Xu.

"Who are you?"

Their eyes met. Even with a distance of ten meters between them, Jiang Xu felt as if countless sharp blades were pressed against his throat, ready to end his life in the next moment.

"Are you... Jiang Xu?"

Just as Jiang Xu was wondering why Zong Ziqi had suddenly gone mad, Ziqi abruptly retracted his aura, a very strange expression on his face.

"What’s wrong with you? Why are you drawing your sword on me? Did I do something to you?"

"No, no, you misunderstand." Zong Ziqi didn’t quite know how to explain. "Did you... have some sort of breakthrough recently?"

Hearing this, Jiang Xu became wary.

"What makes you say that?"

"Uh... have you looked in a mirror?"

"A mirror?"

Jiang Xu was taken aback, not understanding what Zong Ziqi meant. He casually used his Magical Power to conjure a Water Mirror in the air and gazed into it.

The mirror reflected Jiang Xu’s image.

’I don’t see anything... uh... okay, so my skin is a little fairer, I look a bit more handsome than before, and my disposition seems a little better.’

The more he spoke, the less confident he sounded.

’Who knew that this Bone Marrow Cleansing Scripture could also change a person’s appearance?’

Although the changes weren’t drastic, when combined with his new, extremely approachable disposition, it would definitely leave an excellent first impression on most people.

This was a good thing, in a way, but such a sudden change in appearance was bound to attract attention.

For a moment, Jiang Xu was completely dumbfounded.

’I was careless!’

’I knew before that upgrading a Skill would have some effect on me.’

’But after this upgrade, I got so excited that I completely forgot about it. I really shouldn’t have!’

’After the next upgrade, I have to check myself over first and only go out after confirming there are no issues.’

’This time, Zong Ziqi saw me, and I can probably manage to explain it away.’

’But if someone else sees me next time, it might be very difficult to hide it!’

Jiang Xu looked at his reflection in the Water Mirror, starting to worry.

’My current appearance isn’t really suitable for going out. Don’t tell me I have to stay cooped up in my room from now on?’