KNOCK KNOCK—

On an early morning at the end of the month, the air in Class A-10 Martial Arts Room was thick with the scent of sandalwood. Fang Han had just finished a round of cultivating the Crane Form Pile Skill when a soft knock came from the door.

He walked over and opened the door.

Outside stood a Fang Family servant, holding two heavy wooden boxes marked with the family crest.

"Young Master Han, these are your monthly resources for placing fourth on the Martial Arts Stele. Please accept them."

"Thank you for your trouble."

Fang Han nodded, suppressing his excitement as he took the wooden boxes.

With this month’s allowance, he would finally be able to activate the Level 3 Amplification. He couldn’t help but feel thrilled.

The servant bowed and left. Fang Han latched the door as quickly as he could.

Once he was sure he wouldn’t be disturbed, he placed the boxes on the table and opened them one by one.

Inside the first box were three small, blue-and-white porcelain bottles arranged in a neat row. Fang Han pulled the cork from one, and a rich, pure medicinal aroma instantly filled the air.

"Thirty Qi Blood Pills!"

A look of satisfaction appeared in Fang Han’s eyes.

After breaking through to the Bone Refining Realm, his body’s demand for Qi and Blood Energy had skyrocketed. The original monthly stipend of twenty pills was no longer enough, forcing him to dip into his reserves.

These ten extra pills covered the deficit, perfectly satisfying his monthly needs. They had arrived at just the right time.

His gaze then shifted to the second wooden box.

He lifted the lid to reveal five ten-tael ingots of fine silver.

They were stacked neatly, emitting a soft glow in the dim light of the Martial Arts Room.

"Fifty taels!"

Fang Han’s heart couldn’t help but race.

Fifty taels of silver was two and a half times the monthly salary of his father, Fang Zheng, a Restaurant Manager.

The Fang Family truly spared no expense in cultivating its promising and powerful younger generation.

’It’s hard not to feel a sense of belonging to a family like this.’

’Today’s the day I activate Level 3 Amplification!’

Gazing at the five heavy silver ingots, Fang Han took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement.

With a flicker of his thoughts, the familiar translucent system panel instantly appeared in his vision.

[Host: Fang Han]

[Root Bone Talent Amplification: 4x (Level 3 Amplification requires 1,000 silver)]

[Swordsmanship Talent Amplification: 4x (Level 3 Amplification requires 1,000 silver)]

[Wealth: 982 silver]

’Deposit!’

Fang Han picked up two ten-tael ingots of fine silver and recited the command in his mind. The ingots vanished from his hands, and the number on the panel instantly changed.

[Wealth: 1002 silver]

He had long since decided whether to activate the Level 3 Amplification for his Root Bone Talent or his Swordsmanship Talent.

’Activate the Level 3 Root Bone Talent Amplification!’

Fang Han’s eyes were glued to the option after [Root Bone Talent Amplification], his will striking like an arrow released from its bow.

DING!

A crisp notification, audible only to him, rang in the depths of his mind. The panel rippled like water as the text instantly refreshed.

[Host: Fang Han]

[Root Bone Talent Amplification: 8x (Level 4 Amplification requires 10,000 silver)]

[Swordsmanship Talent Amplification: 4x (Level 3 Amplification requires 1,000 silver)]

[Wealth: 2 silver]

’Eightfold! It really is an eightfold amplification!’

Seeing the "8x" next to his Root Bone Talent Amplification, an irrepressible joy erupted in Fang Han’s eyes.

His previous guess was confirmed. The multiplier didn’t just increase by two; it doubled from fourfold to a staggering eightfold.

’How powerful will my Root Bone Talent be with an eightfold amplification?’

With a fourfold amplification, his Root Bone Talent was already enough to rank first among the younger generation of Liangshui City.

This was evident from his shockingly fast and astonishing cultivation speed.

Now that it had reached eightfold, he couldn’t even imagine how strong his Root Bone Talent would become.

But one thing was certain: his strength would now grow at an even faster rate.

However, when his gaze swept over the words "Level 4 Amplification requires 10,000 silver," his euphoria was doused with a bucket of ice water, instantly cooling by more than half.

’The next level of amplification... it really is ten thousand silver!’

Fang Han’s gaze fixated on the text: "Level 4 Amplification requires 10,000 silver."

Although he had guessed the next level would cost ten thousand silver, he couldn’t help but gasp at the long string of zeros.

Ten thousand taels of silver was equivalent to his monthly allowance for two hundred months. For him, right now, it was an astronomical sum!

’There’s no way I can gather that much money in the short term.’

’Let’s see what kind of transformations an eightfold amplification brings!’

Fang Han forced down his shock at the exorbitant cost of the next level and shifted his focus to the changes the eightfold Root Bone amplification was bringing to his body.

He assumed the starting stance of the Crane Form Pile Skill, his mind instantly focused.

INHALE— EXHALE—

As he breathed deeply and rhythmically, the Pile Skill began to circulate.

RUMBLE—!!!

Without warning, an unprecedented, torrential flood of Qi and Blood burst from every corner of his body, like the Milky Way cascading down from the heavens.

This power was far vaster, more violent, and purer than what he had experienced with the fourfold amplification.

If the Qi and Blood from the fourfold amplification was like a river, then the eightfold amplification was like the surging torrents of the great Yangtze and Yellow Rivers from his previous life.

The raging river of energy churned within him, creating a deafening roar like ten thousand horses stampeding!

Under the assault of this unstoppable, terrifying torrent of Qi and Blood, Fang Han felt a deep, dense CRACKLING erupt from all his bones, as if each one was being repeatedly hammered, tempered, and reforged by countless invisible sledgehammers.

Every inch of his skeleton greedily absorbed the massive essence of Qi and Blood at a visible rate, growing tougher, denser, and heavier.

His cultivation speed, which had slowed after he reached the Bone Refining Realm, accelerated once more.

With this kind of cultivation speed, it wouldn’t take him long at all to break through to the Middle Stage of Bone Refining.

The eightfold amplification provided by the Level 3 Root Bone Amplification had such an exaggerated effect that it made him crave the even stronger Level 4 Root Bone Amplification. However, he knew that in the short term, it would be very difficult to gather the funds required to activate it.

In the days that followed, Fang Han completely immersed himself in the ultimate cultivation experience brought by his eightfold Root Bone amplification.

Every day of Pile Skill cultivation was like a baptism that reforged his body, and his strength steadily increased at an astonishing rate.

If other Bone Refining Realm Martial Artists knew about this, they would probably find it hard to believe that such a cultivation speed was possible in the Bone Refining Realm.

Compared to Fang Han’s cultivation speed, theirs was as slow as a tortoise.

...

One morning, after finishing an invigorating round of Pile Skill cultivation.

Fang Han habitually took a Qi Blood Pill from a porcelain bottle, about to swallow it to replenish his energy and begin his Swordsmanship practice.

KNOCK KNOCK—

The soft knocking suddenly broke the silence of the Martial Arts Room.

Fang Han paused, put the Qi Blood Pill back into the porcelain bottle, and frowned slightly.

’At this hour, no one would disturb me unless it was for something important.’

He got up, walked to the door, and slid open the heavy latch.

Outside stood a Fang Family servant with a look of clear reverence on his face.

"Young Master Han."

The servant bowed and said,

"Elder Fang Yuan has sent me to ask you to come to his Quiet Chamber."