We made you practice martial arts, and you've mastered the Great Golden Body?

Congratulations! Your physical attribute has been improved!

【Congratulations……】

Following the notification message about the Iron Body skill advancement, several more notification messages popped up on Shen Bailian's panel.

However, he had no time to care about these things at that moment.

Because at this moment, a sharp pain was sweeping through Shen Bailian's body from every tiny part of his limbs and bones, like a tidal wave.

One wave after another, each wave stronger than the last.

This excruciating pain was unprecedented; Shen Bailian had never experienced anything like it before.

Under this intense pain, Shen Bailian felt as if his soul had become a physical entity, being tightly gripped, then slowly kneaded and crushed in the palm of someone's hand, and then slowly torn apart.

Every minute, every second is an ultimate challenge to one's will.

It is not a targeted injury like a physical wound, but a pain that penetrates to the bone marrow and pierces the heart. With each heartbeat, the pain surges in like a tidal wave.

One wave after another, giving no one a chance to catch their breath.

But this pain also felt like tens of millions of tiny insects were crawling and gnawing in the tendons and blood vessels of my limbs and bones, making every inch of skin and every bone tremble and wail.

Just when the pain reached its peak.

"call--"

Shen Bailian, whose face was deathly pale, suddenly let out a long breath. With a thunderous heartbeat, his blood surged forth like a rushing river.

heat!
It's so hot!

Shen Bailian's face suddenly turned red. He felt as if he had entered a high-temperature, high-pressure furnace from the cave of ten thousand snakes. His whole body was unbearably hot, and his muscles and bones felt as if they were about to melt.

and.

"Clang—!" "Clang—!"

"Clang~ Clang~"

Shen Bailian seemed to be hallucinating, hearing the continuous sound of hammering and forging in his ears. The source of the sound was from inside his body, not from the outside.

"Tick-tick~tick-tick~"

Dense beads of sweat gathered into large drops, then poured down like a torrential rain from all over Shen Bailian's body onto the ground, blurring his vision, soaking his clothes, as if even the last bit of strength to lift his hand was slowly slipping away...

At this moment, time seemed to lose its meaning for Shen Bailian, with only pain from all over his body following him relentlessly.

This is exactly what it means for a second to feel like a year.

Despite the excruciating pain, Shen Bailian endured it without making a sound. Instead of becoming idle, he forced himself to calm down and began to slowly cultivate the Eight-in-One Great Sun Visualization Method.

Surprisingly, the pain lessened somewhat.

Although the reduction was only a pitiful one-thousandth, he still keenly noticed it.

Time slipped away bit by bit, and I don't know how much time has passed.

Shen Bailian suddenly felt the intense pain slowly receding, and an extremely comfortable feeling suddenly welled up in his heart, as if he had fallen into a gentle and intoxicating paradise.

But his consciousness was incredibly clear.

"It's finally coming to an end." Shen Bailian suddenly realized that this advancement of the Iron Body skill should be nearing its end, otherwise he wouldn't be experiencing this feeling within his body.

"but."

"Could it be that when the Iron Body skill advances—no, when the Steel Body skill advances—this kind of excruciating pain will also surge up?" Shen Bailian thought to himself, glancing at the pool of sweat on the ground, and felt a chill run down his spine.

Although he enjoys advancing his skills, he doesn't like the process itself.

Even when he was receiving a Sun-level Dragon Gate species, his body had completely melted, but he never experienced the excruciating pain he had felt before.

deep impression.

"No, absolutely not. This must be a special case, a special situation caused by the natural advancement of skills." Shen Bailian quickly shook his head, dispelling the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

"Whoo~"

Shen Bailian finished his practice and adjusted his breathing, letting out a long breath.

If Chen Yifei, Li Feiyu, and others were here, they would be astonished.

Because the breath, after being exhaled, actually condensed and did not dissipate, like a sharp arrow that shot out and hit the rock wall with a whoosh, breaking a hole less than one centimeter in diameter.

If it hit an ordinary person, it would probably cause a sizable wound.

However, Shen Bailian didn't take this to heart, because an even bigger surprise awaited him.

Just for a moment.

Shen Bailian's mind and body became completely calm, as if he were in a vast and boundless tranquil ocean, where all the disturbances, distractions, and pain were swallowed up by this profound tranquility.

His Force flowed through his legs, and after crossing them, he sat cross-legged on the wet ground, his eyes closed, completely focused on every subtle change in himself.

After his Iron Body skill was upgraded to Steel Body, his body became drastically different from before.

It was a transformation beyond the ordinary; the muscles and bones were no longer just flesh and blood, but were infused with the texture of steel. While their resistance to impact and strength were improved, their toughness also increased accordingly.

Every bone and tendon seemed to have been forged into refined steel, imbued with an indestructible quality.

Now, any single muscle fiber in Shen Bailian's muscles is equivalent to the power that three or four muscle fibers could provide before the Iron Body skill was upgraded.

Furthermore, he could deeply feel an unusually active and vigorous life force within his body, as if his flesh and blood were cheering and jumping for joy.

Just like how, even after suffering such a severe injury as losing an arm, he was still able to recover naturally without the help of a medical pod, provided he had sufficient energy.

The moment Shen Bailian took a breath, it was as if a radiant glow was rippling through every pore of his body, and his physical strength surged. The stamina he had lost due to the previous intense pain was now increasing at a rate two to three times faster than before.

"It seems that the harvest this time has far exceeded my expectations." Shen Bailian simply clenched his palm, and at the moment his fingers collided with his palm, a faint metallic clang was heard.

In the past, this would have been impossible.

"Let's take a look at the panel." The Iron Body skill had only been upgraded to Steel Body for half a day, and Shen Bailian had not yet fully adapted to this power. Without looking at the panel, he could not be sure how much his physique attribute value had increased.

With a slight thought, the ink-wash panel instantly appeared before his eyes—

Character Level: LV10 (2656/4000)

Physical Strength: 23.0; Spirit: 22.6

【…】

Passive Skill: Steel Body LV1 (25/400)

Skill Points: 0

【Cure point: 0】

[Divine Matter: 11555]

"Hiss~" Shen Bailian gasped as he looked at the gleaming 23.0 physique attribute value on the panel.

Extreme! Absolutely too extreme!
From strengthening the body to iron body, and then from iron body to steel body, this advanced skill set only improves physical attributes, not mental attributes.

How is the Spirit attribute value increased?
Very simple.

painful.

Intense pain can be a significant form of mental training, although it has never been a recommended method for developing mental strength.

Because this degree is difficult to control, and the requirements for resources to nurture spiritual power are also very high, it cannot be solved by ordinary first- or second-tier natural treasures.

As for the rare and precious materials that nurture spiritual power at or above the third rank?

Wouldn't it be better to use that money to pursue other, more comfortable methods to enhance mental strength? For example, advanced visualization techniques, or even basic spiritual meditation.

Isn’t it fragrant?

"However, since the name of this advanced skill is 'Iron Body,' will it come with some special characteristics, like the fishing skill?" Shen Bailian pondered to himself.

He wasn't thinking of any other characteristic, just Superman, the memories of Superman carried in his past life, or rather, his innate wisdom.

There is a Superman in this world, too.

Because before the new era, that is, before 1999, apart from the changes in the world order, this world was almost unchanged from the world process in Shen Bailian's memory; the things and people that should exist still existed.

The same applies to Superman in the comics.

In the movie version of Superman, all his abilities are based on his steel body, or more precisely, derived from the yellow sun.

Since they have the same name, can he also become stronger by sunbathing?
Thinking of this, Shen Bailian couldn't help but feel excited. Without hesitation, he threw a straight punch forward.

In an instant.

"Boom! Rumble—!"

The fist whistled through the air, accompanied by a deafening roar. The air crackled and vibrated violently as it hurtled towards the cliff face at a terrifying speed exceeding several times the speed of sound.

As the fist landed, the cliff face was subjected to an unimaginable impact, instantly cracking open. Huge chunks of rock scattered in all directions under the force of the impact, and dust and gravel intertwined to form a chaotic storm that enveloped everything around it.

The small hill, which had just been formed by the shockwave of the explosion and was a hundred meters high, completely lost its hope of becoming a mountain peak after Shen Bailian's attack.

It turned into a pile of pebbles, which scattered and fell to the ground.

A slight ripple appeared in Shen Bailian's eyes. Then, with a slight push from his feet, he launched himself forward like a speeding locomotive, charging into the storm of rocks.

All boulders before his steel body were like tofu.

It breaks at the slightest touch!
After a while~
"No...it still won't work." Shen Bailian stood tens of thousands of meters in the air, the strong wind howling, but it could not affect his slightly disappointed mood.

At this height, the sunlight can shine on his body without any restraint.

However, even after waiting for more than ten minutes, he still did not feel any improvement in his physical fitness.

This means that the path to becoming stronger by sunbathing has been completely blocked.

"Never mind." Shen Bailian sighed, then his brows slowly relaxed, like a wrinkled garment being ironed smooth, and he said softly:

"Today's harvest has been quite substantial. We have not only obtained more than 15,000 points of divine matter, but also unlocked another function of our primal talent."

"Furthermore, he successfully upgraded the Iron Body skill to Steel Body, and his physical strength reached 80% of the Force Armor of the previous martial arts teacher."

This is an extremely alarming statistic.

A martial artist is synonymous with high attack and high defense.

However, for martial artists at or above the Sea Opening Realm, high defense refers not only to physical strength, but also to the strength of the condensed Force battle armor.

Generally speaking, a martial artist in the early or middle stages of the Sea Opening Realm can withstand the bombardment of multiple high-explosive missiles head-on without losing his combat ability simply by relying on his physical strength.

Even so, in terms of pure defensive strength, its physical strength is only one-tenth that of the Force Armor, with a physical strength coefficient of 0.1.

Some martial arts prodigies who excel in external martial arts training, or bloodline martial artists, may have a physical strength that can reach 20% of their own Force Armor, that is, a physical strength coefficient of 0.2.

However, under the influence of the steel body, Shen Bailian's physical strength coefficient initially reached a terrifying 0.8.

Furthermore, the Steel Body is currently only at level one, with the maximum level being level five.

What will his physical strength coefficient be at that time?

Hard to imagine.

"Since it's hard to imagine, why not give it a try?" Shen Bailian looked at the remaining 11555 points of divine matter on the panel and his lips curled up into a wild smile.

He revealed a carefree smile.

11555 points of divine matter are enough to exchange for two skill points, and Shen Bailian plans to invest them all into the skill Steel Body.

If all goes well, his physical attributes can be improved to at least level 24.5, directly making him a martial artist in the mid-stage of the Opening Sea Realm.

Thinking of this, Shen Bailian's mind stirred slightly, and in an instant, the divine matter on his panel decreased from 11555 points to 1557 points, while the 0 after skill points increased to 2.

Shen Bailian did not continue testing the Steel Body. Instead, he used his Divine Eye to rapidly scan the wilderness below and quickly found a suitable place for seclusion.

"boom!"

His figure was as swift as an arrow.

Amidst the deafening roar, Shen Bailian, like a meteor falling from the sky, pierced through the clouds and sped toward his destination at a speed exceeding Mach 2.

……

The northern border of the Great Xia Dynasty.

The afterglow of the setting sun dyed the sky red like blood.

The tragic beam of light, almost horizontal, mercilessly struck the thousand-meter-high steel Great Wall, coating it with a layer of dazzling golden radiance.

On the city wall, through the thick, still-uncleaned bloodstains, one could clearly see some "ghostly" patterns, and within them, an unknown energy surging with a faint golden light.

suddenly.

boom! ! !
A deep and awe-inspiring roar resounded across the sky, and sunlight filtered through the scattered clouds, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

Several enormous figures, like burning flames, their armor covered in rust and massive wounds, streaked across the sky and sped toward the outside of the city walls.

The machine spirit is overjoyed!

suddenly.

"Roar!"

"Roar—!" "Awooo!!!"

The sound was like thunder, the roar of thunder rolling out in all directions. Several beams of light, shimmering with a hazy glow, and terrifying high-energy particle breaths shot into the sky, striking a Nirvana Phoenix mech.

Amidst the terrifying energy shockwave, the already dilapidated Nirvana Phoenix was instantly pierced through, its machine soul letting out a mournful cry as it plummeted downwards.

"This, this...this is Hulao Pass?" Li Feiyu stuck his head out of the window, looked up at the broken-winged fire phoenix, and his calm eyes flickered slightly.

The next moment. (End of this chapter)