The King of Curses

Chapter 6: The Cursed Tiger Demon Cloak
The name of the curse hidden in the building is unknown and its form is incomplete. Now only a part of its power remains, namely the "Cursed Tiger Demon Cloak".

The illusion that just appeared in front of Cen Dongsheng's eyes was the symbol of the "Tiger Demon". The owner of the skeleton was most likely an achiever from ancient times, so there was still some extremely rare Tiger Demon power left, which was absorbed by him.

According to Cen Dongsheng's own estimation, the power hidden in this Tiger Magic Curse far exceeds his past self and is undoubtedly Class A.

So far, there was no problem; but the problem was that when he visualized the tiger demon in a meditative state, he also saw another, even larger figure standing above the tiger demon at the same time...

“His” face was blurred and his power was unfathomable; under his feet was a vicious tiger and two other faceless alien monsters, like a towering statue of a god.

The conclusions drawn from this kind of visualization are often hints from somewhere. This unknown curse is meant to tell Cen Dongsheng that there is more than one kind of power similar to the "Tiger Demon". If he can refine the other two beings called "Demons", he will be able to glimpse a realm above this.

The Tiger Demon Cloak is not only a Class A curse, but also a piece of the puzzle leading to a higher level.

Thinking of this, his heart began to beat fast.

It was the first time that he felt his ambition growing so clearly, and his lofty goal seemed to be within reach.

Cen Dongsheng took a deep breath, calmed down, and called someone to say that he wanted to quit his job. Then he hung up and sat cross-legged in the corner.

With his eyes closed and maintaining the "cross-legged" posture, he continuously transformed the original yang energy in his body into true energy during the meditation process.

Gradually, the young man's skin began to take on a steel-gray color, swelling from time to time as if there was air flowing underneath.

The power of the tiger demon absorbed the true energy in his body and continued to grow stronger, and began to transform his body...

*
Before he knew it, a week had passed since Cen Dongsheng obtained the curse.

In Room 303 of Xiaokang Building, the thick curtains were drawn. In order to avoid being peeped, the owner of the room deliberately blocked out all the light from the outside, and the room was dim.

In the dim light, a young man with his shirt off is exercising in a difficult posture, doing push-ups while maintaining a free handstand position with his feet up and his head down.

Since he began to practice "Tiger Demon Cloak", Cen Dongsheng found that in addition to the rapid growth of the true Qi in his body, which almost caught up with his own eight years later in a short period of time, his physical fitness had also been visibly enhanced.

This is a common feature of the human-immortal curse; the special thing is that the tiger demon power in the body is particularly terrifying in enhancing finger strength and grip strength.

At first, he needed to use two hands to do handstand push-ups;
After a day, he began to reduce the number of fingers, using three fingers on each hand, then two fingers, and finally one finger on both hands.
Two days later, he began to use the thumbs of his left and right hands to support his body.

At this stage, what he has done has actually exceeded the physiological limits of human beings.

Even world-class gymnasts or fitness experts cannot do a one-finger handstand. Although there may be examples in some special sports or performance fields, they are usually achieved through special techniques rather than relying solely on human muscles.

After all, the human body structure is such that it is impossible to maintain balance with just one finger; but the bodies of young people are indeed gradually moving towards the "inhuman" realm in a slow but firm and unstoppable trend.

A day later, he started using his index finger, then his middle finger, ring finger, and even his little finger.

As for now...

"call."

Again and again, as his arms bent, Cen Dongsheng's face sometimes touched the floor. He placed his left hand behind his back, supporting his entire body weight with only the little finger of his right hand.

His palms were thick and broad, with distinct knuckles.

After completing fifty movements smoothly, he switched to the little finger of his left hand, and repeated this process for one hundred times as a set. After completing five sets of movements, Cen Dongsheng put his feet down and resumed his posture. His movements were as agile as a monkey.

Even after completing five hundred consecutive moves that were difficult for humans to imagine, he only had a thin layer of sweat on his body.

“It’s just a warm-up exercise.”

Cen Dongsheng felt a little regretful. It seemed that ordinary bodyweight exercises were no longer effective for him now.

It's only been a week...

He walked into the bathroom and planned to take a shower.

The man reflected in the mirror was like two different people from his past self.

His muscles are lean and powerful, with clear and graceful lines, and each muscle shows its slenderness and strength in the most natural way: the arm muscles are like canvas supported by internal force, the back muscles are broad and powerful, and the lower back muscles are tight and flexible, supporting his stability when performing various complex movements; the leg muscles are like deep-rooted ancient trees, with clear boundaries between the thighs and calves, full of explosive power.

Unlike ordinary bodybuilders and even athletes in various fields, who only exercise specific muscle groups or lose the balance of athletic ability due to excessive pursuit of size and beauty, Cen Dongsheng maintains a lean and restrained muscle mass all over his body, but every time he clenches his fist, he can feel the terrifying power bursting out.

His original height of about 1.83 meters increased a bit to 1.86 meters, but his hands, legs and torso all remained balanced, as if his entire skeleton had become thicker.

All these changes happened in just one week, which was a complete transformation...

Cen Dongsheng looked at himself in the mirror with satisfaction.

With his short haircut, the man in the mirror was already full of oppression with his body shape and muscle lines, giving people a feeling that he was not easy to mess with, like a fighting master standing in a black boxing ring, or a mercenary who had experienced many battles. And if he used the power of a forbidden master in this state...

Cen Dongsheng's mind moved, and the true energy in his body was mobilized and flowed through his meridians.

Wherever the true Qi flowed, the muscles swelled up in an exaggerated manner, and his already tall physique seemed to have expanded again. The biggest change was in the color of his body surface - his skin was shining with a blue-gray metallic luster, and the veins on his palms bulged, as if they were made of steel.

He casually picked up the stainless steel washbasin on the sink, and with a slight force, it turned into a soft pancake in his hands, which he rolled and flattened into a ball at will.

"Well, this is enough."

……

"It seems that the plan needs to be revised."

Cen Dongsheng thought as he took a cold shower.

His original plan was nothing more than two things: to increase his own strength and to cling to a strong enough thigh.

The former condition has been temporarily met. In the next period of time, he no longer needs to run around to enhance his own strength.

"The spells and prohibitions that a person possesses are limited by his fate" - the fate here actually refers to the numbers of the three elements of "heaven, earth, and man".

In short, an ordinary spell master can only master three kinds of spells that are suitable for him. Only the top "ancestor" level spell master can break his own fate and not be restricted by the number of three talents. Based on his current fate, it would be a stretch for him to take on just one first-class spell.

In addition, Cen Dongsheng did remember several records related to high-level spells and forbidden objects, some of which even involved suspected special-level events, but they were still some distance away from the current time point.

Strictly speaking, the world is still in the "newbie zone" stage.

Therefore, from the perspective of improving strength, what he really needs to do is to concentrate on improving the power of the tiger demon, and find the remaining two so-called "demons" as soon as possible to see if he can get a glimpse of the realm of the special curse from them.

I think this is not an easy task. After all, the senior from the Exorcism Department failed to achieve his vision and only stayed at the lip service.

As for the latter plan...

"I have to think about how to explain this to Sister Zhizhen."

Cen Dongsheng turned off the shower, dried his hair, and put on his clothes. The person in the mirror looked less scary now, and even had a bit of the freshness that only young people have.

His relationship with An Zhizhen had reached a certain level, and he felt that it was time to take another step forward.

*
Halfway along the corridor leading to Sister Zhizhen's house, he discovered that his target was right on the road.

A woman with long straight black hair was pulling a suitcase with both hands, dragging it out of the room with some difficulty.

"This is……"

He looked up at the house number and confirmed that it was "310" instead of "316".

Cen Dongsheng stepped forward and prepared to help.

"Sister Zhizhen, let me help you." "Ah...!"

An Zhizhen seemed startled. She turned around and saw Cen Dongsheng's face.

"Is this room also rented by Sister Zhizhen?"

He was curious and tried to look through the crack in the door. It was pitch black inside, but he could vaguely see a pile of glassware on the table.

"Well, yes... the room is a mess because I don't come here very often."

The woman said a little embarrassedly.

Cen Dongsheng turned his gaze to the suitcase she was pulling, which looked very heavy.

"Where are you going? Let me help you carry it."

“…No, I’ll just put it back.”

An Zhizhen tried to pull the suitcase back into the room, but it got stuck on the threshold for a moment.

In the end, Cen Dongsheng reached out and easily lifted the box with one hand and pulled it into the house.

At the same time, he smelled the odor coming from the suitcase, which even the thick lid could not block; in addition, the air inside the room also exuded a pungent smell.

"What's that smell?" Cen Dongsheng's nose twitched slightly, a little confused, "...Is it formalin?"

It's very similar to the smell you'd find in a hospital or a biology lab.

Sister Zhizhen's shoulders shook slightly, she sighed softly, and explained softly:
"I rented this house a long time ago. I usually store a lot of random things here, like lab supplies and stuff... Don't tell anyone about it, or it might scare the neighbors."

"Yeah."

When Cen Dongsheng heard her say this, coupled with the smell of formalin, he guessed that there might be specimens stored in the room, and the things in the box were probably what she was planning to clean up.

Considering her occupation and hobbies, this may not be surprising, but it is strange to use a residential building as a storage place.

"Don't worry, I'm not that timid." He said with a smile.

He was not even afraid of ghosts and monsters, and it was not the first time he had seen dead people. Some of the unlucky people who died because of ghosts and monsters had particularly tragic and distorted deaths.

All he could say was that he had gotten used to it. At the beginning of his work, he often had nightmares about dead people. Later, even getting enough sleep became a luxury. Whenever he had a chance to rest, he would sleep as soundly as a pig.

"You... don't care?"

An Zhizhen raised her dark jade eyes and asked cautiously.

"Don't you think I'm a weirdo?"

"of course not."

Cen Dongsheng touched his nose. He had to admit that he felt a little touched by the woman who usually regarded herself as a mature and reliable elder sister, suddenly acting like a spoiled child...

...I was also a little bit scared. Considering that the other party was that An Zhizhen.

Seeing his affirmative attitude, Sister Zhizhen seemed to accept it. She breathed a sigh of relief, then pushed the suitcase into the room and locked the door.

"Don't you need to throw it away?"

"Well, it doesn't matter, just leave it alone for now."

After closing the door, An Zhizhen turned around and looked at her with a smile, and then she noticed that the appearance of this boy next door seemed to be different from before.

She subconsciously took a step back and tilted her neck so that she could barely look at Cen Dongsheng at eye level.

"Dongsheng, are you..."

An Zhizhen hesitated in his words, as if he couldn't believe it.

His muscular lines were not noticeable even through his clothes, and Cen Dongsheng had specially changed into thick long sleeves to cover his body before going out; but the change in height was difficult to conceal, and it was hard not to be noticed because he was always visible when he looked up or down.

"Have you gotten taller? And a little... stronger?"

"Yes, a little bit. I've been exercising recently, so it's normal for me to grow taller. Some people just grow taller during their growth period."

Cen Dongsheng passed on the message vaguely.

As long as she could find a place to explain the situation to An Zhizhen, she would understand.

That’s right, the so-called “one step further”, in short, means... he plans to show his cards!
According to his observation, Sister Zhizhen has not yet shown any signs of awakening her abilities. According to later records, she and her forces will not appear on the world stage until about a year later.

But Cen Dongsheng felt that he could definitely advance this time. With their current relationship, and with the subsequent guidance, after An Zhizhen established his ruling bureau, he would at least be able to serve as a loyal minister.

Of course, this was the backup plan that he had thought about in the past. After unexpectedly getting clues about the special forbidden spell in the "novice period", Cen Dongsheng's ambition began to "expand" somewhat. He had to admit that he really wanted more.

This road is extremely difficult and hopeless. His current starting point is still far behind that of An Zhizhen, who was born with a special life ban...

But it is rare to live again, and if there is a chance, he still wants to see the scenery at the top.

But no matter what, even if Cen Dongsheng has his own goals and pursuits, it is still necessary to make friends with An Zhizhen.

At this moment, just as he was about to set a time and place for a showdown, An Zhizhen took the lead and spoke.

"Are you here to find me?"

"Hmm? That's right..."

"That's great, let's go together."

With that said, she turned and left.

Cen Dongsheng followed the woman with some doubts, walked through the narrow corridor filled with pots and pans and wet clothes hanging out to dry, went down the stairs covered with advertisements to the first floor, and finally came to a room in a secluded corner.

The iron railings were rusty, the wooden doors were covered with signs of peeling paint, dry wormwood was hanging on the door beams, and half of the glued spring couplets were hanging down.

"Grandma Lin, I'm here."

An Zhizhen knocked on the door politely.

After waiting patiently outside the door for a while, a trembling figure pushed the door open. The old lady wearing reading glasses squinted her eyes and looked at the two people in front of the door. She finally recognized An Zhizhen's face, and the wrinkles on her face immediately smoothed out.

"Doctor An, you're here... I'm so sorry to bother you again."

"it does not matter."

Sister Zhizhen turned around and said to him with a smile:

"I'm going to give Grandma a physical examination. Also, I heard that Grandma Lin is planning to move during this period, so I want to help pack her luggage, is that okay?"

“…Yeah, okay.”

Cen Dongsheng nodded slightly.

Although it was different from his plan, he did not intend to reject An Zhizhen's request.

(End of this chapter)