I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 168 Copper-Skinned Body, One of the Four Ultimate Forms! (6.1k)

In the spacious, quiet room, Uesugi Tetsu did not immediately choose to learn the Miura Breathing Technique.

Instead, he tried opening and flipping through each of the breathing techniques, and then saw the exact same prompt pop up in front of him.

The Nine Breathing Techniques naturally produced nine prompts.

"However, apart from the different names of the breathing techniques, these tips are completely identical."

Uesugi Tetsu carefully reviewed all nine hints and confirmed one thing.

—They can only complete the Flesh Palace stage of the Corona Breathing Technique.

Furthermore, these breathing techniques were not named according to their own characteristics, but rather inexplicably named after the families that possessed them.

It seems that the breathing techniques of the Warring States period were somewhat different from those of today.

But that's normal, considering there's a five or six hundred year gap between the two eras.

Moreover, these breathing techniques are almost effortless to learn, so why ask for so much more?
Instead of worrying about these trivial things, it's more practical to learn them all as soon as possible.

"study!"

Uesugi Tetsu silently said to himself.

The next instant, a barrage of notifications burst forth in front of him like a screen being flooded with messages.

What followed was a vast and complex sea of ​​knowledge about breathing techniques that violently flooded into his mind.

You are learning the "Miura Breathing Method"...

[You are learning the "Pelican Temple Breathing Technique"...]

You are learning the "Sena Breathing Method"...

You are currently studying...

Uesugi Tetsu's face twitched, he gritted his teeth and gasped sharply, feeling as if his brain was about to explode from the influx of new knowledge.

He immediately opened his storage backpack and, upon seeing the faintly glowing [Soul-Soothing Incense Ash (Small)], clicked to use it without hesitation.

In an instant, the thoughts churning like lava in my mind were forcibly calmed down.

The vast amount of new knowledge seemed to "quiet down" at this moment, and was systematically browsed and absorbed by Uesugi Tetsuya.

He turned his gaze away from the few remaining portions of the soothing incense ash, thinking that both the reserves of soothing incense ash and soul ash needed to be replenished.

Even after killing the Red Oni, Uesugi Tetsu only had less than 700 Soul Ashes in his hands.

And how long could this amount of soul ash sustain cultivation during the Warring States period?
Although there were few demons and monsters during the Warring States period, and it was rare to see any evil spirits, the Kingdom of Sanhe had that great demon... which was perfect for replenishing his reserves of soul ash.

But that’s all for later.

Now, focus on absorbing the breath you are using.

Uesugi Tetsu held his breath and focused intently, his thoughts racing as if cooled by liquid nitrogen, comprehending and absorbing the key essence of the Nine Breathing Techniques at an unimaginable speed, without missing a single word.

Then the prompt popped up again.

Your Corona Breathing Technique is being completed...

I don't know how much time passed, until the duration of the soothing incense ash had ended.

Uesugi Tetsuya breathed a heavy sigh of relief when he no longer felt any new knowledge flooding into his mind.

He sat down wearily on the floor, where a bamboo mat had been specially laid out. After resting for a moment, he wiped the sweat from his forehead from thinking and then looked up.

[This update is complete!]

Your Corona Breathing Technique has reached a new "Mastery" stage: "Strengthening"!

[Because you have learned nine breathing techniques, including the "Miura Breathing Method," the proficiency requirement for your Corona Breathing Technique at the Master level has been reduced by 10%!]

Uesugi Tetsu breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.

After the three stages of skin tempering, bone forging, and flesh refining, the "tendon casting" that Li Lizi had been seeking but could not obtain finally appeared.

Now he can return to reality and teach Ririko, which is a rare opportunity for him.

Furthermore, by browsing and learning these nine breathing techniques, he also reduced his proficiency requirement in the Flesh Palace training by an additional 10%.

He looked at the proficiency panel in front of him—

【Corona Breathing Technique (Bronze Skin 311/450)】

But before Uesugi Tetsuya could even look at it for two seconds, a bright notification suddenly popped up.

[Because you have learned numerous breathing techniques, your understanding of breathing techniques has greatly improved! Your proficiency in Corona Breathing is rapidly increasing...]

Just looking at other breathing techniques, and they can actually increase the progress of physical tempering?
Is there such a good thing?

Uesugi Tetsuya was stunned for a moment, not reacting immediately.

Only when a flood of knowledge churning in his mind and a burning pain on his skin surged from deep within him did Uesugi Tetsuya immediately sit down cross-legged, close his eyes, and immerse his mind in his own skin.

As before, he infused his inner energy into the skin, which had already transformed into tough skin, and then mercilessly subjected it to intense tempering.

The excruciating pain, which had become a daily occurrence, surfaced all over his body, and scalding steam slowly rose from above his head, yet Uesugi Tetsu remained motionless, as if in deep meditation.

Because at this moment, even the slightest movement will change the position of the current Qi, which will greatly reduce the efficiency of the tempering process and thus waste this hard-won opportunity.

Pain, burning heat, and a long, dark night.

More than an hour later, Uesugi Tetsuya, whose skin temperature was so high that the surrounding air seemed to distort slightly, slowly opened his eyes without sweating a single drop.

"it is finally over."

He whispered softly.

Like thousands of fine needles, the powerful energy carefully emerged from the tough membrane... no, now it should be said that it gleamed with a metallic luster, as hard as iron and copper.

Indeed, Uesugi Tetsu seized this unexpected opportunity almost perfectly.

As a result, they reaped a rich reward!
[Due to your significantly improved understanding of breathing techniques and the arduous tempering of internal energy, your proficiency in the Corona Breathing Technique has increased by 339!]

[You have completed the Flesh Palace Training - Bronze Skin Stage!]

【Your skin strength increases slightly! 】

[Your physique +2! ]

"Copper sheet, huh?"

Uesugi Tetsu opened his still burning hot fingers, gazing at the starlight at his fingertips, feeling his whole body gradually being "wrapped" into a more rounded power.

He casually reached out and easily crushed a rounded corner of the wooden platform without using any special energy.

Uesugi Tetsu rubbed his fingertips together, watching the tiny wood shavings fall through his fingers, and couldn't help but grin.

"The effect is... really good."

If the tanned skin stage can prevent ordinary slashes, then the copper skin stage allows a cultivator's skin strength to rival, or even surpass, those of ordinary swords and blades.

Its skin alone can be as hard as metal!

Not to mention, if you infuse it with your inner energy—it wouldn't be impossible for you to shatter those high-quality weapons and armor with your bare hands!

"Also, after I repaired my copper skin, my physical attribute also reached 48 points."

Uesugi Tetsu glanced casually at the attribute panel and nodded in satisfaction.

This was even without him wearing the Prajna mask.

If he wears the mask, his physical attributes can even soar to 68 points, almost on par with his 78 points of spiritual attributes in his four-tailed fox form.

Uesugi Tetsu looked at the Corona Breathing Technique, which was about to complete the entire tempering stage, and revealed a joyful smile like that of a harvest.

【Coronal Breathing (Skin Hardening 200/360)】

[Effects: Like a tough membrane, like refined copper, like a powerful qi barrier.]

【——Tough skin, copper skin, tempered skin!】

He was only 160 points away from entering the Bone Forging stage, catching up with or even surpassing Lili Zi!
"Not bad, really good."

Uesugi Tetsu was about to get up and flip through the nine books on breathing techniques to see if there was anything he had missed.

The next prompt that popped up in front of him made him pause involuntarily.

[Because you have learned numerous breathing techniques! Your Corona Breathing technique has manifested one of the four ultimate forms, "Palace of Flesh," after "Flesh Refinement"!]

Palace of meat?
Isn't this just a nickname for the "proficient" level of breathing techniques?

And what are the four ultimate forms...?

Uesugi Tetsu continued looking down in silence.

【Palace of Flesh (0/4500)】

[Palace of Flesh: The ultimate form of meat refinement. Absolutely perfect muscle control and overwhelming physical strength. Upon completion, the body will be as magnificent and beautiful as a palace.]

[Note: Cultivation is temporarily impossible before completing the "Skin Tempering," "Bone Forging," and "Flesh Refining" stages.]

After reading it, Uesugi Tetsu narrowed his eyes and fell silent.

How powerful would the "ultimate form," which requires a full 4500 points of proficiency to complete, be?

Moreover, this Palace of Flesh is only a quarter of the ultimate form.

In other words, there are three incredibly powerful ultimate forms corresponding to the three stages of skin tempering, bone forging, and tendon casting, but I haven't unlocked them yet.

In other words, these nine breathing techniques, like the current Corona Breathing Technique, are incomplete.

They merely helped fill in some of the gaps.

Being able to unlock "Palace of Flesh," one of the four ultimate forms, is already considered an effect of combining all nine.

It seems that nine breathing techniques are not enough.

And it's not high-end enough.

"The art of breathing techniques is indeed as vast as the ocean..."

Uesugi Tetsu sighed inwardly, but didn't worry too much about the fact that the Corona Breathing Technique was still incomplete.

After all, just the four stages of skin, bone, flesh, and tendons, plus the ultimate form of flesh refinement, the Palace of Flesh, would have been enough to keep me training for who knows how long.

Once he's maxed out those tens of thousands of proficiency points, this incomplete problem should be easily solved.

Just as Uesugi Tetsu was thinking this, the final prompt appeared, albeit shakily.

[Because you have learned many breathing techniques, your Coronavirus Breathing technique has completed an important "stage classification"! Please check it!]

"Stage classification..."

Uesugi Tetsu glanced at it briefly and quickly understood what it meant.

Simply put, the three levels of Corona Breathing Technique—"Beginner," "Beginner," and "Proficient"—correspond to the stages of the breathing technique, specifically the Sea of ​​Qi.

Mastery, which is his current level, corresponds to the Breathing Technique stage - Palace of Flesh.

After mastering it—the expert level corresponds to the breathing technique stage.

—"The Five Internal Organs Immortals"!
Originally, it was nothing more than a matter of simply mapping proficiency levels to the stages of breathing techniques practiced by the general public.

But the key point is...

Uesugi Tetsuya silently stared at the two red and one yellow completion indicators. 【Sea of ​​Qi (60% incomplete)】

【Palace of Flesh (10% Incomplete)】

【Five Internal Organs Immortal (50% Incomplete)】

Incomplete, incomplete, completely incomplete!

Uesugi Tetsuya could understand the incompleteness of his later, more profound understandings.

However, the Qi circulation he cultivated from scratch was incomplete, and the incompleteness reached 60%.

He has been cultivating day and night for so long and has yet to discover... something's not right.

Uesugi Tetsu stared at the three characters "Sea of ​​Qi," and after thinking it over, realized that he had never heard of these three characters before.

The cultivation of internal energy and qi ends with "the qi circulates endlessly throughout the body," and the issue of the sea of ​​qi is never mentioned.

Emotionally, the breathing technique I've practiced from beginning to end has been severely flawed.

Therefore, this should not be an isolated case, but rather an extremely common phenomenon.

Because Okabe Motonobu also didn't express any doubt about the circulation of his internal energy, and the former Yin-Yang Grand Master Kondo Tomoya also practiced this Corona Breathing Technique...

Uesugi Tetsu murmured, "So, the only completely complete breathing technique... is the 'Four Extremes Breathing Technique' held by the three major families?"

In this way, many things can be explained.

For example, why are the young talents from the three major families much stronger than the geniuses from small places and small dojos?

Because they practice the complete breathing method, while you practice an incomplete one!

Even if everyone has the same talent, the latter will definitely be inferior.

"The three major families..."

At that moment, Matsudaira Motoyasu's voice came from outside the quiet room, neither too loud nor too soft.
"Lord Che, the appointed time has arrived. Please take your time to prepare before coming out..."

Uesugi Tetsu immediately turned his head, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.

Yes, the patriarch of the Tokugawa family is standing right outside. Could there be an easier opportunity to come into contact with the Four Extremes Breathing Method?

Of course, we must also consider that the Four-Pole Breathing Method is not currently in the possession of Matsudaira Motoyasu.

With this in mind, Uesugi Tetsu calmed himself down, pushed open the door, and went out.

Outside the door, Matsudaira Motoyasu, who had just called out and thought Uesugi Tetsuya would deliberately delay for a while before coming out, froze for a moment, his face showing astonishment.

Uesugi Tetsu shook his head with feigned regret: "It's a pity that there was only one hour. I haven't had time to read most of the content yet."

Matsudaira Motoyasu respectfully said, "Lord Che is already very impressive. As an Onmyoji who can summon powerful shikigami, he is still willing to watch and understand the breathing techniques that only samurai practice."

He had barely finished speaking when Hanzo's extremely faint voice rang in his ears.
"—Lord Yuan Kang, in the hour that he entered the meditation room, Che's breathing technique has broken through."

Onmyoji Che actually knows breathing techniques!?

Matsudaira Motoyasu's pupils contracted sharply, but he maintained his smile and walked ahead, leading Uesugi Tetsu toward the previous room.

In his ear, Hanzo continued to whisper, "Moreover, Che has at least completed the Qi circulation. In terms of breathing techniques, he is better than me and at the same level as Lord Okabe."

Qi circulation!?
Isn't this the goal I'm determined to achieve before I turn twenty?
Matsudaira Motoyasu, who had just reached the "Qi Circulation to the Four Extremes" stage, stiffened slightly and paused in his steps, almost falling flat on his face.

Fortunately, Uesugi Tetsu, who was following behind, grabbed his collar and said with concern, "Matsudaira-sama, please be careful when you walk."

"Ah...thank you."

Matsudaira Motoyasu forced a smile and walked on absentmindedly.

—Why did Onmyoji Che conceal the fact that he knows the Breathing Technique?
In reality, Uesugi Tetsuya simply didn't bother to announce to the world, "How do you know I've reached the Qi Circulation stage in my breathing technique, since no one has asked me why I'm saying this," because he was content with the idea that "no one asked me why I'm saying this."

Having experienced countless hardships and upheavals since childhood, Matsudaira Motoyasu, who was only twelve or thirteen years old but already had a meticulous mind, immediately realized what was going on and made up his mind.

We must befriend this Onmyoji Che!
We absolutely must befriend them!

Originally, being able to wield heavenly lightning and summon shikigami was already astonishing enough, not to mention that Che was also among the top in the breathing technique!
This means that he is not only powerful, but also has almost no weaknesses!

If such a person were to become one's enemy, it would likely be Hanzo...

Matsudaira Motoyasu shuddered and dared not think any further.

The boy's mind raced, and during this short journey, he had already considered how he should and how he should face Uesugi Tetsuya in the future.

But now his attitude is no different from usual.

Building closer relationships requires a gradual approach.

Matsudaira Motoyasu understood this better than anyone.

Moreover, since Onmyoji Tetsu spends all his time with the head of the Imagawa clan, it's not easy for him to get to the bottom of things...

Since that's the case, why not get to know Che's little follower first?

—Bai Shi hung far behind the two of them, cautiously peeking out from behind the thick pillar with his spiky braid and eyes.

He watched silently as Uesugi Tetsu and Matsudaira Motoyasu disappeared from sight.

Finally, he took out a small dried fish from his pocket and took two big bites.

……

After returning to the room where Imagawa Yoshimoto had previously reviewed documents, Uesugi Tetsuya did not find her or Okabe Motonobu.

He probably had something urgent to attend to and left.

But since he didn't have anything urgent to report right now, he said goodbye to Matsudaira Motoyasu and returned to his own courtyard.

Although it's cold in late autumn, the afternoon sun feels warm and cozy on your skin.

Uesugi Tetsu took out the tea set that Imagawa Yoshimoto had left for him, poured the tea powder into hot water, stirred it casually, and then gulped it down.

"Hmm, the taste is pretty much the same."

As someone who was chewing on peonies commented, basking in the warm sunshine, he began to plan for the future, treating it as a rest during his meditation retreat.

—The closest ones to me are Matsudaira Motoyasu and the Imagawa family's breathing techniques.

These two breathing techniques should be much stronger than the nine "Daimyo Family" breathing techniques we just saw.

In particular, the breathing techniques held by the Imagawa family.

Uesugi Tetsu had very reasonable grounds to suspect that the Four Extremes Breathing Technique passed down by Tokugawa Ieyasu was not the one he initially practiced.

Rather, it was one of the three breathing techniques he later acquired from the Imagawa, Oda, or Toyotomi families.

After all, the Matsudaira family isn't that powerful right now—if the Matsudaira family had the complete Four Extremes Breathing Technique, why would they be willing to submit to the rule of the Imagawa family?
However, obtaining these two breathing techniques will probably... no, it should be said that it will definitely not be as easy as it was this time.

It will definitely take a long time to build a good relationship with a little turtle like Matsudaira Motoyasu.

As for the Imagawa family's breathing techniques, it's impossible to get them for free under the pretext of "observation" like this time, because of Okabe Motonobu's presence.

But it's not like we're completely clueless.

Uesugi Tetsuya drank the hot tea in one gulp, feeling a warm current flow from his stomach to his limbs, and couldn't help but exhale a comfortable breath.

—As long as the Mikawa riot can be resolved perfectly, given Imagawa Yoshimoto's attitude towards himself, obtaining this breathing technique will not be too difficult.

Oh right, and those elders might still be hiding some crucial parts from me.

When the time comes, I'll definitely dig up all these little secrets.

Uesugi Tetsu tapped the stone table lightly with his fingers, producing a crisp sound.

He grinned happily.

Anyway, it's just something that happens conveniently.

—Imagawa Yoshimoto will definitely take action against these clueless retainers soon.

She couldn't possibly abandon the already clearly unstable rear and follow him and Okabe Motonobu to suppress the riots in Mikawa Province.

In that case, we might have just suppressed Sanhe, and then our hometown would be stolen by these old bastards.

Therefore, she would never allow such a thing to happen.

There's also how to "deify" Imagawa Yoshimoto when slaying the great demon; that's something I need to think about carefully...

Uesugi Tetsuya's fingers, which were tapping on the stone table, suddenly stopped. He turned his gaze to the large tree at the corner not far away.

He said calmly, "Come out."

After failing to see anyone appear, Uesugi Tetsu sighed and raised his voice slightly.
“I noticed you’ve been following me all along, Shiraishi.”

As soon as these words were spoken, a furtive, short, and thin figure finally emerged from behind the tree.

Even though Shiraishi had been indulging in carbs at the Imagawa restaurant for over half a month, it's not something that can be done so quickly.

He walked over with his head down, as if he had done something wrong, without saying a word.

It wasn't until he reached the stone table that Shiraishi noticed a small bottle containing konpeito (Japanese candy) protruding in front of him.

Uesugi Tetsuya's nonchalant voice came through.

"Here, I asked Yiyuan to buy this for you. Remember to thank her when you see her later."

"Oh...oh, okay, boss."

Shiraishi blankly accepted the small bottle.

His eyes reflected the candy he had once dreamed of eating, but now he was hesitant to open it.

Bai Shi looked up and asked, "Boss, I'm so useless compared to the others, will you abandon me in the future?"

"Hmm?" Uesugi Tetsu shook his head, then immediately replied, "Of course not."

Staring at the stunned Shiraishi, Uesugi Tetsu thought for two seconds before offering a fitting analogy.

"Now that I'm taking care of you, it's like Lord Okabe taking care of Kaguya... you know, that little mouse that was perched on her shoulder, you must have seen it before."

That's the feeling, the same emotion.

"Is that so..."

Shiraishi said "Oh," thought for a long time, then unscrewed the bottle stopper, pinched a piece of konpeito and put it in his mouth.

Konpeito melts in your mouth.

It's very sweet and delicious, but also has an unexpected sour and astringent taste.

Just as Shiraishi was about to reach out and eat all the konpeito one by one, Uesugi Tetsu's cheerful voice came from behind.

"Alright, the questions have been asked, and the candy has been eaten."

Uesugi Tetsu took out the ninja manual that he had specifically requested for Shiraishi from his storage backpack and threw it in front of Shiraishi.

He clapped his hands with a smile and said to Shiraishi, whose mouth was slightly open.

"Didn't you say you were a master of the Iga clan? So I thought I'd give you this manual to practice with. It'll be incredibly powerful once you master it, so..."

Uesugi Tetsu gazed down at the thin boy, asking the question earnestly, word by word.

"Shiroishi, can you become a world-renowned ninja?"

　Although there aren't many updates, I'm still humbly asking for monthly votes.
　　I'm not in good form today, but I'll pick up the pace in a few days!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)