From a tuberculosis patient to a martial arts master

They rested for several hours.

The two regained their senses and each took out a blood-replenishing pill specially supplied by the government from their mustard seed pouches and swallowed it. The pill melted in their mouths, and a warm sensation rose from their abdomens and flowed to their limbs and bones, which barely restored some of their strength.

Lin Jizhi was the first to get up and move to Xiong Pi's side.

The bear carcass lay strewn like a mountain, with faint white steam still rising from its mouth and nostrils.

"You're unlucky to have fallen into our hands."

He chuckled, then kicked the massive, shattered bear's head, sending it tilting to one side with the force of the impact. "A mid-grade first-rank bear gall, plus this valuable piece of meat." A glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes. "Once we get back and report this, we'll definitely get a lot of recognition on the merit wall."

Zhu Hong then approached, stared at the bear carcass for a while, then took out a deerskin bag containing needles and thread from his mustard seed bag and squatted down.

What are you doing?

Lin Jizhi was taken aback, quickly sat up, and looked at Zhu Hong with a strange expression: "You, you still want to give it a proper burial?"

If it were a human being, then so be it; he could barely understand.

Can……

That's a monster!

"Could it be this kid...?"

He raised an eyebrow, a chill running down his spine: "Does he really have some kind of peculiar fetish for corpses!"

"The leather is too rotten; I'm afraid I won't be able to deliver it properly."

Zhu Hong spoke concisely and to the point, without even looking up.

Let's skip over the questions that are difficult to explain.

To sew up the corpses of murderers, to mend the bodies of beasts—such behavior would surely be seen as madness. He knew this all too well.

Can we collect the body first and then sew it up?

There's no chance of this happening every time.

For example, how can one collect both bears and wolves? It would be a waste not to sew them, so even if one is annoyed, one has no choice but to bite the bullet and continue.

In the blink of an eye, Zhu Hong's fingertips touched the bear's damaged fur.

He steadied himself, suppressing the slight helplessness in his heart. "As long as I can become stronger, who cares about anything else!"

"Sizzle."

The needle tip has just pierced the bear skin, yet the words and shadows of the dead man continue to shift and change.

Times change, and so do the laws.

The Book of the Dead:

The initial steps of the entrance hall are now clear.

[Intake: Young bear (Mid-grade)]

Acquired: Two Gu Qi and Blood

Divine Gift: Unyielding Spirit (Superior Qualification)

"Iron Bones?"

Zhu Hong paused.

In an instant, all the bones in his body vibrated, producing a clear, metallic sound, as if he had undergone a hundred rounds of tempering. His muscles and bones became much more solid, and his whole body became more upright.

Seventy jin?

He silently circulated his muscles and felt that he had gained nearly seventy pounds of strength.

It has already reached the strength of two stones.

Currently, in terms of strength alone, he has reached the level of a minor master of martial arts, but several key muscle groups have not yet been properly developed, so in terms of skill level, he cannot yet be considered a true minor master of martial arts.

"So this is... superior talent?"

Overjoyed, Zhu Hong was overwhelmed with happiness, a surge that nearly drowned him: "His muscles aren't fully developed, yet his strength has already caught up with that of a junior martial artist!"

In the midst of ecstasy, a thought suddenly popped into my head:

How terrifying must those extraordinary geniuses in the world, born with special physiques, be? Only when one climbs out of a well and sees the sky beyond the well's opening for the first time does one realize:

So this is what it feels like for a mayfly to see the blue sky.

"What are you standing there daydreaming about?"

Lin Jizhi then brought over the wolf carcass, glanced at the gruesome gash on its body, and pursed his lips: "Hurry up and tidy it up. Once we're done sewing, we'll head back to the yamen." With that, he tossed the wolf carcass next to the bear carcass.

He found this behavior difficult to understand.

but:

Everyone has their own habits, and even if you have doubts, you should still show respect.

"have to……"

Zhu Hong was brought back to his senses by the shout. He glanced at the dead wolf, his lips twitching slightly. He sighed inwardly, "Now they really think I have some kind of weird fetish." He shook his head and was about to move when a sudden thought flashed through his mind, reminding him of something truly important.

The initial steps of the entrance hall are now clear.

Just now, it was merely a needle tip touching the skin, without any stitching, yet the dead man's body responded on its own, adding these four words.

Is it...

Is this a seal broken from the Dead Man's Scripture?

The initial understanding is that from now on, there will be no need to sew up the corpse stitch by stitch; a single touch will be enough to plunder its destiny.

Thinking of this:

Zhu Hong suppressed his surging emotions and slowly reached out his hand, placing it on the wolf's corpse.

[Intake: Young bear (Lower Grade 1)]

Awarded: One Gu of Qi and Blood

Five more pounds of strength suddenly arose from between his muscles and bones.

Continue writing, the content of which is roughly something like this...

"Indeed!"

Once the conjecture was confirmed, he was overjoyed: "At least I won't have to pretend to sew up corpses anymore."

"Hey kid, Hong kid!"

Lin Jizhi's voice suddenly entered his ears, each note more urgent than the last.

Zhu Hong snapped out of his daze and saw Lin Jizhi frowning, scrutinizing him from head to toe with an expression as if he had witnessed something sinister. "Are you alright? Did that bear knock your brains out?" He patted Zhu Hong's shoulder and arm several times.

"Why are you just staring at me like that?"

"Sew it if you want, what are you being shy about!"

"N-nothing," Zhu Hong said awkwardly, withdrawing his hand and coughing as if to cover it up. "I just had a surge of energy and needed to adjust my breathing." He stood up, brushed the snow off his clothes, and turned to look at Lin Jizhi.

"Brother Lin, let's go."

Lin Jizhi glanced at him and raised an eyebrow: "Not going to sew it up?"

"Now that we're all constables, who wouldn't use this lousy skill for fun?" Zhu Hong chuckled casually. "I was just teasing him a bit earlier."

"Just kidding?"

Lin Jizhi glanced at him sideways, his lips twitching, and finally waved his hand: "Alright, alright, let's head back to the yamen as soon as possible, it'll be hard to leave later." With that, he put the bear and wolf carcasses into his mustard seed pouch.

"I'll keep these demonic beasts for now."

"Hmm," Zhu Hong responded, but his gaze swept towards a certain spot.

There lay a human corpse, torn to pieces by a demonic beast. He paused, then asked, "Brother Lin, this corpse...?"

It wasn't that he was trying to be a pushover; he just didn't want to waste his merit points.

"No need."

Lin Jizhi shook his head, took out a short knife from his mustard seed bag, and gently flicked it into the pile of corpses.

What was picked out was a cloth boot that was not yet fully digested, still attached to half of a pale leg bone. With another pry along the bone fragments, a gnawed, indistinct head rolled out, its face still contorted with extreme terror before death.

"Just take this back with you."

Lin Jizhi smirked and said, "A rotten skeleton. Taking it back would just be feeding stray dogs. Completely unnecessary, and it'd only taint my mustard seed bag." His tone carried a hint of indifference, as if he were used to seeing corpses.

"With this, we can successfully complete our task."

Zhu Hong nodded silently, his gaze lingering on the head for a moment. "Brother Lin is right," he said, turning his gaze back to the sky.

The sun was already setting in the west, and the light filtering through the treetops was a dim, yellowish hue.

Another day is about to pass.

A few crows cawed in the distance, their mournful cries adding to the desolate atmosphere.

Let's go!

Lin Jizhi raised his hand to shield his eyes from the setting sun, and curled his lip: "I don't want to go back in the dark." After saying that, he took out two waxy yellow pills from his pocket and handed one to Zhu Hong.

Here, have another one.

He glanced at Zhu Hong, his tone casual yet carrying an unyielding force, and said, "Every bit of strength you recover is a bit more." He finished with a wry smile.

"Don't kill a bear and then get caught on the way back."

That would be laughable!

Having said that, he straightened his clothes and headed back the way he came.

Seeing this, Zhu Hong smiled, swallowed the blood-replenishing pill he had received, and followed closely behind.

Lin Jizhi's words were indeed true.

He really had no more "rations" left. As a newcomer to the government, he could only receive a few blood-replenishing pills each month, and he had used them all up in the battle just now.

but……

There was one thing Lin Jizhi didn't know.

In terms of recovery speed, Zhu Hong had already recovered to his peak condition using the Dead Man's Scripture, and even reached a higher level.

This blood-replenishing pill is just a token of my appreciation.

……