Chapter 67

Back in the lab, Ding Huan tossed the stone monkey aside and pulled out the unknown little thing from his bag, dumping it in the corner.

Worried the little thing might starve, Ding Huan threw some food and water in front of it—whether it ate or not was up to it.

Ding Huan did not immediately seek the stone monkey's memory genes; instead, he took out the eyebrow blood of the Great Wilderness Jin Yuan.

Finding the stone monkey's memory genes was merely incidental for Ding Huan—he now aimed to extract the Great Wilderness Eye gene of the Great Wilderness Jin Yuan.

This was a tedious and lengthy task, and Ding Huan had long prepared himself mentally.

But with the Gene Devouring Art, this would save Ding Huan considerable time.

As time passed, Ding Huan synthesized various gene solvents and recorded each set of data.

During Ding Huan's gene experiments, Kong Dan had come up several times—each time bringing boxed meals, but since Ding Huan's lab door never opened, he took them back.

……

Great Han Yi Academy.

As one of the Ten Great Academies of Blue Star, even ranked last, it was an institution everyone aspired to join.

Fang Chong tossed aside a powdered Qi Stone, exhaled a breath of stale air, and stood up.

He had reached Third-Level Gene Cultivator, spending nearly half a year to attain this rank.

Li Li Wanran probably never dreamed that she joined the Wu Mai Training Grounds for a single Qi Stone, while after arriving at Great Han Yi Academy, he—

Was personally taught by Headmaster Zhang Yongcheng, who gave him five Qi Stones.

Moreover, he had three opportunities each month to enter the Scripture Library and read the academy's various scriptures.

Fang Chong had never imagined he would gain so many resources after entering Great Han Yi Academy.

Lu Zi must be doing well in the Guardians too, but Li Li Wanran in the Wu Mai Training Grounds—likely, beyond that single Qi Stone, acquiring more cultivation resources would be extremely difficult.

Qin Qiang—this woman—he saw at a glance she was no good. She would never give students much in cultivation resources; she probably didn't even have enough for herself.

Only after arriving at Great Han Yi Academy did he realize it originated from the Yi Jin Jing.

But since he cultivated the Thousand Network Gene Art, he chose not to pursue the Great Han Yi Dao derived from the Yi Jin Jing.

Yet Fang Chong believed choosing Great Han Yi Academy was his wisest decision—no, it was his mentor Ding Huan's wisest idea.

Here, besides gaining cultivation resources, he learned One Yang Finger.

Of course, One Yang Finger was the name he gave it himself.

Simply because he liked how flashy and powerful One Yang Finger sounded in novels.

In truth, what he studied was One Finger Zen.

Strictly speaking, One Finger Zen was neither a cultivation technique nor a martial art.

One Finger Zen was a Zen parable Fang Chong encountered while reading in Great Han Yi Academy's Scripture Library.

At first, when he saw this story, Fang Chong found it amusing.

Because some martial artists, misled by the name, had invented a finger technique called One Finger Zen—now he understood it was never a technique at all, just a short Zen parable.

After leaving the Scripture Library, Fang Chong suddenly had a wild idea: others had invented One Finger Zen—why couldn't he invent his own?

Who said One Finger Zen had to be performed a certain way? If others created it, why couldn't his version count too? Besides, his internal Qi was now abundant—using it solely for Basic Long Fist felt like wasting it.

He acted on the thought immediately: he repeatedly concentrated his internal Qi into his fingertip and struck wooden surfaces.

At first, the stronger the Qi concentration, the deeper the finger mark on the wood—but this method severely injured his hands; his fingers often broke.

His internal Qi had improved, yet his fingers remained flesh and blood.

If not for his mentor Ding Huan's fused Injury Recovery Gene Elixir, he wouldn't have been able to cultivate One Finger Zen—he wouldn't even have had enough time to heal.

Later, Fang Chong devised a way to avoid direct fingertip contact with wood, aiming instead for remote Qi projection.

The idea was good; execution was hard.

Fang Chong didn't care—he spent every day, beyond cultivating the Thousand Network Gene Art and Basic Long Fist, endlessly experimenting with this external Qi release.

External Qi release was simple; concentrating it into a single thread and controlling its force was difficult.

To Fang Chong's surprise, he had treated One Finger Zen merely as a pastime and a way to train his internal Qi.

Four months later, he actually released a strand of internal Qi—this strand obediently condensed into a thin line and punched a small hole through the wood.

This thrilled Fang Chong—he relentlessly refined his method of projecting Qi threads, adjusting the internal Qi flow through the Thousand Network Gene Art's meridian pathways.

By the fifth month, he finally created his first personal technique: One Yang Finger.

To strike, he had to coordinate his Thousand Network Gene Art's internal Qi circulation—when the Qi reached his finger, he shaped it with precise finger positioning to fire the Qi thread.

Fang Chong did not realize this already fell under the category of hand seals.

Whether he understood the theory didn't matter—he practiced One Yang Finger almost daily after mastering it.

Compared to Basic Long Fist, One Yang Finger's power was immense.

Within several zhang, he could pierce a wooden block with a single finger—imagine the impact on a human body—who could withstand it?

"Fang Chong…" came a crisp voice.

Fang Chong turned and saw Especially Ai Xi.

After arriving at Great Han Yi Academy with him, Especially Ai Xi first witnessed the Great Han Yi Dao techniques derived from the Yi Jin Jing.

This made her even more glad she hadn't made a wrong choice—but she did not cultivate the Yi Jin Jing; she wanted to cultivate the art Ding Huan had taught Fang Chong.

Fang Chong remembered Ding Huan's words: if he thought it appropriate, he could transmit it.

So Fang Chong did not withhold it—he taught Especially Ai Xi the Thousand Network Gene Art.

It must be said that, compared to Fang Chong, whose talent was boosted by gene elixirs, Ai Xi's talent was truly extraordinary.

In less than five months, Especially Ai Xi's cultivation surpassed Fang Chong's—now she was already a Fourth-Level Gene Cultivator.

Probably the first student to outpace her teacher—seeing this, Fang Chong simply taught Especially Ai Xi Basic Long Fist too.

"Fang Chong, watch my technique," Especially Ai Xi said, her hands moving like blooming flowers in midair—less than a second later, she flicked her hand outward.

The distant wooden block split cleanly in two from her casual swipe.

Fang Chong stared blankly at Ai Xi; he had thought his creation of the One Yang Finger was already astonishing. Yet Ai Xi had casually slashed out a blade qi—if it had struck a person, it would have torn them into pieces here and there.

"Incredibly powerful," Fang Chong muttered.

Such power—his instructor Ding Huan probably couldn't match it.

"Shall I teach you?" Ai Xi said with a smile.

She deeply appreciated Fang Chong for transmitting the Thousand Network Gene Scripture to her without reservation; after using the Qi circulation of the Thousand Network Gene Scripture to create the Wind Blade Art, she came to teach him in return.

"Of course I need it—I'll also teach you something excellent," Fang Chong quickly said, deciding to pass on his One Yang Finger to Ai Xi.

……

Lü Zi walked out of the Guardian's training ground, drenched in sweat; now, each day he could only practice the Basic Long Fist and the Wind-Blowing Blade Art, personally taught to him by Dean Li Chuan.

He had reached the peak of Level Three Gene Cultivator, just one step away from entering Level Four Gene Cultivator.

But he still lacked the cultivation methods for the Thousand Network Gene Scripture beyond Level Three, leaving him stuck at Level Three Gene Cultivator realm.

Yet his Basic Long Fist and Wind-Blowing Blade Art had now become quite refined.

"Sigh, looks like I still need to find Instructor Ding Huan—otherwise, I simply can't advance further," Lü Zi sighed, preparing to take a shower.

"Lü junior, the Top Ten Academies of Blue Star are sending people to the Human Corridor Frontline—will you sign up?" came a rough voice.

Lü Zi turned and saw Zhang Qiang, his senior who had joined the Guardian two years before him.

Zhang Qiang was not a Gene Cultivator but a Martial Path cultivator, among the top-ranked within the Guardian; it was said he had entered the Profound Level of Martial Path a year ago.

"Senior Zhang, will all ten academies of Blue Star send people?" Lü Zi asked.

Zhang Qiang smiled. "Technically, first-year freshmen aren't required to go. But I know your strength isn't weak, so I'm inviting you to come along. At the Human Corridor Frontline, there are many valuable things."

"Not only are the rewards astonishing, but you can also obtain various Spirit Herbs. Even just the reward—if you earn the International Star Guardian Rank, you'll laugh yourself to death."

"Spirit Herb" was a newly coined term, an upgraded version of Mutated Herbs.

These herbs surpassed the level of Mutated Herbs; a single fine Spirit Herb could even cleanse the marrow and purify the hair.

"I'll go," Lü Zi said after only a moment's hesitation.

Ding Huan had said true strength is forged in actual combat.

To earn the International Star Guardian Rank, you must go to the Human Corridor Frontline.

Once obtained, this rank brings not just tangible benefits but supreme honor wherever you go.

Even if you don't earn the Star Guardian Rank, there are still Qi Stones as rewards—this very thing he had received five of when he first arrived, and now they were all gone.

Once he meets Instructor Ding Huan and obtains the later cultivation methods, his first priority will be gathering Qi Stones. If so, he might as well head to the Frontline early to collect them.

(That's all for today's update, fellow Daoist, good night—please support with monthly votes!)