Chapter 159: Variation

The old white-haired man sat in a chair, wearing a pair of black gloves, two wires from the gloves connected to a transformer beside him.

He fidgeted restlessly, shifting left and right, occasionally lifting his hands to inspect the metal conductive plates on the gloves.

"Really no danger?"

He couldn't help muttering to Zheng Fa.

"Rest assured, Elder. This artifact is my secret transmission—you're the second person in the world to experience it!"

"... checked, less than two hundred."

"..."

"Positive reviews get you ten back."

"... re you scared?"

Zheng Fa glanced sideways at him.

"Who's scared?" The old man snorted. "I'm just asking."

"The voltage starts low—it's perfectly safe. Besides, didn't I teach you the first layer of the Five Thunder Body?"

Zheng Fa reassured him.

The old man pursed his lips and fell silent.

Zheng Fa plugged the transformer into the power source.

"Say, if something happens to me, would it count as an accident? Would insurance cover it?"

The old man suddenly asked.

"..."

"Maybe I should think it over? I just realized I'm not that interested in electromagnetic rotation anymore..."

Zheng Fa turned the knob on the transformer.

The old man's lips trembled slightly, his tongue stiffened, and he couldn't speak.

"Channel your spiritual power according to the Five Thunder Body!"

Zheng Fa reminded him, eyes fixed on the old man, his hand still resting on the transformer's knob, ready to cut the power at any moment.

He was also uneasy.

On one hand, he feared the old man's age—even though he had cultivated the Spirit Crane Body, his physique was no match for his own.

On the other hand, this was the old man's first time cultivating the Five Thunder Body; Zheng Fa worried he wouldn't be familiar with it.

What reassured Zheng Fa was that the old man truly seemed deeply interested in the Five Thunder Body; though initially frightened, he quickly entered a cultivation state.

After watching for a long while, Zheng Fa quietly left the room, leaving the old man to cultivate alone.

"Huh? Where's Zheng Fa?"

The old man stepped out of the room with a swaggering gait, looking quite proud.

He searched for Zheng Fa everywhere but only saw Tang Lingwumin.

"You've finished cultivating?"

"Yes! Even though it's my first time, I feel I'm perfectly suited for this technique!"

"I heard Zheng Fa say you were a bit scared..."

"Who's scared? That was just unfamiliarity! Fear of the unknown!" The old man immediately cut her off. "Let me tell you, after practicing, I felt completely purified—I even think the voltage was too low!"

"..."

"Voltage too low?" Zheng Fa walked over carrying a large cardboard box: "Perfect—I just received a high-voltage DC power supply. Want to try it?"

"..."

Seeing the old man clamping his mouth shut, Zheng Fa shook his head, set down the box, and opened it.

Inside was a white metal casing.

With several small screens and buttons on top.

"What's the maximum voltage of this high-voltage DC power supply?"

"Up to 30 kV," Zheng Fa carefully read the manual.

"That voltage is too high... You really plan to use this?"

The old man's face showed a flicker of concern.

"I'll start low and gradually increase. If it gets too high, I'll stop. Could you help me adjust it later?"

The previous transformer's maximum output was only 300 V—no longer sufficient for Zheng Fa's cultivation of the Five Thunder Body.

This high-voltage DC power supply was, to Zheng Fa, like upgrading a spiritual treasure—mainly because adjustable high-voltage transformers were hard to buy, not because they couldn't be made, but because demand was low.

Zheng Fa asked several stores; either they had none, or they required custom orders.

He'd planned to commission one, but then discovered this high-voltage DC power supply.

So he simply bought it to test.

Zheng Fa put on the gloves, sat cross-legged on the chair, and turned to glance at the old man.

The old man nodded, turned on the power supply, and began adjusting the output voltage.

Soon, the screen displayed over 400 V.

The old man glanced at Zheng Fa.

Zheng Fa shook his head.

Zheng Fa's hands trembled slightly, yet he still shook his head.

At 1500 V.

Both the old man and Tang Lingwumin could hear Zheng Fa's teeth chattering.

"Higher... a bit higher."

Zheng Fa spoke with slurred speech.

When the voltage reached 2100 V, they finally saw Zheng Fa give a slight nod and sink into the cultivation of the Five Thunder Body.

"Grandpa Bai, I feel like Zheng Fa's been acting strange these past few days."

Watching Zheng Fa, Tang Lingwumin suddenly said.

"... ou noticed too?"

"What's wrong with him?"

"He's probably facing some serious trouble and is getting desperate."

The old man stroked his chin, speculating.

"Trouble?" Tang Lingwumin looked puzzled. "What kind of trouble?"

The old man glanced at the numbers on the screen, frowned, then suddenly said:

"When a man pushes himself this hard, there's usually only one reason..."

"What reason?"

"Heartbreak!"

"?"

In Zheng Fa's inner vision:

His bones trembled, undergoing miraculous changes.

As powerful current surged through him, the surface of his bones inevitably blackened, as if carbonized by instantaneous high heat.

The next moment, his spiritual power flowed according to the Five Thunder Body, slowly nourishing these charred areas.

Gradually, tiny golden sparks began to flicker within the blackness.

At first, the gold was faint, like inconspicuous cracks against the darkness.

Then, the gold slowly spread, forming a dense web of filaments.

Finally, the black was entirely covered—Zheng Fa's bones now bore a golden film.

He slowly opened his eyes.

The old man and Tang Lingwumin stared at him, tense.

"How is it?"

"Success!"

With the appearance of the golden film, Zheng Fa knew—he had achieved the third layer of the Five Thunder Body: Bone Forging.

The old man and Tang Lingwumin exchanged glances, their faces lighting up with joy.

Zheng Fa rose from the chair and carefully sensed his body.

He felt something had changed, but couldn't say exactly what.

"Huh? Did you grow taller?"

The old man said, holding his palm flat against his forehead, then comparing it to Zheng Fa; after checking, he nodded:

"You definitely grew taller."

Zheng Fa froze, walked to the bathroom, and stood before the mirror.

He had changed greatly.

Before practicing the Spirit Crane Body, Zheng Fa wasn't short, but he was thin, looking like a child who'd suffered from malnutrition.

Since beginning martial and immortal cultivation, his appearance had gradually transformed.

His skin improved.

His body also became stronger.

But a person's body proportions—such as the ratio of head to shoulders, or legs to torso—are hard to alter naturally.

Zheng Fa's former body proportions were merely average.

But now…

He looked at himself in the mirror.

His legs seemed a bit longer, his shoulders a bit wider.

He radiated an unusually harmonious beauty.

"Come on, let me measure you!"

The old white-haired man walked in holding a soft tape measure; he too had noticed the change and was curiously measuring Zheng Fa all over.

Tang Lingwumin watched with bright eyes.

After finishing, the old man silently calculated once, then suddenly said: "This cultivation method… really turned you into the golden ratio?"

"…"

"Any other changes elsewhere?"

The old man asked eagerly.

"Why are you so curious about this?"

"Aren't I also practicing the Five Thunder Body Method?"

"…"

"Why don't you take off and let me measure you?"

"I have something to do…"

Watching Zheng Fa flee in panic, the old man looked slightly disappointed; he turned and noticed Tang Lingwumin still staring at Zheng Fa's retreating back.

"What are you staring at?"

"His legs… no, I wasn't staring at anything."

"Tsk." The old man shot her a sidelong glance, clicking his tongue.

"Grandpa Bai, what are you doing?"

"I'm thinking this kid, now that he's turned out like this, will never have trouble with heartbreak."

…

"Cultivation is like a controllable evolution of life."

After confirming his physical changes, Zheng Fa and the old man discussed it.

"Evolution of life…" Tang Lingwumin, listening nearby, suddenly slapped her forehead as if remembering something: "I found something earlier!"

"What?"

"Follow me!"

Tang Lingwumin dashed out of the room.

Zheng Fa and the old man exchanged a glance and followed her outside.

It was an open patch of ground.

Tang Lingwumin had said earlier that the purchased garden plants had arrived and been arranged here to conceal their whereabouts.

Thus, the area had been kept clean.

Zheng Fa had once cultivated the Spirit Mountain Method right here.

"Look!"

Tang Lingwumin pointed to the corner.

Zheng Fa and the old man looked over and saw a few weeds growing there—likely left uncleaned by the workers.

"What's special about this?"

The old man asked.

"These weeds are different!" Tang Lingwumin declared firmly: "I checked the surrounding area—same species, but these few are taller and larger."

"…"

Zheng Fa and the old man exchanged a glance and immediately understood Tang Lingwumin's implication.

They leaned in to closely examine the unnamed little weeds before them.

Then they fetched several similar-looking plants for comparison.

They were different.

Overall, the ones growing here were sturdier, with larger, greener leaves and deeper root systems.

"Is this… a mutation under spiritual energy conditions?"

The old man voiced Zheng Fa's guess.

Zheng Fa nodded slightly.

Same hillside, nearly identical environment, same species.

The only difference was that he had continuously cultivated the Spirit Mountain Method here—this spot had likely been bathed in the spiritual energy he emitted.

"In such a short time… could such obvious changes occur?"

The old man frowned: "I don't know if this change is good or bad. You must be careful when cultivating the Spirit Mountain Method going forward."

"…Hmm."

"We need an agriculture expert here!"

The old man muttered as if absentmindedly.

"…"

"Who do we know who specializes in this?"

Seeing they didn't answer, the old man added again.

"…You're thinking of Teacher Tian," Zheng Fa said, shaking his head.

"That's right—Teacher Tian messaged me two days ago…" Tang Lingwumin suddenly pulled out her phone: "I told her I was in Jingcheng, and she invited me to her house for dinner."

"I told her I was in Jingcheng too!" The old man blinked, seemingly incredulous: "Why didn't she invite me?"

"…"

"…How is it we don't know any agriculture experts?"

After a moment of silence, the old man asked again.

As if forgetting an old woman surnamed Tian.