Chapter 946

That familiar yet even more violent pain, as if the very essence of life were being forcibly pried open and reshaped, erupted instantly from the deepest part of every cell!

Muscle fibers were no longer simply expanding; it was as if they possessed their own consciousness, writhing, bulging, and contracting violently beneath his skin, crazily dividing, reorganizing, and optimizing their structure. Their density and toughness increased geometrically, and every bundle of muscle was rewoven, containing explosive power, with the contours and lines becoming clearer and sharper.

From within his bones came dense, crisp sounds like rain beating on glass and low rumbles like rolling thunder, as if countless tiny hammers were forging inside. The depths of his bone marrow seemed to be boiling, and the microscopic structure of his bones was completely shattered and then rearranged, evolving toward a non-human realm that was lighter, tougher, and harder; he could even feel that his height seemed to have increased by an imperceptible amount.

The sound of his heartbeat was as heavy as the pulse of an ancient giant beast, and every contraction pumped out blood that was nearly scalding; the throbbing sound was clearly audible in the cramped bathroom.

The speed and power of the blood rushing through his blood vessels surged, and the sound of it washing against the vessel walls was like a river bursting its banks; his entire skin was flushed with a faint, lava-like red glow because of this.

This pain did not only act upon his flesh, but also seemed to touch the soul level; it was a torture that tore apart his old form, brought about by the forced leap in his life level.

His nerves felt as if they were being repeatedly pierced by billions of tiny needles, and also as if they were being scorched on a raging fire.

Natsume Chikage was covered in bean-sized beads of sweat with a faint grayish-black hue; the speed at which these sweat beads rolled down seemed to have slowed, dragging clear trajectories across his skin.

He bit his teeth together tightly, the friction of his teeth making a "clacking" sound, the veins on his forehead and neck bulging like coiled dragons, his fingernails digging deeply into his palms, leaving pale, crescent-shaped marks. The world before his eyes completely lost focus, distorted, and turned into a chaotic vortex of colors in the extreme agony, and in his ears, there was nothing left but his own heavy, bellows-like gasping and the roar of rushing blood.

But relying on his tenacious willpower, he held onto a single point of clarity in his mind, forcibly enduring this wave of transformation that would have caused an ordinary person's mind to collapse.

The pain came quickly, and it disappeared just as quickly.

Like a tsunami passing through, it retreated rapidly after its violent rampage.

As this wave of violent evolution gradually subsided, the heart-wrenching pain dissipated rapidly like a receding tide.

Replacing it was an indescribable sense of extreme pleasure and lightness that welled up from the depths of his genes and the origin of his soul, as if he had broken free from countless layers of invisible, heavy shackles, his body so light that it seemed he could float away with the wind.

His five senses' acuity took another leap.

He could even clearly "hear" the rustling sound of his younger sister's pen tip sliding across paper in the next room, could "smell" every tiny fragrance component in the shower gel scent floating in the air, and could "feel" the coldness of sweat beads winding their way down his skin.

Every water droplet flowing and falling from the showerhead, the arc it traced in the air, and the speed of its descent all seemed to be slowed down in his eyes, with their trajectories clearly visible.

At the same time, he lowered his head to look at his own body.

The surface of his body was covered with a layer of stratum corneum that was significantly thicker than last time, with a texture like semi-solidified amber, grayish-white and dull in color, clinging tightly to his skin, like an old shell that had been worn for too long, grown together with his flesh and blood, and was about to be discarded; it felt like rough, dry leather to the touch.

He stretched out his finger and scraped lightly along his arm.

This layer of "old shell" made a slight "crackling" sound like dry leaves breaking, curling up and peeling off in large patches, with the edges rolled.

The newborn skin exposed to the humid air was fair to the point of being nearly transparent, smooth and delicate like the finest mutton-fat jade, faintly glowing with a warm, healthy luster like jade, with almost no visible pores, and the pale blue veins beneath the skin were clearly visible, full of vigorous vitality.

Looking at the large piece of shed "old skin" he held in his hand, which almost covered his entire forearm, Natsume Chikage's eyes were filled with shock and contemplation.

After tearing off all the shed skin, he pinched his body.

He discovered that the toughness of his skin had become much stronger.

And even if he used a little force, it didn't hurt much.

Clearly, it was much tougher than it looked on the surface.

With a slight clench, his body seemed to have gained quite a bit of strength as well.

And because of this.

Natsume Chikage fell into deeper contemplation.

Every increase in Constitution was like an active, violent "molting," an intuitive manifestation of his life form evolving toward a higher level and a more perfect state!

It was as if he were shedding his mundane old self, full of flaws and impurities, layer by layer, climbing arduously and firmly toward some indescribable, purer, and more powerful "perfect life template."

However, at the very least, it was certain that the benefits brought by this evolution were real—he was becoming stronger, faster, and healthier, with extraordinary five senses, quick reactions, and was becoming more and more... unlike a mortal.

Because his body was sticky and unbearable, Natsume Chikage stood up immediately and turned on the shower switch.

The warmer water surged down, bringing a subtle touch as it washed over his newborn skin, quickly washing away the filth, sweat, and fatigue from his entire body, and also washing away the last traces left by this leap in life.

After a simple yet thorough shower.

Natsume Chikage turned off the water and dried his body with a clean towel.

He stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom, which had some water stains, and quietly examined himself in the mirror.

In the mirror, his edges were blurred by the misty water vapor, but the contours of his face and body were exceptionally clear.

The "perfection" of his appearance had reached the boundary of human aesthetic imagination, and even slightly exceeded it; every proportion of his facial features strictly conformed to the golden ratio, yet when combined, there was no trace of artifice, only a natural, handsome quality.

The muscle lines of his body presented a golden ratio that combined a sense of explosive power with fluid aesthetics.

The biggest change was still concentrated in those eyes.

The color of his pupils seemed to be a bit deeper, and his gaze was extremely clear and transparent, yet bottomless, possessing a penetrating power that struck directly at the heart when meeting someone's eyes.

And the temperament surrounding him, after this improvement, became even more transcendent and ethereal.

Clearly standing in this cramped, steam-filled, ordinary bathroom, he gave people the illusion that he was independent of the world, as if he carried a soft halo that isolated him from the hustle and bustle, making the image in the mirror appear somewhat unreal, like a character who had stepped out of a scroll or a dream.

Natsume Chikage looked at himself in the mirror and couldn't help but be stunned; he could clearly see that he had become even more handsome than before, and that "non-human" sense of unreality had also increased.

But after thinking of something, his expression became strange, and he subconsciously called up the attribute panel that only he could see again.

【Constitution: 9】

【Charisma: 13】

When he saw that the Charisma value had indeed increased by one point along with it, a "just as I thought" expression appeared on his face, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly, and he remained silent for quite a while.

But he was already used to it, and even somewhat numb.

This was not a mechanism he could control at present; besides accepting it, there seemed to be no other way.

After these several experiences of increasing his Constitution attribute.

Natsume Chikage was now completely convinced... that there was a profound and direct positive correlation between the Constitution and Charisma attributes.

But this still required more attribute point increases and the collection of more data to see the clues more clearly.

Soon.

Natsume Chikage, having finished his shower and changed into clean loungewear, wiped his half-dry hair with a towel and left the bathroom.

Just as he walked out and stepped into the living room.

Natsume Ruri and Kaga Reina, who had been chatting in low voices and drawing manga, almost simultaneously and subconsciously raised their heads, looking toward the source of the sound.

The moment they saw Natsume Chikage, both of them couldn't help but be stunned in unison, as if they had been pressed with a pause button.

Natsume Ruri's eyes lit up instantly, as if she had discovered some treasure; she put down the manga draft in her hand, trotted over to her brother, tilted her little face up, blinked her big eyes to examine him carefully, and said happily:

"Brother! You came out after your shower... why do I feel like you seem to have become even more handsome!"

Kaga Reina's little heart, meanwhile, was beating uncontrollably, and her cheeks were stained with a crimson blush at a speed visible to the naked eye.

This made her already shy and weak-spirited face appear even more bashful and moving, like a ripe peach.

She didn't dare to lean in to look like Ruri, but only secretly glanced over with the corner of her eye, her fingers unconsciously twisting the corner of her clothes, but she still couldn't help but nod lightly, her voice as thin as a mosquito's.

"Um... I, I think so too... Chikage-brother, it seems... you look even better."

Natsume Chikage's expression was subtle; he coughed lightly twice, looked away, and tried to speak in a normal tone.

"It's just your imagination; I just finished showering, it's a lighting issue."

He walked naturally to his schoolbag, took out that slightly archaic "Midnight Diner Notes," and successfully changed the subject.

"By the way, Ruri, this is a recipe I got today from the owner of a restaurant that's about to go out of business; the content is very detailed, see if you're interested."

Natsume Ruri's attention was indeed instantly attracted, and she gave a surprised "Eh."

"A recipe?!"

She was in charge of the kitchen at home and had great enthusiasm for everything related to cooking; hearing this, she immediately stretched out both hands, holding the notebook in her hands as if receiving a treasure, her eyes shining brightly.

"Let me see!"

She couldn't wait to open the cover and began to observe it carefully.

And one of Kaga Reina's dreams was actually to be a virtuous wife and good mother, taking good care of her future family.

She knew that Natsume Chikage liked to eat, so she also secretly made up her mind to study cooking well, hoping to be able to make meals that he would like.

At this time, seeing Ruri looking at it intently, she also couldn't suppress her curiosity; she moved over from the other side, leaned close to Ruri, tilted her head slightly, and also looked at the content in the notebook seriously.

Natsume Ruri became more excited the more she looked, her little face full of eager expressions.

She slammed the notebook shut and said happily.

"Brother! The cooking steps and tips written on this are very useful; it feels much more detailed than ordinary recipes!"

"How about I make you a late-night snack from this right now? Just in time to try out the new techniques I learned!"

Natsume Chikage looked at her spirited appearance and nodded gently.

"Um, sure. But don't make it too complicated, something simple will do."

"I... I'll come help too."

Kaga Reina also stood up quickly, saying in a low but firm voice, wanting to participate as well.

And Natsume Chikage, taking advantage of the time they ran excitedly toward the kitchen, walked to the refrigerator and took out milk and papaya.

He carefully heated the milk in the microwave, preparing to boil a simple papaya milk, intending to nourish his younger sister's body.

As for Kaga Reina's portion...

He turned his head to look at Kaga Reina, who was helping to wash the papaya in the kitchen with a slender silhouette, his gaze lingering for 0.1 seconds on a certain overly prominent part of her body, and then he was slightly silent.