As the black symbols in his palm shifted, a thick, jet-black book appeared in Zhang Yu's hands.
"The Book of Yu?"
Looking at the two large characters on the cover, Zhang Yu was slightly taken aback.
Then, with a thought, the black book in his hand opened to the first page without any wind.
"This is the table of contents, right?"
Looking at the table of contents, apart from the first line, the prologue, the rest was filled with blurry, illegible text, as if it were coded.
Zhang Yu thought, "Does this mean there's only the prologue so far?"
With a thought, he opened the prologue. Before him appeared a portrait on the left page and lines of data and information on the right.
"Is this a drawing of me?"
The portrait on the left page depicted Zhang Yu sitting cross-legged, eyes gently closed, as if in meditation.
His expression was so lifelike that it felt as if the figure in the painting was still breathing.
Especially the faint glow flowing within it, which Zhang Yu felt represented the flow of magical power within his body.
On the right side of the page were lines of data and information:
Zhang Yu
Dao Heart Level 1
Magic Power 7.7
Physical Strength Level 0.83
Martial Arts: Thirty-Six Body-Building Forms Level 1, Freehand Combat Level 1
Daoist Techniques: Basic Breathing Techniques Level 1, Basic Heart-Refining Techniques Level 1
"This is me?"
"The above are the data for various immortal attributes. The Dao Heart level here is like the tests in school; it can't be accurate to the decimal point."
"Below are the martial arts and Daoist techniques I've currently learned?"
Of the four skills below, besides the Thirty-Six Body-Building Forms used to improve physical strength, there's Freehand Combat learned in martial arts class to train combat skills, the Basic Breathing Techniques for refining magical power learned in magic power class, and the Basic Heart-Refining Techniques used to improve Dao Heart—all at the beginner level 1.
Looking at the numbers, Zhang Yu thought to himself, "This is the potential unleashed by the evil god? This book can detect all my attributes?"
"But... it shouldn't be just that, right?"
"According to the evil god, it has unleashed my potential, but what kind of potential is this just detection? I can test it every day at school."
"There must be other uses."
Thinking this, Zhang Yu decided to test it. He focused his attention on the attribute numbers and mentally shouted, "Yu Book! Add points!"
Looking at the unchanging data in the book, Zhang Yu sighed inwardly, "This evil god is really useless; it hasn't unleashed my potential at all."
Trying to turn to the next page, he found it simply said, "To be continued."
Considering the content that hadn't yet appeared in the table of contents, Zhang Yu wondered, "What does this mean? Can this ability be upgraded? And only after upgrading can I unlock the later functions?"
He could only flip back to the previous pages, repeatedly focusing his attention on his data and skills, to see if it would trigger any effects.
Just as he focused his attention on the "Thirty-Six Forms of Fitness, Level 1," he suddenly felt the words twitch slightly, then were dragged around the pages according to his will.
As Zhang Yu dragged "Thirty-Six Forms of Fitness, Level 1" across the pages, wondering what its purpose was,
the text suddenly froze upon touching the portrait, absorbed directly by the Zhang Yu in the painting.
With this absorption, Zhang Yu felt as if a clear spring had poured down upon the top of his head, an indescribable feeling welling up within him, making him feel a strange connection with the Zhang Yu in the portrait.
At the same time, the portrait, which had been sitting cross-legged, suddenly stood up and began to practice the Thirty-Six Forms of Fitness, one move at a time.
Above the portrait, a line of small characters appeared: Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening, Level 1
Looking at the small '+' at the end, Zhang Yu suddenly became excited: "It's here! It's here! My potential has truly been unleashed!"
His attention quickly focused on the '+', feeling as if he had pressed it with his thoughts.
The next moment, the '+' blurred slightly before transforming into '(0/10)'.
Then, a sudden realization arose in Zhang Yu's mind: Practicing the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening ten times will upgrade his martial arts level.
Looking at 'Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening, Level 1 (0/10)' on the Yu Book, Zhang Yu exclaimed in surprise: "Practicing it ten times will upgrade this martial art?"
Since the start of the semester, Zhang Yu had practiced the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening countless times, but he had never felt any sense of upgrading.
"Ten times?"
Zhang Yu couldn't wait to try. He took a step forward, and with a loud bang, his flesh and blood twisted like a giant python, bursting forth with layers of power.
Although Zhang Yu used equipment when practicing the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening at school, it was only to enhance the training effect.
In reality, the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening, as the most basic body-refining martial art, can be practiced with or without equipment. Furthermore, practitioners can focus on different aspects according to their own preferences, such as strength, speed, and agility.
For example, Zhang Yu originally chose a balanced development of strength and speed, avoiding becoming a bulky figure.
Now, Zhang Yu moved back and forth in the small room, his feet pounding the floor with loud thuds, his flesh and blood gradually heating up as it expanded and contracted.
Before he could even practice a few moves, a chorus of curses erupted around him: "Are you crazy?! Demolishing a house in the middle of the night?!"
Zhang Yu immediately stopped, thinking helplessly, "The soundproofing in this rented room is terrible; I can't practice martial arts at night."
Looking at the Yu Shu (a martial arts manual) appearing in his palm, Zhang Yu couldn't suppress his urge to practice. He just wanted to immediately unleash his full power, practicing the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening ten times in one go to see the effect.
"Should we go somewhere else?"
"I remember there's an abandoned, unfinished building nearby..."
...
In the darkness.
Thump, thump, thump echoed continuously in the stairwell of the abandoned building.
Amidst the flashing neon lights of the distant street, the figure of a young man occasionally appeared in the shadows.
It was Zhang Yu, who had come to the abandoned building to practice the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening.
At this moment, his gaze was serious as he practiced each move of the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening. After a short while, he was drenched in sweat, looking extremely hot. Zhang Yu had already trained all morning, collapsing from exhaustion on the ground. Without the aid of injections, pills, or dietary supplements, practicing the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening made his entire body feel weak and sore; every movement and every exertion brought a tearing pain to his muscles.
However, thinking of the changes in the Body Strengthening Manual, his spirits lifted, and he persevered, completing one round of the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening.
Panting heavily, Zhang Yu eagerly opened his palms, and the Body Strengthening Manual reappeared with his thoughts.
Looking at the 'Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening Level 1 (1/10)', a hint of joy appeared on Zhang Yu's face.
"Is this my potential?"
"Raising the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening to Level 2...it seems really possible."
"I'm going to practice it ten times tonight!"
Zhang Yu eagerly began the second round of the Thirty-Six Forms of Body Strengthening.
But after a short while, he collapsed to the ground, feeling as if his hands and feet no longer belonged to him.
"I can't go on, I've reached my limit. Looks like I'll have to try again tomorrow."
Just as Zhang Yu decided to stop training, rest, and go home for a good night's sleep, a chill suddenly surged through him.
At the same time, a voice echoed in his mind.
"Please abide by the ritual's agreement, strive to fulfill your wish, and do not deliberately slack off or procrastinate, 10."
"Please abide by the ritual's agreement, strive to fulfill your wish, and do not deliberately slack off or procrastinate, 9."
"Please abide by the ritual's agreement, strive to fulfill your wish, and do not deliberately slack off or procrastinate, 8."
As the voice's countdown continued, the chill in Zhang Yu's heart grew more intense, as if something was about to burst forth from his body, tearing his flesh and blood apart.
"Ritual...agreement...a wish..." He immediately realized, "Could this be the power of that summoning-the-gods ritual?"
The words the rag doll had spoken immediately flashed through Zhang Yu's mind.
...
"If you choose to refuse to fulfill my wish, or deliberately delay or even fail in the process, you will be torn apart by the backlash of the ritual, your flesh and blood exploding and your soul scattered."
...
Zhang Yu thought to himself, "So... it's because I plan to study hard, get into a prestigious university, join a major sect, and earn money to fulfill my second wish."
"Then, if I slack off during this process, it will be considered as deliberately being lazy and delaying in fulfilling my wish?"
"If I don't listen, am I going to die from the backlash of the ritual?"
Hearing the countdown had unknowingly reached 3, Zhang Yu jumped up.
With a scream, he endured the excruciating pain of his muscles tearing apart and began practicing the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms.
And the moment he began practicing, the countdown completely vanished.