The gentle breeze from the surrounding air conditioning units seemed to transform into a biting wind.
His body’s muscles began to tremble uncontrollably due to the excessive cold.
However, Hu Qi’s expression remained calm.
Thanks to the characteristics of various Fighting Techniques layered upon his body, this level of cold couldn't make him flinch.
Time passed.
Inside the cage in the corner.
The Zhangcha Duck was lowering its head, motionless, as if asleep.
Suddenly.
—Quack! Quack!
It seemed to sense a dangerous aura that startled it awake, and it abruptly opened its eyes, looking towards Hu Qi’s location.
In the center of the room.
Hu Qi stood motionless, the hair on his head seemingly covered in a layer of white frost.
The next moment.
His expression changed.
He felt as if.
Suddenly, countless hot spots rose from the soles of his feet.
This sensation was somewhat similar to having numb feet from standing too long, yet also subtly different.
He could clearly feel the sensation in his limbs, without any numbness.
He had experienced this feeling before, but never as intensely as this time.
Soon, these hot spots grew more numerous, converging into two thin streams of heat, each as fine as a strand of hair.
They then slowly moved upwards from the soles of his feet.
However, upon reaching his knees, they abruptly stopped.
As if encountering some obstruction, the original heat flow began to recede.
Noticing this.
Hu Qi’s heart stirred, and his figure moved, his palm forming a claw, his steps moving forward, like a nimble snake swimming.
He began to practice the moving stake: Snake Form Stake.
Accompanied by the Snake Form breathing method, he continuously practiced the Snake Form Stake.
The heat flow, which had stopped growing at his knees and even showed signs of decreasing, suddenly changed.
It seemed to regain momentum, slowly continuing forward, at a very slow pace, like a snail crawling.
But it was indeed moving.
After a while, the heat flow passed through his lower abdomen and finally converged in his chest.
At this moment, he could clearly feel that once this heat flow reached this location.
His heart rate noticeably began to increase.
Thump, thump, thump!
He seemed to hear the continuous thumping sound of his heart.
His blood and that heat, after being transformed by it.
Began to differentiate, following a specific path, at an extremely slow speed, gently flowing towards all his limbs and bones.
Slowly.
A warmth filled Hu Qi’s entire body.
He felt as if he was immersed in a hot spring, exceptionally comfortable.
Not only that.
The frost on his hair and body visibly melted, dissipating into wisps of white steam.
Regarding this situation.
Hu Qi dared not be careless.
Practicing the Snake Form Stake, with a clear mind, he concentrated on controlling the heat flow within his body.
As time went on.
After these heat flows circulated throughout his body according to a specific trajectory, they re-converged towards his chest.
Subsequently, this was repeated several times.
This originally thin and weak heat flow seemed to become denser, allowing Hu Qi to control it with greater ease.
It was only at this moment.
That he stopped his movements.
In an instant.
The heat flow within his body diminished somewhat.
Although it still existed, it was no longer as active as before.
“Qi and Blood Power generated, it’s done!”
A smile appeared on Hu Qi’s face.
He looked at the panel.
— — — —
【Snake Form Stake (Beginner) △】
… …
【Modification Value: 7 (98%)】
The Snake Form Stake had clearly reached the Beginner Rank.
And the Modification Value had not increased much due to the Zhangcha Duck’s laziness these past few days.
“scarlet, modify, upgrade Snake Form Stake to the third layer!”
Seeing the triangular rune behind it that indicated upgradable modification.
Hu Qi did not hesitate in the slightest.
He directly moved his thoughts slightly.
Focusing his mind, he clicked on it, imagining it directly upgrading to the third layer.
Buzz!
The next moment, the panel vibrated slightly, showing a response.
The number in the Modification Value column began to decrease.
And the scarlet characters representing 【Snake Form Stake】 began to twist and blur.
At the same time.
That trace of Qi and Blood Power that had been dormant within his body.
As if having consumed a powerful tonic, surged from his chest, rapidly expanding a large circle, and began to flow continuously according to its previous trajectory.
Heat, an astonishing heat flow erupted from Hu Qi’s body.
As the Qi and Blood Power circulated, his body was like boiling hot oil.
His skin surface rapidly turned scarlet.
His entire being was like a cooked shrimp.
From his pores, even faint white smoke rose.
It was as if a bonfire had spontaneously ignited in the room.
This situation did not last long; after only ten seconds, this anomaly receded, as if everything before was merely an illusion.
He looked down.
On the surface of his skin, a layer of dark brown dirt had appeared.
Accompanying it was a faint, foul odor.
“Are these the Impurities expelled from the body after entering the first transformation of Qi and Blood Power?”
Hu Qi frowned.
He recalled what Wang Luo had said earlier regarding the Martial Artist Rank divisions.
After Qi and Blood Power is generated, and the Snake Form Stake enters the first layer, it is the first transformation, and it will expel Impurities from the body.
The Snake Form Stake is divided into nine layers in total.
Layers one to three belong to the first transformation of Qi and Blood Power.
Layers four to six are the second transformation of Qi and Blood Power.
Layers seven to nine are the final third transformation.
After entering the first transformation of Qi and Blood Power, Qi and Blood Power is self-generated, and can be used as easily as an arm directs a finger; a single thought can make it spread throughout the body, strengthening one's power and speed.
In addition, his bodily senses seemed to become more acute.
Thinking of this.
He got up and went to the bathroom.
Just as he picked up the showerhead, he heard a click.
Looking down, the stainless steel showerhead in his hand had been directly crushed and dented by him.
Hu Qi was only stunned for a moment before he reacted.
This should be due to him directly upgrading the Snake Form Stake to the third layer.
The sudden surge of strength in his body.
Made it so he couldn’t adapt to it for a while.
Subsequently.
He could only use the overhead showerhead to clean himself.
It took a lot of shower gel to wash off the filth on his body.
This kind of substance only appears during the first transformation of Qi and Blood Power; afterwards, it will become less and less.
Although it is called Impurities, how could the human body possibly have so many Impurities?
Most of it is excess oil forced out by the boiling high temperature within the body after the first transformation of Qi and Blood Power.
After washing it off.
The biggest change was that Hu Qi’s skin became somewhat lighter.
The original owner’s skin, which was slightly rough from years of exposure to wind and rain, now looked finer and fairer, and his pores had also shrunk slightly.
Wiping the water off his body.
He walked to the mirror and wiped away a layer of steam from it.
Revealing the reflection of his figure.
It was a strong, tall young man.
The young man was wrapped in a white bath towel below his waist.
The edge of the bath towel was slightly damp, clinging tightly to his strong and powerful waistline.
His upper body was bare, every muscle seemingly meticulously sculpted, with distinct and prominent contours.
His shoulders were broad, his chest firm and slightly undulating, like a sculpture.
Compared to before, his physique seemed to lean more towards perfection.
He closed his eyes and felt it for a moment.
The few streams of heat within his body, which were originally only as thick as a strand of hair, had, at some unknown point, transformed into the thickness of a toothpick.
Not only that.
Hu Qi raised his palm.
His thoughts guided the heat flow to converge in his palm.
In an instant.
Visibly.
His entire arm’s skin turned scarlet, engorged with blood, and expanded by a whole circle.
He raised his hand and pressed it against the mirror in front of him.
Crack, crack…
After his palm pressed against the mirror on the wall, the mirror directly shattered, and even the adjacent tiled wall showed fine cracks, revealing the cement wall underneath.