[Congratulations on learning the Axe Fighting Technique to the master stage (yellow)] —> Perfection Realm. 2000 Exp]

[Deadly Strike (Mortal grade) Has Leveled up —> Killer Move (Yellow Grade)]

[Reward — 125 Exp]

[Silent Steps (Mortal Grade) has levelled up —> Vanishing Step. Who’s There? (Yellow Grade)]

[Reward — 125 Exp]

[Axe Fighting Technique and Heavy Axe Slash have merged to create the Mountain Cleaving Axe — Profound grade technique.]

[Reward — 500 Exp]

"System... just how many functions are there to you that I do not know about?" Forget about merging techniques; he did not even know that he could upgrade them.

It happened while he was fighting the great wolf. He had managed to push his body to the limit and enter a partial state of selflessness.

That enlightened zone was enough for him to understand the deepest meaning of the cultivation techniques he was using.

But he did not expect that the system would help upgrade them.

"No wonder new information came into my mind out of nowhere in the middle of the battle. So, it was you." Shen Yuan sighed and leaned back into the barrel.

[A New Notification]

[You Have reached the Peak of The Body Tempering Realm.]

[A Reward Is being Issued For The Great Performance.]

[System Function — I Am Not Ready Yet — has been activated.]

[Explanation — Just like a shy maiden, if you are not ready to break through the next realm, you can wait until you are ready.]

This function was the reason Shen Yuan did not hesitate to learn a new technique while he was near the peak of the current realm and had yet to attain the appropriate attributes he wanted before the breakthrough.

"With this, I can continue to temper my body while gathering Exp for the next great realm." Shen Yuen waved his fingers in the air, and the screen panel changed.

[Name: Shen Yuan]

Age: 16

Level: 10/10 (Late Stage of body Tempering ) XP: 55,650/50,000

[Do You want to Break Through The Next Major Realm?] [y/n]

[Techniques Comprehended: Expand>]

[Strength (STR): 92

Agility (AGI): 95

Dexterity (DEX): 96

Physique (PHY): 100 ]

Shen Yuan looked down, and the Dragon Bone Paste on his body had already been absorbed by him completely, leaving a foggy water. ’Why did it take less time than before?’

The veins beneath his skin had become slightly more distinct; his muscles felt tighter.

More refined.

Yet...

"Why is the boost to the attributes less than before?"

Shen Yuan clenched his fist.

Compared to the very first time he had used the Dragon Bone Paste, the improvement this time was nowhere near as obvious.

Back then, every application felt like he had shed an old layer of skin.

His strength had exploded.

Now...

It was only a slight improvement.

He frowned.

"...Why?"

For a moment, Shen Yuan considered whether the medicine itself had degraded.

But he quickly shook his head.

Impossible.

The Dragon Bone Paste had been stored inside the inventory, and the system preserved everything in perfect condition. There was no way its medicinal properties could have weakened.

"Then..."

"...is it my body?"

He thought about the Divine fruit he had consumed. Maybe it was because of that his body did not grow strong so easily.

Or maybe there was another reason.

But for all he knew, he had to use up everything he had. What mattered—

"...is squeezing every last bit of value out of it."

He climbed out of the bathtub. The medicinal water dripping from his body had already lost most of its colour.

Shen Yuan casually wrung the excess water from his hair before walking toward the scar-faced wolf without dressing himself up.

The beast lazily opened one eye. It had already recovered considerably after resting for so long.

Without saying anything, Shen Yuan reached into his inventory.

A One-Star medicinal herb appeared in his hand.

"Catch."

He tossed it.

The wolf’s ears instantly stood upright.

Snap!

The herb disappeared into its mouth before it even touched the ground.

Crunch.

Crunch.

The wolf swallowed it in only a few bites. Its body immediately began absorbing the medicinal energy.

The remaining fatigue in its muscles gradually disappeared. Several shallow wounds finished healing before Shen Yuan’s eyes.

Within minutes...

The beast had recovered to its peak condition once again.

Shen Yuan smiled. "Good."

He picked up the axe lying beside the barrel.

"Round two."

The wolf slowly stood up. Its silver-grey eyes narrowed. The black flame-like fur along its spine flickered softly.

Without any warning—

Boom!

The wolf shot forward.

And thus continued the cycle of Shen Yuan using the scar-faced wolf like a tool for tempering his body. Once he was unable to move, he would drag his body into the bath tub with his leftover will and take a bath.

The whole ordeal went on and on three more times.

The time passed so quickly that Shen Yuan did not even realise when it was the morning of the next day when he was still sleeping in the barrel of his last bath.

"...ummm." When he groggily woke up, Shen Yuan instinctively popped up the status screen like he did after each bath.

As he had expected, there was no boost to his stats this time.

[Strength (STR): 97

Agility (AGI): 98

Dexterity (DEX): 100

Physique (PHY): 100 ]

"I have completely squeezed the use of Dragon Bone Paste." Shen Yuan jumped out of the barrel and dressed himself up.

He turned to look at his punchba— Ahem! Friend. The wolf who had helped him achieve this stage.

The scar-faced beast was lying not far away from him like it had been killed. Its tongue was out of its mouth, touching the ground; its body was covered in bruises and cuts.

Despite it being the same level as before, the beast posed a little challenge to Shen Yuan now.

"Here, you should use it." Shen Yuan took out one of the 2 Star herbs in his possession and threw it to the wolf. "This is for all your troubles. If you help me, I might just give you more in the future."

Shen Yuan watched the wolf running around the 2-star her like it had found its lost wedding ring.

It was so excited that it did not even notice when Shen Yuan had disappeared from its sight and found the conspicuous corner in the area where the qi had gathered the most. "It is about time I clean up some of the trash."