Chapter 4 System

The night veil slowly descended, and the icy moonlight filtered through the window, casting a glow over the room. Lying on the bed, Du Fei, who initially had his eyes closed, abruptly opened them and slowly sat up. During the day, after Little Ai returned, she mentioned that someone from the Du Family had sent a message. Since Du Fei had recovered, he was to attend the Du Family clan meeting in three days. Even though Little Ai didn't elaborate much, from her worried expression, Du Fei could guess that this clan meeting might decide their futures within the family! While Du Fei didn't feel much attachment to the Du Family, he was aware that if he recklessly left now, putting aside seeking revenge, they might not even be able to survive! Thus, no matter what, at the clan meeting, he needed to demonstrate his value, ensuring that the members of the Du Family were resolute in a certain decision. The best representation of this value would undoubtedly be through strength! Thinking of this, Du Fei clenched his teeth slightly and, after a moment, took off the jade amulet hanging on his chest and placed it before him. Under the moonlight, the smooth jade amulet emitted a faint icy glow, looking extraordinarily mystical. However, Du Fei was clear that if he wanted to access the information within the amulet, he would need at least the strength of the ninth stage of body-forging. Before reaching that, even thinking of observing the Du Family's Ice Heart Technique was out of the question. Yet, at this moment, Du Fei's focus was elsewhere. After reflecting for a day, he faintly recalled that when the so-called system was activated, he did use the Du Family's Ice Heart energy. Considering he definitely couldn't possess this energy in his body, the most probable source of it was the jade amulet, right? Furthermore, there was a high possibility that the so-called system existed within this jade amulet. After contemplating for a while, Du Fei reached out and gently caressed the amulet. As in previous years, it still felt incredibly cold to the touch, displaying no peculiar traits. After all, Du Fei had carried this jade amulet with him for years and was profoundly familiar with it. "Could it be... just like the things I've seen in my past life, this object requires a blood oath for recognition?" Thinking of this, Du Fei couldn't help but give a bitter smile. However, at the moment, he had no other options. After a thought, he bit his fingertip and smeared a trace of blood onto the jade amulet. But after applying the blood, there were no unusual changes to the amulet; it remained just as it always was. "Is it really like that..." Du Fei nodded slightly, murmuring after a short pause, "If I remember correctly, the last time the system activated, it was precisely when I faced a life-threatening situation. Could it be that the system will only activate under such circumstances again?" "It's worth a try!" With that thought, Du Fei, holding the jade amulet, jumped up, and after a quick scan of his surroundings, his gaze settled on a decorative long sword hung on the wall. "If my guess is correct, I can activate the system naturally. If I'm wrong and end up losing my life, then that's my fate. Instead of living in misery, it's better to risk it all! To find a glimmer of hope amidst imminent death!" Having made up his mind, Du Fei drew the long sword, chuckled softly, and without hesitation, thrust the blade towards his abdomen! "Beep...Low-level threat detected, endangering the safety of the host. System auto-starting, system auto-starting..." Right as the sword was about to pierce into his abdomen, the anticipated cold electronic voice indeed echoed in his mind, causing Du Fei to abruptly stop his action. Still, the blade managed to slice through the skin of his lower abdomen, leaving a deep bloody mark. However, at this moment, this cold electronic voice felt incredibly familiar and comforting to Du Fei! Even the wound on his abdomen seemed painless. "Hehehe..." Barely restraining his urge to burst into laughter, Du Fei whispered, "You finally showed up! System, what exactly are you?" "Beep...Insufficient data, unable to answer! Warning, massive blood loss detected in the host. Initiate medical procedure?" "Activate it!" With a somewhat curious tone, Du Fei responded softly. "Beep...Medical procedure activated, medical procedure activated, activation complete. Once the wound heals, the medical procedure will automatically deactivate." As the cold electronic voice resounded again, the bleeding from Du Fei's abdominal wound gradually stopped. Even the exposed flesh seemed to pale slightly. However, the wound didn't heal entirely on its own. Du Fei didn't seem to mind this. He casually found a medicinal plaster left behind by the pharmacist and bandaged the wound before sitting down again. After a brief moment of thought, he asked, "System, how do I summon you in the future? Also, why did I have Ice Heart Qi inside me that day?" "Beep, Answer to the first question, the system will appear once the master summons it in their mind, no need for actions like today. Answer to the second question, insufficient data, unclear answer. Would you like to ask again?" "Unclear again? What exactly is this system?" Du Fei furrowed his brows, "What can you do?" "Insufficient data, unable to answer." "Ugh..." Du Fei was left speechless for a moment. Although this so-called system initiated a medical procedure right from the start, its consistent lack of answers was completely beyond his expectations. Had he placed too much hope on this mysterious and unreliable system? "So, is there any way for me to cultivate martial arts?" With a hint of curiosity and hope, Du Fei still posed the question that concerned him the most. "System searching, question acknowledged, answer unclear..." "Just as I thought..." Du Fei sighed deeply. "Beep..." After a short pause, the buzzing noise resounded in his mind again, sending a chill down Du Fei's spine, "The master's body is weak, and meridians are obstructed. It's confirmed that you cannot cultivate martial arts..." "Is there really no way then?" "Beep...Question unclear, system still searching...beep...Reference material found, would you like to read?" "Just show me." At this point, Du Fei had little hope for this unreliable system and responded almost subconsciously. "Permission granted, loading data, beginning reading..." "Ding..." While Du Fei was still perplexed, suddenly, a pitch-black space emerged within his mind, sending a chill that reached his bones, as if he was truly standing within that space. But this feeling was fleeting. Shortly after, Du Fei "saw" within this dark space a silhouette emitting a faint glow, slowly moving. The silhouette's movements were extremely peculiar and gentle, reminiscent of someone strolling in a garden. However, having been born into a martial family and exposed to martial arts, Du Fei had keen eyesight. In just a brief moment, he recognized that the figure was performing a set of Body-forging Fist techniques. Even though it was completely different from the popular body-forging techniques in Xuanwu Continent, this strange method gave Du Fei a feeling that perhaps he could also cultivate it! The method of body-forging is also called Body-forging Fist. On the Xuanwu Continent, if one wished to cultivate martial arts, they first needed to forge their body. However, body-forging is different from martial cultivation. Martial cultivation emphasizes the absorption of atmospheric Qi to form true Qi in a mysterious manner. In contrast, body-forging is much more mundane. Generally speaking, every major clan and sect on the continent has their own inherited Body-forging Fist technique. No matter the quality of these techniques, they all share a commonality, they emphasize intense and fierce movements aiming for invincibility. Hence, when practicing these techniques, great emphasis is placed on physical training. Starting with the skin, then bones, and finally the meridians, through such cyclic and progressive strengthening, when one reaches a certain level of intensity, particularly at the seventh level of body-forging, the body will naturally produce true breath. This continuous process of strengthening the body is called body-forging. However, even the most basic body-forging technique has a fundamental requirement: a strong body with unobstructed meridians! Because if this isn't the case, during the body-forging process, one's blood flow will be impeded and Qi circulation will be blocked. Forget reaching the ninth level of body-forging, the cultivator might face dire consequences before even making any progress. Nevertheless, on the Xuanwu Continent, the majority of people can undergo body-forging. Although many are stuck at the sixth level, they can still cultivate to some extent. For someone like Du Fei, who couldn't even achieve the first level of body-forging, he was deemed a so-called 'waste'. Although Du Fei had been unwilling to accept this since he was a child, Du Tian had sought many body-forging techniques for him to cultivate. But no matter which method, Du Fei had to give up when he reached the first level. This was because, if he continued cultivating, he might end up completely paralyzed and become a true good-for-nothing. However, the Body-forging Fist that now appeared in Du Fei's mind gave him a refreshing feeling. If it's said that the general Body-forging Fist techniques cultivated from the outside in, then the cultivation method of this Body-forging Fist worked from the inside out. Although the chances were slim, if he started cultivating from the meridians, could he possibly succeed? "It's worth a try!" Du Fei subconsciously licked his lips. His entire focus was drawn into this gentle Body-forging Fist technique. Unknowingly, his body began to move, mirroring the ethereal figure, executing this incredibly gentle Body-forging Fist...