With prior experience that he had, it wasn't that big of a deal. However, when he tried to circulate it through his meridians to nourish the body, he realized he couldn't—the meridians which were once as wide as roaring rivers were inexplicably blocked.
Without even realizing, the face of a woman giggling innocently appeared in his head.
Although he had no proof, Lin Huang knew that it had something to do with her.
"No wonder she left me to die. If I couldn't even cultivate, she had nothing to worry about."
At this point, the despair that he was holding back reached its peak. He saw no way out of his situation.
Unconsciously he clenched his fist tightly and thought to himself: Is this the end?
Although he asked this question, Lin Huang already had his answer.
It was at this time, he heard a gentle voice echo right beside his ears:
"Young man, don't give up so easily..."
It was Wang Chen who had spoken. He had a carefree smile on his face, as if he could see right through Lin Huang's thoughts.
Just as Lin Huang was feeling confused, Wang Chen continued:
"These days I have been observing, and to be honest, your dedication impressed me."
"As such, I have decided to give you a chance. Young man, are you willing to become my disciple?"
Lin Huang was stunned for a moment, countless questions popping in his head. However, his body had moved on its own.
Thud!
"Disciple Lin Huang greets the Master!"
Next moment his forehead hit the ground.
Although there were questions in his mind, this time they didn't matter. If someone who thought he couldn't even cultivate was worth teaching, he had no face to reject such a person.
Wang Chen watched his disciple while sipping tea, a look of satisfaction falling in his eyes. However, it was only for a brief moment—Lin Huang was unable to notice at all.
With that, the next moment his expression turned slightly solemn.
Lin Huang could also seem to have sensed the change in his master and as such he sat up respectfully.
"Little Huang, although teacher helped you once, you have to fight your battles yourself. Teacher can only make sure that no senior bullies the junior."
"Blood Fang Gang had been searching through the Imperial City intently, and it's just a matter of time before they find out we're here."
"And right now you are too weak to face them."
As Lin Huang listened to his teacher speak respectfully, his expression turned shameful. Just before he could get lost in his own thoughts:
"From today onward, every day in the morning, you would have to do three things:"
"Ten kilometer run."
"Hundred push-ups and hundred sit-ups, without missing a single day."
Lin Huang's face turned even more confused with each passing moment. He didn't understand why his teacher asked him to do these mundane things, but he didn't refuse.
As a disciple, he had to follow the teacher's words without questioning.
After all, as the saying went: A teacher for a day, father for the lifetime.
Wang Chen saw his reaction and inwardly chuckled. "Underestimating the effectiveness of this divine workout, you are not the first one, little one."
Next moment he continued with a straight face:
"Not just that—after cleaning up, you start reading the books in the library. Start from the first bookshelf."
Lin Huang simply nodded. After that, Wang Chen said no more and simply closed his eyes to start meditating.
Lin Huang also bowed respectfully before taking his leave, sitting under one of the Bodhi trees and closing his eyes to meditate.
These days Lin Huang's mental state had been really messy. Although he didn't know what kind of tree this was, when he sat under it, his mental state calmed down considerably.
Meanwhile, Wang Chen's expression turned slightly serious after Lin Huang left.
The number of Blood Fang Gang members showing up increased day by day.
Wang Chen knew that they had already roughly located him. Now they were just closing the net. According to his estimate, in a week at most, they would be able to find him.
I have to work extra hard during this week, only then can I continue to act.
With that he closed his eyes and focused.
The moment he closed his eyes, a divine voice echoed in his head:
[Welcome to the first floor of Tower of Infinite Enlightenment]
[Respected master, you have already cleared the first floor of the tower. Would you like to proceed to the next floor?]
Before even reading the entire notification, Wang Chen immediately pressed NO!
Only he knew how much he had to sacrifice just to clear the first floor. If he dared to try the second floor, he would be immediately blasted to pieces without being able to fight back at all.
After he pressed no, there was no response. Wang Chen didn't care either—he simply voiced his request, sounding a little respectful. Although the tower called him master, it was better to be safe than sorry.
"I would like to speedrun the first floor again to break my own record again."
His eyes were extremely sincere. He had discovered this feature by accident—breaking his own record unlocked new features and other rewards. When he first broke the record, the tower allowed him to let his disciples enter and exit the tower. He could even control their experiences.
Just as he was thinking, new text appeared in front of him:
[Your current personal record is 1 year and three months]
[Would you like to begin the challenge now?]
Without hesitation, Wang Chen clicked yes and once again the text in front of him changed:
[Creating avatar... creation completed, resetting the world.]
[The time flow in the first floor is completely different from your current reality. Please be aware you might experience discomfort.]
Wang Chen ignored the warning. Discomfort my ass—it was better to say torture.
Although the tower put it in a good way, to him it felt as if the time in reality had come to a standstill. No matter how much time had passed inside the tower, only a few moments would have passed outside.
Just as he was thinking, his consciousness was suddenly wrapped around by a strange force and Wang Chen felt his perception shift. When he was able to open his eyes and look again.
He was in a completely different environment—grim and dark sky above his head, the earth was charred completely black, looking like the color of coal.
In the distance, he could hear bloodchilling roars.
Wang Chen didn't care—this was not his first time experiencing this. From his past experience, he was at least invulnerable for at least five minutes. After that, monsters would attack him one after the other in an endless wave if he stayed at a single place.
Before moving out, he wanted to check something to confirm his hypothesis.
With a look of anticipation in his eyes, he muttered:
"Status."