Chapter Fifty-Four: Ingenious Schemes

Dormitory.

Outside the window, the snow-covered mountains gleamed with blinding brightness under the midday sun, casting a dazzling light into the north-facing dormitories.

Within a transparent sealed container, the silvery liquid shimmered all the more brilliantly in the bright light, gleaming like mercury.

It was a standard injection vial, with a standard ten-milliliter dose. Yet this Vajra Serum weighed more than double that of the Blood Dragon Serum.

With heightened agility, Gao Wu’s senses had grown keener; the moment he held it, he felt at once the unusual heft of the serum.

The pouch also held a brand-new syringe, along with two bottles of three-hundred-milliliter blue energy liquid for oral use.

There was no label or description on the energy liquid’s container. According to Huang Hai, it was a special energy liquid matched specifically for the Vajra Serum.

But Gao Wu knew this substance as Spinosaurus Energy Liquid—extremely dangerous. Not only could it cause genetic collapse, but it might also trigger bestial transformations and a host of other issues.

The serum’s appearance gave nothing away, and Gao Wu did not hesitate; he took the syringe and injected himself with two milliliters of the Vajra Serum.

Within two minutes, he felt his entire body flush with heat, his heart pounding furiously, and a pronounced swelling pain in his stomach, intestines, and other internal organs. It was as if some force inside him kept inflating, his whole body swelling, on the verge of exploding.

He knew this was only an illusion, the result of his brain taking a tremendous shock; all his senses were being distorted.

Glancing at the fitness watch on his wrist, he saw his heart rate had soared to two hundred and forty beats per minute. The violent pounding turned the display crimson and set off a shrill alarm.

Gao Wu turned off the alarm. Such a heart rate would send any ordinary person’s heart into sudden arrest, ceasing to pump blood.

For him, though, it was no great problem; even if his heart did rupture, he could restore it with the Azure Dragon Divine Vitality Chant.

His constitution, at fifteen points, was over fifty times that of an average person by the numbers. However exaggerated it sounded, the enhancement was comprehensive and profound, not a simple sum of statistics.

In Gao Wu’s view, constitution mostly manifested as life force—powerful vitality that allowed him to surpass human limits, regrow severed limbs, and even survive damage to critical organs like the heart.

Moreover, he sensed that his body’s various fundamental attributes were closely interlinked: a powerful constitution was still held back by the other base attributes. He hadn’t truly reached the level of fifteen points in constitution.

To put it simply, it was like pairing a low-end computer with a top-tier graphics card; without the necessary power supply, CPU, memory, or monitor, the card’s performance could never be fully unleashed.

Or more simply, the old barrel analogy—a long stave is still limited by the shortest one.

Gao Wu’s body burned, his very brain seemed to boil, yet his mind wandered freely. The smartwatch’s temperature sensor already showed sixty degrees Celsius, and that was just his skin temperature.

Ordinarily, such heat would instantly destroy brain tissue and, in turn, all internal organs. Gao Wu was enduring it solely by virtue of his formidable constitution.

Huang Hai had actually suggested he prepare a bathtub of cold water and ice to reduce his body temperature and protect his tissues.

Gao Wu had considered going to White Scale Lake, where the water beneath the ice was a steady two or three degrees—ideal for cooling down.

The Vajra Serum penetrated deep into the cells. The high temperature was, in fact, energy released by cellular mutation, greatly beneficial for bodily transformation.

The problem was that the human body couldn’t withstand such heat; cooling measures were needed to protect the organs. Gao Wu, relying on his extraordinary constitution, wanted to push himself and see. The serum-induced fever was indeed terrifying; any other martial artist would have had their organs roasted…

After about ten agonizing minutes, the internal heat gradually dissipated. Gao Wu felt parched, grabbed a large jug of mineral water, and drank it all. Then, a wave of hunger struck, leaving him weak and powerless.

He considered eating an energy bar, but instead decided to take a sip of the Spinosaurus Energy Liquid. Twisting the cap, he drank; the liquid slid down his throat like a bolt of fire, searing into his stomach.

Then, from his stomach, the blazing energy rapidly spread through his body, finally reaching deep into his brain… Gao Wu felt as if he’d been set ablaze once more.

The upside was that the terrible hunger was dispelled.

Over an hour later, the massive changes within him finally reached equilibrium, and he let out a long, heavy breath.

Opening the Merit of Infinity ledger, he saw his lifespan had been reduced by seventeen days. The serum and the Spinosaurus Energy Liquid had taken a toll.

An ordinary person would have died instantly; even other advanced martial artists would have paid a heavy price.

“No big deal!” Gao Wu did some quick calculations and found that, for him, the combination posed no real threat.

This outcome was perfectly normal, entirely reasonable.

Once he was certain there was no serious issue, Gao Wu recited the Azure Dragon Divine Vitality Chant, repairing the internal damage.

From then on, he injected himself every hour, and by four in the afternoon, he’d finished the entire vial of Vajra Serum and both bottles of Spinosaurus Energy Liquid.

Gao Wu felt a constant warmth radiating from within, a powerful energy perpetually seeping out. Not only was he not hungry, he felt an extraordinary excitement.

Before dusk, he jogged over to Yun Lake Manor.

The security guard at the gate looked at the steaming Gao Wu in amazement. It was late December, and the weather was bitterly cold. Yet this young man looked as if his blood were boiling.

The guard couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy—ah, to be young, with such robust vitality, utterly unfazed by minus twenty or thirty degrees! No wonder that young lady liked him so much…

Gao Wu was oblivious to the guard’s lewd imaginings. He greeted him with a cheerful smile.

Knowing Gao Wu was coming, Song Mingyue had come to the gate herself to meet him. Seeing him so lively, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Through her spiritual powers, she could keenly sense Gao Wu’s general condition; it was obvious he was in excellent shape, even better than usual.

His vitality was robust, but not manic—there was a steady, inexhaustible upward force.

Able to neutralize the side effects of the Vajra Serum and Spinosaurus Energy Liquid, these two medicines were veritable miracles for Gao Wu, enabling him to surge in strength in a short time.

From this perspective, Gao Wu’s superhuman drug tolerance was a peerless gift.

“Care for a few rounds?” Right now, strength overflowed from every pore of his body—every hair stood on end, and he longed to spar.

Since Song Mingyue’s breakthrough in spiritual power, he’d been curious as to her current level—had she already condensed Source Power and become a warrior?

“All right.” Song Mingyue knew he needed to vent his energy and stretch his muscles.

They sparred daily; Gao Wu didn’t stand on ceremony, launching straight into a jab at Song Mingyue’s face.

Song Mingyue bent her knees slightly, arms raised horizontally, blocking his punch. Gao Wu immediately noticed her arms were tough, supple, and strong. Not only did she block his blow, she deflected it, her left palm darting out like a snake to strike at his throat.

With one block and one thrust, Song Mingyue displayed an effortless ease. Gao Wu had no choice but to twist aside and retreat, while Song Mingyue pressed forward, both palms slicing and stabbing like blades, forcing Gao Wu back step by step.

In the hall, fists and feet whistled and thundered as the pair’s figures shifted and flashed in a dazzling exchange.

Watching from the second floor, Aunt Lan’s expression grew grave. Though both were only at the martial artist level, the destructive power they displayed was astonishing. She feared that a single slip could seriously injure one of them.

From the perspective of combat, Gao Wu was under Song Mingyue’s constant pressure. Her attacks, urgent and fierce as a serpent’s blade, struck him over a dozen times, causing sweat to bead on his brow from the pain.

Though Song Mingyue’s figure was slender and long, her explosiveness and endurance surpassed that of a mad dog. She always anticipated Gao Wu’s moves, always countered his attacks.

Their fight lasted five minutes, a level of intensity that even Aunt Lan found astonishing.

Martial artists rely on physical strength for power and burst, but normally cannot sustain it for long. Such all-out, high-intensity combat as Gao Wu and Song Mingyue’s would usually last only one or two minutes at most.

Yet both of them showed inhuman endurance, far beyond the limits of ordinary martial artists.

Aunt Lan was puzzled; Mingyue had never managed this before. Had training with Gao Wu really elevated her martial arts so greatly?

As an intermediate warrior herself, Aunt Lan could hardly make sense of Mingyue’s progress.

Suddenly, they broke apart. Gao Wu, sweating and steaming, cupped his fist in salute: “Impressive! I concede, I concede!”

He’d even used the Azure Dragon Divine Vitality Chant to cheat twice, yet Song Mingyue kept pace with him the whole time, showing no sign of exhaustion even now. He couldn’t bring himself to continue.

Song Mingyue returned the salute. Her spiritual power had advanced so much that she already surpassed Gao Wu in level. In their spar, there was no need for her to hold back.

Gao Wu asked curiously, “Have you become a warrior?” Song Mingyue shook her head slightly.

He was surprised. “You’re not, yet you have such stamina?”

“My spiritual power is stronger than yours. I can anticipate your movements and find opportunities to recover my breath and adjust,” Song Mingyue replied calmly. “Once you use the Vajra Serum, you should have a chance to win the Xuetao Cup. The champion receives not only a two-million prize, but ten Prajna Serums, which enhance spiritual power—just what you need…”

Gao Wu was about to reply when his phone rang. He made an apologetic gesture and went to answer it.

Song Yunhe’s voice came through the receiver—there was no small talk, just a direct invitation to lunch the next day.

Gao Wu grinned at Song Mingyue and gave her a thumbs up.

He truly admired her now; both Huang Hai and Song Yunhe followed her script to the letter—she was practically a master strategist!

(Tonight at midnight, the story goes live! Dear readers, I will unleash ten consecutive chapters at my strongest! I’ll handle the updates; as for subscriptions and votes, I leave them to you—thank you all, and see you at midnight!)

(Finally, my thanks to editor Yexiao for valuable suggestions; to chief editor Biscuit for full support; to the Yuewen platform; and above all, to all readers for your ongoing support. I can only hope to write stories worthy of your company—my deepest thanks!)