Chapter Seven: Turning Harm into Benefit

In this world, warriors can harness source energy, granting them a variety of extraordinary abilities. From his perspective, the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra is also a method of manipulating source energy, though it likely differs in some ways from how warriors wield it.

Old Huang’s offer of the Blood Dragon Serum was, at its core, a trap. If he pretended to resist, Old Huang would only become more eager to give the serum away for nothing. After all, if Old Huang had his technological tricks, he himself had his mystical arts!

Thinking of Old Huang delivering himself to be taken advantage of, Gao Wu couldn’t help but chuckle quietly... With such a promising start, everything else would fall into place.

Each time, Gao Wu injected two milliliters of Blood Dragon Serum, then recited the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra ten times to purify it. In a little over an hour, he completely absorbed all ten milliliters of the serum.

The Blood Dragon Serum enhanced human metabolism, causing a dramatic increase in appetite over a short period. Stimulated by the drug, bones and muscles broke through their normal limits, greedily absorbing energy to grow.

The pure primordial energy of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra satisfied part of his body’s energy needs, sparing him the added burden of overeating.

At last, Gao Wu practiced the Nine Forms of the Dragon twice, and used the “Hidden Dragon” posture to adjust his breathing, mentally picturing a divine dragon curled up and resting in a deep, tranquil abyss.

His body naturally curled in on itself, his heartbeat slowing, his mind sinking into an unfathomably deep state. He felt an exceptional calm and serenity, quickly drifting into a profound sleep.

When Gao Wu opened his eyes, it was exactly six in the morning.

Outside, the sky was still dark. The moment his eyes opened, his mind was clear and his energy abundant—none of the lingering grogginess from oversleeping.

It was said that warriors could easily enter deep sleep, needing only two hours a day for complete physical and mental recovery. The strongest among them could even use deep sleep to constantly boost their vitality and heal a variety of injuries.

He believed his improvement in the Nine Forms of the Dragon was what had enhanced his quality of sleep. It seemed that with persistent practice of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Mantra, he would eventually achieve a dreamless, thoughtless sleep.

Gao Wu first opened the Book of Infinite Merit and was delighted to see that his merit had increased by more than two thousand points. The speed of this gain surprised him greatly. He also checked his life expectancy, finding nothing amiss, which put him in an even better mood.

After a quick wash, Gao Wu put on his weighted training vest. Jumping a couple of times, he felt that the sixty-kilogram vest was too light, so he added ten kilograms of steel plates to his chest and back, finally satisfied before heading downstairs.

With the first light of dawn, Gao Wu jogged north along the long street, all the way to the summit of White Dragon Mountain.

It was early winter, the mountains blanketed in snow, some patches of the path still frozen over. Gao Wu dashed up the mountain in the dim morning, reaching the summit.

At the broadest point atop the mountain, he could look out over the entire city of Dongjiang.

In the winter morning mist, the city lights twinkled, and headlights occasionally flickered along the roads below.

Gao Wu relished this tranquil, peaceful scene, gazing in silence for a while before beginning his practice of the Nine Forms of the Dragon.

In the open wilderness, Gao Wu didn’t have to worry about disturbing anyone and could exert himself fully, breathing out with force.

Before long, a few other youths arrived at the summit. They all shared a tacit understanding, spreading out to train in silence, each minding his own business.

Gao Wu, a regular at this spot, knew them all by sight, but at this early hour, none wanted to waste time on idle chatter.

After completing his practice, Gao Wu nodded to the others and headed back down the mountain.

By the time he arrived home, it was seven o’clock.

That day, with an extra twenty kilograms in weights, he’d run a round trip of about twenty kilometers, finishing ten minutes faster than usual—the boost in physical fitness was obvious.

Of course, some of the credit might go to the Blood Dragon Serum.

Gao Wu bought breakfast and ate with his grandfather.

Back in his room, he checked the local QuickSound channel on his phone. Two of his rescue videos had already accumulated thirty to forty thousand likes and were topping the charts, gaining impressive traction.

However, the video quality left much to be desired, and the captions failed to showcase his compassion, righteousness, or the courage to risk his life for others.

He contacted Shen Yue via Feixin, arranging to meet at noon at the Sea Horse Buffet.

Videos like these had a short shelf life. While they were trending, and since the Song family didn’t seem to be restricting the spread, it was best to produce a polished version as soon as possible.

Fame wasn’t important; the real goal was to earn merit and expand his influence through the short videos.

If he became well-known, even Coach Huang Hai wouldn’t dare treat him lightly.

Moreover, the merit accumulated from this incident was far beyond his expectations. With proper handling, earning a hundred thousand merit points wasn’t out of the question!

Tianxiang City—the largest leisure and entertainment center in Dongjiang.

The Sea Horse Buffet was located on the top floor, occupying five hundred square meters. The buffet served a variety of seafood and exotic beast meats.

Because of this, many warriors preferred to dine here.

As soon as Gao Wu stepped out of the elevator, he spotted the slight figure of Shen Yue lurking by the restaurant entrance, peering around in a somewhat suspicious manner.

"Old Gao—"

Shen Yue’s face lit up at seeing him. He hurried over and whispered, “I checked just now. It’s 499 per person. That’s outrageous. Let’s go somewhere else.”

His family was well-off, so the price didn’t bother him. He just felt awkward about letting Gao Wu spend so much.

“No way. I said it was my treat, and I keep my word.”

Gao Wu dragged Shen Yue inside with long strides. Shen Yue was his best friend at school; now that he had money, buying his friend a buffet meal was nothing.

Besides, he needed Shen Yue's help with video editing and promotion.

Friends are friends, but even so, he couldn’t make use of someone’s skills for free—he had to show some appreciation.

Earlier, he’d gone to the bank and deposited his remaining cash. With electronic payment so convenient now, cash was almost a hassle.

After paying with his phone, Gao Wu led Shen Yue straight to the exotic beast section.

Braised Ironhorn Black Lamb Chops, Grilled Redscale Beef Skewers, Six-Eyed White Shark Sashimi, Thorny Seahorse Soup.

All these farm-raised exotic dishes were in limited supply—one serving per person with a number slip.

Once he’d secured the most valuable items, there was no rush for things like lobster or wagyu.

Though the effects of the Blood Dragon Serum had been neutralized by his mantra, Gao Wu still had a powerful appetite. He piled up several plates with regular steaks, roast meat, high-sugar cakes, and more.

Shen Yue knew Gao Wu could eat, but seeing the table loaded with greasy, sugary food, he hesitated. “Can you really eat all that?”

“I could handle four or five more servings.”

Gao Wu glanced at the bowl of Thorny Seahorse Soup in front of Shen Yue and took it without ceremony. “This stuff is way too potent for you. Let me do the hard work and take it instead.”

Thorny Seahorse Soup was famous for its invigorating properties—a fierce tonic, potentially harmful for someone of Shen Yue’s slight build.

“You talk like you have a girlfriend!” Shen Yue retorted, a little indignant.

“I can refine my essence into energy. You can only cast spells with yours. Not the same thing at all.” Gao Wu grinned mischievously.

Flustered, Shen Yue dropped the subject and handed his phone to Gao Wu. “I finished editing the video. Take a look and see if it’s okay.”

Since Gao Wu was the main character, he had to approve the final cut. As for the girl he rescued, her face was blurred to avoid complications.

Gao Wu watched the minute-long video: first a distant shot showing someone in the lake, then a close-up of him diving in, rescuing the girl, performing CPR, and finally the girl being helped away by the crowd...

The rapid scene changes made the video’s pace brisk, highlighting the three main moments—diving in, breaking through the ice, and the professional rescue—paired with stirring background music for dramatic effect.

The caption was passionate: “Young blood breaks the ice, saves a life from peril…”

Overall, it was impressive—several levels above the other rescue videos. His desk mate had genuine skill.

Still, Gao Wu felt something was missing. It didn’t quite stir the heart.

“What’s wrong?” Shen Yue noticed Gao Wu’s unchanged expression and couldn’t help asking.

“It’s excellent. But, if I may say, it’s still a step away from being top-tier.”

“Then how should I change it?” Shen Yue, his professionalism questioned, frowned slightly.