Chapter 6: Freedom
“Shit!”
Bang!
“Shit!”
Bang!
“Shit!”
Bang! Bang!
In the pitch-black concrete room, amidst waves of low shouts and the sound of impacts, Zhang Yu finally completed the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms for a second time, enduring the intense pain that wracked his body.
With a final thud, he collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.
Feeling the faint trembling in his hands and feet, Zhang Yu felt that this body had been pushed to its absolute limit; every inch of his flesh and blood refused to move.
But even in such a state, that malevolent chill and the voice in his mind returned.
“Please abide by the ritual’s pact. Strive to fulfill your wish. Do not deliberately slacken or delay. 10.”
Dammit! Zhang Yu cursed internally. I’m already at my limit!
I really can’t train anymore!
I have class tomorrow!
But no matter what he said or how he tried to explain, the countdown continued without the slightest pause or hesitation.
Watching the countdown tick relentlessly toward its end, Zhang Yu could only curse as he stumbled back to his feet to continue his training.
Under normal circumstances, when most people trained alone, it was difficult to push themselves to their true limits.
Only with a master, a teacher, or a coach—only when someone was supervising and making strict demands—could a person truly train to their limit again and again.
It was the same for Zhang Yu. If he had been on his own, he probably would have practiced the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms once or twice before collapsing from exhaustion and resting for the day.
But now, the power of the ritual was like a demonic drill instructor, staring at him at all times, using death as a threat to urge him onward, not allowing for the slightest bit of laziness.
The third time…
The fourth time…
The fifth time…
All the way to the tenth time!
Under the repeated threats of the ritual’s power, Zhang Yu had actually performed the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms a full ten times!
During that period, the pain in his body shifted from a tearing agony to a searing torment of a thousand needles, before finally, gradually giving way to numbness. He even felt as if his hands and feet were about to disappear.
At the same time, every last wisp of magic power in his body was forced out, continuously infusing his damaged flesh.
After completing those ten repetitions, Zhang Yu felt as if both his body and his magic power had been wrung completely dry, like a rag that had been twisted thousands upon tens of thousands of times, without a single drop left to give.
At that moment, Zhang Yu just wanted to lie there on the ground, unwilling to move in the slightest.
To his relief, the life-hounding voice that had been relentlessly pushing him did not sound again, seeming to acknowledge that he had truly given his all and reached his limit.
And during the grueling training session, Zhang Yu had also begun to get a feel for the characteristics of this ritual’s power.
This thing is like some kind of artificial imbecile. It doesn’t have true intelligence, it just operates according to a fixed set of rules…
Zhang Yu had seen similar things in the movies, television shows, and news from Kunxu.
Powerful magical treasures contained artifact spirits, and these spirits were like artificial intelligences, possessing a certain degree of wisdom to handle various problems. The most powerful artifact spirits even had intelligence on par with humans.
At this moment, having confirmed that the ritual’s power was no longer forcing him to train, Zhang Yu could finally relax his mind and feel the effects of his upgraded Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms.
That was right. The moment he completed the tenth repetition of the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms, he could feel that the martial art had leveled up.
In that instant, his awareness and understanding of the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms deepened.
Many details he had previously overlooked or failed to grasp appeared in his mind like a sudden flash of lightning.
And on the Feather Book, the initial ‘Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms Level 1 (0/10)’ had become ‘Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms Level 2 (0/20)’.
I just need to practice another 20 times to raise the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms to Level 3?
If I keep training like this, won’t I be able to max out the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms at Level 10 in no time?
Zhang Yu knew that in the Qi Refinement realm, martial arts and Daoist techniques could only be cultivated to a maximum of Level 10.
When that time comes, even without acupuncture or boosters, the effects of my training won’t be any less than Bai Zhenzhen and the others… No, it might even far surpass them.
If this keeps up, it might not be impossible for my physical strength to become number one in our grade.
At this thought, Zhang Yu’s spirits lifted, and he felt the pain throughout his body lessen.
Incredible. My potential is simply too incredible. Once it’s been unleashed by the evil god, I’m practically going to soar into the heavens.
With these wonderful fantasies of the future, Zhang Yu, his body exercised to its limit, gradually succumbed to drowsiness and fell asleep without realizing it.
He slept until five o’clock the next morning, waking up instinctively, just as he had countless times before.
But today, his entire body was sore and weak, and even opening his eyes was an immense effort.
Though he was awake, Zhang Yu had no desire to get up. He just wanted to sleep a little longer, even if it was on the concrete floor of an unfinished building.
Five minutes… just five more minutes…
But just as Zhang Yu tried to stay in bed, the voice that sent a malevolent chill through him echoed from the depths of his heart once more.
“Please abide by the ritual’s agreement. Strive to complete the wish. Do not deliberately slack off or delay. 10.”
“God damn it!” Zhang Yu’s eyes shot open. He listened carefully as the voice continued, and after confirming repeatedly that it was not a hallucination, he could only curse under his breath as he sat up.
In that moment, Zhang Yu suddenly realized that things might be far more serious than he had imagined.
From now on, for anything related to studying, cultivation, university exams, or work—in other words, anything related to studying, cultivating, working, and earning money to fulfill the second wish… I can’t slack off even for a moment?
A 24-hour overseer, is that it?
Laden with exhaustion and fatigue, Zhang Yu could only rush back to his rented apartment.
Feeling greasy and covered in sweat, he quickly paid the 323.4 water fee, took a five-minute shower, and then hurried to the bus station.
Glancing up at the display on the platform, Zhang Yu thought to himself, The next bus arrives in ten minutes?
He found a pole to lean against and thought, I’ll rest for a bit. Good thing that damn thing isn’t telling me to use this time to train.
The moment that thought crossed his mind, Zhang Yu regretted it.
A malevolent chill welled up from his heart, and the nightmare-like voice sounded once again.
“Please abide by the ritual’s agreement. Strive to complete the wish. Do not deliberately slack off or delay. 10.”
Son of a… Zhang Yu cursed internally. Is this thing constantly monitoring my thoughts? As long as I think of a way to work harder but don’t act on it… it’s going to kill me?
And so, amidst the relentless countdown, Zhang Yu could only endure his fatigue and begin practicing the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms under the surprised, confused, appreciative, or indifferent gazes of the people around him.
“Hah!”
Bang!
With the final punch, Zhang Yu, now drenched in sweat, collapsed onto the ground once more.
Watching the bus draw nearer in the distance, he felt a wave of relief. It’s finally here.
And to his delight, Zhang Yu actually found an empty seat on the bus today.
Finally, I can get some proper rest.
I’ll just doze off for a bit. It can’t possibly force me to train on the bus, right? Unless it’s a breathing exercise…
The instant the words ‘breathing exercise’ formed in his mind, Zhang Yu had a bad feeling.
“Please abide by the ritual’s agreement. Strive to complete the wish. Do not deliberately slack off or delay. 10.”
Sure enough, the countdown began again, forcing Zhang Yu to practice the Basic Breathing Technique while riding the bus.
Performing a breathing exercise while on the bus sounded simple and efficient, but even the previous Zhang Yu had given up after just a few tries.
One reason was that the bus was too noisy, making it difficult to concentrate.
The second, and most important, reason was that waking up early every day left Zhang Yu utterly exhausted.
With a rare seat to himself, all he wanted was to doze off for a little while; he simply couldn’t muster the energy for a breathing exercise.
The few times he had tried, he would usually start to feel drowsy and fall asleep after only a few breaths.
But now, compelled by the ritual’s power, Zhang Yu had no choice but to force himself to perform the breathing exercise, constantly fighting off sleepiness as he diligently absorbed the spiritual energy from the world with each breath.
At this point, he fully understood that the situation was far more severe than he had previously imagined.
This isn’t some ordinary 24-hour overseer. This thing is trying to drive me to my death at every single moment.
As long as this thing is on me, all laziness, slacking, entertainment, enjoyment, and relaxation… will be gone from my life.
There will be no more weekends, let alone holidays. My life will have no more joy. Every minute and every second will be dedicated to studying, to cultivation, to work… until the second wish is fulfilled.
Zhang Yu subconsciously clutched his head. “I will become a complete study machine and workhorse, with no leisure time whatsoever. I’ll be forced to be the ultimate grinder for the rest of my life… until I’m completely crushed by the pressure!”
He lamented in his heart, If my whole life is going to be like this, then even if I achieve success in the Immortal Dao, what’s the point of living for a few hundred more years? However many more years I live will just be that many more years of suffering.
“Oh, heavens!”
The surrounding passengers all turned to look at Zhang Yu, who was clutching his head with a pained expression.
But Zhang Yu could no longer care about them. As the countdown of “Please abide by the ritual’s agreement…” began anew, he had already sat up perfectly straight, forcefully suppressing the sorrow in his heart as he continued to practice the Basic Breathing Technique.
But at the same time, a new resolve began to grow in his heart.
In truth, up until this morning, Zhang Yu had felt somewhat lost since arriving in this world.
Although he thought about getting into a prestigious university, joining a major sect, and achieving success in the Immortal Dao, it was hard to say how much of that was the influence of his body’s original memories—a choice made by following the inertia of his life.
Until this moment, Zhang Yu finally had a goal, something he was determined to accomplish, no matter the setbacks.
That was to become strong enough—strong enough to completely rid himself of the ritual’s power that was forcing his hand.
Zhang Yu wanted… freedom!