Courtyard House: Starting with handing over the keys, the state helps me abuse birds.

The door closed and the bolt was lowered.

That soft sound shut out the remaining noise and malice from inside the courtyard.

Xie Weihong did not sit down to cultivate immediately. He stood still in the room, closed his eyes, and slowly exhaled, as if suppressing the last bit of restlessness in his body.

The faces of those people in the courtyard still flashed through his mind.

Yi Zhonghai's "I'm doing this for your own good" face.

The way Jia Zhangshi collapsed after being slapped.

Qin Huairu suppressed her fear and calculation.

The deaf old lady's confident statement, "I've lived this long," conveyed a sense of self-righteousness.

If these things were in the original owner's possession, they would be suffocating under their weight.

But now they can't control him.

He knew very well that there was only one reason.

He can smash them.

Xie Weihong walked to the window and drew the curtains even tighter, leaving only a dim light bulb in the room. The light was like a thin layer of skin, covering the cramped room.

He turned and sat on the edge of the bed, taking the small porcelain bottle out of his pocket.

The bottle is cool to the touch, yet it gives you a sense of security when you hold it in your palm.

The system reward of a second-tier elixir—

Spirit-Eroding Body-Refining Medicine (Type II).

Xie Weihong stared at the bottle opening and gently pressed her fingertip against the sealing wax.

"Click."

The sealing wax cracked.

A faint medicinal fragrance wafted out, like cold iron mixed with blood, carrying a scent that instinctively alerted people.

He did not hesitate.

Put the pill into your mouth.

The moment the pill entered my mouth, I felt a slight stinging sensation, like grit scraping across my tongue, which turned into a cold current that rushed down into my stomach the next second.

The chill is uncomfortable.

It's like someone pouring ice water into your meridians, which then climb up your spine and explode at your heart, instantly turning into a raging fire.

Alternating between ice and fire.

My muscles and bones feel tight, and my blood is churning.

Xie Weihong's back tensed slightly, and his knuckles unconsciously gripped the edge of the bed, making the wood creak softly.

[System Notification: The Soul-Eating Body-Refining Pill (Type II) has begun to take effect]

[Warning: The body refinement advancement process must not be interrupted]

[Recommendation: Immediately practice breathing exercises to stabilize the Qi.]

Xie Weihong sat cross-legged, her breathing lengthened, and her chest gradually rose and fell in a regular pattern.

The medicine's effects are like countless fine needles, piercing every inch of muscle, and like a blunt knife, scraping back and forth between the bones.

The pain was palpable, crystal clear.

But the pain didn't make him panic.

Because behind the pain lies a rearrangement of forces.

He could feel that his skin and flesh were tighter, his bones were heavier, his meridians were as if they had been forcibly widened, and even the flow of blood had become "weighty".

At the first level, his power was like an iron hammer.

During the second-order impact, the hammer was repeatedly quenched, making the handle more stable and the hammer head heavier. When it fell, even the air was squeezed out with a loud bang.

He silently circulated his breath, guiding, compressing, and sinking the medicinal power into his limbs and bones little by little.

An impact.

Two impacts.

By the third impact, cold sweat had beaded on his forehead, and his clothes on the back were soaked through, as if covered with a layer of cold film.

The invisible barrier within the body finally began to crack.

The cracks spread, like glass being struck by a heavy hammer.

Xie Weihong's eyes darkened, and only one thought remained in her mind.

broken.

The medicinal power and the aura were suppressed simultaneously.

The barrier collapsed in the next instant.

An unprecedented sense of unobstructed flow exploded from my dantian, rushing along the meridians, like a river finally flowing with water, the current becoming stronger and smoother.

[System Notification: Breakthrough Successful]

Current level: Second stage (beginner)

[Physical Strength Increased: Significantly]

[Cell activity significantly improved]

Xie Weihong suddenly opened her eyes.

The weariness in her eyes was instantly washed away.

He stood up and casually clenched his fist.

"Click—"

The cracking sound from the finger bones was crisper than before, even carrying a metallic quality.

He did not throw a punch.

Just gently push it forward.

As the fist grazed the air, a very faint popping sound rang out inside the room, like the tip of a whip being lashed out.

Xie Weihong stopped what she was doing, looked down at her hands, and a hint of satisfaction flashed in her eyes.

The power has doubled; this is not a figure of speech.

It feels real.

He could even feel that if he stood in the courtyard now, Jia Zhangshi's shoving would be like a child hitting a door and bouncing back.

As he was thinking, his consciousness suddenly jolted slightly.

It felt like a thin film spreading from the depths of my mind.

one meter.

Within a radius of about one meter, every detail of the room was clearly presented in his mind.

The wood grain of the bed frame.

Dust in the corner.

The direction in which the wind blows the leaves outside the window.

He didn't even need to turn his head to know if anyone had stopped outside the door.

This is not listening.

It's not a guess.

It is a direct perception.

[System Notification: Embryonic Consciousness Form Developed]

[Current range of divine sense: approximately 1 meter]

Xie Weihong's lips slowly curved into a smile, and her mood brightened instantly.

The improvement brought by the second tier was far more "qualitative" than he had imagined.

His increased strength allowed him to shatter the oppression of others.

His newly awakened consciousness allowed him to see more hidden schemes.

He suddenly remembered the group of people in the courtyard who had just tried to intimidate him by virtue of their numbers, their loud voices, and their seniority.

Looking back now, it's even a little ridiculous.

All their "reasoning" and "unreasoning" ultimately depend on the same thing.

They think they have you under their control.

But when you rise to a higher position, they have to think twice before even speaking.

Xie Weihong felt a sense of peace and joy.

He became increasingly convinced that the path of animal cruelty was the right one, a steady one, and one that would continue to bring him profits.

The system's rewards not only improved his cultivation level, but also continuously provided him with tools to suppress the birds even more.

With that in mind, his gaze fell on the system interface.

There's another reward there, lying there quietly.

The Bone-Eroding Body Refining Technique.

Xie Weihong's breathing eased slightly.

He knew that this was the key.

The pills were only responsible for pushing the door open.

The cultivation method was responsible for allowing him to truly go far.

"Come."

He sat down cross-legged again, his mind sinking into his thoughts.

Information about the cultivation techniques flooded in like a tidal wave.

The words were cold and harsh, filled with murderous intent, like iron rules etched into the bones.

It corrodes the bones.

Body Refinement.

It corrodes both external evils and internal impurities.

It refines not only flesh and blood, but also the true meaning of bone marrow.

When Xie Weihong first started operating, the newly broken-through energy in her body was immediately drawn in and flowed along a special route at an extremely stable speed.

After the first round of operation ended, beads of sweat appeared on his forehead again.

Because the feeling from this technique is more direct than that from elixirs.

The elixir is like raging fire and freezing ice.

The technique is like a file.

Each stroke grinds deep into the bone marrow, making one want to grit their teeth, to become ruthless, to dismantle and rebuild their body.

When he stopped, the light bulb in the room was still flickering, and the night wind outside the window was even colder, but his eyes shone even brighter.

The energy within his body was as stable as a railway track, and his divine sense gently spread out, as if he could even control his own heartbeat.

"tomorrow……"

He murmured to himself.

"continue."