Starting as dockworkers, they swept through Chongqing.

Chapter 148 Talent Fusion, Coiling Dragon, Moving House

An hour later, accompanied by the loud roar of the steam locomotive, the group boarded the train back to Saint Laurent.

Outside the carriage, rain pattered down, hitting the glass windows and leaving winding streaks of water.

The carriage was filled with a smell that was a mixture of coal smoke and dampness.

Xiren sat by the window, his gaze seemingly fixed on the rainy scene outside, but in reality, his attention was entirely on the pale red data stream on his retina.

He was carefully examining the second talent bestowed upon him by the pig—[Pig Barbarian Muscle Texture].

[Talent: Pig-like Muscle Texture]

[Source: Giant Forest Wild Boar]

[Effect (Passive): Your muscle fibers will tear and reorganize, becoming thicker and wider, possessing a muscle density far exceeding that of humans.]

According to the panel feedback, this talent makes the skin and flesh firmer, greatly increasing muscle density, thereby bringing stronger explosive power and defensive resistance.

Xilun closed his eyes and quietly felt the flow of qi and blood within his body.

As he was examining the scene, an extremely strange feeling suddenly welled up in his heart.

He sensed that his original defensive talent, [Black Scale Texture], seemed to be resonating strongly with his newly acquired [Boar Skin Texture].

Black scale texture tends to harden and defend the skin's surface, while boar muscle texture represents the firmness and strengthening of the muscles inside.

The two, one external and one internal, seem to have an innate high degree of compatibility.

With a thought, Xilun tried to guide the flow of qi and blood within his body to bring these two forces together.

The data stream in my field of vision began to flicker violently, and the text of the two entries slowly began to blur, with the edges merging together.

Xilun felt a tremendous transformation taking place inside his body.

His muscle fibers felt as if they were being pierced by countless red-hot steel needles, experiencing excruciating pain of tearing and rebuilding.

But he gritted his teeth and didn't utter a single groan.

Immediately afterwards, a brand new talent attribute, radiating a dark golden light, appeared on the panel.

【A coiled dragon】.

Xiren carefully read the description of this new talent:

[Talent: Coiled Dragon]

[Source: Black scale texture, pig muscle texture]

[Effect (Passive): Your muscles move and tighten under your skin like tiny dragons, brimming with explosive power. The dragon patterns are subtly integrated into your skin, making it resemble scales and armor, and can resist some blunt force damage.]

When exerting force, the muscles no longer simply bulge, but rather resemble tiny, coiling dragons moving and tightening under the skin, exuding terrifying explosive power.

At the same time, the texture and structure of the skin and flesh undergo a qualitative change, giving it extremely strong physical resistance and shock resistance.

He stared thoughtfully at the panel; this powerful talent was clearly the result of the perfect integration of the two vanished talents.

Xilun slowly opened his right hand, then clenched it tightly.

A very faint "creaking" sound came from inside his arm.

He could clearly feel that beneath his skin, the muscle fibers seemed to transform into small, vibrant dragons.

They wandered and coiled under the skin, eventually becoming tightly intertwined.

An unprecedented sense of fulfillment surged through his body, and his power seemed to become stronger and more concentrated at this moment.

With a screech of brakes, the train slowly came to a stop at the Saint Laurent station.

When they got off the train, Daisy quickly distributed her spoils in a sheltered spot on the platform.

"Siren, if it weren't for you, we might not have made it back this time."

Daisy looked at Siron, her eyes filled with undisguised gratitude. "The two magic ropes and the extraordinary relic of the wild boar are yours. The remaining runes will be split equally between Susie and Green. Is this arrangement acceptable?"

Knowing she hadn't been of much help, she naturally wouldn't participate in dividing the spoils.

No one had any objections.

Xilun nodded. He knew very well that there should still be one or two talismans on Huma that had not been found, perhaps they were destroyed in the battle.

However, it is clear that his gains this time were already substantial, and he would find it difficult to utilize those obscure talismans.

It was already late at night when I got back to my room at the Golden Rooster Hotel.

Xilun let out a long breath, feeling aches and pains all over his body.

He took a hot shower to wash away the blood and mud, then collapsed onto the narrow single bed and fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, Xilun got up early.

After he finished washing up, he went straight downstairs to the counter of the hotel owner, Morrie.

"Morley, get me a bigger house."

Xilun knocked on the counter and got straight to the point, saying, "The original 302 was too narrow; there wasn't even room to stretch your legs."

Morrie, who was doing the accounting, stopped writing, looked up and thought for a moment, then asked, "What kind of room do you want? If it's for training, the space requirements are quite high."

Xiren mentally considered his next plan and said, "Ideally, there should be two spacious rooms. One for living and preparing potions, and the other must be large enough to house my training equipment."

Morrie stroked the stubble on his chin, pondered for a moment, and then his eyes lit up: "There is a very spacious suite at the end of the first floor. It was originally used as a small warehouse, but it was later cleared out."

How about I rent it to you? The monthly rent is 30 shillings, but considering you're a regular customer and there's the fraternity, I'll give you a discount to 24 shillings.

You can go take a look first, and let me know if you're satisfied.

Silen nodded and took the brass key that Mori handed him.

With the key in hand, Xilun followed the dimly lit corridor to the room at the far left of the first floor of the hotel.

Pushing open the heavy oak door, a slightly worn but not damp scent wafts out.

The room is in an excellent location, right next to the window on the exterior wall.

The morning sunlight streamed through the glass, making the room exceptionally bright and warm during the day, and the ventilation was far better than that cramped single room on the third floor.

Xilun carefully inspected the house.

In addition to a sturdy solid wood table and a large bed, the master bedroom also has two small cubicles separated by wooden boards in the corner, which are perfect for storing small items.

He was quite satisfied with the layout and that very night he swiftly moved all his belongings into the new house.

As night fell, warm gaslights illuminated the new room.

After rinsing his mouth, Xilun went to his private cubicle where he kept his belongings and medicines.

He neatly arranged his personal belongings. On the wooden hooks on the wall hung, in order, the bulletproof black umbrella, the Resentful Revolver, the pepper box, and the captured knight's short sword.

In the corner, several large wooden crates were piled with some basic materials he had collected from the dock warehouses and the wild forest.

The ventilation in this compartment is excellent. If you want to decoct medicine, you can set up a small stove and cook it without worrying about backflow of smoke.

Siren patiently took out some herbs that emitted a pungent odor from two wooden boxes.

Following the steps in the parchment book in his mind, he crushed the herbs, added water, and slowly simmered them on a small stove.

Half an hour later, a pot of thick, dark green plaster was ready.

He carefully placed the plaster into a glass jar for safekeeping; it was an essential supplementary medicine for practicing the "Berello Kick Technique".

He scooped out a piece of scalding hot plaster and applied it evenly to the muscles of his legs.

As the medicine penetrated, a cool sensation mixed with a burning feeling spread under the skin, and Xilun felt the muscle fatigue left by the high-intensity training at noon slowly fading away.

He let out a long breath and stretched his arms.

"The room is definitely much more comfortable now that it's more spacious."

Xiren sighed inwardly. Although he had to pay an extra twelve shillings in rent each month, for him now, it was definitely worth every penny.

After a while, he pushed open the door and went into the second room.

This is his custom-built training room.

The room was extremely spacious, with thick, soft cushions covering the floor.

Whether you're practicing your hands, legs, or sword, there's plenty of space to work your way up, and you can also place various large pieces of equipment on your own.

However, this place used to be quite open.

Xilun stood in the center of the room, mentally planning the next steps.

He plans to install some specialized equipment inside, such as the new type of steam refrigeration unit like those in Lund Knights Manor, to stimulate blood circulation in extreme environments; he also plans to buy a solid iron ball weighing several hundred kilograms to simultaneously train hand grip strength and leg explosive power.

After a moment's thought, Celen walked to the wall and took down Robert's jeweled knight's dagger.

This sword is made of excellent material and is extremely sharp.

He clenched the muscles in his arm, took a deep breath, and began to stab his shoulder with the tip of his short sword.

He moved extremely slowly, applying force gently, trying to control the force so as not to injure the bones.

Xilun silently estimated the force in his mind.

Previously, when it only had the [Black Scale Texture], facing this sharp short sword, it only required about 40% of the force for the sword tip to pierce through the scale defense and injure the flesh.

Now, he circulates his internal energy to its limit, instantly activating the talent [Coiled Dragon].

Beneath the skin of his arm, the muscle fibers seemed to transform into tiny, writhing dragons, rapidly swimming and tightening.

The once soft skin and flesh became as hard as a rock at this moment, and even faintly shimmered with a dark golden luster.

Xilun gradually increased the pressure in his hands.

With only half the force applied, the sword tip left only a white mark on the skin.

With 60% of his strength, he felt a slight stinging pain, but the muscles under his skin generated a powerful counterforce, forcefully deflecting the sharp sword tip an inch.

It wasn't until Xilun increased his strength to a full 70% that, with a soft "sizzle," the short sword finally managed to pierce through the tough flesh, oozing out a drop of bright red blood.

Xilen stared at the very shallow wound on his arm, his eyes filled with shock and ecstasy.

In other words, if the opponent's strength is similar to your own, you can block most of the physical damage simply by relying on the [Coiled Dragon] talent!

This terrifying margin for error is absolutely crucial in life-or-death battles.

Satisfied, he put down his weapon, sat cross-legged on the cushion, and began to review the recent battles in his mind.

"My 'Dorok Dark Claw Technique' is still superior to basic leg techniques in terms of lethality and practicality. However, the two have different functions."

Xilun analyzed the situation in his mind.

The greatest advantage of the "Berello Kick" is that it can greatly enhance the stability and mobility of the lower body.

When faced with Huma's bizarre magical rope bindings, powerful leg strength can provide more opportunities to break free.

Moreover, the wide and sweeping leg techniques can perfectly compensate for the shortcomings of the Dark Claw Kung Fu's close-quarters combat style.

"In the future, these two fighting styles can be combined to form a more comprehensive and foolproof fighting style."

Xilun's gaze grew increasingly resolute. "Once my physical body has been honed to its peak, I'll consider practicing wielding weapons."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, in an upscale apartment building in the affluent Saint Laurent neighborhood.

Susie pushed open the door and returned to her warm room.

She took off her gray cloak, which was covered in mud, and casually hung it on the coat rack.

She blinked her clear, big eyes, walked to the desk, and carefully took out her small, slightly faded fabric bag.

-

Like a miser, Susie dumped everything from her bag onto the table.

She began to seriously take stock of what she had gained from this wilderness trip.

She carefully unfolded the two talismans she had been given, gently smoothed out the wrinkles with her fingertips, and then carefully put them into her small purse.

After doing all this, she pursed her lips and couldn't help but let out a silly "hehe" laugh.

Just then, a cheerful scratching sound rang out.

A large, golden retriever with glossy fur squeezed in through the half-open door.

The golden retriever wagged its tail excitedly and pounced on Susie, nudging her knees with its wet nose.

Susie stared at it blankly, then giggled and hugged the dog's huge head to her chest, rubbing its ears vigorously: "Are you hungry again? You can eat more than me."

The golden retriever seemed to understand her words, licking the back of her hand very actively and making whimpering sounds.

Susie teased the dog for a while, then took a piece of jerky from the drawer and stuffed it into the dog's mouth. She then put the dog down and let it gnaw on it in the corner.

She sat up straight, pulled a piece of parchment with a faint fragrance from the drawer, picked up a dip pen, and began to write a letter carefully.

"Dear mentor, it is as if we are meeting in person."

During this trip to collect materials, I encountered a very, very bad person.

Her name is Huma, and she's a mystic from the Raven School. She not only wants to steal our things, but she also wants to burn me alive with fire.

"Teacher, the outside world is really dangerous. Everyone's fighting over things."

Susie bit the pen, trying hard to recall the scene, and filled an entire page with dense writing.

After filling a page, Susie paused, a bright light flashing in her large eyes.

She dipped her brush in ink again and added on the back of the letter: "However, I also had some good things happen to me."

Someone was willing to be my friend, and in the most dangerous moment, they helped me defeat that wicked woman, Huma.

His name is Xilen, and he's a good man.

Moreover, his gun is really powerful; it's incredibly loud!

After writing the last line, Susie blew the ink away with satisfaction, carefully folded the letter, and stuffed it into an envelope with a dark gold badge.

The night breeze outside the window gently blew by, carrying the girl's innocent whispers to an unknown distance.