Chapter 57

In the underground training base of the Yanhuang Academy, in Training Room No. 44, Li Mang was repeatedly thrown by Cheng Wei. Strangely, Li Mang seemed to feel no pain, as if he had been injected with adrenaline, and he would always get back up, full of energy, and this had been going on for an hour.

"..." Cheng Wei, who usually had a cold demeanor, now looked somewhat dark. After taking the precious medicine, Li Mang had an excess of medicinal power and hurriedly came to start training. No matter how hard he was hit, he wouldn't fall, like a cockroach, and he only got stronger, with obvious progress.

He had heard of the Ghost Doctor's precious medicine for a long time but had never taken it, which was indeed a regret in life. Now, Li Mang didn't think of him when taking the medicine, and only remembered to find him for practice when he was full. Even though Cheng Wei was usually very cold, he couldn't help but feel angry, so he hit harder than usual. However, no matter what, Li Mang couldn't be beaten down.

After another hour, Li Mang finally exhausted all the medicinal power in his body. Pain suddenly filled his entire body, making him grimace. He was also extremely tired and weak, and after being thrown to the ground one last time, he didn't get up again, lying there and panting heavily. But Li Mang could feel that these were just surface injuries; inside his body, a warm current filled his meridians, and his strength was rapidly recovering.

"Drinking two bowls of the precious medicine and breaking through the twenty-year cultivation barrier, that's insane!" Cheng Wei was deeply affected and felt a bit envious. But it was only for a moment, and he quickly resumed his cold expression and asked, "Do you know the difference between a martial artist before and after twenty years of cultivation?"

"I read in the relevant materials in the library's basement that after twenty years of cultivation, one can activate hidden strength, also known as internal energy," Li Mang replied with what he knew.

"That's correct. Before twenty years of cultivation, we can only use our limbs to fight enemies. After twenty years, we can use internal energy. Although we can't project energy to attack enemies, we can transfer hidden strength into the enemy's body through our fists and feet, causing greater damage."

"Additionally, internal energy has a significant role in protecting oneself. It's not impossible to forge a body as tough as copper and iron." Cheng Wei explained in detail. For Li Mang, who had both talent and luck, he didn't hold back and taught him everything he could.

Li Mang listened attentively, as mastering and using hidden strength was crucial and he didn't dare to be the slightest bit lax. The 'Yellow Building' in the library's basement had a record stating that twenty years of cultivation marked a qualitative improvement in strength, mainly due to the appearance of hidden strength. If mastered, one's strength would multiply, and they could easily overpower anyone with less than twenty years of cultivation, showing its importance.

"Next, I will explain how to control hidden strength. Now that you have internal energy, but it's not yet under your control, you need to practice controlling it until you can use it flexibly to pass the test!"

After a pause, Cheng Wei continued, "There are two methods. One is to use your heart to sense it. The advantage is that you can better understand yourself, but the disadvantage is that it's very slow, even with good insight, it takes ten to fifteen days, and some even take years. The second method is to practice hard through actual combat, which can speed up your familiarity and application of internal energy."

Although he mentioned two methods, Cheng Wei didn't give Li Mang a choice and immediately said, "Attack me! For now, just use your fists, and remember to focus on gathering the strength in your palm."

"..." Li Mang was speechless but could only follow Cheng Wei's instructions and start a new round of actual combat. As usual, Cheng Wei showed no mercy, using every move, from punches to kicks and shoulder throws, to injure Li Mang in each round.

But it was precisely under this high-pressure combat that Li Mang progressed quickly. After three hours of hard training, although he couldn't truly control hidden strength, he occasionally used it unintentionally, allowing him to feel its power and giving him more motivation to train hard...

At dawn, Li Mang woke up from hunger. Nearly five hours of continuous special training had completely digested the food in his stomach.

"Classic of Mountains and Seas!" Li Mang reached into his chest and took out the Classic of Mountains and Seas, entering it skillfully. He first ate a few Yan fruits to satisfy his hunger, then put on items like realgar, a long sword, and a dagger, and headed to the Yuanji Mountain.

Today, he could fully open up the Yuanji Mountain, and he had great expectations for the nearby Niuyang Mountain. The real-world edition of the Classic of Mountains and Seas introduced that the Niuyang Mountain mainly had two types of animals: the auspicious beast Lushe and the Xuan turtle. Whether the Xuan turtle and the 'little Xuan turtle' in the Lijishui were the same species still needed to be investigated.

The original Classic of Mountains and Seas might have records, but to avoid suspicion, Li Mang hadn't gone to the 'Xuan Building' on the third basement floor in the past two days and hadn't had the chance to read it. Better safe than sorry.

The environment of the Yuanji Mountain was extremely harsh, dark, and damp, with many toxic creatures. In contrast, the Niuyang Mountain had tall trees and tender green grass on the ground. Compared to the previous Yaoyao Mountain, Tangting Mountain, and Yuanji Mountain, the Niuyang Mountain had the most plant species and the most beautiful scenery, refreshing Li Mang, who had become accustomed to the harsh environment of the Yuanji Mountain.

The representative creature of the Niuyang Mountain was the auspicious beast Lushe. As soon as Li Mang stepped onto this mountain, he saw one. It looked similar to a horse but was not as tall, about half the size, with a white head and tiger-like stripes on its body, but with a red tail.

This Lushe was currently watching Li Mang, the intruder in its territory, with large, wary eyes. Its legs were tensed, indicating it was ready to attack Li Mang at any moment.

Li Mang tightened his grip on the yellow-grade long sword, also narrowing his eyes in caution. He wasn't sure how strong this Lushe was, but he had enough confidence to defeat it. Moreover, this Lushe didn't seem to be a fierce beast, at least not in appearance.

"Ou!!!"

The Lushe let out a roar, which was surprisingly pleasant to the ear. However, its next action left Li Mang stunned. The Lushe turned and fled, its legs moving with incredible speed, disappearing from Li Mang's sight in an instant.

"..." Li Mang didn't know whether to call himself lucky or unlucky. He had originally wanted to taste the new prey, but unexpectedly, the Lushe was timid and afraid of humans.

After some thought, Li Mang still decided to follow the direction the Lushe ran, as there was a small stream ahead called 'Guai Water,' where the Xuan turtles lived. As for why Li Mang knew this so clearly on his first visit, don't forget that he had the Migu with him, and combined with the map of the 'Nanshan Classic,' Li Mang would never get lost.