We're practicing all martial arts, so why did you switch to easy mode?

Chapter 36 Ultimate Tortoise Shell Technique, Recovery from Injuries
The sheer power of the force far exceeded Su Chen's expectations.

It's like a bone-deep carbuncle, a centipede that dies but doesn't stiffen, stiffens but doesn't dissolve, and remains in the body forever.

It would occasionally throb, irritate his nerves, damage his internal organs, and torment his body and soul.

However, Su Chen noticed that the residual force within his body seemed to rarely reach his arms.

At first, he thought the force couldn't reach his arms, but later he realized it could only flow to other parts of his body.

Su Chen vaguely guessed that it wasn't that the force didn't want to extend to the arm, but rather that it couldn't extend, or rather, it was afraid to extend.

Why the fear of expansion?
Su Chen thought of his arm, which had been strengthened by four martial arts techniques: Iron Shirt, Ape Arm Skill, Iron Sand Palm, and Iron Wire Fist. He was afraid that even if the force extended to it, it would not be able to cause any damage.

That's why Su Chen rushed to the gold shop to exchange for gold. He planned to take advantage of the fact that the energy was still coursing through his body to push the Tortoise Shell Technique to its limit and see if he could eliminate the energy.

However, after Su Chen recharged his account and activated the easy mode, he realized he had been careless:

[Easy Mode Activated: Sunbathing for one hour is enough to push your Tortoise Shell Kung Fu to its limit.]

He slapped his forehead, a helpless look on his face: "It's so late at night, where would the sunlight come from? Looks like I'll have to wait until tomorrow morning."

Because of the surging energy, Su Chen had no mind to study medical techniques or disguise techniques tonight, so he could only lie in bed and fall asleep with difficulty.

When Su Chen woke up the next day, his face was noticeably paler and his eye bags were more swollen.

He couldn't wait to get up, open the door, and smiled with relief; thankfully, it wasn't a cloudy day.

The rays of the rising sun, carrying warmth and hope, shone upon the earth and on everyone's faces.

Su Chen moved over a grand chair, and without even washing up, leisurely lay down on it.

I picked up a medical book and read it while basking in the sun.

Martial Arts: ...Tortoise Shell Technique (Limited Version)

[Easy Mode: ...Turtle Shell Technique 0 times (None)]

The moment the panel refreshed, Su Chen felt his body instantly become warm and comfortable. Then his abdomen swelled slightly, and after a few seconds, it became completely still.

"The force has vanished!"

Su Chen touched his abdomen, took a deep breath, and breathed a sigh of relief after he felt no more pain.

"Just as I thought, the Tortoise Shell Technique strengthened my body and eliminated the remaining force. It was fortunate that the force was weak; otherwise, the Tortoise Shell Technique alone might not have been able to eliminate it."

After eliminating the force, Su Chen was in a great mood.

I got up, washed up, changed into clean clothes, had a hearty meal at a street stall, and then returned home.

"I originally planned to improve my Ape Arm Skill, but now I only have a little over sixty taels of silver left, so I'm afraid I won't be able to improve it."

Looking at the silver on the table, Su Chen pondered.

Although the order was changed, he did not regret it, after all, the improvement of the Tortoise Shell Technique had also been of great help to him.

"Then let's upgrade the Bone Shrinking Technique to perfection."

After pondering for a moment, Su Chen had an idea. He then switched to easy mode and spent an hour swinging his arms five hundred times.

The panel refreshed again:

Martial Arts: ...Bone Shrinking Technique (Perfect 1%)

[Easy Mode: ... Bone Shrinking Technique 0 times (10 taels of gold/time)]

There were still over fifty taels of silver left, but there were no more techniques to improve his skills. Su Chen focused his attention on the broken sword.

He muttered to himself, "This encounter with the martial artist who practices internal strength has deeply moved me, and I have personally experienced the power of such a martial artist."

"If it weren't for the opponent's weak strength, I would probably have been injured by it by now. I must be extremely careful if I encounter a martial artist who practices strength in the future."

"However, in the end it all comes down to strength. My strength is not strong enough, otherwise I wouldn't have been injured by this bit of force."

"With my current strength, I'm afraid I have no rivals in the Strength Refining stage. I should try to find a way to break through to the Core stage."

"Senior Brother Li Mo knows very little about entering the realm of internal energy. It seems we can only ask Master Hong. Hmm, I'll find some time to ask him then."

"Also, in this fight, my ability to draw my sword with my severed arm was clearly somewhat lacking. In the past, no one could react in time when I drew my sword."

"This time, the robbers not only reacted quickly, but they were also able to stop me in time. Although they couldn't block me, it shows that my method of drawing the knife from my severed arm has its flaws."

"If we encounter a stronger martial artist in the future, this kind of deceptive technique may not be effective."

"Looks like I need to find an opportunity to improve my stealth techniques, like hiding the knife in my sleeve, turning it into a hidden blade for easier ambushes? Anyway, I have two knives now, one to confuse others, and the other to be reforged and hidden in my sleeve. It might not be impossible!"

"In addition, poison can be applied to the knife. Even if it cannot kill the enemy with one blow, it can still cause great damage to the opponent. Especially when the poison is very potent, once the enemy is contaminated, it can be dragged down to death."

"Although I haven't started studying the medical manuals yet, I've gained a basic understanding of relevant medical knowledge during this period, so I should be able to start targeted learning. I don't aspire to become a famous doctor, but only to be able to develop some poisons that will help me in battle."

After summarizing the situation, Su Chen decided on his next steps.

First, improve the methods of sneak attacks. Find a blacksmith to modify weapons and temporarily continue using the 'Yang Guo' disguise, with one weapon in the open and one in the dark as an auxiliary.

Secondly, they studied the secrets of medicine to see if they could use them to develop poisons that could be applied to weapons.

Third, use the remaining fifty-odd taels to see if you can buy some high-level blood-replenishing medicine to push the progress to the maximum.

Fourth, and most importantly, ask Hong Ming how to cultivate inner strength.

After making up his mind, Su Chen left home and found a relatively reliable blacksmith shop.

"Master, I want to have a custom weapon made."

The Great Qian Dynasty did not have many restrictions on weapons such as swords, so Su Chen had no reservations and spoke directly.

Upon hearing this, the old blacksmith's eyes lit up slightly, and the wrinkles on his face relaxed a little: "May I ask what kind of weapon the guest would like to have made?"

Su Chen didn't speak, but took out the blueprint he had drawn and handed it to the other party. The weapon on it was similar to a goose feather saber, but the length and width of the blade had been modified.

The old blacksmith examined it carefully for a long time, then asked Su Chen some questions about the details before saying, "To make it according to the customer's requirements, the price might be a bit expensive."

"What if I could provide the materials?" Su Chen asked, then took out the broken sword.

After a moment's thought, the old blacksmith said, "If the customer provides the materials himself, it will be much cheaper, but it will still cost thirty taels."

"So expensive?"

Su Chen frowned slightly upon hearing this. He had thought that the materials he provided would cost at most twenty taels, but the price was still beyond his expectations.

The old blacksmith shook his head: "Sir, you may not know this, but the price of copper and iron has risen recently. Not only has the price of forging weapons increased, but even the price of farm tools has risen considerably. This is already the lowest price I can offer. If you don't believe me, you can ask other blacksmith shops."

"No need, let's stick with this price. When can it be completed at the earliest?" This blacksmith shop is the one with the most reasonable price after he compared prices; other blacksmith shops would probably be more expensive.

"It will take five days at the fastest, and ten days at the slowest," the old blacksmith pondered.

"Okay, I'll come pick it up in five days."

After finishing speaking, Su Chen paid the deposit without paying attention to the blacksmith's hesitant expression, and then turned and left.

(End of this chapter)