He rounded a far corner of the first floor and entered a dim aisle with cobwebs in the corners. It was clear this section was rarely maintained, perhaps forgotten.
There, beneath a leaning wooden shelf, a tattered manual sat half-buried in dust. The cover was cracked and discolored, the binding frayed as if no one had touched it in decades.
Curious, Lin Hao crouched and picked it up. The moment his fingers brushed the faded surface, a soft tremor passed through him.
A book without a glowing sigil.
It was small, with a dull brown cover and torn corners. It looked ancient—so much so that any self-respecting cultivator would likely ignore it as trash.
"Trash for trash," he muttered and pulled it free.
There was no title. No author. The pages were yellowed and fragile, but the writing inside was surprisingly clear. Unlike other manuals filled with flowery verses and redundant poetic metaphors, this one was written plainly. Concise. Precise.
'One body-multiple physique'
Lin Hao's brows lifted.
"System. Any information on this?"
[System scanning... Done. Manual is not of standard classification. Though commonly mocked and labeled as a Yellow-grade manual, it does not fall within Yellow, Black, Earth, or Heaven ranks.]
"What do you mean?"
Lin Hao frowned. His fingers traced the edge of the page as if to verify that it was real.
[System: Yes. But unlike other manuals, this one is tailored to achieve Extreme Realm in body refinement.]
His heart skipped.
He remembered Ji Chuyan's cold words just days ago. That only by reaching the Extreme Realm could his broken meridians even hope to resemble those of a normal cultivator.
[System: Normal manuals allow a cultivator to reach the peak of a layer, but they stagnate just before the Extreme Realm. This one guides the user step-by-step into that barrier—and beyond.]
Lin Hao felt his throat tighten.
"But why is it mocked?"
[System: Because it is difficult—unrealistically so. It requires five times the usual cultivation resources. And worse, it forms inner physiques at completion. Most genius cant cultivate it.]
He flipped the page.
'Upon reaching the strength of one million catties, the cultivator may condense an Inner Physique.'
The next line shocked him even more.
'When cultivated to limit, this manual forms two Inner Physiques.'
Lin Hao's breath caught.
"No one… no one in Houtian even has one. How can this promise two?"
[System: Precisely why it is considered absurd and discarded. But it is not incomplete. It was designed this way. Inner Physique formation is the gateway to transcending mortal limitations. This manual builds the gateway twice.]
He sat down cross-legged on the floor, not even bothering to move to a reading desk.
The more he read, the more it shocked him. This wasn't about flashy moves or clever attacks. It was about pushing the human body past its limits. Tearing apart the fibers of weakness and reforging them with raw might.
[System: A single Inner Physique allows a cultivator's body to channel a Saint Physique chant. A Saint Physique at Grand Completion can fight toe-to-toe with a Saint Realm cultivator using only the body.]
Lin Hao's hands shook as he turned the page.
"And two Inner Physiques?"
[System: At full completion—two million catties of strength. And yes, two attributes are required to activate the breakthrough.]
He leaned back, laughing bitterly.
"So I trade power now... for a foundation later?"
[System: Foundation is everything. Power without roots crumbles. Host may ascend rapidly through other means—such as allowing stronger cultivators to indulge in Host's woman—but your base would be hollow.]
A flash of humiliation crossed Lin Hao's face. He gritted his teeth.
"I'm not a tool for others' pleasure."
[System: Then build. Slowly. Endure. You may be mocked now, but with this manual... if you succeed, no one will ever look down on you again.]
He stood and hugged the manual to his chest.
"How many physiques can I form total?"
[System: This manual forms Mortal-Grade Inner Physiques—which, unlike other fixed physiques, can evolve. Because they have no innate divinity, they can be molded into any of the 72 Houtian Physiques, 36 Xiantian Physiques, 18 Saint Physiques, or even the 9 Immortal Physiques.]
Lin Hao's eyes widened.
"What?"
[System: Mortal-grade physiques are clean slates. Other physiques are bound by rules. Yours can grow.]
Lin Hao's gaze trembled. For the first time, he didn't feel cursed.
He felt... chosen.
[System: No normal Extreme Realm cultivator has more than one physique. The founder of this manual reached two. But the theoretical limit—my calculated cap—is nine.]
"Nine…" Lin Hao whispered.
[System: There are only 9 Immortal Physiques in existence. 72 Houtian, 36 Xiantian, and 18 Saint—all of them are branches of those 9 Immortal Physiques.]
It felt absurd.
Lin Hao, the mocked baron-in-name-only, with no cultivation talent, broken meridians, and a cold beauty for a wife who barely acknowledged him...
Was suddenly staring at a path no one else even dared to dream of.
A manual everyone mocked.
A path no one believed in.
And yet...
It was the most dangerous—and most rewarding—path of all.
He looked down at the manual again. His lips parted slightly, not in confusion—but awe.
Everything had changed.
The future—his future—was no longer clouded in hopelessness.
With this manual, with this cruel, demanding, thankless technique... he might one day step into a world no one else could reach.
"Let them laugh now," he muttered, slipping the manual into his robe. "They won't be laughing for long."