Chapter 924: The Intricate Endgame! “The Art of Strengthening the Muscles”

“Another one dead.”
“Tsk tsk, seems to be at the Life and Death realm—no wonder they’re so weak.”
Near the martial temple in a small town at the foot of Songshan Mountain, where few people wandered about, a few pale-looking individuals sat in meditation, chatting. When they noticed new figures appearing in the temple, they showed surprise but quickly lost interest and turned away.
Kai Xin paid no attention to the people outside the temple. He swallowed a Small Elixir of Immortality, allowing his vital energy to work on its own—suppressing and healing his internal injuries while he continued moving toward the outskirts of the town.
“Huh?”
Players who revived from the temple always appeared pale and disheveled, filled with frustration. They would first sit in meditation to restore their energy and vitality. It was rare to see someone like Kai Xin, who immediately swallowed an Elixir worth ten thousand silver taels as soon as he emerged.
From the moment he acted, an aura of dominance radiated from him.
“He must be some wealthy kid.”
“Hey, friend, wait a moment,” one of them called out to Kai Xin.
Kai Xin glanced back, frowned slightly, but felt no annoyance—after all, the person who called out was clearly also a Shaolin disciple.
“What is it?”
“Uh, nothing. We just wanted to ask—did you go to the back mountain earlier? Were you killed by that madman with the lion’s roar?” A few experts at the Liberation realm sensed an invisible pressure from Kai Xin. Seeing such dominance from a player at the Life and Death realm, they immediately lost their playful tone.
“The lion’s roar? Madman?”
Kai Xin had just been killed by that mad monk and didn’t understand at first. But soon, an idea struck him, and his face lit up with excitement.
“Are you talking about Monk Zhi Heng and Master Xuan Kong up on Songshan Mountain?!”
“…”
This time, it was the people in front of Kai Xin who looked at each other in confusion.
“That’s right.”
They stared at Kai Xin strangely.
Monk Zhi Heng and Master Xuan Kong of Shaolin on Songshan Mountain were legendary figures known throughout the martial world. Especially Master Xuan Kong’s “Intricate Endgame,” which attracted countless players every day trying to solve it—so it wasn’t a secret.
This kid seemed steady and strong, clearly a Shaolin disciple. Why did he speak in such a strange tone?
“Thank you for telling me. I’m leaving!”
Overjoyed, Kai Xin couldn’t help but let out a long shout. With a flick of his feet, he leaped several times and left the town, leaving the other players utterly puzzled.
“This kid’s gone crazy.”
“Maybe he thinks he can solve the chess game?”

“Even top chess players at home and abroad have fallen for it—just him?”
“……”
The group gradually returned to normal.
What they didn’t know was that their casual question had revealed a stunning piece of good news to Kai Xin.
Monk Zhiheng was still alive, and Master Xuan Kong hadn’t left, which meant the Zhenlong Endgame remained unsolved, and no one had obtained Master Xuan Kong’s “Ten Styles of the True Dragon.”
“The Ten Styles of the True Dragon” was a supreme skill he had acquired in another world, one that made him invincible in close combat. If he could obtain it in this world as well, combined with his existing foundation, his strength would soar, allowing him to quickly rejoin the ranks of the world’s top experts.
The frustration from descending from the Peak of Punishment vanished instantly. Kai Xin rushed forward at full speed, heading straight for Mount Song.
But…
While receiving this news, Kai Xin suddenly deduced another exciting piece of information.
Since he had traveled to two parallel alternate worlds, and since he could apply his experiences from one world to the other, did that mean he could also use the resources of the other world to move to this one and help himself reach the pinnacle again?
At this thought, his already fervent excitement grew even more intense…
The confusion and uncertainty he had felt when first entering the martial world vanished in an instant—finally, he had found a way to enter this world!!
Chen Kaixin on the other side had promised him that if he encountered difficulties, he should try to delay them until midnight so he could go over and resolve them together.
There, he could still arrange things and do things like gather more untapped resources.
Besides…
There was even more room for maneuver.
The Evil Emperor here practiced the martial arts from “The Tactics of the Heavenly Demons”… but the current Evil Emperor surely hadn’t gathered all ten copies of “The Tactics of the Heavenly Demons” nor obtained the “Great Art of Planting Demons in the Heart,” so his strength was likely below that of an Emperor. He posed less of a threat than the Evil Emperor here.
As he thought deeper, another idea and plan arose in Kai Xin’s mind.
Without slowing down, he continued to race toward Shaolin on Mount Song, despite his injuries…
His top priority was still Master Xuan Kong. Although he hadn’t received the true teachings from the mad monk, he was still alive—and he would get “The Ten Styles of the True Dragon”! Though he had been knocked off the mountain, he had gained a lot! In fact, he had to thank…
Wait!
On his way to the back mountain, an inexplicable thrill surged in Kai Xin’s heart as he murmured, “I’m still alive.”

“Yes, I’m still alive, but the Mad Monk has already thrown ten moves at me…”
After a long silence, an oddly strange yet uncertain smile appeared on Happy’s face: “I wonder if he’ll approve.”
“…”
“Who cares? There’s plenty of time now. Just go again and ask clearly.”
After some thought, Happy changed course and headed toward the Peak of Punishment.
…
“Senior brother?”
“Huh? When did you leave? We didn’t see you.”
“Your complexion looks terrible. Could it be…”
At the edge of the cliff, several Shaolin disciples were still waiting there. Seeing Happy rushing over in a hurry, they were stunned.
“I fell after tripping.”
Happy, eager to prove his idea, gave a brief explanation and quickly crossed over using the chains…
The disciples on this side of the cliff stared in shock at Happy’s retreating figure into the misty area:
“Tripped?”
“Sigh. That senior brother probably went to find the Mad Monk.”
“He’s injured internally. Forget it. Don’t provoke him later, and try not to mention the Mad Monk.” The Shaolin disciples nodded in silence.
…
The moment he stepped into the misty area, Happy heard the Mad Monk’s solemn whisper: “Having taken my punch, are you still alive?”
“Ten moves have passed. Thank you, Master, for being merciful.”
Cleverly, Happy didn’t respond but directly brought up the main topic.
Silence fell in the misty area.
Happy wasn’t in a hurry either. He sat cross-legged and waited for the Mad Monk’s reply…
Actually, when the Mad Monk said those words, he already knew his guess was likely correct. With ten moves completed, even if he truly passed, he would earn the right to inherit the Mad Monk’s legacy.
Sure enough!
After about three minutes, the Mad Monk’s voice rang out again:
“Enough.”
“Since you’re a Shaolin disciple, you naturally qualify to inherit my legacy. You act neither arrogantly nor rashly, and your skills are solid. You’re indeed someone I can trust.”
“Master agrees?”
Happy took a deep breath.
“You’ve passed.”
The Mad Monk sighed deeply: “It’s been almost forty years. I never thought I’d still find a successor… What’s your name?”
“…I’m a lay disciple named Happy.”
“Although you’ve earned my approval, my martial arts originate from Shaolin. Practicing my arts is essentially practicing Shaolin arts. Take this…”
As soon as he finished speaking, a sound rushed toward Happy.
He raised his hand and caught a silk-bound book.
Ding!
System prompt:
“You’ve obtained the Shaolin treasure, ‘The Art of Strengthening the Muscles’!”

Xiao Kai was overjoyed and hurriedly put the “Yijin Jing” into his Qiankun Bag. “Thank you, master, for giving me this scripture.”
“The Yijin Jing is merely a technique for strengthening the body. But when combined with Shaolin’s martial arts and meditation, it can make one’s bones even more resilient, allowing them to form a tough membrane outside the bones. Ordinary techniques find it hard to pose a threat. Back then, it was with the Shaolin’s “Ximesui Jing” and “Yijin Jing” that I perfected all the meridians in my body, enabling me to control my internal energy freely and fight against hundreds of experts from both good and evil factions…”
Xiao Kai became increasingly fascinated as he listened.
The mad monk’s words were indeed true.
Any powerful martial art eventually runs out of energy and strength; it can’t be considered an ultimate skill. Only by achieving perfect mastery of the entire body, reaching a state where one’s bones are as strong as steel and unbreakable by external forces, can one truly be invincible.
“The Yijin Jing can only strengthen your tendons and bones. In three years, when you’ve mastered it, come back to me. If you can still maintain your sincerity and persevere, I’ll teach you the ‘Ximesui Jing’.”
Hearing this, Xiao Kai was both excited and somewhat disappointed.
Since the Yijin Jing was a precious Shaolin scripture that could greatly enhance physical strength and innate abilities, almost on par with the “Jiuyang Shen Gong,” the Ximesui Jing must be a technique for internal cultivation, capable of further improvement and strengthening…
But having to wait three years for the Ximesui Jing seemed too distant for Xiao Kai.
However, since the mad monk had said so, there was nothing he could do to change it. Fine, the Yijin Jing it was.
It was already great enough to inherit the mad monk’s teachings.
Besides, there was still the “Zhenlong Shishi” waiting for him at the foot of the mountain.
After bidding farewell to the mad monk, Xiao Kai left the foggy area and began practicing the Yijin Jing.
**Yijin Jing**
A supreme martial art:
Requirements: 200 points in root strength, 200 points in arm strength, 200 points in comprehension. These requirements were the most daunting Xiao Kai had ever seen.
However, after three years of hard training, his basic attributes had stabilized at very high levels, each exceeding 200 points.
Ding!!
System notification:
“You have successfully mastered the Shaolin scripture ‘Yijin Jing’ and inherited the mad monk’s teachings.”
“The Yijin Jing can widen the meridians, increase the capacity for storing internal energy, and speed up the circulation of internal energy.”
Widening the meridians increases the capacity for storing internal energy, meaning each cycle can boost internal energy levels; speeding up its circulation means improving recovery abilities.
Level 1 Yijin Jing.

Only when Happy started the Qi Training Manual and let it operate quietly did he realize the true meaning of how it widened the meridians.
Each cycle was extremely difficult…
The process was tough, requiring intense concentration to initiate.
But with each circulation of vital energy, the meridians seemed to be forced open a little bit…
The progress of his internal strength, which was so slow, increased by as much as 0.3 in just under three minutes.
At this moment, Happy had only completed one-quarter of a full cycle.