Feng Mu slowly lifted the Corpse Bone State, as if shedding an outer shell or donning flesh and blood anew, returning to his familiar human form in front of the mirror.

Hot water cascaded down from the showerhead like fine rain, gently and attentively washing away the traces left when Feng Mu dispelled the "Corpse Bone State." The blood that had oozed from the torn flesh quietly disappeared with the caress of the water, finally swirling into the drain.

During this tranquil bathing moment, a few lines of prompt boxes suddenly flashed across Feng Mu's mind, appearing like ghosts in the humid air, revealing information he hadn't had time to see:

[Your Molded Embryo level has changed!]

[Your Strength has experienced an explosive increase!]

[Strength 9.8→9.9→9.99999 (in explosive transition)]

[Your agility has improved slightly!]

[Agility 6.8→7.3]

[Your Constitution has greatly improved!]

[Constitution 6.4→8.4]

[Your Spirit has made a slight progress.]

[Spirit 1.9→2.1]

The upgrade of Molded Embryo would lead to an increase in four-dimensional attributes, which Feng Mu had expected, but the sudden surge in Strength Value to 9.99999 left him a bit bewildered.

9.99999, what the hell, has Father Tongzi been forcibly detained by "Thunder Speed Limit"?

"In explosive transition?"

Feng Mu focused his attention on the suffix of Strength, which kept flashing in the brackets.

A row of black lines appeared on Feng Mu's forehead, and he secretly grumbled: "The good news is that Strength is in explosive transition, the bad news is, it seems unable to transition over."

A comical image surfaced in Feng Mu's mind: a muscular man standing at the start of a pole vault, deeply embedding the pole into the ground, the pole bending almost to its limit, yet he seemed stuck as if glued to the spot, unable to jump.

Still squatting down to gather strength, huh!

Feng Mu guessed in his mind: "The experience bar is maxed out, probably just like when a game character reaches a point of job change, requiring the completion of specific job change tasks to continue growing?"

"But, system, at least you should throw a clue over!!"

His face darkened a bit, recalling when practicing skills, whenever his upgrade was hindered, the system would considerately provide the reason for failure and the prerequisites needed.

"This time, there's not a hint of a clue, is it because attribute upgrades don't count as skill enhancements, hence no feedback is provided?"

"Or is it because the so-called [explosive transition] doesn't appear to be judged as a failure, but rather just a lag?"

Feng Mu pondered without result, deciding to set it aside for now, to see if in a few days, it might finish gathering strength and jump over by itself, or wait for a fortuitous turn of events, like opening a treasure chest, to occur.

"Constitution increased by 2 points, leaping to 8.4, becoming the second attribute value just below Strength, steadily approaching the threshold of 10, no, 9.9999."

"Agility rose to 7.3, feeling like my body has become a bit lighter again."

"The improvement in Spirit is always very slow, still like an underdeveloped cripple compared to other attributes."

Feng Mu glanced at the attribute panel, watched for a while, then closed it, lying back on the bed, preparing to rest early, a rare occurrence.

The time displayed on the phone was 03:33.

"It's not yet 4 o'clock, and I'm going to sleep, I am indeed too lazy today." Feng Mu felt his conscience was being condemned.

Despite feeling a bit guilty, he resolutely picked up the phone, determinedly indulging himself in playing on it for 5 minutes.

Feng Mu's fingertip lightly swept across the screen, browsing through the news of the past two days, only to find the content bland and of little value.

Soon, his gaze swept over several unread messages, most of which were junk advertisements, annoyingly plentiful, but one useful message was hidden among them.

It was precisely for this one junk message that Feng Mu hadn't blocked all those junk ads into a blacklist.

[——Today's suitable activities: photography, socializing, team building.

——Today's avoided activities: weddings, breakups, eating noodles.

If you want to test other fortunes, reply with 1, if not, reply "TD" to unsubscribe.]

"Socializing, team building? Ha——" Feng Mu slightly pursed his lips, inwardly curious about where Ma Bin had learned such positive energy-filled words.

He gently narrowed his eyes, set his phone aside, then took a deep breath, letting his thoughts go with his breath, gradually emptying his mind, eventually sinking into a good dream.

...

At the edge of the city, near an old warehouse on the road out of town.

The surrounding area was desolate and quiet, only occasionally interrupted by the sound of the wind and the distant roar of vehicles, breaking the deathly stillness. The warehouse walls were covered in mottled rust and peeling cement, appearing old and forlorn.

The red paint on the iron gate had worn off, the rusty chain tightly securing it, a large padlock hanging from it.

Pushing open the door, a damp and musty scent struck, the air filled with the smell of old dust and rust.

The inside of the warehouse was extremely dim, the only light source being an emergency lamp on the table, emitting a weak glow, as if it could go out at any moment.

The floor of the warehouse was uneven, piled with various old boxes, moldy canned food, and some plastic water bottles.

In the corner, under a tattered tarp, a human outline could be vaguely seen.

This person was tied to a rusty iron chair with rough ropes, hands and feet bound tightly, unable to move. His eyes were blindfolded, mouth taped shut, and even his ears were plugged with adhesive.

His face was covered in dust and bruises, bluish-purple marks left at the corners of his eyes and mouth, his clothing tattered, its fabric stained with dried blood, turned a dark black.

Evidently, Hou Wendong had been suddenly abducted and beaten today.

Hou Wendong was tied sitting in the chair, unable to see or hear, the only sensation being the cold of the iron chair seeping through his thin clothing making him shiver, and any slight struggle caused the rough hemp rope to irritate his injured skin, bringing a burning pain.

Hou Wendong cautiously remained still, all his muscles taut, fearing that the slightest movement might invite a violent beating.

He was utterly unaware if the person who beat him was still beside him, nor how many assailants there were.

In the soundless darkness, Hou Wendong's heartbeat was as rapid and loud as drumbeats, his ears acutely picking up each throb, even hearing the rumbling sound of blood flowing through his arteries.

"Who on earth would dare kidnap me?"

Hou Wendong's mind whirled wildly, straining to recall the scene before he fainted:

I was sitting in the corner of a noodle shop, back to the door, carefully unwrapping a cake, delicately inserting candles.

I saw Li Xiuyan emerge from behind the kitchen curtains, carrying a bowl of steaming longevity noodles.

Yes, that's when I saw Li Xiuyan's smile suddenly freeze, her eyes filled with an indescribable terror, staring straight behind me.

I turned around instinctively, and then everything went black, as if a hood had been thrown over my face, while a sharp pain struck the back of my head.

I must have been knocked out.

Before losing consciousness, I vaguely heard the crisp sound of dishes hitting the floor, and Li Xiuyan's scream filled with panic and fear.

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