Chapter 112: Chapter 110: Introduction to Golden Body Cross Training Skill, Great Progress in Strength

Step 1: Contextual Analysis

Literary genre: This appears to be a Chinese cultivation/martial arts web novel (xianxia/wuxia).

Language style: The language is straightforward with some technical martial arts terminology and fantasy system elements.

Tone: Serious with occasional moments of lightheartedness; focus on training and self-improvement.

Plot keywords: Martial arts training, cultivation, system, skill acquisition, physical transformation, travel preparation, horse cart purchase, danger/pursuit.

Characters:

- 武良辰 (Wu Liangchen): Male protagonist, martial artist who is training and increasing his skills

- 杨莲儿 (Yang Lian’Er): Female character, seems to be traveling with the protagonist

- Unnamed sister: The protagonist’s younger sister

- Shopkeeper/掌柜: A merchant who sells horse carts, appears greedy and cruel to his apprentice

- Small apprentice/小伙计: A thin, weak boy who works for the shopkeeper

Step 2: Integrated Translation and Polishing

Now I’ll translate the text while applying the polishing rules. I need to make sure I use all the glossary terms correctly and ensure the translation sounds natural.

First section includes the system notification and Wu Liangchen’s physical transformation from learning a new cultivation technique...

I’ll work through this methodically, paragraph by paragraph, ensuring I follow all the T0, T1, and T2 rules. Let me start the translation:

I notice there are mentions of character counts and numbers in the text that I’ll need to be careful about translating logically (Rule #5).

I’ll also need to pay attention to the cultivation terms and martial arts terminology to ensure consistency with the glossary.

Let me work through the translation now:

[Simulation successful, consumed 69 strands of Life Fire]

[Acquired Cultivation Technique: Golden Body Cross Training Skill]

[Golden Body Cross Training Skill: Beginner (16/100)]

The system prompt appeared before his eyes, but Wu Liangchen had no time to pay attention to it. At this moment, all the muscles, fascia, and even the skin across his entire body were trembling. His meridians undulated irregularly, writhing slowly like a giant snake.

These strange phenomena gradually disappeared only after a full quarter hour.

Wu Liangchen let out a long breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead. His hand came away sticky, with a somewhat fishy odor.

His clothes were completely soaked through. The feeling of being wrapped in a shell of skin was extremely uncomfortable, so Wu Liangchen simply grabbed a fresh set of clothes and leaped out through the window.

By the small river behind the house, Wu Liangchen shattered the ice surface with a punch, then stripped naked and jumped in.

The water, which would have been bone-chillingly cold for ordinary people, felt quite pleasant to Wu Liangchen.

After swimming for a moment to wash away all the sweat from his body, Wu Liangchen held his breath and dove to the bottom.

The river wasn’t deep, only five or six meters, with soft mud at the bottom. When Wu Liangchen sank to the riverbed, the schools of fish lurking there scattered in all directions, startled by his presence.

Standing upright on the riverbed, an idea struck Wu Liangchen.

This would be an excellent place to practice martial arts.

So he began practicing the Five Animals Fist.

By now, Wu Liangchen knew the Five Animals Fist so thoroughly that every movement was deeply etched into his mind. He could perform it flawlessly even with his eyes closed.

But practicing underwater, the water resistance made these normally fluid movements somewhat unnatural.

Yet the more challenging it was, the more seriously Wu Liangchen practiced.

After completing the Five Animals Fist, Wu Liangchen felt a flash of insight, and immediately proceeded to practice the混元桩 stance...

A fat-headed fish swam back and forth in the distance, curiously watching the dark figure that had suddenly descended to the bottom of the river.

The figure had maintained that strange posture for quite some time without moving. In the fish’s simple perception, this shadow had become like a stone.

So it lazily swam closer, circling around the figure.

Suddenly.

The figure opened his eyes, and a powerful pressure directly knocked the bold fat-headed fish unconscious.

Immediately, the entire riverbed shook violently, even cracking the ice layer in the distance.

This strange phenomenon startled away many waterfowl resting along the shore.

At that moment, a figure shot out from beneath the water’s surface and landed on the riverbank.

Wu Liangchen took a deep breath, and a look of delight flashed across his face as two notification messages appeared before his eyes.

[Five Animals Fist proficiency +20]

[混元桩 proficiency +17]

It’s worth noting that after the Five Animals Fist and 混元桩 had reached the proficient level, Wu Liangchen would normally only gain one or two proficiency points even after practicing diligently.

But through this underwater practice, his proficiency had directly increased by more than twenty points.

This was truly an unexpected delight.

Most importantly, Wu Liangchen had discovered a shortcut for martial arts practice, which naturally made him happy.

Wu Liangchen’s body trembled slightly, and his powerful muscles instantly expelled all water droplets from his body before he began to dress.

Only then did Wu Liangchen notice that his previously well-fitting clothes now felt somewhat tight, especially the pant legs, which were now a bit short.

Had he grown taller?

After silently returning to the shop, Wu Liangchen stood before a mirror and indeed discovered several changes.

First, the muscles, fascia, and even the outer layer of skin across his entire body had become extremely flexible.

They didn’t appear much different visually, but when touched, one could feel tremendous power hidden within that softness.

Wu Liangchen took a small knife and made several cuts on his arm. He found that unless great force was applied, ordinary blades couldn’t even break his skin.

This Golden Body Cross Training Skill was truly formidable. Just at the beginner level, it provided such powerful defense, which made Wu Liangchen increasingly anticipate its future effects.

Additionally, Wu Liangchen measured himself with a ruler and discovered he had grown a full four centimeters taller.

Yet his body proportions hadn’t become unbalanced as a result.

On the contrary, since nearly all four centimeters had been added to his legs, his body proportions approached perfection.

Even simply standing there, he resembled an unsheathed sword, making people afraid to look directly at him.

After summoning his status panel, he saw that many of his stats had changed.

[Name: Wu Liangchen] [Age: 17]

[Life Fire: 3 strands]

[Cart Pulling (Proficient 413/500)]

[Five Animals Fist (Proficient 233/500)]

[混元桩 (Proficient 297/500)]

[Eight-Step Wind-Chasing Fist (Proficient 152/500)]

[Sun-Chasing Archery Skill (Proficient 103/500)]

[Jingzhe Knife Technique (Skilled 88/200)]

[Golden Body Cross Training Skill: (Beginner (16/100)]

[Bone Marrow Cleansing (12%)]

First, his Five Animals Fist and 混元桩 proficiencies had greatly increased, but most importantly, his Martial Arts Realm had increased by a full nine percent.

It had been less than ten days since Wu Liangchen had broken through to the "Lung-Filling" great completion stage, so this progress was practically flying.

Seeing all this, Wu Liangchen gently clenched his fist, feeling much more confident.

After practicing martial arts for so long (half a year in total), he finally had some solid foundation.

It was time to move on.

Though Wu Liangchen no longer feared pursuit from the Dinghai Guard, staying in one place for too long was inherently unsafe. Especially if his presence brought disaster to this peaceful small village—that would be unconscionable.

However, this departure didn’t need to be as rushed and panicked as his previous escape.

This place was still quite far from Huangpu Guard. If they traveled by foot, he would be fine, Yang Lian’Er could barely keep up, but his sister would suffer greatly.

So Wu Liangchen decided to get a horse cart for transportation.

After all, there was no time limit—they just needed to reach Huangpu Guard eventually.

Besides, during their journey, he could teach his sister some basics. He didn’t expect her to achieve great things in martial arts; strengthening her body would be enough.

Later, when he found Cultivation Techniques suitable for women, he could have his sister practice those.

Decision made, Wu Liangchen went to sleep.

Early the next morning, he told his sister to pack their belongings, then set off for Bapang Town.

Only there could they find horse carts.

Today wasn’t market day in Bapang Town, so the streets were rather quiet. Besides a few food stalls, taverns, and inns that were open, other businesses hadn’t yet opened their doors.

Wu Liangchen first found a place to eat breakfast, then waited until around ten in the morning before approaching a merchant shop dealing in mountain goods.

These types of businesses typically maintained their own fleet of carts for transporting large quantities of goods.

At that moment, the shopkeeper was scolding an apprentice.

"Look how filthy this counter has become! Today, I want you to clean every corner of this room until it’s spotless—not a speck of dust anywhere. Otherwise, don’t even think about eating."

The small, thin apprentice kept his head down in resignation, not daring to make a sound.

Just then, Wu Liangchen walked in.

Seeing him, the previously harsh-toned shopkeeper immediately switched to a smiling face and approached.

"Welcome, sir! What do you need? We deal in all kinds of mountain goods. Of course, if you’re selling, our purchase prices are higher than other shops."

As he spoke, an apprentice brought tea over. Wu Liangchen waved it away, then addressed the shopkeeper.

"I plan to buy a horse cart from your establishment. Do you have anything suitable?"

"A horse cart? Yes, yes, we do! They’re all in the back courtyard. Please, follow me." The shopkeeper said with a broad smile, then led the way, bringing Wu Liangchen to the rear of the building.

The shop occupied a large plot of land, with a very spacious backyard.

A row of large carts was parked in the yard, while the horses were kept in stables along the wall.

"Are you hauling goods or transporting people?" the shopkeeper asked.

"Hauling goods, but also carrying people," Wu Liangchen replied casually, scanning the cart bodies.

"Then how about this one? The frame was built just at the beginning of this year. It’s been used only for transporting medicinal herbs, so it’s very clean. It has a canopy too, and with minor modifications, it can carry passengers." The shopkeeper introduced enthusiastically.

Wu Liangchen stepped forward for a closer look and squeezed the wood with his hands. Finding it indeed satisfactory, he nodded.

"This one will do. What about the horses?"

"All the horses are here. Take your pick."

These cart-pulling horses were short nags, very affordable.

Wu Liangchen selected two, and the shopkeeper then led him back to the front.

"The cart frame is five silver coins, and I’ll charge you eight silver coins for the two horses. That’s thirteen in total. I’ll even throw in preparing the carriage compartment for you. How does that sound?" The shopkeeper said after tapping on his abacus for a moment.

"Ten coins. I’ll pay right now," Wu Liangchen countered.

Though with his current wealth, Wu Liangchen didn’t really care about two or three silver coins, he wasn’t willing to be taken for a fool. So he immediately haggled.

"That’s cutting too much! As you saw, the cart frame is newly made, without a single scratch..."

After some back-and-forth negotiation, the price was finally set at eleven silver coins, with the shop throwing in two bags of horse feed.

The shopkeeper wore a worried expression, constantly lamenting that he was selling at a loss.

Wu Liangchen naturally didn’t believe such nonsense. As he prepared to pay, the thin apprentice entered carrying tea and snacks.

Wu Liangchen paid no attention and took out his money pouch, about to count the coins. The apprentice, for some unknown reason, suddenly trembled, nearly dropping his tray, and spilling scalding tea all over the floor.

Seeing this, the shopkeeper flew into a rage. "You useless wretch! You can’t even do something this simple right! No lunch for you today—now get out!"

The apprentice left with his head bowed.

The shopkeeper turned to Wu Liangchen with a smile: "Please don’t be upset. This fellow is hopelessly stupid. No amount of scolding helps." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

Wu Liangchen made no comment and counted out eleven silver coins onto the table.

"Prepare the cart for me now."

"Right away, sir. Just a moment." The shopkeeper’s eyes narrowed in a smile as he pocketed the silver coins and went to give instructions.

Shortly afterward, the horse cart was ready. Wu Liangchen took the whip and drove the cart away from the shop.

After watching Wu Liangchen leave, the shopkeeper’s smile suddenly turned vicious. He slapped the apprentice on the head.

"You idiot! You almost ruined my big opportunity. If there’s a next time, I’ll break your arms and legs and throw you into the mountains to starve to death."

The apprentice covered his head, his frightened eyes containing a hint of hatred. But since he kept his head down, the shopkeeper didn’t notice.

The shopkeeper shifted his corpulent body and returned to the room to contact his associates.

He had noticed that the young man’s money pouch was bulging and jingled when lifted, so it must have been filled with silver coins.

’What a fat sheep!’ the shopkeeper thought greedily.