Day one.
Lu Lei finished gnawing through 20 iron ingots, having vomited five times in the process.
His throat was swollen as if a soldering iron had been shoved down it; even drinking water was a painful, teeth-gritting ordeal.
The system prompted him to circulate his cultivation technique. The metal shards shredded his meridians, causing him to roll on the ground in agony. Beneath his skin, web-like gray markings flickered, only to vanish in an instant.
Day three.
The pile of iron ingots had shrunk by nearly half. Lu Lei’s teeth were packed with iron filings, and when he opened his mouth, it looked like a rusted saw.
He lay slumped in the corner, drenched in sweat. The gray markings beneath his skin could now hold for half an incense stick’s time.
Yet, every time he refined the metal, his stomach churned violently, and the black bile he spat out was streaked with blood.
"System, if I die... remember to burn a copy of 'A Body Cultivator’s Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls' for me..." Lu Lei rasped, his voice barely a whisper.
[Host gastric mucosal damage at 30%. It is recommended to reduce intake per session.]
"Don't start acting all caring now, you jerk!"
Day five.
"Crunch!"
Lu Lei expressionlessly bit through the final iron ingot and gulped it down.
At this moment, he felt like a human metal-shredder. He had grown numb to the taste of rust, and he could even comment without changing his expression: "The purity of this batch is subpar. Next time, I’ll have to make that Liu Mei…
Chapter 29