Chapter 413 - - 408 Ascetic_1

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Duke Linqi didn’t keep Duge waiting for too long.

That very day, he established the Self-Mutilation Strength Squadron within the Duke’s mansion, dedicated to validating King Holley’s Broken Bone Regeneration Theory.

The personnel involved in the experiments included Martial Artists of various star levels, magicians of different ranks, and ordinary people who had neither awakened their Martial Spirit nor possessed any magic talent…

And moreover.

It wasn’t long after the establishment of the Self-Mutilation Squadron that extraordinary results were received.

The experimenters, whose bones and tendons had been broken and then healed with healing spells, found that after repeating the process a few times, their Soul Power actually increased.

Although the effect wasn’t as pronounced as in Duge’s case, their Soul Power indeed improved, a rate of increase that far exceeded the pace of systematically tempering one’s own Soul Power.

Therefore.

Duke Linqi was hailed as a Divine Man.

Afterwards, the Duke’s mansion was filled with screams of agony everywhere.

Everyone was self-mutilating like mad, wishing to rapidly enhance their own strength…

Realizing that there truly were miraculous effects, even Duke Linqi joined the ranks of the self-mutilators, summoning his loyal guards to hammer away at his body.

Having gone through the agonizing—screaming—healing process, the Duke, who was nearly sixty and had not seen any Magic Power increase in nearly a decade, was astonished to discover that his Magic Power had indeed improved slightly.

This discovery left him ecstatic.

There was a moment when he suddenly no longer wished to oppose Holley.

If the method of cultivation through broken bones and regeneration truly could lead to godhood, then Holley was undoubtedly the pioneer leading the way.

Most crucial was that Holley personally verified the Cultivation Techniques and would share his findings with others without reservation.

If he were to die, who would know how to continue on the next step of the path? This was a hope for ascending to godhood. The title of Great Sorcerer was already the highest in the Mortal Realm.

But what did being the highest in the Mortal Realm amount to? Faced with a whelp granted Divine Power by the Sea God, still helpless…

The humiliation of being defeated by Holley was a secret buried deep in Duke Linqi’s heart.

If possible, he still wished to ascend higher. He had a wealth of magical knowledge; perhaps one day, he could defeat Holley on his own!

However.

Duke Linqi didn’t place all his hopes on Duge; he gathered a group of sages to jointly research the art of fission.

During his conversation with Duge, there were some terms he didn’t understand, like “cells,” and the Duke suspected these might be exclusive terms from the God Realm…

…

“King, Duke Linqi is conducting some evil experiments. He has gathered a bunch of people to shatter their muscles and bones and then heal them with healing magic. I suspect they are practicing an Evil Skill…”

Old Gao, who witnessed the strange phenomena at the Duke’s mansion, came to Duge with great concern to report the matter.

“Don’t worry about them, I propagated this Cultivation Technique.” Duge glanced at Old Gao and said. With the increase of his attributes, his divine consciousness now spanned half the city, and the Duke’s mansion held no secrets from him.

He even heard Duke Linqi earnestly advising Saima Lynch and, with tears, personally breaking her ribs, then healing her wounds.

Saima Lynch, who had grown up in a greenhouse without ever experiencing any hardship, how could she endure the pain of broken bones and severed tendons?

Although her strength had increased, this delicate magic girl had already in a secret room cursed him to high heaven, and it seemed she was about to tear herself apart next.

He had also figured out the reason for the growth of Soul Power and spiritual power. It was probably not related to tearing and healing, but more likely due to the belief borne from suffering.

After having been beaten, everyone’s mind would believe that having suffered so much pain, if spiritual power didn’t increase, how could they justify their sacrifices?

And moreover.

In a sense, pain truly can stimulate the will, increasing the capacity to bear spiritual power.

Of course, it’s likely that some hormones, like adrenaline, played a role in this too…

But no matter the reason, it proved that the Cultivation Technique was feasible!

Then the credit must not be given to Duke Linqi for nothing.

“You propagated it?” Old Gao was stunned.

“Yes, I did.” In front of Old Gao, Duge deftly crushed his own left hand from fingers to arm with his right hand, and then, under the unbelieving gaze of Old Gao, the limp arm swiftly returned to its original state.

Immediately afterwards, he performed the act of his left hand pinching off his right hand…

“This…” Old Gao’s eyes twitched, and for a moment he didn’t know what to say, but more than that, he was shocked because he found that Duge didn’t use healing magic, and the arm he pinched off healed automatically.

“Old Gao, I used to use healing magic, but after breaking it many times, it no longer requires healing magic to heal automatically,” Duge explained indifferently, watching Old Gao’s expression, “I call this the forging process of the Divine Body.”

“Immortal and indestructible?” Old Gao could hardly conceal the horror in his heart.

“Not yet immortal and indestructible. Right now it’s just that the recovery is quite fast,” Duge said, drawing a short knife from his waist and suddenly chopping off his left hand.

No sooner had the hand been severed than a crystal clear hand of water suddenly appeared, grabbed his severed hand, and reattached it to his wrist.

In the blink of an eye.

The wound healed, and the wrist was back to normal.

Duge had practiced medicine while at the Medical Immortal Sect and was very skilled in surgery, steady, accurate, and ruthless. Coupled with his terrifying recovery ability, reattaching a severed limb posed no problem at all.

This scene almost scared Old Gao’s soul out of him as he watched.

He now suddenly understood where those spots of fresh blood on the ground had come from.

When no one was around, King Holley must have self-mutilated who knows how many times.

Gulp!

Old Gao swallowed, finding King Holley indeed intelligent, but his actions too unexpected.

Who would self-mutilate without even blinking an eye? The research team organized by Duke Linqi howled like ghosts and wolves every day, as if they were being tortured.

If they saw how King Holley treated himself, those fellows who bit on wooden sticks and towels, grinning in pain, would probably die of shame!

Being able to instantly heal severed limbs could already be considered Divine Body, right?

“King Holley, can I practice this?” Old Gao asked, somewhat enviously.

“Of course, this is the Cultivation of Suffering I’ve researched, not for those without great perseverance, and it’s a swift method for many without Cultivation Techniques to enhance Soul Power. I’ve asked Duke Linqi to teach it to everyone, hasn’t he done so?” Duge asked, frowning.

“…” Old Gao’s face turned a little ugly as he said angrily, “Duke Linqi claimed that he was the one who researched this technique.”

Duge was stunned for a moment, then sighed helplessly, “Old habits die hard!”

“King, I’ll go and seize him,” Old Gao said.

“No need, we’ll need Duke Linqi’s efforts in the upcoming wars, give him another chance,” Duge stopped the self-harm and said, “Old Gao, find a group of people to spread this technique! Tell the world, anyone who practices this technique is a practitioner of Suffering.

Start with striking the body, then combine with healing magic or medicinal herbs, and sufficient food. If the conditions aren’t met, do not be greedy for progress; otherwise, it’ll damage the body. All practitioners can be considered my disciples…”

“Yes.” Old Gao replied resentfully, saying, “King, may I also tell others about Duke Linqi claiming your Cultivation of Suffering as his own invention?”

“Yes, consider it a warning to him!” Duge hesitated for a moment and said, “I hope he learns a lesson and stops such selfish acts of taking credit for others’ achievements.”

“Hmph!” Old Gao snorted in disgust, “King, I won’t let your reputation be tainted by a petty man…”

“That’s enough.” Duge looked at him, instructing, “Nobody’s perfect, we must allow a talented person to have minor flaws.”

…

Old Gao had just left.

Prince Nelson arrived shortly afterwards, smiling ingratiatingly as he bowed to Duge, “King, may I ask when I can leave this place?”

All the nobles had been released by Duge, only he remained confined in the Duke’s mansion, and Prince Nelson was getting restless. He was afraid of being imprisoned for life and thus, mustered the courage to approach Duge.

“Tomorrow,” Duge glanced at him and said.

“Tomorrow?” Prince Nelson repeated in surprise.

“Yes, tomorrow,” Duge confirmed with a nod, “Tomorrow I will leave with you to inspect those nobles who have returned to their lands to see if they are reoffending. After judging them, we will head north to find King Lucerne and persuade him to abdicate.”

Prince Nelson was stunned and asked dumbly, “King, are you planning to persuade my father to abdicate?”

Duge snorted, “Yes, he has governed the country so poorly, he doesn’t deserve to sit on the throne.”

“King Holley, the events that happened in White Stone City have likely reached my father’s ears by now. Maybe he’s amassing troops to fight against us. At this time, if you go to him to force abdication, won’t it lead to war?” Prince Nelson said with a worried expression.

“Nelson, you’ve said it yourself—he’s probably amassing troops to attack us. So, whether I go to him or not, war will break out,” Duge said oddly, looking at Nelson, “Why shouldn’t we force him to abdicate to end the war at its source?”

“But…” Prince Nelson was anxious.

“There are no buts,” Duge shook his head, “Nelson, have you never thought of becoming a king?”

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