Who Let Him Cultivate Immortality

“Damn, a monster!” Meng Jingzhou yelled, winding up to strike.

It’s understandable why he reacted this way. The backyard was supposed to be where Lu Yang practiced his fists, but now, with Lu Yang missing and a tiger appearing instead, it was easy to assume the tiger demon had revived and devoured Lu Yang.

The tiger demon spoke human language, emitting a voice identical to Lu Yang’s: “Your grandpa’s a monster, it’s me!”

“It even sounds like Lu Yang!” Meng Jingzhou was astonished.

The tiger, which was actually Lu Yang, pinned Meng Jingzhou to the ground before he could react, coldly huffing. There were no signs of a struggle in the yard, making it clear to Meng Jingzhou that it was indeed Lu Yang, despite his feigned ignorance.

Meng Jingzhou clicked his tongue, not really hurt by Lu Yang’s mock attack given his robust constitution.

He got up, dusting off, and eyed Lu Yang skeptically: “What’s going on here? Weren’t you supposed to be comprehending the Shape-Imitating Fist? Why did you switch to transformation magic?”

“Just wait, let me figure out how to change back.” The tiger, Lu Yang, tried to scratch his head with his front paw, only to realize he couldn’t reach and decided against it to preserve his dignity.

The tiger, Lu Yang, grimaced, not anticipating such complications from practicing the fist technique.

Should it be said that it befits a sword spirit root?

Meng Jingzhou hurriedly went upstairs to fetch Barbarian Bone.

“What’s up? I was keeping an eye on Qin Yuanhao.”

“Got something fun for you to see.”

Barbarian Bone, confused, was dragged down by Meng Jingzhou to the backyard, only to encounter the familiar tiger demon.

“A monster, return my brother Lu’s life!”

Barbarian Bone shouted, ready to fight, not having processed the situation fully. This was serious.

Seeing Barbarian Bone’s reaction, Meng Jingzhou quickly intervened, “Stop, stop, it’s Lu Yang.”

The two specters, busy skewering in the hall, were drawn by the commotion to sneak a peek, getting the fright of their lives.

The tiger demon truly revived this time!

The tiger, Lu Yang, rolled his eyes, too annoyed to deal with them, focusing instead on how to revert from his tiger state.

He closed his eyes, repeating the mantra to return to his original form three times.

When Lu Yang opened his eyes, he had returned to human form.

After a series of events, the three finally had the chance to sit down and ponder what had just happened, while the two specters sighed in relief and continued their skewering work, anticipating a busier night than before.

“Here’s what happened, I was practicing the Shape-Imitating Fist…” Lu Yang began to explain.

Barbarian Bone, shocked by the revelation, blurted out, “Is this Shape-Imitating Fist or Transforming Fist?”

Indeed, the sage was right; one must travel extensively and read widely. Such occurrences aren’t covered in books; it’s better to experience the world alongside Brother Lu and Brother Meng.

A broader perspective gained.

Meng Jingzhou’s reaction wasn’t much better than Barbarian Bone’s, giving Lu Yang odd looks.

You were supposed to be practicing a martial art, and you’re telling me you were just throwing punches?

Who else could achieve such an outcome from martial practice?

Initially, Meng Jingzhou thought that Lu Yang’s practice of ghost-driving techniques, culminating in his soul exiting his body, was bizarre enough, but this new development was even more peculiar.

Lu Yang defended his unique interpretation of the Shape-Imitating Fist: “Think about it, isn’t the essence of Shape-Imitating Fist all about imitating animals? Like Tiger Fist, Monkey Fist, Crane Fist, and so on, mimicking tigers, monkeys, cranes, right?”

Meng Jingzhou and Barbarian Bone nodded in agreement.

Lu Yang continued, “Right, so the closer the imitation, the better the effect and the greater the power, correct?”

Again, Meng Jingzhou and Barbarian Bone nodded.

“I’ve recently encountered a tiger demon, so I’m most familiar with the Tiger Fist. It’s the quickest for me to learn and the one I can imitate most closely, right?”

Meng Jingzhou and Barbarian Bone kept nodding.

“So, with that thought, I practiced the fist, and as I did, I turned into a tiger. Makes sense, right?”

Meng Jingzhou was about to nod but then forcefully stopped himself: “Makes sense, my foot! That’s a huge leap!”

Barbarian Bone, however, continued nodding innocently.

Lu Yang spread his hands, the most bewildered of all. He had earnestly followed the fist manual, only adding a bit of his personal insight: “Why don’t you two try it? Maybe you could learn transformation through this method?”

Excited by the prospect, Meng Jingzhou and Barbarian Bone were thrilled at the thought of learning transformation through practicing the fist. Although transformation was typically used by sneaky cultivators, having an extra skill wouldn’t hurt, especially if it came in handy one day.

With Lu Yang, a master of the technique, guiding them, they quickly learned the Tiger Fist, executing it with impressive ferocity. However, they couldn’t manage the crucial aspect of transformation.

While they practiced, Lu Yang wasn’t idle. Observing their movements sparked another idea in him.

If the Shape-Imitating Fist was about imitation, why limit it to animals? Why not humans?

This thought, wild as a runaway horse, couldn’t be contained.

The premise of Shape-Imitating Fist was familiarity with the subject of imitation.

Seeing Meng Jingzhou and Barbarian Bone intensely practicing, Lu Yang had an epiphany. Having grasped the essence of the Shape-Imitating Fist, it was time for innovation.

“To progress, we must innovate!”

Lu Yang immediately set to work, recalling Barbarian Bone’s movements and mirroring them.

Barbarian Bone, recognizing his own actions in Lu Yang, was initially puzzled. “Is that me?” he quickly realized, confused about Lu Yang’s intentions.

Lu Yang, immersed in profound insight, began to transform, astonishingly taking on Barbarian Bone’s appearance.

“Ha! I knew my hypothesis was correct,” Lu Yang laughed, though it was a bit unsettling coming from Barbarian Bone’s face.

Barbarian Bone was stunned. How had he suddenly become someone else? This was far removed from his understanding of the Shape-Imitating Fist. Was it possible to mimic humans as well?

“Barbarian Bone, you can laugh like that too… Wait, the real or fake Barbarian Bone?” Meng Jingzhou, distracted from his practice by the unusual laughter, turned to find two Barbarian Bones.

“It’s wrong. The new Barbarian Bone is Lu Yang transformed!”

Meng Jingzhou gave Lu Yang a thorough look-over. Indeed, he resembled Barbarian Bone closely, but the expressions and demeanor were a stark contrast.

Where Barbarian Bone exuded an aura of simplicity and honesty, the Barbarian Bone that Lu Yang transformed into seemed to be scheming, a trickster at heart.

He had already given up on learning the Shape-Imitating Fist. Initially, he entertained the thought of mastering the fist to transform, but upon witnessing Lu Yang’s transformation, he realized such feats were beyond his reach.

This had strayed far from the essence of the Shape-Imitating Fist.

After mastering the technique, Lu Yang smoothly transitioned from imitating Barbarian Bone to Meng Jingzhou.

“So, this really is a transformation technique, isn’t it?”

“This is Lu Family’s Shape-Imitating Fist.”

Lu Yang, with his hands clasped behind his back and looking up at a forty-five-degree angle, truly embodied the demeanor of a martial arts master.

(And don’t ask why Lu Yang still had clothes on after transforming from a tiger demon back to human form; this is an upright novel.)

(TL Note: This was put by the author LOL)

(End of the chapter)