Chapter 16 Bloodfang

On Monday morning, William Jacques saw a spirited Li Mochen. He found that after a day apart, this guy seemed to have undergone some unknown changes again.

"Andre, this is—okay, okay, I'll call you A-Mo."

After receiving a cold glare from Li Mochen, William promptly changed his tune: "Did you experience something again yesterday? You feel different from Saturday."

"Different how?"

Li Mochen clicked his tongue: "Am I a shapeshifting turtle? Changing every day?"

Shapeshifting Turtle—a famous American cartoon.

"How to put it? You seem more spirited, almost glowing—"

William looked at Li Mochen seriously, then exclaimed as if discovering a new continent: "A-Mo, you've grown taller! At least five centimeters! I didn't notice yesterday, but now you're taller than me. God, that's so unfair."

"Taller?"

Li Mochen tried comparing heights with William and found it true: "Indeed a bit taller than you."

He was originally 170 cm, slightly shorter than William, but now he had overtaken him, standing around 175 cm.

No wonder this morning he felt a pulling pain in his bones and soreness in his muscles—clearly aftereffects of a sudden growth spurt.

If he could maintain the state of 'Heavenly Mind Illumination,' he would have noticed this change. But maintaining that mental state for even a moment drained a lot of his energy.

Li Mochen usually dared not use it, reserving it only for dealing with inner demons and possible future battles.

So without William's reminder, he wouldn't have known about the change himself.

As for the reason, he didn't need to think—it was because he had altered and strengthened the foundation of his 'Dual Element Mystic Transformation Art,' pushing his true essence and battle qi into the late Foundation Establishment stage.

It must be noted here that the so-called late Foundation Establishment is a realm name in the Eastern cultivation world.

Unlike the straightforward twenty职业 levels below Legendary in the West, the realm divisions in the Eastern cultivation world are much more cumbersome and hard to remember. Below Lianxu, also known as Mahayana in the Primordial Dome Realm, there are ten realms: Refining Essence, Foundation Establishment, Abstinence, Innate, Qi Refining, Dragon-Tiger, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Out-of-Body, and Return to Void, largely similar to the Primordial Dome Realm. Each realm roughly corresponds to two levels in the Western magical职业 system, with divisions into upper, middle, lower, and great perfection.

Thus, late Foundation Establishment is roughly equivalent to level four in the Western职业 system. That means from today, he could be considered a fourth-level magical martial artist.

What the original 'Li Mochen' had strived for over half a year without success, he had achieved in just a few hours.

But this situation would only happen once. Although Li Mochen's cultivation foundation was solid and his knowledge vast, far beyond the original owner's.

Yet the path of cultivation, whether Eastern or Western, emphasizes foundation, with few shortcuts.

It's like building a house: the stability of the foundation directly determines the future height limit of the house.

Earlier, he relied on the original body's accumulated foundation to break through quickly. Now that accumulation was exhausted, Li Mochen had to tread steadily, step by step, moving forward.

Especially the 'Dual Element Mystic Transformation Art,' which simultaneously cultivates two paths. Though it is a top-tier cultivation technique, it is exceptionally difficult to practice.

Even Li Mochen had no good method to speed up his progress.

"Lord of Radiance above, this is so unfair!"

William also tried comparing their heights, then wore an expression of disbelief, muttering continuously: "I'm three months older than you, and I play basketball every day—why, why—"

Li Mochen chuckled: "Basketball? You still haven't given up, William?"

He knew the guy's other dream was that if he couldn't become a professional fighter, he'd try out for the NBA or NFL and become a professional player.

NBA stands for 'National Basketball Association.'

As for NFL, it's 'National Football League.'

The events hosted by these two major league associations rank second in viewership in America, only behind comprehensive cold weapon combat and comprehensive unarmed combat.

Li Mochen had a general understanding of basketball and football. The former involves using various methods, even magical techniques and spells—like 'Accelerated Motion,' 'Cat's Grace,' 'Deceptive Attack,' 'Blast,' 'Thunder Blade,' 'Sacred Sacrifice,' 'Glory Aura,' etc.—within the rules to put the ball into the opponent's basket by any means.

Football is similar, differing in more complex and brutal rules, allowing reasonable collisions, and carrying the ball forward.

Li Mochen was interested in both basketball and football, finding them more entertaining than cold weapon combat and unarmed combat. He thought the players' on-field clashes were intense and thrilling, mixed with various spells and skills, requiring great tactics.

But whether NBA or NFL, both have certain height requirements. Short players, unless particularly gifted in speed, are at a disadvantage on the court.

So William Jacques's concern about height was understandable. However, as 'Li Mochen' knew, the guy wasn't a member of any basketball or football team.

"You don't understand anything! My magical职业 is Shadow Walker, you know? In ancient times, it was called Assassin! On a basketball team, someone like me usually plays point guard or shooting guard, or as a running back in football—no need to be too tall."

William was clearly embarrassed and angry: "Carl promised me that once I reach 175 cm and my Shadow Walker职业 reaches level four, if I'm willing, he'll recruit me into the basketball team immediately. My basketball skills are pretty good, not far off from their starting point guard."

"So you lost 10-0 in a one-on-one?"

Li Mochen continued teasing William, but then his expression turned serious as he looked at a group of black men in black jackets gathered on the street ahead.

"That guy just took advantage of his height—"

William had only half-defended himself when he noticed Li Mochen's change in expression. Following his gaze, his face changed color, and he forcibly pulled Li Mochen across the street.

"Damn, that's Bloodfang!"

He saw one of them had a wolf fang tattoo on his arm. But what made William more uneasy were the two standing at the front—on their right arms, outside the wolf fang tattoo, there were flames swirling.

"Light God above, there are even Outlaws among them. They must be looking for Black Prison Skull people to take revenge. Fuck! A-Mo, this neighborhood might be doomed."