I started by submitting to the Douluo Continent, and the nation helped me become a god.

Chapter 43 Xiao Wu's Taste is Really Good

Li Fulan was sitting in his office chair, a cigarette between his fingers. It was an old habit of his; after every high-intensity burst of soul power, he needed a cigarette to perk himself up.

Although he doesn't usually smoke, for some reason, he suddenly felt like smoking.

The red glow of the cigarette butt flickered in the room, and wisps of smoke drifted slowly upwards. He rubbed his temples; the meridian expansion he had just undergone had taken a toll, and he felt a bit tired.

On the opposite chair, Xiao Wu was leaning back, panting heavily.

The usually bouncy little girl looked like she'd just finished a 10-kilometer cross-country run, her whole body drenched in sweat. Her bangs were wet and stuck to her forehead, her face was flushed, and there were even tears welling up in her eyes.

The meridian expansion she had just experienced was truly exhausting. The spirit-gathering patch applied to the Dazhui acupoint on the back of her neck continuously channeled his soul power into her body, forcefully opening up several previously blocked meridians. The soreness and swelling felt like someone had disassembled and reassembled her bones; she had been trembling with pain for the past half hour, almost biting her lip several times.

Li Fulan glanced at her, took a bottle of water from the drawer, and handed it to her.

"Have a sip of water first, take a break."

Xiao Wu took the water bottle, her hands still trembling, and it took her a while to unscrew the cap. After taking a few sips, her throat finally felt less dry.

"Teacher...this hurts so much...it feels like my bones are going to fall apart..."

"Normal reaction." Li Fulan stubbed out her cigarette in the ashtray. "This level of meridian expansion usually takes three to four sessions for most people. You did it all at once, so your body's reaction is bound to be intense. But the effects are real; your soul power capacity has increased by at least 30%."

He took out another white jade porcelain bottle from the drawer and pushed it in front of Xiaowu.

"This is a Qi-Nourishing Pill, a specially formulated recipe that will help stabilize the meridians you expanded today and relieve soreness. Take one pill every night before bed for seven consecutive days."

Xiao Wu nodded and clutched the porcelain bottle in her hand. She tried to stand up from the chair, but as soon as she exerted herself, her legs felt like they were filled with lead, and her knees buckled, almost causing her to kneel down.

"Slow down." Li Fulan frowned. "Don't push yourself. Walk while holding onto the wall. Don't attend the practical classes for the next two days. Tell the academic affairs office that you're not feeling well and need to rest."

"Slow down." Li Fulan frowned. "Don't push yourself. Walk while holding onto the wall. Don't attend the practical classes for the next two days. Tell the academic affairs office that you're not feeling well and need to rest."

"What should I say if Third Brother asks?" Xiao Wu steadied herself by holding onto the table, looking a little embarrassed.

"Just say you've overtrained and need rest," Li Fulan thought for a moment.

"This kind of high-intensity meridian expansion isn't something everyone can do. If you explain it to your classmates in detail, they'll inevitably worry, or they might want to try it themselves. But their physical condition might not be able to handle it, and it could cause problems later. It's not too late to talk about it after you've fully recovered."

Xiao Wu nodded, one hand supporting herself against the wall, and moved step by step toward the door. Her long scorpion braid hung down behind her, swaying gently with each step.

"Oh, right," Li Fulan called out to her before she opened the door, "come over tomorrow afternoon. I need to check on the recovery of your meridians. If anything seems amiss, come see me anytime."

"Okay, thank you, teacher."

The door opened and closed again, and footsteps gradually faded away in the corridor.

Li Fulan leaned back in his chair, took another cigarette from his pack, and lit it. He looked out the window, still planning the next training session. Xiao Wu's talent was indeed good, but the more that was the case, the less he could rush things; she needed to build a solid foundation first.

He made a few notes in his notebook on the table—the first stage of meridian expansion is complete, and the next interval should be at least half a month, during which time he should use Peiyuan Pills to consolidate the results.

After finishing writing, he closed the notebook, took a deep drag of his cigarette, and slowly exhaled.

"Xiao Wu tastes really good!"