Chapter 19: Gold Finger Really Gives Force.

In Ling Lan's previous 24 years of bedridden life, in order to maintain her opportunity for free treatment from the country, she had long learned how to understand people's moods.  To cater to her nurse and doctor's preferences, she learned how to pretend to be clever and cute.  The spots for free treatment were extremely valued and behind her were an entire list of patients waiting for a chance.  She had to make these researchers like her, love her, become reluctant to part with her.  This would, at the right time, allow these people to speak up for her and allow her to continue staying for treatment.

However, what was No. 1?  He was a battle hardened extreme powerhouse.  What could a small and tiny Ling Lan find in his eyes?  The more she looked, the more discouraged she became.  She even felt that exchanging beforehand was better than not gaining anything in the future.

Just when she was about to say she wanted to continue exchanging, she heard the learning s.p.a.ce's system: "Time's up.  Successfully exchanged ten honor points for Rabbit Sky Step!"

Ling Lan awoke from her thoughts.  Unknowingly, the time had reached 10 minutes.  Realizing that everything was already settled, she put down her tangled heart.  Since G.o.d helped her choose, even if she didn't have the remaining honor points, she won't regret and tangle herself over it.  It can only be said, Ling Lan is a girl with transparent ideas1.  Perhaps after suffering twenty-four years of torturous illness, she learned to not become tangled over things that were lost or can't be obtained.

The system continued to announce: "Successfully exchange for one skill task complete.  Reward 1 honor point.  Remaining honor points: 140 points.  They will be retained until the next exchange."

Ling Lan was ecstatic – she bet correctly.  Sure enough, honor points could be retained.  No. 1's words really were a hint.  'Utilization' implied the preciousness of honor points.  And the subsequent instructions of if not choosing within 10 minutes, the system would automatically choose once also indirectly revealed that such a forced exchanged was only a one time thing.

This seemingly ordinary sentence, in fact, carried profound implications.  The things that could be possibly exchanged ranged from a few points to tens of thousands.  Although Ling Lan only had 149 points, the amount of things she could exchange them for were actually quite a lot.  This, too, was another problem.  If this time the system only automatically converted just one point, ten points, or even 50 points, then what will happen with the remaining honor points?

However, the words spoken by No. 1 didn't have such content.  Due to her previous experience, Ling Lan had some sensation that this was a false lead.  Maybe this time's compulsive choosing was, in fact, a way to teach the examinee how to redeem honor points…Just like how when a mentor teaches a person and then let them try it out by themselves.

Ling Lan was very clear that every small move made by the learning s.p.a.ce wasn't simple.  This point redemption task must have its own deep meaning.  However, Ling Lan didn't want to bother much about it nor deeply contemplate and attempt to understand.

Thus she chose to redeem the most suitable for her Rabbit Sky Step.  It was a skill that she could work on at this age, and was also very hidden.  Ling Lan was very satisfied, and if there were any better ones…Ling Lan would not insist.  She didn't think she was a protagonist, able to casually flip around and find the best.  She was very calm.

Mentor No. 1 was very satisfied with Ling Lan's performance.  He didn't say any nonsense before letting mentor No. 9 come out to guide Ling Lan in learning Rabbit Sky Step as well as the next body technique phase, Refined Form Nine Pattern.

Refined Form Nine Pattern, when practiced, was hundreds of times more difficult than the Foundation Nine Pattern.  Ling Lan worked hard to practice the first position, but did not have even the slightest result.  Even a single arm position could not be completed.

Ling Lan felt that this was an absolutely miserable task.  According to this progress, she absolutely had no way of completing it within the required five years.  Fortunately Ling Lan had a good temper.  Although she felt that it was an almost impossible task, she wasn't impatient.  She worked hard and chewed off a little bit every day and hope that when she reached the time limit, she wouldn't be too far behind.  From what she deducted through the honor point reward, punishment was certainly linked to how far behind one was.  The closer to completion she was, the smaller the punishment would be.

Soon came the third gene medicine injection.  Ling Lan thought it would be the same as the previous two; if the injection went well, she would lie in bed and rest for a bit.

She did not expect that the moment the military personnel left, her mother, Lan Luofeng, would pick her up.  After pa.s.sing through several secret pa.s.sages, they finally reached their destination – a small room.  Inside, there was almost nothing except a half person tall bucket in the middle and a single small bed against the wall.  In addition to that, there was no other furnis.h.i.+ngs.

The moment Lan Luofeng entered the door, she asked the people inside: "Is everything ready?"

"Yes, madame!"  There was a middle-aged woman standing in the room.  Ling Lan recognized her – she was steward Ling Qin's wife, Ling Nanyi.

Lan Luofeng walked in front of the barrel.  Ling Lan saw that this barrel was almost more than half full of black and green water that emitted a rich drug flavor.

Ling Lan's heart was surprised.  In the current period, all of the medicine she had seen were injections or pills without any taste.  This familiar scent gave her the illusion of returning to her past life.  In the past she drank quite a lot of herbal Chinese medicines like this, but…Ling Lan's forehead suddenly became full of black lines.  This much medicine, was it for her to drink?

Her heart felt a chill.  Looking at her mother and Ling Nanyi's posture, this bucket of medicine was certainly for her.  She looked at the barrel and then secretly compared it to her own little body…

Kao, did they really want a person to live?  If she finished drinking all this medicine, she would certainly become history's first tragic death by drinking Chinese medicine baby.

Ling Lan's mother wasn't as ruthless as she thought she was and heard her speak: "Is the medicine's temperature suitable?  Ling Lan won't be burned when bathing, right?"

Really great, it was meant to be bathed in, not drink.  Ling Lan burst into tears and happily hugged her mother.  Finally her small life was safe.

"Madame, rest a.s.sured.  I've measured properly, there's no problem." Ling Nanyi decisively replied.  Ling Lan was the Ling family's hope.  She dared not make a single mistake.

Lan Luofeng was no longer hesitant.  In a few movements, she stripped Ling Lan completely and placed her into the bucket.

Ling Lan felt like she was bathing in hot springs, the temperature was very warm and comfortable.  Then there was a sensation of flowing heat, infiltrating past her skin and into her body.  She suddenly became aware of a hard to describe feeling suddenly appeared, liking aching but painless, itchy but not.  Ling Lan, who had never been afraid of pain, suddenly groaned.

Seeing this, Lan Luofeng became very nervous and glanced at Ling Nanyi, not knowing what Ling Lan's situation was.

Ling Nanyi comforted: "Madame, this kind of situation is normal.  Young master is fine."

After a while, Ling Lan adapted to this strange feeling.  Subsequently, the pain began to intensify until it finally became like the full body rendering pain from her previous life…

However, this kind of sharp pain allowed Ling Lan to calm down.  Something she had spent twenty four years with to the point of it carving deep into her bone marrow was something she absolutely could endure.

"Yi? How can there be something like this?"  Ling Lan's mind resounded Xiao Si's alarmed cry.

"What happened?"  Although she could endure, having someone that could accompany and talk with her always made it easier to overlook the pain in her body.  This was a thing she learned from her past life; she was very happy to chitchat with Xiao Si.

"It's a very strange energy.  It can actually enhance the activity and toughness of the body's cells."  Xiao Si was very curious, how exactly was this barrel of medicine made?  There was no such or similar information in his database.

"It should be the Ling clan's ancestral recipe for physical fitness."  Ling Lan didn't find it strange.  The Ling clan, no matter how small or weak, had thousands of years of legacy as an ancient clan.  Not to mention, Ling Xiao's linage was this family's di2 successor of the di2 successor.  Having this kind of secret recipe wasn't strange at all.

"My lord3, your world is really wonderful.  Goodness, what did I just discover?  Ninety-six percent of this medicine is made from plants…" Xiao Si exclaimed.  He didn't expect that such a mysterious medicine didn't contain even a shadow of advanced technology.  This really was a mysterious world.

Ling Lan suddenly started sweating.  If an herbal medicine doesn't use plants to make, would it still be herbal?

"What is the remaining 4% made up of?  How come the medicine's component is somewhat familiar…poison?  En, it should be a kind of snake venom.  What's this?  Scorpion?  C-Centipede and…spider?!"  Xiao Si's voice became more and more high pitched before transforming into a fearful high-pitched scream.  It couldn't be helped, after more than a year, Xiao Si learned about all the species in human society.  Others were OK, but when it came to multi-legged insects, he couldn't accept.  According to his aesthetics, they were ugly to the point of absolute destruction of sky and earth4.

Ling Lan ignored Xiao Si's sporadic onset of extreme madness.  She deeply sighed, she could also experience a novel protagonist's body purification and strengthening5 treatment.

En, crossing to the future wasn't too bad.  The great G.o.d of crossing's gold finger was actually pretty awesome.

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Translated by somnious, unedited

1 想法通透 (xiǎngfǎ tōng tòu): I'm not sure what the author meant by this, but that's the literal translation.

2 嫡 (dí): legitimate/direct lineage (children of the legitimate wife as opposed to concubines).

3 Yes, Xiao Si is addressing Ling Lan as 'lord' here (remember he changed from calling her host to lord/master after reading Romance of the Three Kingdoms).

4 滅天絕地 (miè tiān juédì): I'm not clear on exactly what the author meant when writing this…But it's 'destruction' 'sky' 'absolutely' 'earth'.

5 易筋洗髓 (yì jīn xǐ suǐ): It's actually a butchering of 洗髓易筋, which has the literal meaning of "cleansing the marrow and replacing tendons".