He had already taken a pill and was quietly waiting for the heat to rise in his chest and abdomen. He really enjoyed the surging sensation of this heat; in that instant, he felt as if he were floating on air.

Eric Bolton was focused on the changes within his body and didn’t notice that there was actually a young woman lying on the rooftop across from him.

She was dressed in black, slim and tall, with a veil covering her face. However, her eyes revealed clear impatience—Eric Bolton had truly disappointed her.

For the past three months, this kid had done nothing but eat and sleep, or teach some old ladies a strange kind of dance. She really couldn’t understand why her adoptive father suspected he was a spy from the Northern Qi Society and insisted she come observe him every few days.

Eric Bolton felt a bit strange. He had waited nearly a quarter of an hour, but his body still hadn’t changed, far exceeding the usual time. He wondered to himself, could it be that he had taken an expired pill?

He finally couldn’t help it and took out another pill, chewed it up, and swallowed it. After waiting another quarter of an hour, there was still no change.

Eric Bolton hesitated for a moment, then slowly took out a third pill. He stared at the vermilion pill, hesitated, and then put it in his mouth, chewing and swallowing it.

But just as he swallowed the third pill, an unprecedented wave of heat surged from his lower abdomen, rapidly spreading through his limbs and body.

Eric Bolton immediately felt an unbearable heat inside. He could no longer sit still, so he stood up and began swinging his broadsword, but it was still useless—the fire inside him only burned hotter and hotter. He simply couldn’t stand it anymore, so he stripped off his clothes and practiced swordplay stark naked in the courtyard.

The young woman on the rooftop blushed furiously. She had seen something she definitely shouldn’t have. She turned her head away and cursed under her breath, ‘What a scoundrel!’

At this point, Eric Bolton could no longer endure the burning heat inside, as if it was about to incinerate his internal organs. He let out a loud yell, dashed a few steps, and dove headfirst into the well in the corner of the courtyard...

Just as Eric Bolton jumped into the well, the woman on the rooftop floated down. Rarely did she have such an opportunity—she was determined to thoroughly investigate what kind of background this bastard had.

The woman in black walked straight into Eric Bolton’s room.

...

After staying in the well for only a short while, Eric Bolton, shivering and covered in bruises from the cold, slowly climbed out. If someone who didn’t know the situation walked into the courtyard, they would surely be scared out of their wits: a naked man crawling out of a well like a ghost.

Eric Bolton was so exhausted he didn’t even know where his hands were. He stood up and slowly walked back to his room. As soon as he entered, he was met head-on by a black-clad, masked woman coming out from the inner room.

“Who are you?” Eric Bolton instinctively covered himself in fright.

The woman in black clearly hadn’t expected Eric Bolton to come out so soon. She saw something she shouldn’t have once again, and, both embarrassed and angry, she stomped her foot and jumped out the back window.

Eric Bolton stared blankly as her figure disappeared. With the New Year approaching, there were more thieves about, and now there was even a female thief. He was so tired he couldn’t be bothered to check for losses. He walked into the room and wrapped himself tightly in a quilt.

It took a long time for his body to gradually regain some warmth. He began cursing himself for being so stupid, and also cursed that female thief for coming at the worst possible time—she just had to catch him without clothes, letting her take advantage of him. Cursing all the while, Eric Bolton drifted off to sleep.

While he slept soundly, his body began to undergo some kind of change. A subtle power flowed from every part of his body into his arms.

He slept all the way until the afternoon before waking up, feeling completely refreshed and full of energy from head to toe.

He stretched with a long yawn, leapt up naked, and found an old set of clothes left to him by Michael King in the trunk to put on.

Next to the trunk was a fifty-jin stone weight. Every morning after waking up, he would lift the stone a couple of times to see if his strength had increased, but there had never been any change. Lifting the stone had just become a ritual.

Eric Bolton fastened his belt, took a deep breath, and grabbed the stone with both hands. Suddenly, he froze, slowly put the stone down, then lifted it with one arm, put it down, and lifted it again. He tried this over a dozen times, then shouted with joy, tossed the stone aside, and ran barefoot toward the back of the house.

His wild joy made him forget everything else. He found the silver spear that Michael King had hidden under the flagstones in the back hall—the very same silver spear he had seen on his first day here, weighing fifty jin.

He had tried before, but swinging it was extremely difficult—he could only manage a few swings at most. But now, he could wield the long spear with ease, the spear tip dancing wildly through the courtyard, accompanied by Eric Bolton’s heartfelt laughter.

After three months of hard training, he discovered that he could now gather his strength. Although the effect wasn’t strong, at least it proved he could practice power gathering—he was exactly the kind of person Michael King had described as having exceptional martial talent.

Chapter 0010: Young Royalty

Although Eric Bolton could now gather his strength, he was still only at a beginner’s stage. He wanted to improve further, but had no way forward—Michael King couldn’t help him, so he would have to find his own path.

But the most pressing issue was that his money pouch was getting thinner by the day. A real man can go a day without power, but not a day without money—he had to find something to do.

He could set up a small stall and do a little business, just like his late grandmother, who had run a small stall for twenty years to raise him.