Li Ang placed his fingertips back on the Origin of Life, entering a transcendent state of insight once again as he began to modify his own body.
The human body has 23 pairs of chromosomes, more than 100 organs, 206 bones, over 600 muscles, and more than 800 types of tissue. It is an exquisitely complex machine, comprised of 40 to 60 trillion cells, unimaginable in its intricacy. Every minute, billions of cells are born and die. These cells operate according to rules refined by nature over ten thousand years, obliviously sustaining the functions of the human body.
Li Ang was far from being able to manipulate individual cells, but with the help of the Origin of Life, he could give "suggestions" to the cells, allowing them to grow, divide, and differentiate in the direction he desired. This process consumed a considerable amount of energy and generated heat. Li Ang had to let go of the Origin of Life, undress, enter the bathroom, sit on a low stool, and spray water on himself with the showerhead to cool down. Meanwhile, he had Miss Chai, who was playing with her phone in the living room, retrieve food such as chocolate and beef jerky from the storage cabinet for him.
Li Ang ate something, rested for a while, and regained some Sanity Value. Looking rather pale, he touched the Origin of Life again under Miss Chai's concerned gaze and began to carefully adjust his skeleton.
Most human bones are soft and elastic—this is because they are hollow inside, with walls as thin as paper, and a complex geometric network structure within. This dense network structure not only makes the bones incredibly strong but also endows them with high flexibility, allowing them to bend and twist freely without breaking like glass.
Li Ang first increased the density of his bones and adjusted their internal network structure, enhancing their strength at the cost of increasing their weight. He then felt a faint stuffiness and shortness of breath, as his muscles struggled to adapt to the suddenly heavier skeleton, and could only signal to Miss Chai with his eyes.
Chai Cuiqiao immediately took the Origin of Life from his hand, turned on the tap, filled the bathtub with water, and carefully placed him in the tub in a princess carry, using the water's buoyancy to alleviate the pressure on Li Ang's body.
Li Ang rested for a long time, adapting to the heavy bones, before he started adjusting his muscles.
Just like bones, the strength of human muscles far exceeds common imagination. Muscle tissues move bones by contracting and relaxing. Lifting weights, running, walking, and even breathing—all movements are completed through this mechanism. Each muscle contains thousands of muscle fibers, much like the wires in a cable, tightly intertwined to provide the strength for movement.
However, in most cases, people can only engage one-third of their muscle fibers—this is an upper limit determined by the human body's physiological functions. If all muscle fibers were engaged at once, the body would likely tear muscles and break bones due to the enormous exertion, resulting in a separation of flesh from bone.
After strengthening his bones, Li Ang took another long rest, ate a box of beef jerky, rubbed his head, and restarted the modification. This time, he increased the density of his muscle fibers and the strength of the fascia. The increased muscle fiber density further enhanced his output strength, and the increased strength of the fascia raised his output limit slightly, preventing him from injuring himself with his own power.
The enhancement of bodily functions was not limited to bones, muscles, and fascia. Next, Li Ang increased the volume of his heart, reinforced his blood vessels, and accelerated his blood flow.
This process was exceedingly painful. As he lay in the tub, Li Ang felt all his organs begin to twist in torment, with signs of internal bleeding in his chest cavity. His body temperature soared rapidly, his face turned deathly pale, and his lips trembled uncontrollably. He was forced to release his grip, letting the Origin of Life sink to the bottom of the bathtub.
Chai Cuiqiao, frantic with worry, could only hold Li Ang's head, using her naturally cool body temperature to help lower his.
Li Ang struggled to breathe for a while. His fingers fumbled and found the Origin of Life at the bottom of the tub. He used it to temporarily control the surging bleeding in his organs and, despite the blood filling his abdomen, continued the modification.
His first target was the considerably large intestines. Deciding to go all out, Li Ang directly melted away a portion of his intestines and used the freed space to grow a pre-stomach attached beside his normal stomach. The pre-stomach was shaped like a bag, narrower at the top and wider at the bottom. Any food consumed would first enter this pre-stomach, where it would undergo preliminary digestion and have foreign objects or toxins removed before proceeding to the normal stomach.
Secondly, Li Ang created a tube-like organ next to his lungs. This organ, which Li Ang named the "second lung," was generally spindle-shaped. Its interior consisted of numerous winding tubes lined with a layer of insulating mucus, and the surrounding area was packed with toxin-filtering materials. The second lung could filter toxic gases like a gas mask and allow Li Ang to breathe normally in low-oxygen environments.
After setting up the second lung, Li Ang sequentially strengthened his kidneys and liver. He also installed numerous fasciae in his thoracic cavity, wrapping around each organ like a spider web to increase the body's G-force tolerance.
The entire body enhancement and modification process lasted for more than ten hours, from evening until early morning. Li Ang probably rested hundreds of times in between. The bathtub was filled with coagulating blood clots, looking almost like solidified pig's blood cake.
"Finally... it's done."
With Miss Chai's help, Li Ang shakily stood up from the crimson-filled bathtub and washed the blood off his body with the showerhead.
At this moment, although Li Ang was weaker than ever, his very essence of life had begun to gradually depart from humankind.
[Flesh Cutter · Li Rising]
[Lv11. Experience Points: 233/1100]
[Strength: 11]
[Agility: 11]
[Intelligence: 10]
[Constitution: 11]
[Perception: 10] (Carefully Cautious +1) (Bone Tracking +1)
[Charm: 4]
[Equipment Slot: Strange Eye, Face-Changing Mask, Soul Summoning Banner, Ruitu Military knife 300, Damaged Alchemist's Magic Box, Triangular Bone Tipped Spear]
[Backpack Slot: Origin of Life, Automated Pet Box, White Death's Stomach Pouch, Datura Reagent 3, Mothman Corpse, AK-47, SCAR-H, Silenced handgun, IED Remote Device, Molotov cocktail, Thermite Incendiary Bottle, Flashlight, Dagger, Rope]
[Skill Slot: Adrenaline Activation Method, Ripple Breathing Method, Fragment Scatter, Mocking Taunt*2, No One Can Defeat Me In My BGM]
[Game Currency: 5,276]
After the comprehensive body modifications, Li Ang's Strength, Agility, and Constitution attributes had all increased by 3 points, allowing him to easily lift an entire sedan without resorting to the Ripple Breathing Method or Adrenaline. This was the case even though Li Ang had refrained from more drastic modifications to maintain a human appearance. Had he opted for three heads and six arms, wings on his back, a carapace on his body, and eyes in the back of his head, the attribute panel would likely have been even more exaggerated.