After practicing for more than five hours, James finally stopped and sat down in the kitchen to rest. The long exercise session had alleviated the bone-chilling cold he had felt at the start.
Next, James had two important and pleasing tasks to do: first, to take a bath, and second, to use the "Milk of Water."
Turning on the hot water tap in the bathroom, he started filling the bathtub with steaming hot water. Meanwhile, James went outside to the spring.
[Spring]: Produces 500 milliliters of energy-rich water daily, with benefits for body conditioning, sterilization, and cleansing. Produces a drop of energy-rich "Milk of Water" every seven days.
James had already experienced the benefits of the daily 500 milliliters of spring water as an excellent-grade water source, significantly improving his body.
In the early stages of development, he had traded the spring water for a lot of materials, providing convenience in many aspects. It was one of the most important resources in his shelter.
Another function of the spring was the production of "Milk of Water" every seven days.
Today marked the seventh day since he acquired the spring!
Approaching the spring, he illuminated it with a dim kerosene lamp, searching for the Milk of Water.
Finally, he found a milky-white irregular object at the bottom of the spring, about the size of a soybean, with a jade-like texture.
Reaching in, James found it indeed was a solid object, warm and smooth to the touch. He quickly returned indoors, as in less than 30 seconds outside, he felt the cold piercing through his thick clothes, causing him to shiver.
Back inside, he examined the item more closely. It was indeed Milk of Water!
[Name: Milk of Water (Rare Grade)]
[Effect: Crystal formed from a spiritual water source. Provides substantial spirituality to living beings, enhancing physical quality and cleansing the body. (Use with caution for grades below Good, can be diluted for external application.)]
[Description: A natural elixir!]
It was rare grade!
James had not expected the excellent-grade spring to produce a rare-grade item, indicating the spring's value had increased even further.
The effects of Milk of Water were also impressive, especially the aspect of enhancing physical quality, which significantly increased its value.
Ever since discovering that good-grade food could subtly improve physical quality, James had been particularly attentive to this aspect.
He consumed good-grade food daily and maintained regular exercise to improve his strength and survival chances.
But he had never seen an item with "enhance physical quality" explicitly stated, and it was rare grade at that. The effect of the Milk of Water must be formidable.
Regarding the note, "Use with caution for grades below Good, can be diluted for external application," it highlighted its powerful effect.
Currently, James was close to, but not quite at, good grade, so he couldn't use it directly and opted for dilution and external application.
However, James had a better idea—taking a bath.
Dilution plus external application equaled a bath, right?
Once the bathtub was two-thirds full, James dropped the Milk of Water into the water.
The milky-white stone quickly dissolved in the hot water, turning into a pale white liquid. As the Milk of Water slowly dissipated, the steam rising from the tub seemed to mix with a refreshing fragrance, making the clear hot water even more translucent.
Inhaling the steamy air, James immediately felt revitalized. "Rare-grade Milk of Water, its effects are so strong!" he exclaimed, closing the door and undressing to step into the tub.
The scorching water enveloped his body, eliminating all the cold, and warmth penetrated from his skin into his muscles and bones. All the fatigue, strain, and tension of the past seven days dissolved at that moment.
James could feel a tingling sensation in every joint, as if subtly removing deep-seated fatigue.
Lying back in the misty bath, James felt the miraculous power transforming his body.
However, it wasn't long before he sensed a mysterious feeling of saturation in his body. His skin turned red, his forehead broke out in sweat, and he felt unbearably hot, wanting to jump out of the tub.
The water in the tub was only about 50 degrees Celsius, not very high, but he felt as if it were 60 or 70 degrees.
James understood that this was likely the effect of the Milk of Water. Like good-grade food affecting the body, consuming too much would be unbearable without exercise to alleviate it.
This was just good-grade food; the Milk of Water was two levels higher, rare-grade, with even more astonishing effects.
Yet James clearly felt this burning sensation wasn't completely intolerable, as if a powerful force was accumulating within him.
As the heat intensified, James furrowed his brow, ready to get out of the tub at any moment. One second, two seconds, three seconds... thirty seconds... three minutes!
Finally, the energy within his body reached a critical point, and a surge of unreleasable energy spread to every corner of his body. Every part of him—skin, muscles, blood, bones, tendons, and even his spirit—became translucent at that moment.
Breakthrough! Good grade!
James opened his eyes, showing a joyful expression. "I didn't expect to reach good-grade strength so quickly. Now I have the ability to defend myself!"
He flexed his robust arms, feeling in great physical condition. Simultaneously, the unbearable heat throughout his body disappeared, replaced by a warm, comfortable sensation.
"Milk of Water... truly an amazing thing!" he murmured, closing his eyes to calmly feel the power inside him.
By now, he was certain that food above good-grade indeed possessed incredible power, likely the so-called spiritual energy.
In the Mist World, why were there so many miraculous items? Why were there creatures far beyond ordinary beasts? Why was there food with such powerful effects?
It all seemed to be because of spiritual energy.
The significant changes after advancing to good grade further convinced James of this theory.
Lying in the tub, the continuous flow of energy into his body gathered in every part of him. James vaguely felt a flow of energy within him after breaking through to good grade, presumably the so-called spiritual energy.
So, if he died now, would he decompose into good-grade steaks? The thought made James' lips twitch—it seemed indeed so. He was now essentially a good-grade beast.
Clearing his mind of these absurd thoughts, James continued to absorb the energy.
He estimated that only about 40% of the Milk of Water's power had been consumed.
No wonder the system recommended direct consumption only for those above good grade; otherwise, the energy couldn't be absorbed.
After soaking for another hour, his physical quality improved further, and the energy in his body grew stronger. James estimated that his strength had now reached the mid-to-late stage of good grade.
Ignoring specific combat power and comparing physical quality alone, he should be about equal to Luke.