Coming to the Door

Normally, generating a wisp of Qi and Blood signifies entry-level.

Generating a second wisp means proficiency.

For ordinary martial artists, Qi and Blood are only as thick as a thin rope.

But the Qi and Blood Chen Sanshi cultivated is like multiple thin ropes twisted together, two to three times thicker than an ordinary person's.

It must be thanks to the Vast Exhalation Breathing Technique, but the proficiency panel definitely played a part.

He was already very enduring, and now his Qi and Blood have become even more robust, perfectly suited for the battlefield.

The battlefield isn't about one-on-one duels, finishing off one opponent and being done. It's about facing thousands upon thousands of enemies, usually a war of attrition.

This is also the purpose of military formations.

Martial artists who have mastered Blood Tempering, those at the General Flag level, when facing well-trained Infantrymen in formation on the battlefield, if trapped by the formation, would typically exhaust their Qi and Blood after killing about twenty enemy soldiers, leading to exhaustion and then being hacked to death.

It's not because the martial artist is weak, but because the formation is strong.

During training these past few days, Chen Sanshi deliberately joined in to learn.

Taking a small army formation of one hundred men as an example.

Before close-quarters melee combat, archers and crossbowmen would fire arrows, followed by spearmen making thrusts, then shield and sword-wielding soldiers surrounding and killing, and finally one-on-one close combat.

And don't forget, the enemy also has generals; you're not the only military officer.

Under such circumstances, no matter how high-level a martial artist you are, as long as human strength has its limits, you will be worn down to death.

Unless, your Qi and Blood are truly, very enduring.

However, all of this is still a long way off for Chen Sanshi, and he won't be going to the battlefield anytime soon.

"You've achieved proficiency in Qi and Blood?"

Xu Bin stood frozen, speechless for a long time.

It's only been a few days?

If this continues, he'll surpass him before long.

"It's all thanks to Officer Xu's sparring; otherwise, it wouldn't have been this fast."

After breaking through, Chen Sanshi felt invigorated, but his mind wasn't at ease.

Recently, Tianyuan Martial Arts Academy has sent people to invite him several times, but he has refused them all. He knows this situation can't continue indefinitely and will have to be resolved sooner or later.

Young Master Tianyuan, Liang Zhan, is at the Bone Tempering realm, and the Martial Arts School Master has achieved Major Accomplishment in Bone Tempering.

Blood Tempering is still at the lowest tier of martial artists; he doesn't even register.

If he could become a Viscera Refining Martial Artist like Xiang Tingchun, who in Poyang County would dare to cause him trouble?

"Time to work!"

It's almost time for patrol, so Chen Sanshi put away his Reed Leaf Spear and called his subordinates.

Not only had he broken through, but his subordinates had also made progress.

Zhu Tong cultivated Qi and Blood just these past two days, and Wang Li, a Warrior Recruit, won't be far behind. The other five Infantrymen have also learned spear techniques and are practicing military formations.

Only Xu Wencai knows nothing.

He was kicked by a horse the other day when he went to feed them, and since then, they've been afraid he'd die under the horse's hooves, so they haven't asked him to go again.

"Let's go, patrol."

Ever since the Witch God Cult incident, people have been dying daily inside and outside the city.

Rumor has it that the Witch God Cult is bloodthirsty.

Therefore, recent searches have been exceptionally strict.

But even so, no martial arts school disciples are allowed to participate.

Clearly, Lord Thousand Households wants to obtain the Immortal Treasure before the martial arts schools and then use it to coerce all the martial arts schools in Poyang County.

Chen Sanshi was also exceptionally diligent during his patrol, trying to find traces of the Witch God Cult followers.

Unfortunately, he hasn't found anything yet.

And even if he did find something, his current strength would be insufficient to obtain it, so cultivation is still the most important thing.

After his Qi and Blood broke through to two strands, three bowls of Blood Replenishing Soup every ten days will likely not be enough.

Chen Sanshi went to the martial arts school to buy medicine during his patrol.

Zhu Tong followed him.

His family had some savings from raising pigs, and to speed up his Blood Tempering, he scraped together the money for a dose of medicine.

Among the four major martial arts schools, Yunhe and Zhao Clan Martial Arts School have the largest share in the medicinal business, occupying two-thirds of Poyang County.

Among them, Yunhe Martial Arts School's medicinal ingredients are of the best quality.

Arriving at Gui Xiang Street, Chen Sanshi saw two Yunhe Pharmacies. To be precise, one was "Yunhe" Pharmacy.

It gave off a vibe similar to Sprite versus Seven & Happiness (a fake Sprite brand).

But in reality, they were all genuine.

Recently, while patrolling the city, he had heard no shortage of news about martial arts schools.

After the county magistrate died, barbarian assassins had killed the master of the Yunhe Martial Arts School, causing it to split.

Rumor had it that the young master of the Yunhe Martial Arts School had mediocre talent. He was almost thirty years old and hadn't even entered the Bone Tempering realm. Meanwhile, his uncle had achieved Minor Accomplishment in Bone Tempering. After the old master's death, he had seized his nephew's inheritance and become the new master.

Not only that, but he had also kicked his nephew out, leaving him with only a group of low-ranking handyman disciples and a pharmacy. They weren't even allowed to use the original name, so they had to settle for "Yunhe."

To compete, the Yunhe Pharmacy even offered discounts, selling the 10-tael Blood Replenishing Soup for only 8 taels.

More advanced than the Blood Replenishing Soup, the Nine Revolutions Vitality Soup, and the medicinal baths needed for the Bone Tempering realm were also sold at around 70-80% of the price, but they were still outrageously expensive.

One dose of the Nine Revolutions Vitality Soup cost twenty-five taels.

Chen Sanshi couldn't afford such expenses.

He had saved twenty taels from selling the Black Bear and another ten taels from killing Qin Feng, but his daily expenses were also high. He couldn't go without various wild game and beast meat, so he didn't have much silver left.

In the end, Chen Sanshi bought two doses of medicine, costing sixteen taels.

"My savings are empty again."

Chen Sanshi felt his heart bleeding.

Moreover, two doses of medicine would only last about a week.

It seemed he still had to rely on his hunting skills to earn big money.

Fortunately, he was already an Officer and could freely enter and exit the depths of the Second Mountain. Hunting valuable items shouldn't be too difficult.

It would just delay his martial arts practice, but there was no other way.

He heard that one tiger could be sold for a hundred taels of silver! Exotic beasts were even more expensive.

Exotic beasts were rare, but legends of Great Worms on the Second Mountain were heard frequently.

He would inquire about it later. If he could hunt a tiger, the silver he earned would be enough for him to quickly reach Minor Accomplishment.

He returned to the military camp.

Chen Sanshi saw Commander Wang, who had been missing for several days. The latter claimed he had gone to the prefectural city to visit relatives. Upon learning that Chen Sanshi had broken through to Proficient, he was overjoyed.

"Good, good, good! You're a good lad, you've got my old demeanor!"

Wang Zhi fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a golden locket. "This is for you, a reward for your diligent cultivation."

"A Longevity Lock?"

Chen Sanshi knew what these were. They were usually given by elders to young children in the family. If Wang Zhi was willing to give it away, it definitely wasn't his own. It was probably something he had extorted from someone else.

"Thank you for your kindness, sir, but I'd better not accept this."

He politely declined.

"Don't want it? Fine. Where else would you find a superior officer as good as me, willing to buy gold for his subordinate!"

Commander Wang directly put it around his own neck. "You need to take leave to go up the mountain tomorrow, right? Go ahead, go ahead."

"Thank you, sir."

Chen Sanshi bid farewell and left. As he neared his home.

Two figures suddenly appeared, blocking the road in front of him. One in front and one behind, one old and one young, they looked like master and servant.

"Officer Chen, I have invited you several times without success, so I had no choice but to come and visit uninvited. Please forgive my intrusion."

Liang Zhan held a folding fan and clasped his fists in a salute. "Please do me the honor of meeting at Chunman Tower. There will be plenty of beautiful women and fine wine."

"You are indeed quite presumptuous."

Chen Sanshi said calmly, "I have something to do, so I won't trouble you, Young Master Liang."

"I mean no harm."

Liang Zhan took a step forward and lowered his voice. "Don't worry, the Tianyuan Martial Arts Academy will not pursue the matter of the Qin brothers."

"What Qin brothers?"

Chen Sanshi feigned ignorance. "I don't understand."

Perhaps they truly wouldn't pursue Qin Feng's matter.

But more likely, they wanted to use this to pry information from him, asking if he had left the city that night and if there was any possibility of him coming into contact with an Immortal Treasure.

"Officer Chen is quite skilled at playing dumb."

Liang Zhan said with a fake smile, then gave a look to the old servant behind him. "However, I still hope you will do me the honor of having a meal together."

"Please!"

The old servant extended a pair of hands like withered branches and was about to grab him.

Chen Sanshi frowned and tightened his grip on his spear.