Quivering Spear Force

Within the spacious courtyard.

A great many martial artists wielded sabers, swords, and other weapons, each honing their techniques. Their swings howled with force, while their abundant, dense Blood Qi resembled clusters of flames, making the entire courtyard noticeably several degrees warmer than outside.

Carrying an ox-tendon spear, Wu Ming was utterly inconspicuous among the crowd. After glancing around the courtyard, he chose an unoccupied corner, walked over, and took his stance. His body turned slightly sideways, both hands held the spear horizontally, and his knees bent faintly as he assumed the basic stance of Horizontal Spear Ready Stance.

With his martial plaque, he could have asked a Martial Master from the martial academy to guide him through the basics. But since he had already memorized the entire method, Wu Ming intended to give it a try himself first.

At this moment,

Following the descriptions in the Falling Leaf Spear Technique manual, Wu Ming slowly exerted force through his arms. With one lift and one press, he made the shaft of the ox-tendon spear bend and tremble. Every quiver clearly contained intertwined force.

Quivering the spear was the most basic training for all spear techniques. It honed the skill of applying force with the spear, while also stimulating Blood Qi and drawing forth the intangible "vital essence" within the human body, gradually transforming it into the more tangible "Blood Qi."

As this was his first time practicing spear quivering, Wu Ming's movements were quite unpracticed. Yet he continually recalled the key points for training spear quivering from the Falling Leaf Spear Technique, as well as how the muscles throughout his body should exert force—where to relax and where to tense.

"Relax the sinews and bones; strike with the skin and flesh."

Wu Ming silently recited the words to himself.

Though spear quivering looked simple, the techniques concealed within were exceedingly complex. The force did not come solely from the arms. One first had to stabilize the entire body, then steady the feet and loosen the waist, allowing force to rise from below and travel from the legs to the waist and hips.

It was like mounting a tall horse, one's body rising and falling with its gait. With every rise and fall, bursts of force erupted, then passed into the spear shaft, making the long spear resemble a winding dragon-serpent as it whipped out a trembling texture.

The whooshing of sabers and swords being swung filled the surroundings, but the noise had no effect on Wu Ming. His heart was tranquil and still, all thoughts drawn inward, his mind focused entirely on the movement of his body and the trembling of the spear in his hands.

With over a year of foundation in the Pure Yang Blood-Drawing Stance, achieving Four Levels and Eight Stabilities could be called easy. The difficult part lay in Double Dragons Overturning the Sea—making the human body like a dragon and exerting force throughout the entire body.

"Whew."

His first attempt at spear quivering lasted only a short while before Wu Ming stopped. His stamina remained plentiful, but his arms had already begun to ache and go numb.

The spear itself did not seem particularly heavy, but when he used his entire body to make it quiver, tremendous force was contained within its upward and downward arcs. Naturally, trying to forcibly control that force with his arms alone was extremely taxing.

"The force erupting from the spear's trembling can't be forcibly suppressed with my arms. I need to follow its momentum..."

Wu Ming rested briefly. Once the numbness in his arms had eased somewhat, he began practicing again.

He practiced repeatedly several times in succession.

Relying on his meticulous perception and insight, he continuously made adjustments. Before long, his arms no longer had to work quite so hard. Yet spear quivering itself involved force coursing through the entire body, comparable to running, and consumed a great deal of stamina. After practicing several times in succession, sweat had soaked through Wu Ming's back.

"This spear-quivering technique consumes a great deal of strength as well. Ordinary people would probably struggle to persist even for a moment."

Wu Ming stood with his spear planted against the ground, breathing lightly.

In the past, when he condensed Blood Qi and cultivated the Pure Yang Blood-Drawing Stance, he entered stillness through his stance and guided his Blood Qi to gather. The process consumed little stamina. Or rather, the process of First Blood Forging emphasized "nourishment" and "stillness," reducing unnecessary expenditure as much as possible so that Blood Qi could accumulate.

But the transition from First Blood Forging to Second Blood Forging was entirely different. After the body underwent transformation, it reached a full and brimming state. No matter how one stood in a stance, Blood Qi would no longer naturally arise. At that point, the body had to move, stepping from the stage of "stillness" into the stage of "motion," tempering Blood Qi from the limbs and bones during the process of training force and exerting strength.

This spear-quivering exercise sent force throughout the entire body, with every part exerting strength. It was nearly comparable to sprinting at full speed. Even a physically formidable Blood Forging martial artist would clearly feel his stamina declining if he continued quivering the spear without pause.

"With this kind of training, my appetite will probably increase drastically. No wonder reaching the level of a Blood Forging martial artist turns one into a major consumer of silver. If I didn't train martial arts, I would only eat slightly more than ordinary people. But with training this intense, I'll likely need at least one or two times an ordinary person's food intake to sustain the expenditure of energy, and my meals will need a certain amount of meat at minimum."

Wu Ming gained an even deeper understanding of how practicing martial arts burned through money.

After a brief rest,

Wu Ming raised the long spear in his hands again, steadied his breathing, bent his knees slightly, lowered his body a little, and exerted force once more. The spear in his hands began to tremble in accordance with the force moving through his body.

Compared to his previous attempts, this time he was clearly more proficient. But it was merely proficiency. Even with Wu Ming's meticulous level of control and perception, it was impossible for him to fully grasp the spear-quivering method after only a few tries. He could distinctly sense that there were still many flaws in how his body exerted force.

Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale...

Wu Ming's heart was utterly still. His gaze was calm and steady as he adjusted his breathing while sensing the force within his body. He carefully experienced every movement of every muscle, comparing them one by one against the instructional diagrams in the Falling Leaf Spear Technique, seeking out flaws and correcting them one by one.

With basic techniques, one had to first practice them correctly, then practice until proficient, and finally practice until perfect before one could be considered to have grasped their essence.

Thus, Wu Ming immersed himself in cultivation, and before he knew it, two hours had passed.

Bzzzz!

The long spear in Wu Ming's hands abruptly stopped trembling, releasing a deep hum. Then he suddenly opened his mouth and panted violently several times. Sweat poured from his body like rain, as though he were a drowning man, and a visibly damp patch of sweat had even appeared on the ground beneath him.

Even with the physique of a Blood Forging martial artist, Wu Ming was having difficulty holding on. He could feel weakness throughout his body, soreness radiating from every muscle, and his mouth was parched and his tongue dry.

Yet compared to the exhaustion of his body, his heart was filled with joy.

After two hours of spear training, he could clearly feel a faint strand of Blood Qi being tempered from the depths of his own flesh and bones!

Being able to cultivate Blood Qi meant he had practiced correctly!

"Looks like there's no need to ask a Martial Master for introductory guidance."

Wu Ming exhaled.

If one practiced spear techniques incorrectly, not only would one fail to cultivate Blood Qi, one could even injure the muscles and lumbar spine. Being able to cultivate Blood Qi meant he had trained properly.

This faint strand of Blood Qi was exceedingly insignificant compared to the mass he had condensed within his dantian. But the Blood Congealing Martial Path was a process of accumulation. As the saying went, a journey of a thousand miles began beneath one's feet.

By accumulating strand upon strand and gradually gathering them together, he could continuously strengthen the mass of Blood Qi within his dantian until quantity gave rise to qualitative change.

Apart from tempering this strand of Blood Qi.

Wu Ming could also feel that he had become somewhat proficient in this basic spear-quivering method. The way force was applied throughout his body was now largely consistent with the descriptions in the manual. Only in the most minute details did slight shortcomings remain.

"Practice correctly, practice until proficient—the next step is to practice until perfect and grasp the essence of this form. Once I grasp the essence of the spear-quivering form, I'll have mastered the skill of applying force with a spear. With a little more practice in thrusting, stabbing, lifting, and cleaving, I'll reach the level of Scattered Hand."

"I wonder how long it will take me to grasp the essence of this form."

Wu Ming murmured inwardly.

According to the Falling Leaf Spear Technique manual, those with weak comprehension needed to train bitterly for several months, or even half a year, before grasping the essence of the spear-quivering form. Those with strong comprehension, however, needed only a little over a month.

Once one grasped the essence of the spear-quivering form, the foundation of force application, the subsequent techniques of thrusting, stabbing, lifting, and cleaving became quite simple. With only a little practice, one could become proficient in them, then begin training in the true forms of the Falling Leaf Spear Technique.

Mastering all sixteen forms of the Falling Leaf Spear Technique and practicing them until one perfectly grasped their essence meant entering the second level of skill: Integration.

For ordinary people to reach this step, even with relatively easier saber techniques, often required two or three years of bitter effort. Spear techniques were far more difficult. For someone of mediocre comprehension, practicing for four or five years without achieving Integration was perfectly normal.