That afternoon, Wang Yuan returned to the secluded side room of his home in South District.
He adjusted his breathing and brought himself to peak condition.
First, he consumed the Jade Marrow Grass.
At once, a cool current flowed through his limbs and bones, smoothing away the final trace of restlessness in his vitality and leaving his mind incomparably clear and tranquil.
After that, he swallowed the three Blood Dates one by one.
A wave of pure, surging vitality erupted within his body.
The vitality merged with the cool energy of the Jade Marrow Grass, becoming gentle yet vast.
Wang Yuan did not dare delay. He immediately circulated the vitality method of the Panshi Fist.
Guiding that enormous torrent of vitality, he launched a fierce assault upon the unseen barrier of the Second Blood Change.
"Boom!"
It was as though thunder had exploded within his body.
His vast vitality surged through every corner of his body again and again, tempering his tendons, bones, and skin, washing away the impurities buried deep within.
At this moment, Dragon Tendon Tiger Bone displayed its terrifying qualities.
His resilient tendons firmly restrained the violent vitality, keeping it gathered without allowing it to scatter.
His powerful bones were like bottomless pits, greedily absorbing the Vitality Essence and becoming ever more crystalline and tough.
Intense pain spread through his entire body.
But that was a necessary process of vitality tempering the body, of shedding the mortal frame and exchanging the bones.
Wang Yuan guarded his mind tightly, his will like an immovable Panshi.
He recalled the essence of the Panshi Fist.
Steady as a boulder, moving like an earthquake!
Only a deep foundation could bear greater power.
Who knew how much time passed? Under the protection of the Pulse Protecting Pill, that solid barrier finally began to loosen.
"Break!"
Wang Yuan let out a low roar in his heart, gathering every shred of vitality in his body.
"Crack!"
A force of vitality far purer, more immense, and more blazing than during the First Blood Change erupted from within him.
The vitality around his body thundered and roared, producing a sound like the surging tides of a great river.
Specks of grayish-black impurities seeped from his skin, carrying a foul, fishy stench.
Yet his aura was skyrocketing wildly at a rate visible to the naked eye!
Wang Yuan slowly opened his eyes, a sharp gleam flashing through them before vanishing.
He lightly clenched his fist, feeling the surging power within his body.
The Second Blood Change had succeeded!
Not only that, during the breakthrough, his understanding of the Panshi Fist had also reached an entirely new height.
In a flash of inspiration, he rose and began practicing the Panshi Fist in the courtyard.
At first, his fist stances were still somewhat slow.
But as his vitality circulated, his punches became faster and faster, each move linking seamlessly with the next, without the slightest stagnation.
"Hah—!"
His fist wind churned, actually stirring up clearly audible sounds of wind and thunder in the courtyard.
He threw a punch without touching the wall.
Yet the condensed fist wind slammed into the hard Blue Stone wall with a dull thud, leaving behind a shallow, indented fist mark.
Breaking steles and splitting stone!
That was precisely the sign of the Panshi Fist reaching Major Accomplishment.
At this moment, Wang Yuan's Fist Intent had begun to emerge, and his vitality surged like the tide.
The strength of his tendons and bones had been completely integrated through the cleansing of the Second Blood Change.
Every gesture contained explosive power.
He could feel that if he faced Zhao Hu again now, there would be no need for the Blood Burning Technique, nor any exquisite spear techniques.
With the Panshi Fist at Major Accomplishment alone, he could crush and blast Zhao Hu to death with absolute power within three to five moves!
"So this is the Second Blood Change. So this is the Panshi Fist at Major Accomplishment..."
Wang Yuan withdrew his fist and stood still, feeling the rushing power within his body, his eyes filled with confidence.
With a thought, he sensed the Black Talent Bead mark on his chest once more.
[Energy Absorption in Progress... Current Energy: (48/100)]
Breaking through to the Second Blood Change, the transformation of his body, and the leap in both the quality and quantity of his vitality had indeed replenished the Talent Bead's energy once again.
"It's a pity Chasing Wind Leg hasn't broken through to the second level yet, though it's close."
Wang Yuan sighed regretfully.
Now that his strength had risen greatly and his trump cards had increased, the road ahead seemed increasingly clear.
But there was still a trace of unease in his heart.
Because the Outer City of Gaoye City was becoming more and more chaotic. The plague from the East and West Districts had already spread into South District.
Food prices in South District had already increased severalfold, and order had become far too chaotic as well.
"Now that I've broken through to the Second Blood Change, it's time to find Master and choose a body-tempering martial art. My grand plan of stockpiling vitality cannot stop."
Early the next morning, the thin mist had yet to disperse.
As usual, Wang Yuan rose early and prepared to head to Panshi Fist Academy.
His breakthrough to the Second Blood Change and the Major Accomplishment of the Panshi Fist had filled him with confidence, making his steps ever steadier and more powerful.
However, just as he left South District—
And turned into a relatively secluded alley, his footsteps abruptly halted.
Because at the entrance to the alley—
A figure stood there silently, as though she had long since blended into the surrounding morning mist.
She was a woman who appeared to be twenty-five or twenty-six years old, with an utterly ordinary face devoid of any distinguishing features.
The sort who, once thrown into a crowd, could never be found again.
She wore a simple green dress, with no unnecessary ornaments on her body.
Yet the instant Wang Yuan saw her, every hair on his body stood on end.
Danger!
Extreme danger!
It felt as though a fierce beast at the top of the food chain had fixed its gaze upon him, icy coldness spreading from his spine all the way to the crown of his head.
The vitality within him stirred instinctively, while Dragon Tendon Tiger Bone sent out a clear warning.
This woman was exceedingly terrifying!
Her strength far surpassed Zhao Hu's. She even gave him a sense of oppression no weaker than that of Senior Disciple Brother and Second Senior Sister combined.
Wang Yuan's pupils contracted slightly.
Yet his expression remained unchanged, and he merely furrowed his brow.
He revealed just the right amount of vigilance and confusion as he looked at the woman blocking his path.
That woman was Huang Yao.
Her indifferent gaze fell upon Wang Yuan as she examined him from head to toe.
Her voice, like her eyes, carried not the slightest ripple:
"You are Wang Yuan?"
"It's me."
"And you are?"
Wang Yuan answered in a low voice, having already guessed her origins.
The Huang Family! They had indeed come for him!
And the one they had sent was no mediocre opponent.
"My name is Huang Yao."
The woman calmly gave her name and asked directly:
"A few days ago, the Black Tiger Gang in East District was wiped out, and a steward of my Huang Family died an unnatural death."
"Have you seen him? Was Zhao Hu killed by you?"
So she really was here because of this!
Wang Yuan's heart tightened, but he showed astonishment and confusion on his face.
He hurriedly denied it:
"Miss Huang... why would you say such a thing?"
"Although I had some minor conflicts with the Black Tiger Gang, they were settled long ago."
"As for that Huang Family steward, I had never even met him. We had neither grievance nor enmity. Why would I kill him?"
"And how would I dare show disrespect toward someone from the Huang Family?"
There was a trace of urgent grievance in his tone, while his gaze remained open and frank.
Huang Yao's cold eyes stared at Wang Yuan, as though judging whether his words were true or false.
After several breaths of silence, she seemed unable to find any obvious flaw in Wang Yuan's expression.
Combined with the First Blood Change cultivation he had concealed using the Turtle Breathing Technique, as well as his identity as a True Disciple of Panshi Fist Academy—
She lightly uttered two words:
"True enough."
Wang Yuan relaxed slightly.
He thought he had fooled her with his perfect disguise and reasonable explanation.
However, at the very instant his guard relaxed—
Huang Yao, standing opposite him, moved without warning.
Fast!
Fast as a ghost.
One moment, that green silhouette had still been several yards away.
The next, she was already upon Wang Yuan!
A fair, delicate palm containing terrifying power swept toward Wang Yuan's forehead with fierce palm wind.
If that palm landed, let alone his head, even solid stone would be shattered.
Life and death hung by a thread!
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