Inner Qi First Layer

Back on the main road, Lu Ming had already undergone a complete transformation.

The ragged shirt that had let the wind in from all sides had been replaced by a fitted black martial outfit.

He had originally assumed the clothes in the bundle belonged to that hulking coachman. Given that man's build, they should have been far too large for him.

Yet they fit perfectly, which puzzled him. Still, he did not dwell on it, merely guessing that there had been another boy of similar build inside the carriage.

As for his feet, the straw sandals riddled with holes had become a pair of black boots with white soles.

His hair was simply tied behind his head with a strip of cloth.

His face had also been washed clean. Though he still looked quite thin overall, the spirit he now gave off was as different from before as clouds from mud.

He believed that even if he passed by the beggars the original owner had known, they would find it hard to recognize him.

That would save him a great deal of trouble, and it deepened his gratitude toward the carriage's owner.

"Then let's begin a new life."

Lu Ming adjusted his clothes once more, then strode toward Shuofeng City with his head held high and chest thrust out.

The closer he got to the city, the more people he encountered. These people were all Martial Artists. Some moved with flying strides, while others directly used lightness skills, darting and leaping like rabbits rising and falcons dropping as they hurried along.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a sharp sound tore through the air. Lu Ming only saw a black shadow flash past him.

It startled him badly, and he hurriedly looked ahead. It turned out to be a plump figure dressed in yellow.

The figure revealed himself, paused only briefly, then turned into an afterimage and vanished again. When he reappeared, he was already more than ten meters away.

It was like blinking across space.

Within a few breaths, the figure had completely vanished from sight.

"What incredible lightness skill. This really is a martial world—it's a little terrifying."

Lu Ming was both envious and uneasy. Before people like these, he was like a lamb awaiting slaughter, utterly lacking any sense of security.

That only made his desire to practice martial arts more urgent.

"No, I need to get into the city quickly and settle down."

According to his memories, although Shuofeng City had only rudimentary rules, it was crowded. As long as one was careful, many calamities could be avoided.

Unlike the wilderness, where there were no rules whatsoever. If he encountered someone who disliked the sight of him and casually slapped him to death, there would be nowhere to seek justice.

Just like earlier—if that plump figure had harbored ill intent toward him, he would already be dead.

With that, Lu Ming moved onward even more discreetly and quickly.

Finally, after more than an hour of travel, he reached the vicinity of the city gates. Looking at the towering, majestic gate tower, he could not help letting out a breath of relief.

Without stopping, he continued toward the gates.

The city gates were broad, with only a sparse scattering of people entering and leaving. The City Lord's Mansion soldiers standing guard at the sides did not even need to maintain order.

Lu Ming also knew a little about why it was like this.

This was the north gate, facing an area with little value, so there were usually not many people passing through.

The south gate, by contrast, was entirely different. Whether day or night, countless people came and went there.

At times, it was even packed beyond measure.

The reason was simple. Beyond the south gate lay the Shuofeng Mountain Range. For ordinary people, it was a dangerous forbidden land, but for some Martial Artists, it was a treasure ground.

Spiritual Medicine, demon beasts, and other resources were all targets through which they sought wealth.

Many Martial Artists even treated it as a place to temper themselves.

Thus, even the deep mountains were lively.

Of course, having many people also had its advantages—it made it easier to blend into the city.

Here, however, there were too few people, and Lu Ming feared some trouble might arise.

Fortunately, those soldiers seemed long accustomed to idling about and did not stir up any issues.

Thus, he finally entered the city.

Looking at the streets that were both strange and familiar, Lu Ming had no time to wander around.

His goal was clear: find a cheap place to rent. The original owner had begged throughout the city, so he naturally knew where inexpensive housing could be found.

But it was already late today. Even if he found a landlord, it would not be convenient to arrange a rental.

So, he planned to spend the night at the cheapest inn in his memories.

"Huh? That person who just passed by looked familiar somehow."

After crossing another street, a beggar by the roadside suddenly halted and glanced back in puzzlement, only to see a figure disappear into the crowd.

"You beg from people every day. You've seen plenty of faces. What's so strange about seeing one again?"

The beggar beside him gave him a shove and urged him on.

"Come on. If we hand things in late again today, that Skinflayer won't be gentle."

"That's true."

The previously puzzled beggar nodded, then sighed.

"When will these days ever end? We never have enough to eat or enough to wear, and they still strip another layer off us. If this keeps up, sooner or later we won't be able to endure it."

"Who could say otherwise?"

The other beggar sighed as well. After falling silent for a while, he suddenly said,

"It's a pity we haven't seen Lu Ming for two days. Otherwise, robbing him of a little something could have made things easier for us."

"Don't count on it. He hadn't managed to beg for anything for days before that, and Skinflayer gave him a vicious beating. I reckon he's already frozen to death in some corner of the city."

On the other side, Lu Ming naturally knew he had run into acquaintances. They were all beggars controlled by the Beggar's Gang, and they had quite a few grievances with the original owner.

Yet he showed no emotion and calmly walked past them.

It was not yet time for revenge.

Making his way carefully to that secluded inn from his memories, Lu Ming paid three coins of silver and successfully checked in, with dinner and hot water included.

He was now soaking in a barrel of hot water, feeling comfort flood through his entire body.

He had never imagined a hot bath could be so enjoyable. He soaked for a full quarter hour, only grabbing a towel to scrub himself once the water began to cool.

Earlier, at the puddle outside the city, he had not dared wash his entire body in cold water. He had only washed his hair, then used the bundle cloth to wipe his face, neck, and other exposed areas clean.

The rest of him was still filthy.

So after soaking and scrubbing, the hot water in the barrel had turned pitch-black.

"The innkeeper will definitely be shocked tomorrow."

After getting dressed, Lu Ming looked at the black water in the tub and smiled helplessly. Then he stopped worrying about it and went to the table to eat dinner.

Meals at the inn could be ordered separately. He could order whatever he wanted to eat.

The complimentary meal was rather plain, consisting only of two steamed buns and a plate of pickled vegetables with a bit of oil.

Even so, Lu Ming ate with great relish.

It had been a long time since he had eaten a proper meal.

In a bout of Wind Sweeping Clouds, Lu Ming quickly finished eating and let out a satisfied burp. Then a wave of drowsiness swept over him. He was certain that if he lay down now, he would immediately fall asleep—and sleep like the dead.

But he forcibly held himself back. Ever since entering the city and seeing Martial Artists all over the streets, he could no longer suppress his desire to quickly learn martial arts.

So he wanted to try cultivating the Heavenly Saber Art in his mind.

He hurried to the bed, sat cross-legged, and quickly brought up the internal cultivation method of the Heavenly Saber Art.

After being instilled by the Jade Pendant, he completely understood this cultivation technique. He might even have understood certain details better than the owner of the Stone Coffin.

That was the Jade Pendant's effect. It was equivalent to stacking his comprehension to the maximum level. From now on, no matter what divine arts or secret manuals he received through instillation, he would understand them at a glance.

As for learning them immediately, that still depended on his body's aptitude. Now, all that remained was for his body to learn.

Back to the matter at hand, after reading through the technique, Lu Ming attempted to circulate the Inner Qi Realm portion within it.

Following the technique's instructions, he quickly entered the state, and his consciousness gradually sank inward.

He did not know how long it had been when a warm current suddenly arose in his abdomen, followed by a faint numb itch.

"It worked already?"

Once the strange sensation faded, Lu Ming opened his eyes in disbelief.

If he had felt correctly, he had just completed the process described in the Heavenly Saber Art: drawing qi into the body.

In other words, he had officially crossed the threshold of martial cultivation and entered the Inner Qi First Layer.

This left him somewhat unable to believe it. According to the technique, the speed at which one drew qi into the body determined one's martial aptitude to a certain extent.

Though he did not know the specific standard, succeeding in roughly a moment meant his aptitude was extraordinarily high.

Combined with the Jade Pendant, he now possessed the makings of a peerless genius.

"Continue."

Suppressing his excitement, Lu Ming circulated the technique again. After confirming that the stream of qi within his body truly existed, he decided to continue cultivating and strengthen his inner qi.

However, after entering meditation for only a short while this time, he was forced out.

A sudden wave of hunger had risen from his stomach.

He had clearly just eaten, yet he had become hungry so quickly. After thinking it over, he understood the reason.

Martial cultivation was a process of refining essence into qi. And where did essence and qi come from? Naturally, from the outside world—most importantly, food.

From this, it was clear that martial cultivation was not something the poor could afford.

After all, poor scholars and rich warriors.

As the hunger grew more pronounced, Lu Ming did not dare continue cultivating. Otherwise, it would forcibly draw upon the essence and qi already within his body, making his frail body even worse off than snow upon frost.

He found the few remaining pastries from before, and only after finishing them did the hunger gradually fade.

Then he could no longer hold on and fell into a deep sleep.