Hidden Strength

The next morning, after roll call at the River Bureau.

Chen Qing was organizing the Patrol Guard's waist badge and saber.

Cheng Ming strolled over and pulled him beneath the shadow of a corridor pillar.

Cheng Ming swept his gaze around, and only after confirming no one was paying attention did he lower his voice. "I went home last night and mentioned your matter to my eldest sister."

"Oh?"

Chen Qing looked up. Seeing the unusual expression on Cheng Ming's face, his heart stirred.

"It worked out."

A trace of relief appeared on Cheng Ming's face. "She agreed to give you an additional two Blood Vitality Pills every month from now on."

Chen Qing clasped his fists heavily. "Boss, thank you."

Two Blood Vitality Pills cost at least five taels of silver, and there would be two every month. To Chen Qing, this was already an exceptionally precious opportunity.

"Go on."

Cheng Ming patted Chen Qing's shoulder and smiled. "Train hard. If you're lucky, perhaps you'll break through the barrier a second time."

With the Martial Arts Examination approaching, the atmosphere at Zhou Academy was taut as a fully drawn bowstring.

Every day, Zhou Liang paced back and forth through Zhou Academy, with most of his attention focused on disciples at the Hidden Strength stage.

After all, they were the main force for this Martial Arts Examination.

Chen Qing merely trained tirelessly in the academy without drawing any attention. With the Blood Vitality Pills sponsored by the Cheng Family, along with the Blood Vitality Powder he bought himself, his Tongbei Stance Practice progressed visibly by the day.

That evening.

"It's about time to try catalyzing Hidden Strength."

Qi and Blood surged and roared within Chen Qing, like earthfire churning and blazing in the depths of his veins. Every breath carried scorching heat. His exposed skin flushed an unnatural red, with faint white vapor rising from it.

In moments, his clothes were drenched through with sweat.

If one looked closely, one could detect a subtle clue.

Before he knew it, the sun had begun to set.

The disciples of Zhou Academy gathered their equipment in twos and threes.

"It's about to get dark, and he's still training."

"A second He Yan!"

"No, he's even more diligent than He Yan!"

"Ah, what use is training yourself to death...?"

Their discussions, accompanied by sighs, soon faded into the dusk.

Only Chen Qing remained on the vast training ground.

He stood atop a wooden stake, his eyes tightly shut.

At that moment, he felt as though a ball of fire burned within his chest, spreading toward every part of his body.

Qi and Blood coursed through the soles of his feet, his back, and his shoulders, linking segment by segment and forming streams of reflux.

This was the sign of Bright Strength reaching perfection.

The breakthrough had officially begun.

Night deepened, and the academy was silent.

Standing atop the wooden stake, Chen Qing's Qi and Blood boiled as it rushed toward his limbs and bones.

Whenever it reached a new place, he felt as if flames were igniting within his body.

His flesh, muscles, and bones seemed to be burned at that instant, gradually turning to ash—then the ash condensed into a single breath.

Bright Strength erupted from flesh and rang through bone; Hidden Strength, however, had to sink into the marrow, pass through the Ren and Du meridians, and draw Internal Force inward—like a venomous snake flicking its tongue: silent, yet lethal.

Chen Qing was undergoing precisely such torment. Tempering muscles and bones with Qi and Blood was naturally far harder, and far more painful, than tempering skin and flesh.

At first, his entire body merely felt feverish. Soon, that heat spread like flames searing his skin.

Then the flames invaded inward, burning fiercely between his muscles and bones.

The night was dark, and all creation was still.

The empty academy held only the echo of his suppressed, heavy breathing.

Chen Qing was soaked from head to toe, as though he had just been hauled from the water, yet the pain still did not cease.

But he knew well that the longer he endured, the deeper the Hidden Strength he could catalyze would become.

He could clearly feel his muscles and bones steadily toughening, his pores contracting violently—

This was the sign that flesh, muscles, and bones had become completely connected.

Time passed silently.

Chen Qing sat as still as an old monk in meditation, with only his steady breath rising and falling.

The pain gradually faded, and his skin, flesh, muscles, and bones finally became linked as one.

He persevered to the very end, at last reaching perfection.

Boom!

After an unknown amount of time, the pain of being burned alive finally began to recede.

A strange feeling of complete connection arose within him, as though a clogged river channel had been thoroughly blasted open. His Qi and Blood no longer encountered any obstruction, flowing smoothly through his flesh, muscles, and bones, reaching every limb and bone.

The pores across his body seemed to awaken, greedily opening and closing as they drew in and expelled the cool night air.

Boom—!

Something within his body seemed to explode completely, then instantly fell silent.

[Heaven Rewards Diligence, and achievement is certain]

[Tongbei Stance Practice, Mastery (1/2000)]

"Whew!"

After about half an incense stick's time, Chen Qing exhaled a mouthful of turbid air and slowly opened his eyes. "So this is Hidden Strength?"

His body felt lighter than ever before, and his control over Qi and Blood had become exquisitely precise.

At a thought, a force that was condensed and restrained, yet contained an even more terrifying explosive power, silently lay coiled between his muscles and bones, poised to strike.

Qin Lie reached Hidden Strength in around half a year and was considered Zhou Academy's most outstanding disciple. By that measure, I'm doing quite well myself.

Tomorrow, I'll find an opportunity to report this to Master.

It was necessary to show one's strength at the appropriate time, so others could see the value of their investment.

Concealing one's abilities was for self-protection; displaying one's strength was for seizing opportunities.

Besides, he still had some questions about subsequent cultivation to ask Zhou Liang. Perhaps he might even receive a greater allocation of resources.

It was all benefit, without a single drawback.

Afterward, Chen Qing left Zhou Academy and headed home.

It was late at night, and the streets were extremely empty.

In Gaolin County, once night fell, all pedestrians vanished from the streets. Only the Inner City remained noisy and bustling.

Two battered Covered Boats lay quietly moored at the dock. They swayed gently in the night wind, creaking softly.

Chen Qing skillfully untied the hemp rope fastened to the stern of the neighboring boat, stepped across the slick planks, and crawled through the rear cabin into his family's Lian Boat.

Inside the cabin, the oil lamp's flame was tiny as a bean.

Madam Han was mending fishing nets by its faint light. Hearing him, she raised her head, her face unable to conceal its weariness and worry. "Why are you home so late? You must be starving. The porridge in the pot is still warm—I'll heat it up now."

She set down her work and, with her back bent, was about to shuffle toward the inner boat connected to the stove.

"I forgot the time while practicing."

Chen Qing removed his sweat-soaked, stiff training clothes, still carrying the fishy scent of the river, and casually draped them over a worn oar.

"My stomach's stuck to my back by now. Mother, boil some more water too. I need to wash up—I'm covered in stinking sweat."

"I know."

Madam Han answered as she squeezed into the cramped inner boat. "Oh, right, your Eldest Aunt came by today. She stood at the bow for a while. From the sound of it, the Yang Family wants to scrape together some capital and set up a small shop in Baihua Lane."

Chen Qing scooped up half a ladle of cold water and gulped it down, wiping his mouth. "Ever since Uncle-in-law injured his leg, he hasn't had anything to do. Opening a shop and doing some odd jobs there would be pretty good."

Madam Han sighed. "In times like these, opening a shop isn't so easy."

Chen Qing thought for a moment. "There shouldn't be any problem."

He knew that ever since he had uprooted the Blackwater Gang, the Tiger Gang had taken over Baihua Lane and had treated the Yang Family fairly well. Opening a small shop should not be an issue.

"What do you know!"

Madam Han curled her lips. "How could opening a shop be so easy? It takes a great deal of capital! If it loses money, they'll lose everything."