Internal Strength Emerges, Martial Arts Reaching Rank

The next day!

Early morning, as the dawn light first rose, a faint ray of sunlight shone through the window into Lu Chuan's room.

"Phew..."

After cultivating through the night, Lu Chuan finally performed another set of Five Elements Stance Training and let out a long breath of stale air.

[Five Elements Stance Training +3]

The next moment, a message flashed across the System Panel.

At once, light flashed across the System Panel, and a profound intent merged into Lu Chuan's body, making his flesh and physique seem to undergo a kind of sublimation.

His understanding of Five Elements Stance Training silently rose another level.

Lu Chuan could clearly feel that his constitution had undergone a distinct transformation, his physical strength increasing considerably at that moment.

With a thought, his consciousness immediately entered the Sea of Consciousness to inspect the System Panel.

[Name: Lu Chuan]

[Cultivation: Unranked]

[Technique: Five Elements Stance Training (Proficient, 1/200)]

[Martial Skill: Basic Archery (Perfection, 4/1000)]

...

Sure enough, Five Elements Stance Training had been Raised to Proficient from Beginner, driving a breakthrough in his physique and greatly increasing his physical strength.

Though he had not tested it, Lu Chuan secretly estimated that the increase was enormous, likely more than a hundred jin.

"My physical strength has increased greatly..."

Lu Chuan's eyes narrowed. He instinctively threw a punch, and immediately, a crackling sound tore through the air, like the muffled blast of firecrackers.

His pupils contracted, and his face filled with astonishment. "A single punch breaking the air, strength reaching a thousand jin... How is that possible?"

A thousand jin of strength was already the threshold for an ordinary Martial Artist.

But Lu Chuan had never felt any sign of Internal Strength being cultivated inside his body.

Besides, his Five Elements Stance Training had only just reached Proficient. To cultivate Internal Strength, Five Elements Stance Training had to reach Perfection first.

"Something's wrong. Isn't my physical strength growing too quickly? It completely doesn't match my realm. Could it be that I was born with Divine Power?"

Lu Chuan was secretly shocked. Feeling the growth of his strength, he was utterly dumbfounded.

After turning it over and over in his mind without figuring anything out, he could only attribute it to being born with Divine Power, his physical strength naturally greater than that of ordinary people.

With that thought, he threw several more punches.

Crackle...

His fists split the sky, their sound like muffled thunder.

For a moment, Sharp Light flickered in Lu Chuan's eyes, and his mood soared.

After a night of bitter cultivation, his Five Elements Stance Training had risen from Beginner to Proficient. More importantly, his physical strength had broken past the thousand-jin mark, producing air-splitting sounds and rivaling an ordinary Martial Artist.

This was absolutely a pleasant surprise.

But before the smile on his face had lasted even ten seconds, his expression changed drastically, and he rushed from the room.

An intense wave of hunger instantly swept through his entire body.

It made him feel as if his chest were pressed against his back, as though he were about to be starved flat.

After charging into the kitchen, Lu Chuan opened the refrigerator and crammed the bear paws Liang Ya had prepared the night before into his mouth like a ravenous wolf and tiger.

In only a short while, a bear paw weighing nearly ten jin entered his stomach.

"Phew..."

After letting out another breath of stale air, Lu Chuan finally felt the hunger in his body lessen.

He immediately picked up another bear paw and began gnawing on it.

This must be because Five Elements Stance Training broke through, further Tempering my physique and causing my bodily functions to Consume too much energy, which is why I'm this hungry.

In truth, my body urgently needs to replenish its energy.

No wonder there are rumors that Martial Artists can all eat enormously, with some even consuming an entire cow a day. It seems that may not be false after all!

Many thoughts flashed through Lu Chuan's mind, but the speed at which he ate did not slow in the slightest.

Very quickly, he completely finished the other bear paw as well.

Only then did his hunger disappear completely.

Damn it. I originally planned not to leave the city to hunt these next few days, so I could focus on cultivating Five Elements Stance Training. But with my appetite now, there simply isn't enough meat at home to support me. At most, in three days, I'll probably eat the family into poverty.

Lu Chuan smiled bitterly to himself. Had I known this, even if I had to endure being exploited by the Fierce Tiger Gang, I should have brought that Black Bear back...

But after thinking it over, Lu Chuan immediately dismissed the idea.

With the Fierce Tiger Gang's nature, if they saw him dragging back a Black Bear, they would make sure not to leave even scraps for him.

By then, forget the Bear Gallbladder—even the bear paws would not be his to have.

Forget it, I'll make do for now. There are still some savings at home. I'll have Mother use all of it to buy meat later. It should last a few more days.

Lu Chuan secretly thought, At my current rate of improvement, if I cultivate around the clock, it won't take more than a week at most for Five Elements Stance Training to reach Perfection.

By then, I will surely cultivate Internal Strength and truly achieve Martial Arts Reaching Rank.

Lu Chuan immediately formed a plan. Sharp Light burst from his clear eyes, and he was filled with vigor.

Time flew like a shuttle, never resting day or night.

In the blink of an eye, five days had passed.

Over those five days, Lu Chuan followed his plan and remained at home, bitterly cultivating Five Elements Stance Training.

He slept only three hours a day. Other than eating, drinking, and answering nature's call, all his remaining time was spent cultivating.

Over those five days, Lu Chuan's appetite grew larger by the day.

At first, he ate roughly thirty to fifty jin of meat a day. Later, he actually needed to eat a hundred jin of meat every day.

The family savings flowed out like water, rushing away in torrents.

Liang Ya followed Lu Chuan's instructions and used all their savings to buy meat in batches. By Lu Chuan's original estimate, it should have lasted about a week or so.

But who could have expected meat prices to suddenly rise two days earlier, and by a huge margin, directly doubling?

As a result, the money at home was enough to supply at most five days' worth of food for him.

Fortunately, over these past few days, his cultivation of Five Elements Stance Training had gone exceptionally smoothly, and his progress was far faster than he had predicted.

In just five days, his Five Elements Stance Training had soared all the way upward.

From Proficient, it crossed Mastery and Minor Accomplishment, charging straight through Great Accomplishment.

Now, it stood only one step away from Perfection.

At this moment.

Inside Lu Chuan's room, he stepped through the Dipper Stance, taking the form of a fierce tiger as he moved about the room, wholly focused on cultivating Five Elements Stance Training.

[Five Elements Stance Training +6]

[Five Elements Stance Training +6]

...

Every move and stance, every punch and kick, flowed like drifting clouds and running water, naturally perfected.

Crack! Crack!

Suddenly, after completing another set of Stake Technique, Lu Chuan's body jolted violently.

For a moment, crackling sounds came from inside his body, the bones throughout him writhing continuously like firecrackers.

At once, Lu Chuan clearly felt a warm, flowing power emerge from inside his body, coursing through his limbs and bones in an instant.

It was Tempering the skin and flesh all over his body.

"This is Internal Strength. The flesh gives rise to Internal Strength, drawing its force to temper skin and flesh."

Lu Chuan's mind shook, and he was instantly overjoyed. Throwing back his head, he laughed wildly. "Hahaha... My Five Elements Stance Training has finally reached Perfection. I've cultivated Internal Strength and achieved Martial Arts Reaching Rank..."