With his Guanchong Acupoint opened, Lu Chenzhou had taken another step closer to Disease Immunity.
The next evening, he went to Flying Swallow Martial Hall to test his Blood Vitality.
His Blood Vitality value was 1.67, only 0.06 away from the Third Stage.
If he casually opened another acupoint and brought his Black Tiger Fist to Minor Accomplishment, he would be able to break through.
Lu Chenzhou savored the joy of his gains, feeling as though he were in a dream.
Without realizing it, he was already close to reaching the late Mingli Realm.
To break through to the Fourth Stage, one needed to grasp the techniques of Hidden Force, known in the old days as Dark Force. This was a major hurdle that would stop countless people dead in their tracks.
Generally speaking, those with inferior bone aptitude could still hope to reach the Third Stage in this lifetime if they worked hard and spent more money and time. In the old days, this was called the peak of Bright Force.
In the martial world, they could barely be considered low-ranking experts.
This did not require much talent.
But going from Mingli to Hidden Force was another hurdle.
With an ordinary person's conditions, there was little hope.
As for the even more difficult Transformation Force, it had been called a "Transformation Realm Master" in the old days.
That title alone was enough to prove its value. Forget inferior bone aptitude—even those with average bone aptitude had to put in considerable effort before they could break through. Before the First Shackles, almost no one progressed without stagnation, except for the one-in-ten-thousand with superior bone aptitude.
Training grounds.
"Lu Chenzhou, come up and demonstrate the Skimming Step with me."
Shi Ruyu called on him.
Lu Chenzhou agreed and leaped onto the posts.
The other trainees were all envious. They had the same inferior bone aptitude, the same instructor, and the same amount of study time, yet Lu Chenzhou's Sea-Skimming Body was clearly more proficient.
This was what a top student looked like in a teacher's eyes.
That was why Lu Chenzhou was called up for every demonstration.
After nearly a month of special training, Lu Chenzhou was clearly able to hold on much longer atop the wooden posts this time. Several times, he nearly touched Shi Ruyu. His Movement Skill had grown stronger.
Of course, he still did not succeed in the end.
Shi Ruyu's Blood Vitality stage was higher. At the same realm in Sea-Skimming Body, the effect she could produce was far superior to Lu Chenzhou's. This was why Blood Vitality was the foundation!
Practicing fists and stance work were the utmost priorities!
"Not bad. Lu Chenzhou has improved quickly."
As Shi Ruyu recalled the demonstration just now, she was far less calm inside than she appeared. She had started learning months before Lu Chenzhou, yet now their realms were nearly the same.
She estimated that Lu Chenzhou had also reached the Proficiency level in Sea-Skimming Body.
This guy was a little terrifying.
After all, she had experienced some enlightenment herself. Her cultivation speed was not slow.
"Everyone, keep practicing."
Shi Ruyu turned and left, heading for Ji Xuantong's martial arts room. She planned to tell her teacher about her discovery and have Lu Chenzhou taken in as a true disciple as soon as possible.
This junior brother was no simple person!
Lu Chenzhou had no idea what his senior sister was thinking.
He looked at the Martial Dao Tree. Three leaves swayed on the lowest branches.
Basic Fist Art Martial Skills Black Tiger Fist: Mastery (84%) Sea-Skimming Body: Proficiency (24%)
"Black Tiger Fist will reach Minor Accomplishment before the end of the month. Sea-Skimming Body should reach mastery too. Having a proficiency panel is great—the progress of cultivation is crystal clear, and I know exactly where I stand."
As he was leaving.
Du Men called out to Lu Chenzhou.
"Junior brother, spar with me."
It was already late at night, and the other trainees had all left.
"Sure, but only for a few minutes. My mom is still waiting for me."
"Thanks. We'll spar on the posts again."
Du Men had also reached Initiation in Sea-Skimming Body some time ago. He wanted to see just how large the gap between himself and Lu Chenzhou was. As a Third Stage Martial Warrior, losing to someone at the Second Stage had left him somewhat unwilling to accept it.
On the wooden posts, the two figures struck at times and pursued each other at others.
"Go home early. Don't spar too late."
Shi Ruyu passed by with her crossbody bag slung over her shoulder and reminded them.
"Got it, Senior Sister."
Lu Chenzhou responded to her while dealing with Du Men.
Shi Ruyu watched the two sweating profusely as they seriously practiced their fists, feeling somewhat emotional inside... If Du Men did not encounter some opportunity, Lu Chenzhou would soon surpass him.
She now believed in Lu Chenzhou more and more. The two had known each other for over half a year. As a witness to Lu Chenzhou's changes, no one understood this child better than she did.
Bang!
Accompanied by the dull thud of bodies clashing.
Less than three minutes had passed. Du Men was kicked off the posts by Lu Chenzhou's Black Tiger Howling Wind Kick. He rose from the ground with a gloomy expression, his eyes reddened.
"I lost. Thank you, Junior Brother."
He changed out of his training clothes, looking as if he were about to cry.
"Senior Brother, are you okay?"
Lu Chenzhou looked at this usually cheerful boy. Sensing Lu Chenzhou's concern, Du Men seemed unable to hold back his emotions any longer and actually began to sob.
"I worked hard at cultivation too. Why am I still this useless?"
Lu Chenzhou froze, clearly not expecting this.
Senior Brother Du's heart was more fragile than he had imagined.
Then again, he was only a sixteen-year-old child!
He had once been so much stronger than Lu Chenzhou, yet he had watched helplessly as Lu Chenzhou surpassed him. No matter how hard he cultivated, he could do nothing about it. His heart had collapsed.
Lu Chenzhou did not know how to comfort him.
He could not exactly tell his senior brother that he had a Martial Dao Tree, could he? He handed Du Men a tissue to wipe his tears. After venting his emotions, Du Men felt much better and said softly:
"Sorry. I couldn't hold it in. I made a fool of myself."
They said men did not shed tears easily.
"It's okay. There's no need to compare yourself to others. Just stick to your own goals. With your level, Senior Brother, getting into Pingjiang Martial University won't be a problem."
Though Lu Chenzhou's stage was lower, he was the one comforting Du Men instead.
"Yeah. It's getting late. Let's go back."
"See you."
The two vanished into the night.
After closing the door to the martial arts room, Ji Xuantong was the last to leave the martial hall. He could understand Du Men's emotional breakdown as well. All he could say was that this world was cruel.
After leaving the martial hall.
Du Men arrived at a street corner.
Just then, a self-driving taxi passed by. Autonomous driving technology was already very mature these days, and its accident rate was even lower than that of ordinary taxis.
The lighting inside the car was dim, perfect for resting.
He sat in the back seat and dozed off.
March in Su City had already brought spring warmth and blooming flowers, yet he did not know why he felt somewhat cold. An unknown chill seemed to be blowing down his back.
It felt as though someone were blowing cold air on him.
"Whoosh... whoosh... whoosh."
It made it hard for him to fall asleep.
He touched his forehead. He did not have a fever.
"I've opened five acupoints, and I'm a Third Stage Martial Warrior. This shouldn't be happening, right?"
Du Men tried to fall asleep again, but the next moment, he jolted awake.
"Something's wrong!"
He immediately reached for the door handle to get out.
He remembered some unpleasant things.
But the car door seemed welded shut and would not open.
He turned around and looked behind him. There was nothing there.
"Could the car be malfunctioning?"
He turned back, only to see an extra pale hand on the steering wheel. Drops of murky, foul-smelling liquid like corpse water fell from it, drip, drip...
"Void Entity!"
Du Men's face changed drastically.
There was actually a Void Entity hiding inside this self-driving car!
Without caring about anything else, he immediately kicked at the car door. Under Great Xia's laws, encountering a Void Calamity permitted emergency self-defense and did not constitute intentional destruction of property.
Insurance companies would compensate for it afterward as well.
The car drove quietly onward, that pale hand resting on the steering wheel.
A blurry white shadow could vaguely be seen reflected in the window. Du Men faintly felt as though someone in the seat were silently smiling in a strange manner, sending chills down his spine.
Bang!
The door was kicked open. Before Du Men could celebrate his escape from death, what met his eyes was already a remote, deserted street, with cold winds whistling through it.
The lights inside the car flickered, then went out.
Rustle, rustle, rustle... Something seemed to have gotten out of the car.
Du Men's Blood Vitality erupted as he roared:
"What the hell are you? Come on! I'm not afraid of you!"
"Hee hee hee..."
The laughter drew closer, yet Du Men could not see a figure. Rumor had it that Void Entities loved tormenting their victims with fear before killing them. Du Men could now prove that it was true.
This thing could clearly have killed him in the car.
Yet it insisted on toying with him!
Du Men wildly threw punches in every direction, completely without form. Intense terror made this young Martial Warrior, who had never seen real combat, struggle like an ordinary person.
A savage wind struck his face. The Death God was upon him.
Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!
In that terrifying world, the roar of a motorcycle seemed to sound. A helmeted figure rode in on a modified motorcycle spewing blue flames, racing toward them! In his right hand, he held an ancient horizontal saber of unknown material, dragging it along the ground in a shower of sparks.
Hah!
Using the motorcycle's momentum, the man leaped into the air and actually skimmed across a distance of thirty meters, arriving before Du Men. Slash, slash, slash! Blade light crisscrossed, cold and sharp!
A scream vaguely burst forth from the dark night.
Du Men felt the chill beginning to recede.
That thing had been struck by the newcomer and began to flee. Then, a pale handprint appeared on a lamppost, and a drifting white shadow flashed past.
"Trying to run?"
The next instant, a large hand covered in some kind of azure-blue fluorescent glow suddenly slammed out, striking the white shadow against the pole with a bang, clean and decisive.
The white shadow struggled continuously, waving phantom claws. Invisible force tore open the man's leather jacket, revealing his muscular chest. Azure-blue fluorescence flickered over his chest as well. No matter how the white shadow attacked, it could not break through his defense.
"Dark Swallow: Reverse Sea!"
The man pressed downward at the ground. The white shadow was slammed into the pavement, cracking the road. Blue light splashed outward like fluorescent ocean waves exploding in the night, then dimmed into nothingness.
The white shadow dispersed.
The man removed his helmet.
Du Men's expression changed as he blurted out:
"Hall Master?"
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