Mourning for the Disciples of Iron Blood Martial Arts Academy

After spending a quarter of an hour in the dormitory, organizing his training plan at the Martial Arts Academy, Lin Chen changed into the Still Water Martial Arts Academy's training attire and headed to the Martial Arts Pavilion.

Today, the Martial Arts Pavilion was exceptionally lively.

Female disciples came and went continuously at the entrance, but without exception, the most eye-catching person was still Lin Chen.

"I can proudly say, in the entire Still Water Martial Arts Academy, I'm the most dazzling guy!"

Lin Chen now understood why, in the novels he used to read, beautiful women would attract the attention of all the surrounding men wherever they went, which the beautiful women found annoying. Instead, it was the male protagonist not looking at her that made her curious about him.

He was now experiencing the treatment of a novel's beautiful protagonist.

He was completely at ease with all of this. He was like Tang Sanzang walking through the Kingdom of Women, the center of attention wherever he went.

He still had to stay at the Still Water Martial Arts Academy for a long time, so he had to get used to this kind of treatment, like a female lead in an urban novel.

Entering the Martial Arts Pavilion, Lin Chen also saw the two Senior Sisters standing at the counter. He stepped forward and asked, "Excuse me, Senior Sisters, are there any miscellaneous books related to the Martial Path inside the Martial Arts Pavilion?"

The two female disciples weren't too surprised to see a male disciple in the Martial Arts Pavilion; they had already heard the news a quarter of an hour ago.

In terms of the speed of information transmission among students, no other martial arts academy could compare to the Still Water Martial Arts Academy.

He does look pretty good, just a bit dark. No wonder those little rascals keep talking about him.

"Miscellaneous books?"

The Senior Sister on the left, whose hair was styled up, pondered for a moment. "Junior Brother, what kind of miscellaneous books are you referring to?"

"Introductions to wild poultry that supplement Qi and Blood, Martial Path medicinal pills... anything along those lines."

Lin Chen was very clear about his weaknesses. The biggest weakness was poverty, followed by a lack of understanding of the overall Martial Path.

The booklet left by Instructor Yu focused more on training insights, with less information on methods that could accelerate Qi and Blood growth.

Lin Chen guessed that Instructor Yu felt that given his situation, instead of focusing on the poultry meat and medicinal pills that required a lot of money, it would be better to wholeheartedly concentrate on cultivation techniques.

"I understand what Junior Brother means. In the library on the second floor, on the bookshelf row to the left, there are books related to the Martial Path, as well as some insights left by previous Senior Sisters of the academy. Junior Brother can read them freely, but they cannot be taken out."

After expressing his thanks, Lin Chen went straight to the second floor and quickly found the books he wanted to read according to the Senior Sister's directions.

Insights on Consuming Poultry Meat in the Aperture Opening Realm

The Optimal Cultivation Method for Opening Apertures in Two Years and Refining Organs in Three Years

Seeing this book, Lin Chen curiously picked it up and glanced through it. The book was not long.

But after just a few glances, he silently put the book down.

In the short passage of text, what he saw between the lines was that the entire book was filled with three words: "Does not lack money."

Just the first sentence of the opening chapter was about how to quickly open the third Aperture from the second.

This was a book written by a rich person, and it was for those rich students. He only had one Aperture; he wasn't worthy.

A Compendium of Medicinal Pills Needed in the Aperture Opening Realm - A Must-Read for Pill Poppers

Picking up this book, although Lin Chen had already prepared himself mentally, his mouth still twitched when he saw the types of Martial Path medicinal pills and their prices. This was another book written by a wealthy Senior Sister.

The book mentioned six types of medicinal pills.

They were all suitable for Martial Artists in the Aperture Opening Realm. The Senior Sister had also classified these medicinal pills, suggesting which type of pill was suitable for opening specific Apertures.

This path was also not suitable for him, but Lin Chen noted down the names of these medicinal pills.

After reading several of these cultivation insights from wealthy Senior Sisters, Lin Chen finally found a book title with a different style in a corner.

The Way Out for Ordinary Students in the Martial Arts Academy

Seeing this title, Lin Chen became interested. He picked it up and opened it, and the content on the first page confirmed that he had picked the right book.

[This book is only for Junior Sisters from ordinary families. If a Junior Sister comes from a wealthy family and has already opened Apertures before entering the Martial Arts Academy, please put down this book and pick up the "Must-Read for Pill Poppers" written by the Senior Sister on the left.]

Second page:

[Turning to this page means that Junior Sister comes from an ordinary family and may not have even opened an Aperture yet. If so, Senior Sister advises you to open an Aperture within three months of entering the Martial Arts Academy. If you cannot open an Aperture within three months, you will be placed on the academy's Class B student list. From then on, when purchasing resources from the academy, you will no longer enjoy discounts. Do not underestimate this small discount; accumulated over time, it can save at least a hundred taels of silver over three years.]

[By this page, Junior Sister should not be flipping through randomly. Presumably, you are also eager to open an Aperture within three months. In that case, Senior Sister will share some real tips. The male students at the Iron Blood Martial Arts Academy next door are all from wealthy families. Walk around in front of the Iron Blood Martial Arts Academy more often. There will always be soft-hearted male students who appear. Seize the opportunity and scam them out of as many meals as you can...]

The content on this page left Lin Chen with a complicated expression...

How to put it, the content was a bit mixed, reminding him of the "green tea" girls from his previous life.

Being willing to put aside one's dignity was indeed a good method.

Unfortunately, he was a man!

Reading through the entire book, it was all about the way of the "green tea."

He mourned for the Senior Brothers of the Iron Blood Martial Arts Academy!

The fact that this book had been read so much that it had turned yellow showed that the previous Senior Sisters of the Still Water Martial Arts Academy had read it frequently.

Next, Lin Chen read a few more books left by the Senior Sisters of the Still Water Martial Arts Academy and absorbed quite a bit of useful information.

One Senior Sister also mentioned part-time jobs. After opening three Apertures, one could find work in the county town.

Escorting escorts, apprehending wanted criminals...

However, the former was time-consuming, while the latter involved risk.

Half an hour later, Lin Chen came downstairs, registered his identity, and spent thirty taels to buy a bottle of Nourishing Aperture Pills.

Leaving the Martial Arts Pavilion, Lin Chen went to the academy's cafeteria.

His meals in the cafeteria were free. The academy's cafeteria had a wide variety of food. Compared to the regular cafeteria which only had beef as a meat dish, the academy's cafeteria had over a dozen types of poultry alone. Lin Chen recognized the Black Muntjac Meat he had eaten before.

Eight hundred copper coins per jin, and that wasn't even the most expensive.

Unfortunately, none of the poultry was free; you had to buy it yourself.

The free meal benefit allowed him to eat two jin of beef per meal for free, with unlimited vegetables and rice.

Five bowls of rice, two jin of beef.

Lin Chen found a corner seat and ate by himself.

"These Junior Sisters this year are really too amazing. Senior Sister Sun, have you heard?"

"I've heard. They say there's a Junior Sister who has already opened four Apertures."

"Four Apertures? What's that? I just got the latest news. There's a new Junior Sister this year who has opened five Apertures."

"Really?"

"The source of the news is absolutely reliable. They say there are three who have opened four Apertures..."

Lin Chen, holding his chopsticks, paused his right hand, but after a moment, he continued picking up food.

There were differences even among students of the same year; he had already learned this from Lu Yongfeng and the others, so he had mentally prepared himself somewhat.

But hearing the conversation between the two Senior Sisters beside him, he still couldn't help but curse inwardly: This damn wealth gap.

Dormitory.

After leaving the cafeteria, Lin Chen returned to his dormitory.

He poured out a Nourishing Aperture Pill from the medicine bottle. It was dark in color and had a fishy smell.

Nourishing Aperture Pills were normally taken once every three days, but they could also be taken once daily. More than that would be ineffective.

Once the pill entered his stomach, he felt a burning sensation in his abdomen.

Soon, the Essence Energy within his body became active again, constantly surging into the Aperture in his left shoulder.

This was the first Aperture he had opened!

Left shoulder, right arm!

The second Aperture was in his right arm.

Lin Chen could feel a slight itch in his right elbow, which was caused by the Essence Energy being blocked as it flowed there.

The Qi Refining stage was about making Qi and Blood flow smoothly throughout the body.

When Qi and Blood flowed smoothly throughout the body, Essence Energy would condense. The Aperture Opening Realm was about making Essence Energy flow smoothly throughout the body.

Once the Essence Energy broke through the Aperture, this tingling sensation would disappear.

During the month he cultivated at home, he had also felt a tingling sensation in his right arm, but it wasn't as intense as it was now. This was the effect of the Nourishing Aperture Pill.

A pill costing three taels was indeed worth every penny.

Concentrating and calming his mind, Lin Chen no longer wasted time and began cultivating the Clear Wind Palm.

The Clear Wind Palm's mantra had its own method of circulating Qi. When cultivating, the Essence Energy in his body would also automatically impact the Apertures. This was why the academy only taught them Martial Path techniques.

Palm after palm, within the small courtyard of his dormitory, palm shadows moved like the wind.

As night fell, Lin Chen still didn't stop.

The [Black to the End] title began to take effect.

His Clear Wind Palm had already reached proficiency, allowing him to strike as he pleased, but this time he discovered some shortcomings he had previously overlooked.

The palm techniques and angles of the Clear Wind Palm could be adjusted further.

This move wasn't about being as fast as possible.

Lin Chen entered a state of enlightenment. All his Essence Energy and spirit were focused on the palm techniques, practicing them over and over, adjusting the angle and force of his strikes.

Cultivation Method: Clear Wind Palm (Proficient: 2/100)

Cultivation Method: Clear Wind Palm (Proficient: 3/100)

Lin Chen no longer paid attention to the System Panel. At this moment, his mind was clear.

In his eyes, there was only the Clear Wind Palm.

Bang!

After an unknown amount of time, a sudden sound came from Lin Chen's right arm.

Like firecrackers exploding!

Even so, Lin Chen didn't stop. The next moment, his eyes flared open, and he struck the camphor tree in the courtyard with his palm.

Slap!

The bark of the camphor tree peeled off, and a palm print was embedded directly into the smooth wood. A breath later, countless camphor leaves rustled down.

Lin Chen retracted his palm and stood in the courtyard, looking at the fallen leaves all over the ground with satisfaction in his eyes.

Taking advantage of this insight into the Clear Wind Palm, combined with the Nourishing Aperture Pill, he had actually broken through to the Second Aperture realm.

Clear Wind Palm was not an overbearing palm technique, so it didn't directly break this waist-thick camphor tree. But judging by the palm print embedding three points into the wood, if it landed on a person, one palm would be enough to shatter the bones of an ordinary person.

After the excitement, Lin Chen also had an analysis in his heart.

His ability to open the second Aperture today was definitely not solely due to this Nourishing Aperture Pill. It was more due to the accumulation of nearly a month before. He was already close to touching the bottleneck of the Second Aperture, and this Aperture Opening Pill just saved him the final sprint.

Accumulating over time and then exploding, the Nourishing Aperture Pill just provided the final opportunity for a sprint.

Breaking through his realm made Lin Chen happy, but what made him even more excited was that he had a more comprehensive understanding of the improvement in comprehension.

Previously, he thought that the improvement in comprehension only deepened his understanding of the true meaning of Martial Path techniques. But now it seemed it was more than that. The improvement in comprehension came with an additional state.

A state of focused concentration where he forgot about everything else!

Glancing at the stars, Lin Chen didn't continue cultivating. Sufficient sleep was also necessary for a Martial Artist.

Tonight, he fell asleep happily.