"What are the three conditions?" Su Chen asked, puzzled.
Hong Ming quickly replied, "Training, replenishment, and the Qi Blood Circulation Method!"
"To become a Practice Force Warrior, the first and foremost thing is training.
"If you train in fists, you must cultivate your fist techniques to the utmost. If you train in palms, you must cultivate your palm techniques to the utmost. If you train in legs, you must cultivate your leg techniques to the utmost. In short, you have to keep training.
"At the same time, you need to pay attention to the wear and tear on your body. Some techniques require secret medicines to nourish you as you train, like Iron Wire Fist.
"Other techniques cause injuries as you train, and those also require secret medicines to nourish you and prevent your Qi and blood from declining too early.
"Once you have trained your martial arts to the utmost and replenished the Qi and blood your body has depleted with various secret medicines, you will have taken your first step toward becoming a Practice Force Warrior."
Su Chen: "..."
"What, did that scare you?" Hong Ming asked blandly, noticing the change in Su Chen's expression.
"A little." Su Chen nodded. After listening for so long, he had thought that once he had completed training and replenishment, he would more or less be able to enter force. He hadn't expected that he would only have taken the very first step.
Hong Ming laughed. "You thought entering force was that easy? I've spent most of my life cultivating, only to waste half of it and fall at this final threshold. I'll never have the chance to enter force!"
At that, he sighed wistfully. Back in the day... Ah, forget it. A true hero doesn't boast of past glories.
"Master, then what is the Qi Blood Circulation Method?" Su Chen asked.
Hong Ming put aside his memories and said, "The so-called Qi Blood Circulation Method is actually the Entering Force Method. It stimulates the flesh and blood through a particular path of Qi and blood circulation, giving rise to force."
As if he had guessed Su Chen would ask, he continued, "For example, with our Iron Wire Fist, this Iron Line is the rudimentary form of the Qi Blood Circulation Method for entering force later on.
"Once you have trained Iron Wire Fist to the utmost, you can use the method I give you to try entering force. With this method, you'll increase your chances of success by about ten percent."
"Only ten percent?" Su Chen was surprised.
"You think that's too little?" Hong Ming glanced at Su Chen. "You think an Entering Force Method is as common as cabbages on the street? You should know that this is the foundation that keeps Hong Family Martial Hall on its feet. Across all of White Stone City, there are no more than five... Hmm, ten forces with an Entering Force Method!"
After a pause, Hong Ming added, "It's precisely because we have the Iron Wire Fist Entering Force Method that Hong Family Martial Hall has been able to stand firm in White Stone City to this day."
He shot Su Chen a sidelong glance. "You may have great talent, but remember: those who practice martial arts shouldn't aim too high. Keeping your feet on the ground is the right path."
Su Chen understood the implication behind Hong Ming's words. Clearly, he was still hung up on Su Chen using five packets of Qi Blood Powder in five days. Su Chen didn't explain.
"Besides, entering force is much harder than you imagine. These three conditions alone aren't enough. You also need the right constitution, comprehension, perseverance, a fortuitous opportunity, and time. Only then will you have a chance to enter force successfully," Hong Ming said.
Hearing this, Su Chen fell into thought. With the help of his panel, he had little real sense of the hardship Hong Ming spoke of.
But he knew that people like Hong Ming and Li Mo were the true reflection of the vast majority of martial artists.
"According to Master Hong, I have to meet these three conditions to enter force. I can ignore the first two, but I wonder if the panel needs this Qi Blood Circulation Method?"
He pondered, uncertain. But then he remembered that the panel seemed to need only money and medicines, which put his mind somewhat at ease.
The panel hadn't shown any need for a Qi Blood Circulation Method so far. Perhaps, as far as it was concerned, this wasn't important at all.
"By the way, Master, there's something else. I saw that bandit earlier with a weapon at his side, but he didn't use it. Instead, he fought someone bare-handed. Why was that?" Su Chen asked, recalling something.
"Did you think he was stupid?" After talking so much, Hong Ming was thirsty. He sat down and took a sip of tea.
Su Chen shook his head.
Hong Ming smiled. "It's simple. For Practice Force Warriors, force can't be imbued into weapons, so they rarely use them. They rely more on force to injure and kill their enemies.
"Especially for warriors who have spent years after entering force, they can bring out more of their strength without a weapon.
"You know that the greatest difference between a force-training warrior and a Practice Force Warrior is force. But do you know how great that difference is?
"If a force-training warrior is struck by an opponent's force, they'll be seriously injured at best and killed at worst!
"Of course, nothing is absolute. Those born with great strength and a powerful physique can still go toe-to-toe with Practice Force Warriors, even without having entered force."
Su Chen pondered this, then asked a few more questions. Hong Ming answered them all.
For example, could force be projected outward? Hong Ming said it could, but only after force had been cultivated to an extremely profound level. Neither Su Chen nor he was currently qualified to learn about it.
He also asked about the different types of force. Some were domineering, some gentle, some cold, and some scorching... They all differed, but were generally related to the martial arts one practiced.
"By the way, didn't you want to ask me for Qi Blood Powder earlier? Here, come see me in three days and I'll give you some."
Before Su Chen left, Hong Ming called him back.
Hearing this, a look of delight rose on Su Chen's face.
He had planned to spend money on Qi and Blood Medicine, increase his dosage, and push his progress to the limit.
He hadn't expected things to take a sudden turn: Hong Ming had offered to give him Qi Blood Powder himself.
But counting the days, it had already been seven days since Hong Ming last gave Su Chen Qi and Blood Medicine, so the timing made sense.
"Yes, thank you, Master."
After thanking Hong Ming, Su Chen took his leave.
His visit to the Martial Hall had been very fruitful. He had learned about entering force and received Qi Blood Powder.
Though he wouldn't get it until three days later, it would save him a great deal of time, effort, and money.
Over the next three days, Su Chen rarely went out except to eat, devoting most of his time to studying poisons.
On the evening of the third day, Su Chen finally found the trick and successfully developed Soul Confusion Powder.
He had made less than three grams, but it still made him happy for a long time. After all, successfully developing it meant his overall approach had been right.
To celebrate, he specially fed the first batch of Soul Confusion Powder he had developed to the neighbor's little black dog. The effect was striking: the dog slept for a day and a night.
When it woke the next day, it was full of energy and showed no obvious side effects.
Overwhelmed with excitement, and caught up in reviewing what he had learned, Su Chen didn't go to the Martial Hall until the afternoon.
When he arrived, Hong Ming handed Su Chen a packet of Qi Blood Powder and warned him, "Use it in moderation."
Su Chen nodded. "Yes, Master."
With that, Su Chen took his leave.
Watching Su Chen's departing back, Hong Ming felt that he had forgotten something. After a long while, he suddenly slapped his forehead.
"Damn, that kid left too fast. I forgot to check his training progress!"
Then he sighed. "Oh, well. I'll do it next time."
Before you continue