As his Martial Realm broke through into the Martial Master Realm, the Internal Force within him surged by a large margin.
This not only greatly improved his stamina in battle, but also gave him much better control over his Internal Force.
Previously, completing one Greater Celestial Circuit with Peiyuan Gong took thirty breaths. Now, he could finish in just twenty.
This saved him a great deal of time practicing Peiyuan Gong.
After focusing on his cultivation yesterday and today, his Peiyuan Gong proficiency had risen from zero straight to 295 points.
[You circulate Peiyuan Gong once. Proficiency +1] [You circulate Peiyuan Gong once. Proficiency +1] ...
When his Peiyuan Gong proficiency reached 300, he suddenly felt the Internal Force in his body begin to circulate beyond his control.
"This is... what it feels like to break through in the Martial Realm!" Lu Feng thought, startled.
At the same time, he felt a small part of the meridians in his body burning as if they were on fire.
The pain was very similar to the scorching sensation he had felt while Skin Refining, only much more intense in his meridians.
For a moment, Lu Feng's face twisted in pain.
Fortunately, the torment lasted only the time it took to drink a cup of tea before gradually fading.
Once everything returned to normal, a special notification suddenly appeared on the panel.
[Your Martial Realm has successfully advanced to Second-Rank Martial Master]
A glimmer flashed in Lu Feng's eyes. With a thought, he immediately brought up the panel to inspect it.
[Name: Lu Feng] [Age: 19/70] [Realm: Second-Rank Martial Master] [Cultivation Method: Peiyuan Gong (Mid-Grade, Upper-Tier, Perfection 300/1000)] [Martial Skill: Cloud-Dispelling Palm (High-Grade, Lower-Tier, Mastery Realm 0/5000)]
After looking over the changes on the panel, Lu Feng's face filled with confusion once more.
"Huh?! Why did my Martial Realm break through ahead of time?"
Based on what had happened before, his Martial Realm only advanced when his Cultivation Method or Martial Skill broke through.
But now, his Peiyuan Gong hadn't broken through, yet his Martial Realm had still advanced by a minor stage.
He pondered for a while, but still couldn't figure out why.
"Forget it. No point thinking about it! This will actually let me advance in the Martial Realm even faster."
After saying this, he tested how his strength had changed. His previous strength of five thousand jin had now reached five thousand five hundred jin.
"Hmm, a minor breakthrough added five hundred jin of strength. Not bad."
His physical strength hadn't increased by much, but as long as he kept making breakthroughs, it would surely change significantly.
Then Lu Feng closed his eyes again and began circulating Peiyuan Gong.
As he cultivated diligently, the days passed one by one.
Three days had passed since the enemy scouts launched their nighttime raid on Qinglu County.
His Martial Realm had advanced from Second-Rank Martial Master to Fourth-Rank Martial Master.
His Peiyuan Gong proficiency had also reached 980 points.
Looking at his nearly perfected Peiyuan Gong, Lu Feng felt a surge of anticipation.
"I wonder what effects Peiyuan Gong will have once it reaches perfection?" Lu Feng mused, stroking his chin.
Last time, Cloud-Dispelling Palm had brought him a tremendous improvement when it reached the Mastery Realm.
He hoped Peiyuan Gong would surprise him just as much this time.
Just as he was deep in thought, someone suddenly knocked on the door.
"Captain Lu, the County Magistrate is at the county yamen. He asked me to tell you to go to the study for a meeting."
Yamen Runner Xiao Wang's voice suddenly came from outside. Lu Feng heard him, raised an eyebrow, and replied,
"Alright, I'll be right there!"
He hadn't expected the County Magistrate to return to the county yamen so soon. The injuries the man had suffered when the enemy scouts tried to assassinate him last time had been severe.
In Lu Feng's estimation, the man needed at least half a month to recover. Yet only three days had passed, and he was already back at the county yamen. Lu Feng wondered whether his injuries had healed.
Lu Feng stopped pondering and headed for the County Magistrate's study.
When he entered, he saw only County Magistrate Wang Lichuan and Strategist Wang Jun inside.
The other officials and captains weren't there.
Seeing this, Lu Feng stepped forward and cupped his hands in greeting. "Your subordinate Lu Feng pays his respects to the County Magistrate."
As he spoke, he also took a look at the County Magistrate's condition.
The man could move normally, but his face was still somewhat pale.
Wang Lichuan waved a hand. "Captain Lu, there's no need for formalities. Sit down and talk."
"Yes, thank you, sir!"
Once he was seated, Wang Lichuan studied him for a moment, then asked, "Captain Lu, how has your Martial Arts training been progressing recently?"
At this, Lu Feng's thoughts stirred. The man had asked about this as soon as they met. He wondered what his purpose was.
"In response to your question, sir, I've been training hard during this time. Although I haven't yet reached Ninth-Rank Martial Artist, I've made considerable progress."
He didn't reveal his true strength. After all, ordinary Martial Artists couldn't advance a minor stage in the Martial Realm in just a few days.
Wang Lichuan nodded slightly. "Mm, progress is good! I just heard that the County Assistant assigned Captain Wang's duties to you. Will that affect your training?"
"Thank you for your concern, County Magistrate. I can handle it."
"Very well. Since you can manage, I won't worry about it. I called you here today to tell you something."
Lu Feng's expression remained calm as he asked, "What is it, sir? Please enlighten me."
"It's about the Martial Examination. Because Northern Wei has attacked the border pass, the Martial Examination in Beiyuan Prefecture is being held earlier than planned. It was originally scheduled to begin in May, but now it will start in early April. So you don't have much time left."
At this, his brow furrowed slightly. "Sir, are you saying I only have a month to train?"
Wang Lichuan shook his head. "No! You only have a week to train!"
"Huh?! Why is that?" Lu Feng asked, puzzled.
Wang Lichuan explained, "It takes five or six days just to get from Qinglu County to Baiyue County. Once you reach the prefectural city, you'll have to register first, then take the qualification assessment for the Martial Examination. After passing, there'll also be gatherings for the examinees, and so on. All of that takes time, so you have only one week left."
"I see!"
Seeing his expression clear, Wang Lichuan suddenly asked in a solemn voice, "Lu Feng, are you confident you can break through to Ninth-Rank Martial Artist within a week?"
Looking at the County Magistrate's serious expression, he replied earnestly, "In response, sir, I'm only one step away from Ninth-Rank Martial Artist. A week is more than enough for me to break through."
Hearing his answer, County Magistrate Wang Lichuan was overjoyed. "Ha ha, good! You truly are someone I had my eye on. In that case, I'll personally test your strength in five days."
"Yes, sir. I won't let you down."
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