Qi and Blood Soup

After dealing with Chen Mo Bai, Lu Chuan finally walked toward Senior Disciple Brother Zhou Ming Chuan.

Zhou Ming Chuan was instructing a junior disciple. Seeing Lu Chuan approach, he waved him over.

At the same time, he pulled two warm steamed buns from his chest.

"Here, eat these quick! I saw you practicing earlier this morning—your moves were all soft and weak. You definitely skipped breakfast, right? Hurry up and fill your stomach."

Lu Chuan stared at the two white-flour buns in his hands, momentarily stunned.

His lack of strength in the saber was a side effect of overtraining last night.

But Senior Disciple Brother Zhou had been attentive enough to notice his morning condition, even saving his own breakfast to give to him...

This care warmed Lu Chuan's heart.

He took the buns and thanked him earnestly: "Thank you, Senior Disciple Brother Zhou."

Zhou Ming Chuan waved his hand dismissively. "What's there to thank? Eat up! After you finish, we'll keep learning the next three forms."

Lu Chuan had only had a bit of porridge that morning, so he didn't stand on ceremony. In a few bites, he polished off both buns.

After eating, the two found a corner, and Zhou Ming Chuan continued from yesterday's lesson, teaching the last three forms of the Mountain Splitting Saber.

Lu Chuan learned surprisingly fast today. Not only did he execute the first three forms from yesterday more smoothly and powerfully, but he also quickly grasped the essentials of the four new forms he learned today.

"Not bad, Junior Disciple Brother Lu!" Zhou Ming Chuan's eyes showed approval.

"Not only did you nail the first three forms from yesterday with real flair, but you've also found the knack for today's four new ones so quickly!"

"It's all because Senior Disciple Brother Zhou teaches well and explains thoroughly," Lu Chuan said modestly.

"Bull!" Zhou Ming Chuan laughed and cursed. "Don't pull that with me. If you practiced well, that's your own skill!"

The two exchanged a few jokes, their bond growing closer.

During a break, Lu Chuan asked:

"Senior Disciple Brother Zhou, yesterday you said that after mastering the basics of the Mountain Splitting Saber, one can draw on qi and blood to temper the body. So, for this Tempering Qi and Blood... are there specific stages to distinguish it?"

Zhou Ming Chuan said seriously, "Since you asked, I'll tell you. As a Martial Artist's qi and blood are continuously tempered and strengthened, the body also undergoes a transformation."

He paused. "In this ongoing process of tempering, there's a bottleneck. We generally call it the Blood Pass!"

"Blood Pass?" Lu Chuan repeated. This was the first time he'd heard the term.

"Right!" Zhou Ming Chuan's expression turned grave.

"The Blood Pass is the first major hurdle for a Martial Artist. Whether you can break through depends heavily on talent and resources. Out of all the people in our Martial Arts Hall, seventy to eighty percent will be stuck at this pass."

"Seventy to eighty percent?! That high?" Lu Chuan was shocked.

He knew the Martial Way was difficult, but he hadn't expected the very first barrier to stop so many.

"That high!" Zhou Ming Chuan confirmed.

"Once you break through the Blood Pass, your qi and blood undergo a qualitative change. You've truly stepped onto the threshold of the Martial Way. At that point, you're a Martial Artist at the First Qi and Blood level, with strength far beyond ordinary people."

He looked at Lu Chuan, encouragement in his eyes.

"Junior Disciple Brother Lu, if you can successfully break through the Blood Pass within three months... heh, maybe Master Zheng will be pleased and take you on as his eighth Formal Disciple!"

"Senior Disciple Brother, don't tease me..." Lu Chuan quickly waved his hands.

But in his mind, he was already calculating rapidly.

A Formal Disciple not only got free meals every day but also had tuition waived...

That treatment was indeed tempting. And with an official status, he'd definitely have access to more resources.

Still, thinking about that was still a ways off. Steady saber practice was the right path.

Before long, it was noon.

Lu Chuan packed up and prepared to head out to find a small shop for a bite to eat.

"Hey, Junior Disciple Brother Lu, where are you going?" Zhou Ming Chuan grabbed his arm.

"To... eat," Lu Chuan said, a bit confused.

"Eat? The medicinal soup will be brought out soon. Drink that!"

"Our Martial Arts Hall doesn't provide proper meals, but disciples who've paid tuition get a bowl of Qi and Blood Soup every day at noon. It's specially brewed. One bowl fills you up like a meal and helps with training too!"

Something this good? Lu Chuan's eyes lit up.

Sure enough, before long, two disciples carried out a huge black cauldron from the back courtyard. Inside was a dark, murky herbal broth.

The disciples lined up in an orderly fashion, each receiving a large bowl.

Lu Chuan took the coarse earthenware bowl and carefully took a sip.

The broth was extremely bitter, but he forced it down.

Then, a warm current spread through his body.

The emptiness from last night's training seemed to ease a little under this warmth.

This bowl of soup did make him feel somewhat restored!

"This medicine... has strength!"

Lu Chuan's eyes lit up as he tilted his head back and drained the entire bowl of Qi and Blood Soup.

After drinking it, he found a clean stone step to sit on and rest briefly.

As he rested, the corner of his eye caught a striking figure among the crowd collecting the medicinal soup.

Among the throng of burly, muscle-bound men, that person was noticeably slender.

Her jet-black hair was simply tied back, her face fair and delicate, and her chest curved in full, soft lines.

Even with Lu Chuan's mature mindset, he couldn't help but be drawn to her gaze.

In this Martial Arts Hall full of rough men, suddenly appearing a woman with such fine looks and figure was inevitably surprising.

"Brat, what are you staring at? Eyes glued straight!"

Zhou Ming Chuan had come over at some point, scolding with a laugh.

Lu Chuan's face flushed slightly, but he wasn't awkward, grinning sheepishly:

"Nothing, just a bit curious... I didn't expect our Martial Arts Hall to have a Senior Sister?"

"Oh, you mean Second Senior Sister Su Tang." Zhou Ming Chuan followed his gaze, a look of understanding on his face.

"Second Senior Sister, could it be—"

"Heh, you guessed it. She's the second Formal Disciple under Master!"

He continued: "Senior Sister Su comes from a good family, and her looks... well, you've seen them, top-notch even in this county. Most importantly, her talent is exceptional—she's the closest person in our hall to Master Zheng."

"That impressive?" Lu Chuan couldn't help but take a closer look at Su Tang.

To stand out as a woman in this male-dominated Mountain Splitting Saber Hall—that skill was nothing to scoff at.

"But, Junior Brother," Zhou Ming Chuan shifted the topic, "Senior Sister Su may be skilled and good-looking, but her eyes are only on the Martial Way. On ordinary days, she barely speaks to anyone except Master. Don't go provoking her for no reason."

Lu Chuan understood Zhou Ming Chuan's meaning at once and replied with a helpless smile:

"What are you saying, Senior Brother? I was just a bit curious."

He cast one last glance at Su Tang in the distance and stopped dwelling on it.

Right now, with the potential threat of Liu Biao looming behind him, what he needed to do was seize every moment to improve himself. He had no time for anything else.

"Let's go, Senior Brother," Lu Chuan stood up. "We'll spar again this afternoon!"

"Now that's more like it!"

After a full day of martial training, Lu Chuan bought a four-jin slab of pork on his way home, spending one silver coin.

Fat meat was precious these days, priced higher, so he mostly bought lean.

"Even though that bowl of Qi and Blood Soup made up for some losses, it's far from enough for me."

His Minor Success-level Body Tempering speed kept his body in a constant state of hunger.

And since he had money on him now, there was no need to be too frugal.

Carrying the pork, he walked all the way to the village entrance. This time, no reckless bandits showed up.

But when he finally approached his familiar thatched hut, his steps halted.

The shabby wooden door to his home now had a large hole in it!

The hole was sizable, as if it had been violently kicked in from outside.

Lu Chuan's heart sank instantly.

Something had happened at home!