Fist Scripture

Time slipped by.

A month passed quietly.

The afterglow of the setting sun dyed the horizon a brilliant orange-red, leaving only a sliver of pale dawn-white along the skyline.

The detached villas in the residential area each had a spacious garden of their own.

At that moment, the evening breeze was pleasantly warm, carrying the fresh scent of grass and trees and driving away the last of the day's heat.

On the garden's level lawn, Mai Xiao Wen focused on taking a stance.

She wore a fitted red-and-black sports shirt that made her skin look even fairer, and a simple pair of black athletic shorts. Her legs were long and straight.

Her glossy thighs were exposed to the cool air, and as she moved, the graceful lines of her muscles appeared and disappeared, full of vitality.

Xu Feng stood a step behind her, his gaze on her taut back and slightly awkward arm movements.

He steadied his somewhat uneven breathing and spoke:

"Sink your waist a little more. Let your weight settle on the balls of your feet, not the soles.

Keep your spine straight. Imagine you're a line connecting heaven and earth.

Your arms shouldn't move in isolation. Let your shoulders, elbows, and wrists follow. Draw strength from the ground and carry it all the way to your fingertips."

As he spoke, he reached out and gently straightened Mai Xiao Wen's tilted shoulder, then supported her smooth elbow, guiding her through the proper path of force.

What Mai Xiao Wen was practicing now could no longer be called simply "Iron Wire Fist."

Over the past month, Xu Feng had drawn on his profound understanding of the essence of the Qi and Blood Martial Path and his own cultivation experience to completely transform that ordinary boxing style. He had incorporated his understanding of how qi and blood energy circulated, creating an entirely new cultivation method.

He named it—

Fist Scripture

At its core, the Fist Scripture was no longer a simple set of moves. Through specific stances, breathing techniques, and the circulation of strength both inside and out, it gradually stimulated and awakened the life force hidden deep within the human body: "qi and blood."

On that foundation, it systematically tempered the skin, flesh, sinews, bones, and marrow, ultimately elevating the practitioner's level of life and allowing them to step into the transcendent realm.

This was a foundational cultivation method that pointed directly to the essence of the Qi and Blood Martial Path.

Xu Feng taught the introductory portion of the Fist Scripture to his parents, Mai Xiao Wen, and his second uncle's family, telling them that it was merely an exercise for keeping fit.

He also warned his family not to teach it to anyone else.

He certainly didn't expect them to become martial arts experts overnight. He mainly hoped that practicing it would gradually improve their constitutions.

By the time his family truly condensed qi and blood and entered the transcendent realm,

he should have the strength to protect this secret.

Of course, without his unparalleled intelligence and astonishing talent,

the results ordinary people could achieve through the Fist Scripture were negligible.

His parents and second uncle's family had practiced it for nearly a month. The most they could say was that they felt "a little more energetic," "enjoyed their meals more," and "slept more soundly."

They had barely felt any noticeable improvement in their physical strength, let alone awakened their qi and blood.

They simply assumed it was a rather advanced "health exercise" or "fitness routine" their son/nephew had come up with. It seemed like a good way to stay fit, and they didn't look into it any further.

But Mai Xiao Wen's situation was far more complicated.

Perhaps because she was an awakened hunter, her body was already filled with light-element magic power.

She showed considerable talent in practicing the Fist Scripture.

She grasped the movements quickly and mastered the breathing rhythm with precision.

In fact, over a week ago, with Xu Feng's help in guiding her qi and blood, she had successfully sensed and condensed a faint thread of qi and blood in her dantian!

But the good fortune didn't last.

That thread of qi and blood had only just formed. Before it could circulate through her body and nourish her meridians, something unexpected happened.

The light magic power that had flowed peacefully through her body suddenly became restless, as though something had invaded it!

Like a stone tossed into a still lake, her magic power surged toward that thread of qi and blood, pressing in around it and enveloping it...

In just a few breaths, the hard-won thread of qi and blood was completely overwhelmed by the magic power and vanished from her body without a trace.

Mai Xiao Wen had been completely stunned.

But its disappearance hadn't left nothing behind.

Afterward, she and Xu Feng carefully sensed what had happened and found that although the thread of qi and blood had vanished, her body seemed to have undergone some subtle changes.

She seemed to have slightly better control over her magic power, and the pathways through which it circulated appeared to have widened just a little. Even the "total amount" or "activity" of her magic power seemed to have increased by a tiny amount.

It was an utterly earth-shattering discovery for hunters!

Mai Xiao Wen had never heard of any method that could actively increase a hunter's "magic capacity" or "aptitude for magic"!

Normally, a hunter's level was more or less set the moment they awakened. Afterward, they could only draw out their potential by using their abilities and refining their techniques; they could hardly change the fundamental size of their "vessel."

If word of this got out...

Just thinking about it sent a chill down Mai Xiao Wen's spine.

It would drive the entire world mad!

Xu Feng would instantly become the most tempting "treasure" and the most dangerous "threat" in the eyes of every faction and every ambitious schemer.

He would be hounded by all sides and never know peace!

At the thought, Mai Xiao Wen was overcome by emotions too complicated to put into words.

Now, as Xu Feng stood close behind her, she could clearly feel the warmth of his sturdy frame through her thin clothes, and the touch his steady, strong hands left on her shoulders and neck.

Mai Xiao Wen's body relaxed of its own accord. She leaned back slightly, almost resting against Xu Feng's chest.

The sunset's warm glow fell across her flushed cheeks. Her lashes trembled, and that unspoken feeling in her heart grew stronger.

But Xu Feng, standing behind her, was nowhere near as calm as he appeared. In fact, he was... exceptionally frustrated.

"Which part went wrong?"

His brow furrowed as he worked through the possibilities in his mind.

To understand the source of the conflict between the qi and blood and magic power inside Mai Xiao Wen,

he sent a stream of pure qi and blood cautiously into her meridians.

Like a monarch inspecting his territory, this foreign qi and blood made the light magic power inside Mai Xiao Wen retreat wherever it went. None of it dared approach, and it willingly cleared a path.

But when Xu Feng guided that thread of qi and blood to help Mai Xiao Wen condense her own, or when she finally managed to condense another faint thread herself,

everything changed.

Her magic power seemed to turn on a dime, transforming from a docile lamb into a ravenous shark that had scented blood.

It lunged without hesitation, savagely tearing at and devouring the newly formed qi and blood until it was completely annihilated.

"So qi and blood and magic power... really can't coexist?"

Xu Feng withdrew that thread of qi and blood and silently watched Mai Xiao Wen.

In his body, qi and blood held absolute dominance. If he absorbed magic power, it was instantly assimilated as soon as it entered his body, transformed into nourishment for his qi and blood, and left unable to exist independently.

In Mai Xiao Wen's body—or in the bodies of most hunters—the situation was exactly the opposite. Magic power held absolute dominance, rejecting all "foreign" energy.

Although he could sense that the qi and blood didn't vanish completely every time the magic power devoured it,

some of its pure life energy seemed to be absorbed by the magic power and Mai Xiao Wen's body, producing a slight beneficial effect.

Such as the improvement in her aptitude for magic.

But the process was far too inefficient!

That tiny increase was negligible compared with the dramatic improvement in strength that direct cultivation of the Qi and Blood Martial Path could bring.

"Unless..."

Xu Feng's eyes flickered as he thought of a possibility.

"Could I use Breakthrough Points, a more fundamental force, to reshape Xiao Wen's physical foundation by awakening a deep connection like a 'Spiritual Imprint'? Maybe that would resolve the conflict between the two energies at its source?"

He recalled when he had first established that mental link with Little Black.

Unfortunately, it seemed to have been triggered by chance when Little Black's will responded intensely to an extreme, life-threatening crisis.

Afterward, no matter how he tried, he couldn't establish a deeper connection with anyone else.

He had asked Little Black about it.

Little Black could only express itself in vague mental pulses, something like "really, really wanting to live" and "feeling as if their souls were connected."

It couldn't offer any reproducible advice.

At the thought, Xu Feng couldn't help feeling discouraged.

He looked at Mai Xiao Wen, who stood right in front of him with her back turned.

The sunset gilded her in a soft golden glow. The breeze lifted her hair, revealing her fair ear and slender neck.

A trace of helplessness rose in his heart.

He wanted her to become stronger and safer, but it seemed he was constrained by the rules of this world.

Speaking of Little Black...

Xu Feng's gaze drifted toward the floor-to-ceiling window of the neighboring villa's living room.

Through the glass, he could see Yang Lingxia sitting on the sofa, cradling Little Black, which had shrunk to the size of an ordinary house cat.

Little Black could now control its muscle contractions freely.

At that moment, it was purring contentedly as Yang Lingxia gently stroked its sleek, glossy fur. A tender smile sat on her face, and she murmured something to it.

But who could have guessed that this harmless-looking black cat, which seemed to do nothing but act cute, was actually a creature as powerful as a high-level C-rank monster?

Ever since they had moved to S City, Little Black had quickly won over the whole family with its adorable appearance and exceptionally docile nature.

Yang Lingxia especially treated it like a second son, lavishing affection on it.

She had completely forgotten that she hadn't been particularly fond of cats before.

Xu Shan and his second uncle's family were also quite fond of Little Black.

That was a good thing.

With Little Black, a hidden bodyguard, guarding his family at all times, Xu Feng could feel more at ease when he went out.

With Little Black's current strength and alertness, it was more than capable of dealing with most unexpected situations.