Clouds Gather from Eight Directions, Qianyuan Thunder Movement

"Not bad, little bro. You're better at Guoyi Fist than I am. You've definitely broken through the first pass."

Meng Chuan finished the entire Guoyi Fist routine. The machine detected that he had stopped moving and let out a beep.

[Please remove the sensor]

[Qi-blood value: 0.98. Standard for entering the pass not met]

The first Qi-Blood Pass required a value of 1, the second required 2, and the third required 4. From then on, each new pass required double the value of the previous one.

Meng Chuan was just 0.02 short of entering the pass. He guessed that once Guoyi Fist broke its limit, he would surely make it through.

But Meng Chuan had never heard of anyone entering the first Qi-Blood Pass by learning only Guoyi Fist.

If he really managed it, he would probably be the first.

Actually, all he had to do was practice another fist style until he reached the entry level, and he could break through the first Qi-Blood Pass. But there was no point in entering the first pass. Passing the threshold was only the beginning of the martial path; countless towering mountains still lay ahead.

With the [Martial Dao Limit-Breaking Panel], the most important thing was to break through the limits of martial arts, gaining more traits from the panel to strengthen himself.

So he had to obtain [One Proof Eternal Proof] first. With its help, no martial art would have a bottleneck for him. As long as he kept practicing, he would inevitably break its limits.

Seeing that Meng Chuan hadn't broken through the first Qi-Blood Pass, Le Ping stepped forward to comfort him.

"It's fine, little bro. You were only a tiny bit short. Maybe you were born frail, with insufficient qi and blood. Your punches looked pretty good to me, actually."

"...I'm not frail."

Afterward, Meng Chuan and Le Ping walked toward the training ground. Instructor Liu Ru hadn't arrived yet, so Meng Chuan practiced his stance on his own to get a feel for it.

A little while later, his uncle Meng Yongzhi and Master Luo Guanyun came out together.

The master had changed into a fitted purple-black martial outfit today. It clung tightly to his body, making him look full of energy.

After they came out, his uncle smiled and said goodbye to the master. He reminded Meng Chuan to train hard at the martial arts school, then left.

Luo Guanyun walked over to Meng Chuan and scrutinized him. His stare made Meng Chuan's scalp prickle.

Even when a martial artist kept his aura restrained, the pressure he inadvertently released could still weigh heavily on ordinary people.

The students nearby scattered as if the two of them had cleared the area. Unless they were taking a member's class, few people at the school wanted to get close to Luo Guanyun.

Luo Guanyun had a bad temper and was always scolding and hitting his students. But he taught well, and even when he hit you a couple of times, he never truly hurt you, so people still came in an endless stream to learn from him.

"You're a peculiar kid. Your family said all you practice is Wawa Fist?"

Luo Guanyun had a deep impression of Meng Chuan. The boy was honest; when he'd told him not to lock the door last night, he really hadn't locked it. Damn...

"Come on, show me a set. They say you've made your Wawa Fist blossom into something special. Let me see what's going on."

"Yes, Master Luo."

Meng Chuan planted his feet and took a deep breath, calming his mind. The students around him were watching, but he felt not the slightest bit nervous.

In an instant, Meng Chuan struck.

Thrust punches, swinging punches, elbow strikes—every move in Guoyi Fist snapped through the air. He unleashed his fist style, perfected to 99%, without holding anything back. The routine flowed like water, without the slightest hitch or hesitation.

"Not bad, not bad. Solid work."

Just then, the tardy Instructor Liu Ru came striding over on her long legs and chimed in.

"This child's technique is truly excellent. He must have perfected it."

Liu Ru could tell that Meng Chuan's Guoyi Fist had reached perfection, but her eye for martial arts was no match for a martial artist's. Luo Guanyun knew that Meng Chuan had achieved more than mere perfection.

"It's more than just perfection. This kid's Guoyi Fist can be called master-level."

Liu Ru and the students around them were all taken aback. Could a sixteen-year-old boy really deserve such praise?

"Did your bro Luo drink too much again last night? He still hasn't sobered up."

"Don't talk nonsense. How could a martial artist get drunk? Once you circulate your qi and blood, the alcohol gets forced right out."

The students around them murmured among themselves. Luo Guanyun's words caused a small commotion.

Master represented the highest level of understanding of a fist style.

Take the Tiger Walk Fist and Tiger Roar Skill of the Xiangxing Lineage, for example. The master of Tiger Roar Skill, Howling Tiger Wang Lin, had immersed himself in the skill for over thirty years. In the end, he refined it and updated it into a whole new version, one that was more powerful and easier to learn.

From then on, every student who learned the Xiangxing Lineage's [Tiger Roar Skill] practiced Wang Lin's improved version.

So, when it came to Guoyi Fist, which everyone had learned, Luo Guanyun's words were no less astonishing than saying Meng Chuan had finished middle-school Chinese, updated the Chinese textbook, and then changed its credited author to himself.

"You rotten dates, quit your damn yapping! That's exactly what I mean!"

A powerful aura burst from Luo Guanyun. The entire training ground was shrouded as if dark clouds had gathered overhead. Clouds, indistinct between illusion and reality, drifted through the air, and rumbling thunder sounded within them.

He transformed the magnetic field with his will and distorted reality with his Imagery Realm. This was Luo Guanyun, Martial Arts Master of the Xingyi Sect.

[Clouds Gather from Eight Directions, Qianyuan Thunder Movement]!

"Stop talking! Can't you hear the thunder? The master's furious. Keep talking, and the lightning will strike."

Whenever Luo Guanyun got angry, the surroundings changed with his mood. The veteran students had seen this before, and they warned the newcomers to keep quiet, lest the celestial signs worsen.

The entire training ground fell utterly silent. Nobody dared risk drawing Luo Guanyun's ire. Everyone except Liu Ru and Meng Chuan lowered their heads to avoid his fearsome presence.

Liu Ru's almond-shaped eyes stayed fixed on Luo Guanyun, their beauty suddenly shining with excitement.

When she had studied at Yong'an Martial Arts University, she often heard the professors mention [Qianyuan Thunder Movement, Luo Guanyun]. They said his strength was extraordinary, and that he was virtually invincible among his peers.

Now, the terrifying Imagery Realm before her proved the professors right. She had made the right choice in coming to the martial arts school to study.

It was a pity that Master Luo had only agreed to take her on as a named disciple, letting her work at the school as an instructor in lieu of tuition. She didn't know when he might accept her as a personal disciple.

Elsewhere, Meng Chuan gazed at the terrifying celestial spectacle Luo Guanyun had brought forth.

He wasn't thinking about anything else. His eyes were filled with yearning, and boundless pride rose in his chest. He was certain that one day, he could do the same.

Luo Guanyun glanced over and noticed.

"Aren't you afraid?"

"No."

"Good courage. Solid work."

Luo Guanyun drew in his aura, and the gathering clouds and rumbling thunder vanished with it.

"You don't have enough experience. It's too early to think about improving a martial art. Right now, you should keep your feet on the ground and practice other fist styles to improve yourself."

"I'm telling you, there's never been a master in this world who was only in their teens."

Luo Guanyun advised him.

Meng Chuan was a good kid, and his uncle Meng Yongzhi had come to see him today, too. He felt it was worth taking the time to guide the boy properly.