Seven Injuries Fist Reversed

The shop wasn't large. It occupied a hundred-square-meter home that had been remodeled into a storefront, and had two floors.

It mainly sold daily necessities, snacks, cigarettes, and drinks, and also served as a small parcel pickup and drop-off point.

Dad had once worked at a factory, but after being laid off because of a work injury, he had waited in vain for the 300,000 yuan in compensation. In the end, he had no choice but to open a shop to make a living.

But with Grandpa seriously ill lately and his younger sister about to graduate from her final year of high school and go to university, the family had to cover a huge amount of expenses from the shop's income and Chen Xia's wages. Their lives were tight.

Dad was taking care of Grandpa in the hospital, his younger sister was away at school, and Mom was at home running the shop.

Chen Xia also had an older brother, Chen Wu, who was thirty-two.

His brother had paid for Chen Xia's university expenses by working away from home. Dad was getting on in years, and after his injury, he had lost his job. Back then, the family had been in a difficult spot.

Later, when Grandpa became seriously ill, his brother had joined a hunting Mercenary Group again to earn money and support the family. He had no choice but to venture into the wilderness, risking his life. That was also why he was already so old and still didn't have a girlfriend or a family of his own.

"You're back!"

Mom, Wang Xin, was crouched in a corner sorting parcels. When she saw Chen Xia return, a smile spread across her face. "The food's ready. Go eat."

"Mom, come eat too."

"I'm not hungry. You've worked all day and must be tired. Eat and get some rest. Don't worry about me."

"...Okay!"

Chen Xia answered and walked to the back. Three dishes and a soup had already been set out on the table: scrambled eggs with tomatoes, stir-fried meat with green beans, a bowl of greens, and a bowl of corn and lotus root soup.

Since the house had been remodeled into a supermarket, the space felt cramped. Fortunately, they could live upstairs, so the whole family could squeeze in.

Mom ran the small shop almost entirely by herself. She used to close at nine in the evening, but now, because they needed money, she stayed up until eleven before closing and going to bed.

It was precisely because of the pressure on his family that Chen Xia wanted so badly to get ahead. If he could earn more money, his family wouldn't have to live so frugally.

But low-ranking Patrol Inspection Branch officers like them only did errands, despite how impressive the title sounded. They didn't make much money.

Unless he could rise one rank, when both benefits and pay would double. He would also gain a measure of social status, which could ease the family's financial hardship.

Normally, getting promoted was difficult. But now that Chen Xia had a panel in his mind, everything was different.

"First, I'll see what this panel does..."

After dinner, Chen Xia went upstairs and returned to his room.

The room wasn't large. It contained only a bed, a bookcase, and a red punching bag hanging on the wall, which he used for training.

After closing the door, Chen Xia summoned the panel in his mind.

After studying it, he soon figured out what the panel could do.

It could turn negative into positive. The side effects of any cultivation method, Martial Skill, pill, or Nutrient Solution could be changed through the panel and made beneficial instead.

But it also clearly stated that reversing high-grade items required a certain amount of Negative Fragments. For now, however, the functions for collecting fragments and their detailed instructions hadn't been activated.

He set that aside for the moment. The items he could reverse weren't high-grade anyway.

He glanced at the Seven Injuries Fist cultivation method. There was a reversal option beside it.

Chen Xia chose to reverse it, eager to see what would happen.

[Cultivation Method: Seven Injuries Fist. One practice, seven injuries! It harms Yin and Yang, and the Five Elements of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. First harm yourself, then harm your enemy. Once mastered, its power is immense! A touch to the body can shatter a person's Five Viscera, leaving them certain to die. Flaw: Every practice damages your internal organs. If your internal energy isn't sufficiently abundant, it will destroy your heart meridian, drive you mad, and cause Qi Deviation. Practice with caution...]

[Negative Reversal: Seven Injuries Fist. One practice, seven supplements! It nourishes Yin and Yang, and the Five Elements of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. First nourish yourself, then harm your enemy. Every practice nourishes your internal organs. Even beginners can practice it. It strengthens the heart meridian, clears the mind, and sharpens the senses.]

After the cultivation method was reversed, the Seven Injuries Fist in Chen Xia's mind underwent a subtle change. A flood of information poured in, giving him an enhanced version of the Seven Injuries Fist with no side effects.

It was an incredible sight, as if this cultivation method had always existed in Chen Xia's mind—as if he had painstakingly studied it for years and arrived at the result himself.

Chen Xia was stunned. This had originally been a flawed cultivation method that ordinary people couldn't practice. It had killed his predecessor.

Now, after the panel reversed it, not only could he practice it, but it could also nourish his Five Viscera?

A cultivation method that worked so quickly, had no side effects, and could nourish the body?

...Wasn't one man's poison another man's honey?

This meant Chen Xia would have all kinds of advantages in cultivation from now on!

For example, he could swallow pills that others wouldn't dare touch. He could practice cultivation methods and flawed Martial Skills that others wouldn't dare try. In his hands, they might all become treasures.

Any resource with side effects could be used by him once he reversed it. He'd struck it rich.

Wonderful!

Chen Xia was thrilled. He couldn't wait to practice the Seven Injuries Fist in his room.

In his memories, every time he had practiced it before, his cultivation had failed to improve, and he had instead practiced until he vomited blood and died. With every punch, he could feel the faint energy within him churning and stimulating his Five Viscera.

Now, he was completely fine. On the contrary, the faint energy striking Chen Xia's Five Viscera seemed to have turned into cool nourishment. Each practice nourished his internal organs.

What had once been painful was now turned on its head. Heat spread through his body, bringing a soothing rush. The more he practiced, the more invigorated he felt, and the Primal Qi in his organs grew stronger.

"The Seven Injuries Fist used to harm me seven ways with every practice. Now it nourishes me seven ways, and has greatly increased my strength!"

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Chen Xia would never have believed the Seven Injuries Fist could be this powerful.

And the reversed Seven Injuries Fist was complete, with effects far beyond those of ordinary cultivation methods.

It had an Inner Method, circulation routes, and a corresponding set of external boxing techniques.

The Inner Method could cultivate Qi energy capable of damaging an enemy's organs. Once mastered, the energy could be released through the fists and driven into an opponent's body to injure their Five Viscera. It had originally been a technique that injured both fighters. Now that the side effect of harming himself was gone, only its enormous power to harm enemies remained.

In addition, this cultivation method could also nourish the internal organs with astonishing effectiveness. Put the two together, and it was almost all upside.

"A martial art like this can completely make up for my lack of talent!"

Chen Xia knew a little about the martial arts of this world.

A thousand years ago, after spiritual energy returned to the world, people who practiced martial arts could give birth to Primal Qi within their bodies. This Primal Qi could forge a martial artist.

Martial arts were no longer empty talk. They were real paths to power, painstakingly researched by the generations that came before.

No matter which martial arts cultivation method one practiced, the early stages were divided into nine levels of Ningyuan. Once someone's punching power exceeded 1,000 kilograms and they passed the Martial Force test, the Federation government would confer on them the title and status of a Grade 1 martial artist.

Now that he was making progress, Chen Xia was full of hope about martial arts. Though he had come from another world, he didn't want to live in poverty. He had to grow stronger!

The days passed one by one.

In the blink of an eye, two weeks went by.

During that time, aside from reporting to the Patrol Inspection Branch as usual and patrolling with Zhang Feng and his other coworkers, Chen Xia spent almost all his time practicing the Seven Injuries Fist.

Practicing the Seven Injuries Fist wasn't easy. It took plenty of sweat, but thanks to his foundation in boxing and kicking, Chen Xia was able to perform it convincingly and unleash some of its power.

After each session, his blood surged and his muscles burned. His speed, strength, and perception all improved dramatically in a short time.

Bang! After his shift one afternoon, Chen Xia went to a testing machine in the corner of a nearby Martial Arts Hall and slammed three punches into the target.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

"899 kg!" "905 kg!" "901 kg!"

Chen Xia glanced at the three red numbers displayed on the machine, surprised.

Before, his punching power had been stuck at an average of 786 kilograms. No matter how he trained, it wouldn't increase, as if he'd hit the limits of his body. Now, his three punches averaged 901 kilograms!

That was the physical standard for the Eighth Stage of Ningyuan. In less than a month of practicing the reversed Seven Injuries Fist, he had broken through the stage he'd been unable to advance past and reached the Eighth Stage of Ningyuan!

"The eighth stage... If I keep progressing like this, I'll soon break through to Grade 1 martial artist. Then it won't just be deputy captain—I'll be a shoo-in for captain."

Standing in front of the target, Chen Xia was overjoyed.

His predecessor had trained hard for two or three years to reach the Eighth Stage, but seemed to have hit a limit and couldn't break through.

Yet Chen Xia had done it in less than a month.

This rate of progress was astonishing!

At this rate, his prospects were looking good.

"I'm going to become a Grade 1 martial artist... I can do it too!"

Chen Xia silently encouraged himself. Still, he had already been in the Patrol Inspection Office for six years, so he didn't mind waiting a little longer. People weren't afraid of hard work; they were afraid of having no hope. Once there was hope, sunlight could be found everywhere in life.