Knife Technique Breaks Limit, Knife Fast as the Wind!

At breakfast time.

The dining hall was bustling with noise.

More than a hundred Wooden Tables were packed tightly together.

The fragrance of coarse rice mixed with the salty aroma of Pickled Vegetables, spreading through the billowing steam.

The clatter of bowls and chopsticks intertwined with laughter and conversation, making the dining hall as lively as a pot of boiling water.

Yet amid the uproar filling the hall, a strange vacuum had been carved out in the southeast corner.

A square table stood there.

A dish of Pickled Vegetables, a bowl of plain congee, and two white-flour steamed buns sent wisps of steam curling upward.

Li Qingxue sat upright before the table, her back straight as a ramrod.

She held chopsticks in one hand and supported the rim of the bowl with the other, chewing slowly and swallowing carefully, calm and unhurried.

The surrounding commotion seemed to have nothing to do with her.

Her gaze was indifferent. From time to time, she Looked up and swept her eyes across the dining hall. Her gaze was as cold and clear as Autumn Water, without the slightest warmth or concern.

Several tables around her were clearly empty, yet no one dared approach and take a seat.

Even those nearby instinctively lowered their voices when they spoke, not daring to glance in that direction.

It was as though that area was protected by an invisible barrier, or inhabited by a lurking beast. The slightest approach would bring Burning body upon them.

Several newcomers, unaware of the situation, had just tried to move over when the people beside them grabbed them and repeatedly shook their heads in warning.

Compared to the nearly frozen silence in the southeast corner...

The other side of the dining hall, near the entrance, presented an entirely different sight. It was so lively it seemed ready to explode.

A round table was surrounded by people three layers deep.

Every face was filled with excitement and flattery.

All their gazes were fixed on Zhao Tianxing in the Main Seat.

Zhao Tianxing had joined the Seven Star Gang only six days ago, yet he had already become a prominent figure who drew everyone's attention.

He had entered Monkey Form in the Twelve Forms Boxing in only two days;

his Qi and Blood Force was vigorous, comparable to someone who had already broken through Blood Nourishment;

he had defeated a senior brother who had joined the gang three months earlier in ten moves;

he had easily defeated the five others who had joined at the same time as him, fighting one against five;

and he had earned the favor of Chief Instructor Cao Feng, who had given him Private Tutoring...

Every one of these achievements was enough to make him proud.

His fame had even overshadowed the genius Ling Feng...

Thus, many people wanted to befriend him.

Wherever he went, he was surrounded like the moon by stars.

One was still, the other lively; one cold, the other warm.

Li Qingxue remained seated in the corner, leisurely sipping her porridge.

The liveliness over there was nothing more than a passing wind unrelated to her.

Meanwhile, Zhao Tianxing was surrounded by people, brimming with confidence and in high spirits as he chatted animatedly.

The dining hall of the Seven Star Gang's branch had thus been invisibly divided into two worlds.

Each had its own noise and its own silence.

Yet they coexisted strangely beneath the same sky, forming a unique Morning Scene.

Chu Fan strode in. Looking at the crowded dining hall, he frowned.

He collected a bowl of hot porridge, several Steamed Corn Buns, and a small dish of Pickled Vegetables, carried them over, and set them on the table to Li Qingxue's right before lowering his head and eating.

Li Qingxue turned her head and glanced at him, then expressionlessly withdrew her gaze.

On the other side, Zhao Tianxing winked and gestured repeatedly at Chu Fan, but Chu Fan pretended not to see him.

This area was quiet and comfortable. Why squeeze in over there?

Before transmigrating, Chu Fan had not yet reached the age where he brewed goji berries in a thermos, but he had taken to quiet and solitude early on.

Before long, Li Qingxue rose and left.

The moment she moved, Zhao Tianxing darted over like a nimble monkey and said, "Big Brother, you clearly saw my gestures. Why did you pretend not to?"

"Even if you didn't see me, surely you saw Senior Sister Qingxue?"

"Are you not afraid of Senior Sister Qingxue at all?"

The people who had originally surrounded Zhao Tianxing followed him over.

A tall woman said, "Are you really stupid, or are you pretending to be? Do you know how formidable Senior Sister Qingxue is?"

"She's the Number One Swift Saber of our Seven Star Gang! When her saber light rises, blood follows!"

"There are dozens of Blood Saber Sect fiends who have died beneath her saber, if not a hundred!"

"Those vicious and overbearing bastards from the Blood Saber Sect turn into rabbits before an eagle when they see her. They only regret that their parents hadn't given them two more legs!"

"Only an ignorant kid like you would dare..."

"Too noisy!" Zhao Tianxing raised his head and swept the woman a cold glance.

The woman's Pretty face immediately flushed scarlet. She stammered, "Tianxing, your talent is peerless, and your future achievements are limitless. Why mix with someone so untalented and reckless?"

"Smack!"

Before she finished speaking, Zhao Tianxing had already slapped two boiled eggs onto the table.

With a hint of anger, he said, "I'm asking you, you've been in the Seven Star Gang for four months, haven't you?"

"After four months, you haven't even touched the Blood Nourishment stage. What gives you the nerve to mock Chu Fan's talent as inferior?"

"Are you blind in the eyes or blind in the heart? Didn't you see that on the day Chu Fan joined the Seven Star Gang, he practiced the Twelve Forms Boxing without taking a single lash? And you call talent like that inferior?!"

"Besides, are the tables around Senior Sister Qingxue forbidden to everyone? Does sitting there make someone reckless and suicidal?"

"Take your eggs back. I can't accept them!"

The woman's face turned deathly pale, and she fled as though escaping for her life.

Seeing Zhao Tianxing lose his temper, everyone around him fell as silent as cicadas in winter, not daring to make a sound.

Without raising his head, Chu Fan said, "She kindly gave you eggs to befriend you, a genius, and you cursed her until she was covered in dog's blood. Why bother?"

"What kind of genius am I? My foundation is merely a little better." Zhao Tianxing shook his head with a smile. "If we're talking about geniuses, your talent is far above mine. These people are just short-sighted and failed to notice!"

"What?" Everyone nearby was startled, each of them staring at Zhao Tianxing in confusion.

Chu Fan had indeed been astonishing for not taking a single lash that day, but to say that his talent surpassed Zhao Tianxing's...

How was that possible?!

Zhao Tianxing waved his hand. "Disperse, disperse. Huddling together like this is annoying!"

The group dispersed with awkward laughter.

The area nearby immediately opened up.

Chu Fan lowered his head and continued eating.

Zhao Tianxing added, "Also, when you joined the Seven Star Gang, I couldn't see through your Chopping Wood Saber Technique, but I clearly saw the disbelief in Cao Shi's and Senior Sister Qingxue's eyes."

"How could a saber technique—or talent in saber cultivation—that shocked both of them be ordinary?"

Chu Fan raised his head and glanced at him, still saying nothing.

Seeing that he remained silent, Zhao Tianxing did not mind. He merely placed the two eggs in front of Chu Fan and said, "You needn't envy the senior sisters' gifts either. There's nothing I can do about being handsome."

Chu Fan laughed helplessly. "You're awfully narcissistic."

Zhao Tianxing continued, "But right now, I only want to focus my mind on cultivation. I'll put matters of romance aside for now."

He had no intention of romance, yet he still accepted someone else's eggs?

He accepted the eggs, then drove her away with insults...

Zhao Tianxing suddenly glanced around slyly and lowered his voice. "Chu Fan, do you know whether Senior Sister Xue has someone she likes?"

"Don't talk so recklessly and drag me into getting beaten!" Chu Fan carried his bowl and moved to another table.

He had been in the Seven Star Gang for only six days, yet he had already seen several people beaten by Li Qingxue until their faces were swollen and bruised.

Although he was not afraid of Li Qingxue, he was unwilling to take a beating for no reason.

The claw Li Qingxue had used to grab him on the day he joined the Seven Star Gang still made him shudder.

This Zhao Tianxing actually dared to set his sights on her!

"In Seven Days, I'll start preparing to condense my first strand of Qi and Blood Force..." Zhao Tianxing also carried his bowl over and sat opposite Chu Fan.

"That fast?" Chu Fan was startled.

Then he felt relieved.

The first hurdle of Martial Dao Foundation Establishment, Blood Nourishment, was extremely difficult for many ordinary people.

The likes of Liu Da and several other ruffians had trained at a martial academy for more than half a year without breaking through this hurdle.

They might even be unable to cross it for the rest of their lives.

But Zhao Tianxing was different.

He ate the flesh of beasts, drank their blood, raced deer, fought tigers and wolves, and had even consumed many precious medicinal herbs, as well as the flesh of a Crimson-Scaled Blood Python.

Before joining the Seven Star Gang, the vigor of his Qi and blood had already been comparable to that of a Blood Nourishment martial artist!

For Zhao Tianxing to break through Blood Nourishment, all he lacked was the method of Circulating Qi and Blood.

Breaking through Blood Nourishment could be divided into two steps.

The first step was nourishing the blood until it became like mercury;

practicing the Twelve Forms Boxing, eating beast flesh, and drinking medicinal soup all belonged to this step.

The second step came after the Qi and blood grew vigorous: sensing the Qi and Blood Force, condensing Three strands of Qi and Blood Force, and finally circulating the Qi and Blood Force throughout the entire body;

as for Zhao Tianxing, he had plainly skipped the first step entirely!

All he needed to do was sense the Qi and Blood Force, then circulate and condense it!

Chu Fan heard Zhao Tianxing continue, "This Martial Dao cultivation is truly wondrous... Cao Shi said that my Qi and blood were already strong, but I simply didn't know how to use them, nor had I ever condensed them."

"After several days of bitterly practicing the Twelve Forms Boxing, along with three bowls of medicinal soup every day, I can now hear my own Qi and blood roaring like a tide whenever I focus slightly."

"Cao Shi said that this is the foundation for condensing Qi and Blood Force."

"Starting tomorrow, Cao Shi will teach me the method of condensing Qi and Blood Force."

"In Seven Days, I'll attempt to condense my first strand of Qi and Blood Force!"

At the mention of this, the excitement in Zhao Tianxing's eyes was impossible to conceal.

"Congratulations!" Chu Fan smiled faintly and nodded sincerely. "Once you succeed, you'll have to tell me about your experience."

"Don't worry!" Zhao Tianxing thumped his chest. "I'll tell you everything I know, without holding anything back!"

As they talked, the two went together to collect a bowl of Blood Nourishing Medicinal Soup.

Chu Fan raised the bowl and gulped it down.

[Spiritual Essence 10.2]

His Spiritual Essence was finally sufficient.

Of those ten points of Spiritual Essence, three had come from the two pieces of Crimson-Scaled Blood Python flesh Zhao Tianxing had given him.

Chu Fan walked out of the dining hall. With a thought, he focused on the plus sign after "Chopping Wood Saber Technique."

["Chopping Wood Saber Technique" has reached its Perfection limit. Breaking the limit will consume 10 points of Spiritual Essence. Consume?]

Chu Fan no longer hesitated and moved his thoughts slightly.

The Spiritual Essence on the panel instantly decreased by ten points.

The panels for "Chopping Wood Saber Technique" and the Mountains and Rivers Map suddenly changed.

At that instant, Chu Fan felt a strange force circulate throughout his entire body.

In his mind, countless fierce saber lights flashed past. The saber lights were chilling, cleaving through the sky!

Although these saber lights consisted only of simple chops and slashes, they concealed a strange rhythm that left Chu Fan somewhat entranced.

At the same time, it seemed as though millions of ants were crawling through his arms, while waves of itchy numbness rose from the depths of his muscles and bones.

Chu Fan closed his eyes and felt the changes within his body.

A moment later, everything returned to calm.

[ cultivation: First Stage of Foundation Establishment, Blood Nourishment 43%]

[skills: Chopping Wood Saber Technique (one Break Limit 0/3000) (trait: Knife Fast as the Wind)]

[skills: Literacy Technique (Minor Accomplishment) progress: (169/200) (trait: none)]

[skills: Twelve Forms Boxing (Minor Accomplishment) progress: (2/300) (trait: none)]

The limit of "Chopping Wood Saber Technique" had been broken.

A new progress bar had appeared!

Not only that, it had also gained a trait...

"Knife Fast as the Wind"!