Blood Tempering Is Like Burning Your Body! (Please Read More)

At noon, the sky was clear and bright.

The warm sunlight struggled to pierce the leaden-gray clouds, scattering across the blue stone courtyard.

The snow in the courtyard had long since been cleared away, revealing the ground paved with blue stone slabs.

A few inches of snow still clung to the surrounding walls, glittering with fine silver light beneath the sun.

The cold wind swept snowflakes in from beyond the courtyard wall. They landed on Chu Fan's bare forearms, yet failed to leave behind even the slightest chill.

Chu Fan held a vermilion-red pill between his fingers and slowly raised it to his mouth.

The pill's surface shimmered with fine patterns of light. It was the Blood Refining Pill Instructor Cao had given him that day, a pill that helped martial artists temper their Blood Qi.

Three days had passed since he killed the Huang Family steward and the guard instructor...

This was the fifth Blood Refining Pill he had taken.

Chu Fan knew well that Blood Refining was like burning one's body, and the medicinal effect of this Blood Refining Pill was especially overbearing. Thus, before cultivating today, he had already taken off his outer clothes, leaving himself in only a short jacket.

Fortunately, his Blood Qi was now abundant, and his muscles and bones were far stronger than before. Standing in the cold wind, he did not feel particularly cold.

"Glug." Chu Fan tipped back his head and swallowed the Blood Refining Pill.

The pill melted as soon as it entered his throat. A scorching, warm current flowed straight down his esophagus, like a ball of burning charcoal he had swallowed, yet in the blink of an eye, it spread into his Limbs and Bones.

Chu Fan did not dare delay. He stamped both feet against the blue stone ground and immediately assumed the Opening stance of Twelve Forms Boxing, lowering his shoulders and sinking his elbows.

As his fists stirred the air, the Blood Qi within him churned like boiling water.

The moment he launched the first move, Tiger Pounce, he clearly felt the medicinal power transform into a searing current that shot into his Limbs and Bones.

His blood surged through his vessels, actually giving off a deep howl, as though a fierce tiger lay dormant inside him.

Three strands of Qi and Blood Force rose from his Dantian, wrapping around his arms and legs like Red Pythons. Wherever they passed, his muscles and bones gave off faint wengs.

"Hah!"

Chu Fan exhaled and shouted, and his fists suddenly accelerated.

Drilling Fist was like a dragon emerging from water.

Crushing Fist was like a tiger leaping across a ravine!

With every change of stance, his Blood Qi surged and churned!

The method of Blood Refining focused on removing the dross and preserving the essence. It required using Twelve Forms Boxing to guide the hot current as it accelerated through the Meridians, as though driving an invisible millstone that repeatedly ground down and compressed his originally surging Blood Qi.

At first, there had only been a faint flow of heat. But as his fists quickened, the Blood Qi within him suddenly boiled like an Oil Drum set ablaze!

He could clearly sense his originally impure Blood Qi being refined bit by bit.

Those sluggish impurities were expelled through his pores. When they landed on the blue stone ground, they actually congealed into tiny patches of Black Frost.

Fine beads of sweat also seeped from his brow, only to evaporate into white mist the moment they appeared...

When his Blood Qi reached its peak, steam seeped from every pore all over his body. From afar, he looked as if invisible Flames had ignited across his entire body.

"Hah!"

Chu Fan let out another low shout, and his fists abruptly shifted into Bear Form.

He wrapped both arms before his chest, then suddenly thrust them outward!

A clear, deep howl came from within him, as though a Black Bear were charging through his Meridians.

The three strands of Qi and Blood Force he had previously condensed were circulating rapidly through each Meridian. With every turn, they ground against and compressed one another.

His originally loose Blood Qi gradually became as condensed as threads. As it flowed down his arms, faint red patterns appeared beneath his skin.

The medicinal power of the Blood Refining Pill was too overbearing. As it guided his Blood Qi to circulate at high speed, his Meridians felt as though red-hot Iron Bars were scraping across them. Every inch of them throbbed with pain!

As the three strands of Qi and Blood Force began spreading toward his Limbs and Bones, the temperature of his body rose even higher. Amid the swirling steam, he once again felt as though his body were burning.

Three days ago, when he had first used the Blood Refining Pill for Blood Refining, he had only cultivated for a short while before hurriedly stripping off his clothes, ending up in an utterly disheveled state.

This time, having gained experience, he was naturally calm and composed.

Chu Fan gritted his teeth and endured the pain of his body burning.

An ordinary martial artist would have cried out in pain by this point.

But because his Twelve Forms Boxing had reached Perfection, Chu Fan's control over his Blood Qi far surpassed that of even a Tendon Tempering martial artist. His suffering was far less than other people's.

He merely clenched his teeth, while his fists instead grew even sharper and more forceful.

The greatest taboo in Blood Refining was stopping halfway. If one's will wavered even slightly, not only would all one's previous efforts be wasted, but one might also damage one's Meridians.

He changed his fists to Snake Form, twisting his waist flexibly as he guided the condensed Blood Qi toward his joints.

The three strands of Qi and Blood Force seemed to possess a spirit of their own. Following his will, they gradually connected through his Limbs and Bones.

The red patterns beneath his skin grew increasingly distinct.

He could even see his Blood Qi slowly flowing!

The force of his fists swept across the snow-covered courtyard walls, shaking the accumulated snow loose in rustling cascades!

[Twelve Forms Boxing Experience +8]

Once he finished one round of Twelve Forms Boxing, the second followed close behind.

By the time he completed the final move of the sixth round...

Chu Fan suddenly spat out a breath of foul air.

As that Aura fell into the air, it actually condensed into a white pillar of vapor.

He lowered his head and looked at his hands. A faint red glow still lingered in his palms.

After repeatedly grinding and tempering himself over three days, the three strands of Qi and Blood Force had become completely solidified. They clung to the walls of his Meridians, docile as tamed ferocious tigers.

When his heart moved, his intent arrived; when his intent arrived, his strength followed!

With a single thought, his Blood Qi could flow through his Meridians. Between offense and defense, there was no longer any obstruction!

Although he still had only three strands of Qi and Blood Force, the might of each move was already incomparable to before.

Compared to his previously mixed Blood Qi, his current power was purer and more condensed. Every movement of his hands and feet seemed accompanied by a tiger's roar!

Chu Fan tried raising his arm and felt his entire body become light, the sluggishness from before completely gone.

The pain of his body burning had disappeared.

In its place was unprecedented comfort!

Three days of Blood Refining had not only nearly doubled the quality of his Blood Qi, but had also greatly improved his control over it.

Now, his Qi and Blood Force moved according to his will. When covering his Limbs and Bones, it could attack or defend, practically becoming mobile armor and blades.

The cold wind still blew outside the courtyard, but Chu Fan felt warm all over.

He raised his brows, his heart filled with delight.

Tomorrow, I can try condensing another strand of Qi and Blood Force.

The Tempering Blood Realm required condensing six strands of Qi and Blood Force and refining them until they became pure before one could break through to Tendon Tempering.

With a thought, Chu Fan "looked" at the panel of the Mountains and Rivers Map.

[ cultivation: Foundation Establishment Second Stage, Tempering Blood 11%]

[skills: Ninefold Thunderclap Saber (Minor Accomplishment) progress: (15/500) (trait: none)]

[skills: Running Technique (Major Accomplishment) progress: (775/800)]

After breaking through to Blood Nourishment, he had not practiced Blood Refining while working to advance Twelve Forms Boxing to Perfection.

Now, after three days of Blood Refining, he had pushed his Blood Refining progress to 11%!

At this rate, he would be able to break through the Tempering Blood Realm in no more than twenty days.

It was not that Blood Refining was easier than Blood Nourishment. Rather, his Twelve Forms Boxing had reached Perfection, and the Blood Refining Pills Instructor Cao had given him had greatly accelerated his Blood Refining progress.

Moreover, he had yet to use the prescription Instructor Cao had given him.

If he bought several batches of medicinal ingredients and took a Medicinal Bath once every three days, he might be able to increase his Blood Refining speed another notch.

Chu Fan nodded secretly.

The Ninefold Thunderclap Saber had also broken through from Entry to Minor Accomplishment last night.

After comprehending Saber Force, the saber technique had improved extremely quickly.

But what Chu Fan looked forward to most was still the Running Technique.

The difficulty of the Running Technique far exceeded that of Chopping Wood Saber Technique, yet it was much easier than Twelve Forms Boxing and Ninefold Thunderclap Saber.

He had only sprinted for a while after practicing boxing in the morning and afternoon. After five days, it was finally about to reach Perfection today.

Chu Fan put on a thin cotton-padded jacket, left the courtyard, and ran wildly around the Training Ground.

[Running Technique Experience +1]

[Running Technique Experience +1]

Many of the people practicing their fists on the Training Ground stopped.

"Why do I feel like this guy is running faster and faster?"

"He really is much faster than before."

"Could Instructor Cao have taught him some unique method? Or is he practicing lightness techniques?"

"Impossible! If Instructor Cao taught it to him, why isn't Zhao Tianxing running too?"

"No, something's wrong. Something's very wrong! At his current speed, even a martial artist in the Blood Nourishment Realm couldn't catch him!"

"This is truly bizarre. Could chopping wood cultivate saber skills, and sprinting also cultivate lightness techniques?"

At the edge of the Training Ground, Li Qingxue watched Chu Fan sprinting as swiftly as a flying bird, a trace of astonishment flashing through her eyes.