Half a Month, Blood Qi Realm Second Layer!

After swallowing a Blood Replenishing Pill, Zhang Su cultivated through the night before completely refining it.

Yesterday, although Blood Qi had been born within Zhang Su's body, there had only been a tiny wisp of it.

But now?

A full hundred strands!

Moreover, those hundred strands of Blood Qi had now condensed into a single thread.

A hundred strands of Blood Qi made one thread; twenty threads of Blood Qi were enough to enter the Blood Qi Realm Second Layer.

Zhang Su had lived with Du Tian and the other two for a year, so he knew roughly how their cultivation was progressing.

Under normal circumstances, Du Tian and the others could be considered geniuses.

They could cultivate several strands to ten strands of Blood Qi a day, which was more or less their limit.

Even at the maximum rate of ten strands of Blood Qi per day, they would gain three hundred strands in a month, enough to condense three threads of Blood Qi.

In around seven months, they could enter the second layer of the Blood Qi Realm.

Of course, if medicinal meals, medicinal baths, or other highly nourishing items assisted their cultivation, their progress could be even faster.

Yet Zhang Su had produced a hundred strands of Blood Qi in a single day.

Ten times that of Du Tian and the others!

Of course, it was not because Zhang Su's talent was exceptionally high.

It was the Blood Replenishing Pill's doing.

"A single Blood Replenishing Pill is equivalent to the Blood Qi Du Tian and the others would painstakingly nurture over ten days. No wonder their eyes turned green when they saw it. This Blood Replenishing Pill truly is a great tonic for Blood Qi Realm martial artists."

"If I take one Blood Replenishing Pill every day, I'll only need twenty days to reach the Blood Qi Realm Second Layer..."

Twenty days!

That speed was simply astonishing!

Of course, his Taotie Blood Nourishing Technique had only just entered the beginner stage.

Once the Taotie Blood Nourishing Technique reached minor mastery or great mastery, its efficiency would become even higher.

At that point, he might only need ten days to enter the Blood Qi Realm Second Layer.

However, whether it was ten days or twenty days, there was one crucial factor: Blood Replenishing Pills.

Zhang Su had to ensure that he had one Blood Replenishing Pill every day.

Zhang Su immediately opened the wooden box.

He carefully counted the Blood Replenishing Pills inside.

There were fourteen Blood Replenishing Pills left in the wooden box.

To ensure he had a Blood Replenishing Pill every day, he would need thirty pills for a month.

"I remember that the Guiyuan Sect seems to sell Blood Replenishing Pills too, though they appear to be rather expensive."

Zhang Su considered it.

He still decided to use up these Blood Replenishing Pills first.

Thus, Zhang Su stayed inside his room.

Every day, he swallowed Blood Replenishing Pills and cultivated.

Occasionally, he also practiced the two sword techniques.

The days passed one by one.

As his Taotie Blood Nourishing Technique improved, his efficiency in refining Blood Replenishing Pills grew ever higher.

The amount of Blood Qi he gained each day also kept increasing.

However, Du Tian and the other three seemed to be growing increasingly restless.

They had planned to make use of the conflict between Wang Hai and Zhang Su to teach Zhang Su a lesson.

Yet Zhang Su never left the room every day.

How was Wang Hai supposed to teach Zhang Su a lesson?

The three of them were worried sick over it.

"Zhang Su, Elder Gu is publicly demonstrating a top-tier martial skill today. Aren't you going to take a look?"

Du Tian asked.

Zhang Su shook his head. "A top-tier martial skill isn't something I can cultivate. I won't be going."

A few more days passed before Zhao Feng spoke up. "Zhang Su, Senior Sister Jiang and Senior Brother Liu, the prominent disciples of our Outer Sect, are sparring. Many people have gone to watch. Aren't you going?"

"Not going! Both of them have reached the Blood Qi Realm Ninth Layer and are only one step away from giving birth to Internal Force. They're far too distant from me. Even if I went to watch, it would be pointless."

Zhang Su refused to go again.

Du Tian and the other three frowned.

During this period, they had repeatedly tried to persuade Zhang Su to go out for all sorts of reasons.

But Zhang Su had never gone out.

Seeing their expressions, all three looked deeply disappointed.

"You all really want me to go out?"

Zhang Su's words made the three men's hearts skip a beat.

Du Tian hurriedly said, "Zhang Su, we just think you've been working too hard at martial arts. The elders have all said that cultivation must have both tension and relaxation. You can't blindly cultivate in hardship."

Zhang Su fell into thought.

"No need. My foundation is too poor, so I need to work twice as hard to catch up."

After saying that, Zhang Su continued swallowing Blood Replenishing Pills to cultivate Blood Qi.

The three exchanged glances, looking at one another in dismay.

"Zhang Su has been swallowing Blood Replenishing Pills to cultivate all this time. Once he uses them up, he'll naturally go out. Let's wait patiently a little longer."

Zhang Su stubbornly refused to go out, so they could only give up for the moment.

They refused to believe Zhang Su could keep cultivating forever.

The days passed one after another.

In the blink of an eye, half a month had gone by.

Zhang Su stayed in his room every day, swallowing even the last Blood Replenishing Pill.

It then transformed into strand after strand of Blood Qi.

When the amount of Blood Qi reached a certain point—

Boom.

Zhang Su felt the Blood Qi throughout his body tremble.

"I did it—the Blood Qi Realm Second Layer! It only took fifteen days, several days faster than I expected..."

Zhang Su slowly opened his eyes.

He immediately checked the System Panel information.

Host: Zhang Su

Cultivation: Blood Qi Realm Second Layer

Taotie Blood Nourishing Technique: Compatibility 91% (Great Mastery)

Nine Shadows Sword Technique: Compatibility 93% (Great Mastery)

Triple Wave: Compatibility 91% (Great Mastery)

Compatibility Points: 0

After half a month of arduous cultivation, both sword techniques and the Taotie Blood Nourishing Technique had reached great mastery.

The Taotie Blood Nourishing Technique at great mastery was exceedingly efficient.

Previously, a single Blood Replenishing Pill could only cultivate a hundred strands of Blood Qi in one day.

Now, a single Blood Replenishing Pill could cultivate a hundred and fifty strands of Blood Qi in one day.

That was an increase in efficiency of fifty percent!

However, Zhang Su could also feel that techniques with compatibility above ninety percent were relatively easy to advance from beginner stage to great mastery.

But advancing from great mastery to perfection would not be so easy.

Even if perfection could be attained, it would likely take quite some more time.

"Half a month... Perfect. The Blood Replenishing Pills have also been used up, so I can go see how much the Guiyuan Sect charges for them."

Zhang Su immediately got up, preparing to leave.

"Huh? Zhang Su, you're going out?"

At that moment, Du Tian and the other three noticed Zhang Su's movements and asked.

"Yes, I'm going out for a walk."

After saying that, Zhang Su went straight out the door.

Du Tian and the other three exchanged glances, and a trace of excitement appeared in each of their eyes.

"He finally couldn't sit still any longer. Come on, quickly notify Wang Hai."

"Wang Hai has wanted to teach Zhang Su a lesson for ages. It's just that Zhang Su kept hiding in his room, so Wang Hai didn't dare act recklessly. But now that Zhang Su has gone out, this will be easy."

"Let's go."

Thus, the three of them also hurried away.

Zhang Su did not pay attention to the movements of Du Tian and the other three.

He headed straight for the Guiyuan Sect's Trading Hall.

All sorts of supplies sold by the sect could be found there.

Naturally, the sect also bought certain supplies.

However, different disciples received different discounts.

Outer Sect disciples received no discounts.

Inner Sect disciples received a twenty percent discount on all supplies.

True Disciples received a fifty percent discount on all supplies.

These discount rules alone showed that in the Guiyuan Sect, only Inner Sect disciples and True Disciples truly counted as disciples of the Guiyuan Sect.

They were worthy of the sect's cultivation.

As for Outer Sect disciples?

They were like venomous insects raised together in a jar.

Only those who stood out and advanced into the Inner Sect would be cultivated by the sect.

Batch after batch of Outer Sect disciples came and went, and the Guiyuan Sect simply did not care.

Zhang Su arrived at the Trading Hall and asked about the price of Blood Replenishing Pills.

"One Blood Replenishing Pill costs fifty contribution points?"

That was equivalent to fifty taels of silver for one Blood Replenishing Pill.

It truly was expensive.

No wonder Uncle Guan had said that his eldest brother had obtained the Blood Replenishing Pills with great difficulty.

However, Zhang Su was not short on contribution points for the time being.

He immediately exchanged for thirty Blood Replenishing Pills, exactly one month's supply. The equivalent of fifteen hundred taels of silver vanished just like that.

No wonder people said, "A poor scholar, a rich martial artist." Zhang Su now understood it deeply.

Of course, unless one came from a family of immense wealth, no one could treat Blood Replenishing Pills like food.

Zhang Su had originally intended to leave directly.

However, from the corner of his eye, he spotted some weapons.

Zhang Su had been practicing swordsmanship recently, so naturally he could not do without a sword.

Although the sect provided standard longswords, their quality was quite ordinary.

And when martial artists clashed, a good weapon would undoubtedly increase one's combat strength.

Otherwise, if the other party had a fine weapon, then in a contest, they could chop his sword in half with a single strike.

How could he keep fighting then?

Zhang Su walked over to the weapons area and carefully selected a sword.

There were stewards stationed throughout the weapons area.

Zhang Su directly asked, "May I ask, Steward, how should this disciple choose a sword?"

The steward glanced at Zhang Su and asked, "What sword technique do you mainly practice?"

"The Nine Shadows Sword Technique and Triple Wave."

Zhang Su answered truthfully.

"Huh? The Nine Shadows Sword Technique focuses on 'speed,' while the Triple Wave Sword Technique focuses on 'power.' Most people only specialize in one, yet you practice both... In that case, this Lengshuang Sword suits you very well."

"The Lengshuang Sword is tough and durable, unafraid of chopping and slashing, making it suitable for your Triple Wave Sword Technique. Moreover, the Lengshuang Sword is not heavy. Once stimulated by Blood Qi, it produces gusts of cold wind. Paired with your Nine Shadows Sword Technique, it will be like adding wings to a tiger."

"Its only drawback is that it's expensive!"

Zhang Su reached out and gripped the Lengshuang Sword's hilt.

At once, a cool sensation flowed from the hilt.

Clang.

Zhang Su drew the sword. It truly carried a chilling feeling.

He was extremely satisfied.

"How much is it?"

"One thousand contribution points."

Zhang Su could not help widening his eyes.

That was equivalent to one thousand taels of silver!

But Zhang Su thought that a good sword could sometimes even save his life.

One thousand taels of silver was indeed expensive, but it was worth the price!

Besides, he was not short of that amount of silver right now.

"All right, then I'll exchange it for this Lengshuang Sword!"

Another thousand contribution points were deducted from Zhang Su's Identity Token.

Added to the fifteen hundred contribution points he had just spent on Blood Replenishing Pills,

only twenty-six hundred contribution points remained on his Identity Token.

With thirty Blood Replenishing Pills tucked away,

and the Lengshuang Sword in hand, Zhang Su walked out of the Trading Hall.

He could not help but sigh inwardly.

Having money really was wonderful!

If he had no money, he would probably be like most Outer Sect disciples, racking his brains to take on sect missions in order to earn contribution points or silver.

How could he possibly train in peace?

Zhang Su had not gone far

when his steps abruptly halted.

Because he saw a figure standing ahead.

The man held a sword in his arms, his eyes fixed straight on Zhang Su.

"Zhang Su, I thought you had some backbone. Never expected you to be just like your brother, spending the silver your live-in son-in-law brother swindled from the Su Family without a shred of shame!"

"No, you're even more worthless than your elder brother. At least your brother knows how to sweet-talk Zhenzhen and deceive her. But you? A whole year just to cultivate Blood Qi—you're trash among trash!"

Zhang Su recognized the sword-hugging man.

He was Wang Hai, an Outer Sect disciple at the third level of the Blood Qi Realm!

He also had another identity: a direct descendant of the Wang Family.

At the same time, he had once been his elder brother's "love rival."

He had pursued the Su Family's young miss—now Zhang Su's sister-in-law—but failed to win her.

Unable to deal with Zhang Su's elder brother,

Wang Hai often came looking for trouble with Zhang Su.

But before, Zhang Su's "companions"—Du Tian and the others—had always stepped in to rescue him.

But now?

Where were Du Tian and the others?