Fourth Chapter: Thunderstorm Fist!

Chapter 4: Martial Skill, Thunderstorm Fist!

Mu Qing gave Song Qing a faintly amused look, then glanced at the two junior girls behind him, their faces full of admiration, and at the students around them, whose eyes gleamed with schadenfreude. It took him only a moment to figure out why Song Qing was here.

"Perfect timing. I can try out this martial skill." Mu Qing's lips curled slightly. He tapped his communicator a few times, and bought an Advanced Martial Skill called Thunderstorm Fist from the light screen. In the blink of an eye, ninety thousand Huaxia Currency vanished from his personal account.

The communicator vibrated softly. The screen changed to display all the information about Thunderstorm Fist, an Advanced Martial Skill divided into ten stages.

Mu Qing had chosen this skill because it was easy to cultivate. In the comments, an alumnus of West Lake High School had written that even an ordinary student could grasp the basics after watching it a few times.

Of course, every gain came with a loss. The skill was easy to learn, but the later stages were incredibly difficult to cultivate. Few people could master all ten stages of Thunderstorm Fist.

Mu Qing didn't know whether he could cultivate the later stages, but for now, Thunderstorm Fist could make his strength soar in a short time. There was no doubt about that!

After studying the key points of the first three stages on the screen, Mu Qing took a deep breath and switched off his communicator. He fell silent, focusing on comprehending the first stage of Thunderstorm Fist.

But Mu Qing's current state thoroughly annoyed Song Qing. First, Mu Qing had tapped away at his communicator, then stood there without moving, ignoring him the entire time.

"Mu Qing, judging by the direction you came from, you've just finished training in the Cultivation Room, right? You still haven't touched the threshold of Blood Qi Fifth Rank, have you? How about sparring with your senior? You might even break through to Blood Qi Fifth Rank in the middle of a fight."

Mu Qing's attitude irritated Song Qing. There were two junior girls and a crowd of students watching, after all. To save face, he even called himself Mu Qing's senior, wearing a haughty expression as though he didn't consider Mu Qing, another top student, his equal.

"Song Qing's picking on Mu Qing? I heard Song Qing broke through to Blood Qi Fifth Rank a few days ago. He probably wants someone to practice on."

"Practice? You still don't know? Mu Qing's a top student, but he still hasn't awakened his Blood Spirit. How could he be a match for Song Qing? Song Qing must've come here specifically to cause trouble for him."

"No way. Mu Qing's a top student. How could he still not have awakened his Blood Spirit?"

"Looks like Mu Qing's in trouble. Song Qing awakened the Black Profound Iron Sword, which can convert into dense Origin Force. If Song Qing channels his Origin Force, one sword strike will bring down a force of at least a thousand pounds!"

The students around them began whispering. Song Qing's awakened Blood Spirit was even recorded at West Lake High School; alumni from the school had awakened the same kind of Blood Spirit before.

"Song Qing, you're Blood Qi Fifth Rank, while I'm only Blood Qi Fourth Rank. That's not fair. How about... you give me three moves?"

Mu Qing's mouth curled into a sly smile. As long as he didn't release the Purple Lightning Bamboo himself, Song Qing wouldn't be able to sense his cultivation level.

He'd just bought Thunderstorm Fist, and now a live target had come right to him to practice on. How could Mu Qing refuse?

"Fine! I'll give you three moves." Song Qing saw that Mu Qing wasn't backing down and agreed at once, without even considering the condition Mu Qing had proposed.

After all, the two junior girls were still watching. He needed to show off his courage and might now. Maybe he could even win them over tonight.

"Good. Be careful, senior. Here I come." Mu Qing shot Song Qing a teasing look. Origin Force slowly began to circulate in his mind, following the first stage of Thunderstorm Fist's meridians and gathering into a terrifying force.

"Go ahead. If you can knock me back within three moves, I'll admit defeat!"

Mu Qing's calling him "senior" had clearly gone to Song Qing's head. He didn't even notice Mu Qing's expression. With a grand wave of his hand, he spoke with complete confidence.

And, in truth, he had every reason to be confident. He drew the Black Profound Iron Sword into his body, and streams of Origin Force spread from his dantian throughout his body.

At Blood Qi Fifth Rank, once a person used their Blood Spirit to convert their power into Origin Force, their strength underwent a tremendous transformation. A full-power strike using Origin Force could unleash a terrifying force of one ton, and spreading Origin Force throughout the body and circulating it at its limit could also withstand one ton of force.

In Song Qing's eyes, Mu Qing was only Blood Qi Fourth Rank, with a maximum strength of just eight hundred pounds. Song Qing doubted he could even break through a sliver of his Origin Force, let alone knock him back.

Of course, if he knew Mu Qing had already reached Blood Qi Fifth Rank, he wouldn't know what to think.

Zzzzt!

This was Mu Qing's first time circulating a martial skill, and he wasn't very practiced yet. It took more than ten seconds for him to gather Origin Force in his arm. Threads of searing white lightning flickered between his fingers, crackling sharply.

"That's..." Song Qing's pupils suddenly contracted. A sense of foreboding rose in his heart. Before he could react, Mu Qing was already right in front of him.

"Thunderstorm Fist!"

Mu Qing gave a soft shout and clenched his fist. Strands of searing white lightning gathered together, electricity dancing across his entire fist as surging Origin Force burst forth.

"You—"

Song Qing had barely managed to get one word out when Mu Qing's fist slammed into his abdomen with a thud. Threads of searing white lightning exploded, tearing through Song Qing's training uniform and unleashing a terrifying force.

Song Qing had used Origin Force to defend himself, but he'd only channeled a small portion of what was in his dantian. How could that possibly withstand Mu Qing, who had suddenly unleashed an Advanced Martial Skill?

The Thunderstorm Fist struck. Song Qing screamed as his entire body shot into the air, flying backward before crashing to the ground.

Song Qing had been caught off guard. He was no match for Mu Qing at all.

"Whoom!"

Seeing Song Qing go flying, Mu Qing nodded in satisfaction. He was just about to lower his fist when a sound suddenly echoed in his mind. The Purple Lightning Bamboo had appeared on its own, for some unknown reason.

A small stalk of purple bamboo swayed gently, steaming with hazy mist. Lightning flashed, and electric sparks leaped between its purple leaves.

"What's this..."

Mu Qing's body suddenly jolted, and his eyes grew deep. His consciousness entered his mind, where the Purple Lightning Bamboo floated above his head. As its leaves moved, wisps of purple mist laced with lightning drifted down.

Mu Qing had only grasped the basics of the first stage of Thunderstorm Fist. Although he had memorized many of the key points for the later stages, it would still take him quite a while to truly use them.

But now, as the Purple Lightning Bamboo continued to shed its purple mist, Mu Qing entered a mysterious, profound state. The meridian routes for the first three stages of Thunderstorm Fist surfaced in his memory, and he comprehended them at a terrifying speed.

Almost unconsciously, Mu Qing walked toward Song Qing, who had just gotten back to his feet. Under Song Qing's terrified gaze, Origin Force surged through Mu Qing's body, electricity wrapped around his fist, and he suddenly punched.

Song Qing took another punch to the abdomen. As Mu Qing's fist struck him, two surges of lightning exploded. A wave of brute force burst out and sent him flying. The two surges of lightning not only left Song Qing numb all over, but also charred his abdomen black, smoke curling from it.

"Blood Qi Fifth Rank! The rumors on the school forum must all be fake! Mu Qing clearly has the strength of Blood Qi Fifth Rank and has awakened a Blood Spirit."

The students around them stumbled back, their faces full of shock.

"What Blood Spirit did Mu Qing awaken? I couldn't find anything about it on the school's official website." One person immediately took a picture of the Purple Lightning Bamboo floating above Mu Qing's head, then repeatedly searched the official website on his communicator, but still couldn't find any information.

"It's no surprise you couldn't find it. The school's official website only records Blood Spirits that have appeared at West Lake High School throughout its history. I remember that many top students have Blood Spirits that aren't listed in the school's records." A student spoke up.

Humans mainly relied on Blood Spirits to cultivate the power of their bloodlines, and the kinds of Blood Spirits were virtually endless. Even the most powerful Federation on Earth had no complete record of Blood Spirits. At every moment, someone awakened a Blood Spirit no one had ever seen before.

Caught off guard, Song Qing had already been badly injured. Mu Qing had sent him flying twice in front of so many people, leaving Song Qing unable to save face. Blood trickled from his mouth, and resentment filled his heart. But as Mu Qing drew closer again, a hint of terror surfaced in his eyes.

"Mu..."

Song Qing had just started to beg for mercy, but Mu Qing, lost in that mysterious state, couldn't hear anything. As wisps of purple mist drifted down, he rapidly comprehended the secrets of Thunderstorm Fist's third stage.

Crackling!

Strands of lightning gathered on his fist, a fierce aura radiating in all directions.

The next moment, under Song Qing's horrified gaze, Mu Qing struck again, still hitting him in the abdomen. This time, three bolts of lightning exploded!

Song Qing tried to channel his Origin Force to defend himself, but the terrifying lightning left his entire body numb and convulsing. The intense pain in his abdomen made it impossible for him to focus and channel his Origin Force.

"Pfft!"

A large mouthful of thick blood sprayed from Song Qing's mouth. His face was filled with regret. He'd only provoked Mu Qing a little, never expecting him to be so vicious—to beat him half to death. Mu Qing had tricked him into thinking he was Blood Qi Fourth Rank, then suddenly unleashed the strength of Fifth Rank. That alone was bad enough, but he'd even used a martial skill!

"Mu Qing... you tricked me..." Song Qing, also Blood Qi Fifth Rank, hadn't been able to fight back at all. His head lolled to the side, and he passed out completely.

"Brutal."

The East Campus students stared at Mu Qing, their eyes filled with fear. The two junior girls Song Qing had brought along were so frightened they collapsed to the ground.

Since Mu Qing couldn't sense anything outside himself after entering that mysterious state, and his body was using Thunderstorm Fist on instinct alone, his expression hadn't changed at all. He hadn't even blinked.

"Hm?"

Only after Song Qing had passed out completely did Mu Qing's consciousness slowly return. He felt as though he could use the first three stages of Thunderstorm Fist at any time now, with perfect ease, as if he'd cultivated them for a long time.