First-Rank Martial Artist

Six days later, March 1.

After dinner, Lu Hao opened the panel to take a look.

[Slaughter Point System]

[Host: Lu Hao]

[Vital Blood: 209/209 cal]

[Spirit: 289/289 Hz+]

[Storage Space: 1 cubic meter]

[Slaughter Points: 1475]

His Vital Blood had reached the limit for three rounds of bone tempering, and he had accumulated over a thousand Slaughter Points. The plus sign after his Vital Blood value had disappeared, which meant Lu Hao had reached the limit for a non-martial artist.

Now it was time to break through and become a martial artist. That was the only way to make significant progress instead of continuing to nourish his Vital Blood.

"Mom, my Vital Blood has reached its limit. I can break through and become a martial artist now. I plan to do it today."

"Good. Since your Vital Blood reached its limit so quickly, you can break through. I'll stay by your side and protect you."

Bai Qiuyao was a little surprised, but she knew Lu Hao had his own opportunities, so she agreed without hesitation.

They went to the Martial Arts Training Room.

Bai Qiuyao began instructing Lu Hao.

"Hao'er, you've practiced the Tempering Method, so you should understand what it does. It opens up the body's main meridians, allowing Vital Blood to circulate and nourish the bones and flesh.

"Non-martial artists who practice the Tempering Method only work on the main meridians. There are fourteen main meridians in the human body, running throughout it.

"Of course, that's speaking broadly. The human body is extremely complex, and even now, no one can say for certain how many meridians it has.

"Breaking through from a non-martial artist to a first-rank martial artist is about opening more secondary meridians, allowing Vital Blood to temper the bones and flesh more thoroughly."

"Hao'er, do you plan to temper your upper-body bones or lower-body bones at first rank?"

"I plan to temper my lower-body bones first. That way, I'll be able to fight and run."

Lu Hao had decided this from the start. Once he had tempered his lower-body bones, he could pair them with basic leg techniques and fight or run with ease. Even if he tempered his upper-body bones, he wouldn't have enough Vital Blood to use the War Blood Mad Blade.

"Good. Since you plan to temper your lower-body bones first, you'll need to expand the meridians in your lower body during the breakthrough, so you'll be ready to temper them afterward."

"At present, expanding the meridians in the lower body requires opening a total of sixty-two secondary meridians."

As she spoke, Bai Qiuyao took out a chart of the human meridian system and pointed out the meridians to Lu Hao.

She showed him each one in turn, explaining their locations and sharing a few tips for the breakthrough.

Lu Hao had learned about the meridians he needed to temper to become a first-rank martial artist over the past few days, but Bai Qiuyao's guidance helped him understand them much more thoroughly.

"Hao'er, have you prepared an Organ Protection Pill and a Bone Tempering Pill?"

Bai Qiuyao didn't ask about Blood Vitality Pills because the Vital Blood Lu Hao had gained from three rounds of bone tempering was more than enough to support expanding his meridians.

Most people who needed Blood Vitality Pills to aid their breakthrough had only tempered their bones once, or hadn't tempered them at all. They didn't have enough Vital Blood to expand their meridians, so they needed pills to help.

Besides, medicines all had some toxicity, so it was best to avoid taking them when possible.

"I've prepared everything."

Lu Hao took an Organ Protection Pill and a Bone Tempering Pill from the cabinet nearby. He had bought them whenever he'd had a spare moment over the past couple of days. As for Blood Vitality Pills, with his system, why would he need those?

A first-rank Bone Tempering Pill cost 500,000 yuan at market price.

A first-rank Organ Protection Pill cost 600,000 yuan at market price.

That came to 1.1 million yuan, and this was only for breaking through to first rank. These were the kinds of preparations only families with money could afford. People from poorer families usually broke through without them, and their chances of failing were fairly high.

Failing like that would damage their internal organs, leaving them stuck as quasi-martial artists. They'd have no chance of advancing to a higher level for the rest of their lives.

That was why those who could afford it usually prepared an Organ Protection Pill. It would protect their internal organs if the breakthrough failed, giving them the chance to recover for a while and try again.

Lu Hao was once again glad that his family was reasonably well-off and could support his martial arts journey. No wonder Fang Ping had been so penny-pinching early on in the original story. A single coin could bring a hero to his knees.

Under Bai Qiuyao's guidance, Lu Hao marked out each meridian he needed to open in the correct order, then prepared to break through.

Lu Hao sat cross-legged on the floor and adjusted his state before swallowing the Organ Protection Pill and Bone Tempering Pill.

As soon as he swallowed them, he felt a wave of energy protect his internal organs. At the same time, the Bone Tempering Pill stirred his Vital Blood into activity.

Lu Hao focused his attention and began directing his Vital Blood through the lower-body meridian chart, opening the meridians.

The process went smoothly. After three rounds of bone tempering, Lu Hao had already opened part of several secondary meridians.

With the Bone Tempering Pill's help, he opened ten meridians with almost no effort. He had already partially opened these during his three rounds of bone tempering.

Once the ten meridians were open, Lu Hao could clearly feel that his Vital Blood limit had increased.

He glanced at the panel during a brief pause.

[Vital Blood: 199/215]

He had used up 10 cal of Vital Blood, and his limit had increased by 6 cal. Not bad.

Now all that remained was to focus on opening the rest of the meridians.

Half an hour...

An hour...

Bai Qiuyao knew this was the normal process and duration for a breakthrough, but she couldn't help holding her breath nervously.

The Organ Protection Pill was guarding him, but she still worried that something might go wrong.

Another half hour passed.

Lu Hao opened his eyes and smiled.

"Mom, I did it. I'm a first-rank martial artist now."

"Mm. Good. You made it."

"Tempering your bones from here on will be a major undertaking. Don't get complacent just because you've become a first-rank martial artist."

Bai Qiuyao's worries finally eased. Now she was concerned that her son might grow arrogant. Most students in his year had only tempered their bones once, or hadn't even started yet.

Lu Hao had already tempered his bones three times and become a martial artist. For someone who had tempered their bones three times, it was possible to reach the high stage of first rank before the college entrance exams.

Bai Qiuyao was afraid he might get conceited.

"Don't worry, Mom. I understand."

Bai Qiuyao didn't know how much pressure Lu Hao felt. How could he grow arrogant just because he'd become a first-rank martial artist? Maybe he'd let himself go a little once he had an Emperor.

Until then, Lu Hao had to keep his head down and develop.

It had taken him a month to go from his second round of bone tempering to becoming a first-rank martial artist. In other people's eyes, that might have been a legendary miracle, but Lu Hao didn't think it was anything special.

He already had a panel. If he still couldn't break through quickly, wouldn't that make him useless? Besides, it had taken him a whole month just to reach first rank. His progress would surely slow from here. In the end, would he be able to surpass the Heavenly Emperor?

Lu Hao looked at the panel.

[Slaughter Point System]

[Host: Lu Hao]

[Vital Blood: 94/241 cal]

[Spirit: 117/299 Hz+]

[Storage Space: 10 cubic meters]

[Slaughter Points: 147]

His Vital Blood had increased to 241 cal, a gain of 36 cal. On average, he had gained one cal for every two meridians or so, and his mental strength had increased by 10 Hz.

He continued reading. His Storage Space had increased to ten cubic meters. It wasn't useful yet, but it would be a huge help once he went to the Earth Cave.