"Let the intent move before the hand; let the force flow with lightness and agility. The finger passes without a trace, piercing the wind and clouds..."
Lu Ming stood in the courtyard, recalling the Cloud-Piercing Finger's mantra.
This second-rate finger technique was all about speed—speed as swift as lightning piercing the clouds.
That was why its attacking gesture used a single finger, not two: it relied on the nimblest finger, the index finger!
To train for speed, he first had to train for accuracy.
Following the Cloud-Piercing Finger's training method, Lu Ming hung a leaf from the arm of a Puppet Stake and fixed a sheet of white paper one finger's breadth behind it.
All he had to do was pierce the leaf with his finger without damaging the paper.
A finger's breadth was only the beginning. To truly master the technique, the leaf and paper had to be pressed tightly together. One jab should pierce the leaf while leaving the paper intact.
In terms of difficulty, the Cloud-Piercing Finger might have been a second-rate finger technique, but it was harder to master than the first-rate lightness skill, the Cloud-Stepping Technique.
Lu Ming paid no mind to the difficulty. What mattered to him was the extra experience the Cloud-Piercing Finger granted.
After arranging the leaf and paper, he immediately jabbed out with one finger!
Pfft! Rip!
The leaf snapped, and the paper tore too.
Lu Ming gave a slight shake of his head. His control really was poor. If he didn't train diligently, then when he faced a powerful enemy for real, he might not hit a Black Leak Point even if he saw one.
At the thought, he threw himself into training with even greater enthusiasm. He set up the leaf and paper again, then jabbed out once more!
This time, he was much more focused. He trained with all his might, and after each jab, he had to rest for a while and regain his strength before continuing.
At last, the Divine Ability Panel responded.
[Currently evolving Acupoint Divine Ability (206/10000)...]
206?
Lu Ming's eyes lit up. Just as he'd expected!
He'd checked before training: his Acupoint Divine Ability experience had been 202. Now, after practicing the Cloud-Piercing Finger, it had reached 206—an increase of four points.
Before, he'd only gained two points each time he trained.
This meant that the extra experience granted by second-rate martial arts really was a solid two points.
The Cloud-Piercing Finger was difficult to master, but as long as he gave it his all, each jab earned him experience.
For the same amount of training time, practicing a finger technique earned him more experience for his finger techniques than practicing lightness skills earned him for his leg techniques.
And right now, both Acupoint Divine Ability and Leg Dao Divine Ability needed 10,000 experience to evolve their next abilities.
Lu Ming thought it over, then decided on the spot to evolve his next Acupoint Divine Ability first.
Acupoint Divine Abilities excelled at killing, and focused on imposing force. Used well, they could let him defeat enemies of a higher level with ease.
Evolving a third Acupoint Divine Ability would greatly increase his combat strength. Red Cloud County was turbulent these days, and he needed to prepare a few more trump cards.
As for Leg Dao Divine Ability, Godly Movement and Earth-Splitting were enough for now.
Having made up his mind, he continued practicing the Cloud-Piercing Finger.
Pfft! Rip! Pfft!
From time to time, the sound of fingers piercing leaves and paper rang out in the courtyard.
[Currently evolving Acupoint Divine Ability (210/10000)...] [Currently evolving Acupoint Divine Ability (214/10000)...] [Currently evolving...] [Currently evolving Acupoint Divine Ability (242/10000)...]
An hour later, the index fingers on both hands were in unbearable pain. Lu Ming finally stopped, his hands trembling, and panted softly.
That was all for today.
Although his body was utterly exhausted, seeing his Acupoint Divine Ability experience shoot upward filled him with excitement.
He'd gained a full 50 experience in an hour.
At six hours of training a day, that made 300.
In just thirty-three days, he could evolve his third Acupoint Divine Ability.
The result let Lu Ming breathe a quiet sigh of relief. Compared to the more than half a year he'd estimated before, this had cut the time down to about a month.
A month from now, there'd still be nearly a month before the Grand Examination. He'd have plenty of time to put the ability to use.
"Clack, clack~" Only then did the clapper sound from the Public Kitchen.
Dinner was ready!
Lu Ming looked up. Night had already fallen. He shook his head, wondering what the Military Service Bureau's cook had been doing today to delay dinner by a whole hour.
He ambled out and went to the Public Kitchen to eat.
Wei Jinlin was eating there too, his face stern and seemingly displeased. Lu Ming chose a seat farther away from him and didn't bother greeting him. Once he'd eaten, he quietly returned to his courtyard.
Over the next few days, Lu Ming trained diligently, putting in a full six hours each day. His Acupoint Divine Ability experience soared.
[Currently evolving Acupoint Divine Ability (2042/10000)...]
At last, on the sixth day, Lu Ming jabbed out his final finger. He suddenly felt his blood and qi seethe, and his scalp prickle.
Soon, his blood and qi returned to normal.
Lu Ming looked radiant. He clenched his fist and felt his whole body grow light and strong, unable to stop a faint smile from appearing on his face. He quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
His scalp had finally been permeated by his blood and qi. Skin Refining had reached Major Completion!
Thankfully, it was only the sixth day. He'd broken through within the seven days Wei Jinlin had given him.
If he'd still been using injury medicine, there was no way he could have managed this breakthrough.
He really did need a training medicine like Sweet Dew Powder.
After breaking through, Lu Ming carefully felt out the changes throughout his body, and his heart filled with joy.
Now he could withstand the momentum of Godly Movement even better. As for Earth-Splitting's control over the ground, its range had grown from three zhang in every direction to five—an enormous increase!
As his martial cultivation grew stronger, his Divine Abilities could unleash greater power too.
His martial breakthrough had brought him a double gain, and Lu Ming felt a deep sense of satisfaction.
It was already late. He planned to tell Wei Jinlin about his breakthrough tomorrow, so he could start learning a new martial art: the second-rate palm technique, Nine Palaces Palm!
Lu Ming looked forward to it.
But the next day, before Wei Jinlin arrived, a long-absent friend knocked on his door.
"Senior Sister Li?" The person standing at the door was none other than Li Youning.
Lu Ming welcomed Li Youning into the sitting room and smiled.
"My place is rather bare; I can only offer you some water, Senior Sister. What brings you here? How is the Li Family Bank doing?"
Li Youning took a deep breath. "Junior Brother Lu, we're preparing to move away."
Lu Ming was taken aback. "Move away?"
Li Youning's expression was grave. She slowly nodded.
"Our entire lineage is moving to Qingning Prefecture City. The Li Family has a few connections there, so we should be able to settle down. As for the Li Family Bank in the county, it's closed now too."
Lu Ming's heart jolted at her words.
He hadn't expected the Li Family to end up like this even after winning the arena battle.
He'd expected the Li Family's fate to be bleak, but he hadn't imagined they'd have to relocate their entire lineage.
It was all because of that Zhou Zhen, the Lingyun Sect reject, Zhou Zhen!
The Lingyun Sect was only a Third-Rate Sect, and Zhou Zhen was no more than a reject.
Even so, his arrival alone had left the Li Family gasping for breath and forced them to seek another way out.
The Li Family had been in business for years and must have had some connections in the county. Perhaps no one dared help because their rival was Zhou Zhen.
Lu Ming thought to himself that he had to rank as high as possible in the upcoming Grand Examination. He had to join a sect one day.
Otherwise, even a great lineage like the Li Family had no dignity to speak of in front of sect disciples.
A thought suddenly occurred to him, and he asked, "If your entire lineage is moving away, what about you, Senior Sister Li? Aren't you still serving your term of military service?"
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