Blood and Qi Reorganization!

Jiang Yue lay on the ground, extended his thumb, and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with a blank expression.

If it were anyone else, suffering such a dimension-reducing stomping would have long since shattered their self-esteem, with fear taking over their brain.

But in Jiang Yue's heart, there was no anger, no unwillingness, and certainly no humiliation.

There was, however, a hint of anticipation.

"The progress speed has increased much faster than before..."

"Sparring really does allow for efficient growth, of course, provided you can take the hits."

Jiang Yue stared fixedly at Shen Qing not far away, a strange light burning deep in his eyes. "Again!"

He pressed his hands against the ground, and a sour, grating sound came from his bones.

Under the stunned gaze of the entire arena, Jiang Yue slowly stood up.

The clothes on his chest had torn, faintly revealing a bluish-purple fist print.

But he paid it no heed, instead spreading his legs apart again and crossing his hands in front of his chest in a guard.

It was still that rigid, stiff, yet textbook-perfect "Gate Sealing" stance.

"Continue."

Jiang Yue's voice didn't tremble; it was as calm as if he were ordering food from the cafeteria puppet.

Shen Qing's gaze sharpened slightly.

He looked at Jiang Yue. Though his body was swaying, there was no fear of death or pain in those eyes.

Shen Qing saw something extremely pure in them, an obsession even colder than his own.

"Interesting."

A cold, cruel curve tugged at the corner of Shen Qing's mouth.

The blood of a martial arts fanatic began to boil within him. He didn't care why Jiang Yue could stand up; he only cared how many times this tough nut could be struck.

"Then let's see if your bones are harder, or my fists are harder."

Shen Qing stepped forward again.

This time, he held nothing back. A fifth of his qi and blood roared into motion.

Qi and blood surged like mercury, now able to be used with initial proficiency.

His form closed in on Jiang Yue like a ghost, his right arm whipping out like a steel chain, carrying a sharp sonic boom as it swept toward Jiang Yue's left ribs!

If this blow landed, it would be enough to shatter an ordinary person's ribs and pierce their lungs.

Jiang Yue saw it.

His neural reaction speed could track the trajectory of the strike, but his frail body simply couldn't make an effective dodge.

Nor did he want to dodge.

Jiang Yue took a deep breath, and the [Breath] entry on his retina instantly activated.

[Current Entry: Smooth Breath (White)]

[Status: Rapidly calming internal organ tremors, forcibly locking a stream of breath.]

Instead of retreating, Jiang Yue took half a step forward, actively using his untempered left ribs to meet Shen Qing's steel-whip-like sweeping kick!

Boom!!!

A sickening, teeth-grinding dull impact rang out.

Jiang Yue's body was sent flying once again, slamming heavily into a steel pillar several meters away with a muffled thud before sliding to the ground.

Agony.

Heart-wrenching, lung-tearing agony.

Jiang Yue felt as if his left ribs were about to crack, his internal organs seemingly displaced.

But at the same time, the panel on his retina was jumping wildly.

[External pressure infusing! Left rib skin and membrane subjected to extreme oscillation!]

[Stagnant vital energy forcibly penetrating! Skin and membrane density increasing!]

[Progress: +++]

"Cough, cough..."

Jiang Yue coughed violently, spitting out a large mouthful of stagnant blood.

Under the regulation of [Smooth Breath], his nearly collapsing breathing rhythm was forcibly pulled back to a stable baseline.

And in his stomach, the [Food Digestion] entry was operating at overload.

The two tubes of cold nutrient paste he had swallowed that morning were being wrung dry of their last shreds of energy by his stomach acid in a brutal manner, turning into a continuous stream of heat to repair the tiny muscle fibers Shen Qing had shattered.

Jiang Yue stood up again.

His left leg trembled slightly, and his left ribs were swollen high. But he still assumed a defensive stance.

"Switch sides." Jiang Yue stared at Shen Qing and spat out two words.

The skin membrane on his left side had already absorbed enough force; continuing to strike would damage his foundation. He needed Shen Qing to temper his right side.

Shen Qing froze.

For the first time, those perpetually cold lone-wolf eyes flickered with an emotion bordering on disbelief.

"You're not afraid of death?"

Shen Qing's voice dropped. He could sense that Jiang Yue's qi and blood were still faint, showing no sign of eruption whatsoever. What kept him standing was nothing but a morbid willpower.

"Come." Jiang Yue wasted no words on nonsense.

"Have it your way!"

The fervor in Shen Qing's eyes ignited completely.

He no longer regarded Jiang Yue as an ant to be crushed at will, but as an opponent worth defeating with full force.

Shen Qing's qi and blood surged, and his fists poured out like a violent storm.

"Stele-Splitting Hand!"

"Rock-Crushing Charge!"

"Eight City-Destroying Strikes!"

A barrage of military killing techniques, laced with the true martial intent of Shen Qing's family legacy, hammered relentlessly into Jiang Yue's body.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

One corner of the training ground turned into a chilling scene of one-sided slaughter.

Jiang Yue's defensive stance fluttered like tattered cloth in a gale under Shen Qing's ferocious assault.

He was sent flying again and again, crashing to the ground.

And again and again, blood streaming down his face, he staggered back to his feet.

In the distance, Li Tai was already dumbstruck.

Not just Li Tai—the other recruits who had been sparring nearby gradually stopped their movements, staring at the thin figure that kept rising in the eye of the storm as if he were a monster.

"This guy... is he insane?" A youth with some success in qi and blood cultivation swallowed hard, a chill running down his spine. He knew that if he had taken such a combo from Shen Qing, he would have long since crushed his distress talisman and waited for death.

On the high platform.

One-Eye's sole remaining eye locked onto Jiang Yue.

The instructor's brow was tightly furrowed. In his vision, Jiang Yue's movements still showed no trace of comprehension—still that rigid, lifeless way of taking hits.

But the instructor saw through it.

"This kid... is using force to temper his skin?!" One-Eye's heart shook.

Using external force to temper the skin was an advanced method of the Basic Body Forging Technique.

But it required a high degree of tacit understanding between the striker and the receiver—the striker needed precise control of force, and the receiver needed to know how to guide qi and blood.

And now, Shen Qing was going all out with lethal intent!

Jiang Yue had no finesse in guiding qi and blood; he was using the crudest method—enduring with his raw flesh.

He was like a piece of unrefined pig iron, letting Shen Qing's massive hammer deform and twist him, yet stubbornly guarding the last unquenchable spark within.

"Forcing himself to absorb Shen Qing's hidden force with sheer flesh and willpower..." The instructor drew a deep breath, a hint of admiration creeping into his eyes.

"There's some grit in him!"

In the arena.

Sweat had beaded on Shen Qing's forehead.

The heavy drain on his qi and blood made his breathing ragged. As the attacker, he actually felt a trace of fatigue.

Jiang Yue, on the other hand.

His training uniform was completely soaked through with blood and sweat, clinging tightly to his body. His face was mottled purple and blue, but his eyes blazed like cold stars in the dead of night.

Not dimmed—brighter than ever!

Because Jiang Yue could clearly feel that, under Shen Qing's countless heavy blows, the skin membrane across his entire body had undergone a complete rupture under this terrifying external pressure.

Those once-dead cells were forced apart in agony, then reorganized with the vital energy provided by [Food Digestion].

His muscles were no longer that limp, soft state; after repeated tearing and healing, a fine, tough layer of keratin had formed.

With every hit, the shock transmitted to his internal organs weakened.

[Action: Body Forging]

[Status: Extreme Pressure! Qi and Blood Reorganization!]

[Current Progress: 97%... 98%... 99%...]