Chapter Nineteen: The Hard-Body Technique in Hand; Ten Proficiency Points Just to Begin? A Name Change

Silence!

A deathly silence!!!

In the courtyard and outside, everyone who had witnessed the scene stood dumbstruck, their faces filled with shock and overwhelming fear.

Even Zhang Sheng had been startled!

He knew just how difficult Tong Roushan was to deal with, given that he had trained his entire body in the Iron-Clad Skill.

At the peak of the Blood-Tempering Realm, with an iron-hard body, a height of two meters, a weight of seven hundred pounds, and immense strength paired with tough skin...

Each of those traits piled on top of the others was enough to make a Blood-Tempering Realm martial artist despair.

Even an ordinary expert in the Blood-Coagulation Realm...

Would have to spend quite some effort to defeat Tong Roushan.

As for killing him... that was basically impossible!

So Zhang Sheng had planned to force him back, not kill him.

But who could have known...

Zhang Sheng thought of the kick Shi Wen had used to blow Tong Roushan's head apart, then remembered how he himself had nearly died from that same kick last night.

A cold sweat broke out across his back!!

If he hadn't dodged in time last night, wouldn't his head have been kicked apart too?

Hiss!!!

The skills this guy had shown tonight were clearly far more vicious than last night.

If the other man had revealed this level of power last night, Zhang Sheng wouldn't have lasted even a few rounds before getting beaten to a pulp, would he?

At the thought of Tong Roushan—nearly seven hundred pounds, with the Iron-Clad Skill fully mastered—

Being beaten to pieces by this man...

Zhang Sheng's hair stood on end. He was all the more convinced that befriending this man had been a good decision.

Meanwhile, Shi Wen's chest heaved from the intense exertion, and he breathed heavily like a ferocious beast.

He, too, felt weighed down with concern.

"Another man I've never heard of, and he pushed me this far. How many powerful fighters are there in Black Cloud County?"

"If my Iron Whip Leg hadn't reached minor mastery, and my qi and blood hadn't grown stronger, I would've had to run for my life tonight. His whole body was trained in hard-body techniques, and he took so many Heart-Piercing Elbows head-on. He even survived the Prop Punch. That's ridiculous!"

"Good thing Penetrating Momentum saved me!"

"Without that trait, I never would've been able to break through Tong Roushan's defenses!"

"I need to train my foundation skills to great mastery or even perfection as soon as possible."

"In these troubled times, only growing stronger is the foundation for everything..."

Shi Wen quickly regulated his breathing.

He gradually calmed his boiling qi and blood.

Then, with practiced ease, he searched Tong Roushan's body for valuables.

His hand suddenly tugged, pulling a waterproof cowhide pouch from the man's waist.

He glanced inside, and his eyes flashed.

Money!!

A thick stack of banknotes!!!

This guy had several times more money on him than Chen Shuisheng!

Besides that, there were a few small porcelain bottles. He had no idea what was inside.

But if Tong Roushan had carried them around, they were sure to be valuable.

Shi Wen's breathing settled. He glanced at Zhang Sheng, who was still staring blankly, and said, "What are you standing there for? If you don't settle things now, when do you plan to?"

Zhang Sheng snapped out of it and looked around.

Clatter, clatter...

The Robbery Gang men holding clubs and short knives tossed their weapons onto the ground and knelt to surrender.

As for Zhou Gaoyi, he was scared witless.

The moment his gaze met Shi Wen's, his legs trembled—and he wet himself!!

"Damned traitor!"

Fuming with rage, Zhang Sheng ordered his men to seize Zhou Gaoyi. He personally stabbed Zhou Gaoyi in the stomach several times, then shouted at the others, "From now on, anyone who dares betray me will end up like him!"

"Damn it, I'm so pissed off."

"Someone, cut his hamstrings too, then throw him outside!!"

Zhang Sheng roared. One of the men immediately went over with a knife, sliced Zhou Gaoyi's hamstrings, and carried him outside.

"Wait..."

Shi Wen suddenly called out to him. "Is that it?"

"Yeah. Is there something else we should do?"

Zhang Sheng was taken aback. Shi Wen said nothing and went straight over, grabbing Zhou Gaoyi by the neck. With a crack, he crushed the man's neck, leaving his head attached by only a layer of skin. "Take him away and bury him!"

Everyone present felt their hair stand on end.

The mysterious masked man filled them with terror!

He had killed Tong Roushan, then Zhou Gaoyi. He hadn't killed many people, but his disregard for life made their bodies recoil in instinctive, bone-deep horror.

This man was simply too brutal!!

Even Zhang Sheng's expression shifted.

He had thought he'd brought in a hungry wolf, but it turned out to be a tiger!

"Handle what comes next yourself. Don't make me worry about it again. If you're in this line of work, don't be soft-hearted."

"If you don't know how, leave it to your men. They have experience."

"Yes." Zhang Sheng's expression was complicated.

Shi Wen wiped the blood from his hands and said calmly, "How many people in the Robbery Gang are worth keeping? Bring them over so I can have a look."

"All right!"

Zhang Sheng hurried off to gather and organize the people at the Robbery Gang's headquarters.

Shi Wen sat on a stone stool in the courtyard.

He chewed on dried meat and drank water to replenish his strength while studying the sheepskin scroll on the table.

The information on it was far more detailed than what he had seen for martial arts like Iron Whip Leg.

It included detailed illustrations of little figures practicing, along with secret methods for tempering and medicinal baths. It was a remarkably complete manual.

And this technique wasn't called the Iron-Clad Skill, but the Taibao Hard Qigong!

In the early stages, soft cloth was used to bind the chest and back, and one slept on a hard wooden bed to temper the sinews and bones.

Every day, one would strike the chest, abdomen, back, and limbs in sequence with wooden bricks, kiln bricks, and iron bricks while using the Internal Breath Method. One would practice the Hunyuan Stance while regulating the breath with the Internal Breath Method, cultivating a sense of inner energy. Then, by coordinating muscle tension and relaxation with focused intent, one guided the breath to specific parts of the body.

Even the breathing in and out followed a special rhythm.

Before and after training, the entire body had to be rubbed with medicinal wine, followed by a medicinal bath!

Once the technique was mastered to a high level...

A stream of energy would surge through the body. This was the inner breath.

It could give flesh and blood an astonishing ability to withstand blows.

As one advanced further...

The training progressed to using wooden and iron rods to beat the body.

This was combined with the Internal Breath Method and the Hunyuan Stance for tempering.

The aim was to increase the density of the skin, flesh, and bones throughout the body until they reached a certain degree of toughness.

When circulating energy with the Internal Breath Method, the body's surface would become indestructible, as if protected by an iron coat!

Ordinary external force could hardly injure a martial artist who practiced the Taibao Hard Qigong.

Besides that, this technique also had five moves.

The first move was called Iron Stake Hunyuan.

It involved sinking one's qi into the dantian and standing firm on both legs, rooted to the earth and unshakable!

No matter how external force struck from any direction, it would be difficult to knock the practitioner down.

The second move was called Iron Armor Body Protection.

By concentrating breath and qi and blood in one part of the body, the skin and flesh there would become as indestructible as cast iron, impervious to blades and spears!

The third move was called Embracing the Moon.

This move was exceptionally fierce. The arms closed around an imaginary moon, and as they came together, the body's qi, blood, and breath burst forth. The arms closed like iron pincers; even a tiger would be crushed to pieces on the spot!

The fourth move was called Taibao Glaring Eyes.

For every kind of martial artist, the face was usually a defensive weak point and a vital spot.

This move could make the head as hard as cast iron and carved stone, allowing it to withstand external blows!

The fifth move was called Taibao Shaking Mountain!

It focused on gathering the breath, qi and blood, and strength of the entire body into one palm and releasing them in a burst. A single palm strike could unleash the force of a shaking mountain. It was about meeting violence with violence and fighting with one's back to the wall!

"How profound this Taibao Hard Qigong is!"

"Besides the methods for training the whole body, it even has an Internal Breath Method to strengthen the inner breath. No wonder I fought Tong Roushan for so many rounds, landing almost every move, and he acted as if nothing had happened."

"So besides his tough skin and flesh and the protection of his qi and blood, that unceasing inner breath kept his body unified. No matter how external force struck him, it spread across his whole body, dispersing the force."

"Only by breaking up that inner breath could I hurt him!"

"Though Tong Roushan was slow and heavy, if I hadn't had the Penetrating Momentum trait, I would've been the one killed today."

"Who was connected to this Hard-Body Technique? And are there further methods of training it?"

"Where did Tong Roushan come from?"

Shi Wen suppressed his doubts.

His gaze raced over the sheepskin scroll, and he read it through from beginning to end.

[Extreme Seal]

[Baji Fist Introductory Foundation: Minor Mastery (28/100), Trait: Penetrating Momentum]

[Iron Whip Leg: Minor Mastery (2/80)]

[Iron Claw Skill: Beginner (1/40)]

[Taibao Hard Qigong: Not Learned (0/10)]

[Evolution Branch 1: Contaminated Fortune Meat (-7.9h)]

"Does the Taibao Hard Qigong need ten practice sessions just to reach the beginner level?"

Shi Wen was stunned, and joy welled up inside him.

The strength and quality of a martial art could be judged from the proficiency values displayed by the Extreme Seal.

For example, the Baji Fist Introductory Foundation required fifty practice sessions to progress from beginner to minor mastery, while Iron Whip Leg needed only thirty. Compared side by side, the former was indeed stronger and the martial art more complete.

Yet this Taibao Hard Qigong required ten proficiency points just to reach the beginner level.

One could imagine how powerful a boost it would bring him if he mastered it completely!

Perhaps he wouldn't even need to master it completely.

He might see an immediate effect as soon as he reached minor mastery in the Taibao Hard Qigong!

"Dawn's broken."

Shi Wen put away the sheepskin scroll.

He exhaled a long breath, looking a little tired.

The golden sun split the night, and the first light of dawn spilled across the earth. Morning dew fell, while the noisy sounds of people heading to the market surged through the streets and alleys like a tide.

He hadn't slept all night.

And he had just gone through a tense battle.

Now that he had relaxed, he felt more tired.

"Big brother, I've brought them all!"

Just then, Zhang Sheng hurried over with dozens of sturdy men.

It was obvious at a glance.

The whole group had trained in martial arts.

Their builds and strides showed clear signs of training. They were sturdy and strong, or else burly and imposing.

Shi Wen regarded the group.

His fingers tapped against the stone table. Then he suddenly said, "The name Robbery Gang sounds awful. From now on, change it to the Harmony and Prosperity Union."