Iron Whip Leg, Street Gossip, You Won't Have Mastered the Blood-Tempering Realm, Right?

Night, the rain had not ceased.

The humid air, mingled with the wind and rain, drifted through the window, adding a touch of chill.

Boom!

A startling thunderclap tore through the night rain, its flash illuminating the face of the youth leaning by the window, jolting the hesitant and silent boy awake.

He shook his head, casting his thoughts aside, and picked up a dry cloth to continue wiping his sodden hair.

But the hair dampened by the night rain was like an unclear future, impossible to smooth out no matter how he tried. In the end, he simply gave up, tossing the cloth onto the drying rack and letting his messy hair fall loose, obscuring his face, which was beginning to show sharp, angular features.

"All of this... you forced it upon me."

Shi Wen muttered silently.

He exhaled a breath of turbid air, expelling the chaotic emotions that had followed his first time killing a man.

By the dim moonlight, Shi Wen finally had the time to carefully inventory his spoils.

Aside from the three gold leaves and eighty taels of silver he had counted earlier, there were over a dozen shop deeds from the busiest section of Peace Lane, each worth several hundred strings of cash.

This stack of deeds was likely worth another hundred taels of silver or so.

"It's a pity the deeds aren't easy to handle right now; I'll see how to deal with them after some time passes."

Shi Wen shook his head and continued his inventory.

He separated the Golden Wound Medicine, the bruise medication, and other items.

There were ten tubes of Blood-Nourishing Paste, though the quality was poor.

There wasn't much dried beast meat, only three catties; it wasn't as satiating as his Stone Raw Meat. It seemed the value of Senior Brother Yan continued to rise.

After sorting through the various items, a thin piece of parchment appeared in Shi Wen's hand, covered in diagrams of small figures practicing martial arts, along with several training methods.

"Iron Whip Leg?"

This was the first time he had seen a martial art other than the Baji Fist Foundation.

After reading through the Iron Whip Leg in its entirety, Shi Wen decided to practice this external training method.

The Baji Fist Foundation was a means of close-quarters explosive power, but he lacked a method for long-range attacks. The Iron Whip Leg involved increasing the hardness of the legs through systematic training to achieve explosive, damaging effects.

If practiced to a profound level, one could shatter stone tablets and split wooden stakes without even using blood-qi—it was highly lethal!

"Legs like iron pestles, movement like a gale. If I can master this, it will serve as a decent means of self-defense."

Shi Wen read through the Iron Whip Leg several times.

He observed the Extreme Seal, and sure enough, a new martial art had appeared within it.

[Extreme Seal]
[Baji Fist Introductory Foundation: Minor Success (2/100), Trait: Penetrating Momentum]
[Iron Whip Leg: Not Yet Initiated (0/1)]

The Iron Whip Leg had few moves, focusing on the hard training and repetitive kicking of the legs, but these required purchasing additional materials or undergoing deep conditioning.

This method had many flaws and few techniques.

If someone were on guard against it, its power would be greatly diminished, but compared to the Baji Fist Foundation, each had its own strengths and weaknesses.

"I'll practice it tomorrow."

Shi Wen returned to his bed and fell fast asleep.

Perhaps it was because so many things had happened that night—becoming a martial artist by birthing blood-qi, killing a man...

The string of events had left his emotions somewhat agitated. He spent the night in a daze, waking occasionally, and didn't fully recover until the sun was high in the sky.

Shi Wen silently tidied up his room and ate breakfast.

He ate the dried meat to maintain his bodily functions and nourish his blood-qi.

During this time, Shi Wen couldn't help but sigh.

"A martial artist really is a bottomless pit. Before, a few strips of dried meat were enough to fill me up, but now I need at least half a catty per meal to feel satisfied."

"Indeed, practicing martial arts is a massive gold-devouring beast."

He took stock: the five catties of Stone Raw Meat he had bought yesterday were now less than three, and only two tubes of Blood-Nourishing Paste remained—nowhere near enough to eat.

Even adding the dried meat Boss Chen had given him, it would likely only last a few days.

"It's fortunate that Boss Chen is a good man, even giving me money to buy dried meat."

Shi Wen stuffed the silver notes, silver, and dried meat into a basket, then carried it out to the Fist Academy to practice.

He didn't expect that as he stepped outside onto the road, he would hear a flurry of discussion.

"Have you heard? The Thief Gang boss, Chen Shuisheng, is dead. He died in that place, Ghost Lane!"

"I've heard it too. That place, Ghost Lane, is just unsafe. It was haunted before, and now that even Chen Shuisheng has died there, it's truly too bizarre. I heard Chen Shuisheng was even a martial artist!"

"What exactly happened?"

"I heard from those on the periphery of the Robbery Gang that when someone was patrolling Ghost Lane this morning, they found blood pooled all over the ground. They followed the trail and found Chen Shuisheng. They say his neck was bitten through by some monster, his chest cavity was torn open, and his intestines were spilled everywhere. He died a miserable death!"

"I never expected Boss Chen, who had been so imposing for so long, to just die like that."

"The Robbery Gang is occupying Peace Lane now. Who knows what will happen in the future..."

In the discussions among the neighbors, there was shock, but also a deep anxiety about the future.

When Shi Wen passed by, all the chatter vanished.

Pairs of eyes fixed upon him. A woman in her fifties even smiled and said, "A-Wen, off to practice martial arts again?"

When she smiled, many others on the street wore smiles as well.

It was just unclear whether these were smiles of goodwill or mockery.

"Yes, Aunt Chen. Haven't you gone to work yet today?" Shi Wen nodded in response, appearing as if he noticed nothing.

"The Robbery Gang is adjusting the collection rates, so some workshops haven't even opened yet," Aunt Chen said with a chuckle. "Keep practicing hard, A-Wen. Perhaps one day our street will produce a martial artist like you!"

"I will."

Shi Wen carried his basket and turned to leave, peaceful and calm.

Where was the ruthless demeanor that had killed Chen Shuisheng last night?

Not long after he had walked away.

The neighbors began to gossip and laugh among themselves.

"That kid is getting more and more foolish. Aunt Chen was being sarcastic and he didn't even notice. How could becoming a martial artist be that easy? The previous Thief Gang only had one martial artist, and that was the late Boss Chen!"

"He's just clutching at straws. Ever since the Red Lantern Gang chose him to go to Dragon Sorrow Ravine to sacrifice to the Dragon God, he's been trying to practice martial arts to escape it. But if martial arts were that easy, the streets would be full of martial artists."

"It's a waste of money. Old Shi isn't clear-headed either. He'd be better off using the tuition money to ensure A-Wen leaves behind an heir. Once the son is gone, the money will be gone too."

"Don't be a good person in these chaotic times. I heard the family A-Wen saved was quite wealthy, yet they haven't even come to visit once in all this time. They're likely ingrates."

"I heard Old Shi had a falling out with his family just to get the money to support A-Wen's training. He even severed ties just to get back the money he'd lent them, and he even went to the magistrate's office to notarize it. When A-Wen dies, that whole family will be left with nothing. I truly don't know how they'll live."

"A waste of money..."

Everyone began to laugh.

Seeing someone else living a life worse than their own, they used a condescending posture to offer all sorts of criticisms.

This was the only pastime they could find in the boredom of their impoverished, idle days.

"How can you practice martial arts without money? I have a relative who lives on Fulin Street. His family is quite well-off, earning dozens of strings of cash a year. I don't know what got into his son, but he insisted on practicing martial arts. Do you know how much money that costs?"

A thin woman with prominent cheekbones saw everyone's gaze turn toward her.

She subconsciously lifted her head and sneered, "The meat of exotic beasts, specifically used to nourish the tendons and bones, costs at least 3 strings of cash for a single jin!"

Gasp!

Once these words were out, the neighbors present were shocked.

3 strings of cash for one jin of meat?

They couldn't even earn 3 strings of cash in a month of back-breaking labor. Pork currently cost only about 100 copper coins per jin, yet the meat used to nourish blood cost 3 strings per jin?

"Heh, and what of it? Do you think that's the end of it?"

The high-cheekboned woman continued, "There are medicinal baths, bone-setting, medicinal powders, ointments, and the daily need to consume large amounts of fish and meat to nourish the body. Otherwise, the body will become depleted, and the outcome will be miserable!"

"My relative's child, in order to become a martial artist, supposedly tried to force a breakthrough. He ended up depleted and became a cripple. That tall, strong young man can't even lift heavy objects now, and he breaks into a sweat just walking a few steps. He's completely ruined!"

When the crowd heard this, they were all drenched in a cold sweat.

They hadn't realized that practicing martial arts could turn someone into a cripple.

"Heh, that's why I say this kid A-Wen is being unrealistic. Even without that Dragon King Festival business, he wouldn't be able to succeed!"

The high-cheekboned woman said with certainty, as if she had already foreseen the ending...

Fist Academy.

Shi Wen had arrived a while ago and was practicing in the corner.

It must be said, after becoming a Blood-Tempering Realm martial artist, his speed of practice had increased significantly.

In just one morning, Shi Wen had increased his proficiency by 6 points.

It stood to reason; basic techniques were nothing more than repeating those specific moves. Now that he was a Blood-Tempering Realm martial artist, his strength, stamina, and the like were far superior to before.

Practicing the moves over and over was simply a process of tempering the body and strengthening the blood and qi through exercise.

With a higher foundation, the speed of practice would naturally increase.

Of course, if his nutrition couldn't keep up, his blood and qi would weaken, and his body would become depleted.

Currently, as Shi Wen practiced his punches, he was as quiet as a maiden and as swift as a rabbit. When he executed the Charging Step and his punch sequences, every strike carried a whistling sound of air being torn. His breathing sounded like a muffled tiger or beast, and the crackling of his joints was quite imposing!

If Yan Kai were to see Shi Wen's form, he would surely be struck with utter shock.

His family was wealthy, and it had taken a massive investment of funds for him to nourish his blood and qi within a month and a half, followed by half a year of grueling training to achieve such momentum.

Yet, how many days had Shi Wen even been here?

Even if he had become a Blood-Tempering Realm martial artist, could he really cultivate such momentum?

"Junior Brother Shi, you're training well today. How about we spar a few rounds?"

A bright, hearty laugh rang out; it was Li Tiezhu who had arrived.

"Fine." Shi Wen nodded in agreement.

Following that, the two began to spar with their fist techniques in the open space.

But after only a moment of sparring, Li Tiezhu was drenched in sweat and trembling with fear, and after a short while, he dared not continue.

"Stop, stop, stop! No more! I'm done!"

Li Tiezhu shouted loudly, panting as he said, "Junior Brother, how is your fist technique so fierce and imposing? It's much stronger than before. I feel like sparring with you is just like sparring with those Blood-Tempering Realm senior brothers; I feel like I could be beaten to death by you at any moment!"

As he spoke, he eyed Shi Wen with a mix of shock and suspicion.

A flicker of doubt crossed his eyes.

Vaguely, it seemed as though Junior Brother Shi's physique had become sturdier, and he even appeared to have grown a little taller.

Recalling the hair-raising sensation from their spar just moments ago, Li Tiezhu whispered, "Junior Brother Shi, you haven't cultivated blood and qi, have you?"