Lu Yuan didn't waste any time either. He immediately began practicing along with them.
[Five Animals Fist: Minor Accomplishment (275/1000)]
More than half an hour later, after Lu Yuan had completed a full set of Five Animals Fist, his proficiency changed once again.
Not only that, but the blood qi in his body had clearly increased by three strands. The price was that his body had nearly been drained dry all over again.
So, for the rest of the time, everyone continued to train with all their might, while Lu Yuan alone sat off to the side, leisurely resting.
Everyone had clearly gotten used to it by now. They continued practicing hard on their own.
At lunchtime, while eating, quite a few people gathered together to chat.
The new arrivals were mostly poor youths from humble backgrounds, unable to afford proper martial arts schools.
Someone asked them why they had come to practice martial arts.
"I don't want to get bullied, so I'm going to learn martial arts and get stronger!"
"Martial artists can earn more money. Then my parents and my little brothers and sisters can all eat their fill!"
"I'm practicing martial arts because I want to rise above the common lot, climbing higher and higher until I reach the very top!"
In truth, everyone came to practice martial arts for much the same reasons.
Either they wanted to become stronger and stop being bullied, or they wanted to rise above the common lot.
However, the path of martial arts was difficult. Hard work alone was far from enough.
Never mind the chasm between people's natural constitutions, which was almost impossible to bridge; the silver required was enough to keep most people from ever crossing that threshold in their lifetimes.
The familiar faces who hadn't returned had probably given up for the same reason.
Either they could no longer afford the monthly one-tael tuition, or they could no longer bear the expenses required to practice martial arts.
Whether it was the former or the latter, in the end, they had run out of money and could no longer keep going.
After finishing the portion of meat he'd been given, Lu Yuan left right away.
"Why did he leave so early?"
Seeing Lu Yuan leave by himself, one of the newcomers asked curiously.
"Don't mind him. In a few days, you probably won't see him anymore!"
"Giving him a free portion of meat every day is such a waste!"
Wang Er, Zhu Ba, and the others all complained indignantly.
If they were given that free meat, and worked hard at their training on top of that, they would probably have already mastered the basics of Five Animals Fist.
No one paid him much more attention. After resting for a while, they all continued to sweat through their practice.
Time flew by as they trained.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Over those three days, Lu Yuan had generally gone to Song Academy in the morning and practiced Five Animals Fist once.
After eating the free portion of meat at noon, he would leave immediately.
He still hadn't found a suitable way to make money, but fortunately, his progress remained astonishingly fast.
[Five Animals Fist: Minor Accomplishment (889/1000)]
Judging by his proficiency, he only needed to practice once more today to bring Five Animals Fist to Great Accomplishment.
"A-Yuan, practicing Five Animals Fist just once a day is really slowing you down. Of all the old-timers, Wu Yu and I have already mastered the basics, and even Chen Yong and the others managed to master them yesterday."
Chen Pi glanced at Lu Yuan, who had arrived late again, and couldn't help advising him, "If you don't start working harder, you definitely won't hold on to third place in the test three days from now. Without the free meat to supplement your diet, your progress will suffer even more."
"Brother Chen Pi, I understand!"
Lu Yuan smiled and nodded. He knew Chen Pi only had his best interests at heart.
It was just that his recovery these days could support him at most through one practice session in the morning and one in the evening.
After every session, he made clear progress, but he also felt as if his entire body had been drained dry. He entered a state of complete exhaustion and couldn't manage another session for quite a while.
Unless he ate three full meat meals a day, or even had medicinal soup to help him, he couldn't practice three times a day or more.
"Chen Pi's wasting his breath. Just leave him be!"
"Exactly. If he won't put in the effort, there's nothing we can say that'll help!"
"It's even better if he doesn't work hard. At least we'll have a shot at third place in the test three days from now!"
Lu Yuan paid no attention to their comments.
He was here to practice martial arts and make himself stronger, not to socialize.
In this world, what mattered wasn't social niceties. It was your fists.
Without wasting any time, Lu Yuan began practicing on his own.
More than half an hour later, he had completed all five stances.
[Five Animals Fist: Great Accomplishment (7/10000)]
Almost at the same time, his proficiency changed.
That marked Lu Yuan's success in bringing Five Animals Fist to Great Accomplishment.
It wasn't just his proficiency that had changed. He also had a deeper understanding and grasp of Five Animals Fist.
The blood qi within him had surged to three strands.
"My strength should be at least three hundred jin now. If I unleash the three strands of blood qi in my body, I could probably break four hundred jin without any trouble."
Lu Yuan carefully sensed the changes in his body, and couldn't help feeling a little pleased.
Besides his strength, his speed and reflexes must have improved considerably as well.
Most importantly, he could finally begin his first Blood Qi Tempering.
However, Lu Yuan didn't rush into Blood Qi Tempering. He wanted to wait until he had fully recovered before starting.
After eating the portion of meat he'd been given at noon, he left again.
The others continued their grueling practice, pushing hard for the test three days later.
After spending the afternoon resting and recovering, and eating two meat meals in a row, Lu Yuan had finally returned to peak condition.
"Then... let's begin!"
Without hesitation, Lu Yuan assumed his stance, adjusted his breathing, and began guiding the three strands of blood qi through his body.
Wherever the blood qi passed, a faint warmth followed.
Again and again, it swept through his flesh, while his sinews and bones seemed to crackle like firecrackers.
As time passed, Lu Yuan began to feel a sense of obstruction.
He knew that Blood Qi Tempering had reached its most critical moment.
Without the slightest hesitation, he guided all his blood qi into one final charge.
His flesh trembled, and his blood qi boiled.
After who knew how long, Lu Yuan felt as if his body had been completely opened up.
The blood qi inside him seemed to be cheering with joy, flowing endlessly and without obstruction.
At that moment, Lu Yuan discovered that his five senses had become sharper.
The insects chirping outside sounded much clearer, and he could even tell from their calls which cracks between the bricks they were hiding beneath.
When he looked up again, he still couldn't see in the dark, but he could take in everything within ten paces.
"My first Blood Qi Tempering succeeded!"
Lu Yuan couldn't help feeling exhilarated. In less than half a month, he had not only brought Five Animals Fist to Great Accomplishment, but also completed his first Blood Qi Tempering. He had become a true martial artist of the External Energy Realm.
"Clap! Clap! Clap..."
Lu Yuan stepped into the courtyard and casually threw a few punches.
The crisp sound of his fists cutting through the air seemed to tear it apart.
The next moment, Lu Yuan suddenly punched toward a wooden post.
As his blood qi surged through him, a solid force burst forth.
"Bang!"
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