Lord Qing, Gathering of Heroes

"Boom! Boom! Boom..."

As Lu Yuan continuously circulated his blood and qi, muffled sounds like rolling thunder erupted from within his body.

It felt as if a red-hot blade were being frantically churned inside his lower abdomen.

Lu Yuan gritted his teeth, forcing himself to endure; this was the agony one had to suffer to open the dantian.

Yet, as time slowly ticked by, not only was his blood and qi being exhausted at an alarming rate, but he also felt an invisible barrier blocking his path.

No matter how he mobilized his energy, he struggled to break through this obstruction.

Without hesitation, Lu Yuan shoved another slice of blood ginseng into his mouth.

"Break for me!"

Lu Yuan roared in his heart, simultaneously driving every ounce of his blood and qi to its limit.

His energy transformed into a heavy hammer, slamming violently against that invisible barrier.

"Bang! Bang! Bang..."

Once, twice, three times...

He lost count of how many times he struck; it felt as if his abdomen were being torn completely asunder.

"Crack!"

Finally, Lu Yuan felt as if something within him had shattered.

Immediately following, a fist-sized, invisible space was forcibly pried open by the surging torrent of blood and qi.

The dantian was formed!

However, this was only the first step.

Next, he needed to continue channeling more blood and qi into the dantian, then compress and refine it until the first wisp of internal force was born; only then could he truly master the skin-tempering stage of the Five Elements Vajra Body.

Only after possessing that first wisp of internal force could he be considered truly "ranked," and only then could he begin using that internal force to polish the skin and membranes of his entire body.

This was, in essence, a slow, grinding process that required accumulation over time; there was no way to rush it.

Of course, while that might be true for others, Lu Yuan was different.

With the Practice Makes Perfect destiny, he would only grow faster the more he practiced.

Even if he could only train twice a day, he would reach his goal in at most ten days or so.

"Thump, thump, thump..."

Lu Yuan had just stepped out of his room when he heard someone knocking at the door.

He opened it to find several burly, powerful men standing outside.

The leader was a middle-aged man in a gray cotton robe with unusually thick, calloused hands.

"Might you be young brother Lu Yuan, who trains at Guangchun Hall?"

The gray-robed man asked with a faint smile.

Clearly, he had thoroughly investigated Lu Yuan's background before arriving.

"Something the matter?"

Lu Yuan nodded.

"This Humble One is He Qing of the Iron Palm Gang."

The gray-robed man smiled, then produced a portrait and asked, "I wonder if young brother Lu Yuan has ever seen this person?"

"Never seen him!"

Lu Yuan glanced at the portrait and shook his head immediately.

"In that case, I shall not disturb you further!"

He Qing's smile remained unchanged as he tucked the portrait away and turned to leave.

Could it be that the middle-aged man in this portrait is the culprit who killed Wang Qing, the young master of the Iron Palm Gang?

Watching the backs of He Qing and his men as they departed, Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow, pondering silently.

If that were the case, he wouldn't have to worry about being inexplicably framed again.

He immediately walked out of the courtyard and headed straight for Guangchun Hall.

"Master Qing, you are a deputy leader of the Iron Palm Gang; why were you so polite to him?"

In a corner not far away, a man asked He Qing, looking puzzled.

"For this boy to be favored by Guangchun Hall, he cannot be simple!"

He Qing watched the retreating figure of Lu Yuan, his expression turning somewhat solemn as he said in a low voice, "Furthermore, according to the intelligence we have gathered, this boy is very likely the true culprit who nearly wiped out the entire Black Tiger Gang."

Although everyone believed the Black Tiger Gang had been destroyed by their Iron Palm Gang—and they had even claimed credit for it themselves—only they knew that the true culprit behind the destruction of the Black Tiger Gang was someone else entirely.

"Master Qing, aren't you overestimating him?"

"That shouldn't be possible. Even counting from the day he started training at Song Academy, it has only been a little over a month. Even if he truly had exceptional talent, he should at most be at the Mingjin stage; how could he possibly wipe out the Black Tiger Gang?"

The men all spoke with a sense of disbelief.

"This is merely my own conjecture, yet my intuition tells me that this lad is no simple character!"

He Qing pondered for a moment before continuing, "Regardless, try not to provoke him lightly. Suspend the collection of protection money in this area for now. Furthermore, instruct the men below to be vigilant; if anything seems amiss, report it immediately."

"Master Qing, then what shall we do now..."

After nodding in acknowledgment, the men asked.

"Keep searching. He dared to kill the Young Master of our Iron Palm Gang and stole that item; even if we have to dig three feet into the earth, we must find him!"

He Qing's eyes glinted with a fierce, cold light.

Just as he stepped into the backyard of Guangchun Hall, Lu Yuan discovered that not only had everyone arrived, but Huang Hui and the brothers Zhou Wen and Zhou Wu were there as well.

"Brother Lu Yuan!"

Zhou Wu walked up to Lu Yuan with a broad smile on his face.

"Second Master Zhou."

Lu Yuan greeted him with a smile as well.

"Just call me Brother Zhou from now on!"

Zhou Wu waved his hand dismissively, then added with a smile, "We are heading to the Blazing Sun Martial Hall to attend the Gathering of Heroes. You will have the chance to spar and exchange pointers with the young talents from other families, which will help you accumulate experience for the upcoming Martial Examination!"

"Very well!"

Lu Yuan nodded slightly.

Although he had little interest in sparring or exchanging pointers, there was no harm in going to take a look.

However, since they were going to the Blazing Sun Martial Hall, he had to be careful not to easily expose the Blazing Sun Sword Technique he had been practicing in secret.

Soon, after the group finished their meal in the dining hall, they walked straight out of Guangchun Hall.

Led by Zhou Wen, Zhou Wu, and Huang Hui, the group of over twenty people arrived at the Blazing Sun Martial Hall before long.

Upon entering the Blazing Sun Martial Hall, one could see that a large number of people had already gathered on the expansive training grounds.

Some were practicing on their own, while others were sparring, with shouts and cheers rising one after another.

"Good heavens... is that the genius disciple of the Blazing Sun Martial Hall? He has actually cultivated Blazing Sun Sword Radiance!"

At this moment, Zhang Feng suddenly pointed at someone and exclaimed in shock, his face full of awe.

Everyone turned their gazes toward the figure, seeing a young man dressed in white martial attire with a crimson sun pattern embroidered on his chest. He was practicing his swordplay, and a one-inch-long crimson glow flickered incessantly at the tip of his blade.

As he swung his longsword, charred sword marks appeared on the ground one after another.

"This is indeed the Blazing Sun Sword Radiance that can only be unleashed once the Blazing Sun Sword Technique has been mastered!"

Huang Hui also looked at the young man in white with a look of surprise before speaking.

"It's impressive. If I were to cultivate Sword Radiance, would I be able to achieve what he has?"

Wang Chao asked with a hopeful look in his eyes.

"Your foundation is not exceptional. Unless you possess extraordinary talent in the way of the sword, it would be nearly impossible to achieve this without years, or even over a decade, of painstaking study."

Huang Hui glanced at Wang Chao and continued, "Furthermore, the Blazing Sun Sword Technique is a Profound-grade cultivation method. The Blazing Sun Sword Radiance it unleashes is not only incredibly sharp but also extremely scorching, capable of burning everything it touches; it is not something ordinary Sword Radiance can compare to."

As soon as these words were spoken, the envy in the eyes of Zhang Feng, Wang Chao, and the others grew even more intense.

Lu Yuan, however, remained as calm as ever, for he had not only mastered the Blazing Sun Sword Radiance long ago but was also on the verge of cultivating the even more powerful Blazing Sun Sword Qi.

"It is merely Sword Radiance. My Angry Dragon Spear Technique has already reached great success; it is the perfect time to test my spear against him!"

At this moment, Cao Yang spoke in a flat tone, his words filled with immense confidence.