Black Ape Fist Perfected, Three Halls Martial Tournament (Seeking Follow-ups, Seeking Recommendation Tickets)

The courtyard, early morning.

Zhou Yun stood beneath the old locust tree, his fists whistling through the air as sweat drenched his body.

Daily Settlement: Eight hundred punches thrown, three hours of stance training completed, Black Ape Fist insight gained, successfully breached Bright Force, rating: C+.

Received five strands of blood energy, one page of Black Ape Fist comprehension, sufficient to build a martial foundation and achieve a sudden epiphany in martial arts.

"Five more strands of blood energy, and comprehension of the Black Ape Fist?"

Zhou Yun froze, a page of the Black Ape Fist manual suddenly manifesting in his mind, merging into his memory.

He had practiced until midnight and slept for only three hours, yet he felt no fatigue, only boundless energy.

He began practicing at the crack of dawn, and with the daily settlement rewards arriving, the momentum drove him to train even harder.

"The Black Ape Fist doesn't just increase punching power; its true essence lies in the fluidity of its movements."

Zhou Yun threw a punch, recalling the teachings of Master Liang and combining them with the new page of the manual, his fist blurring into an afterimage.

His Black Ape Fist was already at the minor completion stage; perhaps he could truly take it a step further.

Generally, only the power of Dark Force allows a martial art to reach major completion; otherwise, insufficient internal energy would damage one's foundation.

But Zhou Yun was different; he possessed enough blood energy to convert into internal force, allowing him to push his martial arts to the limit without restraint.

"Within this versatile style, can I integrate something more... for instance, letting my body drive my fists?"

Zhou Yun continued to punch, his thoughts clarifying as he gradually grasped the true meaning of the Black Ape Fist.

"True major completion of a martial art isn't just about mastering the basics; that only leads to minor completion."

Zhou Yun's fists moved like shadows, reminiscent of the leg techniques Master Liang displayed in the martial hall, as if he had truly achieved the state of fists born from the heart.

"The true major completion of the Black Ape Fist is to utilize the body's entire strength from any posture, focusing it into a single point on the fist while retaining the style's inherent versatility."

His figure flickered beneath the locust tree like a real black ape, every strike channeling power from his limbs into his knuckles.

The internal force within him was constantly consumed, but the five strands of blood energy stored in his dantian were steadily converting to replenish it.

By the time the five strands were nearly exhausted, the internal force in his dantian had grown from the thickness of one finger to two.

Bang!

A punch tore through the air, causing withered leaves to fall and branches to sway.

"Black Ape Fist, major completion!"

Zhou Yun's brows relaxed, his heart filled with ease.

No wonder they say major completion requires at least the foundation of Dark Force; without sufficient internal energy, this achievement is impossible.

It wasn't just about condensing all his strength into his knuckles; maintaining the execution of a martial art at this level was physically exhausting.

"With the Black Ape Fist at major completion and two fingers' thickness of internal force, I have enough confidence for this escort mission."

Zhou Yun exhaled and withdrew his stance, a wave of hunger surging from his muscles and stomach.

Martial artists consume blood energy rapidly, requiring several times the food of an ordinary person.

This was especially true for a Bright Force practitioner, as the conversion of blood energy into internal force drained the body further.

"It's nearly noon; the inner courtyard canteen should be open, right?"

Zhou Yun dashed out, the hunger gnawing at him with every passing second; he had never craved meat so intensely.

In the outer courtyard, meat was served only once every seven days. While not prohibitively expensive, it was still a luxury the outer disciples hesitated to afford.

He had heard that in the inner courtyard, the price of basic nutritional supplements like meat was halved—a massive, tangible saving.

Zhou Yun hurried to the inner courtyard canteen and found several disciples already eating.

He immediately ordered a large platter of braised beef, two coarse grain cakes, and a bowl of beef broth from the cook.

The braising sauce soaked into the cakes, paired with the fragrant beef broth, creating an irresistible aroma.

Zhou Yun could wait no longer and began to feast.

The hunger faded, replaced by blood energy filling his limbs, ready to be converted into internal force at a single thought.

"Indeed, martial arts cannot be separated from meat."

Zhou Yun rubbed his belly in satisfaction. This meal cost only forty copper coins; outside, it would have cost over a hundred.

Eating like this a few times would add up to a string of cash—the monthly cost of meat was almost catching up to his tuition.

However, with this discount, inner disciples from humble backgrounds no longer had to be so frugal.

"Senior Brother Zhou, you're eating here too?"

Liang Chengshi walked down from the second floor and happened to run into Zhou Yun.

"Why aren't you eating on the second floor? The first floor serves mostly common poultry, but the second floor has a chef specifically hired by Master Liang to prepare blood-replenishing meals for martial artists."

"Brother Liang, you jest. This humble one is but a commoner; how could I have the silver to dine on the second floor?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yun felt the beef in his hand lose its luster, and he could only offer a helpless bow.

He had heard that there were specialized treasure fish and exotic beasts that served as potent supplements for martial artists, but he hadn't expected Master Liang to have set up a private kitchen on the second floor.

However, just hearing about it was enough to know the price would be exorbitant.

"Hey, now you're being a stranger."

Liang Chengshi trotted over, slinging an arm around Zhou Yun's shoulder as he said, "The Three Halls Martial Tournament is coming up soon; how will you manage if you don't eat well? From now on, just put it on my tab whenever you go to the second floor."

"The Three Halls Martial Tournament?"

Zhou Yun's eyes flickered. "I would appreciate it if Brother Liang could enlighten me."

"You don't know about the Three Halls Martial Tournament? Right, you only just entered the Bright Force stage."

Liang Chengshi was stunned for a moment before saying, "The Three Halls Martial Tournament is a competition jointly held by the three martial halls here in Black Stone County, with the vast majority of participants being young disciples under the age of thirty."

"Furthermore, those who place in the top three of the tournament not only get to represent Black Stone Martial Hall at the Martial Sect Grand Selection in Xiang City, but they also receive a massive amount of funding from each of the halls... and more importantly, they gain a property in Xiang City and an official status."

Zhou Yun was thoughtful; a competition held by the three martial halls of Black Stone County would certainly involve other factions, such as the Sky Sea Escort Agency and the like.

If one were to take first place, the massive funding provided would not only come from the various halls, but it would also ensure that the winner remembered the favor of Black Stone County.

As for the property and status in Xiang City, that was nothing less than a complete class leap.

It was equivalent to the entire county pooling its strength to send a few geniuses to the Twelve Main Cities, allowing them to establish a foothold and pave the way for those who followed.

"It seems Senior Brother Zhou is interested in participating."

Liang Chengshi smiled. "However, to reach the top three, you need at least the strength of the Dark Force. Senior Brother will have to work hard."

Dark Force, is it?

Zhou Yun calculated the time; breaking through to the Dark Force in a month was not an impossible feat.

He feared that an ordinary Dark Force practitioner wouldn't be enough to secure a top-three spot; he would likely need to reach the Great Completion of the Dark Force to have any real certainty.

But once successful, it would be a ticket to the main cities—an opportunity that was rare and highly sought after.

"Many thanks for the information, Brother Liang."

Zhou Yun raised his hand in thanks and was about to ask a few more questions when a carrier pigeon flew in through the doorway.

"Is that Senior Sister Shen's carrier pigeon?"

Liang Chengshi raised an eyebrow.

The pigeon flew onto Zhou Yun's wrist, and after he removed the envelope, it flew off on its own.

"Junior Brother Zhou, come to the entrance of the martial hall to see me immediately."

Zhou Yun opened the envelope to find this short sentence written inside.

He tidied himself up and immediately said to Liang Chengshi, "Brother Liang, Senior Sister Shen has an urgent matter for me, so I must take my leave."

"Go ahead, Senior Brother Zhou. Naturally, Senior Sister Shen's matters must be prioritized."

Liang Chengshi did not try to keep him; he had originally wanted to ask Zhou Yun for pointers on the Black Ape Fist and footwork, but it seemed he would have to wait for another opportunity.

Zhou Yun nodded. This was his first escort mission since taking the post, and he hoped nothing would go wrong.