Black Ape Fist

The Martial Arts Arena was bustling with activity.

When Zhou Yun entered the training ground, a few people were already practicing.

"Yesterday, I threw eight hundred punches and stood in a horse stance for three hours, and only earned a C-minus rating. What would it take to get a higher one?"

Zhou Yun felt the abundant qi and blood within him. He wasn't suffering like he had yesterday, and the soreness in his body had nearly faded. He felt full of life and energy.

Today, perhaps he could throw a thousand punches and stand in a horse stance for four hours, testing the limits of his golden finger.

At Black Stone Martial Hall, the most famous technique was the Black Ape Fist. Its strikes were ruthless and merciless. Once unleashed, they were deadly, aimed at vital points like the throat, eyes, and heart.

Zhou Yun gradually steadied his stance. With each breath, he used a special breathing technique as his feet began to move.

He extended one arm, driving power through his shoulder and neck. The force traveled from his waist to his shoulder, then gathered in his fist before he finally punched out.

Thud!

A muffled sound rang through the air. Zhou Yun threw several punches in succession, giving the abundant strength inside him an outlet.

Thud, thud, thud!

Zhou Yun felt his chest open up. A powerful force flowed through his limbs, then gathered into solid qi and blood that settled in his dantian before coursing through every meridian in his body.

He could faintly sense seven openings in the qi and blood within his dantian. It seemed that once he filled all seven gates, he could formally knock on the gates of Bright Force.

"The seven gates are also called the Seven Martial Gates. I've filled three of them, and the qi and blood granted by my golden finger have just run out."

Zhou Yun calculated that with at most five more wisps of qi and blood, he could formally step through the door to Bright Force.

That speed was astonishing. Most people might spend their entire lives without reaching Bright Force. Even a talented Inner Courtyard disciple like Lu Meng would need at least several months, perhaps even a year, to knock on the gates.

As for him, it would take less than seven days.

"Keep going!"

Zhou Yun resumed his punches, keeping his stance just as steady. Except when he had to walk, his legs didn't move an inch.

Fewer and fewer people remained in the Martial Arts Arena. At last, only one figure was left, still swinging his fists.

Just then, Zhang Hu happened to pass by.

Seeing Zhou Yun drenched in sweat, he took two steps toward him, then gritted his teeth and turned away.

Zhou Yun noticed Zhang Hu leaving but said nothing. He simply focused on making every punch count and holding each stance properly.

Time passed quickly. More and more people arrived at the Martial Arts Arena. Outer Courtyard disciples usually came to practice for a few hours after finishing their chores.

Most, however, didn't stay for more than half a day. Their bodies simply couldn't take it, and they knew their own limits. Knocking on the gates of Bright Force was as difficult as scaling the heavens, so most of them were just muddling through.

With that time, they might as well trade on Black Stone Martial Hall's reputation to find odd jobs and earn some extra money. What could be better?

"Make way! Master Liang is coming to teach!"

Suddenly, a group of Inner Courtyard disciples entered the Martial Arts Arena, loudly clearing an open space.

Into the cleared area they had surrounded stepped a martial instructor in his fifties. His eyes were sharp as an eagle's, and he calmly surveyed all the Outer Courtyard disciples.

His arms bulged like mountain peaks, and the vigor he radiated was palpable. Just standing there, he exerted an invisible pressure that left people struggling to breathe.

"Master, we've cleared the space."

A young man in a training robe bowed respectfully.

"Good. You are all disciples of Black Stone Martial Hall. Though I, Liang Wanshan, have many affairs to attend to, I still do my best to set aside some time to come teach the Outer Courtyard a few things about martial arts. I hope you'll find some guidance in it."

Liang Wanshan stepped into the center of the Martial Arts Arena, assumed a stance, gathered his qi, and began demonstrating Black Stone Martial Hall's signature technique—the Black Ape Fist.

Zhou Yun had already taken a spot off to the side, carefully observing how this Transformation Force master wielded his fists.

He was not only the founder of the Black Ape Fist. He had also single-handedly taken the stubborn martial world of Black Stone County and split it into three.

Word had it that Hall Master Liang was a master who had returned to his hometown from Xiang City, one of Great Jing's twelve cities. On the very first night after his return, he had challenged the other martial halls, defeating several with his own strength until only three remained in Black Stone County.

Though three halls remained, after that night, Black Stone Martial Hall had become the foremost among them.

The other two martial halls had kept a low profile in recent years. Rumor had it that their disciples even went out of their way to avoid Black Stone Martial Hall disciples on the street.

That, too, was proof of Master Liang's formidable strength.

"The hardest thing to read about the Black Ape Fist is how it changes."

Liang Wanshan's punches were incredibly fast. They seemed to target the upper body, only to suddenly cut into the middle. It was impossible to read his intentions, and his fists sliced through the air with vicious force.

More impressively, even with such a dense flurry of punches, he remained as calm as still water, explaining the technique's subtleties and essence to the disciples around him without once letting his breath falter.

For a martial artist, the most important thing when striking was that breath of "qi." If Zhou Yun tried demonstrating like this, he absolutely couldn't speak for fear of breaking his rhythm.

Forget Dark Force—even Bright Force practitioners could never reach such a level.

Gradually, it wasn't just his fists.

Liang Wanshan became a towering Black Ape, kicking up sand across the Martial Arts Arena as he darted through the clouds of dust. He moved so quickly that ordinary disciples who had yet to knock on the gates couldn't even make out his figure.

"The Black Ape Movement Technique!"

One disciple couldn't help blurting it out. The others watched intently, hoping to grasp even a hint of Liang Wanshan's footwork.

Zhou Yun marveled inwardly. The Black Ape Movement Technique was normally taught only to Inner Courtyard disciples.

Yet Master Liang had demonstrated it before a crowd of Outer Courtyard disciples. Clearly, he didn't begrudge sharing his own ultimate techniques; perhaps he was looking for an undiscovered genius among them.

But would watching this demonstration count toward his daily tally?

Maybe he could learn the Black Ape Movement Technique outright.

With that thought, Zhou Yun watched the Transformation Force master's demonstration even more intently.

Roughly the time it took to burn an incense stick later, Liang Wanshan's lesson was nearing its end.

"Whoever saw my footwork just now can come up and demonstrate it."

Liang Wanshan looked around at the Outer Courtyard disciples. When no one stepped forward, he said nothing more.

He was just about to turn and leave when one of the Outer Courtyard disciples raised his hand high and stepped out of the crowd.

"Me! I'll do it!"

Under everyone's gaze, Zhang Hu swallowed hard and walked into the Martial Arts Arena, gritting his teeth.

"Oh? Go ahead and give it a try."

Master Liang seemed intrigued and gestured for the surrounding Inner Courtyard disciples to step aside.

"Hmph. What a clown, showing off for attention."

An Inner Courtyard disciple muttered disdainfully, but then he met the calm gaze of the Transformation Force master. He immediately fell silent, too frightened to say another word.

Zhang Hu took a deep breath, banished the distractions from his mind, shut out the noise around him, and recalled the Black Ape Movement Technique he had just seen.

He began with the same opening stance as Master Liang's, and it was surprisingly similar. Everyone couldn't help but take him more seriously.

Then Zhang Hu suddenly opened his eyes. The Black Ape Fist surged with terrifying force, each fierce punch cutting through the air with a swish.

Then he began to move.

His body moved like a Black Ape through the Martial Arts Arena. His fists seemed to carry a hint of the Black Ape's essence, and their reach grew wider with every strike. If he could just hold on a little longer, it seemed he would grasp the essence of the Black Ape Movement Technique.

"What? Did that kid actually learn it?"

Standing at the edge of the Inner Courtyard disciples' circle, Lu Meng muttered in disbelief, "That can't be. I practiced for a month and still couldn't learn it. And wasn't Bright Force the bare minimum?"

The Inner and Outer Courtyard disciples all began to whisper among themselves. Some even started trying to befriend Zhang Hu on the spot.

Master Liang looked at him approvingly. He clearly hadn't expected such a perceptive student among the Outer Courtyard disciples.

But the approval lasted only an instant, because the Transformation Force master had already seen Zhang Hu's limits.

Watching Zhang Hu in the Martial Arts Arena, Zhou Yun couldn't help feeling happy for his childhood friend. But anyone with a trained eye could see that Zhang Hu was already reaching his limit.

"Just a little more. I'm almost there..."

Zhang Hu forced himself to sustain a breath of qi and blood as he performed the Black Ape Movement Technique. Even though his movements weren't quite those of a true Black Ape, the strain on his body was immense.

After all, he hadn't yet reached Bright Force.

"Pfft!"

Suddenly, Zhang Hu spat out a mouthful of blood, his vision going black as he collapsed to the ground.

Zhou Yun rushed over, hoisted him onto his back, and hurried toward the Common Dormitory.

"Not yet at Bright Force. What a pity."

Liang Wanshan left those words behind and departed with the Inner Courtyard disciples.