The Great Benefits of Reading

"Young Master, this old servant is merely a steward..." A flicker of awkwardness crossed Fang Xiao's eyes.

The implication was clear: the highest martial realm he knew of was Organ Refining, but whether he truly didn't know more, or simply felt it unnecessary to say, was another matter.

Upon hearing this, a look of disappointment crossed Chu Ming's face: "I am weary."

Waving his hand, he grabbed the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique and prepared to head inside.

He was genuinely exhausted; from the moment he woke up to practice the Wind-Slapping Palm and Tiger Python Force, to spending time reading poetry and books in between, he had barely rested from start to finish.

"The Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique is extremely overbearing. Young Master, you must not skip the Tiger Python Force to practice the subsequent content. This old servant will prepare some medicinal decoctions tomorrow and teach you how to guide your blood and qi..."

Seeing this, Fang Xiao's expression grew worried.

His young master was gifted, but he was also prone to obsession.

The Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique was a manual of the Tiger Armor Army. Practicing the Tiger Python Force was one thing, but the subsequent techniques required medicinal support, or the body would surely collapse.

He feared the young master would memorize the contents and practice in secret.

Chu Ming patiently listened to Steward Fang's nagging for a while longer before he was finally able to enter the room.

To summarize: the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique could not be practiced blindly; it had to be done under Fang Xiao's guidance, supplemented by medicinal decoctions, and progressed step by step.

Fang Xiao gazed at Chu Ming's thin back, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

"How time flies. In the blink of an eye, decades have passed. I wonder how many of the old brothers from back then are still alive."

"Vitalizing blood, strengthening bones, refining organs..."

"Heh, Young Master, the path of a martial artist is far more arduous than you imagine."

"A single strand of blood-qi power is merely the beginning; it doesn't even qualify one to take the field and kill the enemy."

"Only with three strands of blood-qi can one join the Tiger Armor Army; six strands qualify one as a squad leader, and ten or more as a platoon leader."

"Only a martial artist at the Bone Strengthening Realm can become a centurion or a chiliarch."

"..."

"Martial artist, blood-qi, body-forging technique..."

Back inside his room, Chu Ming did not rest. He couldn't wait to open the first martial arts manual he had obtained in this world.

The first dozen pages of the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique were the Tiger Python Force, which he was already very familiar with.

"Tiger Python Force, Tiger-Roar Force..."

He hadn't read much of the manual when a prompt popped up on his panel.

[Reading (Great Success): Mastery]

[Progress: 55/100]

56... 57... 58...

"The manual can also increase reading progress!"

Chu Ming's eyes sparkled, and without pause, he continued to study.

By the time he finished reading the entire body-forging manual, his [Reading] progress had reached 77.

At the same time, the original Tiger Python Force was replaced by new text.

[Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique]

[Progress (Entry): 17/100]

"The Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique is divided into twelve forces, each with ten styles, and each style consists of eight to ten movements. In total, it is composed of nearly twelve hundred movement combinations."

"The later movements are increasingly complex. No wonder Steward Fang repeatedly warned me not to practice on my own."

"Without a sturdy physical foundation and the support of blood-qi, forcing these practices will only lead to chaotic meridians and ruin the body."

"Even when practiced in order, the body will suffer various injuries due to the high-load nature of the training."

"Medicinal decoctions can provide energy and repair injuries; Steward Fang's nagging is not without reason."

At nightfall.

Chu Ming practiced the Tiger Python Force several times, grinding the progress of the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique to 23 before stopping.

He wanted to continue, but he still had the Complete Treatise on Agricultural Administration to read, and the private school entrance exam was fast approaching.

[Reading (Great Success): Mastery]

[Progress: 77/100]

78... 79... 80...

With the Tiger Python Force at Great Success, the condensed blood-qi not only made his body sturdier but also left his spirit and energy feeling better than ever.

In the past, after a day of training, he would be too sleepy to read for long after dark, but today, he felt exceptionally energetic.

"At this rate, I will be able to finish the Complete Treatise on Agricultural Administration by tomorrow."

Late at night, Chu Ming closed his book, his reading progress stalled at 87.

The next day, he rose early, feeling refreshed and clear-headed.

After practicing the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique and the Wind-Slapping Palm, he continued reading the Complete Treatise on Agricultural Administration, his reading progress steadily climbing.

87... 88... 89...

When the entire Complete Treatise on Agricultural Administration was finished, a new prompt appeared on his panel.

[Reading (Consummate): Analogical Reasoning]

Reading is consummate, and the progress bar has vanished; it seems I have reached the limit.

What is the effect of this Analogical Reasoning...

Chu Ming closed his eyes, the knowledge stored in his mind flashing by at an incredible speed.

If his mastery had allowed him to comprehend the Sword Gourd Spiritual Sense from the travelogue Sword Gourd Travels, then perhaps this Analogical Reasoning would lead to even greater insights...

In his mind, the contents of over twenty travelogues, along with the General Theory of the Book of Songs, the Collection of Classics and Histories, and the Complete Treatise on Agricultural Administration, began to merge with the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique.

The Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique was like a lake, while the contents of the travelogues and the three classics flowed into it like streams, trickling steadily.

The streams formed by the twenty-plus travelogues were particularly continuous, and under the constant accumulation of momentum, they began to evolve into a river.

He did not know how much time had passed when Chu Ming suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze brighter than ever before.

His brows relaxed, revealing a faint trace of joy.

"Aside from the first force, the Tiger Python Force, which is relatively gentle, the subsequent eleven forces are tyrannical and fierce. Without medicinal decoctions to nourish the body, one would only injure themselves more with every practice."

"But..."

Chu Ming pushed aside the manuals and books on the table and fetched pen, ink, and paper.

He paused for a moment to organize his thoughts, then dipped his brush and began to write, stroke by stroke, neither hurried nor slow.

On the slightly yellowed paper, agile and spirited movements were drawn, accompanied by detailed written explanations.

"The Tiger Python Force has one hundred and twenty movements. It seems profound, but in reality, half of them are redundant. Not only are they complex and difficult to perform, but they also cause unnecessary damage to the body."

"With the aid of Analogical Reasoning, I combined what I have read to automatically simulate the Tiger Python Force in my mind. By sifting through the sand to find the gold, I streamlined it down to thirty movements, and using those as a foundation, I expanded and optimized them to derive an additional thirty movements."

"In this way, the number of movements in the originally obscure Tiger Python Force has been cut in half to just sixty. Their interconnectedness is much higher, the flow is more coherent, and the difficulty of performing them has been greatly reduced..."

Looking at the wet ink on the paper, Chu Ming felt an incomparable sense of satisfaction.

He was merely a martial artist who had just condensed a single strand of blood-energy, his body not yet fully recovered, yet he was capable of improving a cultivation technique...

He looked again at the progress of the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique on his panel; it had jumped directly from 23 to 67.

Without dedicated practice, simply by improving the technique, his progress had surged significantly—this was the direct benefit brought by Analogical Reasoning.

Furthermore, he sensed that a second strand of blood-energy had condensed within his meridians.

Chu Ming closed his eyes slightly, activating his Sword Gourd Spiritual Sense to look within himself.

The first strand of blood-energy, originally as thin as a silver needle, had grown thicker, and the second strand, while slightly thinner, was not far behind.

If measured by the progress of the Tiger Python Force, it could be said that through deduction and optimization alone, he had pushed the Tiger Python Force to perfection.

Not only that, but the Tiger Python Body-Forging Technique in his mind continued to evolve, attempting to refine the contents of the second force, the Tiger-Roar Force.

"In other words, even if I don't practice deliberately, the progress of my body-forging technique will rise rapidly just by relying on the deductions of Analogical Reasoning!"