Energy Value

In the classroom of Elite Class 5, all the students turned their eyes in unison toward Hong Chengshuo on the podium.

"The initial Blood-Qi Stage is divided into five levels. I believe you know this better than I do, as you are currently experiencing it. Who would like to describe the divisions of these five stages?"

"Instructor, me!"

At that moment, a boy in the front row raised his hand.

"Zhang Di, then you tell us."

Hong Chengshuo raised his hand, signaling for Zhang Di to stand up and speak.

"The five levels of the Blood-Qi Stage are: before the Blood-Qi value breaks 1, after breaking 1 but before breaking 3, after breaking 3 but before breaking 5, after breaking 5 but before breaking 10, and after breaking 10 cards, which is the final stage of Blood-Qi cultivation."

Zhang Di stood up and said.

"Very well said."

Hong Chengshuo waved his hand, signaling for Zhang Di to sit down.

"However, I must add one thing: these five stages of Blood-Qi are merely the beginning of the entire Blood-Qi Stage. Only after your Blood-Qi value exceeds 10 cards can you be considered to have truly embarked on the proper path of the Blood-Qi Stage."

"Generally speaking, a martial arts student can nourish their essence and accumulate Qi to break through to the Martial Artist realm once their Blood-Qi value reaches 100 cards. But such Martial Artists have the least potential and future, because their foundations are not solid enough. Therefore, I must remind you all: during the Blood-Qi Stage, the higher your Blood-Qi value, the further you will be able to go on your future martial path."

"If you can cultivate your Blood-Qi value to 1000 cards during the Blood-Qi Stage, then you possess the potential to become a Grandmaster-level Martial Artist. You could join the Dongchuan Provincial Youth Genius Group, receive vigorous cultivation from the provincial government, be specially recruited by Blue Star University, and have the entire martial arts resources of Dongchuan Province tilted in your favor."

As soon as Hong Chengshuo finished speaking, the students below were filled with doubt.

"1000 cards of Blood-Qi? How is that possible? Is that something a human can train to achieve?"

"So the requirement to enter the Provincial Youth Genius Group is 1000 cards of Blood-Qi? But it's impossible for an average person to reach that. Even the person ranked first on the Elite Student Top 100 list is far from that."

"Are the requirements to become a Grandmaster-level Martial Artist really that high? No wonder there are only a few Grandmasters among the tens of millions of people in the entire Dongchuan Province."

"Students, quiet down. The reason I am telling you this is so that you can have a clear understanding of your own martial path. You are elite students, so you should look forward, but there is no need to look too far ahead. The martial path is endless; looking too far will only make you confused and hesitant. You only need to look at the few steps right in front of your feet."

"Take the martial arts students in ordinary classes at other schools, for instance; they only know the five levels of the Blood-Qi Stage and are completely ignorant of the martial path after breaking 10 cards of Blood-Qi. That is because their instructors dare not let them know that the mountain blocking their way, which they find so difficult to cross, is merely an insignificant little step on the road of martial cultivation."

At this moment, a student in the front row suddenly raised his hand to ask a question.

"Instructor, I would like to ask, is the requirement to enter the Provincial Youth Genius Group really 1000 cards of Blood-Qi?"

Hong Chengshuo glanced at him and said, "The members of the Provincial Youth Genius Group may not all have reached 1000 cards of Blood-Qi. I suspect that if one is younger, 800 cards of Blood-Qi might also be enough to enter the Dongchuan Provincial Youth Genius Group. Also, let me give you a word of advice: do not be overly ambitious."

"Although reaching 1000 cards of Blood-Qi is considered having Grandmaster potential, those with less than 1000 cards are not necessarily destined to fail at becoming Grandmasters. Even if your Blood-Qi value does not meet the standard for Grandmaster potential, as long as your Blood-Qi is sufficiently thick, refined, and you remain persistent with an unyielding will, you may not be without hope for the Grandmaster realm in the future."

The student asked again, "May I ask, Instructor, how does one achieve thick and refined Blood-Qi?"

"So-called thick Blood-Qi means that even if your Blood-Qi value hasn't broken into four digits, it shouldn't be too far off. You can't expect someone who breaks through to become a Martial Artist at 100 cards of Blood-Qi to become a Grandmaster, can you? That is simply unrealistic. As for refined Blood-Qi, I will explain that to you in detail."

"Generally speaking, the lower a person's Blood-Qi value, the more refined their Blood-Qi is. For those with a Blood-Qi value below 1 card, their physical strength must be maintained at more than three times their value. After 3 cards of Blood-Qi, some people may not be able to maintain their physical strength at a one-to-three ratio. When the Blood-Qi value rises above 10 cards, the vast majority will see their physical strength ratio drop below three times."

"If you can maintain a one-to-three ratio of physical strength even after your Blood-Qi value reaches 20 cards, you are already considered very formidable. Those who can still maintain their physical strength at more than three times their value after their Blood-Qi value breaks into three digits are undoubtedly geniuses. A body of refined Blood-Qi is extremely important for a Martial Artist."

Hong Chengshuo's speech on the podium had the students in the classroom listening intently.

Chen Lie, however, had no interest in these things.

What Hong Chengshuo was talking about were the standards for geniuses in the Blue Star martial arts world; he, naturally, aimed to keep pace with the cosmic-level prodigies of the Central Galactic Empire.

Taking advantage of the break between classes, Chen Lie left the classroom and headed straight for the school administration office.

Upon arriving at the administration office, Chen Lie found the staff member inside and presented his elite student ID.

"Hello, I am here to collect my Blood-Qi Potion and Nutrient Solution."

The staff member took Chen Lie's elite student ID and glanced at it.

"Elite Class 5, Chen Lie?"

As he spoke, he swiped the elite student ID on the instrument, returned it to Chen Lie, and handed him a receipt.

"Alright, go to the resource distribution office next door to collect them."

Chen Lie took the student ID, nodded silently, went to the resource distribution office next door, and with the receipt, collected two vials of Blood-Qi Potion and a box of high-grade Nutrient Solution.

After becoming an elite student, one could receive two Blood-Qi Potions and a crate of high-grade Nutrient Solution every month. Combined, these items were worth at least 20,000 Star Dollars, and since they were school-exclusive supplies, they were impossible to purchase elsewhere.

This was the preferential treatment the school granted to elite students.

Not only that, but Chen Lie also saw training equipment in the elite campus that was on par with professional martial arts halls, as well as a nutrition canteen specifically opened for elite students.

Naturally, martial arts students in ordinary classes could not enjoy this series of perks. It was fortunate that there were only a thousand or so elite students; otherwise, the school might not have been able to afford it.

Carrying the two Blood-Qi Potions and the crate of Nutrient Solution, Chen Lie left the school directly and headed to the Dongchuan Martial Arts Hall.

Although the training equipment in the elite campus was just as complete as that of a martial arts hall, it lacked private training rooms, which were far more convenient for him.

Arriving at the bus stop next to the school, he boarded a flying bus.

A dozen minutes later, Chen Lie stepped off the flying bus and walked into the Dongchuan Martial Arts Hall.

Once inside, Chen Lie found a private training room, opened the two Blood-Qi Potions and the crate of high-grade Nutrient Solution, and began to drink them bottle by bottle.

The entire crate of high-grade Nutrient Solution, totaling six bottles, plus the two Blood-Qi Potions, were all consumed by Chen Lie.

Immediately afterward, Chen Lie felt a surge of energy dissolving in his stomach. He took off his jacket and began to practice the Basic Body Tempering Technique.

The potency of two Blood-Qi Potions and a crate of high-grade Nutrient Solution was not particularly strong, so Chen Lie only practiced the Basic Body Tempering Technique for half an hour before fully absorbing all the nutrients generated within his body.

Putting his clothes back on, Chen Lie walked out of the private training room and went to the Blood Essence Detector, preparing to check his blood-qi value.

Entering the cabin of the Blood Essence Detector, a blue light began to scan him.

Before long, the Blood Essence Detector began to broadcast the results.

"Beep, detection complete. Blood-qi value: 8.03 units."

Chen Lie stepped out of the Blood Essence Detector and looked back at the displayed value.

"This won't do. I still have to find a way to make money. Without enough nutrition, my blood-qi value simply won't go up!"

Chen Lie shook his head; he felt no joy despite the increase of over 1 unit of blood-qi.

Possessing the advanced martial arts knowledge of the Central Galactic Empire, he could say he was tens of thousands of years ahead of the martial arts geniuses of Blue Star.

In his memories, it was normal for geniuses of the Central Galactic Empire to increase their blood-qi by dozens or even hundreds of units in a single day because they had sufficient resources, whereas he had to worry about his own martial arts resources.

With his resources exhausted, Chen Lie prepared to leave the Dongchuan Martial Arts Hall.

As he walked into the first-floor lobby of the hall, Chen Lie saw Chen Xingyao and a group of her classmates coming down from the training rooms nearby.

Chen Xingyao naturally spotted Chen Lie at a glance, but she remained calm and did not step forward to greet him.

However, Li Xianyu, who was beside her, suddenly grabbed her arm and shook it vigorously.

"Yaoyao, it's your brother, it's your brother..."

Chen Xingyao twitched the corner of her mouth: "I see him. Can you stop shaking me? You're hurting me."

Watching Li Xianyu's excited expression, Chen Xingyao couldn't help but secretly grumble.

When did this dead girl become such a green tea?

She clearly knew that her brother's strength wasn't much to speak of, and she didn't want the rest of the class to know about her brother's situation. Why was she drawing all the classmates' attention over there?

Was she relying on having a sister who was a top student in the elite class to attack her by comparing her to her "useless" brother?

What a vicious mind!

"Sorry."

Li Xianyu hurriedly let go of Chen Xingyao's arm.

Trotting over to Chen Lie, Li Xianyu greeted him with a very respectful attitude.

"Hello, Senior."

Chen Lie nodded in acknowledgment and said indifferently: "Go train."

"Mm!"

Li Xianyu nodded repeatedly.

Suddenly, Chen Xingyao walked up to Chen Lie's side, looking furious.

"Chen Lie! Why did you skip the sprint class Mom signed you up for again!"

"I had something to take care of, so I didn't make it," Chen Lie said.

"Nonsense! How come you have something to do every time there's a sprint class? Are you really that busy?

Hmph, you're becoming more and more outrageous. I'm going to tell Mom when I get back."

Watching Chen Xingyao's indignant expression, Li Xianyu, standing nearby, rolled her eyes frantically.

So, the relationship between Chen Xingyao and her brother is this bad? They really are at each other's throats the moment they meet.

In her view, Chen Xingyao was truly ignorant. No wonder her blood-qi value could never surpass her own; she probably hadn't been guided by her brother a single time.

Why compete with him? Isn't that just sabotaging your own blood-qi value?

If she had such a god-like brother, she would definitely cherish and worship him; how could she bear to criticize him?

Besides, she had never heard Chen Xingyao mention that she was from a blended family; otherwise, how could her relationship with her brother be this tense?