The moment they got home, Chen Xingyao hurried after Chen Lie.
"Hey, Chen Lie, all that stuff you said about becoming a Grandmaster and overtaking everyone—was that all a lie?"
Chen Lie glanced at his younger sister. "How do you know I was lying?"
"Still denying it? I went to the Martial Arts Hall yesterday too. If the hall master had assessed a student, I would've known. Now tell me why you lied to Mom and Dad."
Chen Lie fell silent for a moment, then said, "I really wasn't lying. Someone did say I could become a Grandmaster. It's just that they weren't from Blue Star. They were someone important from the Outer Stars."
"Someone from the Outer Stars? Who do you think you're fooling?"
"Believe what you want. Just don't tell Mom and Dad about this."
With that, Chen Lie shrugged and walked away, leaving Chen Xingyao staring after him, torn between suspicion and doubt.
She knew her brother. If Chen Lie had argued loudly, she would have been certain he was lying. But he had offered one casual explanation and left, which made her wonder if he was telling the truth.
Could her brother really have a Pseudo-Nutrient Saturation Constitution? Had he been held back all these years?
"Impossible!"
Chen Xingyao quickly shook her head. Someone from the Outer Stars? As an ordinary citizen of Blue Star, all she knew was that Blue Star had begun venturing into interstellar space only in the past century or so, and that martial civilizations far beyond Blue Star's did exist out there. Beyond that, she knew next to nothing about the Outer Stars.
Even if some important figure from the Outer Stars had come to Blue Star, why would they turn up in Dongchuan Province, one of Blue Star's least developed provinces?
Just to tell Chen Lie that he might become a Grandmaster someday?
That evening, the four members of the Chen family had dinner together at home.
As they ate, Chen Gequn grew more uneasy the longer he thought about it. "Chen Lie, didn't you eat a bit too much today? Even if a Grandmaster made that prediction, those were highly nutritious foods fortified with supplements.
"I'll take you to see a doctor tomorrow and get you checked."
"No need, Dad." Chen Lie shook his head. "I can feel the nutrients I stored up starting to be absorbed. By the time you come back, I promise I'll have a big surprise for you."
"I'm not asking for a surprise. If your Blood Qi Value breaks one by the time I'm back, I'll be satisfied," Chen Gequn said.
"Breaking one is setting the bar too low. How about this? Before you come back, I promise I'll get into the Elite Class."
The moment Chen Lie finished speaking, Chen Xingyao gave a cold snort. "Big talk!"
Chen Gequn ignored her and said to Chen Lie, "Don't push yourself too hard, either. You need to balance training with rest. But you can't slack off before your Blood Qi Value breaks one. I've asked someone to order Blood Essence Fluid for you. Now we're just waiting for you to reach that mark.
"If you need any supplements while training, tell your mother right away."
Chen Lie nodded and went back to eating.
Early the next morning, Chen Gequn left for work in a neighboring province, while Chen Lie headed to the Dongchuan Martial Arts Hall.
Their mother, Feng Yuelan, had enrolled him and his sister in a thirty-five-day Blood Essence Value Sprint Class. It had only ten lessons, but they could use their Student IDs to train at the Martial Arts Hall throughout those thirty-five days. After all, their tuition together had come to nearly twenty thousand Star Dollars.
Once inside, Chen Lie found a private training room.
He took off his shirt and began practicing the Basic Body Tempering Technique, moving through the nineteen motions of its first form.
The nutrients stored in his body since yesterday began to break down rapidly.
As Chen Lie performed the nineteen motions one after another, it felt as though the cells throughout his body had come alive, devouring the nutrients.
After completing the first form of the Basic Body Tempering Technique, he immediately began practicing the second.
The second form had twenty-seven motions. As Chen Lie moved through them, his body heated up fast, his temperature suddenly climbing from thirty-six degrees to over forty.
At the same time, the cells along his meridians became intensely active. The moment the nutrients were absorbed, they turned into blood qi.
Nearly two hours later, the nutrients stored in Chen Lie's body had been exhausted, and his temperature returned to normal.
He hadn't measured his Blood Qi Value, but he could instinctively tell it had soared.
Leaving the Personal Training Room, Chen Lie went straight to the Blood Essence Detector to test it.
He stepped into its chamber. Light swept over him, and before long, the test was complete. The machine announced the result.
"Beep. Test complete. Blood Qi Value: 2.31."
Chen Lie stepped out of the chamber. The result did not surprise him.
Almost a full point higher. My Blood Qi Value is rising far faster than Blue Star's advancement standards allow for.
Blue Star's official Blood Qi Value Advancement Tier Standard divided progress into five stages.
The first stage came before one's Blood Qi Value broke one. It was the hardest stage: no supplements or medicines were allowed, so raising it depended entirely on one's own training.
Once it broke one, the second stage began. A bottle of Blood Essence Fluid followed by several days of training could raise it by 0.4 to 0.6. Those from wealthy families could also begin taking small amounts of supplements and gain even more.
The third stage began after one's Blood Qi Value broke three. At that point, one could eat Exotic Beast Meat for the first time. Half a jin a day for a month, combined with diligent training, could raise it by roughly 0.9 to 1.1.
The fourth stage began after one's Blood Qi Value broke five. One could take medicinal baths for the first time, and ten consecutive days of them could raise it by roughly 1.4 to 2.1.
The wide range came mostly from the ingredients. Wealthy families filled their baths with rare and costly herbs, while poorer families could often afford only the minimum required.
From this stage onward, the gap between rich and poor began to show. The wealthy could enjoy all kinds of expensive supplements, while the poor could barely meet their basic nutritional needs. The disparity only grew from there.
The fifth stage began after one's Blood Qi Value broke ten. By then, the body's capabilities had improved dramatically. As long as they weren't overused, all kinds of supplements and medicines could be taken frequently. Blood Qi Value began rising much faster, as though the sky itself had opened up.
An ordinary Martial Arts Student needed at least a million Star Dollars to pass through all five stages. That was why families with limited means rarely let their children pursue martial arts: they simply could not afford it.
I have to find a way to make money.
Unlike everyone else, Chen Lie had the Central Galactic Empire's Mystic Body Tempering Technique. As long as he had enough nutrients, his Blood Qi Value could rise rapidly.
No genius on Blue Star had ever been held back from raising their Blood Qi Value by a lack of nutrients.
In this life, Chen Lie did not want to rely on his family again. Besides, he knew how far their savings could really take him.
"S-senior, wait!"
Chen Lie had returned to the training room, put his shirt on, and was about to leave when a clear young voice called out behind him.
He turned to see a pretty girl of about fourteen or fifteen.
Seeing his questioning look, the girl hurriedly said, "Hello, senior. I'm Li Xianyu, from the Grade 10 Key Class. I'm Chen Xingyao's classmate. We've met before, in the Martial Arts Hall lobby the afternoon before yesterday."
Chen Lie thought back, then nodded. "Do you need something?"
"Well, I was hoping you could do me a favor," Li Xianyu said. "My family wants me to sign up to learn a C-Rank Martial Art called Cloud Smoke Steps.
"But Instructor Qu, who teaches the Cloud Smoke Steps Guidance Class, is a renowned teacher. So many students want to take his class that you need a letter of introduction to register. I left mine at home.
"Could you hold my place in line while I go back and get it?"
That caught Chen Lie's interest. He nodded and asked, "How many lessons does the Cloud Smoke Steps class have? What happens if you can't learn it in that time?"
Li Xianyu found the question a little strange, but answered anyway. "There are twelve lessons. Anyone signing up for the Cloud Smoke Steps Guidance Class already has some foundation. With a renowned teacher guiding them, they're bound to learn something. It's unlikely they'd come away with nothing."
"I see." Chen Lie nodded. "Then do you think those twelve lessons would be enough for you to master the technique and use it freely?"
Li Xianyu quickly shook her head. "I'm just a Martial Arts Student whose Blood Qi Value hasn't even broken one. How could I master a C-Rank Martial Art well enough to use it freely? I'd be happy just to get the basics down."
"How much is the tuition?" Chen Lie asked.
"Just under two hundred thousand Star Dollars," Li Xianyu replied. "Not far under, though."
Chen Lie's interest sharpened, but his expression stayed calm. "I know a B-Rank Martial Art called Phantom Steps. It's a movement technique too, and I can teach you to use it freely in three days.
"I won't charge you two hundred thousand Star Dollars. Just one hundred thousand. How about it?"
"Huh?"
Li Xianyu froze. Chen Xingyao's brother was trying to sell her martial arts instruction?
But hadn't Chen Xingyao said his Blood Qi Value was barely higher than her own? What the heck would he know about a B-Rank Martial Art?
"Heh, no thanks, senior. My Blood Qi Value is too low, and a B-Rank Martial Art is too advanced for me. I probably couldn't learn it.
"If you can't hold my place, I'll ask someone else."
With that, Li Xianyu turned to leave.
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