Drumbeats

A moment later, Elder Wu let out a long breath. A stream of white mist shot forth like a sharp arrow, spraying two or three meters ahead before slowly dispersing.

Qin Fang stared, dumbstruck by the shock of it.

"Did you see clearly?"

"This is the stance of Wild Ox Qi Force."

"Three levels, representing the three realms of Bright Force."

"When you stand in the stance, if your body can continuously produce the Skin-Membrane Drumbeat, it means you have reached Bright Force Early Stage. When Tendon-and-Bone Thunder appears, it means you have entered the middle stage. If Blood-Qi Tide appears as well... then your Bright Force has reached its peak."

"Now, try it once."

It took Qin Fang a long while to come back to himself. Then he took a deep breath.

Skin-Membrane Drumbeat... Tendon-and-Bone Thunder... Blood-Qi Tide!

He had never expected that Bright Force alone would have three separate realms.

He exhaled slowly, nodded, then imitated Elder Wu's movements and began standing in the stance for the first time in his life.

"Spread your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width. Keep your waist relaxed, yet not fully relaxed. Lift your back. Imagine a rope hanging from the top of your head, suspending your entire body..."

Elder Wu began personally correcting Qin Fang's movements.

Qin Fang followed his instructions.

Slowly, the "stance" began to take a little shape.

Though it was only a little shape, Qin Fang's sensations were completely different...

Many muscles and bones in his body that he had never used before seemed to be "stretched" open by this posture. He vaguely heard faint sounds from his skeleton.

...Of course, this was not Bones-and-Tendons Resonance.

It was merely the sound of bones that had long gone unused beginning to move again.

Elder Wu nodded slightly before saying, "Next is your breathing. Pay attention: it must be slow, deep, steady, and even... During the process, feel the stretching of your muscles and the direction of your force..."

Qin Fang began to try.

But it was far from simple.

Breathing was an instinct, and the more instinctive something was, the harder it was to change.

Because this meant using consciousness to interfere with the unconscious... Relax even slightly, and he would forget.

Once he forgot, he would instinctively try to find the rhythm again, only to throw it completely into disarray.

Elder Wu saw Qin Fang's performance, but he did not say much. He continued guiding him patiently.

...This was perfectly normal.

He had never expected Qin Fang to succeed the first time he stood in the stance.

Even he himself had spent two or three months practicing this Stance Skill before he had barely grasped its fundamentals...

If it were that easy, there would not be so few Bright Force martial artists.

Anyone could have reached it.

Elder Wu patiently guided him: when to inhale, when to pause, how to feel the force, and when to exhale...

What he should pay attention to while exhaling...

His guidance was extremely detailed.

Time slipped quietly by.

Before he knew it, an hour had passed.

Looking at Qin Fang, who was still struggling to hold the stance with his face flushed red from holding his breath, Elder Wu calmly said, "Do not rush. Martial cultivation has never been something achieved overnight. It is an exceedingly long process. You have more or less memorized the essentials of the stance; from now on, practice it slowly on your own."

Qin Fang let out a long breath, withdrew his stance, and nodded seriously.

"The stance can help you more efficiently integrate, temper, and comprehend Unified Force. But the amount and strength of that force depend entirely on your physical foundation."

"At its root, there are two things. First, practice. Second, eat."

"You can think of your body as a weapon during this process. Practice is also refining. The process of hammering the body is also the process of discarding dross and retaining essence. And eating is the fuel... Meat, medicinal pills... all of it counts as eating."

"The stance itself is practice. The key lies in eating."

"To a certain extent, eating is even more important than practice."

"For example, the Blood-Qi Pills you obtained before are meant to be used at a time like this."

"But Blood-Qi Pills are too expensive. Even this old man cannot supply them without limit. At most, I can provide you with one or two pills a month..."

Qin Fang was briefly stunned upon hearing this, then immediately shook his head. "Master, you have already done more than enough for me. I will find a way to obtain resources myself. I would not dare trouble you further."

Elder Wu frowned. "What way can you possibly find?"

"Didn't you say you were trying to find work for me, Master? Once I start working, I will naturally have an income..."

Elder Wu knitted his brows and fell silent for a short while. In the end, he shook his head. "How much income can the work you can do now bring? At most, enough to keep you from starving to death. You want to buy Blood-Qi Pills? One pill a year?"

"Uh, I still have over a hundred taels of silver..."

"That is only enough for around ten Blood-Qi Pills."

His master shook his head and sighed somewhat. "Poor scholars, rich martial artists. Only when you truly set foot on the path of cultivation will you understand the weight of those words... Say no more. I have my own plans for this."

Qin Fang opened his mouth, but in the end, he could only sigh softly...

...He owed his master more and more.

"In any case, the road of cultivation is blocked and long. Take it slowly."

"Alright, we will stop here today. Go back and ponder it yourself. If there is anything you do not understand, come ask me again."

After saying that, Elder Wu put on his padded jacket and prepared to leave.

Qin Fang hurriedly said, "Master, I'll make dinner. Why not eat here today?"

"No, I still need to go to Spring Return Hall... Ponder it some more yourself."

With that, Elder Wu waved his hand and walked out of the courtyard with his hands behind his back.

Qin Fang escorted him all the way to the gate. Only after Elder Wu had gone far away did he close the courtyard door.

Then he returned to the patch of ground where he had swept away the snow, let out a soft breath, closed his eyes, and continued pondering this "stance."

The martial arts of this world were far more formidable than he had imagined.

"Fundamentals and Leaf Technique... practice and eating..."

"I wonder whether the Panel can record this Stance Skill..."

He looked at the Panel with some apprehension.

...After practicing for more than an hour, there had still been no changes on the Panel.

However, his master had been there at the time, so he had been unable to devote himself fully to cultivation. That was probably the biggest reason it had not been recorded.

Taking a deep breath, Qin Fang cast aside the cluttered thoughts in his mind and began studying the Stance Skill with complete concentration.

Form...

Intent...

Breathing...

Feel the stretching of the muscles and the flow of force...

His master's guidance naturally flowed through his heart bit by bit.

Qin Fang's body began moving according to those instructions.

He experienced every essential movement, the stretching of his muscles and bones, the rhythm of his heartbeat and breathing...

Slowly, slowly, he even forgot the passage of time.

He simply comprehended it amid the snow blanketing the sky and earth.

Who knew how much time had passed...

At a certain moment, his body suddenly rose and fell slightly. In the next instant, a faint thump sounded from within his body!

Though it lasted only an instant, to Qin Fang's ears, it was like thunder exploding.

"Bones-and-Tendons Resonance?!"

He abruptly opened his eyes.

But when he listened again, it had vanished.

As he stood there in a daze, he thought of something and instinctively looked toward the Panel.

There was an extra line of text on it.

"Ox-Strength Stance (Low-Grade Fundamental) (Initiation Stage): 1/500"

His eyes immediately lit up...

...The Stance Skill had entered the Initiation Stage just like that?

His eyes widened. Unable to wait any longer, he took a deep breath, suppressed his surging emotions, and began standing in the stance once more...

Not long afterward, he vaguely heard the faint sound of drumbeats softly ringing within his body.

He felt as though his entire body were a drawn bow, an unprecedented sense of clarity flooding his mind and spirit...

Bones-and-Tendons Resonance!

Skin-Membrane Drumbeat!

Though it was still far, far less shocking than his master's "drumbeats."

There was no mistake about it...

Qin Fang's eyes widened.

In other words, he had just...

Reached Bright Force?