Blood River Realm, Achieved!

Dawn was just breaking when the Central Courtyard of the River-Breaking Fist Academy rang with the orderly whoosh of fists cutting through the air.

Chen Jing stepped into the courtyard through the morning dew. He exchanged greetings with no one, heading straight for an empty patch in the corner. He planted his feet shoulder-width apart, assumed the opening stance of the River-Breaking Fist, then threw a punch. The fist wind carried the coolness of dawn, landing with a muffled whoosh.

Chen Jing repeated the moves of the River-Breaking Fist again and again. Every punch landed precisely where it should, and his qi and blood flowed steadily through his meridians with each movement. Sweat soon soaked through the back of his clothes, but he showed no sign of stopping.

The disciples practicing nearby slowed their movements at the sight and began murmuring among themselves.

"Junior Brother Chen really has stamina. He's been working harder and harder."

A senior brother wiped the sweat from his brow, his voice full of admiration.

Another disciple chimed in, "You can say that again. Ever since Senior Brother Zhou Xiu left, he's been the hardest-working person in the Central Courtyard. He's always the first to arrive and the last to leave."

"And what does hard work get you?"

A cold snort rang out, cutting off their praise.

Xiang Lingfei stood not far away with his arms crossed, a mocking smile curling his lips. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to everyone present. "On the path of martial arts, talent is what matters."

"If your natural constitution isn't good enough, then no matter how hard you push yourself, you'll be stuck spinning your wheels in the Blood Creek Realm. You won't break through to the Blood River Realm, and in the end, you'll wind up just like Zhou Xiu!"

At that, Xiang Lingfei paused and swept his gaze over the surrounding disciples, his tone growing more contemptuous. "What good is brute effort? Without the talent for it, all that hard work is a waste!"

The Central Courtyard fell silent.

Many disciples' faces darkened, and they glared at Xiang Lingfei.

His words weren't merely aimed at Chen Jing. He'd put down every disciple in the academy except himself, calling them all untalented mediocrities.

After all, Xiang Lingfei was one of the most gifted disciples in the entire River-Breaking Fist Academy. Though he'd joined late, he'd quickly caught up with the senior brothers, earning Fei Feng's favor.

But that favor had only made him more arrogant. He'd always looked down on everyone, and now he'd grown even more careless with his words.

The disciples were all seething with resentment, but no one dared to speak up. Everyone knew how highly Fei Feng regarded Xiang Lingfei. Offending him would make life at the academy difficult from then on.

So they could only force down their anger, turn away in silence, and resume practicing. Their punches now carried a little more pent-up frustration.

"Junior Brother Xiang, leave some room in your words."

Zhuang Tao walked over with a frown and said sternly, "Practicing martial arts takes perseverance. Junior Brother Chen works hard and keeps to himself. Why do you have to pick a fight with him?"

"I'm only trying to help him."

Xiang Lingfei scoffed and glanced toward Chen Jing, his voice laced with disdain. "I'd rather he not waste his effort and end up with ruptured qi and blood, his martial path destroyed. By then, it'll be too late to cry."

Feeling the crowd's angry yet silent stares, Xiang Lingfei grew even more pleased with himself.

He glanced at Chen Jing, who remained focused on his training as if he hadn't heard a word, then snorted and reluctantly moved aside to practice.

In truth, ever since Liu Chuzhou had tried to recruit Chen Jing, Xiang Lingfei had been simmering with a nameless rage that left him restless.

Only after seeing that Chen Jing hadn't gone to meet Liu Chuzhou these past few days had Xiang Lingfei finally felt a little relieved.

He was terrified that Chen Jing might actually agree to join the Liu Family. If that happened, the attention that had once revolved around him—and the resources the Liu Family had promised him—would all be snatched away by Chen Jing.

But that relief hadn't lasted long. Deeper frustration and resentment had soon taken its place.

To curry favor with Liu Chuzhou, he'd waited on him hand and foot, treading carefully and hardly daring to breathe too loudly for fear of displeasing him.

But Chen Jing, on the other hand, had thought nothing of the Liu Family's offer. He'd simply refused it outright.

The gulf between their attitudes made Xiang Lingfei feel as though he'd been made a head shorter than Chen Jing. Jealousy and humiliation tangled together, turning into an even fiercer hatred of him.

Especially after what Liu Chuzhou had said in front of everyone at the restaurant last time. His words had driven a needle straight into Xiang Lingfei's heart, filling him with a powerful sense of danger.

Now, seeing Chen Jing's astonishing rate of progress, Xiang Lingfei had finally stopped slacking and started pushing himself to improve.

But there was no reverence for martial arts in his newfound diligence. He was driven entirely by anxiety and fear—not afraid of failing to master his punches, but of being surpassed by Chen Jing, of seeing everything he was proud of become a joke.

Meanwhile, Chen Jing had ignored the surrounding chatter and Xiang Lingfei's taunts from beginning to end.

His mind was wholly immersed in his fist technique, as though nothing beyond it had anything to do with him. He simply threw and withdrew his fists again and again, polishing every detail of the River-Breaking Fist to perfection.

As he continued to practice, Chen Jing could clearly feel his qi and blood growing restless, surging and churning through his meridians like a volcano about to erupt.

His chance to break through had come!

Chen Jing took a deep breath, his chest rising slightly, then suddenly sped up his punches.

His steady fist shadows turned fierce in an instant. Fist wind roared, afterimages overlapped, and the whooshing sound of air being cleaved filled the courtyard.

As his speed climbed, a strange flush spread across Chen Jing's cheeks, neck, and arms. The temperature around him kept rising, and white steam rose from his sweat-soaked clothes like vapor from boiling water, enveloping him in a cloud of mist.

The sight instantly drew everyone's attention.

The disciples stopped practicing and stared toward Chen Jing, eyes wide with disbelief.

One disciple cried out, his voice full of shock. "Th-this is a breakthrough! Is Junior Brother Chen trying to break into the Blood River Realm?"

Another disciple was just as stunned. He rubbed his eyes, thinking he must have seen wrong. "My heavens, that's fast! I remember Junior Brother Chen broke through to the Blood Creek Realm just over a month ago. How has he already gathered enough qi and blood to break through to the Blood River Realm?"

Someone murmured, his gaze shifting between Chen Jing and Xiang Lingfei. "Isn't he progressing quite a bit faster than Junior Brother Xiang did when he broke through to the Blood Creek Realm?"

As the chatter swelled around them, Zhuang Tao stood to one side with a knowing smile.

A few days ago, Liu Chuzhou had said at the restaurant that Chen Jing was close to breaking through to Second Blood. Now it seemed Liu Chuzhou's judgment had been right.

The disciples' chatter also drew Fei Feng out from the rear courtyard.

He pushed open the door and stepped out, his gaze immediately fixing on Chen Jing, who was shrouded in white mist. His eyes narrowed slightly, and a trace of surprise flickered in them.

He had personally examined Chen Jing's natural constitution back then. It had been below average. How could Chen Jing be cultivating so quickly?

Had he misjudged him?

Fei Feng was full of doubt. He fixed his eyes on Chen Jing, unwilling to miss a single detail.

On the other side of the courtyard, Xiang Lingfei stopped punching when he heard the others' chatter. His face turned ugly, and he roared inwardly, Already? How is that possible?!

He had joined later than Chen Jing, and the two of them had broken through to the Blood Creek Realm only days apart. All along, he'd considered himself the most talented disciple in the academy.

Yet now Chen Jing was trying to break through to the Blood River Realm ahead of him. He couldn't accept it.

Impossible! His natural constitution is clearly worse than mine. How could he gather qi and blood faster than I can?

Xiang Lingfei clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white, jealousy and resentment flashing in his eyes. It must be an illusion. He definitely won't break through!

He forcibly suppressed his panic and consoled himself. Who doesn't know how hard it is to break through from the Blood Creek Realm to the Blood River Realm? He's only just gathered his qi and blood, so his foundation must be unstable. If he tries to break through in such a rush, he's bound to fail! That's right. He'll definitely fail!

Clinging to that thought, Xiang Lingfei stared fixedly at Chen Jing, eager to see him fail and his qi and blood collapse in utter disarray.

Chen Jing didn't notice the watching crowd. His entire mind was focused on the qi and blood within him.

He could clearly feel it surging like a mighty flood, crashing again and again against that invisible barrier.

But the barrier was far sturdier than he'd imagined. Each impact sent his qi and blood hurtling back, while waves of pain shot through his meridians.

With every collision, the qi and blood inside Chen Jing steadily dwindled. His punches slowed, the strange flush began to fade, and the white mist around him thinned.

At the sight, the surrounding disciples shook their heads, their faces filled with regret.

"Alas, it looks like he can't do it. Junior Brother Chen's breakthrough is going to fail."

"That's right. His punches are getting slower and slower, and his qi and blood can't keep up. The Blood River Realm isn't that easy to break through to. He rushed into it too soon."

A trace of regret flickered in Zhuang Tao's eyes. He sighed softly. "Was he still a little short?"

After all, he himself had failed once before finally breaking through to the Blood River Realm.

Xiang Lingfei's heart immediately settled when he saw this, and an almost imperceptible smile curled his lips.

As expected, Chen Jing wasn't up to it!

As long as Chen Jing failed, he would remain the most talented disciple in the River-Breaking Fist Academy. No one could shake his position.

Fei Feng slowly shook his head as well, disappointment flickering in his eyes.

He knew that when breaking through from the Blood Creek Realm to the Blood River Realm, the most important thing was to press the attack in one go and shatter the bottleneck while one's qi and blood were still surging.

Now Chen Jing's qi and blood were already waning. Breaking through would be harder than ever.

One hard push, then it waned, then it was spent. Once qi and blood ran low, gathering them again would take a great deal of time.

Yet just as everyone thought Chen Jing was going to fail, there wasn't the slightest hint of retreat in his eyes. Instead, they blazed with resolve.

Feeling the qi and blood inside him continue to ebb, Chen Jing drew a deep breath and clenched his teeth. How can I fail!

His father was still waiting for him to reclaim the wages that had been withheld. His elder sister and second elder sister were still counting on him to give them better lives. He couldn't stop here!

The next moment, as he continued punching, Chen Jing's thoughts stirred and he instantly activated the Burning Pulse Breakthrough Technique!

Burning Pulse Breakthrough Technique, break through for me!

Chen Jing pushed the Burning Pulse Breakthrough Technique to its limits.

A piercing pain shot through his meridians. Chen Jing forced out the reserve qi and blood hidden deep within them. Refined by the Burning Pulse Breakthrough Technique, this qi and blood was purer and more violent than before!

The Exemption Bead had exempted him from the price of using the Burning Pulse Breakthrough Technique, so Chen Jing could operate it without the slightest misgiving.

The violent, refined qi and blood squeezed from his meridians surged into his dantian, joining the qi and blood that remained. Like a flood rushing back into a dried-up riverbed, it instantly pushed Chen Jing's qi and blood back to their peak—stronger than before.

"Ha!"

Chen Jing gave a low shout. His qi and blood surged like a cannonball packed with power, bearing terrifying force as it slammed once more into the invisible barrier.

Bang!

A muffled boom, as though it came from the depths of his soul, burst inside Chen Jing.

This time, the sturdy invisible barrier could no longer withstand the impact. It shattered instantly!

In that moment, a strange sense of connection welled up within him.

His meridians, once somewhat clogged, cleared in an instant. His qi and blood flowed without the slightest hindrance, like a surging river racing through every meridian in his limbs and body.

At the same time, a red mark, much thicker than before, slowly appeared at the base of Chen Jing's arm. It stretched down his arm to his palm, qi and blood seeming to flow across its surface as it gave off a faint red glow.

The Blood River Realm—achieved!