"Next, I'll explain to you what a Secret Martial Artist is."
Hu Zhenkui stood with his hands behind his back, his tone growing solemn.
"Some of you may have heard of them, and some may not.
"But that doesn't matter.
"You only need to know that the human body conceals great mysteries and holds immense potential. Secret Martial Artists cultivate Secret Martial Arts to unlock these hidden treasures and bring out the potential within the human body."
At this point,
Hu Zhenkui paused.
"In short, the power wielded by powerful Secret Martial Artists is beyond imagination. You could think of them as more perfect human beings."
The first requirement for becoming a Secret Martial Artist was mastering "force."
As he finished speaking, his figure suddenly flickered.
He vanished from where he stood like a ghost.
In the next instant, he was beside the incense burner in the corner.
He had moved so fast that almost no one present could make out his actions.
Hu Long's heart lurched, and cold sweat broke out across his back.
At that speed, if Hu Zhenkui wanted to kill him, he doubted he'd have time to react.
"Watch closely!"
Hu Zhenkui said. As he spoke, he raised his hand like a blade and thrust it forward.
Thwack!
His arm pierced straight through the cast-iron incense burner as if it were tofu.
When he withdrew his hand, his arm was completely unharmed. The only thing left on the burner was a clean hole right through it.
Fine streams of incense ash trickled down and piled on the floor.
"Practice your punches without training your skill, and you'll have nothing to show for it in old age. The moves are the outward form; force is what lies within. The essence of Secret Martial Arts cultivation is 'force.'"
Hu Zhenkui stood with his hands behind his back and spoke slowly.
"There are many kinds of force. What I just used was only one of them."
"This..."
Everyone stared wide-eyed, stunned.
Some even wondered if the incense burner was fake and whether the clan leader was playing a trick on them.
Hu Long, meanwhile, looked thoughtful.
In that brief moment,
he thought he'd seen Hu Zhenkui's palm turn slightly red, though perhaps it had just been his imagination.
He remembered that Hu Zhenkui's skill panel listed a skill called Red Sand Hand. Perhaps the two were related.
Unable to resist, Hu Zetong stepped forward and knocked on the burner.
Hu Zhenkui smiled without a word and let him examine it.
Hu Zetong's knuckles made a dull sound against the iron. He also tested its considerable weight, then blurted out,
"Holy crap, it's real!"
He immediately realized he'd let his excitement get the better of him and hurriedly lowered his head.
"Great-grandfather Clan Leader, I..."
"It's fine."
Hu Zhenkui waved a hand.
"You can all come up and check whether it's really a prop."
Who wouldn't yearn for extraordinary power?
Deep in their blood and genes, humans had an almost instinctive longing for strength and the supernatural, whether they were men or women.
The group took turns touching and inspecting the burner. Every face was filled with disbelief and shock.
Hu Long was no different.
He stared at the slightly reddened edges of the hole, his expression grave.
Even with the strength he had now, enough to lift a thousand catties with ease, he could never have done something like that.
This wasn't simply a matter of physical strength. Hu Zhenkui had clearly mastered a kind of power Hu Long had never encountered.
If he had to describe it, it was as if, for that instant, Hu Zhenkui's palm had turned into an extremely sharp blade, vibrating at high frequency. That was the only way it could have pierced the cast-iron burner so easily.
"Clan Leader, do Secret Martial Artists have different ranks? Is it like in games?"
Hu Zetong asked.
His round face was now alight with excitement and fervor.
He was at that age when everything seemed cool. After seeing Hu Zhenkui demonstrate his abilities, he was so excited he was practically buzzing.
The others felt much the same.
No matter how flashy a character's skills were in a game, nothing could compare to the thrill of gaining that kind of power for yourself.
"Cultivating Secret Martial Arts isn't a game!"
Hu Zhenkui chuckled and stroked his beard.
"Secret Martial Arts may be called different things in different eras and regions.
"But at their core, they're methods created by humans to break through the limits of the body in pursuit of greater power."
He paused, then continued.
"Still, you were right about one thing: Secret Martial Artists do have different levels. The higher the level, the stronger they are..."
Before long, thanks to his explanation,
everyone had gained a general understanding of Secret Martial Artists.
The path of Secret Martial Arts began with ordinary people and was divided into seven major realms:
Tendon Changing, Body Casting, Skin Refining, Bone Tempering, Organ Strengthening, Blood Exchange, and Origin Pellet.
Tendon Changing: This realm could also be called the realm of technique.
Strictly speaking, it didn't yet count as the level of a true Secret Martial Artist.
Through systematic training, ordinary people could coordinate and integrate the muscles and fascia throughout their bodies.
After training their bodies to the limit,
they could gain physical abilities beyond those of ordinary people and begin to wield Integrated Force.
They could channel force through their entire body, gathering the power of their legs, waist, and arms into a single burst to deliver a blow beyond their usual strength.
The second realm was Body Casting.
It could be considered the first step through the door to becoming a Secret Martial Artist. To reach this realm, one had to completely master Integrated Force.
Those who reached this realm had their bodies strengthened by force, giving them reaction speeds and endurance far beyond ordinary people.
The third realm was Skin Refining. Reaching this realm required comprehending Bright Force and refining the skin.
Those who reached this realm could withstand blades and swords.
And if they broke through to the late stage of the Skin Refining Realm, they could even withstand fire from small-caliber firearms.
As for the next realm, Bone Tempering, it required comprehending Dark Force. Practitioners could then temper and strengthen their bones, becoming even more powerful.
As for the realms beyond that—Organ Strengthening, Blood Exchange, and Origin Pellet—Hu Zhenkui didn't elaborate.
All he said was,
"One shouldn't aim too high on the path of Secret Martial Arts. You should keep your feet on the ground. Once you reach the necessary level, you can think about what comes next."
At that, no one felt they could press him for more.
But Hu Long was an exception.
Thinking of the skill information he'd seen on Hu Zhenkui earlier,
Hu Long immediately understood.
The clan leader himself had only reached Bone Tempering. He probably didn't know much about the realms beyond that, so he couldn't say more.
"So that force-generating technique is called Integrated Force? If that's the case, I've already reached the peak of Tendon Changing, haven't I?"
A look of realization flashed through Hu Long's eyes.
"Today, I mainly wanted to tell you about Secret Martial Artists.
"Tomorrow, you'll need to go somewhere else to cultivate Secret Martial Arts. Someone will be there to teach you."
Hu Zhenkui said.
With that,
a member of the main clan stepped forward from behind him.
He handed a card to each of the five, including Hu Long.
The card was pure black, with delicate golden tassel patterns on one side.
"These are your identification cards. If you lose one, you'll need to get a replacement."
"Now, if you have any questions, you may ask."
Hu Zhenkui looked at the five of them.
"Clan Leader, I have something to ask."
At that moment,
Hu Long's gaze shifted. As if something had occurred to him, he was the first to speak up.
"Go ahead. What is it?"
Hu Zhenkui nodded.
With Innate Divine Strength and some command of Integrated Force, Hu Long had clear talent.
So Hu Zhenkui treated him warmly.
"It's like this. My sister used to have a boyfriend..."
Hu Long briefly explained Xue Wu's situation, leaving out how he'd gone to kill him and omitting a few other details.
He told them almost everything else.
He also told them about the strange ghostlike thing he'd seen.
As for that, Hu Chengwen had once asked people from the main clan about it, and they surely knew already. He might as well say it outright.
"I want to know whether I really was afflicted by some kind of curse. If I cultivate Secret Martial Arts, can I prevent something like that from happening again?"
Hu Long said.
This was also one of the main reasons he'd come to attend the Ancestral Rite.