First Martial Art at Completion (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

In the small courtyard, Wang Xuance gradually grew accustomed to the boost in his realm and prepared to advance his martial art!

After all, he had no idea what unexpected changes might occur when a martial art was pushed to completion. He could not help feeling somewhat uneasy.

"Whew~~"

Letting out a light breath of stale air, Wang Xuance sat atop a stone slab in the courtyard.

With a thought, he slowly infused True Martial Qi into the Vajra Fist. The sinews in both arms began to writhe, while a faint bloody red aura curled around his body.

"A martial art at completion... I wonder just how far my strength will soar..."

Boom!

The heavy blood and qi within him, dense as liquid silver and mercury, seemed like gunpowder set alight and exploded with a thunderous roar.

It surged madly into the sinews of his arms. The tearing sensation of something foreign invading him made him grit his teeth.

"Hiss!"

In an instant, he sharply sucked in a breath. Dull thumping sounds came from the flesh of both arms, pulsing and bulging.

With a crack, his flesh burst apart. White bones protruded from both arms, and only a tiny trace of dark-red sinew and flesh remained on his palms.

The agonizing pain of marrow being drawn and flesh nailed down nearly made him pass out. Why was advancing this martial art so unbearably painful this time?

Of course, he did not know that this Vajra Fist was merely a crude fragment of a martial art, not a truly complete one!

It had originally been a fist art created by an ancient Buddhist monk after observing the unbroken tide line of the Guangling River.

Buddhist ascetic cultivation had always centered on endurance and restraint. Now that this fist art had reached completion, the suffering it required went without saying.

Layer upon layer of flesh and fascia began to regrow, squirming like earthworms. With every strand that grew, a faint golden shadow appeared upon the stark white bones.

Once the golden sheen covered all ten bone fingers, Wang Xuance's mind suddenly sank. His hands felt countless times heavier, forcing them down to the ground.

The sheer weight of his palms crushed the granite paving beneath them until it shattered.

Thud!!

[The Vajra Fist has reached completion. Fifth fist technique bestowed: Fist Shatters the Tides.]

[With the body as the center, activate this fist form. So long as blood and qi remain unextinguished, fist force will not cease. It can shatter towering waves without allowing so much as a wisp of water vapor to dampen one's clothes.]

A warm current, tranquil and profound, containing mysterious secrets, slowly flowed through his heart. When he came back to himself, the flesh on his arms and palms had already regrown, revealing a faint jade-like gleam beneath the moonlight.

Jade radiance flashed in formation, containing immense and righteous force!

His blood and qi poured like a rainbow back into his dantian's sea of qi. His breath slowed from rapid to steady, gradually entering a wondrous state. With a pfft, Wang Xuance's black robe billowed without wind, and a fierce gust swept through the courtyard.

With swishing sounds, countless fallen leaves shook loose. Wang Xuance lightly threw a punch, without the slightest hint of fireworks or spectacle, as though an ordinary child were laughing and playing, casually stretching his fists and legs.

As he struck, the fist force drew inward. It lacked the former bold, fierce power and sweeping momentum, instead returning to simplicity and displaying utter calm.

Wang Xuance glanced over. The fallen leaves silently shattered into tiny chips, scattering through the air with a gust of wind.

The force reached the veins of the leaves, severing their life.

He casually picked up a short blade from the courtyard, gathered his strength, and brought it down fiercely. With a crack, the edge curled backward, leaving only a faint white mark on the skin of his palm.

He smashed the blade with one punch, snapping it on the spot. The broken blade spun away and nailed itself into a stone slab, buried deep as though driven into wood!

"The toughness of my skin has increased tremendously as well. That makes up for my weakness of not knowing how to use weapons. Tomorrow's martial meet may well be worth fighting for!"

"It is just a pity that after being drained again and again, my True Martial Qi is almost gone. I'll wait until after tomorrow's martial meet before advancing the Great Arm Scripture's martial art progress!"

After experiencing the power of the Vajra Fist, Wang Xuance developed immense interest in the Great Arm Scripture.

He summoned the martial path panel. The line of gilded characters at the bottom appeared pale and feeble.

[True Martial Qi]: ten strands

"Back to square one in a single stroke. In the end, I still have no stable source of True Martial Qi."

The next day, radiant light like brilliant sunset clouds shone over all of White Light City.

At the round pit in the center of the outer city, all ten arenas had been removed overnight, replaced by a newly erected circular platform roughly six zhang across.

More than ten people stood in succession before General Li.

"This arena will proceed through successive martial bouts to determine the top five! Draw lots now!"

"If you cannot defeat your opponent, you may admit defeat and beg for mercy. Deliberately taking lives is forbidden!"

Wang Xuance casually drew a bamboo lot from a sealed wooden box in a basket.

"Number three. I wonder who my opponent will be!"

His gaze swept over the elite disciples from the six martial halls. Most wore arrogant expressions and did not regard him at all. Only when they looked at Wu Shan did they show a trace of wariness.

"Heh, they've really underestimated me."

Touching his nose, he stepped down from the arena alone and waited for his turn, intending to see which martial halls would clash in the opening match.

Because he wore a green mask, no one came to speak with him. The spot where he stood was especially deserted.

"Martial artists who drew lot number one, get on the stage!"

The referee stood atop the platform and shouted.

Before long, a man and a woman emerged from opposite sides of the arena. Wang Xuance focused his gaze and could not help staring in surprise.

The woman who stepped onto the platform had arched brows dark as ink, red lips, and white teeth. She wore a silk robe and embroidered shoes, every bit the modest young lady awaiting marriage in her chamber.

Ning Caier, one of Mo Wushuang's personal disciples at the White Ape Martial Hall, possessed exceptional martial talent and an understanding of blade techniques far beyond ordinary people.

Her waist was slender enough to encircle with one hand, yet she carried a black broad-bladed saber twice her own height on her back. Anyone seeing it would fear that the blade might snap her slender waist in two.

Clang—

The woman kicked backward with her embroidered shoe and twisted the saber hilt in her hand. The entire blade came off her back, and when it landed upon the platform, it sank deeply into the ground.

"This woman's really fierce..."

Wang Xuance then looked toward the man in short, fitted martial attire opposite her.

Li Fengshou, one of the Forest Martial Hall's two elite disciples and the only one to enter the "second round" arena.

As the martial hall with the fewest disciples among the six martial halls of White Light Outer City, the Forest Martial Hall required its disciples to have at least above-average natural aptitude before accepting them.

Every disciple practiced the Azure Wood Embracing Simplicity Art as their foundational stance technique. Although it increased blood and qi slowly, it was enduring and unbroken: "Inhale like a whale drawing in currents, exhale with calm composure."

Anyone who could stand out from the martial hall naturally possessed no weak attainment in stance practice.

What astonished Wang Xuance even more was the strange long sword in the man's hand. Its blade was more than four chi long but less than two fingers wide, like a slender willow branch.

One wielded a blade as broad as a man, while the other held a sword as narrow as a finger. Broad against long, saber against sword—another battle between dragon and tiger.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

As the referee struck the bronze gong with his staff, the sound announced that the pair could begin their deadly contest and determine their rankings.

"Axe Splits Mount Hua!"

The woman kicked the blade's body sideways with her embroidered shoe. The saber followed her force, bursting from the ground in a single motion. Her delicate jade hand supported the great blade and swept it upward at an angle, tracing a perfectly round arc of steel.

It slashed down at Li Fengshou's head with the force of splitting bamboo, seizing the initiative with a thunderous first strike!

"You've got nerve!"

Li Fengshou shouted, tapped his foot, and slid backward like a dragonfly skimming the water. With a sweep of his sleeve, the willow-leaf sword shot forth, darting like lightning toward Ning Caier's face.

The exchange of offense and defense took no more than a blink.

"The Forest Martial Hall truly selects the best from among the good. Their disciples are indeed extraordinary!"

"That Ning Caier is strong too! Such a broad saber—I couldn't even swing it!"

"If you ask me, neither of them is as formidable as that young man in black!"

The crowd beneath the stands burst into praise, voices rising over one another in lively excitement.

Clang—

Blinding sparks shot through the air like arrows, scattering in all directions as the battle grew incomparably savage.

Ning Caier pressed down with her heavy saber, swept it sideways, then lifted its edge. With a ripping sound, she sliced open Li Fengshou's robe across the chest.

"Defeating enemies with brute force—Ning Caier truly deserves to be a personal disciple of the White Ape Martial Hall. She has some real skill!"

Wang Xuance could clearly see that she wielded the saber as naturally as an arm, agile and ingenious, without the slightest sluggishness.

Yet every strike was tremendously powerful and impossible to meet head-on. She could make it heavy when she wished, light when she wished. It showed both her outstanding arm strength and exquisite control of force. If he faced her himself, she would likely prove quite troublesome!

"It seems cultivating a weapon alongside martial arts is truly vital!"

Clang!!

Another clash of metal rang out. The willow sword struck left and darted right, its attacks treacherous and strange.

At times, it intercepted and thrust at Ning Caier's neck; at others, it swept flatly toward her shoulder. Though its force was weak, the sword edge was vicious, every move aimed to kill!

Ning Caier layered her saber defenses, its heavy edge unrivaled. Her footwork shifted and danced with astonishing dexterity.

It was White Ape Crosses the Tree from the White Ape Six Forms. Wind seemed to rise beneath her feet, and Li Fengshou's sword thrusts failed to hit their mark time and again!

In the Forest Martial Hall's spectator section, Hall Master Qian Duojin's eyes gleamed as though he was quite satisfied with his disciple!

"Master, Senior Brother Li has already used several of his proudest sword moves, yet he still hasn't taken down that bitch. Why aren't you worried at all?"

"Enough, girl. What use is worrying? Just watch. I believe that boy Fengshou has already cultivated sword qi through his swordsmanship!"

"In this battle, Ning Caier will most likely be left with nowhere to flee and no means to resist!"

The young girl who had grown up alongside Li Fengshou as childhood sweethearts widened her eyes. Her delicate hand covered her mouth, leaving her too shocked to speak!

In the White Ape Martial Hall's spectator section, Mo Wushuang likewise raised a brow and murmured with deep meaning.

"Tut, tut, girl, you've truly met an opponent this time. That's good too—it'll temper that pride of yours."