Blood and Qi Threshold

"Shen Wu broke through!"

"What? It's only been a few days, and his fist technique has already crossed the threshold?!"

That day, Wei Luo was immersed in practicing his fists when a commotion broke out beside him.

He turned to look and saw quite a few people gathered around Shen Wu, who was basking in their envious gazes.

The five of them had learned the fist technique together, yet he had been the fastest to break through, taking only thirteen days.

In truth, if Shen Wu had not taught the others the fist technique and had poured all his time into himself, he might have been even faster.

Before long, Luo Sanhu started egging Shen Wu on to test his punching strength. Shen Wu immediately smashed through a wooden stake as thick as a bowl rim with one punch, drawing another wave of astonished exclamations.

Not long after, Master Qin appeared as well.

Master Qin had never shown them a pleasant face before, yet today he smiled and praised Shen Wu a few times. Then, before everyone, he gave Shen Wu an allotment of Bone-Strengthening Soup.

This time, even the Sun Family crew members watching from the sidelines looked at Shen Wu with a trace of envy.

Even old crew members like them did not receive such treatment. If they wanted medicinal soup to aid their cultivation, they could only spend their own money to buy it.

Everyone felt that so long as Shen Wu cultivated steadily, his future achievements would surely be far from modest.

"With roots and comprehension as good as Shen Wu's, even the Sun Family probably won't dare look down on him in the future."

Liu Changle watched Shen Wu standing at the center of the crowd like stars surrounding the moon, unable to hide the envy on his face.

Just two days ago, he had finally passed the assessment and begun learning the fist technique.

But now, with only a little over half a month remaining of the two-month deadline to enter the fist technique and become a crew member, he wished he could spend all twelve double-hours of every day practicing.

When he had first entered the Sun Family, Liu Changle had thought that martial arts were nothing special. As long as he was willing to train, he would surely be among the most outstanding.

But now, he had to admit that there was a vast gulf between people.

"Wei Luo, he's already become a crew member. When do you think the two of us will manage to enter the fist technique?"

Liu Changle turned toward Wei Luo beside him, only to find that Wei Luo had long since sunk back into his fist practice, deaf to his words.

To Wei Luo, whether others succeeded or failed did not mean much. He might as well focus on himself.

In the blink of an eye, another ten days passed. From the moment Wei Luo opened his eyes, he practiced his fists; when he closed them, he slept.

Thanks to the three taels of silver Feng Hao had contributed and the Sun Family's meat, he no longer needed to fish on the river during this period.

Less than ten days remained of the two-month deadline. Nearly everyone was holding back a breath and practicing their fists desperately, but there were very few who could truly perform the fist technique with any semblance of form.

Those who had previously spent money to learn the fist technique were too eager for quick success, and their progress had instead been slow.

Meanwhile, Liu Changle followed Wei Luo's advice, advancing steadily step by step. He improved rapidly, with the air of one who had come from behind to overtake the rest.

From the first day he entered the Sun Family's side courtyard, Wei Luo had understood that martial arts were a road only a very small number of people could continue down.

Of the five who had initially passed the assessment, only Wei Luo and Bighead had yet to enter the fist technique.

Bighead's roots were decent, but he had suffered a serious illness as a child, leaving his body badly depleted. That was why he had been unable to break through for so long.

As for Wei Luo, his roots were simply too ordinary. It seemed he had encountered a bottleneck.

[Folding Waves Fist Progress Deduction]

[Time required: one breath]

[Current progress: 20%]

From dusk until late at night, Wei Luo finished several rounds of Folding Waves Fist on the training ground, yet his progress did not increase in the slightest. This had already been happening for several days.

"Is this the first blood and qi threshold?"

"Sure enough, my roots are simply too ordinary. Even if I went back and reinforced the foundations of my fist stances, it would be useless."

Wei Luo let out a long sigh. It was not as though he had not worked hard these past days, but no matter how hard he tried, he had not received the returns he deserved.

His roots were weaker than the others', and the blood and qi threshold before him seemed unbreakable.

Yet Wei Luo did not choose to give up. There were still seven or eight days left before the two-month deadline.

From the first day he entered the Sun Family's side courtyard, Master Qin had said that martial arts were thirty percent training and seventy percent eating.

If one's roots were insufficient, then resources would have to make up the difference.

The first thing that came to his mind was Treasure Fish.

During these days of training with the Sun Family crew members, he had already heard plenty of information about Treasure Fish.

For instance, eating one Treasure Fish could equal a month of bitter cultivation, and Treasure Fish came in all grades and ranks.

Having gathered this information, the Great Thousand Revelation's deduction time for Treasure Fish had shortened considerably as well.

[Treasure Fish Deduction within Ten Li of Pingjiang Town]

[Time required: 6 days]

Wei Luo had previously made a deduction under the same conditions, and it had taken more than half a month.

Looking at it now, even six days did not seem reliable, since he also had to consider whether he could catch one.

Wei Luo needed more information about Treasure Fish to shorten the deduction time and make things more secure.

"But where can I get that information?"

Wei Luo murmured, and before long, he thought of someone.

The next day, Wei Luo no longer practiced his fists. Instead, he left the Sun Family's side courtyard and made his way through streets and alleyways toward the inner city.

Pingjiang Town was divided into an inner city and an outer city. As he entered the inner city from the outer city, more and more shops lined the streets, and the roads were far livelier than those in the outer city.

Wei Luo bought some braised meat and soon arrived before a grand courtyard of Sun Manor.

Vermilion gates, glazed tiles, and two enormous stone lions over two meters tall stood before the entrance. The courtyard gate was practically wider than the road.

All of it displayed the Sun Family's power. In all of Pingjiang Town, they ranked among the foremost.

The courtyard gates stood open, with two gatekeepers waiting outside.

Wei Luo stepped forward and stated his purpose.

"Please notify Steward Li that I've come to see him."

"Wait a moment."

Before long, someone emerged from within the courtyard.

"I was wondering who had come looking for me. So it's my worthy nephew!"

Seeing that it was Wei Luo, Steward Li immediately came forward with a warm smile, addressing him with great familiarity.

Three months ago, Steward Li's wife had returned to her maiden home for a visit. After she came back, she contracted a strange illness.

Fortunately, Wei Luo's Crimson Firefin had appeared just in time. Had it come any later, the Li Family might have been arranging a funeral.

Thus, calling Wei Luo Steward Li's benefactor would not have been an exaggeration.

The two entered the accounts room. Steward Li brewed tea and poured water before finally speaking.

"Worthy nephew, you've come today because of martial arts, haven't you?"

Wei Luo was surprised. "How did you know?"

Steward Li smiled.

"Though I don't usually go to the side courtyard, I handle more than half the Sun Family's affairs, so naturally I know the situation over there."

"Worthy nephew, you haven't entered the fist technique yet, have you? If there's anything I can help with, just say the word."

"Though I can't interfere with the side courtyard's internal affairs, I can still help you secure some medicinal soups that replenish blood and qi, such as Bone-Strengthening Soup..."

Wei Luo could hear the sincerity in Steward Li's tone, but medicinal soup like Bone-Strengthening Soup could not change anything for him in the short term.

Thus, Wei Luo shook his head and said,

"Steward Li, I haven't come for those things today."

Steward Li was immediately puzzled. The two-month deadline was nearly here.

This was precisely the time to use resources to gamble on the final few days. If Wei Luo did not want those things, then what did he want?

"Worthy nephew, could it be that you want a little more time? That won't do. Those are rules set by the main family. Even I can do nothing about them."

Wei Luo immediately realized that Steward Li had misunderstood and hurriedly said,

"Steward Li, I merely heard that the Sun Family has many books concerning Treasure Fish. I wonder if I might borrow them for a look."

This left Steward Li even more surprised.

Wei Luo was a martial artist. Instead of practicing his fists, he wanted to borrow books?

"There are books on Treasure Fish. I can borrow them for you directly, but what do you want that stuff for?"

Wei Luo did not hide it and answered frankly.

"I want to catch a Treasure Fish and use it to strengthen my blood and qi, so I can enter the fist technique."

Once he finished speaking, Steward Li's eyes widened, his face full of disbelief. He had not expected Wei Luo to have such an idea, and he immediately tried to dissuade him.

"Worthy nephew, you should give up on that thought. Don't think that just because you were lucky enough to catch one Treasure Fish, you'll be able to catch a second."

"On the Hun River, some fishermen spend most of their lives before catching even one or two. I advise you to be more practical. I'll prepare a few bowls of Bone-Strengthening Soup for you. Practice your fists well, and perhaps you'll still have some hope."