Qi and Blood Circulation, Exhaling Breath into an Arrow

"Old Man Li, I heard Zhao Tai ran into some tough guy in Green Grass Lane, got beaten to death, and then burned in a fire."

"More than that. Even the coroner said he was burned too badly to make out anything, except that his head had been smashed open. Serves him right! But that tough guy's in trouble too—someone saw he had short hair. Poison Fang Hall is searching all over the Outer City for a short-haired tough guy now."

"Then while Poison Fang Hall is busy looking for the murderer, Old Man Li, tell the people at the escort agency and have them step in. Wouldn't it be better for you to go back to sweeping floors at the escort agency? It's too easy to get bullied over at Poison Fang Hall."

"How could that work? This old man has worked there for over ten years, so I do have some connections. But how can I use them so casually? Emptying chamber pots and sweeping floors for the Green Snake Gang isn't going out to fight and kill. No one's going to die. It's fine even if there's no money—this old man still has a little savings."

"Connections ought to be saved. If some real disaster ever strikes, there'll always be somewhere to turn for help. Little Brother Jiang, this old man drank too much today and said too much... In times like these, studying under Master Qin is no use. You need to practice martial arts, you need to eat meat. Master Qin is leaving anyway. Little Brother Jiang, do you want to learn martial arts? If you do, this old man will take you to the escort agency tomorrow and have the escorts teach you a few moves..."

"Even if you can't learn much, having a stronger body means getting sick less often. Medicine is expensive these days..."

Jiang Shu did not know whether Old Man Li had a poor head for liquor, or whether his jug of wine had been too strong.

As he spoke, Old Man Li slumped over the table and fell asleep.

Jiang Shu glanced at the shabby little room, carried Old Man Li to the bed, and covered him with a quilt.

He walked out of the little house.

In Crooked Snake Alley.

There was no one around. All was silent.

The moonlight was cold and clear as it fell upon Jiang Shu.

Jiang Shu took off his padded jacket and performed the Tiger Form Three Styles—pounce! Heave! Shear!

When Zhao Tai had made things difficult for him, his thoughts had been blocked.

Kill! Kill! Kill!

But one dead Zhao Tai was far from enough!

Hall Master Zheng was still there! Poison Fang Hall was still there! The Green Snake Gang was still there!

Old Man Li still had to empty chamber pots for him.

And one day, he himself might be targeted again.

Nothing had truly changed!

How could he truly set his thoughts free and no longer be bound!

Only by fighting, only by training, only by improving himself at the fastest possible speed!

Jiang Shu threw a punch!

Qi and Blood Sensing, Qi and Blood Circulation, Whole Body Qi and Blood Great Circulation!

After three months of martial arts training, he had only reached Qi and Blood Sensing!

Slow! He was too slow, far too slow!

His sights absolutely could not remain fixed on Xuanxing.

On Xuanxing, at his current level, even if his progress was slow, it would still be enough to secure a place at a Key University. If all went smoothly, he might even compete for the Academy.

During the College Entrance Examination, he could stun everyone with a single brilliant feat and become first in the entire school in one stroke!

But what use was that!

A martial artist!

He had to become a martial artist!

Only by becoming a martial artist could he truly gain a foothold in Pingling County!

A translucent Panel appeared in his mind.

Beneath the moon, Jiang Shu practiced stances, breathed, and threw punches again and again.

No points to add.

Then... he would grind himself to the breaking point!

Drenched in sweat, Jiang Shu's heart for martial arts could not be stopped by the biting cold wind.

He seemed to have entered a state of sudden enlightenment.

Pounce! Heave! Shear!

He executed every move from different angles, while running the Hungry Tiger Breathing Method even as he fought.

At last, he discovered the greatest difference between the Hungry Tiger Sitting Cave Stance and Hungry Tiger Breathing Method, and the Horse Stance.

It was not that they were harder to begin with, nor that their limits were higher.

It was that the Hungry Tiger Sitting Cave Stance and Hungry Tiger Breathing Method required one to hold a breath of killing intent!

Coordination of the body was certainly important.

But without that breath of killing intent!

Even if he used the Panel to grind his skills to their limits, he might still be unable to unleash his greatest strength!

Having ten parts of strength!

Did not mean possessing ten parts of combat power!

"Hah!"

Jiang Shu withdrew his fists. His hands slowly returned to his abdomen; he lifted them slightly, then pressed them down.

On the Panel:

Jiang Shu—

Great Jing Dynasty Language/Writing: Beginner (998/1000)

Horse Stance: Minor Accomplishment (596/1000)

Hungry Tiger Sitting Cave Stance: Beginner (230/1000)

Hungry Tiger Breathing Method: Beginner (230/1000)

Tiger Form Three Styles: Beginner (160/1000)

Two Worlds Travel Countdown: 00:00

Compared to before he had crossed over, everything except language and writing had improved. The Tiger Form Three Styles in particular seemed to have entered an explosive period, rising by nearly a hundred proficiency points in just over a dozen hours.

Jiang Shu finished his practice and slowly adjusted his breathing.

In the distance, the night watchman's clapper sounded as it drew closer, then gradually faded away.

He returned to his room and crossed over.

Xuanxing, seven in the morning.

Jiang Shu changed into an ordinary cotton-lined long-sleeved shirt and pushed open his bedroom door.

Though one of his parents drove Didi and the other ran a shop, seemingly free in their schedules, what they earned was money paid for with toil. They had risen early and both left before six.

As for his younger sister, she should still be sleeping in. Especially in winter, she was like an animal about to hibernate; before ten o'clock, she would never think of leaving her warm blankets.

Jiang Shu poured hot water from the thermos and drank two large cups on an empty stomach.

He opened his phone, tapped Long Cao Yan Tuanzi's profile picture, and transferred another fifty. "I'm going out to practice martial arts. Order yourself some takeout if there's anything you want to eat."

He also glanced at his balance.

2222.3.

It seemed it was time to make money...

Jiang Shu put away his phone. With his ability to travel between two worlds, there were far too many ways to make money.

For example, meat was extremely expensive in Pingling County. One jin of meat cost one qian of silver.

One qian of silver was worth around fifty yuan on Xuanxing.

Yet one jin of meat only cost around twenty yuan.

Just by reselling it, he could make more than double the profit!

And in Pingling County, the exchange rate between silver and gold was ten to one, while on Xuanxing, it was one hundred to one.

He could take silver, exchange it for gold in Pingling County, then return to Xuanxing and exchange it back into silver.

A capital of ten taels of silver would become a hundred taels after one trip back and forth!

But a common man committed no crime by possessing jade, yet was punished for it.

He was not even a martial artist. If he dared deal in meat or gold in Pingling County, how much courage would that take?

Of the County Government, wealthy households, and gangs within the county town, which one was harmless?

Who would tolerate someone making a fortune right under their noses like that?

In that world, without sufficient strength or backing, he absolutely could not reveal wealth that did not match his status.

Only on Xuanxing...

A thought flashed through his mind.

Jiang Shu went to a breakfast shop and ate four baskets of soup dumplings, two fried dough sticks, and a bowl of noodle soup with chunks of meat.

The cold wind was biting.

The Huan Cheng River, its last thin layer of ice melted away, shimmered beneath the sunlight.

There was no one here in the morning; few people ever came.

Several meters away, the sound of traffic on the road reached Jiang Shu through the trees.

He settled into a firm Horse Stance.

He practiced the Horse Stance by the Huan Cheng River, went home and crossed over, trained cultivation, nourishment, and combat as one at the Hungry Tiger Martial Hall, crossed over again, then practiced stances by the Huan Cheng River.

Meat replenished his body, and clean water washed him.

Each day, he had only three or four hours left for sleep, and three or four hours for rest.

He practiced martial arts for fifteen hours a day.

Finally, after more than half a month.

On the last day of February.

Eight in the morning.

In the park, Jiang Shu opened his eyes.

It was like water suddenly reaching its boiling point, steam blasting open the lid of a kettle!

As he held a steady Horse Stance, his Blood Qi surged and heat waves roiled through him.

A small bulge rose beneath his skin and moved according to his will. Starting from his left chest, it slowly circled through his body.

Before long, Jiang Shu took a deep breath and exhaled sharply.

A long stream of white vapor shot out like a Feather Arrow leaving the bowstring.

Qi and Blood Circulation!

Success!