Black Tiger Golden Saber Method

Lu Hao closed his eyes and sensed the Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula and the Black Tiger Hand-Saber Art.

Four moves of the Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula and four moves of the Black Tiger Hand-Saber Art appeared in his mind.

The four moves of the Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula were the Tiger-Subduing Essence-Settling Stance, Tiger-Body Essence-Sweeping Stance, Tiger-Shocking Essence-Tempering Stance, and Tiger-Pouncing Essence-Bursting Stance.

Lu Hao reviewed the Black Tiger Blood Essence Formula in his mind and found that it was cut from the same mold as the Black Tiger Stance Art, except its method of guiding Blood Essence was far more detailed.

He tried practicing it once and found that guiding Blood Essence through his body was an extremely strenuous task. It required more than ten times the force needed to guide Qi-Blood before.

After completing a single Tiger-Subduing Essence-Settling Formula, Lu Hao was already drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked through as he panted heavily.

Enduring the numb soreness in his legs, he finished practicing the Tiger-Body Essence-Sweeping Stance. The drop of Blood Essence within him traveled up and down along the great dragon of his spine, sweeping away the turbid impurities within the Blood Essence.

Next, following the method, Lu Hao's entire body trembled and his fascia quivered. Blood Essence surged through his meridians, shaking the impurities swept out by the Tiger-Body Essence-Sweeping Stance from his body.

After practicing this move, Lu Hao felt his waist and back go numb with soreness.

Still, he gritted his teeth and persisted, veins bulging on his neck and forehead.

He then began practicing the Tiger-Pouncing Essence-Bursting Stance. Taking the Tiger Pouncing Stance of the Black Tiger Stance Art, he instantly detonated the drop of Blood Essence in his dantian, guiding its power through the meridians of his body and into his limbs and bones.

After completing one round of the Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula, Lu Hao's legs went limp. He collapsed onto the ground, without even the strength to lift an arm.

[Skill: Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula (Beginner)]

[Progress: 1/100]

[Blood Essence in Body: 29/30]

Lu Hao lay on the ground, looking at the system panel.

He had not expected a single round of the Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula to consume so much stamina. He felt as though he had been completely drained.

Yet after expending such tremendous effort, he had only used one unit of Blood Essence. Before advancing to the Martial Artist Realm, even exhausting all the Qi-Blood in his body might not have allowed him to unleash such powerful force.

After resting on the ground for the time it took an incense stick to burn, Lu Hao finally had the strength to slowly rise to his feet.

He let out a long breath, then gritted his teeth, veins rising on his neck and forehead as he began practicing the Black Tiger Hand-Saber Art.

The Black Tiger Hand-Saber Art also had four moves.

The first was Black Tiger Rending Wind. His hand-saber chopped forward, fierce and sharp, like tiger claws tearing through the wind.

Lu Hao practiced according to the method. Whenever he raised his hand, a faint pale-red sheen clung to his arm.

Next, Lu Hao raised both hand-sabers high and suddenly chopped them down with heavy, fierce force. This move was called Black Tiger Splits Mountain. It could be performed with one hand chopping downward or with both hands striking down at once.

Lu Hao detonated the drop of Blood Essence in his dantian again, rapidly channeling it into his right hand. He twisted his waist and swept his right hand-saber in a half-circle. This move had much the same ingenious effect as Black Tiger Sweeps Its Tail, except the fist had been replaced with a hand-saber. It was called Black Tiger Whirl.

Finally, Lu Hao pressed his fingertips together, condensing the power of Blood Essence at their tips before fiercely thrusting forward. This move advanced in a straight line like a dagger stabbing ahead, and was called Black Tiger Throat-Piercer.

The powerful impact and immense consumption of the Blood Essence in his body nearly made Lu Hao lose his footing. His body staggered several steps forward before he barely managed to steady himself. Only then did he withdraw his stance and slowly exhale a breath of turbid air.

[Skill: Black Tiger Hand-Saber Art (Beginner)]

[Progress: 1/100]

A powerful wave of exhaustion swept over him. Lu Hao's eyelids grew heavy, and he only wanted to close his eyes and fall asleep on the spot.

He had not expected that after entering the Martial Artist Realm, merely practicing one round of the Black Tiger Hand-Saber Art would leave him this exhausted.

Lu Hao looked out the window. The sun had already set, and the moon had just risen, casting a layer of cold, pale radiance across the courtyard.

He walked to a corner of the room, found a chair, and sat down. Only after resting for the time it took an incense stick to burn did he recover.

Lu Hao made a rough calculation. Practicing one round of the Black Tiger Golden Saber Blood Essence Formula and the Black Tiger Hand-Saber Art took about the time needed to drink a cup of tea. Then, for his body to recover enough strength to practice another round, he needed to rest for a total of two incense sticks' time. In other words, gaining one point of proficiency each in the Blood Essence Formula and Hand-Saber Art took roughly thirty-five minutes.

Over an entire day, even if he practiced from seven in the morning until midnight, subtracting time for eating, drinking, and answering nature's call, he could only increase both techniques by twenty or thirty proficiency points each.

It would take three to four days for the Black Tiger Blood Essence Formula to reach Minor Mastery. He simply did not know which Martial Artist Realm corresponded to Minor Mastery in the Blood Essence Formula.

At this moment, a gang member came to report that Cao Ling had arrived at the hall.

Lu Hao rose and went to the discussion hall, where he met Cao Ling.

Cao Ling took a booklet from his robes and handed it to Lu Hao. Written on its cover were the words "Advanced Black Tiger Method."

"Congratulations, Brother Lu! At such a young age, you have already stepped into the Martial Artist Realm. You truly are the future of our Black Tiger Gang!"

Lu Hao briefly flipped through the Advanced Black Tiger Method before tucking it into his robes.

He immediately asked Cao Ling about the question in his heart.

"Elder Cao..."

Before Lu Hao could finish, Cao Ling looked at him. "Brother Lu, this isn't a formal occasion. We are kindred spirits, and I'm over ten years your senior. From now on, just call me Brother Cao."

Seeing Cao Ling's intention to draw closer to him, Lu Hao naturally welcomed the chance to improve his relationship with the upper ranks of the Black Tiger Gang. He spoke again. "Brother Cao, after entering the Martial Artist Realm, are there further divisions between the realms?"

Cao Ling stroked his handlebar mustache and smiled. "Naturally. Bright Force Martial Artists are divided into three levels: lower grade, mid-grade, and upper grade."

He paused. "A Lower Bright Force Martial Artist can project force outward. With a full-powered strike, they possess the strength of one ox."

"A Mid-Grade Bright Force Martial Artist can possess the strength of two oxen with a full-powered strike. An Upper-Grade Bright Force Martial Artist, meanwhile, possesses the strength of four oxen."

Lu Hao nodded slightly. Feng Feiyi had mentioned this to him before.

The strength of one ox was a thousand jin. He had not expected an Upper-Grade Bright Force Martial Artist to wield four thousand jin of force with a full-powered blow. Such strength was several times greater than that of the world's top heavyweight boxing champions before he crossed over.

Lu Hao thought to himself, Then the Black Tiger Blood Essence Formula before entry should correspond to a Lower Bright Force Martial Artist. Minor Mastery and Grand Mastery should correspond to Mid-Grade and Upper-Grade Bright Force, while Perfection should correspond to a Dark Force Martial Artist.

After chatting a few more times, Cao Ling left.

Lu Hao returned to the room where he trained and took out the Advanced Black Tiger Method from his robes.

[Discovered equippable item: Advanced Black Tiger Method]

[Can synthesize item: Advanced Black Tiger Golden Saber Method]

[Synthesize?]

Joy rose in Lu Hao's heart. He had not expected this could be synthesized as well. With a thought, he chose to synthesize it.

[Synthesized item: Advanced Black Tiger Golden Blade Art (Green)]

[Equipped item: Advanced Black Tiger Golden Blade Art (Green)]

[Durability: 100%]

[Effect: When the host practices the Advanced Black Tiger Golden Saber Method, breakthroughs will occur automatically upon meeting the conditions. No bottlenecks.]

Lu Hao looked at the name of the technique. It had not changed much, except the lettering had turned from white to green.