Trade

A dreamless night passed.

At six the next morning, Wu Ming opened his eyes on time and got out of bed full of energy.

As he got dressed and washed up, he took a moment to glance at the Attribute Panel, satisfaction flashing through his eyes.

Last night's cultivation had not only increased his physical fitness by 107 kilograms, but also raised his Spiritual Force by 63 kilograms!

Without the boost of a corresponding Guidance Technique, his Spiritual Force cultivation efficiency had been surpassed by Genetic Energy.

However, Wu Ming was not disappointed, because he only had three requirements for Spiritual Force: clearing out minor enemies, flying to save his life, and assisting Martial Artists with cultivation!

It did not matter if its power was a little weaker, so long as it could fulfill those supporting roles.

In truth, if not for the limited amount of energy his body cells could contain, Wu Ming would have loved to cultivate Genetic Energy twenty-four hours a day and raise his Martial Artist strength as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, that was impossible.

Ordinary people could only absorb Genetic Energy for a few minutes each day before their cells became saturated. No matter how much more energy they absorbed, it could not increase their strength.

Even with the Equipment Bar enhancing his talent and his mastery of the Guidance Technique, the Three-Body Stance, Wu Ming could only absorb Cosmic Energy for one hour a day.

For the rest of his time, aside from practicing boxing and saber techniques, only Spiritual Force remained for him to cultivate.

Because the Sea of Consciousness could only convert mental power at a limited speed, he needed roughly three hours a day to raise his Spiritual Force limit. Wu Ming considered that time well spent, especially since it was done at night.

This left the rest of his day for practicing a Martial Artist's moves and techniques. He packed every day full, hoping to master formidable strength as soon as possible.

Before long, Wu Ming finished washing up, and Jia Yi had gotten up as well.

While Jia Yi was washing up, Wu Ming quickly went to the case containing the Dragon Sparrow saber and switched his set back to Close-Combat Grandmaster.

At six thirty in the morning, the two met Ruan Qingzhu and Zhu Hongyu downstairs. The four of them then went to the cafeteria together for breakfast.

Breakfast here was provided free by the martial arts school. It consisted of common Kyoto fare such as steamed buns, fried dough sticks, and soy milk, which the young men and women from Sichuan Province could still tolerate.

After breakfast, it was soon close to seven. The four stood on the training ground and waited for the day's lesson.

At exactly seven, Jia Qingshan appeared on time. He glanced over the four's condition, nodded slightly, and said, "Today's lesson is still the Three-Body Stance."

"From now until noon, stand for forty minutes each session, rest for twenty minutes, and repeat the cycle five times!"

"If there's anything you don't understand, ask me. If there are no questions, then begin."

"Master." Wu Ming raised his hand. "There is something I would like to discuss with you."

"You?" Jia Qingshan was slightly stunned. He had not expected Wu Ming, who had performed most perfectly yesterday, to be the first to speak.

Just as he was about to say something, he noticed the solemn look on Wu Ming's face. After a brief pause, he nodded. "All right, come with me. The rest of you continue practicing as usual. Jia Yi, you supervise them."

"Yes, Master."

The two walked toward the dormitory building and entered a room on the first floor.

"This is my dormitory. No one else will come here." Jia Qingshan looked at Wu Ming. "What is it? Speak."

Wu Ming got straight to the point. "Master, I want to begin learning the remaining content of Xingyi Quan directly. If you have mastered cultivation methods for other Internal Martial Arts, I hope you can teach them to me as well."

"Oh?" Jia Qingshan frowned slightly. "You are still in the foundation-building stage. If you rashly learn too much, your body will find it difficult to bear in a short period of time. It may even damage your foundation."

"I have you repeatedly practice the Three-Body Stance not to torment you, but to use Stance Work to stretch the fascia in your bodies and open your joints and blood flow. Only then can you smoothly transition into the next stage of cultivation."

"Otherwise, if you forcefully practice the subsequent forms while your fascia has not yet loosened and your blood flow is stagnant, the results may be obvious early on, but the future consequences will be endless."

"Don't worry, Master." Wu Ming smiled. "Since I have made this request, I naturally came prepared."

"If you don't believe me, you can examine my physical condition and see whether I have any blood stagnation or similar issues."

Hearing this, Jia Qingshan raised his brows. He said nothing more and immediately began examining him.

He extended two fingers and lightly pressed various acupoints on Wu Ming's body, focusing as he sensed something.

A moment later, he suddenly opened his eyes and said in surprise, "Your blood flows freely throughout your body, your fascia is loosened, and your meridians are completely unobstructed. These are signs of Internal Martial Arts mastery! But yesterday, you clearly had no foundation at all. How could this be..."

Wu Ming merely smiled.

In fact, when he had practiced the Three-Body Stance yesterday, he had already felt a force surging freely through his body, tempering his muscles, bones, blood, and flesh.

Combining that with the knowledge he had read in books, he naturally understood the state of his body. This was the hallmark of mastery in Internal Martial Arts!

As for how he had reached this state... naturally, it was because when he had first sensed and absorbed Cosmic Energy, Genetic Energy had thoroughly tempered his body and opened every stagnant blockage!

It could be said that every Martial Artist who cultivated Genetic Energy would possess similar traits, practically an innate sacred body for Internal Martial Arts!

"Actually, this is human gene evolution..." Wu Ming did not hide anything and explained everything he knew about Genetic Warriors to Jia Qingshan.

A moment later.

"...So after the human body is trained to its limit, the next step is to sense Cosmic Energy?"

Jia Qingshan was dazed at first, but excitement quickly burst into his eyes. "Haha, I thought this martial skill had already reached its peak. I never expected there to be a path ahead!"

"Young friend!" His expression suddenly turned solemn as he clasped his fists. "Please teach me how to sense Cosmic Energy. Jia will surely reward you handsomely!"

"This is precisely why I came, Master." Wu Ming smiled faintly. "I will trade the Genetic Energy Cultivation Method for every Internal Martial Arts inheritance you possess. What do you think of that deal?"

"No."

To Wu Ming's surprise, Jia Qingshan shook his head. "The Jia-Style Xingyi Inheritance was meant to be taught to you in the first place. Even if we add the Internal Martial Arts of other schools, their value would not amount to even a ten-thousandth of the Genetic Energy Cultivation Method."

"I will naturally teach you the Internal Martial Arts inheritances you want, but they are not part of this transaction. I have another resource that I can exchange with you."

"Oh?" Wu Ming was somewhat surprised, but he did not dwell on it. His goal had already been achieved, so he nodded. "Deal."

"Does Master have paper and a pen? I will write the cultivation method down for you."

"Of course!"

Jia Qingshan hurriedly took out a notebook and fountain pen from the desk drawer. He was about to hand them to Wu Ming when he heard him say, "Just put them on the desk."

Jia Qingshan froze slightly, only to see the notebook and pen in his hand suddenly rise into the air, land on the desk, and begin writing on their own.

Seeing Jia Qingshan's shocked expression, Wu Ming smiled faintly. "This is also one of the results of gene evolution: Spiritual Force Telekinesis."

"This ability relies heavily on talent. The chance of successfully awakening it is less than one in ten thousand, so I hope Master will prepare himself mentally and not expect too much."

Hearing this, Jia Qingshan quickly came back to his senses and said solemnly, "Being able to continue evolving is already an immense opportunity. Jia would not dare ask for more."

Wu Ming nodded slightly. He was only offering a reminder. Whether Jia Qingshan listened was his own matter.

Before long, the popular version of the Five Hearts Facing the Sky Cultivation Method had been written out.

However, when handing it over, Wu Ming reminded him, "I compiled and summarized this cultivation method myself. I will submit it to the state in the future, so before then, I hope Master will not spread it around."

Jia Qingshan accepted the notebook with both hands, his expression solemn. "I swear upon my family's honor that I will never spread it carelessly."