National Arts Advance by Leaps and Bounds; Joining Forces Against a Bloodthirsty Wolf

The next morning, gentle sunlight spilled over the dense forest, waking the many Soul Beasts among the trees.

After a quick wash, Tang Shan activated Martial Soul Possession. A Thousand-Year Soul Ring lit up around him, its shifting glow carrying a weighty pressure.

He stood in an open patch of grass, his mind seemingly in harmony with heaven and earth. He lifted a leg and threw a punch at ease. The movements looked casual, yet concealed tremendous power.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

His legs whipped up cutting gusts, and his fists sliced through the air. Every move held power that could not be underestimated.

I never expected a single Soul Ring to put my National Arts training on the fast track. My strength has undergone a complete transformation, and my future progress is bound to be just as rapid.

As Tang Shan felt the precise control he had over his body with every punch and kick, he could not help marveling at it.

If creating his own boxing method and cultivating Bright Force had meant mastering Technique, then using a Soul Skill to control his body gave him an overwhelming advantage in training and brought him to the threshold of Method.

With his newfound control, the boxing method he had invented now seemed riddled with flaws. Even ordinary Standing Stake practice and horse stances contained countless subtle mistakes.

Those tiny deviations might cause no immediate trouble, but over time they could become hidden injuries and leave dangers buried in his body.

Now, with his exceptional bodily control, Tang Shan had corrected them all. His movements grew increasingly fluid and unified.

Crack, crack, crack!

A simple shake of his hands and stretch of his legs set off crisp pops throughout his body. Lively Qi and Blood awakened in every limb and joint, slowly circulating within him as warmth spread from head to toe.

Tang Shan did not try to direct it. He let his Qi and Blood circulate on their own. As they surged, the Soul Power in his dantian began to pulse instinctively in response.

He ran through his moves, his fists breaking the wind like heavy hammers and his palms cleaving the air like broad blades. Every burst of force matched the rhythm of his Qi and Blood precisely.

His Qi and Blood circulated faster. His heart contracted more rapidly, sending abundant energy throughout his body, while vitality filled his Sinew and bones.

Rushing water!

A faint sound like surging blood came from within Tang Shan. His skin gradually flushed red, and at last his Soul Power broke free of his dantian and began to circulate according to his body's instincts.

The Soul Power first traveled downward to connect with the Large Intestine Meridian, then doubled back and rose through the diaphragm to reach the lungs. With the lungs as its center, it flowed into both arms and finally gathered at the tips of his thumbs...

That was precisely the route of the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian.

Feeling the new path his Soul Power had taken, Tang Shan remained calm, neither pleased nor disappointed.

He had expected his study of the meridians to advance after he obtained his First Soul Skill. He simply had not imagined the breakthrough would come not from deliberate exploration, but from a path his Soul Power opened on its own.

Let nature take its course, and the result will follow...

After committing that perfectly clear route to memory, Tang Shan gave up the idea of actively probing his meridians.

The human body was an exquisitely integrated whole. The route his Soul Power had developed might not be the strongest, but it was certainly the best suited to him. There was no need to tamper with it; forcing a change might only make things worse.

Wave after wave of Qi and Blood cycled through his body, nourishing his Sinew, bones, Organs, and Viscera, making every inch of him tougher.

National Arts training had three stages of cultivation: Tendon Transformation, Bone Transformation, and Marrow Transformation. They corresponded to the tempering of the body through Bright Force, Hidden Force, and Transformed Force.

With the control I have over my body now, I can strengthen my Sinew directly and increase the power of my Bright Force. I haven't mastered Hidden Force or Transformed Force yet, but when my Soul Skill is active, my control reaches the level of Seeing the Divine. Tempering my bones and nourishing my Marrow ahead of time won't be difficult either.

Looking at the body as a whole, there's far more to temper than that. True, complete body tempering must encompass the skin, Flesh, Sinew, bones, Organs, Viscera, Marrow, blood, and much more...

The skin, Flesh, and Sinew lie near the surface and can be refined with Bright Force. Bones, Organs, and Viscera lie deep inside, where the risk is far greater, so they must be nurtured with gentle Hidden Force. Cleansing the Marrow requires the entire body to resonate; it can't be reached until Bright Force and Hidden Force unite and one's force becomes Transformed Force. The final realm, Blood Exchange, demands that essence, Qi, and spirit become one. Only by reaching Embracing the Elixir and raising the quality of one's Qi and Blood to a new level can it be attained.

That makes my body-tempering system—or rather, my path of National Arts training—complete. With the help of my Soul Skill, mastering force all the way up to Embracing the Elixir should be smooth sailing. With that force behind me, I can refine my body further and unlock its potential. There should be no bottleneck before Blood Exchange, either.

If I keep developing it, I might really trigger a Martial Soul Second Awakening, just as I suspected.

Tang Shan finished his routine and came to a stop. His whole body was red as a cooked shrimp, the result of pushing his skin, Flesh, and Sinew to their limits during the routine.

He had only just stopped training, and the blood gathered near the surface had yet to fully recede.

"You're up early, little brother."

Su Yuntao pulled back his tent flap and stepped out. He stretched and yawned, sleep still lingering in his eyes.

Tang Shan felt a faint ache throughout his body but paid it no mind. Even ordinary exercise could leave muscles sore and swollen. The body-tempering method he had tailored specifically for his skin, Flesh, and Sinew, using his near-Seeing the Divine level of mastery, drew far more from his potential. A little soreness was nothing.

Tang Shan offered a quiet reminder, and Su Yuntao nodded in agreement.

"Makes sense. Your big brother's awake now, so I'll start practicing Standing Stake and cultivating force."

With that, Su Yuntao rounded his arms as though holding a ball, lifted the crown of his head, and settled firmly into a stance, his posture upright.

Tang Shan smiled and said nothing more.

In his previous life, winter training through the coldest days and summer training through the hottest had been the norm. Without diligent practice, physical fitness declined and moves grew rusty;

but the Douluo Continent was different. With a transcendent energy like Soul Power, physical fitness did not deteriorate even after a long break from exercise.

As for moves growing rusty, powerful Soul Masters possessed formidable Mental Power and could remember movements precisely. More importantly, no amount of deliberate practice could teach the understanding gained from a single life-or-death fight.

A short while later, Su Yuan and Su Haichao emerged from their tents. The four ate a simple breakfast, then set out once more to find a wolf and hunt its Soul Ring.

"Big brother, this Soul Beast will do. It's a Bloodthirsty Wolf with a thousand years of cultivation, though its Soul Skill isn't particularly impressive."

Amid the dense layers of forest, Tang Shan fixed a sharp gaze on the target ahead, a faint Killing Intent surrounding him.

The four had spent nearly another week wandering the Soul Hunting Forest. During that time, Tang Shan had fought dozens of fierce battles against everything from Ten-Year Soul Beasts to Hundred-Year Soul Beasts. The hesitant awkwardness of his first fight had given way to decisive ruthlessness. He had shed his inexperience completely.

He had made full use of his Body Martial Soul and First Soul Skill, always charging into the front line. What little softheartedness remained from his previous life had been worn away in repeated clashes of life and death.

This was the Douluo Continent, where strength ruled. Order rested entirely on power. Without enough strength, one did not deserve its protection.

"A thousand-year wolf Soul Beast. Let's take this one."

Su Yuntao looked at the gray giant wolf, two meters long and nearly a meter tall at the shoulder, with blood-red eyes, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Shall the two of us hold it off?"

Su Haichao and Su Yuan were about to step forward, but Tang Shan raised a hand to stop them.

"Big brother, let's take this Soul Beast on together."

"Gladly."

A savage smile appeared on Su Yuntao's face. He activated Martial Soul Possession, and the air around him changed at once.

Boom!

Dirt sprayed from beneath their feet. Tang Shan's body swelled suddenly, muscles bulging, every line of him packed with explosive power. Su Yuntao's claws extended from his fingertips, his eyes glowed a ghostly green, and he looked like a giant wolf walking upright, ferocity rolling off him.

The Bloodthirsty Wolf was tearing into its prey when it sensed the two Soul Masters approaching. It threw back its head and howled, then kicked off the ground and charged straight at them.

The Purple Soul Ring beneath Tang Shan's feet lit up. As he closed in at blinding speed, his legs swelled again, bursting his shoes apart. Tremendous power drove from his legs into the ground.

Crack!

Fine cracks spread across the earth beneath his feet. As his speed climbed another notch, he drew the power back from his legs and gathered it in his hands.

His fists turned Blue-Black, like heavy iron hammers, and swept toward the gray wolf with a rush of wind.

Riiip!

The wolf's claws raked hard across his knuckles, only to meet something as tough as rubber and leave a few shallow white marks. The next instant, tremendous power erupted from Tang Shan's fists and flipped the Bloodthirsty Wolf onto the ground.

Su Yuntao followed close behind. His claws slashed across the gray wolf's chest, leaving five wounds deep enough to expose bone.

Boom!

The gray wolf rolled away in haste, barely avoiding Tang Shan's fists as they smashed into the ground. Two deep pits appeared, and stones flew in every direction.

Back on its feet, the gray wolf no longer attacked recklessly. It circled the two of them warily, the red in its eyes growing more intense.

"Every time I see Tang Shan use that Soul Skill, I can't help being amazed. It boosts him in every way. Truly extraordinary."

From a tall tree, Su Yuan watched Tang Shan's enlarged hands with keen eyes, his face full of astonishment.

"It's not just that his Soul Skill is powerful. A Body Martial Soul seems to make Soul Skills much easier to control than they are for us Beast Soul Masters."

After watching Tang Shan fight many times, Su Haichao had begun to see the pattern. "Look. That enhancement could cover his entire arm, but he's concentrating it on his forearms and elbows. He's using the rest to protect his vital points. For us Beast Soul Masters, control that precise would take years of practice. Tang Shan's talented, but his progress is still astonishing. Talent aside, the remaining explanation is that the Body Martial Soul itself grants exceptional control over Soul Skills."

Before he finished speaking, the battle below took another turn.

After several failed attempts to test his opponents, the Bloodthirsty Wolf lost all patience and unleashed its trump-card Soul Skill—Bloodthirst.

Blood-red flames engulfed its body without giving off any heat. Its fur turned scarlet, and the ferocity in its eyes vanished, leaving only frenzied Killing Intent.

Its speed soared. It leaped clear of Su Yuntao's sneak attack from the side and lunged at Tang Shan, carrying a thick stench of blood.

Thud!

Tang Shan reacted instantly, dropping cleanly onto his side and letting the Bloodthirsty Wolf sail over him. Just as its body was about to clear his head, his entire left arm swelled. He braced it precisely against the hind leg clawing down at him, then unleashed his strength, forcing the wolf's forelegs to the ground and hoisting its hindquarters high.

His right hand swelled as well. He seized the wolf's hind leg in a vise grip, turned his fierce strength into a vicious force through exquisite technique, and gave it a gentle squeeze.

There was no sharp crack of breaking bone. When Tang Shan released his grip, all that remained in his palm was a mangled mass of flesh and blood.

The battle was decided. The Bloodthirsty Wolf let out a scream that shook the forest. It had no strength left to resist; all that awaited it was its inevitable death.

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