Mo Yun drew a deep breath and focused his mind on the plus sign beside Tiger-Crouching Fist in the martial arts column.
Black-and-White Seal, add a point!
The instant he gave the silent command, the number of black points under available points flickered, changing from 1 to 0.
The next moment, that familiar sensation surged through him again.
Countless images flooded his mind like a tide-memories of practicing Tiger-Crouching Fist day after day beneath the blazing sun and amid wind and rain.
Every punch, every exertion of strength, every breath felt as clear as if he had experienced them a thousand times himself.
He could feel himself standing in an empty courtyard, practicing against the Wooden Training Dummy over and over. Sweat soaked his clothes, calluses formed on his fists, and his knees swelled and turned purple, yet he gritted his teeth and persevered.
Those were not someone else's memories. They were his own!
At the same time, a warm current appeared out of nowhere inside his body, surging far more fiercely than when he had last added a point to the test fist technique.
The current raced through his meridians, washing through every limb and bone. Wherever it passed, his muscles trembled and his sinews and bones groaned. Every inch of flesh was being reshaped and strengthened.
He could even hear faint crackling inside his body as his bones grew denser and his meridians grew tougher.
The entire process lasted several dozen breaths.
Several dozen breaths later, everything settled.
Mo Yun opened his eyes and looked down at his hands.
His once somewhat slender arms now bulged slightly, their sharply defined muscles brimming with strength.
He clenched his fists, clearly feeling the explosive power in his palms.
"So this is what reaching the beginner level in Tiger-Crouching Fist feels like..."
Mo Yun took a deep breath and focused, summoning his status panel.
[Constitution 4.1, life 2, defense 2.6, spiritual power 0] [Martial arts: Nameless Fist Technique (minor accomplishment), Tiger-Crouching Fist (First Glimpse of the Way), Tiger-Crouching Stance (not yet initiated)] [Special abilities: none] [Available points: black 0, white 0]
His constitution had jumped straight from 3.6 to 4.1, an increase of 0.5!
His defense had risen from 2.3 to 2.6, an increase of 0.3!
These gains were much greater than when he had added a point to the test fist technique!
Just as I thought, the more profound the martial art, the greater the physical improvement after a breakthrough!
Mo Yun was overjoyed. Strength filled his entire body, and he wished he could find someone to fight right now and test Tiger-Crouching Fist's power.
He glanced around, confirmed that his roommates were still sleeping soundly, then tiptoed out to the open ground outside the dormitory.
He took his stance and adjusted his breathing.
The next moment, he moved.
Fierce Tiger Leaves the Mountain!
Mo Yun stepped into the center, sank his shoulders and elbows, and drove power through his waist and abdomen. His right fist blasted forward!
This punch was completely different from those he had thrown while practicing the test fist technique.
The test technique's Fierce Tiger Descending the Mountain was merely a fist move, possessing only the outward form.
The Tiger-Crouching Fist he unleashed now was a true killing move!
His fist struck like a tiger's roar, heavy and powerful, carrying a savage momentum-as though a real tiger had lunged out of the mountain forest to tear apart everything before it!
Boom!
As his fist blasted forward, the air actually gave a deep, explosive crack!
Three meters away, a sapling with a trunk as thick as a bowl's mouth shook violently under the wind from his punch, its leaves fluttering down!
Mo Yun froze.
He looked down at his fist, then at the shaking sapling, his face filled with disbelief.
"This... this is..."
He suddenly remembered Commander Li demonstrating the test fist technique half a month ago. When he had performed the first move, Fierce Tiger Descending the Mountain, a faint explosive crack had sounded in the air.
At the time, Mo Yun had thought he was imagining it, or that only someone with Commander Li's profound cultivation could do such a thing.
But now-
A thousand gold pieces cannot buy a single crack!
The saying suddenly sprang into Mo Yun's mind.
He had heard the old servants mention it while chatting in the Servants' Court. Supposedly, on the Martial Dao, producing a crack that split the air meant one had mastered blood qi and generated force energy!
That was the sign of truly crossing the threshold of the Martial Dao!
"Have I already mastered blood qi? Have I developed force energy?"
Mo Yun's expression turned intent. He took his stance again and blasted out another punch!
Boom!
Another explosive crack!
"Yes! That must be it!" Mo Yun exclaimed in delight.
He remembered Commander Li saying that anyone who brought Tiger-Crouching Fist to the beginner level and mastered blood qi within a month would receive potent medicine from the Village Master, completely resolving the weakness of their physique.
"Mastering blood qi?" Something seemed to occur to him. Mo Yun closed his eyes and carefully sensed the condition inside his body.
Before long, he noticed something different.
Near his dantian, a barely perceptible thread of warmth seemed to be moving slowly. It was weak, like a newly lit spark that might go out at any moment, but it was undeniably there.
"Is this force energy?"
With a thought, Mo Yun tried to mobilize that thread of warmth.
It seemed to respond to his will, slowly traveling along his meridians before gathering in his right fist.
He opened his eyes and blasted out a punch!
Boom!
The explosive crack of this punch was louder than any before it!
He could even make out a faint layer of air swirling over his fist!
Mo Yun was beside himself with joy.
Mastering blood qi and generating force energy meant he had entered the Martial Dao and could be considered a true Martial Artist!
Even if he was only at the lowest level, the difference between him and an ordinary person was already as vast as heaven and earth!
"Once I become a true Martial Artist, I can apply directly to join the Guard Team. Not only will the benefits be better, but I won't have to do chores anymore. I'll have more time to cultivate!"
Countless thoughts flashed through Mo Yun's mind.
Joining the Guard Team meant no longer enduring the Forge Room's smoke and scorching heat, no longer serving as an assistant to the smiths, and no longer working himself half to death every day for that pitiful wage!
More importantly, he would have more time to cultivate!
"I'll bring it up with Commander Li when I get back from leave, and find out what that potent medicine he mentioned is all about!"
Although his physique was no longer weak and unstable, taking the potent medicine would undoubtedly accelerate the black seal's accumulation!
As if something had occurred to him, Mo Yun hurriedly focused his gaze on his wrist.
The Black-and-White Seal lay quietly there. Its black portion was half filled, while its white portion...
Mo Yun's eyes lit up.
Light now flowed across the White Mark. It had filled considerably more than before, reaching roughly one-quarter, or twenty-five percent!
"It went up by almost ten percent in one go!" Mo Yun grinned.
When the test fist technique had advanced from First Glimpse of the Way to minor accomplishment, the White Mark had gained less than five percent.
Yet now, taking Tiger-Crouching Fist from not yet initiated to First Glimpse of the Way had increased it by a full ten percent!
"As expected of Tiger-Crouching Fist! It's much stronger than the test fist technique!"
Mo Yun felt thoroughly reassured.
At this rate, as long as he kept advancing his martial arts, it would not be long before he condensed his first white point!
"Then I'll find out whether white points can improve attributes like constitution and life..."
His anticipation grew stronger.
Only after reveling in his excitement for quite a while did Mo Yun calm down and prepare to test Tiger-Crouching Fist's power again.
He took his stance and blasted out another punch!
Boom!
The explosive crack sounded as before, but Mo Yun felt a wave of dizziness and began swaying on his feet.
"What's going on?"
He hurriedly withdrew his fist and braced himself against the nearby wall, gasping for breath.
It had only been one punch. Why was he so exhausted?
He took several deep breaths, recovered a little, and tried throwing another punch.
This time, the explosive crack was much weaker, but afterward he felt even more exhausted. His legs went soft, his vision darkened, and he nearly collapsed onto his backside.
"Something's wrong..."
Frowning, Mo Yun carefully examined the condition inside his body.
Before long, he found the problem.
The faint thread of warmth in his dantian had vanished without a trace, as though those few punches had consumed it entirely.
"So that's it..."
Understanding dawned on Mo Yun.
Mastering blood qi generated force energy, but the amount of force energy was limited.
He had only just reached the beginner level, so his force energy was pitifully scarce. A few punches exhausted it, and naturally left him utterly drained.
"Am I too weak, or does Tiger-Crouching Fist simply consume that much?"
Mo Yun pondered for a moment and soon reached an answer.
"My Tiger-Crouching Stance probably isn't up to scratch. I don't have quite enough blood qi, and I'm not using it very efficiently..."
Tiger-Crouching Stance was the basis of Tiger-Crouching Fist-its foundation.
Only with a solid foundation could a taller building be raised.
Only by cultivating Tiger-Crouching Stance to a profound level and building sufficiently abundant blood qi could he truly unleash Tiger-Crouching Fist's power and sustain a prolonged battle.
"No wonder Commander Li kept stressing the importance of Tiger-Crouching Stance..."
Mo Yun looked thoughtful.
His Tiger-Crouching Fist had reached the beginner level, but his Tiger-Crouching Stance had yet to do so. With an unstable foundation, he naturally could not bring out his true strength.
"Still, it's enough for me right now..."
Mo Yun glanced at the sky. The east had already turned fish-belly white, and it was nearly the hour of the rabbit.
"When I condense another black point, I'll put it into Tiger-Crouching Stance. Another seven or eight days should be enough!"
Having made up his mind, Mo Yun spent a little more time familiarizing himself with the surge in his strength, then slowly finished his practice and returned to the dormitory to collect the bundle he had prepared earlier.
There was nothing valuable inside, only a few changes of clothes, the month's wages he had saved, and the one tael of silver pieces his older sister, Mo Yiyi, had given him.
He planned to buy his sister a gift in town to take home.
"My sister is probably still being mistreated in the Mo Lineage..."
Thinking of Mo Yiyi filled Mo Yun's heart with warmth, along with a pang of sorrow.
That delicate yet resilient woman had suffered far too much for his sake.
"When I get back from leave, I'll apply to join the Guard Team, establish myself in the Mountain Manor as soon as possible, and bring my sister here!"
Mo Yun clenched his fists, shouldered his bundle, and strode toward the foot of the mountain.
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