"Uncle Yang, you don't need to take me all the way to my residential complex. Just drop me off at the shopping plaza up ahead."
In the moving black sedan, Ning Chuan turned to the middle-aged driver beside him.
The old district where he lived was sparsely populated and rather remote. It had only one large shopping plaza, making everyday shopping inconvenient, but the rent was cheap: an independent apartment cost 400 yuan a month.
"All right!"
The sedan slowly pulled over.
After thanking the driver, Uncle Yang, Ning Chuan opened the door, got out, and walked into the shopping plaza nearby.
He didn't wander around. He headed straight for the counter selling ferocious beast meat.
Unlike an ordinary butcher's shop, the place had a team of fully armed security guards patrolling back and forth, as if they were guarding a bank shipment.
Security was exceptionally tight.
After all, ferocious beast meat was expensive. Even the cheaper varieties cost hundreds of yuan per jin.
High-quality meat cost more than the same weight in gold.
"Student, would you like a cut of lean Scale-Horned Pig meat? It's packed with energy and easy to absorb, making it perfect for people in the Awakening Realm." The salesman behind the counter was a middle-aged man. Seeing Ning Chuan in his school uniform, he smiled and said, "It's on special right now, only 888 yuan per jin!"
"That's expensive!"
Ning Chuan winced.
He did the math in his head. The six thousand yuan he'd earned today would only buy him around seven jin.
With his appetite, if he ate his fill, it wouldn't last him two meals.
"Sir, what ferocious beast meat is that, the one going for 399 yuan per jin?"
Ning Chuan scanned the counter and pointed to a pile of meat on the inside.
"That's Scale-Horned Pig meat too, from the hind leg. It contains about as much energy as the lean meat, but it's hard to digest, and the body absorbs it slowly," the salesman answered honestly.
"Don't be fooled by the lower price. It's not as good a deal as the lean Scale-Horned Pig meat!"
Seeing that Ning Chuan was polite, the salesman explained, "You students can practice your breathing techniques for ten hours a day at most.
"The lean meat digests quickly, and all the energy it contains gets absorbed while you're cultivating. It's very efficient.
"But hind-leg meat is absorbed slowly. It often takes a whole day, and a lot of the nutrients go to waste."
Ning Chuan's eyes lit up.
His breathing technique could cultivate without interruption.
Slow digestion wasn't a problem for him.
"Sir, I'll take fifteen jin of hind-leg meat."
"That'll be 5,985 yuan!"
Since the customer wanted to buy it, the salesman naturally wouldn't refuse.
Ning Chuan grimaced as he took out his money. He'd barely had time to warm it in his hands before it was gone.
Still, he didn't dwell on it and paid without fuss.
Once he got stronger, earning money would be easier.
Before leaving the shopping plaza, Ning Chuan thought for a moment, then went to the produce section to buy some vegetables to go with the meat.
He returned home.
Ning Chuan chopped some scallions, ginger, and garlic, added water, and put them in a pressure cooker to stew with the Scale-Horned Pig meat.
The flavor was nothing special, but cooking it this way preserved more of the nutrients.
Before long, the Scale-Horned Pig meat was cooked.
Ignoring the heat, Ning Chuan eagerly picked out a large piece and tore into it with big bites.
After a busy afternoon and a fight with Lu Mengyue that had left him exhausted, he was so hungry his stomach was pressed against his backbone.
After only a few bites, a synthesized mechanical voice rang out in his mind.
"Savage Bull Force has detected energy surging through your body and intensified its involution. Cultivation speed increased by 335%, lasting until the energy is exhausted!"
Ning Chuan grinned.
At this rate, he would soon advance to Awakening Stage Five.
After dinner, Ning Chuan opened the system interface to check the progress of the two martial arts he'd begun cultivating that morning.
[Thousand Bones Slaughter Art]: Basic (progress: 2%) [Vajra Body]: First layer (progress: 1%)
"This..."
Ning Chuan frowned at the interface that only he could see.
It had been less than ten hours or so since he'd learned the martial arts.
Thousand Bones Slaughter Art had gained 2% progress, which worked out to roughly five or six percentage points a day, a little faster than Flash Thunder Slash.
That was what he'd expected.
After all, Flash Thunder Slash ranked among the most difficult B-rank martial arts to cultivate, making it harder to practice.
But Vajra Body's progress was far beyond what he'd expected.
It actually couldn't compare to Flash Thunder Slash.
And it wasn't just a little slower; the difference was more than double.
After all, Vajra Body had nine layers, so each stage should be somewhat easier than one of the six stages of a normal martial art.
This cultivation efficiency was clearly off.
Ning Chuan pondered for a moment, recalling the relevant memories in his mind, and became thoughtful.
Body-tempering martial arts strengthened the body's resistance and toughness, which required energy.
In a way, they achieved similar results to breathing techniques through different means, and often required external aids to speed up the tempering process.
The difference was that energy alone did little for body-tempering martial arts.
That was why his Vajra Body hadn't sped up its cultivation in response to the energy from the Scale-Horned Pig meat as Savage Bull Force had.
"Body-tempering martial arts seem to all require specialized medicinal baths..."
Ning Chuan picked up his phone from the table, opened a browser, and searched for information on medicinal baths related to Vajra Body. When he saw the prices of the main medicinal ingredients, his face twitched uncontrollably, and he put the phone down on the spot.
Like gold, they were priced by the gram.
They were outrageously expensive.
"The fee for instructing Lu Mengyue is barely enough to support my breathing technique's cultivation. If I want medicinal baths, I'll have to find another way to make money."
Ning Chuan tapped his fingers on the table, lost in thought.
The next day, eight in the morning.
Qingshan No. 1 High School.
Ning Chuan walked along the stone path toward the training ground.
This was a practical martial arts combat class, requiring a space to spar. Their homeroom teacher, Su Yun, was teaching it.
Ning Chuan chatted with Guo Renyu for a while before the class bell rang.
Su Yun looked over the students standing in formation before her and said in a serious voice, "I've explained combat techniques and the points to watch out for in a fight countless times. There's little point in repeating myself. You need to learn them for yourselves through actual combat. For the next fifteen minutes, pair up and spar with each other."
"Yes!"
The students scattered and looked for opponents.
"Come on, come on! Let's fight three hundred rounds!"
Guo Renyu chuckled as he walked toward Ning Chuan.
In previous practical combat classes, the two of them had always paired up and slacked off.
Suddenly, a tall figure blocked Guo Renyu's path and faced Ning Chuan.
"You and I will fight. The college entrance exam is approaching, and I need an opponent. Let's spar today!"
A cold smile curled Ma Hai's lips.
He had already seen that Ning Chuan had no saber in hand.
Even if he did, it wouldn't matter.
For safety's sake, practical combat classes involved unarmed fighting, and weapons were forbidden.
"You want to spar with me?!"
A sharp light flashed in Ning Chuan's eyes, as though he'd thought of something.
"That's right!" Ma Hai nodded and looked at Ning Chuan provocatively. He raised his voice. "I'm doing you a favor by sparring with you. If you refuse, you don't know what's good for you, and this won't be over unless you apologize to me in public!"
Hearing the commotion, the nearby students turned to look, curious how Ning Chuan would respond.
"Make your move!"
Ning Chuan loosened up and spoke calmly.
He hadn't agreed for the sake of saving face.
When he fought Lu Mengyue, he could only use Flash Thunder Slash to favor her.
There were certain restrictions.
But against Ma Hai, he could use all kinds of martial arts without restraint.
Ning Chuan knew full well that Ma Hai was two stages above him.
The fight would be extremely tough.
But as long as he could withstand the pressure, the gains would be enormous.
His combat skills would improve rapidly.
With the college entrance exam approaching, he needed to familiarize himself with all kinds of real combat as soon as possible.
Even if Ma Hai hadn't picked a fight this time, he wouldn't have slacked off with Guo Renyu again. He would have found a student at Awakening Stage Five or Six to practice against.
"You've got some backbone, but without strength, having bones that are too hard isn't a good thing. I'll slap you and teach you what's good for you!"
Ma Hai's gaze was mocking. He took a single stride across more than ten meters and arrived in front of Ning Chuan.
"Whoosh!"
Ma Hai raised his right arm and snapped it straight, bringing it down heavily toward Ning Chuan's face like an axe cleaving through the air.
"Battle Axe Chop!"
It was a fighting martial art that focused on the legs and was known for its tremendous force.
"So fast!"
Ning Chuan's gaze sharpened. He was startled by Ma Hai's speed. Battle Axe Chop wasn't known for speed, so Ma Hai's mastery of it couldn't be low.
But he didn't panic. He quickly raised both arms across his body to block.
Thud!
A muffled impact rang out.
A heavy force struck him. Unable to withstand it head-on, Ning Chuan could only keep retreating to dissipate the force.
Deep footprints appeared in the training ground's grass wherever he stepped.
Only after seven or eight consecutive steps did Ning Chuan steady himself. Most of his sleeve cuff had been torn apart by the force, and the exposed skin quickly reddened and swelled.
"Your body has been injured. Vajra Body is overwhelmed with guilt and is cultivating diligently at full throttle. Its rate of progress is soaring!"
Ning Chuan raised his eyebrows.
An unexpected bonus?!
By the look of it, as long as he fought unarmed regularly, he could speed up Vajra Body's cultivation even without medicinal baths.
"Let's see how many moves you can take!"
Ma Hai sneered and charged in again without giving Ning Chuan a chance to catch his breath. From that exchange, he was already certain that there was a clear gap between them!
"Fierce Tiger Claw!"
Ma Hai's right hand came down swiftly, his five fingers like iron hooks piercing the air. With a sound like ripping silk, he clawed viciously at Ning Chuan.
"Whoosh!"
Ning Chuan pushed off with his feet and used Gale Step.
He had already broken through to the proficient stage in this martial art. He moved quickly, shifting diagonally to the side to evade Ma Hai's claw strike.
At the same time, he circled around to Ma Hai's side.
"Swish!"
Ning Chuan pressed his five fingers together like a sharp sword and thrust swiftly at Ma Hai's throat. The air shook violently, howling like tearing cloth.
"Petty tricks!"
The cold smile never left Ma Hai's face. As someone at Awakening Stage Six, his dynamic vision was keen, and he picked up the path of Ning Chuan's attack in less than a second.
He swung a swift fist at the position he'd predicted.
But just as he was about to strike Ning Chuan's wrist, Ma Hai's expression changed.
Ning Chuan gave his right arm a forceful shake. With a crisp sound, it seemed to gain a few extra bones, dodging past the blow at a strange angle.
It was like a cold, venomous snake swaying its head.
The next instant, with a smack, Ning Chuan slapped Ma Hai across the face!
The force was tremendous.
Ma Hai's head rocked, and under the many startled and astonished gazes around them, a clear handprint instantly appeared.
Yin Snake Strike!
One of the five forms of Thousand Bones Slaughter Art!
It could rapidly change direction mid-strike, making it the move whose point of attack was hardest to predict.
I still haven't cultivated it long enough!
If I were at the mastery stage, this Yin Snake Strike of mine could still have hit Ma Hai's throat after dodging his attack!
That spot is extremely vulnerable.
Even though Ma Hai is two stages above me, I could have defeated him.
Instead of having to change my move halfway through and slap him, like I just did!
Ning Chuan thought to himself, feeling slightly regretful.
Not far away, Su Yun's almond-shaped eyes widened, her fair, pretty face filled with shock.
Ning Chuan had only learned Thousand Bones Slaughter Art yesterday at noon.
And now he could actually execute a move with a convincing degree of skill.
Surely this couldn't be another moment of enlightenment.
Could it be that Ning Chuan's martial arts talent is actually exceptional?!
Su Yun wondered.
Martial arts talent could roughly be divided into two kinds.
One referred to the body: those with good aptitude cultivated rapidly and encountered almost no barriers between realms. Even if they did, they could quickly break through.
The other was comprehension.
Those gifted in this regard learned any martial art quickly and could gain insights in a short time.
Su Yun thought Ning Chuan might be a genius of the latter kind.
But she didn't understand why Ning Chuan hadn't shown it before.
Meanwhile.
An uproar broke out among the onlookers, followed by cries of shock.
Ning Chuan had actually slapped Ma Hai.
Although Ma Hai hadn't been seriously hurt, a slap was more of an insult in itself.
It was simply inconceivable!
After all, when someone at Awakening Stage Six fought someone at Stage Four, it would normally be a one-sided crushing victory, without the slightest surprise!
"We underestimated Ning Chuan. He doesn't just know Flash Thunder Slash; he's mastered other powerful martial arts too!"
"Ma Hai's such a disgrace. Didn't he say he was going to slap Ning Chuan? How did he end up getting slapped himself?!"
Guo Renyu shouted from the crowd.
"That martial art of Ning Chuan's is amazing. It's like a venomous snake swaying its head as it hunts its prey. It can change course multiple times before it hits its target."
"It really is powerful. Even someone at Awakening Stage Six couldn't detect it and got slapped!"
Hearing the discussions around him, Ma Hai's face flushed so red that it concealed the crimson slap mark. He wished he could find a crack in the ground and crawl into it!
"You... I..."
Ma Hai pointed at Ning Chuan and opened his mouth, but he didn't know what to say.
The fact that he'd been slapped was as immovable as thunder!
"You don't seem to have taught me what's good for me!"
Ning Chuan smiled faintly and rubbed his fingers together. "I've slapped your face with my actions so many times before, but sure enough, it feels better to slap you in the face myself!"
"Don't get cocky! I was just careless for a moment and let you get lucky once!"
Ma Hai roared in anger and strode forward, pouncing at Ning Chuan like a fierce tiger. He wanted to slap Ning Chuan in return and wipe away the humiliation.
Ning Chuan met him without fear.
Gale Step!
Vajra Body!
Thousand Bones Slaughter Art!
Ning Chuan took turns using his various martial arts as he battled Ma Hai, pushing his fighting power to its limit.
Overall, however, he was still at a disadvantage.
After all, he was two realms behind.
There were considerable gaps in his physical capabilities, including strength, speed, resistance to blows, and his five senses.
And apart from Flash Thunder Slash, his other martial arts weren't at particularly high levels.
Red, swollen injuries kept appearing on Ning Chuan's body.
His fists were injured too.
But his understanding of actual combat deepened rapidly.
Ning Chuan was unafraid of pain. His eyes were calm as he immersed himself completely in the fight, timing his attacks accurately and executing his moves with sound judgment.
Ma Hai attacked fiercely, but he couldn't defeat Ning Chuan in a short time.
Ring, ring, ring...
A quarter of an hour later, the break bell rang.
Under the shocked gazes of the crowd, Ning Chuan and Ma Hai still hadn't determined a winner.
In the end, Su Yun spoke up, and only then did the two stop fighting.
"You're a lunatic!"
Ma Hai glared fiercely at Ning Chuan and spat a mouthful of bloody saliva onto the ground.
Although he'd held the upper hand throughout, he hadn't managed to slap Ning Chuan.
Instead, he'd been hit quite a few times.
Ning Chuan had landed every one of those blows by trading injuries for injuries.
But the problem was that his fists were far more powerful than Ning Chuan's.
Trading injuries for injuries clearly put Ning Chuan at a disadvantage.
Yet Ning Chuan kept fighting that way.
Besides his contempt, what Ma Hai felt even more was impotent rage. If not for the time limit, he would surely have won.
"Whew-!"
Ning Chuan gasped for breath, large patches of his body bruised and swollen.
But he paid them no mind.
Excitement shone in his dark eyes as he looked at the interface visible only to him.
[Vajra Body]: Level one (progress: 5%)
The fight had raised Vajra Body's progress by a full three percentage points, more than a whole day of normal cultivation!
"You'd better quit your job instructing President Lu Mengyue. Someone like you isn't qualified to have contact with a person like her!" Ma Hai glared at Ning Chuan and lowered his voice to threaten him. "Otherwise, I'll beat you up once a day!"
Ma Hai said coldly, "Even without a practical combat class, I can find a reason to attack you. The school can't do anything to me. If you don't believe me, try it!"
Ning Chuan blinked.
Once a day.
There was such a good thing?!
This was a free sparring partner delivering himself to his door.
Ning Chuan was overjoyed, but a sneer appeared on his face. "If I'm not qualified to have contact with Lu Mengyue, then you are?!"
"My dad's a multimillionaire, and my family owns seven apartments. How can an orphan like you compare?!"
Ma Hai snorted coldly.
A scene from a movie unconsciously surfaced in his mind.
Leaning forward slightly, Ma Hai brought his mouth close to Ning Chuan's ear and said in an icy voice, "Brother Zhang asked me to give you this beating as his regards!
"You'd better know what's good for you!
"Otherwise, your end will be beyond your imagination!"
"Brother Zhang? You mean Zhang Wensi?"
"Good, as long as you know!"
Ma Hai was getting carried away with his act and felt he should be a little more ruthless. After speaking, he turned and strode straight away.
Does he have a secret crush on Lu Mengyue, or is there another reason?
Ning Chuan glanced at Zhang Wensi, who wasn't far away, and rubbed his chin. He didn't go over to confront him.
Awakening Stage Seven was already the threshold of the higher stages, and its strength was formidable.
Even if he took up the Silver Blood Battle Saber, he would have a hard time matching him.
He would settle that score later.
"Ning Chuan, are you all right? Should I take you to the school infirmary?"
Guo Renyu hurried over, his face anxious.
Ning Chuan shrugged and smiled faintly. "It's nothing serious. It looks bad, but they're all superficial injuries. I'll be fine after applying some liniment and resting for a few days."
As soon as he finished speaking, the nearby students couldn't help taking a few more looks at him.
Admiration appeared in their eyes.
To fight someone two realms higher and do this well was remarkable.
"Come to my office."
A voice as gentle as water rang out as Su Yun came to Ning Chuan's side.
The looks in the boys' eyes changed at once.
Their admiration vanished.
Anger appeared.
For a moment, they'd actually forgotten.
He was number one on the Students Who Must Be Killed Ranking!
They wished they could take his place!