The complex golden symbol flickered abruptly.
A gold coin vanished.
Wei Tao hadn't fully processed what had happened.
Shua!
A mysterious energy dissipated.
His vision suddenly dimmed.
A splitting headache assaulted him, as if someone had pried open his skull with a chisel and stuffed something inside.
When Wei Tao regained his senses, he noticed that one gold coin had disappeared.
Glancing at the Traveling Stone Fist's status bar, it had increased from less than ten percent to twenty percent.
Examining the status bar now, the description for Traveling Stone Fist had changed as well.
Name: Traveling Stone Fist.
Progress: 20 percent.
Status: Beginner.
Spending one gold coin resulted in an increase of at least ten percent in the progress bar.
So, Eldest Senior Brother Tan Pan's Traveling Stone Fist can be improved this way?
But why doesn't the Red Line Fist appear in the marked status bar?
Is it because he hadn't started it yet?
Wei Tao took a deep breath, slowly exhaled, and suddenly remembered what Tan Pan had said—that practicing Traveling Stone Fist to a deep level would greatly benefit the Red Line Fist.
After calming himself down, he consumed another gold coin, increasing the Traveling Stone Fist's progress bar to thirty percent.
Once again, darkness enveloped him, and this time, the headache intensified. He also felt a throbbing pain spreading throughout his body, as if his consciousness and physical body were undergoing simultaneous transformation.
Afterward, Wei Tao used three more gold coins, all of them spent on the Traveling Stone Fist.
The progress bar skyrocketed from 30 percent to 60 percent in an instant.
The status description on the progress bar evolved from "improving" to "slightly successful," and then directly changed to "reached a higher level."
Bang!
Sudden and drastic changes erupted within his consciousness and body simultaneously.
When everything settled, Wei Tao instinctively looked down and examined his hands.
To his surprise, in just a few breaths, his knuckles, palms, forearms, shoulders, and elbows had all become thicker compared to before. His muscles were now well-defined, and he felt a newfound strength coursing through his body.
What astonished him even more was that a wealth of Traveling Stone Fist practice experiences had materialized in his mind, as if he had truly spent an unknown amount of time diligently training day and night.
Having expended all five gold coins accumulated since he crossed over, Wei Tao resisted the urge to spend another gold coin. Instead, he quickly made his way to the corner where the stone lock was placed.
As darkness fell, a stone lock gracefully flew up and down, moving with agility and precision. It was difficult to discern any visual difference from Tan Pan's demonstration, perhaps even slightly better.
More importantly, with each interaction and collision, Wei Tao experienced a new understanding of qi and blood, immersing himself in the practice involuntarily and losing track of time.
From a distance, the faint sound of footsteps could be heard. Wei Tao collected the stone lock and turned to face the direction of the sound.
A moment later, Fifth Senior Brother Peng Yue approached, his slight scent of alcohol lingering, and his eyes shining in the darkness.
"Junior Brother Wei, haven't you returned yet?"
"I wanted to practice a bit more while the weather is cooler."
Peng Yue found a spot to sit down and closed his eyes, speaking slowly, "Eldest Senior Brother is the Legacy heir that the teacher values the most. His skills are just one step away from the teacher's level. It's fortunate that you can receive his personal guidance."
Wei Tao took a seat next to him. "Senior Brother Peng, I still don't know much about the different levels of Red Line Fist, even after being here for so many days."
"It's a bit premature for you to think about that when you haven't even started the qi and blood manipulation. Once you meet the teacher's requirements and can condense qi and blood in your palms, you can truly enter the path and delve into the authentic teachings."
Peng Yue chuckled before continuing the explanation. "We have four levels in Red Line Fist: Skin Refinement, Muscle Refinement, Blood Condensation, and Red Line..."
"Skin Refinement is the foundational level, where you can manipulate your skin to resemble blood, as hard as stone. Even if you perfect this level, you can further progress to Muscle Refinement."
"Muscle Refinement allows you to swell and control the fascia at will, making it difficult for ordinary knives and spears to penetrate. Only then can you attempt to enter the higher level of Blood Condensation."
Wei Tao inquired, "And what about the Red Line Realm above Blood Condensation?"
"I'm still at the Muscle Refinement level, so you'll have to ask the teacher directly to find out if he'll answer you."
"In that case, I'll leave it for now. I should focus on entering the path first." Wei Tao shook his head, picked up the stone lock from the ground once again, and began performing the simplest throwing exercise.
........................
Another month passed, and it was nearing noon. The six senior brothers responsible for guiding the training emerged from the inner courtyard and called out the names of several individuals, leading them into the inner courtyard.
Wei Tao glanced around and noticed that the other honorary disciples surrounding him didn't display envy. Instead, most of them appeared helpless and anxious, while a few seemed to take pleasure in the misfortune of others with a strange expression.
After a while, a few individuals exited the inner courtyard, packed up their belongings, and quietly left the Martial Arts Hall. Only one person arrived at the Martial Training Stage, carrying a bag on his back. He faced the remaining honorary disciples, who were still diligently practicing, and said, "The green mountains won't change, and the green water will flow for a long time. If any of you have anything in the future, you can find me in the south city."
He didn't receive much response. Only a few of the honorary disciples, who were still practicing diligently, responded with a cupped fist gesture, while the rest merely nodded or completely ignored him, unwilling to remove their hands from the iron sand, wasting the opportunity to perceive the movement of qi and blood through this practice.
The man fell silent for a moment, the smile on his face frozen. He turned and looked down, his shadow growing longer and longer until he eventually disappeared from the Martial Training Stage.
"What are you all staring at? You think if you don't practice well and imitate them, you can go back and lead a stable life? You've been toiling here for months, and now you can only go back to your precarious existence?"
"Don't think I'm speaking ill of you, none of you are geniuses, let alone possess the qualifications to be lazy. If you want a better life, you must work hard, even to the point of death. If anyone thinks I'm wrong, you can pack up and leave right now."
The sixth senior brother scolded loudly, dropped the potion he needed for the day, and turned to return to the inner courtyard.
"Senior Brother Wei, how long have you been here?"
During lunchtime, a fifteen or sixteen-year-old youth with a somewhat feminine appearance sat down next to Wei Tao with a rice bowl.
The youngster's name was Wang Lianshan, a recent arrival to the Martial Arts Hall. He seemed to have a lively personality and could strike up conversations with anyone. Since his arrival, he had already connected with many of the honorary disciples, forming a sizable group.
Wei Tao glanced up at Wang Lianshan, tore off a piece of steamed bun, soaked it in the broth, and stirred it with his chopsticks a few times. "It's been over two months."
Wang Lianshan smiled mysteriously. "Then you need to hurry. I heard before coming here that the teacher accepts apprentices regardless of their background, as long as they catch his eye and can afford the apprenticeship fee, they can become honorary disciples."
"However, if you want to enter the inner courtyard and receive true teachings, it's best to meet the requirements for qi and blood manipulation within three months, or else it will be difficult."
"Three months?" Wei Tao furrowed his brow. "I heard it was six months before, and if not six months, then four or five months."
Wang Lianshan pursed his lips and spoke slowly, "Six months is impossible. As for the four or five months you mentioned, that might have been possible in the past. But now, with more and more people aspiring to enter the Martial Arts Hall, they won't let you stay longer than three months."
"Even if someone takes four or five months to get started, their subsequent cultivation progress will be minimal. Senior Brother Wei, think about it. Why has the teacher been rooted in the outer city for so many years, and there are only a few insignificant individuals in the inner courtyard as official disciples?"