The next few days went by like a flash.
Every night, Yan Guang would refine his mind via the starry sky, slowly growing the size and strength of his soul. Although progress was slow, it was still evident that there were some changes happening. Ever since he had managed to see his soul, Yan Guang found cultivating easier.
To be precise, it felt like the attractive forces he could exert on qi motes had been strengthened. Yan Guang surmised that the soul must've been the source of the mysterious force, which is why it had been growing along with his soul.
Unfortunately, there was no way to prove this. Despite his qi sense and mind introspection both being simple to execute alone, it was almost impossible to activate the two types of vision together. It was like trying to split the mind's focus into two, one would simply end up distracted and achieve nothing.
Despite the lack of beast blood, Yan Guang persisted in continuing his body refining exercises as they allowed him to feel each of his muscles and utilize them more effectively. Especially after his teacher Wei Shun had pointed out his underutilization of his muscles, Yan Guang made understanding each and every part of his body a priority.
The biggest gain he had made was in his martial arts skill. He had gone from an amateur to someone with slight experience. Every time they ate lunch together, Wei Shun would point out more of Yan Guang's mistakes, encouraging him to fix them.
Even after three days, Wei Shun remained unsatisfied with Yan Guang's Raging Tiger Fists routine.
So, Yan Guang persevered. He practiced nonstop, with no regard for anything else. His original plans of joining any clubs had been derailed due to his teacher's restrictions, but he felt no resentment.
With his current skill, wouldn't he simply embarrass his teacher by participating in a tournament or a hunt?
Yan Guang's ego had fully dissipated, and he had accepted his inferiority in martial arts. However, he didn't let this demotivate him. In fact, it only pushed him to improve even more.
The worse he was, the more room he had to improve. That was what Yan Guang told himself.
Four days passed without Yan Guang having explored even an inch of the White Tiger School outside of the Seventh Courtyard. He was determined to achieve this one goal first before anything else.
Each fist he unleashed caused a loud whooshing sound in the air due to its sheer power.
If the strength he was able to demonstrate when he was first inducted into the School was at around 20% efficiency, he felt he would likely be performing at around 80% efficiency now.
Each of his punches were around 4 times stronger!
Yan Guang felt that if he had this strength during the exams, clinching top three would not have been an issue!
Yet, he was still unsatisfied. 80% was not the limit. What he was truly aiming for was 100%!
Achieving 100% in anything was a difficult task because it represented perfection, the ideal form.
Humans were, at their very core, imperfect beings. Achieving such perfection was only possible by surmounting impossible odds with unbelievable skill.
Yan Guang knew that it was possible, however, because he had seen it with his own two eyes.
On the second day of practice, when Yan Guang was taking a break, his teacher had stepped foot in the courtyard for what felt like the first time.
Without saying a word, Wei Shun had taken a stance and unleashed a fist that seemed indescribably perfect.
Yan Guang recalled how his body shifted its weight supplying torque. Every piece of muscle in his teacher's body seemed to work in perfect unison, transferring all the force perfectly until the fist reached its apex.
The sound the fist made was still stuck in Yan Guang's mind. It was a loud crack, almost like a whip had hit the ground. Yan Guang knew that it was not a whip, it was in fact his teacher's own body!
That was the noise of every bone, tendon and muscle performing harmoniously.
Ever since he had realized such a punch's existence, Yan Guang grew infatuated with the prospect of being able to replicate it. This was what all of his hours spent in the courtyard were for.
As the fist replayed in his mind endlessly, Yan Guang entered the flow state. It was as if he was autonomously performing the movements of the Raging Tiger Fists without even thinking about it.
Each cycle led to his movements growing more and more perfected.
From 80% efficiency to 85% to 90%, he was growing closer to the level of his teacher.
Hours passed in this flow state with Yan Guang practicing as if he was a beast with no limit to his stamina. Not even for one second did he stop moving to catch his breath.
Even as noon arrived and Yan Guang's stomach emptied, he still didn't snap out of his trance.
Originally intending to call Yan Guang for lunch as usual, Wei Shun restrained himself. He knew that his student had entered a special state that was rare to come by.
Seeing Wei Shun standing in the courtyard for so long, even the elusive senior sister came out of her cottage to observe.
"Uncle Wei, won't he hurt himself?", whispered the girl to Wei Shun.
"If he does, I'm right here. A martial artist will face any challenge to accomplish his goal. What would little Yan Guang think if we pulled him out of his best chance at improving his martial arts because we were worried about him?", Wei Shun lectured.
Both of them monitored the youth with great anticipation and concern.
Although martial artists had superhuman levels of vitality, they were not immune to injuries during training. In fact, many martial artists had overtrained themselves before through extreme regimens that far surpassed their body's limits.
Yan Guang was not an ordinary martial artist, however. Every step he took, every punch he executed pushed him past his limits, which should've been impossible for any mortal body to endure, but Yan Guang did not have a simple mortal body. His martial physique meant that pushing himself past his limits would only benefit him in the long run due to his insane adaptability.
The sky was turning dark, yet Yan Guang was still punching.
Slowly, his form began to overlap with that of his teacher's in his mind.
With a bright gleam in his eye, Yan Guang lowered his stance, keeping his center of gravity close to the ground before he pushed off the ground, rotating his torso and providing the torque necessary to amplify his punching force.
Every muscle on his arm bulged as internal force ran through his veins at great speeds, finally reaching his fist.
CRACK!
Every part of his body had finally managed to coalesce and form a single unit, allowing him to exert the maximum force possible. This was the power of 100%!
That was not all, though.
Cracking noises rang out repeatedly as Yan Guang began to demonstrate his whole Raging Tiger Fists routine with 100% efficiency.
Jabs, hooks, uppercuts, every traditional form of the Raging Tiger Fists was perfectly showcased.
It was only after finishing the last move that Yan Guang seemed to finally let go of his obsession. He was free.
A loud thud could be heard as Yan Guang's unconscious body collapsed onto the rough sand of the courtyard. Imprints could be seen everywhere as remnants of Yan Guang's wholehearted practice for the last few days.
"Uncle Wei, did he really just achieve Bodily Harmony? That takes most martial artists years to achieve! Unbelievable, this fellow...", the girl muttered in shock.
"Little Yao, would he be my student if he was 'most martial artists'?", Wei Shun confidently asserted. At that moment, his carefree lazy persona was shed, revealing the warrior within.
Picking up Yan Guang as if he was a twig, Wei Shun took him into the side cottage and found a futon for him to rest on. Laying him down, Wei Shun began to speak, "Qiu Yao, you are now old enough for me to entrust you with your first patient, my own student! Use all those years of studying medicine and come up with some way to make this blockhead disciple of mine all better!"
Qiu Yao's face twisted and contorted as she realized Wei Shun was once again dumping another responsibility on her. However, it was true that she had never had any practical experience treating someone before. This was the first step for her on her way to becoming a true doctor.
Morning the next day, Yan Guang finally awakened right as he felt someone spooning porridge into his mouth.
Despite being awake, he felt a deep sense of weakness. He could barely move.
"Se- Senior sister? Did I faint?", Yan Guang asked, struggling to not slur his speech.
"More than fainted. You fainted and proceeded to sleep for the next 15 hours.", Qiu Yao replied, clearly annoyed.
"Because of your stupid overexertion of your own body, I've had to take care of you. You definitely owe me one, alright.", Qiu Yao teased.
"Thank you, senior sister. I promise I'll repay you.", Yan Guang uttered in the midst of great discomfort.
"No need to be so formal. Just call me Sister Qiu, and don't talk of repayments between martial siblings. I simply did what I should've.", Qiu Yao replied with a certain sternness.
Yan Guang agreed, "As you say, Sister Qiu."
Exerting all the strength he had remaining, Yan Guang managed to barely raise himself up a few centimeters off the ground before he was pushed back to the floor.
"Don't try to move. Almost all of your muscles have been sprained and some of your ligaments have been torn. Until they recover, you will have to be in bedrest. This is for your own good, trust me.", Qiu Yao said.
Yan Guang was disappointed, but understood that it was his own fault he ended up like this.
He didn't regret it one bit anyway. Experiencing that moment of clarity where it felt like his body was working in perfect harmony was euphoric.
If this was the consequences of his actions, so be it.
As soon as he rested his head back upon the pillow of his futon, he reentered his sleep.
All his dreams were still about punching.