"Elixir Energy."
Li Pin glanced at the strenuously swinging specialized sandbag and gave his arm a shake.
Concentrating his spirit on his arm, he was able to perceive the condition of his arm in just a minute.
"Soft tissue damage, small degrees of muscle and tendon cracking, nervous and blood vessel damage... The injuries are concentrated in the short flexor, short extensor, and palmar interosseous muscles, and the nervous and blood vessels such as the median nerve, the median nerve branch, the ulnar nerve deep branch, the radial and ulnar arteries... However, these injuries are within normal ranges."
After a month, his Qi and Blood had risen to 21.014, equivalent to Shanhu's.
The physical strength and Qi and Blood needed to wield Elixir Energy of this kind are not without their price.
"I must practice with health preservation techniques."
In his past life, Li Pin had intentionally searched for cultivation techniques for treatment after realizing his foundation was damaged, and the Five Animals Frolics was the one he put most of his energy into.
However, now that he was gifted with "insight," it was time to change.
The most suitable one...
"Taoist Innate Qi Nourishing Art."
In his past life, this was his only chance encounter.
When his skills reached the stage of becoming an Elixir Holding Martial Artist, he went to Lingyun Mountain in search of an expert and came across a true Daoist practitioner.
Although he was not a Martial Arts expert, he was still in robust health with no illnesses at the age of ninety-six.
Seeing that Li Pin's days were numbered, he taught him the Innate Qi Nourishing Art.
This technique could reverse pre-birth conditions, heal hidden injuries, and nourish the physical body by tapping into human Life Vital Energy. Its healing effects were remarkable.
Unfortunately, he was unable to fully comprehend the technique due to his fleeting lifespan and restless heart, and he never made any advancement in it before his death.
Now, given another chance, it was worth a try.
Li Pin immediately practiced the technique according to the principles of the Innate Qi Nourishing Art.
...
The Changfeng Dojo was relatively less crowded in the mornings.
It wasn't until past nine that people began to trickle in.
But none of them were Li Pin's students.
After practicing the Innate Qi Nourishing Art, he resumed his training in the Xuanpin Gate.
Around noon, Li Pin's phone rang.
The voice of Fang Yubai came through the phone shortly after he picked up, "Old Li, come downstairs to Wang's Restaurant for lunch."
"Alright."
Li Pin did not refuse.
He and Fang Yubai got along well and now that they were introduced by Fang Lingjue, their relationship had significantly improved in the past month.
He immediately went downstairs to Wang's Restaurant, located on the lower floor of the shopping mall.
When he arrived, he found that Fang Yubai and two beautiful and well-dressed young women were already waiting for him.
"Old Li."
Fang Yubai greeted him and introduced his companions, "This is my girlfriend Meng Lingbing, and her friend Zhang Yunxi."
"Hello."
Li Pin initiated a greeting.
"Is he... Li Pin?"
Meng Lingbing seemed to recognize Li Pin, so she voiced her surprise.
"Yes."
Fang Yubai affirmed her guess, warning her, "Don't believe all the rumors going around at school."
"Oh."
Meng Lingbing nodded, but her expressions seemed slightly uncomfortable.
Zhang Yunxi, who was seated next to Meng Lingbing raised her eyebrows, immediately stood up, and said, "Bingbing, didn't we have plans with Yueyue? She's here, should we go and see her?"
"I..."
Meng Lingbing understood what she meant and hesitated for a moment before replying, "You go ahead. I'll wait for you here."
"Are you sure? Yueyue will be upset."
"You go."
Meng Lingbing answered, stealing a glance at Fang Yubai.
"Alright."
Zhang Yunxi left without bothering to say goodbye to Fang Yubai and Li Pin.
This outcome made Fang Yubai a bit awkward, but he quickly composed himself and said, "Since Yunxi has something to do, let her be. Let's eat."
"Should I go upstairs and get something?"
Li Pin asked.
He was planning to leave.
"Why not wait until after the meal?"
Fang Yubai understood his meaning and dismissed the idea with a wave of his hand, "What do you want to have? I'll order for us."
"You decide."
Li Pin saw no reason to make a fuss.
In fact, he directly asked, "Does Zhang Yunxi know An Wanyi?"
"Er... "
Meng Lingbing glanced at Fang Yubai, answering, "Yes."
Fang Yubai, feeling a bit awkward, said, "I've met Zhang Yunxi a few times. I thought she was well-mannered, and she was attractive as well. According to Lingbing, she's quite a good girl at school. I wanted to introduce her to you to prevent you from getting sick from staying in the dojo. I just didn't expect..."
"It's okay."
Said Li Pin.
Once he achieves something in the future and gained reputation, he would have a good talk with Jing Gufeng and An Wanyi. As for other students at Hanyang University?
He didn't envision having any further interaction with them.
Naturally, he would not waste emotional energy on them.
"Li Pin? Fang Yubai? Are you guys here too?"
At this moment, a crisp voice rang out.
Then they saw Shanhu, donned in a red and white sportswear outfit and her hair in a ponytail, bringing a youthful vibrancy, approaching them, accompanied by a girl dressed in a yellow dress, with neat bangs and long hair cascading down her shoulders.
The woman was not only delicate in her features, but she also exuded a gentle and charming aura. With her arrival, the main hall seemed to brighten up a bit, and many of the diners couldn't help but take a second look.
"Yubai's treating us to dinner."
Li Pin announced.
"Joining tables, together?"
Shanhu readily suggested.
Li Pin looked at Fang Yubai.
Fang Yubai's gaze unwittingly lingered on the woman in the yellow dress for a few seconds as he said, "Of course, your friend is…"
"It's okay."
Shanhu glanced at the woman and said, "Yingying? More people means more fun, we can order more dishes, try more flavors without worrying about waste, how about it?"
"Good."
The woman smiled warmly at Fang Yubai, Li Pin and the others: "Sorry for the intrusion."
"No intrusion at all, please have a seat."
Fang Yubai quickly said.
With no hesitation, Shanhu pulled up a chair and said, "This is my best friend, Liu Yingying."
Fang Yubai also introduced everyone at the table.
As soon as they sat down, Shanhu immediately struck up a conversation with Li Pin.
"Li Pin, I've noticed your Fist Strength has grown a lot stronger and fierce recently, is your Qi and Blood over 20 now?"
"It is."
Li Pin replied.
"You've progressed too fast, but considering how hard you train, it's a fitting achievement."
"I have no choice, since I work in this field, I should put more effort into it."
"You're well-suited for this path."
Shanhu nodded with deep conviction.
She had watched him train over the past month. Even though Li Pin was just resuming his neglected martial arts practice, his growth rate was indeed astounding.
Only one explanation could account for it.
He was inherently talented.
"Isn't next week the semi-annual Martial Artist qualification test? Can you pass the Grade 1 certificate, or are you going straight for Grade 2?"
"Straight to Grade 2."
Li Pin said.
If it wasn't for the rule that you could only skip one grade at a time, he would have liked to directly take the Grade 3 certificate, the mid-grade professional title.
But even without it, he wasn't fazed.
With his current rate of progress, he could directly test for the Deputy Senior professional title in another six months.
However, his words left Shanhu dumbfounded for a moment, before she blurted out, "Are you joking? You're seriously going straight for the Grade 2 Assistant Martial Artist professional title?"
"Yes."
Li Pin said.
"You..."
Shanhu's mood fell instantly.
"Grade 2!?"
Fang Yubai widened his eyes in shock at Li Pin, "You're going to take the Grade 2 Assistant Martial Artist professional title test this soon?"
"Yes, it's to fulfill the contract obligations Pavilion Master Fang signed as soon as possible."
Li Pin replied with a smile.
"Frankly, are you planning to take the mid-grade professional title test in six months?"
Shanhu stared at Li Pin.
"Who knows what will happen in six months."
Li Pin waved away her question, "Alright, our conversation may not interest others; let's change the subject."
"I'm interested."
Liu Yingying blinked, "It's quite impressive to pass the Grade 2 Martial artist certificate exam at your young age."
Meng Lingbing was also gazing at Li Pin, seemingly wanting to say something but unable to get it out due to her earlier awkwardness.
Li Pin shook his head.
He didn't think there was any point in carrying on with this conversation.
His original intention to train martial arts was not to seek fame, but for himself, to break through human limitations, to completely overcome illness, accidents, and calamities.
In the future...
He wanted to see just how strong a human could become and where exactly the end of this journey of life cultivation was.
Other things, like money or status, are just byproducts of this goal.
If he had them, great.
If not, he wouldn't insist on them.
At this time, Shanhu suddenly said, "Our master has recently found that the martial arts field is quite lucrative, and he should be expanding the recruitment scope, how about you join us at the dojo?"
"Me? Isn't Master Yang responsible for managing the dojo?"
"When the expansion goes ahead, we'll divide into an inner dojo for disciples and an outer dojo for students, Master Yang will manage the inner dojo and you can manage the outer dojo..."
Shanhu looked at Li Pin, sizing him up and down.
A height of about one meter seventy-eight...
Not quite what she wanted, but perfect for a Martial Artist.
The key point was that he had an excellent foundation, if they got a stylist to spruce him up a bit...
Spirited, handsome, and sunny.
The students of the outer dojo are mainly beginners.
Even comprised of young men and women.
Who could resist such a handsome, stylish, spirited Martial Artist who holds a Grade 2 certificate as their dojo master?