Sunburst Gang Branch, under the shroud of night.
Bai Ziyue placed his luggage at the bedside. The joy from being promoted to an Inner Sect Apprentice and learning two martial arts had vanished, replaced by a solemn expression.
The news from his aunt had really made him uneasy.
"Fortunately, Aunt has already left, and I have also entered the Sunburst Gang Branch. Even if that ghost-nurturing evil cultivator knows I killed that female ghost, he probably wouldn't dare to act recklessly in a short period of time."
Soon, Bai Ziyue regained his composure.
With his aunt gone, his pressure had lessened considerably, and he no longer had too many worries.
Especially since she had taken the ten taels of silver he'd sent to his parents when she left... This way, even if something happened, their lives would be somewhat secure.
Of course, the Sunburst Gang Branch is naturally an extremely safe place.
In Qinghe Town, their strength is among the best.
Not counting the External Forging Martial Artists within the gang, there are also many Inner Cultivation Powerhouses, including those who have cultivated Inner Qi. In terms of masters, they might even surpass the Qinghe Town Government. Even if that ghost-nurturing evil cultivator is an immortal cultivator, his strength shouldn't be too formidable. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone into hiding when the government was investigating. Now that things have quieted down, he has reappeared.
Therefore, Bai Ziyue concluded it should be safe for him to stay in the Sunburst Gang Branch.
"However, this safety is only temporary; I can't stay in the branch forever.
Ultimately, I have to rely on myself. If I am strong enough, I wouldn't fear that evil cultivator even if he came for me."
Bai Ziyue took a deep breath, the sense of crisis pressing on him made his desire for strength even more intense.
Not thinking further, Bai Ziyue took out a thin book from his bosom.
"One-character Punch!"
This book was the One-character Punch he had obtained from Mr. Hou.
By the light of an oil lamp, Bai Ziyue opened the book and started reading it word by word.
The benefit of self-learning literacy now fully revealed itself. The entire One-character Punch text, with only a few unfamiliar characters here and there, he was already able to read without any obstacles.
"One-character Punch, though it is a fist technique, is more a technique of force integration.
Common martial artists, even if they train power through Zen Meditation Posture and other Pile Skills, can only exert a limited strength.
This power is scattered.
One-character Punch, however, can gradually consolidate this power, thus twisting it into a single force. When all the power converges and launches out in one go, it immediately unleashes even greater strength."
Bai Ziyue closed the secret manual and silently pondered in his heart.
The force transmission technique of this fist art is quite different from the Eighteen Linked Blades.
The Eighteen Linked Blades primarily utilize power in the arms and waist.
Whereas the One-character Punch is a technique that integrates the power from the entire body. In comparison, One-character Punch is naturally more superior.
"The entire fist technique emphasizes on the force transmission, making the stance simple. There's only one Twist Body Punch posture.
However, because it is a force transmission method, the training difficulty of this fist technique is stronger than ordinary martial arts."
Bai Ziyue tried to mobilize his internal force, rotating it according to the fist technique's force transmission method, his body suddenly twisted, and he launched a Twist Body Punch.
Whoosh~!
Only the wind from his punch moved. When the force was first mobilized, it already dissipated, not even transmitting to his arm.
"It really is difficult.
To mobilize the force, you first need to control your internal blood flow freely.
Although I have practiced the Zen Meditation Posture to perfection, making the blood flow easy to mobilize, it's still difficult to integrate the force into a single stream."
Bai Ziyue sighed, even with Zen Meditation Perfection, generating force wasn't difficult, but extending it continuously was hard.
For instance, controlling the force in his leg, extending it to his body and then striking from his arm... The long passage through countless blood vessels causes the force to unknowingly dissipate and vanish.
Thus, the final force released is naturally weak, lacking power.
Bai Ziyue could control the force to pierce a piece of paper from a distance of ten centimeters, but the extended force would only be from his arm; any further and the force would scatter.
"Indeed, it's hard to master martial arts at an entry-level and exert power effectively. Regardless of difficulty, I must train to succeed."
Bai Ziyue felt a surge of determination, a fighting spirit blossomed within him.
After all, he had an advantage; the Zen Meditation Perfection had granted him a force control and internal blood flow mastery far superior to someone who had only achieved Zen Meditation Small Success.
Innately, he was ahead of others practicing martial arts.
Bai Ziyue suddenly wasn't concerned about the time it took to execute, aiming for the complete transmission of force to his arm.
According to the force transmission method, he gradually accumulated power, starting from his legs, passing through his hips. The scattered blood immediately dissipated much of the force, but he persisted, continuing to control, gradually moving up his body. The sound of flowing blood echoed, driving a powerful force toward his shoulders...
Bai Ziyue's shoulders turned red and purple, with surging blood driving a formidable force that charged towards his arm...
Involuntarily, Bai Ziyue threw a punch!
Bang!
A powerful qi echoed.
Bai Ziyue's punch created a visible white mist in the air before him, causing the distant window paper to tremble.
"I'm so tired..."
Covered in sweat, Bai Ziyue felt a significant physical drain, particularly in his arm, which was now sore and seemed hard to lift.
It took him a long while to recover.
"I executed the punch, but it wasn't complete. By the time it reached the arm, I had already lost control over the force, merely borrowing the charging force to strike.
Moreover, my body is too weak to bear such immense pressure."
Rolling up his sleeve, looking at his reddened, slightly swollen arm, Bai Ziyue shook his head bitterly.
The power of this punch was indeed formidable, at least doubling his previous full-strength strike.
But the time it took for force integration and transmission was too long, a full ten seconds.
Others wouldn't stand still for ten seconds waiting for you to throw a punch.
Moreover, this punch left him half-exhausted, with his arm unable to bear the force.
"Perhaps, it's because I control the force too strongly.
Generally, those who have achieved Zen Meditation Small Success have a much weaker force control, with minimal blood flow driving. Performing this punch, even with a strong charging force, wouldn't harm their arm like this.
And those martial artists who have also perfected Zen Meditation would have begun External Forging, making their body strength far beyond mine, thus avoiding such trouble."
Bai Ziyue sighed, suddenly understanding the crux of the problem.
His control over the force was too strong, while his body's strength couldn't keep up, leading to such results.