Chapter 21: Internal Strength

Over the next three days, besides going to the kitchen to collect meals and visiting the old scholar, Chen Yuan spent the rest of his time in his small courtyard practicing martial arts. He worked to convert all the Tiger-Subduing Qi within his body into Six Yang Technique Qi.

The Six Yang Technique was a first-rate cultivation method that led directly to the Transformation of Strength stage. Its true qi was exceptionally miraculous—extremely pure, yang, and fierce.

If Chen Yuan were to exert the full power of the Six Yang Technique, a single palm strike could leave a charred imprint on clothing. If struck against the body, it would feel as if one were being burned; if delivered unexpectedly, it would undoubtedly yield extraordinary results.

This was merely at the Marrow Refining stage. According to the secret manual, after breaking through, every movement would be accompanied by internal strength, as hot as fire, making him a rare match among martial artists of the same rank.

Chen Yuan was eager for this. After regulating his breathing for a night, he decocted and consumed the century-old mountain ginseng, using its medicinal power to strike at the bottleneck of his internal strength.

He had lingered at the peak of the Marrow Refining stage for over half a year, building a profound foundation. His physical body was already far superior to ordinary martial artists, and with the assistance of the century-old ginseng, the breakthrough to the internal strength stage happened as naturally as water flowing into a channel.

Feeling the true qi in his dantian, which was now more than twice as thick as before, Chen Yuan suddenly struck the old locust tree with a palm, causing leaves to fall in profusion.

He reached out his right hand, took the ring-pommel saber from the weapon rack, and practiced his saber techniques amidst the endless falling leaves.

Wherever the blade passed, its internal strength connected, causing the falling leaves to spontaneously combust without fire, transforming into fluttering fire-butterflies that bloomed with points of crimson light.

After completing a set of the Five Tigers Door-Breaking Saber technique, a circle of ash, nearly an inch high, had piled up at Chen Yuan's feet. A gust of autumn wind blew, scattering the ashes into the air.

Chen Yuan sheathed his saber and stood still, inspecting his internal state. His dantian was empty; his true qi had vanished.

Converting true qi into internal strength to project it through the body consumed an immense amount of energy. Only by accumulating more true qi could he use his internal strength as he pleased.

Chen Yuan returned the ring-pommel saber to the rack, went into his room, and took out the jade pendant and the Vitality Replenishing Pills.

Over the past three days, he had drawn starlight into his body every night and taken two Vitality Replenishing Pills, which was enough to fill the energy gap. A small amount of medicinal power remained, sufficient for the next day's training.

Chen Yuan took the jade pendant out of his coarse cloth bag. The pendant emitted a faint green light, and the stars in the sky shimmered momentarily, converging into a thin beam of white light that descended from the heavens, enveloping Chen Yuan.

Chen Yuan closed his eyes slightly, feeling the clear, tingling sensation on his skin, and silently counted the time.

One breath, two breaths, three breaths... ten, eleven, twelve... twenty breaths!

As the white light dissipated, Chen Yuan abruptly opened his eyes and looked down at the jade pendant in his hand.

This starlight infusion had actually lasted for twenty breaths—twice as long as before!

However, the jade pendant showed no abnormality. The green light receded, returning to its crystal-clear state, shimmering with a faint light under the glow of the Milky Way.

Immediately following this, a sense of hunger far more intense than before surged from the depths of Chen Yuan's heart.

He hurriedly poured out a Vitality Replenishing Pill and swallowed it.

The medicinal power quickly turned into a stream of heat, surging through his limbs and bones.

But this medicinal power only relieved a small portion of the hunger before failing to sustain itself. Chen Yuan poured out a second pill and swallowed it.

The hunger subsided significantly, but it did not disappear completely.

Chen Yuan swallowed a third pill, and the hunger finally vanished entirely, but the medicinal power was also completely exhausted.

Looking at the single remaining pill in the small porcelain bottle, he shook his head helplessly.

While the extension of the starlight infusion was certainly a good thing, the energy required to replenish it had also increased. A single Vitality Replenishing Pill, which could keep a Marrow Refining martial artist's blood and qi active for seven days, required three pills at a time. It was truly a money-sink.

Yet, feeling his strength increase noticeably, a smile couldn't help but touch the corners of Chen Yuan's mouth.

This immense strength was his greatest trump card. No matter how many pills it cost, he had to accelerate the speed of the starlight infusion.

Furthermore, beyond the increase in strength, Chen Yuan's physical toughness was constantly improving; his flexibility, agility, speed, and five senses were continuously enhancing, and even his thoughts became clearer and sharper. The benefits were countless.

Chen Yuan rubbed the warm jade pendant in his hand and murmured

"What kind of treasure are you, to possess such divine effects?"

...

The next day, as Chen Yuan practiced the Six Yang Palms again, he discovered that the speed at which his true qi grew was actually a notch faster than yesterday.

Yesterday, he had been in the Marrow Refining stage with residual medicinal power from the pills keeping his blood and qi active. Today, having broken through to the internal strength stage, even without medicinal assistance, accumulating true qi had become easier.

He hadn't expected that a single twenty-breath starlight infusion would yield such obvious results.

In high spirits, Chen Yuan increased the speed of his Six Yang Palm practice.

*Knock, knock, knock! Knock, knock, knock!*

A sudden, urgent knocking sounded at the door. Chen Yuan frowned, slowly ceased his practice, and opened the door.

A horse-like face came into view. Chen Yuan's eyes flashed, and he smiled broadly.

"Senior Brother Hu, what brings you here? Please, come in."

Senior Brother Hu waved his hand and smiled.

"We'll talk later. Master has summoned us. Junior Brother Chen, come with me."

Chen Yuan said with pleasant surprise, "Good! I've been feeling stifled at home these past few days. Is the Manager arranging some task for me?"

Senior Brother Hu paused and shook his head.

"Not exactly. Someone from the General Hall in the prefectural city has arrived. They want to see you and Senior Brother Zhao. It should be related to the caravan."

Chen Yuan said disappointedly, "Oh... Wait a moment, Brother. I was just practicing the Tiger-Subduing Fist and am covered in sweat. I'll change and be right there."

Afterward, Chen Yuan changed into a yellow cloth short tunic, donned his wooden waist token, and followed Senior Brother Hu to the Sun Estate.

The gatekeeper, likely having received instructions, did not stop them. The two walked unimpeded to the main hall.

As Chen Yuan's gaze swept the room, he saw that Zhao Shan had already arrived. Manager Sun was still sitting in the seat of honor, though his armchair had been replaced with a new one. Sitting beside him was a young martial artist.

The man appeared to be about twenty-five or twenty-six, not much older than Zhao Shan. Dressed in black martial attire with a handsome face, he was listening intently to Zhao Shan's account.

"...Master took the initiative to stay behind to cover our retreat. Senior Brother Zhao and I trekked through the Red Mang Mountains for three days and three nights before we managed to escape. Upon returning to the county, we immediately reported the news of Black Wind Fortress's massacre and robbery to Manager Sun..."

After Zhao Shan finished, the young martial artist nodded slightly. He turned to look at Chen Yuan, sizing him up, and smiled.

"You must be Chen Erniu, right?"

Before Chen Yuan could speak, Manager Sun interjected.

"Erniu, this is Deacon Wei Wuding from the General Hall. Answer whatever he asks you; do not withhold anything."

Chen Yuan hurriedly cupped his fists in greeting.

"Chen Erniu greets Deacon Wei!"

Wei Wuding waved his hand.

"No need for such formalities. I have come to Leping County regarding the massacre and robbery by Black Wind Fortress. Tell me in detail about your experiences in the Red Mang Mountains."

"Yes. At the time, I was following the caravan into the mountains..."

Chen Yuan recounted the entire process, from the caravan entering the mountains to his and Zhao Shan's escape.

Wei Wuding nodded thoughtfully.

"It is consistent with Zhao Shan's account. I also knew Li Yong; he was shrewd and capable. It is a great pity he met with such misfortune."

Both Chen Yuan and Zhao Shan showed expressions of grief. Wei Wuding continued

"How about this: tomorrow, I will head into the mountains to clear out Black Wind Fortress. You two shall accompany me. Taking out a few bandits personally can be considered avenging your Master. Senior Brother, what do you think?"

A flash of displeasure crossed Manager Sun's eyes, but his face remained smiling.

"Very well, let us do as my Junior Brother suggests. Zhao Shan, Chen Erniu, during this expedition into the mountains, you must follow Deacon Wei's instructions and not interfere with the bandit suppression."

Chen Yuan and Zhao Shan exchanged a glance and responded in unison

"Yes!"

Wei Wuding smiled.

"Excellent. Go back first and pack your belongings. This expedition into the mountains will not be short."

The two cupped their fists and left the main hall.

Manager Sun turned toward Wei Wuding, stroked his beard, and asked

"How does Junior Brother plan to clear out the Black Wind Fortress bandits? I heard the leader of the fortress, Xie Quan, was formerly in the military. His martial arts are high and his methods are not weak. It is a pity Li Yong did not escape; he dealt with Xie Quan the most and knew him best. He should have been a great help."

Wei Wuding said indifferently, "There is no need for Senior Brother to worry about that. I have my own plans."

Hearing this, Manager Sun's face showed a hint of anger, and his fingers tightened, nearly snapping a strand of his beard.

Wei Wuding, acting as if he hadn't noticed, asked with a smile

"Since Li Yong did not return this time, his wife and daughter will have no one to rely on. Life must be difficult for them, right?"

Manager Sun's expression changed slightly.

"What do you mean by that, Junior Brother?"

Wei Wuding smiled.

"Nothing. I had met Li Yong a few times. Since his fate is currently unknown, how could I not show some concern?"

Manager Sun replied with a forced smile, "Junior Brother is indeed a man of great sentiment and righteousness. As your Senior Brother, I naturally cannot let your enthusiasm go unrewarded. However, Madam Zhang came to see me yesterday. She is willing to offer her family's Six Yang Technique and five hundred taels of silver for me to look after them. I have already agreed, so there is no need for Junior Brother to trouble himself."

Wei Wuding smiled. "Five hundred taels? Then Li Yong's family must be quite wealthy and surely has much remaining wealth. I would also like to look after his wife and daughter. What do you think, Senior Brother?"

The smile vanished from Manager Sun's face. He stared into Wei Wuding's eyes and said

"That might be difficult to arrange. Li Yong followed me for many years and even left behind two Bone-Refining disciples. For small matters, the disciples can help; for large matters, I will take care of it. There is no need for Junior Brother's assistance. In my view, let us forget it."

Wei Wuding chuckled softly. "Senior Brother is mistaken. Although I am far away in the prefectural city, I have been at the General Hall for many years. My connections are wider and my information is more current. Perhaps I can help with small matters. How about this: tomorrow, I will personally go to speak with Madam Zhang and see what her thoughts are."

As he spoke, he prepared to rise and leave.

Manager Sun stared at Wei Wuding for a long while before speaking slowly.

"Junior Brother is so full of sentiment that I am deeply moved. But since Li Yong's fate is unknown and his family is in mourning, it is best not to disturb them. How about this: Junior Brother can transcribe a copy of the Six Yang Technique. If anything happens in the future, looking after his wife and daughter would be a way to fulfill our brotherhood. What say you?"

Wei Wuding sat back down and cupped his fists.

"Thank you for your generosity, Senior Brother!"