I Can Fix My Talent in Hundred Lives

Chapter 548 - 454: Rune

On the bluestone ground of the Martial Hall in the county town, there are scattered sweat stains left behind from practicing boxing.

Instructor Zhou Kui stood in the corridor with his arms crossed, looking at Wang the Seventh who was bowing and requesting, his brows furrowed:

"You want to learn martial arts? Look at your age, already over thirty. Your joints are stiff; I’m afraid you won’t achieve anything notable."

Wang the Seventh bent even lower, cupped his fists, and spoke sincerely: "Instructor, please grant my request! I only wish to learn some skills for protecting my family."

Zhou Kui sighed and waved his hand:

"Alright, it seems you have perseverance."

"Go pay the money, ten taels a month. The entrance-level boxing techniques of the hall can be taught to you, but remember, the cultivation technique must never be transmitted to others, or your leg will be broken!"

"Understood!"

Wang the Seventh quickly agreed, carefully pulled out the broken silver that he kept close, and handed it over.

...

Deep within the bluestone mountains, a small stream trickled, splashing fine water drops.

Facing the stream, Wang the Seventh was practicing the entrance-level boxing technique taught by the Martial Hall, "Long River Boxing," step by step.

His movements were somewhat stiff, his force dissipating through his limbs. He couldn’t even achieve the most basic power reaching the punch edge, yet his forehead was full of sweat, and he persisted gritting his teeth.

On the giant rock by the stream, Chen Sheng lazily rested, his snow-white fur shining under the sunlight, his amber eyes indifferent as they glanced at Wang the Seventh’s movements, instantly understanding:

"This is a simple boxing technique used to integrate force, relying on repeated practice to channel the qi and blood power into one."

He slightly wagged his tail, pondering to himself:

"Wang Qi intends to learn the Divine Sense Picture. According to the Martial Hall’s rules, at the very least, he must practice this boxing technique until his force becomes Great Success."

"I can’t wait that long, alright, I’ll lend you a hand."

With a thought, Chen Sheng’s consciousness, like invisible threads, quietly took over Wang the Seventh’s body.

This kind of takeover has many limitations, such as time, distance... it can only be done occasionally.

In the next moment, Wang the Seventh’s movements abruptly changed.

His previously stiff punches and kicks became smooth like water, each step taken in rhythm with the flowing stream.

When punching, his shoulder, elbow, waist, and pelvis were integrated, the force transmitting through the spine, finally concentrating at the punch tip, hitting the air with a "woo woo" sound of breaking wind.

Once, twice, thrice... "Long River Boxing" was practiced energetically, the overlapping punch shadows faintly acquiring the momentum of a long river rushing forward.

If any old martial master were present, they would be shocked.

This was nothing like a beginner’s practice; clearly, the boxing technique had been completely ingrained into his bones, each movement aligning with the ultimate principle of force operation!

After practicing the boxing technique three times, Chen Sheng withdrew his consciousness.

Wang the Seventh was jolted all over, his eyes quickly turned from blank to clear. He was breathing heavily, feeling the unprecedented force integration within his body, subconsciously practicing "Long River Boxing" once more.

Relying on the body’s residual instinctive memory, although it was far less subtle than just now, it also had three-fourths of the divine essence, and the force was no longer scattered, the punch edge could even cut through the grass blades before him.

He quickly knelt on the ground: "Thank the Lord for the blessing!"

Chen Sheng on the giant rock nodded slightly, his voice directly entering Wang the Seventh’s mind:

"Train hard, take the opportunity to inquire about everything regarding the Divine Sense Picture in the Martial Hall, do not slack off."

"At your command!" Wang the Seventh responded respectfully, the glow in his eyes blazing.

...

Another month flew by.

In the Martial Hall within the county town, Zhou Kui paced with his hands behind his back, his gaze fell on Wang the Seventh practicing his boxing, and he couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows, full of surprise.

Wang the Seventh’s boxing stance was steady, his force flowed smoothly, and when punching, it faintly carried the sound of breaking through the air. Compared to a month ago, he was like a different person, his force had integrated almost completely.

This progress, even young disciples with outstanding talent may not be able to match.

"I really misjudged, this old fellow surprisingly has such enlightenment."

Zhou Kui murmured to himself, shaking his head:

"But regrettably he is too old, the difficulty of blood exchange is several times higher than usual, blood exchange is his limit, otherwise, I would indeed want to accept a closed-door disciple."

"But to reach the threshold of a martial artist is also good, spreading this around can enhance the prestige of my Martial Hall."

He cleared his throat and waved to Wang the Seventh: "Wang Qi, come over here!"

Wang the Seventh quickly finished his punch, walked briskly to the instructor, and bowed: "Instructor."

Zhou Kui pulled out a yellowing booklet from his bosom and handed it over:

"This is our Martial Hall’s secret cultivation technique, ’Great Power Demon Suppression Force,’ capable of supporting five times blood exchange, unlike those trash techniques that can only support blood exchange once or twice. Your force practice is decent, so you are qualified to learn it."

Wang the Seventh accepted the booklet with both hands, his fingertips slightly trembling, ecstatic in his heart—he had thought he would have to wait until his force was Great Success to be taught the secret technique.

He suppressed his excitement, bowed, and thanked: "Thank you for your guidance, Instructor!"

...

By the stream, Chen Sheng lay on a huge stone, eyes closed, his Divine Sense diving into Wang the Seventh’s memories.

The content of the "Great Power Demon Suppression Force" surfaced clearly, and the core image of divine intent finally presented itself completely before him.

It was a blurred portrait of a deity, clad in heavy armor, holding a giant axe, surrounded by billowing Qi and blood, exuding an aura of terror.

Chen Sheng quietly observed, his Divine Sense as sharp as the keenest blade, stripping away the surface anomalies of the divine image, reaching straight to its essence.

After a moment, in his eyes, the image gradually dissipated, transforming into several faint and incomplete runes, which, as they circulated, subtly aligned with the rules of this world’s Qi and blood operation.

"This is the Dao of this world!"

A thought stirred in Chen Sheng’s heart. He began to calmly contemplate, and after an unknown amount of time, he slowly opened his eyes, a flicker of understanding shining in them:

"It is indeed markedly different!"

With the technique of the "Swallowing Elephant, Devouring Dragon Secret" and the infusion of the divine image, he rose suddenly.

His physique became increasingly robust, now resembling the prime majesty of a mature White Tiger, with Qi and blood surging around him, faintly gleaming with golden light.

He glanced at the deferentially waiting Wang the Seventh beside him, thoughts swirling in his mind: "Just right, let’s use you for an experiment."

...

By evening, Wang the Seventh returned home, and as soon as he pushed open the courtyard gate, he heard his wife, from the Li Clan, crying.

In the courtyard, a few hooligans gathered, all with crooked brows and slanted eyes.

At the front was the village’s infamous scoundrel Wang Da Hu, surrounded by numerous onlookers, pointing and discussing.

"You’re home at last!"

Seeing Wang the Seventh, Li of the Li Clan rushed over, tears streaming down her face:

"They said you mortgaged our five acres of paddy field for fifty taels of silver; this can’t be true, can it? That’s our livelihood!"

Wang Da Hu wore a mocking smile, swaggering over to Wang the Seventh, with the hooligans behind him laughing along:

"Yo, Wang Qi is back? We’re just here to remind you, you ought to repay Master Wang’s silver soon enough."

Another hooligan chimed in with a sarcastic tone:

"What I’d say is, Old Qi, if you can’t repay, just let it go. Anyway, those few acres of paddy field of yours are quite conspicuous in this poor place. Why not give them to Master Wang, and assure your family’s peace."

Wang the Seventh frowned slightly, protecting his wife behind him, and gave his eldest son a look, signaling him to take his mother to the backyard.

He turned around, looking fearlessly at Wang Da Hu and the others, speaking calmly: "I recall, it’s not yet time to repay."

Indeed, he had borrowed silver from Master Wang; otherwise, he couldn’t have gathered enough for the Martial Hall’s tuition, but he didn’t expect these people to come making trouble.

In fact, Master Wang had been eyeing Wang the Seventh’s paddy fields for years, but being of the same clan, he didn’t want to make a move.

Now that Wang the Seventh had voluntarily come to borrow, he naturally wouldn’t miss this opportunity.

Wang Da Hu sneered: "Rules are dead, but people are alive! We come whenever we please!"

Wang the Seventh said no more, slowly pulling a thick copper coin from his bosom, and with a flick of his fingers, sent it flying toward Wang Da Hu with a piercing sound.

Instinctively, Wang Da Hu caught it, looked down, and saw deep imprints of fingertips on the copper coin, his face changing instantly.

Hurriedly grabbing the hooligan beside him who was about to shout, he bowed and saluted Wang the Seventh, his tone immediately becoming fawning:

"Brother Qi! We were wrong today; it was our bad judgment. I’ll treat you to drinks another day to make amends!"

"Big Brother, what about Master Wang..."

One hooligan asked in a low, puzzled tone.

"Shut up!"

Wang Da Hu yelled angrily, glaring at him fiercely, not daring to say more.

With that, he led the gang of hooligans away, dispiritedly, not daring to look back.

The neighbors who had been watching were left looking at each other, confused, not understanding why the previously arrogant hooligans suddenly cowered.

Wang the Seventh surveyed the surroundings, slightly clasping his hands:

"Sorry to trouble you, everyone, by making a spectacle of it; today I’ll perform a little show to entertain the villagers."

Saying that, he walked to a marble stone the size of a millstone in the courtyard corner, took a deep breath, gathered strength in his right palm, and struck down hard!

"Bang!"

With a dull thud, hard marble instantly cracked with a spider-web pattern, his palm embedded half an inch into the stone!

The neighbors gasped in shock, their gaze at Wang the Seventh changing, full of astonishment and awe, with no one daring to whisper anymore.

Wang the Seventh’s eldest son ran out from the backyard, looking at his father’s hand, then at the cracked stone, his eyes shining with admiration:

"Dad! You’re amazing!"

Wang the Seventh looked down at his own hand, feeling the power of Qi and blood within, smiling gently.

With the master’s help, he had smoothly completed his first blood transformation, having now entirely crossed the threshold of a martial artist.

In the county, perhaps it wasn’t much, but in a rural area like this, he was already a big figure with some standing.