Learning Martial Arts
In the Zi Yun Country, Martial Arts was the only hope for a commoner to alter his destiny. However, Martial Arts had nothing to do with Immortal Cultivation.
The people of Zi Yun Country dismissed immortals as legends and myths and did not think they were real.
A martial arts practitioner's level was determined by his stage of martial arts: Muscle Strengthening, Impurity Cleansing, Inner Qi.
It was very rare for a martial artist to reach the Inner Qi Realm in the Zi Yun County and they all served as protectors of the major cities of the Zi Yun Country.
The same was true for the Impurity Cleansing Realm martial artists, who could fend off the attacks of wild beasts.
But the Muscle Strengthening Realm martial artists were quite common in the big cities.
Bai Chen came from White Orchid Village, a small village with more than a thousand inhabitants.
Among these thousand people, only five had the talent to pursue the path of martial arts, one of them was the Village Lord and the other four were the teachers of the Martial Arts Hall.
The Village Lord, Wang Xiaoming, was a formidable martial artist who had reached the peak of Muscle Strengthening Realm.
...
Bai Chen entered the Martial Arts Hall and signed up. He had inherited his parents' land, which was worth about twelve silver coins, and their savings of five silver coins. They had died in a beast tide, a common occurrence in the Zi Yun Country, that had claimed many lives in the village.
He paid three silver coins for the registration fee, which was a hefty sum, considering that one silver coin could feed a whole family for a year.
He received a basic martial arts technique, the Iron Bear Fist. It was a technique that could be cultivated to the middle stage of Muscle Strengthening Realm, and maybe even the late stage for those with good constitutions.
Liang Haoyu, one of the four instructors of the Martial Arts Hall, stood before Bai Chen and thirty other youths, and scanned them with his eyes.
They were the future of the White Orchid Village's martial arts!
"Wow, you guys are amazing! You already have such strong and sturdy bodies, and you haven't even begun your martial arts training!" Liang Haoyu exclaimed, smiling at the youths.
"Listen up, I want you to practice the Iron Bear Fist every day. I will teach you how to do it properly." Liang Haoyu said, raising his voice as he demonstrated the technique.
Liang Haoyu's movements were domineering and confident. He had a well-developed physique and looked like a seasoned martial artist.
His Iron Bear Fist technique was also very powerful and imposing, and it made the youths admire him.
Bai Chen whispered to himself, his eyes gleaming with a cold light, "I have to become a Muscle Strengthening Realm martial artist as soon as possible, then I can plunder and slaughter these mortals as I please."
Bai Chen had no scruples or conscience like these ordinary people. He possessed an Imperishable Body and an Undying Will, which made him fearless and ruthless.
He watched as Liang Haoyu showed the Iron Bear Fist to the group of teenagers, then he left with the others when the instructor dismissed them. He headed to his home, where he had no relatives or friends.
Bai Chen thought, "The first step to cultivate the Iron Bear Fist is to make my fist as hard as iron. To do that, I have to keep punching with the bones in my arm, until they become tough and strong."
"Normal people have to be careful when they practice, because they might injure their body and ruin their chances of becoming martial artists."
"But… I am different. Every time I die, my body heals itself, which means I can train my fists at a much faster rate than anyone else."
Bai Chen smirked as he thought of that. He took a metal plate and nailed it to one of the walls of his house with a hammer.
Then, he threw a punch at the metal plate with all his strength!
Bai Chen's eyes watered as he felt his knuckles shatter from the impact.
But he did not stop there. He clenched his left fist and punched the metal plate again.
"Argh! It hurts like hell!" Bai Chen howled in pain as his left fist also broke.
The pain was unbearable and he quickly grabbed a kitchen knife and slashed his throat to die. He did not realize that his hands were shaking from the force of his punch, and he missed his vital spot several times.
It took him a long time to kill himself, but he learned from his mistake. He came up with a better plan to improve his efficiency.
"To train the Iron Bear Fist, I only need to use one fist at a time, and then use the other hand to stab myself in the heart." Bai Chen decided.
He spent eight hours of non-stop training the Iron Bear Fist technique, and he noticed some progress in the power of his fist. But it was very slight.
Bai Chen's tolerance for pain also increased a bit, as he numbed himself with the desire to become stronger.
...
For two days, Bai Chen did nothing but practice the Iron Bear Fist.
He ignored the Martial Arts Hall, where the other teenagers of his generation were learning from Liang Haoyu. He planned to stay at home and master the technique until he became an unranked martial artist, then he would go to Liang Haoyu and seek guidance.
He had a thick metal plate on the wall of his house, which he used as his target. He punched it day and night, without rest or mercy. The metal plate was durable, so it did not show any signs of damage.
Bai Chen examined his knuckles and he was amazed by how they had hardened and toughened. In the beginning, his fist would break after one punch, but now, he could punch twice before his bones cracked!
"Hahaha! I, Bai Chen, will rule this world! I will make everyone kneel before me and worship me as their god!" Bai Chen roared with laughter as he threw another punch, his eyes filled with tears of pain.
...
A week has passed since Bai Chen first came into contact with the Iron Bear Fist and now his fist was incomparably tough. It was almost able to bend the metal plate, which was shocking.
What was also shocking was that Bai Chen didn't need food, water, nor sleep, which meant that he could practice endlessly.
Bai Chen was also extremely motivated and practiced it earnestly without any breaks.
Bai Chen trained the Iron Bear Fist one more time, after which he took a deep breath and looked outside.
"The sun is rising, the birds are chirping! Seems like it's time for me to go to the Martial Arts Hall and learn more from Liang Haoyu."
...
As Bai Chen walked towards the Martial Arts Hall, he saw a few students from his generation giving him strange looks as if they were expecting him to die. But Bai Chen didn't care about their looks and he quickened his pace.
He noticed a young girl of his age named Li Xinran. He remembered from the previous Bai Chen's memory that Li Xinran was from the wealthy Li Family. The leader of the Li Family was a former martial arts instructor, so they had a high status in the village.
They had retired from teaching, but that didn't mean their martial arts had weakened. On the contrary, they had more time to practice and improve.
Li Xinran's pretty face curled into a sneer as she saw Bai Chen. "You have the nerve to show up at the Martial Arts Hall after skipping for a week? We just started training and you think you can slack off?"
Bai Chen was disgusted by Li Xinran's arrogance. "What I do is none of your concern, bitch. Now get out of my way!"
Li Xinran's pretty face turned pale. "W-what! How did you address me?!"
The other teenagers watched the conflict with curiosity.
Bai Chen looked at Li Xinran as if he was looking at a fool. "I called you bitch. So, you are not only a bitch, but also a moron!"
Li Weilong, one of Li Xinran's cousins, shouted at Bai Chen. "Bai Chen! How dare you be so rude to the Young Miss of the Li Family? Who do you think you are?"
Bai Chen was irritated by Li Weilong, but he didn't know how strong he was, so he didn't want to fight him yet. He was sure he could beat him, but he didn't know if he could handle ten people at once.
"This whore is just the Young Miss of the Li Family, a lowly village family. Who does she think she is? Is she some kind of princess of an ancient immortal dynasty? I didn't know she could act so haughty that she can look down on the Zi Yun Country!"
Li Xinran's face was red with rage as she wanted to retort, but she held back. "Hmph! Bai Chen, I will see how capable you are when the instructor makes us spar with each other!"