Chapter 18 Progress (Please follow! Please invest! Please vote!)

Wang Sheng felt he had perhaps misunderstood something all along.

The martial arts for health required a breakthrough to have powerful effects and cultivate Qi-Blood; otherwise, even reaching level 9 would only be about strengthening the body, not much better than an ordinary person.

He thought Ba Ji Quan was the same, that it needed a breakthrough to bring out its effects.

But the reality just showed him that even without a breakthrough, Ba Ji Quan, as a combat martial art, wouldn't be limited and could still produce powerful effects.

A martial artist's physique, a martial artist's Qi-Blood, were the foundations that could allow Ba Ji Quan to unleash incredible destructive power.

Take a simple example.

A divine weapon, if used by an ordinary person, is merely a handy blade, but if wielded by an Immortal, it could unleash the power to destroy heavens and earth, because the Immortal could activate the divine weapon with their own divine power.

Ba Ji Quan is like a divine weapon!

Once one possesses their own "divine power," it can reveal its true brilliance!

Is Ba Ji Quan with a single arm of a maximum of 100 pounds comparable in power to one with a single arm of 500 pounds?

Of course, that's unrealistic.

Understanding this, Wang Sheng couldn't help but smile.

The memories of his past life had not let him down once again.

"If I had used Qi-Blood Power just now, I guess that big tree would have been broken, right?"

The thunderous sound he'd just heard was purely the coordination of energy and physique.

Energy is the core technique of Ba Ji Quan, "Energy Emission can reach extremely distant places in all directions" is not just an empty phrase.

The external manifestation is the fist wind, which is also a very obvious characteristic of Ba Ji Quan.

Every punch creates wind, every punch can rapidly move the air; at a higher level, mastering the technique of Energy Emission, one could perform an Air Burst.

However, for an ordinary person to reach this level, according to Wang Sheng's estimation, would at least be at the level of 8~9.

He just managed to do it, partly because of the martial artist's physique and another very important reason was a sudden insight.

During the recent practice, Wang Sheng felt as if he had grasped something and naturally used the Energy Emission technique of Ba Ji Quan, achieving that terrifying effect.

If he were to punch again, perhaps he could produce an Air Burst based on his physique.

But to produce the intangible fist wind again—

"Ha!"

Following the feeling he had before, Wang Sheng threw another punch.

Pop!

A sound of an explosion rang through the air again, but it wasn't comparable to the previous thunderous explosion; at best, it was like the sound of a firecracker exploding.

"Indeed, it was just a sudden insight before, to use it again, I still lack enough mastery of Ba Ji Quan!"

A level 2 Ba Ji Quan could only be considered as a novice who hasn't been practicing for long, thinking of achieving that explosive effect is definitely not feasible.

Of course, Wang Sheng was not disappointed.

Level 2 Ba Ji Quan had already given him some initial combat skills, not skilled, but it had already caused a minor transformation in him, no longer a martial artist who only had Qi-Blood Power.

He just needed to stick to daily practice, and he would eventually reach that realm.

After performing a set of basic movements again, Wang Sheng stopped practicing Ba Ji Quan; although Ba Ji Quan is good, one shouldn't extend the practice time recklessly.

Next was the time for the Plum Flower Step.

The Plum Flower Step book, with patterns assisting the text, was easier to practice than Ba Ji Quan, which relies entirely on memory.

Wang Sheng could easily get started.

After getting started, the progress bar for the Plum Flower Step arrived as expected.

"Plum Flower Step: 1 (1%)"

He had also gained a preliminary understanding of the Plum Flower Step.

The Plum Flower Step, being a widely spread step technique, ultimately wasn't a profound method and was only suitable for short-distance maneuvers.

It was versatile and agile in movement, appearing to be just a small step forward, yet it could precisely dodge an opponent's attack.

Its biggest feature was moving back and forth within a certain range, much like treading on Plum Flower poles, seemingly moving yet still; this feature allowed it to play its biggest role in close-range combat.

However, this was the only advantage of the Plum Flower Step.

But Wang Sheng felt that this step technique was extremely suitable for Ba Ji Quan.

Ba Ji Quan primarily focused on short, swift, and fierce strikes.

The Plum Flower Step, being suitable for short-range attacks, was simply a perfect match for Ba Ji Quan.

"This is hitting the mark unintentionally, finding a treasure indeed!"

In the eyes of martial artists in this world, the Plum Flower Step might not be considered a powerful step technique, but in the eyes of Wang Sheng, who had a progress bar, this technique was full of potential, worth dedicating two and a half hours to upgrade, no loss at all.

By now, the progress bars for Ba Ji Quan and the Plum Flower Step had all been refreshed; the next task was to practice them day after day to raise their levels.

Thus, Wang Sheng resumed his daily routine; besides maintaining the most basic interactions with people in the village, he immersed himself entirely in the progression of his skills.

Engaging in well-planned activities, time flew by quickly, and half a month passed in no time.

In that half month, the progress bars for various skills experienced changes again:

"Realm: Qi Rushing to the Disease, Finding Disease 46.5% (First Grade Martial Artist)

Ba Duan Jin: Breakthrough +2 (90%)

Inner Core Skill (Foundation Establishment of Hundred Days): Breakthrough +2 (98%)

Herb Recognition: Breakthrough +2 (65%)

Medicinal Plant Cultivation: Breakthrough +3 (25%)

Ba Ji Quan: 6 (33%)

Plum Flower Step: 6 (13%)"

With an increase in the number of skill breakthroughs, the progress of skill bars was slowing down.

Additionally, as the tasks increased, so in this half month, aside from Ba Ji Quan and the Plum Flower Step which had yet to exceed their limits, no other skill experienced a breakthrough, just a growth in their progress bars.

Of course, with the presence of the Ten-Complete Great Replenishing Pill, Wang Sheng's Qi Blood Power had significantly increased.

After introspection, he found that the Qi Blood Power had grown as thick as a thumb; such powerful Qi Blood Power greatly enhanced Wang Sheng's physique and strength.

Even without utilizing Qi Blood Power, his single-arm strength was preliminarily estimated to reach one thousand jin.

This was still the most basic level of strength; if combined with level 6 Ba Ji Quan energy emission techniques and the enhancement of Qi Blood Power, Wang Sheng's combat power had reached an extremely terrifying level.

With one punch, he could shatter the grinding stone he had previously used for testing strength.

If you asked him how he knew of this effect, you would have to ask about the pile of rubble still stacked up in the corner of the backyard.

However, these were still not the biggest advancements; the most significant progress was actually in the progress of "Qi Rushing to the Disease. Finding Disease."

"Qi Rushing to the Disease. Finding Disease 46.5%"

This progress indicated that Qi Blood Power had explored 46.5% of Wang Sheng's body, nearly half.

Being able to progress this rapidly was naturally related to the enhancement of Qi Blood Power and the advancements in Inner Core Skill; both these skills' progress complemented the progress of "Qi Rushing to the Disease."

During this half month, Qi Blood Power broke through several "disease points," clearing several channels.

But Qi Blood Power's journey wasn't all smooth sailing; it also encountered difficulties.

"Qi Rushing to the Disease" was divided into Finding Disease, Flipping Illness, and reducing the disease.

The stage of Flipping Illness was about returning to address disease points that previously couldn't be broken through.

After several months of cultivating Inner Core Skill, Wang Sheng finally faced a formidable disease point.