I Can Merge Techniques-Chapter 52 - 51: Blood Refining is Like a Burning Body

Chapter 52: Chapter 51: Blood Refining is Like a Burning Body

At high noon, the sky was as clear as if freshly washed.

The warm sun struggled to pierce the lead-gray clouds, its light spilling onto the bluestone courtyard.

The snow in the courtyard had long been shoveled clean, revealing the bluestone-paved ground.

An inch of white snow still capped the surrounding walls, glinting like fine silver in the sunlight.

A cold wind carrying flurries of snow slipped over the courtyard walls. It landed on Chu Fan’s bare forearms but left not even a hint of a chill.

Chu Fan pinched a vermilion, blood-red pill between his fingers and slowly brought it to his mouth.

The pill’s surface shimmered with fine, luminous patterns. It was a Blood Refining Pill, a gift from Master Cao, meant to help a Martial Artist temper their qi and blood.

Three days had passed since he killed the Huang Family’s steward and guard instructor...

This was the fifth Blood Refining Pill he had taken.

Chu Fan knew well that Blood Refining felt like a Burning Body, and the effects of this Blood Refining Pill were exceptionally potent. Thus, before cultivating today, he had already taken off his outer coat, wearing only a short shirt.

Fortunately, his qi and blood were now abundant, and his physique was much stronger than before, so he didn’t feel the cold much, even standing in the biting wind.

GULP. Chu Fan tilted his head back and swallowed the Blood Refining Pill.

The pill melted the moment it entered his throat. A searing warmth flowed down his esophagus as if he had swallowed a ball of red-hot charcoal, yet it dispersed throughout his entire body in the blink of an eye.

Chu Fan dared not delay. He stamped his feet on the bluestone ground and immediately assumed the opening stance of the Twelve Forms Fist, sinking his shoulders and dropping his elbows.

As the wind from his fists stirred, the qi and blood in his body churned like boiling water.

As he executed the first form, Tiger Pounce, he could clearly feel the medicinal power transforming into a scalding current that shot through his entire body.

The blood rushing through his vessels actually emitted a low whistle, as if a fierce tiger lay dormant within him.

Three wisps of Qi Blood Power rose from his Dantian, coiling around his arms and legs like crimson pythons. Wherever they passed, his muscles and bones emitted a subtle hum.

"Hah!"

Chu Fan exhaled sharply, and his Fist Momentum suddenly quickened.

A drilling punch like a dragon emerging from water.

A crushing fist like a tiger leaping a ravine!

Every transition between forms stirred his qi and blood into a frenzy!

The method of Blood Refining was all about purification—discarding the coarse to retain the essence. It required using the Twelve Forms Fist to guide the hot current, accelerating its circulation through the meridians. This was like turning an invisible millstone, repeatedly grinding and compressing his originally turbulent qi and blood.

At first, it was just a faint warmth, but as his Fist Momentum grew more urgent, the qi and blood in his body suddenly boiled over like an ignited barrel of oil!

He could clearly perceive that his originally impure qi and blood were being purified, bit by bit.

The stagnant impurities were expelled through his pores, and when they landed on the bluestone ground, they actually condensed into a fine, black frost.

Meanwhile, fine beads of sweat also seeped from his forehead, turning into white mist the moment they appeared...

When the circulation of his qi and blood reached its peak, a dense steam seeped from every pore on Chu Fan’s body. From a distance, it looked as if he was engulfed in invisible flames.

"Hah!"

Chu Fan let out another low shout, and his Fist Momentum abruptly shifted to the Bear Form.

He circled his arms in front of his chest, then suddenly pushed them outward!

A clear, low roar echoed from within him, as if a black bear were rampaging through his meridians.

The three wisps of Qi Blood Power he had previously condensed were now circulating at high speed through his meridians. With each cycle, they ground against and compressed one another.

The originally loose qi and blood gradually became as condensed as silk threads. As they flowed down his arms, they cast faint red patterns beneath his skin.

The medicinal power of the Blood Refining Pill was too potent. As it guided his qi and blood to circulate at high speed, his meridians felt as if they were being scraped by a red-hot iron bar. Every inch of them ached!

Especially as the three wisps of Qi Blood Power began to spread to his limbs, his body temperature rose even higher. Amidst the dense steam, he once again had the illusion of a Burning Body.

Three days ago, when he first took a Blood Refining Pill for Blood Refining, he had only cultivated for a moment before frantically stripping off his clothes and pants, looking utterly wretched.

This time, with experience, he was naturally calm and composed.

Chu Fan gritted his teeth, enduring the agony of the Burning Body.

An ordinary Martial Artist would have already cried out in pain by this point.

However, because his Twelve Forms Fist had reached the Realm of Perfection, his control over his qi and blood far surpassed that of even a Bone Marrow Forging Martial Artist, so his pain was much less than what others would feel.

He just clenched his jaw, and his Fist Momentum, on the contrary, became even sharper and more ferocious.

The greatest taboo in Blood Refining was giving up halfway. The slightest wavering of willpower would not only waste all previous efforts but could also damage the meridians.

He switched his Fist Momentum to the Serpent Form. His waist twisted flexibly, guiding the condensed qi and blood toward his joints.

The three wisps of Qi Blood Power seemed to have a Spirituality of their own. Following his intent, they gradually permeated his limbs.

The red patterns under his skin grew increasingly distinct.

He could even see the qi and blood flowing slowly!

And the wind from his fists swept past the snow-covered courtyard walls, shaking the snow off in a rustling cascade!

[Twelve Forms Fist Experience Points +8]

After finishing one set of the Twelve Forms Fist, a second one immediately followed.

When he finished the closing stance of the sixth set...

Chu Fan forcefully exhaled a breath of turbid air.

The breath condensed in the air, forming a pillar of white vapor.

He looked down at his hands and saw a faint red glow still lingering in his palms.

After repeated tempering and refinement over three days, the three wisps of Qi Blood Power had completely solidified. They clung to the walls of his meridians, as docile as tamed tigers.

Mind to will, will to power!

With just a thought, his qi and blood could flow through his meridians. In both offense and defense, there was no longer any sluggishness!

Although he still only had three wisps of Qi Blood Power, the might of his every move could no longer be compared to before.

Compared to the impure qi and blood from before, his power was now purer and more condensed. With every gesture, it was as if a tiger’s roar accompanied him!

Chu Fan tried lifting his arm and felt light all over, with none of the previous sluggishness.

The agony of the Burning Body from before was gone.

In its place was an unprecedented sense of comfort and ease!

Three days of Blood Refining had not only nearly doubled the quality of his qi and blood, but more importantly, his control over them had also greatly improved.

Now, he could release and retract his Qi Blood Power at will. When it covered his limbs, it could be used for both offense and defense, turning him into a walking set of armor and sharp blades.

The cold wind still blew outside the courtyard, but Chu Fan felt warm all over.

He raised an eyebrow, his heart filled with pleasant surprise.

’Tomorrow, I can try to condense a new wisp of Qi Blood Power.’

After breaking through to the Blood Nourishing Realm, one must practice Blood Refining every day. The goal is to condense six wisps of Qi Blood Power and refine them to purity. Only then can one break through to the Blood Refining Realm.

With a thought, Chu Fan "looked" at the panel of the Map of Mountains and Rivers.

[Cultivation: Second Stage of Foundation Establishment, Blood Refining 11%]

[Technique: Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber (Small Success) Progress: (15/500) (Trait: None)]

[Technique: Running Technique (Great Success) Progress (775/800)]

...

After breaking through to the Blood Nourishing Realm, he hadn’t attempted Blood Refining for several days in order to break his Twelve Forms Fist through to Perfection.

Now, after just three days of Blood Refining, he had pushed his Blood Refining Realm progress to 11%!

At this rate, he could break through the Blood Refining Realm in no more than twenty days.

It wasn’t that the Blood Refining Realm was easier than the Blood Nourishing Realm. It was just that his Twelve Forms Fist had reached Perfection, and coupled with the Blood Refining Pills from Master Cao, his Blood Refining progress had sped up by a huge margin.

And he still hadn’t used the medicinal formula that Master Cao had given him.

’If I buy a few sets of medicinal ingredients and take a medicinal bath every three days, I could probably speed up my Blood Refining even more.’

Chu Fan nodded to himself.

’My Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber also broke through from Entry-Level to Small Success last night.’

’After comprehending Sword Force, my progress with this Sword Technique has been extremely fast.’

’But what I’m looking forward to the most is the Running Technique.’

’The Running Technique is far more difficult than the Firewood Splitting Saber Technique, but it’s much easier than the Twelve Forms Fist and the Ninefold Thunder Shock Saber.’

’I’ve just been sprinting for a while after my fist practice in the morning and afternoon. Five days have passed, and today I’m finally about to break it through to Perfection.’

Chu Fan put on a thin cotton-padded jacket, walked out of the courtyard, and began to run wildly around the Martial Arts Arena.

[Running Technique Experience Points +1]

[Running Technique Experience Points +1]

In the Martial Arts Arena, many people who were practicing their fists stopped.

"Why do I get the feeling that fellow Chu Fan is running faster and faster?"

"He is indeed a lot faster than before."

"Could it be that Instructor Cao taught him a unique Technique? Or is he practicing Qinggong?"

"Impossible! If Instructor Cao taught him, why isn’t Zhao Tianxing running?"

"Something’s not right, not right at all! At his current speed, not even a Martial Artist at the Blood Nourishing Realm could catch him!"

"This is just bizarre. He can achieve Sword Cultivation from splitting firewood, so does that mean he can practice Qinggong just by sprinting?"

At the edge of the Martial Arts Arena, Li Qingxue watched Chu Fan running as if he were flying, a trace of astonishment flashing in her eyes.