With some fortitude in his eyes, Zhang Ruochen said firmly, “Mother, don’t worry. I will practice and become strong as soon as possible. I will protect you with my power.”
Taking the Blood Pills, Zhang Ruochen returned to his room and kept practicing.
“Your Majesty, it is said that a warrior not only needs Blood Pills but also has to practice skills. Only by practicing can the prince open up his Meridians,” said maid Yun.
Concubine Lin watched Zhang Ruochen leave, puckered her lips, and nodded. “I know! But even the exercise of the lowest level will cost over 500 silver coins. There is no way I can afford that. What’s more, the queen and the Minister are in charge right now, who will never allow Chen-er to enter the library to practice skills. There is only one way left!”
Maid Yun asked, “Are you going to turn to the Lins? You fell out with them three years ago! They won’t offer the chance to our prince!”
“As long as they help Chen-er, I will go down on my knees and beg for forgiveness.” It seemed to remind Concubine Lin of something, and she could not help crying.
“It wasn’t your fault.” Maid Yun let out a sigh.
…
The Spiritual Qi in the internal space of the Time and Space Spinel was very sufficient—it was almost twice as strong as that outside.
In the Yunwu Commandery, if the concentration of Spiritual Qi in one place increased by 150%, it would be seen as a treasured place and all the families would vie for it.
Sitting in the center of the internal space, Zhang Ruochen took out the jade bottle. He took out a Blood Pill and smelled it.
Blood Pills were made from the blood of savage beasts, but they did not smell of blood. On the contrary, they had a delicate fragrance.
When the alchemists were making them, they got rid of the smell of blood and also added Tiger Grass and stramonium.
Long-term usage of Blood Pills would provide a warrior with unlimited physical strength, and improve the warrior’s Meridians, bones, and organs, thus making the body stronger.
“This is only a First-Class Blood Pill.” Zhang Ruochen nodded slightly and said to himself, “a First-Class Blood Pill is sufficient for my current cultivation.”
Zhang Ruochen put the Blood Pill into his mouth. Then he covered the bottle and put it on the stone table.
Under the effect of the Genuine Qi, the Spiritual Blood of the Blood Pill quickly melted and provided unlimited physical strength.
“Although I’ve reached the Initial Stage of the Yellow Realm and become a warrior, my body is far too weak and it does not compare to others’. I must strengthen my body, or else I’ll suffer losses when I fight with warriors in the same realm.”
For a warrior, practicing only Genuine Qi was not enough. He also needed to practice martial techniques.
“Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm!”
This mysterious and profound palm technique emerged in Zhang Ruochen’s mind. It could be counted among the top three in the Mysterium of Martial Techniques in his memories and was very suitable for him to practice right now.
He widened his stance, sank his waist low, and let the Genuine Qi fill his legs. Then, he fixed his body, slowly raised his arms, and started to clap his hands in a mysterious rhythm.
In his mind, he imagined himself as an ancient elephant with unlimited power and a magical dragon from an abyss blowing clouds. He put all his power into every single punch, as if releasing all the power in his body.
Every muscle was exercised with his punches. The Genuine Qi went into and was integrated with his muscles and bones, making them tough and tensile.
The Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm was a martial technique of the Inferior Class of the King’s Stage that included a total of 13 movements.
Precisely speaking, the 13th movement was equal to the martial technique at the God Stage.
The exercises and martial technique were both divided into five stages: Human, Spirit, Ghost, King, and God.
The first movement of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm, Galloping Elephant, was as powerful as the martial techniques of the Inferior Class of the Human Stage.
The second movement of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm, Dragon in the Sky, was as powerful as the martial techniques of the Medium Class of the Human Stage.
The third movement of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm, Naga returning to Earth, was as powerful as the martial techniques of the Superior Class of the Human Stage.
The fourth movement of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm, Dragon Shape and Elephant Shadow, was as powerful as the martial techniques of the Inferior Class of a Spiritual Stage.
…
The 13th movement of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm, Dragon and Elephant Destroy the World, was as powerful as the martial techniques of the God Stage, which was an unimaginable power.
The earlier movements of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm could be seen as inferior martial techniques, not really that powerful. Furthermore, the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm was extremely virile and hard. Thus, there were very few people who practiced it, even to the seventh movement.
After the seventh movement, each additional movement used up a great deal of time and energy. If one could not resist the virile power in his body, it was very likely that he would burn to death.
All of these reasons made the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm a martial technique of the Inferior Class of the King’s stage.
Although the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm was difficult, it was very suitable for Zhang Ruochen to strengthen his body in a short time.
“The first movement of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm, Galloping Elephant.”
Zhang Ruochen squatted first, and then quickly stepped out and punched.
He was as still as a mountain and moved like a brute elephant.
He practiced again and again until all the Genuine Qi in his body was used up. Then, he wiped off his sweat and fell to the ground. He used the Sacred Mark in his glabella to absorb the power in the internal space of the Time and Space Spinel and turned it into Genuine Qi.
He practiced for nine days in the internal space of the Time and Space Spinel, and finally succeeded in the first movement of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm, Galloping Elephant.
Outside, only three days had passed, while nine days had passed in the internal space.
“I wonder how powerful the first movement will be if I use it with my present cultivation.”
Zhang Ruochen stepped out from the internal space of the Time and Space Spinel and went to the backyard. He stood in the center of the yard and dispersed his Genuine Qi to his legs.
“Galloping Elephant.”
His feet moved in a synchronized pattern and suddenly dashed out.
With each step, a flow of strong power charged out from his legs, then to his waist, back, shoulders, and finally, burst out from his arms.
Although it was only one movement, it motivated the power of every muscle. That was the reason why it was so powerful.
“Bang!”
His palms punched a huge stone, which was about half of a man’s height. He quickly pulled his palms back, repeated his footsteps, and returned to his original position.
Zhang Ruochen looked at that huge stone. He saw two shallow palm prints on the surface, and the stone sank into the earth about two centimeters.
Zhang Ruochen was quite satisfied with the power.
Although the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm was only in the Inferior Class of the Human Stage, it was much more brilliant than the others and its power was also much stronger.
“The higher the classes and stages are, the harder they will be to practice. If I practice the Spiritual Stage’s martial techniques directly, I can’t succeed in only nine days. It may take me at least half a year. What’s more, it’s impossible for me to put the martial techniques at the Spiritual Stage to use due to my insufficient Genuine Qi.”
The time of practicing martial techniques and other skills had to be arranged properly.
If one focused on practicing martial techniques and ignored the skills, their cultivation would grow very slowly.
But if one focused on practicing skills and ignored the martial techniques, he would suffer great losses during a fight.
By succeeding in the first movement of the Dragon and Elephant Prajna Palm, Zhang Ruochen finally had the basic ability to protect himself in this era.
During these nine days, Zhang Ruochen’s cultivation also greatly improved. The Genuine Qi in the Qi Pool was full, and he was ready to develop his second Meridian.
To develop Meridians, Marrow-washing Liquid was indispensable. But the queen had only given Zhang Ruochen one share of the Marrow-washing Liquid, which he had already used up when he developed his first Meridian.
How could he get a second, or even many, Marrow-washing Liquid?
“Ninth Prince, Concubine Lin has been looking for you everywhere. What are you doing here?” Maid Yun saw Zhang Ruochen standing in the center of the yard. She was walking toward him with curiosity.
As the only maid for both Concubine Lin and Zhang Ruochen, Yun was a pretty girl of about 17, with bright eyes and a pointy jaw.
Zhang Ruochen walked up in front of her, blocking her from seeing the two palm prints on the stone, and asked with concern, “Sister Yun, is your wound getting better?”
Yun shook her head. “It probably still needs another two to three months.”
She had broken her arm when the Eighth Prince pushed her down, several days before. Hurting a maid such as her, or even killing her, meant nothing to the Eighth Prince, who certainly did not need to take any responsibility.
In a world where the strong lead, the weak could only bleed.
Zhang Ruochen asked, “Why don’t you buy some Muscles and Bones Regenerating Ointment?”
Yun smiled bitterly and said, “Even the ointment with the lowest quality will cost 200 silver coins. A maid like me has no way to afford that. Ninth Prince, it is very kind of you to think of me. Now, please follow me to meet Concubine Lin. We are going outside the palace today.”
Zhang Ruochen followed Yun and curiously asked, “Going outside? Where to?”
“To see Ningshan! You must be very happy, for you haven’t seen her for a long time.” Yun smiled brightly and stared at Zhang Ruochen.
Every time the name Ningshan was mentioned, Zhang Ruochen’s face would flush and he would look shy like a girl.
“Who is Ningshan?” Zhang Ruochen was just about to ask when he suddenly realized he should not do so.
Apparently, Zhang Ruochen surely knew the girl when he was alive and, due to Yun’s attitude, they surely also had a special relationship.
If Zhang Ruochen asked about who she was, he would have revealed himself. Therefore, he decided to keep silent.
Fortunately, Zhang Ruochen had been ill all these years. So he hardly made contact with others, except for Concubine Lin. Otherwise, he might have already been suspected.
Seeing Zhang Ruochen’s calm attitude, Yun felt a little surprised. But she did not pay special attention to it and continued to walk to Concubine Lin’s place.