The Martial Saint rose to power starting as a substitute bridegroom.

It was actually... Li Yuan?

"Good lad!" Lin Chong couldn't contain his joy and shouted, "You've actually broken through to the Dark Force realm!"

Li Yuan immediately stopped his punching motion, clasped his hands and bowed respectfully, saying, "Master Lin."

This is the moment he has been waiting for.

Lin Chong's eyes shone brightly, and the wrinkles around his eyes and brows smoothed out, making him look as if he had become ten years younger in an instant.

"When did you break through? Why didn't you inform your master sooner?"

The significance of a disciple with hidden strength to the Green Ox Martial Society is self-evident.

"It's today." Li Yuan said calmly.

"Great, great!" Lin Chong nodded repeatedly, unable to hide his excitement. "Less than two months... fantastic!"

Clearly, he had no idea of ​​Li Yuan's breakthrough.

This disciple's aptitude, while not extremely poor, is at most considered below average.

He was truly shocked that he could reach the Dark Force level in just two months.

Looking back at Li Yuan's rapid breakthrough to the Ming Jin level, it was probably not just due to luck.

I initially thought he only had some talent in martial arts comprehension, but now it seems that this kid's understanding extends far beyond martial arts. It's a talent with profound wisdom and the ability to draw inferences from one instance to another.

Yes, he has already reached the hidden strength level in two months, he is indeed a promising talent worth cultivating.

What's even more remarkable is that this kid is usually quiet and reserved, but this time he stayed behind alone to wait, clearly not wanting to make a fuss. He's quite a composed person.

This is something he particularly appreciates.

In comparison, Lu Qing was a bit more impetuous, impatient, and unable to control his temper.

But you can't entirely blame him.

Lu Qing came from a poor background and experienced great ups and downs, almost overnight reversing his fate. Now he suddenly enjoys wealth and honor, and it would be difficult for anyone to make a complete mental adjustment.

However, Li Yuan's talent... was ultimately still a step behind Lu Qing's.

Lin Chong sighed inwardly.

Given his increasingly frail body and the meager resources of the Green Ox Martial Arts Society, it would be a stretch to fully train even one person.

What a pity, Li Yuan.

If it weren't for Lu Qing, I would have devoted all my efforts to cultivating you.

As he thought this, it felt as if something had been forcibly cut away from his chest.

This decision was difficult to make.

"That's good. For now, you should first stabilize your realm and cultivate diligently. If you have any questions, feel free to ask your master." Lin Chong composed himself and said gently.

"Yes, Master Lin."

Li Yuan felt a slight sense of disappointment.

I thought that once I broke through the Dark Force, I would gain Master Lin's true favor and at least receive preferential treatment in terms of resources. I never expected that in the end, all I would get was such a general word of encouragement.

"Oh, right." Lin Chong slapped his forehead, as if he had suddenly remembered something, and said, "Wait here for a moment."

Before he finished speaking, he had already turned and walked into the inner hall.

Li Yuan watched his departing figure. Although his figure was still steady and powerful, the increasingly obvious sluggishness in his steps could no longer be concealed.

My master is getting old.

A moment later, Lin Chong came out from the inner hall and placed the two books in Li Yuan's hands.

One book, "The Azure Dragon Silk Entangling Technique," and another book, "Dragon Form Fist."

"Our Green Ox Martial Arts Society is a direct descendant of the Four Symbols Sect. The Four Symbols Technique is divided into four parts: White Tiger Bone Forging Technique, Azure Dragon Silk Entangling Technique, Black Tortoise True Armor Technique, and Vermilion Bird Breathing Technique, which correspond to the cultivation of the four levels of Ming Jin, An Jin, Hua Jin, and Dan Jin respectively."

Lin Chong spoke solemnly and then told him more about the origins of the sect.

"Dragon Form Fist is a method within the martial art Four Symbols Fist that corresponds to the hidden strength stage. Dragon Form Fist does not follow a purely forceful approach, but rather combines softness with strength, achieving a balance of both. Once mastered, its power far surpasses that of ordinary forceful martial arts."

Li Yuan understood that Lu Qing also had these two books, which were probably something that every Dark Force disciple of the Green Ox Martial Society had, and there was nothing special about them.

"I haven't even finished practicing the Tai Chi Palm technique I have yet," he thought to himself.

However, while Tai Chi Palm is wonderful, it does not have a corresponding mental cultivation method called "Tai Chi Qiankun Jue"; Dragon Form Fist, on the other hand, is a branch of Four Symbols Fist, and its compatibility with the Four Symbols Jue is unparalleled by ordinary martial arts.

"Thank you, Master Lin." Li Yuan accepted the book and bowed in gratitude.

"Go back and rest early."

"This disciple takes his leave."

"Wait a minute."

Lin Chong called Li Yuan closer, raised his hand to hold onto the wooden dummy beside him, steadied himself, and then spoke.

His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear and forceful: "Since we still have some free time, I will personally instruct you on how to practice the 'Dragon Form Fist.' I will first demonstrate the basic form, so please watch carefully."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Chong moved.

The first punch, a direct claw strike.

That punch was not like the dull impact of ordinary punches, but carried a forward "reaching" force, not like driving a stake, but like drilling deep into the stake.

The moment the fist touched the cowhide, it made a dull "thud" sound, not like a hammer hitting mud, but more like an iron awl piercing through thick leather, squeezing and drilling inside.

The leather didn't ripple; only a small section in the center of the fist suddenly dented, as if it had been sucked in from the inside by something.

The entire wooden dummy swayed backward, and the base emitted a rough creaking sound.

"This move is called 'Azure Dragon Probe'," Lin Zhong's voice came steadily. "The power must not be scattered; it must be gathered into one force and drilled into the cracks of the bone. Hitting someone is like chiseling a wall; it's not about knocking them down, but about piercing through them."

Li Yuan's eyelids twitched slightly.

He had seen countless people practice boxing, but he had never seen such a fighting style. The fist was not like a fist, but more like a wedge.

The second punch, from bottom to top.

Lin Chong's waist suddenly twisted, as if something had pushed his entire spine upwards from the tailbone. His fist flipped out from his side, slid diagonally up the front of the wooden dummy, and finally stopped abruptly at the "throat" of the dummy.

It wasn't a collision, it was a "lift," as if it were trying to pull the entire wooden dummy out of the ground.

The pile was propelled upwards, its bottom lifting off the ground by a few inches. When it fell back down, it made a heavy, muffled thud, and the dust that had accumulated on the bluestone slab for years exploded into a cloud.

"Rising Dragon Fist." Lin Chong retracted his fist, the veins on his arm still bulging. "This punch doesn't penetrate, it pulls. The power starts from the soles of the feet, passes through the waist, through the spine, and finally 'pulls' out from the fist. If it hits the opponent's chin, the back of his head will hit the ground first; if it hits his chest, his heels will leave the ground."

Li Yuan's Adam's apple bobbed slightly.

He could almost imagine the feeling of that punch landing on him, his whole body being "lifted" off the ground.

The third punch was a grappling hook.

Lin Zhong changed his footwork; he no longer faced the wooden dummy head-on, but instead slid in sideways.

It was as if the bones in his right arm had suddenly been removed, and he softly draped it over the stake. His palm gripped one side of the stake, his forearm pressed firmly against the cowhide, and his forearm muscles suddenly twisted.

creak-

The wooden dummy was spun halfway around by his spin.

The cowhide wrapped around the stake made a creaking sound as it was being tightened, and several ropes snapped, causing the cowhide to loosely curl up at one corner.

There was no sound of impact, only the tooth-grinding groan of the wood being forcibly twisted.

"Entangling Dragon Hand." Lin Chong loosened his stance and flexed his fingers. "It's not about who's stronger, it's about who can twist more skillfully. Grab his arm, and with one twist, his shoulder joint will dislocate; grab his collar, and with one twist, his entire arm will be useless."

Li Yuan stared at the wooden dummy whose leather had been twisted loose, a chill running down his spine.

Lin Chong let out a breath and stood still.

"These are the three core stances of Dragon Form Fist. Now, I will connect them—watch carefully!"

After saying that, he didn't explain further, and his fist suddenly became a unified force.

Whoosh! Pfft! Snap!

creak-

Fists, palms, elbows, shoulders, even knees and insteps have become deadly weapons.

Lin Zhong's movements were sometimes fast and sometimes slow, sometimes as fast as an iron plow breaking through the soil, and sometimes as slow as a snake crawling on the grass.

The first move, "Azure Dragon Probe," had just knocked the wooden dummy backward when the second move, "Entangling Dragon Hand," reached out and twisted it back; just as it was twisted back, a "Rising Dragon Fist" struck it from below, making it jump up.

The wooden dummy wrapped in cowhide was like a living thing chained in his palm, swaying back and forth and left and right, but it could not break free from his offensive.

The piles bear deep and shallow marks—some fist marks are as deep as chisels, some scratches are as long and slanted as furrows, and some are cracks where the cowhide has been twisted and rolled back.

What shocked Li Yuan the most was Lin Zhong's breathing.

No matter how fierce his movements were, his breath remained deep within his dantian. Only when his fist touched the pillar did he exhale two short, powerful spurts of white air from his nostrils, like a dragon raising its head from a deep pool to breathe.

Then the breath subsided, long and calm, as if the previous attack was merely a ripple in the undercurrent beneath the surface.

That's not brute force; it's the predator's controlled, poised-to-strike strategy.

Finally, Lin Chong suddenly lowered his body, almost sliding into the wooden dummy's lower body while still touching the ground.

His right leg snapped in like a spring and then suddenly kicked out, the instep slamming firmly into the bottom of the stake.

Bang!

It was a heavy, solid sound, like a hammer striking hardwood.

The entire wooden dummy was kicked forward, almost touching the ground, before violently bouncing back and shaking violently. Several pieces of the cowhide on the dummy tore open, revealing the grayish-white logs underneath.

Lin Chong slowly pulled his legs back, straightened up, and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve. Suddenly, he swayed slightly, reached out to steady himself on the wooden stake, and stood firm for a moment.

Li Yuan rushed forward to support him: "Master Lin, are you alright?"

Lin Chong waved his hand, caught his breath, and chuckled, "I'm getting old. That 'Sleeping Dragon Kick' just now strained a muscle, but it's nothing serious."

He patted the cowhide sticking up on the stake, turned his head, and his gaze fell on Li Yuan's face.

"Do you understand now? The Dragon Form Fist doesn't have any fancy dragons soaring to the heavens. Its 'dragon' is the dull thud of a fist digging into bone, the thud of a shoulder being dislocated, and the muffled groan of your opponent when you kick them up and they land on the ground."

Li Yuan subconsciously lowered his gaze.

Something flashed in the corner of my eye.

【Dragon Form Fist (Beginner): 0/200】

"Alright, go back now." Lin Chong waved his hand.

"Master Lin, shall I help you back?"

Lin Chong smiled with relief and shook his head, saying, "No need. I'll just rest in the main room for a while longer. Don't worry."

This disciple's character is far superior to Lu Qing's.

However, if the Qingniu Martial Arts Society wanted to make a name for itself in Linjiang City, it had to take advantage of the martial arts examination, and Lu Qing was ultimately the safer choice.

"Then... this disciple will take his leave," Li Yuan said.

"By the way," Lin Chong suddenly asked, "has anyone been sponsoring you?"

"Yes, Liang's Butcher Shop."

Lin Chong sighed softly, "An ordinary shop can't support the training needs of a martial artist with internal strength. Come in with me for a moment."

The two entered the inner hall.

Lin Chong took out a small blue bottle from a hidden compartment and placed it in Li Yuan's palm.

"This is a Minor Qi Cultivation Pill, an auxiliary pill for cultivating internal energy. Please keep it safe."

The one small Qi-nourishing pill each month was originally intended by Lin Chong to replenish his Qi and blood.

With the financial support of the Qian family, Lu Qing naturally had no shortage of cultivation resources, but Li Yuan was different.

"From now on, you can come to me every month to collect one."

"Thank you, Master Lin!" Li Yuan clasped his hands and bowed deeply to the ground.

No wonder the Blood Nourishing Pill's effectiveness was greatly reduced after breaking through to the Dark Force realm; it turns out that the more potent Minor Essence Nourishing Pill was needed instead.

This kind of elixir is rare on the market; it's a highly sought-after item with a price that's hard to find.

"Go ahead." Lin Chong narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze full of satisfaction.

……

The next day, on Wutong Street.

When Li Yuangang returned home, he saw Liang Bai sitting on the stone steps in front of his house, clearly having been waiting for a long time.

His eyes were full of doubt.

Is it really possible for a mere peak Ming Jin martial artist to wipe out the Tianlang Gang overnight?

But upon further reflection, there was no one else besides Li Yuan.

Last night, Liang Bai was already deeply annoyed that his wife, Yan, had secretly run away to ask Li Yuan for help.

Who would have thought that the next day when they opened their eyes, they would hear the news of Huang Kui's violent death.

With the two events linked together, he already had a guess in his mind. The only thing he couldn't figure out was how Li Yuan had managed to do it.

Upon seeing Li Yuan, Liang Bai immediately became excited, rushed forward, and grabbed Li Yuan's hand, tears streaming down his face: "Inspector Li, this time we're all counting on you! It's my fault for not being strict enough with my family rules... I shouldn't have bothered you with such a matter, but my wife..."

Li Yuan understood that Liang Bai had come specifically to express his gratitude after hearing the news of Huang Kui's death.

As one can imagine, with Huang Kui dead, the gang scattered like leaves in the wind, and the Tianlang Gang could no longer stir up any trouble. Naturally, the Liang family's shop returned to normal.

"It's alright." Li Yuan remained noncommittal and subtly changed the subject, "Brother Liang, how is your son's injury?" Liang Bai's son, who was practicing martial arts at the martial arts school, had been severely beaten by the Tianlang Gang.

"Fortunately, they're just superficial injuries. They'll be fine after a while," Liang Bai said.

"That's good."

Liang Bai shoved twenty taels of silver into Li Yuan's hand without a word, followed by three plump silver perch.

Wei Lin knew that if he didn't accept it, Liang Bai would definitely not feel comfortable.

"Inspector Li, you've... broken through to the Dark Force realm?" Liang Bai suddenly widened his eyes.

He felt that Li Yuan's demeanor, gaze, and the aura emanating from his entire body were completely different from the past, more than ten times stronger than before, almost on a completely different level.

"Well... I guess it was just luck."

Liang Bai's body jolted, then he burst into laughter, his joy overflowing: "Excellent! Fantastic! My Liang family is willing to increase our tribute by another 20%—no, 30%! Inspector Li will surely shine brightly in this martial arts examination and return with honors!"

"Thank you, Brother Liang."

"Then... I'll head back now." Liang Bai clasped his hands in a fist salute.

"Brother Liang, please have a cup of tea before you go."

"No, thank you," Liang Bai shook his head. "I won't bother you any longer. It's best not to let your sister-in-law and grandfather know about the Sky Wolf Gang's affairs."

Li Yuan's heart stirred slightly, and he couldn't help but sigh inwardly that this towering man actually had such delicate thoughts.

Although the Sirius Gang has been eliminated, his family would inevitably live in fear day and night if they knew he had taken such a risk.

……

Li Yuan entered his home alone.

Several gifts were laid out on the table in the main room, with a one-hundred-tael silver note underneath.

"You're back, Motoko?"

"Hmm. Father, where did this come from?"

"Ding Zhen from the Four Seas Society came by, but seeing you weren't there, he put down his things and left... He didn't say anything," Zhou Yanqiu said.

Li Yuan felt relieved.

"Ding Zhen is a good man. The Four Seas Society has been very kind to him lately, and now they've sent such a generous gift. Yuanzi, you should repay them when the time is right," Zhou Yanqiu said slowly.

He knew that his son-in-law had already made a name for himself in martial arts, otherwise the Four Seas Society wouldn't have been so eager to send him gifts.

The martial arts world is not just about fighting; more often, it's about human relationships and social dynamics.

"There are always people better than you, and mountains beyond mountains. Even a great man must be careful in everything he does when he is away from home..." Zhou Yanqiu repeated his old tune as usual, rambling on about his life experience.

……

The night was deep.

As the last chirping of insects faded away, a thin layer of white frost had secretly condensed on the bluestone slabs. Only when the night wind passed through the bare branches of the old locust tree did it emit a faint, almost sobbing whistle.

Li Yuan stood alone in the courtyard, closing his eyes and regulating his breathing.

The medicinal power of the Minor Nourishing Essence Pill is surging and surging within the body.

What churned in my mind were the key points of each move in "Dragon Form Fist" and the exquisite details of the entire set of boxing techniques.

He suddenly moved.

Without any warning.

He took a half step forward with his left foot, his heel grinding into the ground like a plow entering the soil—silent, yet incredibly steady.

His right fist then twisted and emerged from under his ribs, not quickly, but even with a hint of heaviness, as if he were pushing not air, but viscous mercury about to solidify.

Midway through the punch, the five fingers suddenly spread open, transforming the fist into a claw.

The fingertips gleamed faintly in the moonlight, carrying a chilling, seductive power.

His body was enveloped in white steam rising from his sweat.

His movements were sometimes extremely slow, as slow as the undercurrent beneath the ice; and sometimes they would suddenly accelerate, as fast as snow collapsing from a cold branch.

Only the light in his eyes remained steadfast and unwavering.