Set a goal, and the system takes over the body.

Qi Xiuyuan smiled as well.

This girl remembers things perfectly, even the most basic things like directions. She knows every path and every corner of the martial arts school like the back of her hand.

She only listens to classical texts, policy essays, and classical Chinese literature, letting them go in one ear and out the other.

Saying she's not smart doesn't seem right.

Calling her smart doesn't seem quite right.

"Hey, senior brother, stop talking so much, the food won't taste good if it gets cold."

Qu Yuanyuan carried the food box to the stone table in the courtyard, opened it deftly, and took out two plates of dishes and two large bowls of rice. The aroma of rice mixed with the aroma of dishes immediately wafted out.

Qi Xiuyuan was indeed hungry, and his stomach rumbled a few times.

He sat down, picked up his chopsticks, and devoured all the food.

Qu Yuanyuan sat beside him, resting her chin on her hands as she watched him eat.

"Senior Brother, I'll deliver your meals from now on, so you can focus on your cultivation in peace."

Qu Yuanyuan said as she cleared away the bowls and plates.

Qi Xiuyuan shook his head, chuckled, and gently rubbed Qu Yuanyuan's head: "No need for that. I can't be interrupted when I'm cultivating. I appreciate your and your brother's kindness."

Qu Yuanyuan looked somewhat disappointed, pursed her lips, and shuffled her toes on the ground, whispering, "I... I actually wanted to see how Senior Brother cultivates. I... I also want to learn martial arts, but..."

She kept her head down, twisting the hem of her clothes with her fingers, not daring to look up at Qi Xiuyuan.

Qi Xiuyuan then understood.

To enroll in a martial arts school, you need to pay a tuition fee.

The other disciples all accepted the tuition fee.

If we don't accept Qu Yuanyuan, the other disciples will definitely feel it's unfair, and there will inevitably be gossip behind our backs.

This is detrimental to the management of martial arts.

Although Qu Yuanyuan lived in the martial arts school and could hear the shouts of the disciples practicing every day, she was not a disciple of the school and could not practice with them.

If you want to cultivate, you have to pay a fee.

But she couldn't come up with that much money.

"Yuanyuan, why do you want to cultivate? Isn't it good enough that your brother can protect you?"

Qi Xiuyuan's gaze fell on her lowered face.

Qu Yuanyuan then raised her head.

"My older brother used to protect me. If he gets hurt one day, I want to protect him too. I also want to protect my senior brother."

"My senior brother is the best to me and my brother, but I heard that during the Tianfu Martial Arts Tournament, the people from Zhentian Martial Arts School always injured my senior brother. Once I have mastered the kung fu, I will beat up anyone who dares to hit my senior brother."

These words startled Qi Xiuyuan slightly.

His brows furrowed slightly.

"Yuanyuan, did you think these words yourself, or did someone teach you to say them?"

Qu Yuanyuan's eyes widened slightly, and she immediately lowered her head, her ears turning red instantly, her fingers twisting the hem of her clothes.

"Senior Brother, I..."

Qi Xiuyuan said sternly, "Yuanyuan, if you want to practice martial arts, you can tell me openly and honestly. Don't try to be clever in your heart, and don't learn from others to flatter and fawn to achieve their goals. As a person, you have to stand up straight and earn what you need through your own labor."

Qu Yuanyuan's eyes were slightly red, and she lowered her head even further.

"Senior Brother, I...I know I was wrong..."

"You wait here."

With that, Qi Xiuyuan turned and went back into the house. A moment later, he came out and looked at Qu Yuanyuan, who was two heads shorter than him, with gentle eyes.

"The rules of the martial arts school cannot be broken, but I will pay your tuition fee."

As he spoke, Qi Xiuyuan took out a ten-tael silver ingot and stuffed it into Qu Yuanyuan's hand.

Qu Yuanyuan stood there, stunned, her eyes wide open, holding the silver in her hands without moving.

When she came to her senses, she quickly pushed it back, shaking her head like a rattle drum.

"No, no, I can't take Senior Brother's money. My brother said that we siblings already owe the martial arts school a lot, and we absolutely cannot trouble the martial arts school again, let alone Senior Brother."

Qi Xiuyuan forced the silver back into her hand.

"Here, consider it an advance payment from me."

Qu Yuanyuan hesitated, her lips trembling slightly, before finally nodding heavily, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Senior Brother, I will never try to be clever again. I will be a good person and study martial arts diligently. I will definitely pay back this money."

She clutched the silver ingot tightly.

Qi Xiuyuan smiled and said, "Okay, you can pay me back when you have money in the future. As for clever tricks, you can use them when facing enemies, but what you need to do with family and friends is to be sincere."

Qu Yuanyuan nodded vigorously.

She left happily shortly afterward.

"This girl's ulterior motives are probably related to her experience in the slums. I just hope she won't go astray in the future."

Qi Xiuyuan regained his composure and glanced at the pottery jar, which had been resealed.

"The remaining demon blood is enough for three to five more uses. I can definitely master the basics of the Horizontal Body Technique before the martial arts competition. By then, I will be able to make up for my weaknesses."

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

For the past two days, Qi Xiuyuan has hardly left his house, and the courtyard has been filled with the dull sounds of cultivation from morning till night.

With the blessing of demon blood, he successfully cultivated the incomplete Horizontal Cultivation Technique to the entry level.

[Cultivation Level: Inner Strength Realm (Early Stage, 226/2000)]

【Horizontal Bodyguard (Beginner, 249/450)】

His skin had become tougher, with a faint bronze sheen, and his muscles were more defined and firm. His arms pounded against each other, producing a dull thud.

He pounded his arm on the pebbles without feeling any pain.

The pebble snapped into several pieces with a crack, sending stone chips flying everywhere.

"The Horizontal Training Master is indeed worthy of being a martial artist who can reach the Bone-Ringing Realm even with an incomplete version. Just from the entry level, my defense has increased by at least 100%, and even my Ming Jin has increased significantly."

Once you enter the Inner Strength Realm, your Ming Jin (manifest strength) generally won't increase anymore.

but.

Qi Xiuyuan clearly felt that practicing the Horizontal Body Technique could actually help him increase his internal strength.

He slashed his arm with a knife.

Where the blade passed, only a faint white mark was left.

"At the beginner level, I am far from being invulnerable to swords and spears, but ordinary sword slashes can no longer cut me, which is enough to greatly increase my margin for error."

"The Tianfu Martial Arts Tournament in two days is truly something to look forward to!"

Qi Xiuyuan clenched his fist.

Two days have passed in the blink of an eye.

The day of the Tianfu Martial Arts Tournament is finally approaching.

These past two days, Qi Xiuyuan did not fill his cultivation schedule to the brim, but instead adopted a balance between work and rest.

Practice for an hour in the early morning, rest for a short while, and then continue practicing.

In the evening, he would sit by the bamboo forest lake in the south of the city, listening to the rustling of the bamboo leaves in the wind, letting his tense muscles and bones slowly relax.

His cultivation level has increased slightly.

The mastery of the Divine Finger, White Tiger Shining Golden Blade, Wave-Breaking Blade, and Five Animal Transformation Technique has also increased slightly, and various insights have also increased considerably.

His proficiency with various elixirs also increased.

Qi Qingshan has not yet emerged from seclusion.

The quiet room where he secluded himself was tightly shut, and there had been no movement inside for a long time.

Qi Wenze summoned all the participants to the martial arts competition to the training ground.

He has already taken Qu Jiuge as his disciple.

This is the first time this has happened at the Aoyama Martial Arts School.

For days, many disciples in the martial arts school privately discussed that Qu Jiuge must have had some incredible luck to have the second master of the school make an exception and accept her as a disciple.

Qi Wenze's gaze slowly swept across the faces of the five people.

"Tomorrow is the Tianfu Martial Arts Tournament. I have gathered some information and am telling you in advance so that you can be mentally prepared."