At the thought of this possibility, Jiang Che immediately tried to enter the Heart Stream.
However, he had already entered the Heart Stream twice in a row while practicing his fist technique earlier.
Now, his head was throbbing with pain, and he could no longer succeed.
'It seems that with my current energy, I can only enter the Heart Stream twice a day. Any more is impossible.'
Having figured this out, Jiang Che decided to try again the next day.
After refining the last bit of his Qi Blood, Jiang Che left the Martial Arts Hall.
The sky was still bright, so he headed straight for the west side of the city.
He counted the days; it was time for him to go to Miaoxin Studio to create some forged calligraphy and paintings.
He felt a faint sense of unease about this forgery business.
Although the Shopkeeper had previously said he sold the forgeries to people who just wanted to decorate their establishments, not to deceive customers...
...it was still, after all, creating fakes.
It was not an honorable trade.
Now that he was a Martial Artist, the city's factions would soon come to recruit him.
Once he had a stipend from an affiliation, his financial pressure would be much lower.
By then, he would no longer be so dependent on the income from forgery.
He decided he would quit after this one last job.
After passing through a few streets and alleys, Jiang Che arrived at the familiar West Market Street.
But when he reached the entrance of Miaoxin Studio...
...he found the main door shut tight.
He knocked, but there was no answer.
'Strange, it's still early...' he thought.
'Oh well. He probably had something urgent come up. I'll come back tomorrow!'
Jiang Che decisively headed home.
「The next day, at the White Cloud Martial Arts Hall.」
Jiang Che entered the Heart Stream State, and after completing a full set of the Cloud-Stacking Fist, he stopped.
He faintly felt Qi Blood being generated in his abdomen.
He hurried over to a cattail mat and sat down.
Enter the Heart Stream!
Instantly, he felt his mind become completely clear and empty.
At the same time, the Qi Blood in his Dantian began to slowly calm down.
In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, all the Qi Blood was refined!
'The effect is surprisingly good!'
Jiang Che was shocked as he felt the now-docile Qi Blood in his lower abdomen.
He had never taken a Secret Medicine...
...but he felt that meditating in the Heart Stream State was no less effective!
A fire ignited in his heart.
This meant he could spend more time on his Martial Arts Training and other activities!
However, he could only enter the extended Heart Stream State twice a day.
Once for Martial Arts Training, and once for meditation.
Otherwise, he could have progressed even faster!
Before long, Ah Shan came over again, carrying the medicinal soup.
The other three each bought a bowl.
When it was Jiang Che's turn, he shook his head again.
Zhang Xiong finished his soup and walked over. "Jiang Che, are you out of money? Do you need me to lend you some?"
"Thank you, Senior Brother Zhang, but I'm fine for now!" Jiang Che said with a smile.
"We're all fellow disciples. If you need anything, you have to tell me," Zhang Xiong said, patting him on the shoulder.
Jiang Che nodded, a warmth spreading through his heart.
But the truth was, he really didn't need it.
After finishing his training and returning home, Jiang Che went to Miaoxin Studio again.
But the door was still closed.
'How strange...'
Jiang Che shook his head and turned to go home.
Jiang Ling was furtively mending something, acting all mysterious.
After the two finished dinner, Jiang Che had nothing else to do. He saw he still had plenty of the paper and ink he'd bought before.
So, he began to practice Calligraphy again.
As he wrote, Jiang Che suddenly noticed that his mind seemed to have quieted down somewhat.
The anxiety, stress, and panic that had built up inside him recently seemed to have diminished a great deal.
Moreover, the throbbing pain in his head seemed to be gone.
"Huh?"
He was rather shocked.
'I never expected Calligraphy to have this effect.'
Previously, after entering the Heart Stream twice in one day...
...his head would feel groggy and bloated for the rest of the day.
Only a full night's sleep could restore him.
'Could it be...'
A possibility suddenly occurred to him.
His eyes focused intently.
In that instant, time seemed to stand still.
A mosquito flew past his eyes.
Jiang Che could clearly see its flight path.
It seemed to be moving slowly through the air.
SLAP!
Jiang Che stared blankly at the smear of blood on his palm.
He had actually managed to enter the Heart Stream again!
'So that means...'
His gaze burned with intensity.
'Practicing Calligraphy can reduce the internal cooldown for the Heart Stream!'
He could practice his fist technique more!
「The next day, Jiang Che arrived at the Martial Arts Hall.」
He entered the Heart Stream twice in a row, using both times to practice the Cloud-Stacking Fist.
Before long, he felt Qi Blood surging in his abdomen, accompanied by a dull ache.
So, he took his leave from the hall master early, hurried home, and practiced Calligraphy.
When the throbbing in his head subsided, he entered the Heart Stream once more and began to meditate.
Soon, the surging Qi Blood in his abdomen calmed down.
'It works!'
Jiang Che was ecstatic.
He tried to continue practicing Calligraphy.
This time, however, he couldn't get his mind to recover.
'Looks like three times is the limit... but that's enough!'
Jiang Che knew he couldn't be too greedy.
Entering the Heart Stream three times a day was already an incredible feat.
Jiang Che continued this routine for several days.
During this time, Zhang Xiong asked again if Jiang Che needed money, saying he had a decent amount on hand and could lend him some, but Jiang Che still politely refused.
Seeing Jiang Che refuse the medicinal soup and leave early every day, Gong Yulei couldn't help but feel a sense of disdain.
'Looks like this guy has given up.'
The Qi Blood of the other three was increasing at an astonishing rate.
Their skin was also growing thicker by the day.
Gong Yulei, in particular, had even faintly reached the Great Success Realm of the first level of the Qi Blood Realm!
In contrast, Jiang Che's Qi Blood was still pitifully weak.
Luo Kun was also somewhat disappointed by this.
However, he soon stopped paying attention to Jiang Che.
His attention was now completely focused on Gong Yulei.
This disciple was advancing at an incredible pace, almost as if breaking through to a new stage every day.
He had only ever seen such a Cultivation speed from the genius disciples of the Cangyun Sect back in the day!
'Perhaps he really can fight for one of the spots for the Cangyun Sect...'
At this thought, a glimmer of hope sparked within Luo Kun's heart.
...
Jiang Che, however, didn't mind the strange looks from others.
He was, however, currently facing a very serious problem.
Although he could efficiently refine his Qi Blood...
...and, thanks to Calligraphy, he could use the Heart Stream State twice a day for his Martial Arts Training...
...he wasn't supplementing his diet, and his innate Qi Blood was weak to begin with.
As a result, he felt his body becoming more and more depleted.
Although he had been buying a little meat every day since earning five silver from that forgery job, and the food at the Martial Arts Hall's cafeteria was reasonably plentiful, for a Martial Artist who had broken through to the Qi Blood Realm, ordinary food, while somewhat useful, was no substitute for tonics and supplements.
"Brother, why do you have dark circles under your eyes? Are you not sleeping well?"
One day, Jiang Ling looked at Jiang Che's eyes and asked with concern.
Jiang Che was taken aback. He found a copper mirror and took a look.
Sure enough, his dark circles were severe. It did not look good at all.
'No, I can't go on like this!'
Cold sweat trickled down his back.
'If I don't eat something to replenish my Qi Blood soon, I might damage my body's foundation!'
It wasn't that he didn't understand this principle.
It was just that before breaking through to the Qi Blood Realm, a normal diet, while leading to slow progress, wouldn't have harmed his body.
Besides, he didn't have the money to buy nourishing supplements anyway.
So he had just gotten used to it.
But now that he had broken through to the Qi Blood Realm, his old diet was far from sufficient.
He also came to a deeper understanding of the relationship between dietary supplements, fist techniques, and Secret Medicines.
First, one's innate physical constitution, along with special nourishing foods and medicinal supplements, formed the basis for creating Qi Blood.
Next was the Fist Technique.
Essentially, the Fist Technique was a converter.
A "device" that transformed the body's energy and nutrients into Qi Blood.
However, the conversion efficiency varied from person to person, determined by their Root Bone.
Finally, there was the Secret Medicine.
The newly generated Qi Blood was violent and unruly, and could easily damage the meridians.
Therefore, one needed to use Secret Medicine or meditation to refine it.
Only then could it be controlled at will.
This formed a dynamic balance between the three.
Continuously increasing one's strength through cycle after cycle of refinement—this was the principle of Qi Blood Cultivation.
'So, the key is nourishment!'