To be called a martial artist of the Jianghu, the first step is to reach the realm of a Third Rate martial artist.
When a person is able to sense Qi and manage to accumulate enough Inner Qi in their dantian, that is when they become a Third Rate martial artist.
The ability to sense Qi depends on individual talent. Some detect it within a few months of meditation, while others may meditate their entire lives and still fail to sense it.
Once the practitioner manages to sense Qi, the next step is to absorb it into their dantian through the meridians in their body. For people with an Ordinary Body Constitution, they can directly absorb neutral Nature Qi. However, individuals with a Refined Body Constitution require Qi of a specific nature that aligns with their constitution: Poison Qi for the Hundred Poison Body, Yang Qi for the Pure Yang Physique, and Yin Qi for the Pure Yin Body.
For Mu Jin, who possessed a Balanced Yin-Yang Body, he required Qi of both Yin and Yang nature. His body could convert absorbed Qi into Yang Qi on its own, a trait of being male, though that itself was somewhat debatable since his little brother was... ahem. However, the real problem was Yin Qi.
He needed pure Yin Qi for a strong foundation, which he could obtain either from places where the presence of death was common, such as a graveyard, or from those whose bodies naturally harbored dense Yin essence.
And since Mu Jin was in the Emei Sect, there was no scarcity of such individuals. However, he had one problem. For women to release pure Yin Qi, they needed to be pleasured and satisfied, and the very thing required to make that happen was something Mu Jin did not possess, or more accurately, no longer possessed.
Still, he had another way to obtain that pure Yin Qi.
---
After accepting Gu Ryeon's challenge, Mu Jin spent the rest of his evening doing basic exercises to keep his body in shape.
When the amber evening turned dark, Mu Jin reached the pond in the apple tree garden and hopped into it to wash off all the sweat he had accumulated from training since the previous night.
While he was still bathing, he saw a figure emerging from the dense mist of the garden.
Long sky-blue hair, large gem-like eyes of the same color, narrowed eyebrows, and beautiful plump lips. She was the very embodiment of ethereal beauty, walking toward him in rhythmic steps while carrying two wooden food boxes in her hands.
"Min Ji?" Mu Jin murmured, unable to take his eyes off her face.
His mind had been too chaotic the previous day when he first saw her, so he had not noticed, but now that he looked at her carefully, he realized something.
She was completely his type.
As she drew closer, her eyes widened slightly and her lips parted at the sight of Mu Jin, whose lower body was submerged in water.
"I-is it really you, Mu Jin?" she asked, surprise evident in her voice.
"It is yours truly, revealed in my full glory," Mu Jin replied with a sly smile.
Min Ji let out a soft chuckle and sat outside the pond, her back facing Mu Jin.
"It's surprising," Mu Jin murmured inwardly. "She didn't get flustered seeing me naked."
"Did you find some kind of ginseng to change overnight, Mu Jin?" Min Ji initiated the conversation.
"Well, something like that," Mu Jin replied awkwardly.
He could not tell her that he had used Qi to increase his muscle density, as it required extreme control over Qi, which would be illogical for someone like Mu Jin, who had never practiced martial arts before.
"Oh, you are very lucky," Min Ji chuckled. She understood that Mu Jin was reluctant to reveal the truth, so she did not press further.
An awkward silence settled between them as Mu Jin continued bathing, while Min Ji seemed lost in thought.
"Umm... Mu Jin," Min Ji called after organizing her thoughts.
"Yeah."
"I heard you accepted Gu Ryeon's challenge to win the Inner Court Selection Competition," she said, her voice carrying a hint of hesitation. "W-was it really true?"
"Yeah, I did accept his challenge."
"No, not that. Was it true that you were being harassed by Gu Ryeon for the past two years?"
"Well... the condition of this body that you saw last night was because of Gu Ryeon."
Mu Jin could hear Min Ji clenching her fists and gritting her teeth. After a brief silence, she murmured, frustration evident in her voice,
"I'm sorry. I always talked about protecting you when I didn't even know that you had been going through all this for so long—"
A sudden splash of water came from behind Min Ji, and a palm gently rested on her head.
"You have nothing to apologize for, Min Ji. You are not the one who harassed me, nor are you my parent who was responsible for protecting me. All of this happened because I was naive and foolish," Mu Jin said firmly.
Min Ji remained silent. Mu Jin's words brought her both comfort and an unsettling feeling.
Mu Jin removed his hand from her head and began wearing the robes placed beside the pond.
"Are you going to leave the sect?" Min Ji asked in a low voice.
"Why would I?"
"Then about that challenge... are you actually planning to win the competition?"
Mu Jin sat before her while adjusting his robe and asked, running a hand through his wet hair,
"Why? You don't believe that I can win?"
"N-no, it's not that. But it will be really difficult," Min Ji replied, waving her hand with an awkward smile.
"Don't worry. I will not lose," Mu Jin said with a warm smile. He grabbed the wooden box placed beside Min Ji and continued, changing the topic,
"I'm very hungry. Let me see what you brought today."
Seeing him so unconcerned, a sense of calm settled in Min Ji's heart, which had been troubled since she heard about what had happened between Gu Ryeon, Mu Jin, and Dong Hwan.
Slowly, a frown appeared on her face as drops of water fell from the bangs of her hair onto her cheeks.
"Mu Jin, not only did you pat my head, but you also called me by my full name. Aren't you being too disrespectful and bold toward your senior sister?"