Chapter 152: Triple-Layer Force, A Genius Enters the Hall

"Senior Brother Zhou, good morning!"

"You too!"

"Senior Brother Zhou, I just bought some breakfast and specifically prepared a portion for you; please do me the honor of tasting it."

"You are too kind, it smells delicious."

Early in the morning, Zhou You went to the Outer Courtyard to provide instruction on fist techniques to the new students, pointing out a few Apprentices who had performed exceptionally well.

Because Big Senior Brother Lu Qiang was too busy, this area of the Outer Courtyard had been handed over to Zhou You, who was specifically responsible for training the Apprentices.

No one in the martial arts hall had any objections to this.

It was a troubled time, a period when people were needed, and there were more holes than radishes everywhere, making it impossible to fill them all.

As a Core Disciple, Zhou You ranked among the best in his mastery of the Tiger Subduing Fist and was qualified to teach fist techniques on behalf of his master.

There were even Apprentices who were eager to use this as an opportunity to get close to Zhou You and take the chance to curry favor! As noon approached, Zhou You's busyness came to an end, and he left the Apprentices to practice sparring on their own.

The rest of the day was his to spend as he pleased.

The Inner Courtyard...

Zhou You's exclusive martial arts practice field was larger and more spacious than the one the two of them had shared before, with more equipment and a better environment.

After all, the Inner Courtyard and Outer Courtyard were equal in area, and when divided among a few Core Disciples, it could be considered quite spacious.

When the weather was good, he practiced his fist techniques in the open-air plaza; if he encountered overcast or rainy weather, he could move indoors, where the space was no smaller than outside.

Zhou You stood in the center of the practice field; beneath his feet was a water-polished floor, smooth as a mirror, without a single scratch to be seen.

Even if he left the environment in a mess, it would be restored to a brand-new state by the next day.

The martial arts hall's financial resources were unconditionally open to Core Disciples at the Qi and Blood stage or above.

The human-shaped target had a frame made of century-old hardwood, wrapped in layers of cowhide.

It was harder to hit than plain hardwood; the cowhide was tough, and its layers cushioned and dissipated force, so that even a rampaging rhinoceros could not knock it down.

Zhou You took a few breaths, his face turning slightly red as he exerted his Qi and Blood 3rd Stage strength.

With no one around, he could unleash his full power to his heart's content.

He threw a punch, striking the center of the human-shaped target; as his fist made contact with the outer layer of cowhide, ripples like water waves appeared.

The first layer of cowhide fluctuated the most violently, with the effect weakening layer by layer until, by the time it reached the core layers wrapped around the hardwood, the force had decayed to a negligible level that could not cause any damage.

"Bang!"

A muffled sound echoed in the surroundings.

Zhou You withdrew his fist, gathered his strength for a moment, and struck again.

This time, after the muffled sound, a subtle clashing sound was superimposed, like the sound of water falling into a storm.

However, Zhou You had only thrown one punch and had not withdrawn it to strike again.

How could the force of a single punch produce two sounds?

"Hmm, the difficulty of superimposing force lies in the connection between the initial force and the follow-up force."

"The principles of the Triple-Layer Technique are similar, but my current level is not high enough to draw inferences about other cases."

Zhou You swiped his hand, bringing up his current data.

"Name: Zhou You.

Qi and Blood: 300.

Experience Points: 10075.

Occupation: Martial Arts Disciple.

Level: Qi and Blood 3rd Stage (Seven Step Poison Sand Palm, Tiger Subduing Fist), Yanxing Quan (Qi and Blood 1st Stage). Skills: Seven Step Poison Sand Palm lv3 (Attribute: Corrosion), Tiger Subduing Fist lv27, Yanxing Quan lv23, Two Hearts Fist lv21, Basic Lightness Skill lv3/lv7, Pipa lv3, Seal Script lv8, Alchemy lv14.

Cultivation Methods: Jade Tiger Method lv3 (Stone Tiger), Boneless Heart Method lv3, Jiaodie Technique lv1, Secret Method of the Outsider Profound Heart lv1, Heaven-Nurturing Origin Method lv1.

Ultimate Moves: Wind-Chasing Triple-Layer Technique lv3, Tiger Aura lv5, Feather Gang lv2, General Unloading Armor Great Cloak lv5.

Talent: Hunger.

Armory: Void Face (Flesh Magic Treasure) — False Identity: Lu Zhigang.

Trial Project 1 (Three-Star Level): Perfect Basic Lightness Skill.

New Trial Project 2 (Three-Star Level): Break through to the Martial Master realm, discover the secret of the Heaven-Nurturing Origin Method.

New Trial Project 3 (Two-Star Level): Kill 10 Incarnate Phantoms, completed 0/10."

After completing the quest to hunt the phantoms, and adding his practice of the Heaven-Nurturing Origin Method, his Experience Points had broken ten thousand. He had a hunch while practicing his fist techniques recently: could the principle of superimposing force in the Triple-Layer Technique be applied to a higher level?

For example, one punch could superimpose three or even more layers of force.

The Secret Method of the Outsider Profound Heart increased his total Qi and Blood, but the damage limit of a single output remained at the Qi and Blood 3rd Stage.

If the Triple-Layer Technique could be applied to his fist techniques, there would definitely be an unexpected surprise.

"Experience Points -300, Wind-Chasing Triple-Layer Technique lv3 → lv4."

"Experience Points -400, Wind-Chasing Triple-Layer Technique lv4 → lv5."

"Wind-Chasing Triple-Layer Technique has reached max level."

The Wind-Chasing Triple-Layer Technique was itself a technique of the Jinli Level, and its upper limit was not high.

After raising it to lv5, there was no more room for improvement.

Zhou You noticed that after the Wind-Chasing Triple-Layer Technique reached max level lv5, a flickering question mark '?' suddenly appeared.

Here it was again, a hidden treasure chest; he decisively tapped it with his finger.

"Experience Points -2000, Streamline and restore Wind-Chasing Triple-Layer Technique, return to the origin, Triple-Layer Technique lv0."

"Triple-Layer Technique lv0 → lv1, Experience Points -1000, do you wish to upgrade?"

2000 Experience Points just to remove the two characters 'Wind-Chasing'—no matter how he looked at it, it was a loss.

Zhou You rubbed his chin; he wasn't short of that 1000, so he chose to upgrade.

"Triple-Stack Technique Lv0 → Lv1."

Countless pieces of information flooded into his mind; the Triple-Stack Technique shed the two characters "Wind-Chasing," undergoing a heaven-turning and earth-shattering transformation.

This technique evolved into a higher level of application; whether it was throwing a punch or using Lightness Skill, it could now be stacked three times.

Originally, one punch would deliver 1,000 catties of force, and the damage output was fixed there; if one wanted to continue, one had to repeat the punch.

Under the application of the Triple-Stack Technique, the output of a single punch accumulated to release 1,000 catties of force three times, tripling it.

When applied to Lightness Skill, it manifested as three times the speed or three times the distance.

"The connection and stacking of the preceding and following force actually contain so many profound secrets."

Every martial arts gym has techniques similar to the Wind-Chasing Triple-Stack Technique, crowned with various names, but the general principles are all similar.

After the upgrade via the panel, it discarded all flowery embellishments and returned to the most fundamental stacking technique.

The 2,000 Experience Points were worth more than the cost, directly elevating it from a martial technique to a universal skill.

There was even a surprise...

Triple-Stack does not mean, according to the literal meaning, that 3 times is the limit, but rather three-by-three multiplication, endless and inexhaustible.

The Lv2 Triple-Stack Technique provides a 3×3 amplification, which is 9 times.

The required Experience Points are also considerable—10,000.

"Too expensive, I can't afford to charge it."

After weighing the pros and cons, Zhou You temporarily dismissed this idea.

A 3-fold amplification is enough; combined with the 2-fold Qi and blood brought by the Outsider Profound Heart, it directly elevates him to the level of 4th or 5th stage Qi and blood.

If he upgrades to Lv2, the 9-fold amplification would be more than his Qi and blood endurance could sustain.

Next, he still needs to spend time adapting to the switch in attack patterns brought about by the Triple-Stack Technique.

While Zhou You was buried in hard training in the Inner Courtyard, an incident occurred at the martial arts gym.

"Master, this child is named Lu Jianqing; his aptitude for martial arts can be called a heaven-sent talent."

"He was born with connected bones and well-proportioned muscles; he practiced a few farm-style moves from his village and already developed strength."

"As long as he is taken in as a disciple and given Instruction in the Tiger-Subduing Fist, breaking through to the Qi and blood stage will be a matter of course."

Zhong Shaoying, who had been missing for many days, brought a village boy and introduced him to Wang Jianxiong.

The aptitude of the youth Lu Jianqing was comparable to Mao Lang, whom Mao Laoliu regarded as a treasure.

Wang Jianxiong looked at the youth, feeling quite satisfied inwardly, and nodded, saying, "Have him follow Zhou You to learn the basic skills first."

Zhong Shaoying lowered his head and agreed, a meaningful smile appearing at the corner of his mouth after hearing Zhou You's name.

(End of this chapter)