John Foster and Mrs. Clark were initially worried that William Foster's intense training would overwhelm his body, so they tried to persuade him several times. Later, they realized their persuasion had no effect, and despite William Foster resting for only a little over half an hour each day, he was still full of energy the next day, as if an ordinary person had slept for four or five hours. This put their minds at ease.

Fifteen days later, at nightfall.

“Wild Ox Emerges from the Cave!” William Foster drew his fists to his abdomen, sprang up suddenly, and within three steps, the air surged, making cracking sounds like a whip. Stepping forward, William Foster immediately executed the second move of the Wild Ox Fist.

“Wild Ox Charges Across the Field!”

William Foster struck out with both fists, hitting the empty air, causing a large burst of air to explode, stirring up a small gust of wind. Taking advantage of the momentum, he stepped forward, split his fists apart, and immediately performed the third move: “Wild Ox Splits the Temples!”

With a muffled shout, William Foster sent a straight wave of air four feet in front of him, as if the air had turned into a ripple of the sea, splitting into a straight line, like the mane flying on the back of a charging wild ox.

At this moment, the difference between the Vital Energy Realm and ordinary people became apparent. No matter how strong an ordinary person is, it’s impossible to create a visible wave of air with their fists. But thanks to William Foster's diligent training and his natural talent, in half a month he had absorbed as much vital energy as an ordinary person would in three or four months.

At this point, every inch of muscle in William Foster's body was infused with vital energy. In terms of physical strength, William Foster was at least eight times stronger than an ordinary person. Only with such strength could one create a visible wave of air with bare hands.

The eighteen moves of the Wild Ox Fist were executed one after another by William Foster. The air around him surged more and more violently, the cracking sounds of air colliding rising and falling like waves. In the end, the wind from his fists even produced a loud, drum-like bellow, like the roar of an ox.

“Eighteenth Move of the Wild Ox Fist: Wild Ox Charge!”

William Foster stepped forward in succession, moving from the first move to the eighteenth, his arms vibrating like a dragon emerging from the abyss, blasting forward.

Crack! Crack!

There were two consecutive sounds. Three steps away, two gnarled plum trees as thick as an arm were snapped in the middle, their crowns rustling and bending to one side.

“Good!” John Foster exclaimed in delight, striding over. Now that William Foster had reached this point, the Wild Ox Fist could be considered mastered. Judging by the force of his punches, the vital energy within William Foster had reached the upper level of the Vital Energy Realm. All that remained was to accumulate more vital energy and prepare to break through to the True Qi Realm.

The path of martial arts is arduous at every step. Without diligent training, it’s hard to achieve greatness. Although William Foster was exceptionally talented and trained almost day and night, half a month was still a short time. To reach the True Qi level, even three months would not be enough. However, it should be noted that William Foster's three months of training was equivalent to a year of hard work for an ordinary person.

“Little brother, you’ve already mastered the Wild Ox Fist. From now on, just practice this set every day to accumulate vital energy.”

The excitement in John Foster's eyes was unmistakable, his smile so wide it nearly split his face. William Foster's rapid progress in such a short time made John Foster even happier than if he himself had advanced to the Qi Field level.

“This is all thanks to your constant guidance, big brother. Only then could I grasp the essence of this fist technique in such a short time!”

William Foster finished his practice, his face slightly pale. The Wild Ox Charge move was extremely exhausting. Even after half a month of hard training, executing this punch left him almost completely spent, more tired than after a whole day of practice.

“All right, we’re brothers—no need to be so formal.” John Foster threw his arm around William Foster's shoulders and gave him a couple of hearty shakes to show his excitement.

The two brothers chatted about martial arts for a while longer before John Foster finally said, “Little brother, I’ve been summoned to Tianshe Mountain several times already. Yesterday, even General Fierce Tiger got involved. I can’t delay any longer. I’m afraid I won’t be able to make it to your duel with David Harris and James Thompson.”

“Big brother, you should return to Tianshe Mountain. The laws of Great Zhou are as unyielding as mountains. Although Tianshe Mountain is just for routine training and not an official military camp, it’s still best not to disobey orders. As for David Harris and James Thompson, you don’t need to worry. Though both come from scholarly families and are highly ambitious and proud, they look down on everyone. In martial arts, willpower and conviction are indispensable. With their attitudes, even after a hundred years, they won’t amount to much and are nothing to worry about!”

William Foster's words were a bit bold, but they made sense. John Foster recalled his own martial arts journey and realized that willpower and conviction were indeed more important than talent. In the Great Zhou military, anyone with an official position was a person of great determination.

“Since you put it that way, I’ll trust you and ignore those two clowns.”

The night was quiet, and the cold evening easily stirred emotions. John Foster looked at his younger brother, feeling that in just a short time, he had matured a lot. With a sigh, he said to William Foster, “Little brother, in the Fang family, there’s only mother, you, me, and father. Outsiders see us as nobles and generals, basking in glory, but only those within know the dangers. Father has been away for years and is often ostracized in the military. Marquis Pingding and Marquis Zhen Guo have long wanted to sideline father and push him out of the army. Father has been stationed in the frontier for years—partly to suppress the border for the court, but also to protect mother and us.”