If physical training has not reached its limit and one forcibly begins practicing the internal cultivation manual to enter the Qi-nourishing stage, it will leave hidden injuries due to the body being unable to withstand the consumption of refining essence into Qi. In severe cases, it can deplete the body and lead to consumption disease. Of course, even after entering the Qi-nourishing stage, it is still necessary to replenish a large amount of nutrients daily to make up for the consumption from refining essence into Qi. Otherwise, if the body only expends and does not replenish, various illnesses will also occur. Therefore, martial artists consume a lot of resources, and those without money or powerful backing find it very difficult to master advanced martial arts.

After lunch, Ryan Clark looked at the bowl of medicine set before him. After calming his mind for a moment, he drank it all in one go, then took off his Daoist robe, went bare-chested, and walked into the courtyard.

At this moment, Ryan Clark felt the medicine he had drunk transform into a surge of heat that spread to every corner of his body. He assumed the starting stance of the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist from the "Treasure Record" and began to practice.

Since Ryan Clark had already familiarized himself with the ten moves of the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist in the morning, he was now quite adept, moving smoothly from the opening move "Barbaric Dragon Twists the Waist" and "Azure Dragon Calms the Waves" all the way to the closing moves "Golden Dragon Wags Its Tail" and "Heavenly Dragon Descends to the World."

As he executed each move, Ryan Clark felt the heat flow in sync with his fist movements. With each strike, the areas where his muscles were most tense and exerted the most force would gather more of the hot current. Under the combined pressure of internal and external forces, the impurities within his body, aided by the fist techniques and the heat, were expelled through his pores.

The more Ryan Clark practiced, the more invigorated he felt. He went through the Ten Dragons Subduing Demons Fist from start to finish and back again over a dozen times, each time slower than the last. By the end, it resembled the slow, flowing movements of Tai Chi in later generations. However, Ryan Clark found this slow pace exhilarating, and with the help of the medicine, he felt even the deepest corners of his body and the inner layers of his muscles begin to tremble with each movement.

If someone else were watching, they would see that at this moment, heat was rising from Ryan Clark's body, making him appear shrouded in a thin mist, with the hottest area above his head emitting white steam. It seemed as if wind was swirling around him, forming a circle more than ten feet wide on the ground.

After Ryan Clark's fist movements slowed to the extreme, they began to speed up again. In the end, each punch produced a whooshing sound, and the joints all over his body crackled like beans being stir-fried.

Gradually, Ryan Clark entered a state of emptiness and clarity, as if he could see both his soul and his body—his soul within, his body without. With every punch, it felt as if both body and soul struck together, and the vital energy and blood of his body continuously nourished his soul, causing it to grow stronger.

The more Ryan Clark practiced, the better he felt, his spirit growing ever more vigorous. It was as if a surge of energy was about to burst forth from his heart. After finishing "Golden Dragon Wags Its Tail," he pulled with his left hand, turned his body, tensed all his muscles, and thrust his right hand downward at an angle with the force of Mount Tai crashing down—this was the move "Heavenly Dragon Descends to the World."

With this punch, all the power in his body and the surging energy in his heart seemed to be released through his fist. There was a crisp sound in the air, and a sudden gust of wind snapped a thin branch off a tree more than twenty feet away.

After throwing this punch, Ryan Clark stopped and collected himself, feeling an incomparable sense of exhilaration. His muscles ached but were filled with strength, though he was drenched in sweat and covered in a layer of black grime, which felt rather uncomfortable.

Ryan Clark quickly walked to the well, drew a bucket of water, and used a cloth to wipe the grime from his body, feeling completely refreshed. Since the medicinal bath had been timed to be ready, it was just right at this moment. Ryan Clark went to the kitchen, stepped into the vat, and sat cross-legged. As the temperature rose, he felt the medicinal power seep through his skin into his muscles, and even begin to penetrate his bones. Following the instructions in the "Treasure Record," he regulated his breathing, sensing the balanced and interactive state of his body as a whole. This is actually one of the meanings of "Qi" in Qi cultivation—the ability to control and coordinate the forces of various parts of the body to expel harmful elements and restore balance.

While regulating his breath, Ryan Clark endured the uncomfortable tingling and itching, feeling the forces in each part of his body and maintaining an overall state of balance. In this state, anything that disrupted the body's balance and caused harm would be expelled as the body returned to equilibrium (within certain limits, so the harmful components in the medicine must be kept in check. This is also the value of a good prescription). Thus, the harmful parts of the external medicine were slowly expelled from the body, and in the process, they also carried away deep-seated toxins, even those in the bones, while the beneficial parts of the medicine replaced these substances and nourished the body.

It should be known that during normal breath regulation and Qi cultivation, it is very difficult to expel toxins from deep within the bones, because these harmful substances have not yet reached the point of disrupting the body's balance. Only when the body becomes much stronger and the "Qi" is very powerful can some of them be expelled, and reaching that level might take Ryan Clark another one or two realms.

Amidst the tingling and itching, Ryan Clark maintained this state of breath regulation. This level of Qi cultivation also benefited his soul to some extent. After half an hour, as the medicinal power gradually faded, Ryan Clark stepped out of the vat and dried himself off, feeling light, refreshed, spiritually clear, acutely perceptive, and with his soul slightly strengthened. At the same time, his previous minor internal injuries had unexpectedly healed—originally, it was estimated that it would take half a month to recover. This is the benefit of Qi cultivation.