Charles Brooks was a wandering hero of the martial world. Because he offended the powerful, he was sent here. Having roamed the jianghu for so long, he had seen all kinds of bloody scenes. But after watching David Harris flay his very first opponent alive, even Charles Brooks was shocked and chilled to the bone.

Who exactly is this kid, and how can he be so ruthless?

In the first battle, David Harris was also injured, but it was just a cut on the thick flesh of his shoulder—nothing serious. Speaking of this wound, David Harris did it on purpose. If he had fought his opponent head-on, he might not have been a match. Maybe David Harris was born a killing star reincarnated; he actually used his shoulder to take a blow, then seized the chance to slice off both of his opponent’s legs.

The fallen opponent was hacked to pieces by David Harris, left and right, until his whole body was a bloody mess. It wasn’t until Charles Brooks came over and pulled David Harris away.

Back at the camp, David Harris couldn’t calm down. Charles Brooks’s words gave him a personal goal in life.

The first thing David Harris did upon returning to camp was to find Charles Brooks and ask to become his apprentice.

Charles Brooks didn’t agree, only saying he could teach him a few tricks, but wouldn’t take him as a disciple. David Harris accepted.

From then on, David Harris began to train hard. Until one day, David Harris was carried back from the battlefield, coughing up blood.

Charles Brooks was very concerned about David Harris’s injuries. After asking about the details of the fight, he told him, “It’s not that your moves are lacking, but your internal strength is inferior to theirs. Don’t take it too hard.” Charles Brooks practiced external martial arts, so he didn’t have much understanding of internal injuries.

David Harris was skilled in medicine, so he didn’t worry about his wounds. But hearing that his internal strength was lacking, he began to ponder.

Was the breathing technique he’d practiced since childhood actually a way to train internal strength? David Harris then calmed his mind and began to practice breathing.

He’d never thought much of this breathing method before, only found it fun. Now, with internal injuries, as soon as he started, he felt an indescribable comfort throughout his body, and the pain in his chest and abdomen gradually eased with each breath.

He was so familiar with what he’d practiced since childhood that he could do it with every movement, completely unrestricted by action or posture. So after checking his own pulse, David Harris found that his injuries had actually improved a lot. He continued the breathing practice.

In a daze, he suddenly recalled something: this breathing method was mainly practiced for acupuncture. Usually, it was for calming the mind and nurturing energy, and during acupuncture, he would slowly channel some of it into the patient according to their condition. Was this the so-called internal strength or true qi?

When healing, it needed to be released slowly—could it be released quickly in battle?

Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but get excited, eager to try it immediately. But with injuries, he knew he absolutely couldn’t recklessly change the way he circulated his energy. So he focused on healing.

Early the next morning, David Harris walked out of the tent. His sudden appearance left everyone dumbfounded. Everyone had seen his injuries the day before. Most people in the prison camp were martial artists, well-versed in wounds and illnesses. David Harris’s injuries weren’t fatal, but he should have been bedridden for at least ten days to half a month. Seeing him walk out full of energy, everyone was shocked.

Charles Brooks had been looking out for David Harris, and hurried over to check on him. David Harris didn’t say much, only that his family’s medical skills and medicines were effective. Everyone believed him.

For a while, David Harris began asking everyone about internal strength and true qi. He had treated many people’s injuries, and being young, people would casually teach him a few things—moves, some battlefield skills—but few talked to him about true qi.

After a few tries, David Harris understood: true qi was probably a secret technique passed down in each sect or family, never to be taught lightly to outsiders. So he gave up on learning from others.

Once he had fully recovered, David Harris began secretly trying out the method he’d thought of.

Before, when doing acupuncture, he always had to channel energy to his fingertips and slowly transfer some of it into the patient through the needle. Now he wanted to speed it up, but it was still difficult.

He first tried to make the warm current in his body flow faster. In the past, every time he practiced breathing, the warm current would flow slowly. Now, making it go faster was really not easy.

After a dozen failed attempts, David Harris grew a bit frustrated. Thoughts of his blood feud filled him with rage. Strangely, the warm current that had always flowed slowly sped up under the push of his anger.

Following the familiar route, this warm current quickly made a circuit through his body, completing one cycle. Normally, it would take about an hour to complete a cycle, but now it took only a moment. The true qi, which had always felt calm and gentle, now became wild and intense. Maybe it was the effect of his anger, but it even changed the nature of his true qi.

His true qi had never had a name, and now he had even less idea what to call it.

Chapter Three: Demobilization

The wild true qi, with each cycle, drew more heat from his body to join it. David Harris used to only run three cycles with each breathing session, but now, with the mutated true qi, it ran out of control, completing nine cycles on its own before slowly stopping.

David Harris got up, suddenly feeling something was off. Before, true qi would only circulate when he deliberately practiced breathing, but now, after he stopped, it continued to flow at its original slow pace. Wasn’t this the same as practicing at all times? David Harris was a little carried away with pride.