Practicing martial arts is an extremely private matter, so Lou Yi did not recklessly step into the courtyard but called out from the outside, "Brother Sang!"

Upon seeing Lou Yi arrive, Sang Peng's face lit up with joy and he unhesitatingly pulled him into the courtyard.

In the courtyard, there were currently forty or fifty people diligently practicing martial arts, everyone brimming with blood and energy, much stronger than the people in the square outside.

Among them, more than half were in a horse stance, motionless, eyes level at the horizon, like wooden stakes.

They bared large areas of skin, and in the space between every two people, there was a wooden barrel filled with a reddish-bronze unknown liquid.

Several elderly men with graying hair held bamboo brushes in their hands, which continuously dripped liquid.

They dipped the brushes into the barrels and then skillfully brushed and smeared it onto the bodies of those practicing.

The red-bronze viscous liquid was evenly applied to their bodies, shiny and slick.

Lou Yi noticed that those who were smeared with the red oil instantly tensed their muscles, and their facial expressions became somewhat fierce, as if the experience was not very pleasant.

Some, who might have already been smeared with the red oil and had aired out for a while, had skin that turned a deep flush, resembling a boiled crab.

"Using external substances to stimulate the skin, penetrating within, thus promoting the circulation and strengthening of qi-blood?" As the top martial artist of Wangjiang County, Lou Yi naturally saw some of the subtleties.

Besides those smeared with red oil, a small number of people were even more extravagant.

It was hard to tell if they were clothed, as their entire bodies were covered with a thick substance resembling black mud, emitting a stench that made one nauseous, unbearable to the nose.

Next to those smeared with black mud often stood a tall man holding a wooden log, mercilessly striking the mud-covered bodies with it.

'Bang! Bang! Bang!'

'Thud! Thud! Thud!'

'Boom! Boom! Boom!'

The mud figures were pounded with various blows, yet their faces showed expressions of pleasure.

Compared to those smeared with oil, they had clearly stepped into another level.

After being beaten, they performed martial arts forms on the spot, vigorous and forceful, tiger-like and imposing.

In addition to the oil and mud-covered individuals, there were a few, like Sang Peng, not smeared with any substance, simply lifting stone locks, pushing stone mills, building their strength.

Seeing Lou Yi's interest, Sang Peng said, "Brother Lou is a master, what do you think of our methods, is there room for improvement?"

He stared at Lou Yi with eyes blazing, his tone seemingly sincere, truly wanting to hear what Lou Yi thought.

Lou Yi listened and did not answer immediately. After a moment of reflection, he continued, "This method is miraculous, using substances to stimulate the body, supplemented by movement and stake strengthening, diet should keep up, so as to quickly temper the qi-blood.

However, all things are interrelated. With speed, inevitably some places on the body will be difficult to care for. In later stages, perhaps some special means are needed for compensation.

What I have learned is vastly different from yours. Having just arrived, it is hard to see the depths. Take my words as a consideration, no need to take them too seriously."

Sang Peng was not angry at Lou Yi's pointing out their flaws, rather he was pleased, saying, "Brother Lou really has extraordinary insight. What you said is almost identical to what Immortal Master Xia said.

Immortal Master Xia once said that our martial arts methods are too crude and harmful. Over time, they surely accumulate internal injuries and may even affect longevity."

Then his expression shifted from joy to worry, "But what choice do we have!

The enemies often surround Ping'an Village, if we don't quickly enhance our skills, we'll surely die even faster!"

"What kind of martial arts do you practice, Brother Lou?"

Lou Yi did not hide, "My practice involves combining breathing techniques with Pile Skill, continuously accumulating qi-blood, at a certain point, attempting to break through the Xuan Gate, condensing postnatal qi-blood, also known as Secret Blood..."

Upon hearing Lou Yi's explanation, Sang Peng's eyes lit up, constantly asking for details.

He occasionally slapped his leg and exclaimed in admiration, showing a longing for such martial arts training methods from Wangjiang County.

Apart from Sang Peng, others in the field honing their bodies also pricked up their ears, though their expressions varied.

Some displayed curiosity and seriously contemplated.

More, however, dismissed it, thinking their current methods were the ultimate.

"Immortal Master Xia said you came from across the Longjiang River, I didn't expect the martial arts to be so different."

Sang Peng inadvertently revealed Lou Yi and the others' identities, causing him to tense up.

Fortunately, the people of Ping'an Village were quite friendly, uninterested in their identities, allowing Lou Yi to gradually let his guard down.

He began to seriously discuss their martial arts methods with Sang Peng.

Their experiences could complement each other, Lou Yi wasn't worried about having too many techniques.

In the short term, it might not be possible to access Immortal Techniques, so he had to see if there were other ways to enhance his strength.

After some exchange, Lou Yi gained some understanding of the martial arts of Ping'an Village.

The methods practiced by Sang Peng and others were called Skin Refining Technique.

It did not require breathing techniques, but purely involved stake movement and specially made external secret medicine.

It used secret medicine to stimulate the skin, then penetrated internally for digestion, thus driving the enhancement of the body's qi-blood from outside to inside.

If compared to Wangjiang Martial Dao, one leaned towards external refinement, while the other emphasized internal refining.

According to Sang Peng, the realms of Skin Refining Technique were divided into four levels.

The first level was the Cowhide Realm.

With continuous practice, a person's skin reached the tenacity of cowhide. It could greatly resist blunt force attacks, and strength grew to 1,500 pounds accordingly.

Actual combat strength was roughly between one to two qi-blood levels in Wangjiang County.

The second level was the Stone Skin Realm.

A person's skin would reach a hardness level akin to stone.

Not only could it resist blunt force, but even regular swords and knives would struggle to penetrate, and strength generally reached 3,000 to 4,000 pounds.

Actual combat strength lay between a Minor Circulation and a Great Circulation.

The third level was the Iron Skin Realm, as the name implies, making the body as tough as steel, truly impenetrable by swords and spears.

This stage saw significant strength gains, reaching 7,000 to over 10,000 pounds.

Weak ones compared to Great Circulation, and strong ones surpassed a Full Cycle.

The fourth level was the Black Skin Realm.

At this level, the body reached an ultimate perfection, skin turning black as ink, and from within could be born a strand of energy called Power Qi...

Lou Yi couldn't help but think that martial paths ultimately led to the same destination.

This Power Qi was evidently very similar in nature to True Strength.

A warrior in the Black Skin Realm was equivalent to a Martial Artist in Wangjiang.

However, the Wangjiang martial arts started with Inner Strength, first circulating the Breathing Technique to continually generate Secret Blood, finally merging seven strands of Secret Blood into one to form True Strength.

Whereas the martial arts here in Ping'an Village started from External Skills, and when the physical body was refined to the extreme, Power Qi would naturally be born within.

From its description,

the upper limits of Skin Refining Technique might be stronger than Breathing Technique, but the resource demands were higher, and body damage greater.

The higher the level, the more likely the short life span.

The two discussed martial arts for half a day, with Sang Peng being very open, inviting Lou Yi to experience the Skin Refining Technique, to which Lou Yi gladly agreed.

...

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