"So fast!" Zhang Yong looked at Lu Ren in shock.
His Root Bone was ranked second, and for the past few days, his motivation for training so hard had been to be the first to reach the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture.
But he estimated it would take him another three or four days to reach the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture, yet Lu Ren had already done it.
"Congratulations, Brother Lu! You're amazing, Brother Lu!"
The lackey Luo Dehu ran up to Lu Ren with a fawning expression, spouting ingratiating words. In just a few days, he had thoroughly become Lu Ren's sycophant.
No matter how tired he was from training, he would drag his exhausted body to get meals for Lu Ren.
Although everyone else looked down on him and secretly despised him, Xu Yang understood that if Lu Ren was the only one to become a Martial Artist, Luo Dehu would likely be the one who ended up doing the best out of their whole group.
If Lu Ren succeeded, he would be his earliest follower.
"Mere Entry Level—how could that possibly stop me?" Lu Ren said with a smile.
He had changed the most in these few days. A youthful vigor was apparent in his every move, and he had grown steadily more confident, a heroic air now gracing his features.
"Wait for me, you guys. I'm going to find the master to learn the Fist Technique and see its wonders."
Having reached the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture, he was already eager and couldn't wait, turning and running toward the Inner Courtyard.
'I'm almost there too!'
Now that Lu Ren had reached the Entry Level, his own breakthrough wouldn't seem so abrupt.
Xu Yang looked at his panel!
[Turtle and Snake Grand Posture: 4/5]
[Martial Arts Longevity Points: 9]
Aside from the very first time, he had only used the panel once in the past few days to advance his Turtle and Snake Grand Posture progress. Besides, he could already feel that even without the panel, he could reach the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture by tomorrow at the latest.
In other words, without using the panel, he could reach the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture in about eight days. While not as fast as Lu Ren, this speed was definitely faster than most.
As for the Martial Arts Longevity Points, he had been accumulating three points a day. 'If I just lie low and keep this up, my talent will surpass Lu Ren's sooner or later.'
"When Brother Lu gets back, I'll have him guide me on how to reach the Entry Level. Back when I said we should all stick together, you thought I was holding you back. You must regret that now, don't you?"
Luo Dehu looked smug, wanting to see regret on the faces of Xu Yang, Zhang Hong, and Zhang Yong.
The ten of them had, in fact, already split into small cliques. Luo Dehu and the five with Upper D-class Root Bone had all sided with Lu Ren.
Xu Yang's trio had never explicitly said they were allied, but they had subtly gathered together to stand against Luo Dehu and his group.
"He just reached the Entry Level and you think he can guide you to it? If it were that simple, wouldn't the senior brothers who reached it even earlier be better teachers?" Zhang Yong retorted without holding back.
Luo Dehu laughed. "Go on, talk tough. I hope you can still say that when Brother Lu becomes a Martial Artist and you're forced to leave in disgrace."
Zhang Yong fell silent. He assumed his stance and began training again. This was a point he truly couldn't refute.
He trained even more diligently than before, pushing himself as if his life depended on it, not stopping until he collapsed on the ground, limp with exhaustion.
An hour later, Lu Ren returned looking invigorated, carrying a few things in his hands.
"Brother Lu, how did the lesson go?" Luo Dehu hurried to greet him, reaching out to take the items from Lu Ren's hands.
But Lu Ren sidestepped, not handing the items over. "The Fist Technique is truly profound, much more difficult than the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture."
"What are those things in your hands? Did Master Lin give them to you?" Luo Dehu asked, curious why he would bring things back from a lesson on fist techniques.
Lu Ren shook his head. "No, a senior brother and senior sister from the Inner Courtyard gave them to me. A five-year-old Wild Ginseng and a packet of herbs for body tempering."
Luo Dehu was stunned. "The senior brothers and sisters in the Inner Courtyard are that nice?"
He had no idea how much the packet of herbs for a medicinal bath was worth, but a five-year-old Wild Ginseng was valued at two or three taels of silver at the very least. 'If I reach the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture, does that mean I can get rewards like that too?'
"Nice? It's not like Senior Sister Gu Fang and Senior Brother Jiang Ping give gifts to everyone who reaches the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture and enters the Inner Courtyard. They only give them to true geniuses."
The Zhou Brothers and a few other senior disciples arrived together. They clasped their hands in salute to Lu Ren and said, "Congratulations, Junior Brother Lu, on reaching the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture. From now on, we can all practice our fist techniques together, sparring and learning from one another."
"Of course!"
By the afternoon, word of Lu Ren reaching the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture had unexpectedly reached even the Huang Family. Huang Jin rushed over, not only to encourage Lu Ren, but also to increase his training stipend from eight to ten taels, making everyone else envious.
...
The day passed quickly. Today was Xu Yang and the others' fifth day at Weiyuan Hall. He had paid an extra tael of silver for Strengthening Soup, so today was another day he would be taking it.
After their meal, the ten apprentices, who were outwardly harmonious but inwardly divided, went to the Medicine Hall together as usual. Unexpectedly, besides Luo Dehu, Zhang Hong's family had also given him a tael of silver to buy Strengthening Soup. Thus, the same five people as last time all had Strengthening Soup to drink.
Of course, Lu Ren was different from them. His Strengthening Soup allowance was one bowl every two days, for a total of fifteen bowls a month.
After drinking their Strengthening Soup, everyone walked outside.
"Brother Lu reaching the Entry Level is a joyous occasion. Why don't we all chip in for a celebration?" Luo Dehu suddenly proposed, looking at the others.
"You can still eat?"
"How many coins you got in your pocket?"
Zhang Hong and Zhang Yong spoke at almost the same time, leaving Luo Dehu speechless.
Before coming here, these boys could barely afford to eat, and being so young, their pockets were cleaner than their faces.
"Forget it. We'll talk about it some other time."
Lu Ren sighed. Such a major event was worth celebrating, but he didn't have a single coin on him either. The ten of them probably couldn't even scrape together a hundred copper coins, which wasn't enough to buy a single pot of wine.
...
「The next day, in the afternoon!」
Under the scorching sun, Xu Yang's skin had taken on a bronze hue. He, who was once fair-skinned, was now dark and tanned.
Sweat soaked his pant legs and drenched his hair. Beads of sweat trickled incessantly down his cheeks, dripping onto the ground.
His expression was focused, his chest and abdomen rising and falling as he exhaled puffs of hot air.
'It's about to happen!'
A joyful look suddenly appeared on his face. In the set he had just completed, he had managed to perform the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture fluidly, without making any of his usual mistakes.
This meant he had reached the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture. He was just a hair's breadth away from feeling what was meant by "power rising from the earth."
Xu Yang didn't continue training. Instead, he ran to a shady spot and sat down, carefully recalling everything he had just experienced, memorizing that state while also adjusting his body to prepare for his breakthrough in the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture.
'What the hell is Xu Yang doing? Has he given up? Is he starting to slack off?'
Zhang Yong's gaze swept over Xu Yang.
He was determined to be the second person to reach the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture. His only rivals were Xu Yang and Zhang Hong; as for that lackey Luo Dehu, he had never given him a second thought.
When they got tired and rested, it was usually for no more than fifteen minutes. But this time, Xu Yang had been resting for over fifteen minutes already, and he even had his eyes closed as if he were sleeping.
This had never happened before. The only explanation he could think of was that Xu Yang had finally realized how difficult the Martial Dao was and had started to give up.
'It's better that he gives up,' he thought. 'Better than beating his head against a wall until he's bloody.'
...
Thirty minutes later, Xu Yang felt that his body was fully adjusted. He returned to the Martial Arts Arena and assumed his stance.
This time was indeed different. The moment he began to practice the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture, he felt his muscles and bones move in time with his breathing, and his blood grew hotter and hotter.
At a certain moment, he felt a faint stream of energy seem to rise from the earth, climbing up his feet, passing his shoulders, rushing to the crown of his head, and then slowly sinking into his Dantian.
Power rising from the earth!
BOOM!
In an instant, it was as if something had detonated. A surging tide spread out from his Dantian, sweeping through his entire body. Xu Yang felt his blood begin to boil like water, and his whole body felt like it was being inflated as his muscles swelled.
It was as if a chronic illness had been purged and he was reborn. As his boiling blood and qi washed over his body, his muscles and sinews grew taut like a bowstring, being repeatedly tempered and strengthened.
"Entry Level in the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture!"
Xu Yang was overjoyed. He finally understood why Lu Ren had been so excited when he broke through. It wasn't about showing off; it was because this feeling of rebirth was simply too wonderful.
This state of being able to clearly feel his blood flowing and his muscles and bones growing stronger was truly indescribable, like a young seedling breaking through the soil to feel the warm spring breeze.
"You... you've reached the Entry Level of the Turtle and Snake Grand Posture?"
"That's right!"
Opening his eyes, Xu Yang saw Zhang Yong lying on the ground, exhausted, a look of utter disbelief on his face.