Continuous Breakthroughs!

On the way back.

Li Shan had a strange expression, looking as if he had something to say but didn't. In the end, he couldn't help but speak, "Strange, why do I feel like Sister Sun has become much more polite and distant today? She wasn't like this before?"

"For maids and laborers, becoming a Martial Artist is like ascending to heaven. When people's state of mind changes, their interactions naturally differ. It's not that strange," Xu Yuan was quite calm about it.

After all, there wasn't much friendship between the three of them. They had only practiced martial arts in the same courtyard.

Now, only a bit of goodwill remained.

But if the two of them couldn't become Martial Artists in the end, this bond would eventually fade.

"No way, Sister Sun isn't that kind of person," Li Shan said with suspicion.

Xu Yuan shook his head and stopped mentioning the other person. "The most important thing for us now is to practice martial arts. There are only about ten days left."

As they talked about this, Li Shan's spirits lifted, and he said excitedly, "I feel like that bottleneck is about to be broken. It should happen within these three days."

"Brother Li is amazing."

"What about you, Brother Xu?"

"I think I'm still a little short," Xu Yuan smiled and glanced at the System Panel in his mind.

[Skills: Tai Chi Exercise (Mastered 1%), Stone Platform Stance Practice (Novice 83%)]
[Aptitude: 5 (Slightly Uncommon)]

Ever since his Aptitude increased, he had temporarily put aside Tai Chi Exercise.

Even though the efficiency of practicing Stance Practice had increased significantly, he wasn't considered a particularly talented person.

After solving the previous problems, new obstacles would inevitably emerge.

Coupled with the time constraint, Xu Yuan could only focus on Stance Practice for now.

"Fortunately, I've already touched upon the bottleneck." Thinking this, his eyes flickered slightly.

Another two days passed.

In the center of the backyard, by the time of Si Shi (9-11 AM).

As Feng Xiao approached with his imposing stride, Li Shan nodded to Xu Yuan and stepped forward, cupping his hands. "Master Feng, I've broken through."

Saying this, he picked up a wooden board and left a clear palm print on it.

"Excellent. In less than three days, another Martial Artist has emerged."

With each additional Martial Artist, half a tael of silver was earned. Even Feng Xiao, who usually had a stern face, couldn't help but smile and patted Li Shan's shoulder.

A few days ago, Wang Huan and Sun Rong had broken through, and today it was Li Shan. The laborers on the field were greatly stimulated. But the stimulation wasn't over yet.

Soon, news of several more breakthroughs to Martial Artist level came from other outer courtyards.

Four official Martial Artists emerged in a single day!

At this moment, the laborers felt their blood surging, wishing they could compress every inch of time to practice martial arts!

Even Xu Yuan couldn't help but feel his chest heave, becoming a little restless. He took a few deep breaths before calming down.

Forty-eight days had passed so far, yet eighty percent of the people were still struggling to find their Blood Essence.

Among them, a scattered few had barely touched the bottleneck, but breaking through in the remaining twelve days was not optimistic.

There were also a few who had already given up on martial arts. To avoid being roped into labor by Fatty Wang, they were currently just going through the motions of practicing their stances.

Upon hearing this news, the envy in their eyes was almost palpable, regretting why they had chosen to give up in the first place!

But after the envy, these people quickly became complacent again. Their stance practice was incomplete, and they often made mistakes in their labor, clearly failing at both.

After speaking, Li Shan returned to the dormitory to pack his things, waiting for Xu Yuan.

By lunchtime, the laborers, holding their bowls of rice, watched enviously as Li Shan walked out of the room with a well-composed demeanor, their expressions complex.

The laborers in the same dormitory, wanting to leave a good impression, congratulated him endlessly amidst their envy.

Liu Hong's face was tense, and he also offered a stiff congratulation.

Even Tian Yang said with a hint of sourness, "Li Shan, I didn't expect you to get ahead of me. But don't worry, with my Aptitude, I'll catch up soon!"

This was different from Wang Huan and Sun Rong's breakthroughs.

Seeing someone from the same dormitory succeed overnight and change their destiny was the greatest stimulus for them!

Chen Sanli from the neighboring dormitory shamelessly joined them. This guy acted as if their previous estrangement had never happened, disregarding the strange and disdainful looks from others.

He walked forward with a smile, and his words of congratulations quickly made Li Shan, who had been quite displeased with his recent aloofness, let go of his reservations and respond with a smile.

After some pleasantries, Li Shan said goodbye to the people from his former dormitory. Carrying his luggage, he arrived at the courtyard entrance with Xu Yuan.

He patted Xu Yuan's shoulder and laughed, "Brother Xu, you don't need to see me off. I believe you'll become an official Martial Artist soon too. Keep it up! I'll be waiting for you there."

"Then I'll accept Brother Li's good wishes."

If you can't find the book by its title, you can try searching for the author. Perhaps the name has changed!

Xu Yuan smiled and replied, waving goodbye to the other person.

Seeing this, some people in the courtyard, though silent, showed mockery on their faces.

The three of them, all starting on the first day, how tightly did they stick to their little cliques in the past?

Others couldn't get in even if they paid.

Was it all worth it in the end?

Now only Xu Yuan remained. Judging by his demeanor, he was quietly progressing. It was almost the end of the month, and he likely hadn't even found any Blood Essence yet, almost completely cut off from becoming a formal Martial Artist.

Xu Yuan naturally ignored the reactions of others. He went to the densely piled firewood and calmly and steadily chopped through the dry logs.

Because the stimulation of this day was too great.

Many Laborers were extremely anxious. They wanted to reach the heavens in a single step but were also afraid of being taught a lesson by the servants.

Thus, practicing whenever they found a gap, the outer courtyard once again became lively.

Fatty Wang and the others were worried about neglecting their duties, but they couldn't stop the Laborers from practicing martial arts.

So, before long, they slightly reduced their miscellaneous tasks, 'hardly' squeezing out half an hour for the Laborers to practice martial arts.

However, some Laborers felt it wasn't enough. They turned a deaf ear and continued practicing Stance Practice in their spare time.

The servants saw that only a few troublemakers were left and, without a word, directly stopped their meals.

After less than two days, everyone became obedient.

Driven by the passage of time, the Laborers became even more diligent.

Xu Yuan even saw that Tian Yang no longer boasted and showed off frequently. He was now fully practicing his stance. Clearly, the success of Sun Rong and Li Shan had made him a little anxious.

After Li Shan moved to the new courtyard, he would occasionally come back to visit Xu Yuan and his old acquaintances.

After becoming formal Martial Artists, they clearly had much more freedom.

Xu Yuan asked him why he was so leisurely.

Li Shan said that they wouldn't start their intensive training until the end of the month, and until then, they had nothing to do.

As for Sun Rong, ever since becoming a Martial Artist, she had gradually become distant from the two of them. Li Shan had tried to find her, but they only had a brief, casual chat, and then it ended.

Li Shan was even a little angry about this, saying he had misjudged her.

Xu Yuan was neither happy nor sad, and he wasn't affected at all.

Now, being alone, he felt light and carefree.

As evening approached.

Xu Yuan was practicing his stance in a corner. After a few sets, his clothes were soaked with sweat, sticking uncomfortably to his body.

He then stopped his movements and looked at the System Panel in his mind.

[Skills: Tai Chi Exercise (Great Accomplishment 1%) Stone Platform Stance Practice (Novice 93%)]
[Aptitude: 5 (Slightly Uncommon)]

"It's almost there. I'll stop practicing for today."

Xu Yuan had already touched that bottleneck-like barrier, but now he could only slowly polish it with Blood Essence.

He saw that the night was getting darker. He slowly straightened his waist and back, revealing tight and full muscle lines. Compared to when he first started practicing martial arts, his shoulders had widened by nearly half a foot.

He then nimbly took off his clothes and began washing himself with water.

He now had Blood Essence circulating within his body. Even in the dead of winter, although there was still a slight chill, it was no longer as bone-chillingly cold as before.

After washing his clothes, Xu Yuan hung them on a pole nearby and then pushed open the door to enter.

As soon as he entered the dormitory, he heard Tian Yang talking animatedly: "Heh heh, Li Shan was just a little faster than me, pure luck. He still comes here to show off from time to time, completely losing his head from arrogance!"

"Fortunately, my bottleneck is only a tiny bit left. I'll break through to become a Martial Artist soon, probably in two or three days."

Unlike the fawning greetings of the past, the smiles on the Laborers' faces were now somewhat forced. Several Martial Artists had appeared recently, and now they had to listen to Tian Yang boast again...

The intense resentment and jealousy were like poison, devouring them wildly!

If they hadn't cursed him on the spot, it meant they still had a shred of reason left.

Liu Hong stood to the side, a stiff smile on his face. His meaningful eyes flickered under the flickering candlelight.

Seeing this, Xu Yuan shook his head inwardly.

As for progress in cultivation, shouldn't you just know it yourself? Why must you publicize it and provoke others so harshly?

He knew how terrifying such emotions could be. When extreme anger took over, one could do anything.

For some reason, he suddenly thought of the story Sun Rong had told.

The little maid had excellent talent, you could say she had one foot in the door to becoming a Martial Artist, but because she was too high-profile, it ultimately led to tragedy.

Thinking of this, Xu Yuan stopped paying attention to others. He extinguished the lamp and candle and fell into a deep sleep.