Acting Appointment

The next day, Yang Jing arrived at the martial arts school early in the morning.

He was still the earliest among the disciples, just like before.

Many disciples felt he had already exhausted his potential and could not break through to Hidden Strength no matter how hard he tried. They thought it would be better to find another path early on, and that continuing to train diligently at the martial arts school now seemed foolish.

These external opinions could not shake Yang Jing's resolve in the slightest.

The panel's effectiveness had already been proven.

He only needed to train his martial arts and cultivation techniques to their limits to break through realms without any bottlenecks.

This meant that although his cultivation speed was slow, as long as he was given time, he would definitely be able to go very far.

After Yang Jing had trained for half an hour, more disciples began to gather in the front courtyard of the martial arts school.

Fourth Senior Brother Liu Maolin also arrived. Seeing Yang Jing still focused on his training as usual, his eyes flickered slightly. He nodded gently, then took off his shirt, walked over to Yang Jing, and chuckled, "Junior Brother, you're training quite diligently."

Yang Jing heard the voice, immediately stopped punching, turned around, and smiled, "Fourth Senior Brother is here."

"Come, let's spar," Liu Maolin adopted a boxing stance, his eyes narrowing. "Let me see if your Inner Force is solid enough."

Yang Jing didn't hesitate. He sank his waist and dropped his elbows, unfolding the starting stance of Mountain Collapse Fist. "Please guide me, Senior Brother."

As their fists met, they knew the outcome.

Liu Maolin's punch looked effortless, but it carried a sticky force as it approached. Yang Jing's Bright Strength was fierce, yet Liu Maolin easily deflected it with a gentle redirection.

"Pay attention to your waist and hips."

Liu Maolin twisted his wrist, evading Yang Jing's punch, and lightly tapped Yang Jing's waist with his fingertip. "Mountain Collapse Fist emphasizes 'the mountain collapses before you, yet you remain unmoved.' Your stance is too floaty, your roots aren't stable, so your power scatters."

Yang Jing's heart stirred. He adjusted his stance as instructed and indeed felt his lower body become much more stable.

As he threw another punch, Liu Maolin suddenly changed his move. His fist grazed Yang Jing's ribs, and the gust of wind it generated made his skin tingle. "Bright Strength isn't just about being fierce; you also need to know how to retract it. It's like driving a stake; you not only need to hit it deeply but also be able to pull the force back. Otherwise, your next punch will lack power."

As he spoke, he demonstrated. As the Hidden Strength circulated within his body, his clothes actually bulged slightly. Where his fist passed, the scattered grass on the ground swirled into eddies.

Yang Jing watched intently, memorizing every detail. He suddenly understood, "So, the process of transitioning from Bright Strength to Hidden Strength is hidden within this in-and-out movement."

They exchanged over a hundred moves. Liu Maolin held back seven parts of his strength throughout, yet he allowed Yang Jing to comprehend the second layer of the fist principle more and more thoroughly.

In the final move, as they both retracted their fists, Yang Jing was panting, but his eyes shone with astonishing clarity. "Thank you, Senior Brother! I think I understand what 'force penetrating the muscles and bones' means!"

Liu Maolin smiled and handed him a cloth towel. "It's good that you understand. The martial path is like climbing a mountain; each step offers a different view. Don't rush; climb slowly."

Yang Jing nodded.

Liu Maolin unscrewed his water skin and handed it to Yang Jing. After watching Yang Jing drink more than half of it, he slowly began to speak, "Junior Brother, how is your temporary position going?"

Yang Jing handed the water skin back and shook his head helplessly. "A few places have approached me, but they're only offering seven or eight taels a month. I want to wait and see. If it doesn't work out, I'll have to choose one of them."

Liu Maolin frowned upon hearing this. "Junior Brother, you've just entered Bright Strength. This is the time to build your foundation. You can't neglect nutritional or medicinal supplements."

After a slight pause, he continued, "You know, my family is in the business of running medical clinics and selling medicinal herbs. We often have jobs transporting medicinal materials, and occasionally, we encounter some ill-intentioned thieves. My father is looking for a reliable martial artist to help escort them. You wouldn't need to go often, just a few times a month, mainly to provide a sense of security."

"I want to invite you to take on the title of a guest scholar at my family's medical clinic. You'd escort medicinal materials twice a month, with a monthly salary of ten taels of silver. Additionally, our clinic's warehouse has some Fierce Beast Meat. I'll give you ten jin of bear meat each month. What do you think?"

After speaking, Liu Maolin's gaze fixed intently on Yang Jing.

From their interactions over the past few months, he had a very good impression of Yang Jing. He was focused and diligent, worked earnestly, and possessed a certain resilience. Even when facing widespread criticism, he remained calm and composed.

Yang Jing had trustworthy qualities.

Even if he made no further progress in martial arts in the future, he was worth this price. After all, many geniuses favored by various prominent families might not even be able to knock on the door of Hidden Strength, yet Yang Jing was already at Bright Strength.

A Bright Strength martial artist with superior character was worth ten taels of silver and ten jin of bear meat per month.

The Liu family's medicinal herb business involved the escort of precious medicinal materials, placing a higher emphasis on the character and integrity of the escorts.

Yang Jing looked up at Liu Maolin, his eyes filled with surprise.

Ten taels of silver?

This was two or three taels more than the monthly salary offered by the other places that had invited him for a temporary position.

More importantly, there were an additional ten jin of bear meat each month, which was already a form of support beyond the nominal position.

As far as Yang Jing knew, the price of Fierce Beast Meat was outrageously high.

Taking bear meat as an example, the price per jin was over five hundred copper coins, nearly one tael of silver per jin.

The braised bear meat he had eaten at Jufou Restaurant last time had significantly accelerated his cultivation afterward.

If he could receive ten jin of bear meat every month, and also buy some Fierce Beast Meat himself, his speed in breaking through to Hidden Strength would surely increase.

"This... this is too valuable," Yang Jing had to admit that he was indeed tempted.

But precisely because Liu Maolin was so close to him, he hesitated even more.

Liu Maolin was more so trying to help him.

"Junior Brother, don't think I'm being polite or deliberately offering you a high price. You can go and inquire yourself. The prices we offer to the guards and guest scholars we recruit are all like this," Liu Maolin said, patting Yang Jing's shoulder. "Besides, when you escort our medicinal materials, you might encounter robbers. This is earning money with your skills, not just taking it for free. Moreover, with a skilled Bright Strength expert like you, our medicinal materials will have more security. This is mutually beneficial."

Seeing Yang Jing still hesitant, Liu Maolin added with a smile, "If you feel indebted, just train your skills more solidly. If you truly encounter trouble in the future, don't falter."

Yang Jing looked at Liu Maolin's sincere eyes and smiled back, the slight hesitation in his heart gradually dissipating.

He knew how rare this opportunity was. It wasn't just the ten taels of silver per month, but also ten catties of precious Fierce Beast Meat. These would play an extremely crucial role in his future martial arts training.

He took a deep breath and solemnly cupped his hands. "Thank you, Senior Brother!"

Seeing Yang Jing agree, Liu Maolin immediately laughed heartily. "Hahaha, that's more like it. This afternoon, I'll take you to see my father at the medical clinic. Coincidentally, we have a batch of medicinal herbs to deliver to the outskirts of the city tomorrow. It's not dangerous, so you can follow along to get familiar with the routes."

Yang Jing nodded solemnly upon hearing this.

Afternoon.

Wazi Township, Yang Family Village.

Old Master Yang was squatting in front of the main house, smoking his water pipe.

Liu Cuiling was tidying up the bowls and chopsticks by the stove.

Grandmother Madam Qin was in the courtyard, wiping down a few farming tools.

The courtyard was quiet at this moment, with only the sound of the wind blowing through the branches.

The three of them occasionally cast their eyes towards the sturdy ox in the corner of the yard.

Liu Cuiling came out of the kitchen and looked at the brand-new mattress on the ox's back, her brow furrowing again.

"What exactly is the Ning Family planning?"

Madam Qin sighed. "They sent an ox out of the blue, and my heart feels uneasy."

"Who says it isn't?" Liu Cuiling chimed in. "They were so menacing just a while ago, and now they're all smiles. How can there be such a good thing? Are they digging a pit for us to fall into?"

Old Master Yang tapped his pipe bowl and said gravely, "It's a good ox, but its origin..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but the worry in his eyes was evident.

They were still anxious about those two mu of prime land north of the village, and now with another ox, it felt like a heavy stone pressing down on them.

They knew very well that given the stingy nature of the Ning family's master, he would never give benefits to common farming families like theirs for no reason.

As they were speaking, the shouts of Yang Lao San, the village peddler, came from outside the courtyard gate: "Auntie Yang, there's a letter for your family!"