Comprehension!

Host: Lu Changsheng

Comprehension: 98 (utterly ordinary)

Lu Changsheng looked at the Attribute Panel before him, his expression somewhat strange.

His Comprehension was as high as 98, yet it was rated "utterly ordinary." That could only mean the standard value was probably 100.

Comprehension—Lu Changsheng could more or less understand what it meant.

But what use was this Attribute Panel?

Thinking carefully, he had already been in this world for over a month.

At the beginning, Lu Changsheng had been a beggar struggling on the brink of death. Over a month ago, Miraculous Garden had recruited a large number of Apprentices. Relying on his quick wits, Lu Changsheng had been accepted into Miraculous Garden and become one of its Apprentices.

Miraculous Garden was a family of physicians. It had many pharmacies under its name, spread throughout Nanyang City.

Even several cities around Nanyang City had Miraculous Garden pharmacies.

Although Lu Changsheng had become an Apprentice at Miraculous Garden, and Apprentices worked tirelessly from dawn to dusk, he was guaranteed three meals a day.

Apprentices simply did not receive any wages.

Only after completing their apprenticeship or transferring to another position in Miraculous Garden could they earn wages.

But when Lu Changsheng had first arrived, he had experienced the agony of having nothing to eat. He was already very satisfied with his current life.

The only thing was that he still had not figured out his Attribute Panel.

It seemed he had not found the right way to use it. The Attribute Panel had not changed at all until now.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Get up! Get up!"

The steward's shout rang out within Miraculous Garden.

Lu Changsheng abruptly opened his eyes. He quickly got up, dressed, then jogged all the way to gather in Miraculous Garden's square.

It was only the hour of the Rabbit, around five in the morning.

But in Miraculous Garden, all Apprentices had to rise at the hour of the Rabbit, then begin a full day of work that lasted until nightfall.

A quarter of an hour later, all the Apprentices had gathered in the square.

The steward called roll one by one.

"Chen Zhao. Chen Zhao."

The steward called Chen Zhao's name several times in succession, but no one answered.

After a while, a youth arrived belatedly, his face flushed red as he said, "Steward, I... I'm here."

The steward glanced at him and said coldly, "Name."

"Chen Zhao."

"Late without cause. Ten strokes of the paddle, and no food for you today."

Chen Zhao's face turned deathly pale. Then two burly men dragged him aside and brutally paddled him before everyone.

"Ah..."

Chen Zhao's screams made the hearts of the Apprentices tremble.

Everything about Miraculous Garden was good, except its rules were too strict.

Lateness, slacking off, and the like were all severely punished.

If one violated the rules repeatedly, they could even be beaten to death alive.

Chen Zhao was beaten until he was barely breathing, then dragged back to the rear courtyard to lie down. The entire square fell silent as a grave.

The steward swept his gaze across them before speaking. "You have been at Miraculous Garden for over a month now, and your bodies have more or less recovered. Starting today, you will formally begin martial training."

"My Miraculous Garden is a family of medicine. Since ancient times, medicine and martial arts have never been separate. Martial arts can strengthen the body. If you wish to become a good physician, a strong body is indispensable."

"For the next month, Elder Liu, instructor of Miraculous Garden's Guard Team, will teach you martial arts."

"Remember, study diligently. This may be your chance to change your fate!"

Though the steward looked cold, he was warm-hearted and not a bad man.

He had even told all the Apprentices the importance of this martial training.

Lu Changsheng's spirits rose.

"Martial arts?"

"I've long heard that Miraculous Garden has martial artists, especially in the Guard Team. Every one of them is a martial artist."

"I never thought Apprentices like us would have the chance to learn martial arts too?"

"This is an opportunity. I must seize it..."

Like Lu Changsheng, those who had been recruited by Miraculous Garden as Apprentices were not fools. They immediately understood the importance of martial training, and every one of them stared intently at Elder Liu.

Elder Liu was already in his sixties, yet he had white hair and a youthful face, brimming with vigor.

"Heh heh, Steward Zhang has already made it very clear. Medicine and martial arts are inseparable. If you learn martial arts well, whether you join the Guard Team or become a physician in the future, the benefits will be immense."

"Enough talk. I'll first teach you the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique..."

As Elder Liu began demonstrating the martial art, the Apprentices began practicing along with him.

Lu Changsheng was the same, meticulously following Elder Liu's movements.

The movements were all very awkward and required one to calm their mind. Yet for some reason, the longer he practiced, the more irritable he became.

At last, Lu Changsheng completed an entire set of movements for the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique.

Suddenly, his vision blurred, and his Attribute Panel appeared before his eyes.

Host: Lu Changsheng

Comprehension: 98 (utterly ordinary)

Great River Blood Strengthening Technique: Uninitiated

Practicing the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique once actually seemed to have some effect.

Despite the awkwardness, Lu Changsheng felt warm all over, and he seemed to have gained more strength throughout his body.

Moreover, the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique had actually appeared on the Attribute Panel, though it was marked as Uninitiated.

"Your bodies are still weak. You can only practice the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique for one hour each day. Any more, and your bodies will not be able to bear it."

"To enter the technique, you must sense your own qi and blood. Once you sense your qi and blood, you can circulate it on your own without performing these cumbersome movements."

"These cumbersome movements merely help beginners sense their qi and blood more effectively. Whoever can sense their qi and blood within a month, come find me immediately."

"All right, continue practicing."

After saying that, Elder Liu sat in a chair and supervised the Apprentices' practice.

Soon, an hour passed.

Lu Changsheng still had not entered the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique. After practicing for an hour, he truly felt a faint soreness all over. This martial art indeed could not be practiced excessively.

Once the hour of martial training ended, the Apprentices began work as well.

The work at Miraculous Garden was not particularly strenuous, but it was complicated.

Every day, the Apprentices had to identify all sorts of medicinal herbs. They also had to plant herbs, dry herbs, and process herbs.

In short, they worked from morning to night every day, with scarcely a moment to rest.

At night, Lu Changsheng lay in the Large Common Room.

The Apprentice sleeping beside him was named Zhou Sheng.

Zhou Sheng was somewhat slick by nature. He loved gathering all kinds of information and enjoyed showing off.

The room was pitch-black. The Apprentices had originally been preparing to sleep, but Zhou Sheng suddenly asked, "Do you know why Elder Liu told us to enter martial arts within a month today?"

Whoosh.

The Apprentices were no longer sleepy.

This concerned martial arts, so naturally they were interested.

Especially since it seemed to concern their futures.

"Zhou Sheng, you have news?"

"Zhou Sheng, tell us what's going on."

"I saved a piece of fatty meat at noon. You can have it."

"Right, I saved a bone too. You can have that."

"I also have a piece of candy I saved a few days ago. I'll give it to you."

The Apprentices took out the good things they had saved, most of them food.

After all, the Apprentices had no wages. They could only secretly save scraps from between their teeth.

Zhou Sheng was very pleased. Smiling, he said, "Fine. Give me your things, and I'll explain it all properly."

"Elder Liu is no ordinary man. He's the instructor of the Guard Team. I hear many martial artists in the Guard Team were taught by Elder Liu himself."

"The reason Elder Liu set a one-month limit is actually to select Apprentices with talent for the Martial Path. Anyone who can enter the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique within a month will be brought into the Guard Team by Elder Liu and trained as a guard."

"That would be ascending to heaven in a single step. In the Guard Team, even Apprentices receive monthly wages. And every day, they get all kinds of Medicinal Cuisine. Every one of them grows tall and burly, strong as an ox. I hear the meals are excellent too—huge amounts of meat every day. Tsk tsk, that taste..."

At the mention of "meat," the Apprentices all swallowed.

Though Miraculous Garden provided meals, meat was few and far between.

Clearly, once one was selected for the Guard Team, their treatment far surpassed that of other Apprentices.

"So that's how it is."

"Then we must practice the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique properly."

"Entering the Guard Team is the best choice. Otherwise, going from a Menial Apprentice to an Apothecary Apprentice, then finally becoming an apothecary, would take at least ten years. We might not even become apothecaries in the end and would just keep doing menial work..."

Although the Apprentices had only been at Miraculous Garden for a short time, competition had already begun among them.

Hearing this, Lu Changsheng also wanted to practice the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique. But the moment he tried, pain spread through his entire body.

He understood that haste made waste.

Elder Liu had said to practice martial arts for one hour a day, so one hour was all he could practice.

More would harm his body and do more harm than good.

There must be a way to make faster progress in the Great River Blood Strengthening Technique...

Lu Changsheng thought to himself.