Closed-Door Disciple

After checking in, Chen Qing practiced the Gale Blade Technique for another hour before heading home.

"Mother, I'm back." Ducking into the boat's cabin, Chen Qing set his saber on the table, grabbed a water ladle, and tipped several mouthfuls down his throat.

Only when the cool water flowed down his throat did the heat in his chest subside slightly.

He took off his short jacket, sweat stains spreading into dark patches across the coarse cloth.

"Have you eaten? There are still some beans in the pot."

Madam Han sat by the window, her fingers flying as she stitched shoe soles.

Chen Qing answered, just about to pick up his chopsticks, when he saw Madam Han's expression tighten slightly. She looked around, lowered her voice, and said, "The Tiger Gang came to collect Incense Money again these past two days, but they skipped our family. The River Bandits have been causing havoc lately. Fishing boats on the river don't even dare cast their nets far out. Old Gao's family is strapped for cash; I heard they even pawned their iron pot just to scrape together enough..."

Ever since Xu Chengfeng learned that Chen Qing had entered Bright Strength, the Tiger Gang had never again come to collect Incense Money. Madam Han sighed and continued, "Should we send them a sack of Rice Bran later? We're neighbors, after all. We can't just stand by and watch them go without food."

Chen Qing nodded. "Mother, you decide."

He had often heard his fellow disciples discussing the River Bandits as well. They truly had grown far more rampant than before, and quite a few merchant ships had suffered at their hands.

As dusk deepened, Madam Han quietly carried a cloth bag to the Gao Family's Lian Boat.

Uncle Gao accepted the Rice Bran, his rough palms trembling slightly as his eyes reddened.

In times like these, anyone willing to lend a hand was a true friend.

Uncle Gao's family had always been close with Da Chun's family, yet after this happened, Da Chun had remained silent throughout.

Over the following days, Chen Qing squeezed every drop from each moment.

He rose before dawn to train, pondered his moves while on patrol, and sparred with the other Patrol Guards after his shift.

Sometimes, he also exchanged moves with the River Bureau men and the Patrol Guards, seeing no small number of fist and kicking techniques in the process. His practical combat experience improved by leaps and bounds.

In the blink of an eye, three months passed.

The weather gradually turned cooler.

Chen Qing shot up several more inches, his body covered in sharply defined muscle, and his very bearing was utterly different from before.

[Heaven Rewards Diligence, and there will surely be achievement]

[Tongbei Stance Practice, Minor Accomplishment (705/1000)]

[Tongbei Fist, Minor Accomplishment (601/1000)]

Chen Qing's Tongbei Stance Practice was progressing several times faster than it had in the previous months.

Behind that rapid improvement lay not only his sweat, but also piles of meat and precious Blood Vitality Powder.

As long as his supplies were sufficient and the medicine potent enough, a single training session could increase his progress by two points.

His martial arts were advancing at a tremendous pace, but the expenses were staggering.

Song Tie's windfall had long since run dry, and his River Bureau salary was not even enough to buy Blood Vitality Powder.

More troublesome still, as his Qi and Blood grew stronger by the day, ordinary meat had almost no nourishing effect anymore. Medicinal supplements were effective, but beyond what he could afford.

That day, in Zhou Academy, Chen Qing was sparring with He Yan.

"Hah!"

He Yan struck first. A Pierce Cloud Split Stone shot straight for Chen Qing's face, its fist wind howling with a faint sound of tearing through the air.

Chen Qing remained unhurried. He shifted slightly sideways, his right hand sweeping aside like flowing water in the Tongbei Fist move Push Boat with the Current, effortlessly neutralizing the attack. At the same time, his left leg lashed out like a whip, a Fierce Tiger Descends Mountain striking straight at his opponent's lower body.

Fists and feet collided, producing a series of dull thuds.

After several exchanges, Chen Qing suddenly changed moves. A poking hand shot forth like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, striking He Yan squarely on the shoulder well point.

"Thud, thud, thud!"

He Yan staggered back several steps, then cupped his hands with a bitter smile. "Junior Brother Chen, I concede defeat."

At the start of the year, he had still been able to suppress Chen Qing steadily. Now, even parrying was a struggle.

Aside from Chen Qing's ever-deepening refinement of Bright Strength, the main reason was that Chen Qing had grasped the moves far more thoroughly than he had.

Chen Qing wiped the sweat from his brow and cupped his hands. "You let me win."

Just then, Zhou Liang's hearty laughter suddenly rang out from the backyard.

"What happened!?"

The disciples all stopped what they were doing and, as if by prior agreement, looked toward the moon gate leading to the backyard.

A disciple came stumbling out, his face flushed red as he shouted, "Senior Brother Qin... he's broken through to Hidden Strength!"

What!?

Those words were like thunder exploding on level ground. Every disciple present stared in stunned disbelief.

Though Bright Strength and Hidden Strength differed by only one word, their actual power was as far apart as heaven and earth.

So-called Hidden Strength was the force that came from "opening the Ren and Du meridians," tempering the heart, strength, skin, and flesh until the body's tendons, bones, and outer membrane were linked as one, allowing power to burst forth.

Moreover, Bright Strength and Hidden Strength held entirely different standing within Zhou Academy.

Everyone was dazed. None of them had expected Qin Lie to break through to Hidden Strength less than a year after taking Zhou Liang as his master.

Many disciples sighed inwardly, their expressions complicated.

They were all disciples of Zhou Academy, yet the gap between them was immense.

He Yan revealed a bitter smile. "We've endured for so many years, yet Junior Brother Qin took less than one year..."

As one of the academy's most senior disciples, not only had his Qi and Blood stopped improving, it had even begun to decline.

Over the years, he had exhausted his family fortune and trained day and night, yet he had never managed to touch the threshold of Hidden Strength.

At that moment, a wave of dejection rose within him, and He Yan could not help asking, "Junior Brother Chen, could it be that Heaven Rewards Diligence is ultimately just a joke?"

Chen Qing pondered in silence for a moment, saying nothing.

Just then, Zhou Liang emerged with Qin Lie, Sun Shun, Zhou Yu, Luo Qian, Zheng Ziqiao, and several other disciples.

The entire courtyard fell silent.

Zhou Liang's face was glowing with health, and even the hand stroking his beard trembled slightly. Qin Lie's expression, too, carried an air of high spirits.

After all, a year ago, he and his elder sister had merely woven mats and sold sandals on the streets. Now, he was already a Hidden Strength expert.

Sun Shun and the other Hidden Strength disciples wore rather complicated expressions.

Zhou Yu watched Qin Lie with a smile, her eyes full of gratification.

Zhou Liang glanced over the disciples and smiled as he stroked his beard. "Starting today, I have decided to take Qin Lie as my Closed-Door Disciple."

Master was taking a Closed-Door Disciple!?

Those words were like a massive boulder thrown into a still lake.

Chen Qing noticed that although Sun Shun, standing at the front, wore a smile, his hands were trembling.

The other Hidden Strength senior brothers wore varied expressions—envy, jealousy, and more than anything, an indescribable complexity.

At Zhou Academy, the ranks of disciples were clearly distinct.

Those who had yet to reach Bright Strength were apprentices. They essentially only bore the name and could not invoke the academy's name outside.

Upon reaching Bright Strength, one counted as a Registered Disciple. They could invoke the academy's name outside and remain at Zhou Academy to practice martial arts.

Such disciples were the most numerous at Zhou Academy.

Hidden Strength disciples such as Sun Shun, Zheng Ziqiao, Luo Qian, Liu Xiaolou, and Qi Wenhan would sometimes receive individual guidance from their master and could be considered Inner Disciples.

The final category was Closed-Door Disciples, the key objects of an old martial master's cultivation. In the future, they would not only inherit their master's mantle, but also support him in his old age and take blows for him.

It was no exaggeration to say that a Closed-Door Disciple was closer to their master than his own son.

Qin Lie would not only receive all of Zhou Liang's lifelong learning, but also inherit all his connections and resources.

How could such an honor not make others green with envy?

Over the years, Zhou Liang had been searching, and the position of Closed-Door Disciple had never been settled.

Now that he had seen Qin Lie, he had finally made up his mind.

"This disciple will obey Master's command!"

Qin Lie cupped his hands in salute, overcome with excitement.

Around noon, Qin Lie's elder sister arrived.

His sister was dark-skinned and plain-looking, clearly an honest, simple woman. When she heard that Zhou Liang intended to take Qin Lie as an Inner Disciple, tears filled her eyes, and she nearly knelt before Zhou Liang.

Everyone present sighed with emotion. From this day on, the Qin Family had truly turned its fortunes around.

This real-life display of when one person attains the Dao, even the chickens and dogs ascend to heaven left many poor disciples with burning eyes.

"When will I ever amount to something like this?"

Watching the scene, He Yan unconsciously clenched and released his fists.

He thought of his bedridden father, the ancestral farmland he had pawned, and countless dawns spent drenched in sweat on the training ground.

Afterward, Zhou Liang took Qin Lie and his family to the apprenticeship banquet.

Though the remaining disciples returned to their places and continued training, their hearts were no longer in it. Whispers rose and fell all around.

Only Chen Qing remained as before, single-mindedly training with his head down.

The proficiency of his stance practice rose steadily through his day-after-day persistence.