Horizontal and Vertical Splits

"Oh, oh."

Lu Ming hadn't expected that the old man in front of him, who looked like he was on his last legs, was actually a master in disguise.

But he quickly came to terms with it. In Shuofeng City, even a peddler hawking wares on the street wasn't an ordinary person.

Otherwise, how could he explain that even while carrying over a hundred pounds of goods, he could still walk as fast as flying through the dense crowd?

"I didn't expect you to be so skilled, Uncle Zhao."

Lu Ming approached, carrying the water bucket.

"I'm old,"

Old Man Zhao didn't say much more, pouring the water he held into Lu Ming's bucket.

"Thank you, old man."

Lu Ming said thankfully. Old Man Zhao waved his hand, "Alright, hurry back and finish cleaning."

Lu Ming didn't stand on ceremony. He grunted and, carrying the full bucket of water, walked back with great effort.

He found that a bucket of water was much heavier than a bag of rice. Carrying it was very strenuous, but he believed that if it were a bucket of money, no matter how heavy, he could still walk as fast as flying.

"An interesting little kid."

Watching Lu Ming's retreating figure, Old Man Zhao smiled and stroked his beard before continuing to draw water.

Lu Ming returned to the yard and began cleaning the kitchen. First, the pots, bowls, and pans, then the stove, table, and chairs.

He worked for several hours, fetching water a few more times, before finally finishing the cleaning.

By now, he was so hungry his back was sticking to his stomach. Looking at the clean kitchen, he quickly dug out a bowl of rice. He planned to use the cheap meat bones he bought from the butcher stall to cook a pot of meat congee.

There were also some ready-made firewood stacked behind the stove, which saved him a lot of trouble.

After quickly starting the fire, Lu Ming first boiled the meat bones, blanching them briefly. Then he went to wash the rice. By the time the rice was washed, the meat bones were also blanched. He took them out, and then it was time to cook the congee.

When it was almost done, Lu Ming finally added the blanched meat bones, followed by some salt.

Soon, the aroma filled the air.

"It's finally ready."

While the congee was cooking, Lu Ming tidied up the room. Smelling the aroma, he hurried back.

Impatiently, he scooped a large bowl full and began to eat heartily.

It was very hot, but he was too hungry to care. It didn't take long for him to finish the bowl of congee.

Then, he scooped another bowl, this time with the meat bones.

This time, he didn't eat quickly. Instead, he went to the doorway, sat on the threshold, and slowly savored it while watching the sunset outside.

The day passed by so quickly.

"Is the little kid gnawing on bones?"

Suddenly, a voice came. It turned out to be Old Man Zhao, walking over with his hands behind his back.

Lu Ming quickly got up and replied, "Yes, Uncle Zhao, have you eaten?"

"I've eaten. Just came out for a walk to aid digestion. You continue eating."

Walking past the fence, Old Man Zhao waved his hand and disappeared around the corner of the right wing room in the blink of an eye.

Seeing this, Lu Ming sat back down and continued to eat his congee and gnaw on the bones until he was full, stopping with lingering satisfaction.

Seeing that it was dark outside, he washed up slightly and then eagerly got into bed.

He planned to continue practicing his cultivation.

Accompanied by the chirping of insects outside, he soon entered a state of meditation again.

After a while, he felt the familiar sensation in his abdomen again.

He could clearly feel streams of energy being constantly generated.

After an unknown amount of time, Lu Ming was forced to withdraw from his cultivation state again due to hunger. Fortunately, he was prepared and had saved a bowl of meat congee.

"The congee hasn't completely cooled down yet. It seems I haven't been cultivating for too long."

Lu Ming felt the temperature of the congee and shook his head helplessly.

Based on this rate of consumption, his bag of rice wouldn't last him the more than a month he had initially estimated.

However, he felt he could still hold on. As long as he could cultivate the Heavenly Saber Art to a certain level, he could leave the city to hunt Demonic Beasts, and then his life would improve.

After hastily finishing the meat congee, Lu Ming got onto the bed and began to check the results of his cultivation this time.

After checking, he found that although the cultivation time was still short, his Inner Qi had grown significantly, about three times what it was before.

Moreover, he could now manipulate it simply. As the Inner Qi moved, he instantly felt filled with strength.

"This Inner Qi is truly wondrous. I'll stop here for today."

Lu Ming didn't continue cultivating. His body was still weak and couldn't be rushed.

So, after testing it, he went directly to sleep.

The next day, Lu Ming woke up early. After a simple wash, he started a fire and cooked some porridge. While it was cooking, he went into the courtyard.

He planned to do some recovery training from his previous life, like calisthenics.

As for saber techniques, he wasn't in a hurry to practice them yet.

After all, his current body hadn't recovered to normal levels and wasn't suitable for strenuous exercise.

He decided to rest for a while longer.

Just like that, three days passed quickly.

During these three days, Lu Ming's activities consisted of cultivating his Inner Qi and doing calisthenics.

After some exercise, combined with sufficient food and sleep, the sallow complexion on his face finally faded, replaced by a hint of color.

Although he hadn't reached a normal person's level yet, he could now handle a bit more intense exercise.

After some thought, Lu Ming decided to practice the Eight Extremes Fist he had learned in his previous life.

He had practiced this set of fist techniques daily for about ten years after learning it, and it was deeply ingrained in his memory.

Now was the perfect time to use it for physical training.

"Yo, the little brat isn't jumping around anymore and has switched to practicing fist techniques."

Just as Lu Ming struck his starting pose, Old Man Zhao appeared. He was already used to the old man who wandered around morning and evening, and simply replied:

"It's a family heirloom, a Foundation Establishment fist technique, used to strengthen the body."

"Oh? You don't mind if this old man takes a look?"

Old Man Zhao stopped, looking quite interested.

"Then I'll be clumsy."

Lu Ming didn't mind. Eight Extremes Fist was just an ordinary set of techniques. Compared to the martial arts in this world, it didn't even have an energy circulation route, so he wasn't afraid of anyone coveting it.

Besides, even if he didn't want him to watch, the fence wouldn't stop him.

"It's fine, you just practice your own thing."

Old Man Zhao waved his hand.

Lu Ming didn't delay and began practicing the fist techniques.

Gathering spirit and regulating breath, Wuji stance. Stepping forward, a striking fist shakes the heavens. Double sheep butt elbows, unseen by men. Hands clasped together in a fist salute. Pulling open the hard style, invincible. Drawing the bow, scooping the top, cannon in the pocket.

He was very familiar with every move, but when he executed them, they were shaky and uneven.

It turned out that his current body was very stiff, and he couldn't perform some movements properly. For example, when stepping, he couldn't fully spread his legs apart.

After performing a few more moves, he found he couldn't continue and stopped.

"Why did you stop?"

Old Man Zhao asked with a smile.

Lu Ming explained helplessly, "My body is too stiff. I plan to stretch my muscles and bones first."

"Good idea. The fist technique is alright too, it follows a fierce and powerful style. However, it appears to be an external martial art without an energy circulation route," Old Man Zhao stroked his beard and commented.

Lu Ming wasn't surprised that the other party could tell. Just as he was about to speak, he heard Old Man Zhao continue:

"But remember, stretching your muscles and bones can easily injure you, and you don't have any Spiritual Medicine to aid recovery. Don't overdo it."

Lu Ming had indeed considered this, but he still thanked him, saying:

"Thank you for the reminder, Uncle. I'll remember it."

"Good, then you practice slowly."

Old Man Zhao didn't linger any longer and soon ambled around the corner.

Seeing this, Lu Ming began to execute his plan, starting to stretch his muscles and bones.

Martial arts require practice, and the foundation of practice lies in the waist. A stable waist depends on a solid lower body, specifically the legs.

This was taught to him by the old master who taught him Eight Extremes Fist.

Therefore, he decided to start by opening his hips, at least to achieve the Horizontal and Vertical Splits.

This would significantly improve his flexibility.

This wouldn't excessively harm his body. After all, he had tried it in his previous life. Although it felt like tearing for a moment, it would gradually recover naturally.

Being penniless now, this was all he could do.

And so, Lu Ming began to grit his teeth in pain.