A Night

"Xu Yuan?"

Looking at the familiar figure by the Courtyard Gate, Chu Mu's eyes filled with thought, and he sank into contemplation.

But then, he suddenly understood.

In his memories, compared with the Original Owner's father's wasted years, Xu Yuan's father had clearly enjoyed a far brighter future.

Having joined the Patrol Inspectorate for only a few years, he had already risen to Squad Leader, and before dying in the line of duty, news had even spread that he was about to be promoted to Squad Leader.

It was obvious that Xu Yuan had benefited from his father's legacy. Otherwise, how could a Patrol Inspector who had only joined a few days ago possibly have taken part in something at the very heart of such interests?

After observing for a while and committing the general shape of his face to memory, Chu Mu turned and left without hesitation.

The night was dark and the wind was high. Empty-handed and alone, Chu Mu did not dare stake his safety on testing the depths of human nature.

"Does this count as... walking the night road too often... and running into a ghost?"

The thought struck Chu Mu out of nowhere. He could not help giving a quiet laugh. The comparison probably was not wrong.

To the people of Qinghe County, the uniform of a Patrol Inspector that he wore was probably no different from a ghost.

Lost in random thoughts, Chu Mu soon returned to his small courtyard. Once the Courtyard Gate closed, it was as if he had been cut off from the world.

He lit the lamp, and the dim little courtyard gained a few more strands of light.

Though it was already deep into the night, according to Chu Mu's routine, it was clearly not yet time for him to rest.

He drew his long saber, gripped his Saber, and walked out of the bedroom.

After standing in the courtyard for a moment, Chu Mu finally swung the blade.

Chop, slash, upward strike...

He performed the blade techniques from his memories without the slightest carelessness.

Having experienced "Spirit Radiance Blessing" once before, Chu Mu naturally understood exactly where the focus of his current blade practice lay.

Every other aspect related to blade techniques could be set aside for the time being.

The most important thing right now was to control the Saber in his hand.

If he could not properly control a long saber weighing several pounds, its weight alone would be enough to throw every one of his blade forms completely out of shape.

The comparison was simple: once he brought the blade down, he could not control the inertia produced by the weight combined with the force of the downward strike.

As for switching to a lighter blade... someone without any foundation in Martial Arts could not perfectly control the force even with a tree branch, much less a blade. Changing weapons... would not mean much.

The thought flashed by, and Chu Mu threw himself completely into the blade before him.

There were no combinations between moves, only simple chops, slashes, and upward strikes...

Several Basic Blade Styles, repeated again and again, one move and one form at a time.

Boring... yet unwavering.

Before he knew it, sweat slowly seeped out.

The clothes over his arms gradually grew damp, while sweat beaded between his brows and scattered with every swing of the blade.

Time, too, slipped away bit by bit.

In his previous life, Chu Mu would have found it hard to imagine himself persisting in such monotonous practice.

Even now, Chu Mu had no idea what this seemingly ordinary blade routine would ultimately produce.

But everything unfamiliar about this era gave him far too much insecurity.

Every single increase in the skill value on the Light Screen Panel, however, gave him an indescribable sense of security.

"Hu..."

Chu Mu exhaled a long breath and lowered the long saber. Sweat had even seeped through the hilt and dripped along the blade.

Name: Chu Mu.

Skill: Basic Blade Technique (Barely Begun) 48/100

Spirit Radiance Value: 15.2%

The Light Screen Panel appeared in his field of vision. Chu Mu stared blankly at the skill value after the blade technique.

After a little more than half an hour of practice, the value had already risen by three points.

After so many days of practice, Chu Mu had naturally figured out the role of the proficiency value.

His proficiency value was not a proficiency panel like those he had seen in webnovels in his previous life. It was merely a reflection of his own skill.

In plain terms, however far he had trained his own skill was exactly how far it would be reflected on the Light Screen Panel.

The proficiency's only function was to represent his skill growth with numbers.

But it was obvious that being able to see, in the most direct way possible, the returns gained from his efforts was terrifying in itself.

After all, what people feared most was doing useless work.

If everyone could see the rewards of their efforts so directly, then they would probably all become work-obsessed grinders.

After thinking for a moment, the Light Screen Panel faded away. Chu Mu glanced around the courtyard, set down the Saber in his hand, and began loosening his body.

Chu Mu did not understand any methods for soothing and relaxing after exercise. He merely swung his arms about and kneaded and rubbed himself.

He was not sure whether it worked. After all, exercise only caused several days of soreness at the beginning. Once one adapted, as long as one did not overexert or exceed one's limits, a night's sleep was usually enough to restore most of one's strength.

After moving and relaxing for a dozen minutes, then going inside to rest for a while, Chu Mu carried a bucket and his clothes back into the courtyard.

After splashing several buckets of cold water over himself, wiping and washing, and changing into clean clothes, he returned to the bedroom. At last, the flickering candlelight in the house went out.

Chu Mu fell into a deep sleep, and the night vanished in the blink of an eye...

Early the next morning, while the sky was still dim, Chu Mu had already risen. As usual, he washed up, then carried his Saber into the courtyard.

After a night's sleep, the fatigue accumulated over the day had completely dissipated. Swinging the long saber, Chu Mu was brimming with energy.

Each move and form also carried a little more strength.

It was not until the rising sun appeared that Chu Mu lowered the long saber in his hand.

After glancing at the Light Screen Panel, Chu Mu could not help grinning.

With less than half an hour of practice, he had unexpectedly gained five points of proficiency this time.

"Not bad, not bad. That's quite an improvement."

Chu Mu chuckled. At this rate, it probably would not be long before his blade-technique skill broke through to the next stage.

He casually sheathed the long saber, rubbed his empty stomach, then hurried toward the bedroom. After changing into his armor and uniform, he hastily left the house.

Based on Chu Mu's impressions, food in an era like this should inevitably have been inferior to that of his previous life. After all, the sheer variety of seasonings alone would have crushed the food of this era.

But the truth was not as Chu Mu had expected. Basic seasonings were practically all available; only the names and appearances of some differed because the worlds were different.

The variety of food was even more prosperous because grain was cheap.

For a simple breakfast alone, there were dozens of Stall Vendors along the streets, and most offered different kinds of food.

After all, a basic price of one copper was still quite cheap compared with the price of grain.

Even the beggars on the roadside could probably afford it, to say nothing of the several hundred Patrol Inspectors in Nanshan Town who rose early and returned late.

Only after eating a large bowl of steaming rice noodles at a roadside stall did Chu Mu leisurely make his way toward the Patrol Inspectorate.

If Chu Mu remembered correctly, He Ergou had said yesterday that today was payday.

"They pay wages at the start of the month? Being on the payroll really is nice..."

Chu Mu could not help sighing, and even his pace quickened considerably...