Martial Dao Tree (2nd Update)

Knock, knock, knock.

The bedroom door sounded.

"Go to bed early. You have school tomorrow. Don't secretly get up in the middle of the night to practice your fists."

"Got it, Mom. Dad isn't back yet?"

"He's working overtime at the factory."

His mother's footsteps faded away.

The characters before Lu Chenzhou's eyes flickered uncertainly before finally vanishing into nothingness. Some vague, intangible information poured into his mind, telling him what this was.

Martial Dao Tree.

With sweat as nourishment and effort as soil.

Master a martial skill, and a green leaf would condense upon its branches.

Master a cultivation method, and it would manifest upon its trunk.

Whoever possessed this tree would never let a single drop of sweat fall in vain. Every practice session would increase proficiency by a small amount, with its progress displayed upon the branches and leaves. Simply put, it was like a proficiency panel in a game: one measure of cultivation, one measure of harvest.

With a thought, the Martial Dao Tree vanished into nothingness.

With another thought, the Martial Dao Tree reappeared before him.

Heaven rewarded the diligent.

Lu Chenzhou did not lack effort or willpower.

"The Martial Dao Tree must have always existed within me. It simply needed to be watered by sweat before it could sprout. Now that it has broken through the soil, that is also the result of my efforts."

As for what the Martial Dao Tree was?

Fifteen-year-old Lu Chenzhou could not figure it out.

Perhaps it was some kind of martial talent that had yet to awaken.

It was said that beyond superior bone structure, there were even stronger martial talents.

In ancient times, they were called "Martial Bone Dao Fetuses."

People like that were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, all peerless geniuses.

Yet with current bone-structure testing methods, such talents could not be proactively discovered. Usually, their possessors gradually awakened and explored them in the course of later martial training. Based on the experience of those before them, they were generally not included in discussion.

Whatever it was.

Lu Chenzhou knew that the Martial Dao Tree was an absolute secret, one that could never be known by others. But having talent without displaying it could also leave a bright pearl buried in dust, hindering martial cultivation. Fame had to be seized early, so he needed to work on other aspects.

That was the elusive thing known as comprehension.

Bone structure and comprehension were both important factors affecting martial cultivation. It was merely because the former could be screened on a large scale that it had become a hard requirement.

"I'll take it one step at a time. Thinking about that now is still far too distant."

"Let's set a small goal first: become a Martial Warrior with Initiation."

In modern society, Martial Artists held lofty status, because they had already broken through the human body's greatest First Shackles and given birth to unimaginable supernatural power.

Before breaking through the First Shackles, one was a Martial Warrior.

They could specifically be divided into ten stages.

The Lower Three Stages were the Mingli Realm, the Middle Three Stages were the Anli Realm, and the Upper Three Stages were the Huali Realm.

The final stage was rather special, called the Limit Realm.

Upon reaching this level, one was only a step away from the First Shackles.

In the middle of the night.

Lu Guoping dragged his exhausted body home.

"Guoping, enroll Chenzhou in a martial hall."

Li Xianghua put away the jacket Lu Guoping had taken off, which reeked of motor oil and metal. Lu Guoping worked at a prosthetic manufacturing factory in Su City Technology Park.

Su City's manufacturing industry had always been strong in Great Xia.

Because of martial training and Void Calamities, the number of disabled people remained high. Custom prosthetics had long become a mature industry, making it easier for disabled people to find work again.

The military's exoskeletons were also widely used in handling certain supernatural incidents, capturing illegal Martial Artists known as "Black Warriors," and specialized production.

Lu Guoping collapsed onto the sofa and said softly:

"Didn't Chenzhou find a martial arts coach at a boxing gym?"

Li Xianghua told him about what had happened during the day. By the end, her eyes had reddened.

Lu Guoping stared at the ceiling and sighed.

"Martial halls aren't cheap. After all, only Martial Artists are qualified to open them. I asked around through friends. At that Flying Swallow Martial Arts Hall in the Lifestyle Plaza, ordinary students pay one thousand per class. If you want to learn the real stuff, you have to become a core student, and that starts at two thousand per class... Poor scholars, rich martial artists—that isn't just a saying."

These days.

Even elite lawyers charged thousands per hour for consultations.

For a true Martial Artist to charge two thousand was actually quite conscientious.

Whether in status or contribution, how could legal shysters compare to Martial Artists?

They both understood the reasoning, but Li Xianghua still felt powerless.

With martial arts instruction, one class was practically the same as not learning at all.

With Chenzhou's aptitude, he would likely need hundreds of classes before learning anything substantial. The expense was no small matter. It was said that wealthy people purchased annual packages at martial halls, starting at several hundred thousand a year, allowing them to seek guidance from Martial Artists whenever they wished.

Lu Guoping was merely an ordinary worker at the factory.

Even including overtime pay and year-end bonuses, he only earned one hundred fifty thousand a year.

She herself made some handicrafts at home to earn a little money. Their total household income was no more than two hundred thousand, while the average price of ordinary secondhand homes in the inner city started at thirty thousand per square meter...

The family also had other daily expenses.

She was always scrolling through short videos and hearing about incidents in one outer district or another. Everyone said the inner city was safe. Her greatest dream in life was to move into the inner city, where the family of three could live peacefully and securely. Their savings were also meant for upgrading to a new home.

Her heart was filled with a hundred tangled feelings.

Li Xianghua wiped her eyes and said nothing.

Seeing this, Lu Guoping sighed again.

"The main thing is that the kid's bone structure isn't good either. The state already tested it. If spending one or two hundred thousand a year could really teach him something, that would be fine. I'm just afraid... sigh."

Life's hardships made him care more about the reality before his eyes.

Making money was too hard.

Li Xianghua silently turned away.

Thinking of Lu Chenzhou, who spent all day following videos to teach himself boxing.

She still could not help saying softly:

"Maybe we can put off the house for now and let the child learn martial arts first. I don't believe he can't make it. You were so slow-witted when you were young, yet you still managed to earn your prosthetic manufacturing qualification certificate... If it really comes to it, I'll ask my eldest brother to borrow some money."

At the mention of borrowing money, Lu Guoping held his forehead.

"Enough. I'll go ask at Flying Swallow Martial Hall tomorrow."

The next day.

The east had only just begun to pale like a fish's belly.

Wanhua High School.

Lu Chenzhou had arrived at the track early, around four in the morning. Every morning at five, the school's assigned fist-art instructor came here to teach for an hour.

By arriving early, he could review it several times in advance.

If he had questions, he could ask the teacher during class and get them resolved.

Learning martial arts at academic schools was not compulsory, and the school did not force anyone to do it. Thus, very few people got up early to come here and practice fists. How could martial training compare to the sweetness of sleep?

Yet Lu Chenzhou particularly cherished this free opportunity to learn martial arts. The other martial skill on his Martial Dao Tree, "Basic Fist Art," had been learned at school.

"Basic Fist Art" was a foundational fitness method compiled by the Great Xia Martial Artists Association to strengthen the bodies of the general public. Even if practiced to the peak, it did not possess much power.

However, the Martial Arts Department required every primary and secondary school to offer this course. Even the hellish class time of five in the morning had its reasoning.

A boxing proverb said: train at dawn's Tiger Hour, train at dusk's Rooster Hour!

During the Tiger Hour, lung qi was abundant; during the Rooster Hour, kidney qi was flourishing.

Practicing during those two hours offered the highest efficiency. But considering that adolescents needed sufficient sleep, the Martial Arts Department chose a somewhat later morning time slot.

Though called "Basic Fist Art," ordinary people still needed years upon years of practice to cultivate it to Perfection. Before awakening the Martial Dao Tree, Lu Chenzhou had trained from primary school until now for nine years, yet had not entered the Major Accomplishment realm. That spoke for itself.

Of course, the main reason was that during those six years of primary school, both his mind and body had been far too immature. Learning martial arts at that time truly yielded little result, unless one possessed exceptionally fine bone structure.

His fist art had truly begun advancing by leaps and bounds after he entered middle school.

At this time, Lu Chenzhou was still the only person on the track.

As usual, he reviewed "Basic Fist Art" by himself once.

This time, he felt that his learning results were much better than before.

Basic Fist Art: Minor Accomplishment (100%) → Major Accomplishment (1%)

The Martial Dao Tree in Lu Chenzhou's mind glimmered with light.

His spirits rose, and he murmured inwardly:

"It reached Major Accomplishment just like that?"

He had thought it would take several more days.

With a thought.

The green leaf on the Martial Dao Tree that belonged to "Basic Fist Art" had visibly grown larger as well. He secretly rejoiced. Sure enough, one measure of cultivation, one measure of harvest.

He practiced it once more.

This time, there was no notification of progress increasing.

"Looks like after Major Accomplishment, it takes many repetitions to raise progress by 1%."

The realms of ordinary martial skills were divided into:

Initiation, Proficiency, Mastery, Minor Accomplishment, Major Accomplishment, Perfection.

With "Basic Fist Art" at Major Accomplishment, Lu Chenzhou felt a rather obvious improvement in his physical condition. However, Culture High School did not have corresponding blood-and-qi testing equipment.

He did not know whether he had reached Initiation.

Everyone's innate constitution was different as well.

But according to the fist-art instructor, if one could cultivate "Basic Fist Art" to Perfection, one would definitely become a First Stage Martial Warrior of the Mingli Realm.

"I deliberately got up half an hour early today, but I still wasn't earlier than you."

A beautiful young woman arrived through the morning light, wearing black athletic pants that accentuated her long legs, small white sneakers, and a neat short haircut.

Please follow, please give monthly votes, please give recommendation votes!