Knock, knock, knock.
The bedroom door sounded.
"Go to bed early. You have school tomorrow, so don't secretly get up in the middle of the night to practice boxing."
"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 inscrutable information poured into his mind, telling him what this was.
Martial Dao Tree.
With sweat as nourishment and effort as soil.
Master one martial skill, and a green leaf would condense upon its branches.
Master one cultivation method, and it would manifest upon its trunk.
Those who possessed this tree would never let a single drop of sweat flow in vain. Every session of practice would add a little proficiency, with its progress displayed upon the branches and leaves. Simply put, it was like a proficiency panel in a game: one part tilling, one part harvest.
With a thought, the Martial Dao Tree vanished into nothingness.
With another shift of thought, the Martial Dao Tree appeared before him once more.
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 earth, 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 arts talent that had yet to awaken.
It was said that above superior innate bones, there were even stronger martial arts talents.
In ancient times, they were called "Martial Bone Dao Fetuses."
Such people were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns, all peerless geniuses.
However, with current methods of testing innate bones, this kind of talent could not be actively discovered. Usually, its possessors gradually awakened and explored it during their later martial arts training. Based on the experiences summarized by those before them, it generally was not included in discussion.
No matter what it was.
Lu Chenzhou knew that the Martial Dao Tree was an absolute secret and must never be known by others. Yet if he had talent but did not reveal it, it would be like a bright pearl gathering dust, hindering his martial arts cultivation. Fame had to be seized early, so he needed to make some moves in other areas.
That was the ethereal, elusive matter of comprehension.
Innate bones and comprehension were both important factors affecting martial arts cultivation. It was only because the former could be tested on a large scale that it had become a hard requirement.
"One step at a time. Thinking about that now is still too far away."
"Set a small goal first: become an Entry Stage Martial Warrior."
In modern society, Martial Artists held lofty status, because they had already shattered the body's first great shackle and given birth to inconceivable supernatural power.
Before breaking 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 the Anli Realm, and the Upper Three Stages the Huali Realm.
The final stage was rather special. It was called the Limit Realm.
Once one's skill reached this point, only a single step remained before the First Shackles.
Late at night.
Lu Guoping dragged his exhausted body home.
"Guoping, enroll Chenzhou in a martial arts hall."
Li Xianghua put away the coat Lu Guoping had taken off, reeking of motor oil and metal. Lu Guoping worked at a prosthetics manufacturing factory in Su City Technology Park.
Su City's manufacturing industry had always been strong in Great Xia.
Because of martial arts practice and Void Calamities, the number of disabled people remained high. Custom prosthetics had long since become a mature industry, making it easier for disabled people to find employment again.
The exoskeletons developed by the military were also widely used in dealing with certain supernatural incidents, apprehending 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 that combat gym?"
Li Xianghua explained what had happened during the day. By the time she finished, her eyes were red-rimmed.
Lu Guoping looked at the ceiling and sighed.
"Martial arts 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 Life Plaza, even ordinary students have to pay 1,000 per class. To learn the real stuff, you have to become a core student, and that starts at 2,000 per class... Poor scholars, rich warriors—it's no joke."
These days.
Even so-called elite lawyers charged more than a thousand an hour for consultations.
Real Martial Artists charging 2,000 was actually quite conscientious.
Whether in status or contribution, how could courtroom vultures compare with Martial Artists?
She understood all 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, if he wanted to learn anything worthwhile, he would likely need several hundred classes. That expense was no small sum. She had heard that wealthy people paid martial arts halls by the year, starting at hundreds of thousands annually, allowing them to seek guidance from Martial Artists at any time.
Lu Guoping was merely an ordinary worker at the factory.
Including overtime pay and year-end bonuses, he earned only 150,000 a year.
She herself made a little money crafting handicrafts at home. Their household's total annual income was no more than 200,000, while the average price of an ordinary secondhand home in the Inner City started at 30,000 per square meter...
The family also had other daily expenses.
She often watched short videos saying that something had happened somewhere in the Outer City. Everyone said the Inner City was safe. Her greatest dream in this life was to move to the Inner City, let the family of three live steadily and securely, and save up some money. The savings at home were also meant for upgrading to a new house.
Her heart was filled with a hundred flavors.
Li Xianghua wiped her eyes without saying a word.
Seeing this, Lu Guoping sighed and said:
"The main issue is that the kid's innate bones aren't good either. The state already tested them. 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 difficult.
Li Xianghua silently turned away.
She thought of Lu Chenzhou, who spent every day following videos and teaching himself boxing.
She still could not help saying in a low voice:
"Why don't we put the house on hold for now and let the child learn martial arts first?"
"I don't believe he can't make something of it. You were so stupid when you were young, yet you still managed to earn your prosthetics production practitioner qualification certificate... If it really comes to it, I'll ask my elder brother to lend us some money."
At the mention of borrowing money, Lu Guoping pressed a hand to 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 around four in the morning. Every day at five, the school-arranged fist art instructor came here to teach for an hour.
By arriving early, he could review it a few times in advance.
If he had questions, he could ask the teacher during class and have them resolved.
Martial arts were not compulsory at Culture High Schools, and the school did not force anyone to attend. Thus, very few people got up at dawn to come here and learn fist arts. How could practicing martial arts be more fragrant than sleeping?
Yet Lu Chenzhou especially 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 body-strengthening method compiled by the Great Xia Martial Artists Association for the public to strengthen their bodies and improve their health. Even if one practiced it to the peak, it would not possess much power.
However, the Martial Arts Department stipulated that all primary and secondary schools had to offer this course. Even the hellish five o'clock class time had its reasoning.
A boxing proverb said: Practice at dawn's tiger hour, train at dusk's rooster hour!
During the tiger hour, lung qi flourished; during the rooster hour, kidney qi thrived.
Training during these two hours produced the highest efficiency. But considering that adolescents needed sufficient sleep, the Martial Arts Department chose a later morning time slot.
Though it was called "Basic Fist Art," for an ordinary person to cultivate it to perfection still required years upon years of practice. Before awakening the Martial Dao Tree, Lu Chenzhou had practiced from elementary school until now for nine years, yet had still not entered the Major Accomplishment realm. This showed it clearly enough.
Of course, the main reason was that during those six years of elementary school, both his mind and body had been too immature. Learning martial arts at that time truly produced little effect, unless one possessed exceptionally fine innate bones.
His fist art had only 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 flickered with light.
His spirits lifted, and he murmured inwardly:
"It reached Major Accomplishment just like that?"
He had thought it would take several days.
With a thought, he moved his awareness.
The green leaf on the Martial Dao Tree that belonged to "Basic Fist Art" had clearly grown larger as well. He rejoiced inwardly. Sure enough, one part tilling, one part 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 increase 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 noticeable improvement in his physical fitness. However, Culture High Schools did not have the corresponding Blood Vitality testing equipment.
He did not know whether he had reached the Entry Stage.
Every person's innate physique was different as well.
But according to the fist art instructor, if one could cultivate "Basic Fist Art" to the perfection realm, one would certainly 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 approached through the morning light, dressed in black athletic pants, her long legs beneath them, white sneakers on her feet, and a neat short haircut.
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