Three Parts Training, Seven Parts Eating

Gu Yang hurried all the way back to the shack before finally letting out a sigh of relief.

Gu Dashan panted heavily behind him. Even after entering the shack, he was still grumbling, "What kind of good thing is this, acting all mysterious and afraid of people finding out?"

At this point, the mother and daughter who had stayed in the shack also gathered around.

Under the watchful eyes of the whole family, Gu Yang opened the cloth bag, revealing a huge piece of fresh red beast meat still attached to black fur.

"Ah... this..." Gu Mother had just begun to speak when Gu Dashan, whose expression had suddenly changed, raised a hand to stop her.

Gu Dashan's face was exceptionally solemn. He reached out and touched the black fur, stiff as steel needles, then turned to Gu Yang and asked, "Who was that person? Why did he give you meat?"

"That was Master Qin from the Martial Academy. And this wasn't a gift—it was a loan!" Gu Yang replied calmly.

He had known earlier that the cloth bag contained meat, so naturally, he was not surprised.

But recalling Qin Hu's particular instructions at the end, he also knew this meat was absolutely not from any ordinary poultry or livestock.

If it had been ordinary meat, then with his current appetite, even two jin of meat in a single meal would not have been enough if he truly ate his fill. There would have been no need to limit how much he ate each time.

Yet Qin Hu had specifically said so, which was enough to prove that this meat was extraordinary.

Gu Yang chose to trust Qin Hu's instructions and had Gu Dashan cut off around half a jin first, while hiding the rest away.

Seeing Gu Dashan's hesitant expression, Gu Yang added, "Don't worry, Dad. Master Qin is helping me out of kindness. There won't be any problem."

He knew perfectly well that this was the benefit of displaying the stance frame of the Azure Dragon Dance.

If he had not revealed his own value, Qin Hu definitely would not have given him this meat.

"Crunch, crunch—"

The small knife in Gu Dashan's hand was the family's only iron tool. Though it was not particularly sharp, it had always been more than enough for cutting meat.

But this time, seeing Gu Dashan struggle so hard that the beast meat creaked under the blade, Gu Yang took the knife and began cutting it himself.

The moment he pressed the blade against the beast meat, Gu Yang immediately felt the resistance from its fibers.

This piece of meat was incredibly tough, utterly incomparable to the pork Gu Dashan usually bought home.

One hand pinned down the beast meat while the other tightly gripped the knife and cut.

Though Gu Yang had practiced Stance Training for half the day, the hand holding the knife was still strong.

Swish!

At last, with one heavy slash from Gu Yang, a strip of meat weighing around half a jin separated from the fur.

As for that black fur, Gu Yang's little knife could not cut through it at all. After trying a few times, he simply gave up.

He handed the strip of meat to Gu Dashan, then took the pork Gu Dashan had bought from his hands.

This time, Gu Yang's knife rose and fell, and the pork was immediately divided into three uneven pieces.

"Dad, you, Mom, and the others should split this piece of pork today. How long has it been since you've had meat? I've got the beast meat Master Qin gave me, so it doesn't matter whether I eat this pork or not. Tonight, I'll improve your meals a little."

Gu Dashan took the little knife Gu Yang handed over, wiped it repeatedly against his clothes, then tucked it into his chest.

Looking at his youngest daughter's eager face, Gu Dashan ultimately did not reject Gu Yang's suggestion and nodded in agreement.

"Yay! We get to eat meat!" Seeing Gu Dashan agree, Gu Yingying immediately began cheering and dancing with joy.

But after bouncing twice, Gu Mother grabbed her and smacked her twice on the back.

"Keep your voice down. Do you want everyone to know our family is eating meat tonight? Say one more word, and you won't get any meat tonight!"

"Mhm, Yingying won't talk anymore." Her dirty little hands covered her mouth, and muffled little noises came from Gu Yingying's lips. She was adorable beyond words.

That night, Gu Yang's family finally ate meat again after a long time.

Whether it was Gu Dashan, Gu Mother, or Gu Yingying, their faces were overflowing with smiles.

After finishing her thin porridge with chunks of meat in it, Gu Yingying even licked the entire wooden bowl clean.

Seeing his family's satisfied expressions, Gu Yang could not help sighing inwardly, We're short on money!

Although he now had Qin Hu's help and temporarily did not lack meat to nourish his body, the family was still desperately short of money.

This shack was about to be torn down, and the whole family would have to enter the city to make a living.

They certainly could not afford to buy a house in the city, but even renting one would cost a large sum of money.

If possible, he absolutely did not want to watch his family scrimp and save while he sat nearby wolfing down meat. His conscience simply could not accept it.

Gu Yang knew that even if he wanted to share the beast meat Qin Hu had lent him with his family, they would not accept it.

So if he wanted the whole family to eat meat, he still had to find a way to earn money.

He watched, thought, and ate at the same time.

After a large bowl of thick porridge and a strip of beast meat went down his stomach, Gu Yang immediately felt a warm current rise from within.

His body temperature was rising. Even his exhaled breath was slightly scorching, and his body seemed filled with power that urgently needed to be released.

Setting down the wooden bowl, he left behind the words, "I'm going out to train first," then turned and walked out of the shack toward that familiar clearing.

He assumed the stance frame and immediately began practicing Stance Training.

At that moment, he felt as though a fire were burning throughout his entire body, making him want only to train—train like mad.

Once, twice—power still surged endlessly from within him.

Only after completing the sixth round of Stance Training did Gu Yang release the stance frame and draw a deep breath of cool air. The boiling blood within him gradually calmed.

"This effect... what kind of meat is this?" Clenching his fist hard, Gu Yang discovered in shock that he still had strength to spare.

He closed his eyes, and starlight emerged.

Skill: Blood Nourishing Stance · Beginner (21/100)

Talent: None

After practicing Stance Training for an entire afternoon at the Martial Academy, he had only gained three points of proficiency. Yet now, after another uninterrupted round of practice, the proficiency of his Blood Nourishing Stance had increased by another 3 points.

If he could maintain this pace, the Blood Nourishing Stance would break through Beginner in less than half a month!

"On the Martial Path, three parts rely on training and seven parts rely on eating. That saying was indeed true. If one could eat those nourishing medicinal meals every day, even a mediocrity could improve at lightning speed. The limits of aptitude and talent would be completely shattered, and everyone could practice martial arts."

Gu Yang stood tall and gazed into the distance, feeling both excited and deeply moved.

But he knew perfectly well that such a thing was clearly impossible.

Just this kind of beast meat alone was not something ordinary people could obtain. If Gu Yang had not caught Qin Hu's eye through his performance, he could only have endured bitterly and slowly. He would not even be able to dream of such beast meat, much less other nourishing foods.

In the end, one still had to display talent to receive better cultivation. Resources were not limitless, and obtaining them came at a price. There was simply no way to benefit everyone.

Even disciples within the Martial Academy had to earn additional resources through all kinds of competitions.

"Compete!"

At that moment, Gu Yang's eyes were filled with determination. He was already prepared—when faced with competition, he would never retreat!