Evening

Beneath the lingering glow of the setting sun, Gu Yang and Gu Dashan finally emerged from the city and returned to the shantytown.

"Mother, little sister, Father and I are back!" Gu Yang called out before they even entered their shack.

Hearing Gu Yang's clear, bright voice, Gu Mother Wang Caihua immediately poked her head out of the shack.

But before she could come outside, her youngest daughter, Gu Yingying, rushed out of the shack like a gust of wind and threw herself around Gu Yang's leg.

"Second Brother, Second Brother, I missed you." Gu Yingying looked up at Gu Yang with a sweet smile, her large eyes brimming with delight. "Second Brother, your clothes look so nice."

Hearing Gu Yingying's crisp voice, Gu Yang laughed heartily and scooped the little girl up. "When you turn ten, you'll be able to wear clothes like these too."

"Really?" Gu Yingying asked innocently.

"Really." Gu Yang nodded earnestly at Gu Yingying, then turned to Gu Mother. "Mother, has the government started handing out porridge?"

"Not yet, but it should be soon." Gu Mother shook her head.

"Let's not wait here. We might as well head over early." Still standing with his arms folded across his chest, Gu Dashan stepped closer and spoke in a low voice.

"Father's right." Gu Yang had practiced Stance Training for an entire day, and his body could barely endure it anymore. Hearing Gu Dashan's suggestion, he immediately agreed.

Just then, the sound of a gong suddenly rang out in the distance.

The government had begun distributing porridge.

As the lines formed, everyone in the Gu Family except Gu Yang was still dressed in the ragged clothes of paupers, no different from the other families.

Yet amid all those worn-out garments, there was now a faint patch of grayish white, immediately drawing attention.

They had all come from the same village. An old man in the neighboring line recognized Gu Yang at a glance and called out to Gu Dashan, "Dashan, you sent your second boy to the Martial Academy?"

"Haha, that's right." Gu Dashan answered with a smile, never expecting the old man's next words. "You, you're truly muddleheaded. If your boy were really made of that stuff, the Martial Academy would've chosen him when he was ten. Why wait until now?"

Those words instantly changed Gu Dashan's expression. With a cold snort, he said, "Whether my Er Lang is made of that stuff isn't for you to wag your tongue about. You'd do better to mind your own mess. I heard your eldest son..."

"You... Hmph, you don't know a good heart when you see one. I can't be bothered talking to you." The old man had been struck where it hurt, so he immediately cut Gu Dashan off and turned away.

As the two bickered, the people around them cast sidelong glances.

Though none of them spoke, Gu Yang could tell from a single sweep of his eyes that they did not approve.

To them, taking two taels of silver and returning home to start life anew was far more reliable than sending a child to the Martial Academy.

Only the children following their elders and a small number of youths looked at Gu Yang with envy and jealousy in their eyes.

For young people, livelihood was something that had to be considered, but their dreams had not yet been ground away by life. There was still light in their eyes.

The lines kept moving forward. Gradually, all the nearby queues learned that Carpenter Gu Dashan from Houshan Village had given up the government's relief money to send his second son to the Martial Academy.

After receiving their porridge, some curious townsfolk even specifically ran over beside the Gu Family's line to have a look at Gu Yang, this Martial Academy disciple.

Amid the ceaseless discussions rising from the various lines, Gu Dashan soon stood before the huge pot filled with thin porridge.

This time, Gu Dashan smiled even more humbly, while his once-straight back unconsciously bent.

He did not hand over his wooden bowl right away. Instead, he reached into the front of his tightly clasped robe, took out a piece of pork, and wanted to ask the woman before him to let him use the pot to cook it.

Yet this rough man, who had never begged anyone in his life, could not bring himself to open his mouth for a long while.

Only when the woman asked what he was doing did he finally voice his request in a low voice.

With Gu Mother and the others between them, Gu Yang had no idea that Gu Dashan had bought meat to nourish his body.

Not until it was his turn, when the woman scraped the bottom of the pot and ladled two consecutive scoops of thick porridge into his wooden bowl until it was brimming, then mentioned Gu Dashan, did Gu Yang learn that Gu Dashan had actually spent money on meat today.

Gu Yang pressed his lips together hard, forcibly suppressing the tangled emotions surging within him. He thanked the woman, then turned and walked toward his family.

At that moment, the Liu Brothers' questioning suddenly rang out from before the pot. "Why does he get so much porridge, and such thick porridge too, while we only get a bowl of watery gruel?"

The Liu Brothers had long run wild and acted like tyrants in Houshan Village by relying on their large family. But the woman had no intention of indulging them. She immediately snapped, "He's a pillar of talent for the Martial Academy. What the hell are you? It's enough that you won't starve to death. You want to eat your fill? Dream on!"

Outside the familiar shack, after swallowing a huge bowl of thick rice porridge along with chunks of pork that were mostly lean meat, Gu Yang let out a satisfied sigh.

He truly had not expected that Gu Dashan, having heard who knew where that martial arts practitioners needed meat, would simply buy meat for him.

To say he was not moved would be a lie. What Gu Dashan had done had solved his urgent need.

Without the nourishment from meat at night, the single meal at the Martial Academy during the day would never be enough to support the consumption of an entire day's training.

But his family could not keep supplying him with meat forever. He still had to find a way to make money.

At that moment, Gu Yang even fantasized about awakening a talent related to digestive function.

If one meal could equal the intake of three to five ordinary meals and sustain the expenditure of a full day of martial training, then he would not have to worry about money for the time being.

"Talent..."

Murmuring to himself, Gu Yang gently closed his eyes. Starlight reappeared in the darkness, and two lines of Chinese characters emerged before him.

Skill: Blood Nourishing Stance · Beginner (15/100)

Talent: None

After an afternoon of practice, his Stance Training proficiency had risen by another two points.

At his current pace, Blood Nourishing Stance Art would break through the Beginner stage and enter its next phase in only one month.

He just did not know what realm the Blood Nourishing Stance had to reach before a talent would appear.

Glancing toward where the sun had set, Gu Yang yawned and turned to walk into the shack.

Though he was deeply impatient, he chose not to continue cultivating that night.

Cultivation should have its proper balance between tension and relaxation.

Gu Yang had already exhausted his strength during the day. His entire body ached now, and all he wanted was to lie down and rest.

If he continued cultivating at this time, not only would he get half the result for twice the effort, but his condition tomorrow would certainly suffer as well.

On the other hand, if he rested properly tonight, he would wake up refreshed tomorrow, and his cultivation efficiency would greatly improve.

Gu Dashan also noticed the fatigue on Gu Yang's face. He immediately waved off his conversation with Gu Mother and called for the family to lie down and rest.

Lying between Yingying and Gu Dashan, Gu Yang fell into a deep sleep in no more than a moment.

Meanwhile, in the shack where the Liu brothers lived.

Liu Third Brother rubbed his shriveled stomach, angrily smashed his wooden bowl onto the ground, then abruptly rose to his feet, intending to head outside.

But at that moment, Liu Eldest Brother suddenly roared, "Where do you think you're going!"

"I-I'm too hungry to sleep. I'm just going out for a walk." Liu Third Brother's eyes darted, and he immediately came up with an answer.

"I think you want to go cause trouble for Carpenter Gu's family." Liu Eldest Brother was not so easily fooled and directly exposed his third brother's thoughts.

"That's right, I do." With his intentions exposed, Liu Third Brother immediately flared up. Stiffening his neck, he said, "I'm just damn unhappy about it. Why can Carpenter Gu's family drink thick porridge while we can only sit here drinking rice water?"

"Wait a little longer. If that woman handing out porridge is still playing favorites tomorrow, your second brother and I will go with you." Liu Eldest Brother gave a cold snort. "No matter when it is, our family isn't one that people can bully whenever they please!"

"Hmph. Fine, then I'll endure it for one more day."

"..."