In the 298th year of the Great Liang calendar.
It was the first New Year Lin Chen had spent since crossing into this world.
It was also another year of bumper harvests for Poyang County.
Poyang County had enjoyed eight consecutive years of favorable weather, and the common people had surplus grain in their homes.
The New Year festivities were therefore especially lively.
Every New Year, Lakeside Village had the tradition of worshiping the Lake God. The entire village, young and old, gathered at the Ancestral Hall early in the morning, while every household set out the prepared offerings of meat from three different animals and other sacrifices on the ground.
Inside the Ancestral Hall, incense smoke curled and wound through the air.
In previous years, youths like Lin Chen had always stood at the very back. But today, the village chief had pulled him to the very front, where he stood just behind the village chief and several village elders.
"Lin Chen, offer incense to the Lake God and the ancestors of Lakeside Village's Lin clan. May they bless you to go farther on the path of martial arts."
The village chief held out the lit incense to Lin Chen.
Lin Chen did not refuse. The village chief had already come to his home the previous night to explain that he would represent the village's younger generation in worshiping the Lake God today.
"Today, Lin Chen, a descendant of the Lin clan of this village, has entered Still Water Martial Arts Academy to study martial arts. May the Lake God and the ancestors of Lakeside Village bless Lin Chen with smooth sailing on the martial path."
A village elder began reciting the sacrificial text nearby. Everyone in the village wore solemn expressions, and Lin Chen was no exception.
A sacrifice!
It was an extremely solemn affair.
Having lived two lives, Lin Chen had discovered one thing the previous world and this world had in common: both placed extraordinary importance on sacrifices.
A sacrifice was not merely a ritual. It was also a means of bringing people's hearts together.
A clan sacrifice united the hearts of the clansmen.
A village sacrifice united the hearts of the villagers.
A state sacrifice united the hearts of an entire nation.
When outstanding youths from the village led the sacrifice, it could also stir the other village youths' desire to strive forward.
Listening to the village elder recite the sacrificial text and seeing the solemn expressions of the many villagers, Lin Chen was filled with emotion. No wonder so many wealthy men in his previous life had been willing to spend any amount of money to compete for a single stick of incense at their ancestral hall.
It was not merely about face. It was also an expression of bringing honor to one's ancestors after returning home in glory.
"Lin Chen, offer the incense!"
After finishing the sacrificial text, the village elder looked at Lin Chen with an encouraging smile. Lin Chen nodded, took the incense, bowed three times, and then inserted it into the censer.
Feeling the gazes of the villagers behind him, even as someone who had crossed worlds, he found his blood stirred by the atmosphere. He silently resolved that if he achieved anything on the martial path in the future, he would give something back to the village within the limits of his abilities.
Among the crowd, no one was happier than Father Lin and Mother Lin, while the most complicated feelings belonged to his grandfather, Lin Chaoyang.
Since the people from the Money House had come last time, Lin Chaoyang had rarely left the old residence. But he naturally would not miss such an important occasion as the New Year ancestral worship.
At this moment, as he watched Lin Chen standing at the front, a flicker of excitement crossed his old face, followed by regret and remorse.
If he had supported Lin Chen studying martial arts back then, he, as Lin Chen's grandfather, would now have been qualified to stand at the very front and bask in the flattering words of others.
But now, seeing the looks of the surrounding villagers, he felt that his old face could no longer hold up.
"Is Ming'er still not coming back?"
After the ancestral worship ended, Lin Chaoyang asked his eldest son.
"Father, after Ming'er refined Essence Energy, he found work in the city. He wanted to save more money so that he could gather enough tuition for the martial arts academy next year, so he isn't coming back this year."
Eldest Uncle Lin Hai explained, "Ming'er had someone bring back one tael of silver."
"If he isn't coming back, then so be it."
Lin Chaoyang waved his hand. "There's no need to send the silver. I won't starve to death. Tell him to spend sparingly in the city, and not to resent his younger uncle either. These past few years, it was indeed your family that wronged your Third Uncle's family."
Lin Hai hurriedly said, "Father, Ming'er won't. No matter what, Third Uncle is still his younger uncle."
"Eldest daughter-in-law, did you hear what I said?"
Lin Chaoyang did not doubt his eldest son's words, but as for his eldest daughter-in-law, he feared she might not think the same way.
"Father, how could I resent my younger brother-in-law?"
First Aunt's expression was somewhat awkward. Lin Chaoyang stared at his eldest daughter-in-law for a while. "From beginning to end, it was only your family that wronged your Second and Third Brothers. They have never done anything wrong to your family. No matter what, two pieces of wood cannot be carved into two different Lin clans. Ming'er and Chen'er are, after all, cousins. You need to understand this principle."
Seeing his eldest daughter-in-law fall silent, Lin Chaoyang did not bother wondering whether she had taken his words to heart. He turned to his eldest son and said, "I'm tired. Help me home."
Lin Chaoyang left, and the villagers paid little attention. Even those who noticed would only sneer that he had brought everything upon himself.
Lin Chen naturally did not notice that his grandfather had already left. As the one who had offered the first incense, he still had many rituals to oversee.
Covering the eyes of the Lake God statue with red cloth was also his responsibility.
Covering the Lake God statue's eyes was meant to let the Lake God, who had protected the villagers for an entire year, rest for a while. During this period, the Lake God could eat the offerings from every household in the village.
Then, after the fifteenth day of the first lunar month the following year, he would have to lift the red cloth and invite the Lake God into the lake, praying that the villagers' fishing would proceed smoothly in the new year.
By the time the entire ceremony was over, it was already noon when he returned home.
After hurriedly eating lunch, Lin Chen called Gu Fei over, and the two began practicing martial arts on the rear mountain of the village.
Gu Fei practiced Warm Sun Fist, while he practiced Clear Wind Palm.
He had brought Gu Fei along so he could keep an eye on the fellow and prevent him from slacking off at home during the New Year. There was no room for relaxation on the martial path. If Gu Fei wanted to refine Essence Energy within two years, he had to train diligently and bitterly.
Clear Wind Palm: Not Yet Initiated (60/100) Clear Wind Palm: Not Yet Initiated (61/100)
After the New Year, on the third day of the first lunar month.
Lin Chen did not follow his parents to visit relatives. Instead, he stayed home and focused on practicing martial arts.
For the other academy students, visiting relatives during the Spring Festival meant they would inevitably be praised by their relatives, satisfying the youths' vanity.
Lin Chen knew that if he visited relatives, he would receive the same treatment. But by comparison, he needed to seize the time during the Spring Festival even more and strive to break through in Clear Wind Palm.
The instructor had been right. Since he could not compete with others in realm, he could only rely on Clear Wind Palm to make up for his disadvantage.
Looking at the Clear Wind Palm progress on the System Panel, Lin Chen smiled.
After eight days of bitter cultivation, his Clear Wind Palm had finally reached the entry level today.
Clear Wind Palm: Initiated (1/200)
After Clear Wind Palm reached the entry level, Lin Chen could clearly feel that the sharpness and accuracy of his strikes had improved tremendously.
With a single slap now, he could send Gu Fei flying.
Without the qi-and-blood System Panel, the progress of his martial arts techniques had become his daily motivation.
As for his Martial Arts Realm, he was still at the first stage of the Aperture Opening Realm.
Just as Lin Chen was preparing to continue practicing as usual, a voice came from outside the courtyard gate.
"Little Chen, your fellow students from the Martial Hall have come to see you."
Lin Chen pushed open the door and saw the village chief leading several figures toward his home in the distance.
"Junior Brother Lu, Junior Brother Zhao, Junior Brother Cheng... why are you here?"
Lin Chen was extremely surprised to see the three of them. He had not expected them to come all the way to Lakeside Village.
"Senior Brother Lin, we're about to go to the martial arts academy. Once we reach the county academy, training will keep us busy, and I'm afraid we won't have much time to gather. We all came from the Kaohe Town Martial Arts Academy, so we thought we would get together before heading to the academy."
Zhao Jingchuan smiled. It had been his suggestion, and Lu Yongfeng and Cheng Ying had readily agreed.
The three of them could easily keep in touch in town, while Lin Chen lived in the village. After discussing it, they decided to make a trip to Lakeside Village.
Lin Chen understood. Since they had come from the same Martial Hall, they wanted to strengthen their ties so they could support one another in the county in the future. Forming a group based on one's native area was perfectly normal.
But why were there only Zhao Jingchuan's trio? What about Xu Botao and Yan Dexing?
Seeing Lin Chen's confusion, Zhao Jingchuan said with a wry smile, "Junior Brother Xu and Junior Brother Yan failed to obtain the martial arts academy's Aperture Opening Pill slots. They're probably in a bad mood, so after thinking it over, we decided not to invite them."
"Junior Brother Xu and Junior Brother Yan didn't obtain Aperture Opening Pill slots?"
Lin Chen was astonished. Had so many students refined Essence Energy this year? The competition was actually this fierce.
"It was discovered that Junior Brother Xu's family had borrowed silver from a Money House while he was still in the Martial Hall. As for Junior Brother Yan, he was merely a day late, and by then all the martial arts academies' slots were full."
The village chief, who was leading the way beside them, asked curiously, "Do the martial arts academies not allow students to borrow money?"
"Village Chief Wang, the academies naturally didn't care in the past. After all, there were plenty of slots. But this time, there aren't enough. In the academies' eyes, someone who already needed to borrow money while still in the Martial Hall might not be able to support the expenses of the martial path later on."
Zhao Jingchuan patiently explained.
"It was fortunate that Senior Brother Lin refined Essence Energy early. Otherwise, I'm afraid..."
Cheng Ying added from behind. He did not finish his final words, but the meaning was obvious. If Lin Chen had refined Essence Energy a few days later, he might not have obtained a slot either.
Lin Chen smiled faintly without arguing.
His experience in obtaining the Aperture Opening Pill had been full of twists and turns, but there was no need to publicize it.
The old village chief, listening nearby, wore a thoughtful expression.
P.S. Thanks to Brother Yideng and the others for the ten-thousand-yuan rewards. It's been ten years, and you've followed every one of my books all these years. Thank you! Please keep reading!
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