Aspiring Youths, Walking the Martial Path Together

After the old village chief left, Lin Chen took Lu Yongfeng and the other two on a tour of Lakeside Village.

The only scenery in Lakeside Village was the lake itself.

Standing by the lake, looking at Poyang Lake shrouded in the cold mist, all four of them had troubled looks on their faces.

"When I went to the Martial Arts Hall, I asked the Instructor, and he said that among the ten students our Martial Arts Hall accepted who had Aperture Opening Pills, the earliest one cultivated Essence Energy four months ago."

Lu Yongfeng suddenly spoke, his tone a little dispirited.

In the Martial Arts Hall, he was the undisputed number one. Although Lin Chen surpassed him at the last moment, he still held onto his pride.

However, after this trip to the city and comparing himself to the children of the powerful and wealthy families there, he realized that the martial arts progress he was so proud of was completely dismissed by them.

"Our Martial Arts Hall also has two students who cultivated Essence Energy in just seven months," Cheng Ying also said in a muffled voice.

"They got the Aperture Opening Pill early on and have already opened two, three, or even more Apertures. When we enter the Martial Arts Hall, I'm afraid we'll be like the regular students in the Martial Arts Hall, only able to look up to those people, feeling unwilling!"

The excitement and joy of cultivating Essence Energy within a year were completely extinguished after entering the city, joining the Martial Arts Hall, and learning about the martial arts progress of the children of those powerful and wealthy families in the city.

Listening to the words of Lu Yongfeng and the other two, Lin Chen frowned. This mindset wouldn't do.

The mindset of Lu Yongfeng and the other two reminded him of some classmates he encountered when he was in school in his previous life, those top students from the towns who, after entering the county's key high school, lost their academic advantage compared to the top students from the city, became discouraged, and even gave up on themselves in the end, with their grades plummeting.

"Why are you three junior brothers so discouraged? The fact that we can make it to the Martial Arts Hall means we have already surpassed many young people our age who are studying martial arts. To put it bluntly, if the three junior brothers are unwilling, have you ever thought about whether the other students in the Martial Arts Hall are willing?"

Lin Chen's expression was solemn as he looked at the three of them: "Although I don't know the situation in the capital city, I imagine the young martial artists in the capital city are much stronger than those in the county city. If you become discouraged just because of this, you might as well become wealthy landowners. With the families of the three junior brothers, wouldn't it be pleasant to be a wealthy landowner with wives and concubines?"

"Senior Brother Lin is right!"

Cheng Ying shouted excitedly, and Lu Yongfeng's eyes gradually brightened.

If someone else had said this, it wouldn't have been very convincing, but Senior Brother Lin in front of them was the best example.

"May I ask, Senior Brother Lin, how did you persevere in the Martial Arts Hall back then?"

Lu Yongfeng cupped his fist. This was his formal acknowledgment of Lin Chen's status as his senior brother. Before this, although Zhao Jingchuan and Cheng Ying had already called Lin Chen Senior Disciple Brother, he was not convinced in his heart.

It was only after going to the Martial Arts Hall and thinking about the gap between himself and the children of the powerful and wealthy families in the county city, that a sense of timidity even arose in his heart, that he understood how remarkable Lin Chen was to be able to surpass him and take first place in the Martial Arts Hall.

This was also why he didn't object when Zhao Jingchuan suggested going to Lakeside Village to find Lin Chen.

"Don't compare yourself to those geniuses, only compare yourself to yourself. One step a day, and in a hundred days, it will be several feet."

Lin Chen didn't hide anything and shared with the three of them the motivation that kept him going back then. Listening to him, Lu Yongfeng and the other two were moved.

It's easy to know but hard to do!

The principle was simple, but true perseverance was by no means easy.

"Actually, you can just look at the bright side of things," Lin Chen smiled slightly, seeing their curious gazes, and said, "The Martial Arts Hall isn't full of students who cultivated Essence Energy within a year. Many students who cultivated Essence Energy within three years will also sign up. Compare yourself more to these students, and your confidence will come back."

Comparing downwards, full of confidence!

Lu Yongfeng and the other two had strange expressions. This sounded a bit off, but upon closer thought, that was indeed the logic.

Looking at the thoughtful expressions of Lu Yongfeng and the other two, Lin Chen also laughed inwardly. The reason he could persevere, besides having no other path to take and having to stick to the path of martial arts, was another reason: Destiny.

Destiny gave him hope.

But Lin Chen believed that even without Destiny, he wouldn't give up.

No matter how difficult it was, he would continue on the path of martial arts.

Lu Yongfeng and the others didn't have Destiny, but compared to the other students in the Martial Arts Hall, their starting point was already very high. What did it matter if they couldn't compare to the children of the powerful and wealthy in the city?

"Senior Brother Lin is right. Compared to other students, we are already fortunate. Since we have embarked on the path of martial arts, we should forge ahead bravely." Lu Yongfeng's eyes radiated fighting spirit.

"The four of us come from different Martial Arts Halls. Why don't we spar with each other before school starts and strive for a good ranking in the Martial Arts Hall's big competition every three months?"

Zhao Jingchuan's suggestion was agreed upon by Lin Chen and the other two.

This was a good idea.

Once they entered the Martial Arts Hall, the Martial Arts Hall competitions would be real combat. Lu Yongfeng entered the Seven Stars Martial Arts Academy, Zhao Jingchuan went to the Cloud Concealment Martial Arts Hall, and Cheng Ying entered the Gale Martial Arts Hall.

In future competitions, they would definitely encounter disciples from these three Martial Arts Halls, so this could be considered practice beforehand.

"Senior Brother Lin, I, your junior brother, would like to spar with you first."

Lu Yongfeng looked at Lin Chen, who nodded: "Alright."

Seeing that Lin Chen and Lu Yongfeng were about to spar, Cheng Ying and Zhao Jingchuan were no longer in a hurry. Both of them were also curious about who would be better.

Senior Brother Lu had been the number one in the Martial Arts Hall for several months in this session, to be precise, he was first in every month except for the last one.

Senior Brother Lin had been at the bottom of the Martial Arts Hall the entire time, only starting to exert himself in the last two months, and finally surged ahead to take first place.

Moreover, the time when they cultivated Essence Energy was not far apart. This match would be worth watching.

"Senior Brother Zhao, who do you think will win?" Cheng Ying asked in a low voice.

"I think Senior Brother Lin will win."

"I, on the other hand, think Senior Brother Lu will win," Cheng Ying explained, "It's not that I underestimate Senior Brother Lin. In terms of Qi Refining breakthroughs, Senior Brother Lu and Senior Brother Lin are not far apart. It is said that Senior Brother Lu spent thirty taels recently and has already touched the second Aperture."

"I still think Senior Brother Lin will win," Zhao Jingchuan smiled slightly, "If you ask me why, I can't say, it's just a feeling..."

Cheng Ying: ...

Lin Chen and Lu Yongfeng stood about ten feet apart, focusing intently on each other.

"Senior Brother Lin, please enlighten me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Yongfeng stepped out with his right foot, his body shifting, and in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Lin Chen, his fist coming from the left at an tricky angle.

"Good!"

Lin Chen's eyes narrowed. He had been watching Lu Yongfeng's movements the entire time. The moment Lu Yongfeng's fist struck, he also raised his right hand to meet it head-on.

Bang!

Their fists collided. Lu Yongfeng stayed put, but Lin Chen took half a step back.

"I told you, Senior Brother Lin is at a disadvantage in terms of Qi and Blood," Cheng Ying muttered. In the initial stage of cultivating martial arts techniques, these head-on clashes depended on who had more strength.

"It's just the beginning, let's keep watching. I think Senior Brother Lin agreeing to spar with Senior Brother Lu means he's already thought of this," Zhao Jingchuan still trusted his intuition.

In the arena, Lin Chen took half a step back, understanding in his heart that he was slightly inferior to Lu Yongfeng in Qi and Blood. But this difference in Qi and Blood was insignificant.

Having gained the upper hand with that punch, Lu Yongfeng hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should continue. But as he hesitated, Lin Chen's palm had already struck.

This palm was extremely fast. Lu Yongfeng instinctively chose to dodge, taking a step back. However, Lin Chen's palms followed one after another, like a continuous clear wind, blowing incessantly.

Lu Yongfeng could only meet it head-on. But what he didn't expect was that as soon as he swung his fist, Lin Chen seemed to have anticipated it. His palm technique immediately changed, and his palm landed accurately once again in the gap in Lu Yongfeng's defense. He could only change his move and block again.

Back and forth, Lu Yongfeng was busy defending and had no chance to attack. If not for his stronger Qi and Blood, which allowed him to repeatedly throw punches with the intention of a head-on clash and force Lin Chen to change his moves, he would have been defeated long ago.

But even so, Cheng Ying and Zhao Jingchuan could see that if this continued, Lu Yongfeng would undoubtedly lose. He was completely enveloped by Lin Chen's palm techniques.

As one's strength increased and the other's decreased, there would eventually be a moment when he couldn't defend anymore.

"Has Senior Brother Lin's Clear Wind Palm reached the introductory level?" Zhao Jingchuan murmured, a look of disbelief on his face. How much time had passed? And he had already reached the introductory level.

"Unbelievable, Senior Brother Lin is truly... now I feel that even if our family backgrounds are better than Senior Brother Lin's, we will probably be surpassed by Senior Brother Lin on the path of martial arts," Cheng Ying's eyes widened, his face filled with shock.

"Junior Brother Cheng, watch your words. It's not surpassed, it's left behind. The moment Senior Brother Lin cultivated Essence Energy in the Martial Arts Hall, he had already surpassed us," Zhao Jingchuan corrected the flaw in Cheng Ying's words.

"This... forget it, you're right anyway."

A quarter of an hour later, after taking several palm strikes, when Lin Chen's palm landed on his left shoulder again, Lu Yongfeng finally couldn't bear it anymore. He let out a groan and staggered back a few steps. When he raised his hand again, his arm was trembling, and he could only put it down helplessly in the end.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Lin, for showing mercy."

Lu Yongfeng knew very well that when Senior Brother Lin's palm struck him, he held back a portion of his strength. Otherwise, his arm would not just be in pain now, but broken.

"Has Senior Brother Lin's Clear Wind Palm reached the introductory level?" Cheng Ying, who was watching the fight, couldn't help but ask. Lin Chen nodded. There was nothing to hide about the Clear Wind Palm reaching the introductory level.

"Hiss, Senior Brother Lin is truly amazing. He actually managed to cultivate the Clear Wind Palm to the introductory level."

"What's so difficult about that? Practicing day and night. Junior Brothers, you also know that my family background is not as good as yours, and even less comparable to those noble youngsters in the city. On the path of martial arts, the only way is through diligent practice."

Lin Chen spoke very calmly, but in the eyes of Lu Yongfeng and the other two, it was like a clap of thunder.

None of the three were lazy people. Since obtaining the techniques from the Martial Arts Hall, they didn't spend little time cultivating every day. But even so, they still hadn't reached the introductory level.

Reaching the introductory level in eight days. One can imagine how much weight Senior Brother Lin's words "practicing day and night" carried. He probably spent all his time cultivating except for sleeping.

"Let's continue. Since we're sparring, we'll take turns. Junior Brother Lu, take a break first. I'll spar with Junior Brother Cheng."

"Okay!"

"Junior Brother Zhao, you come!"

Fist techniques, leg techniques, palm techniques, movement techniques...

By the lake, the four young men sparred tirelessly, forming a beautiful scene.

Young men with aspirations, harboring an endless pursuit of martial arts.