Comprehension Breakthrough, Minor Potential

[Lifespan: 40 years]

[Skills: Five Animal Frolics (Minor Accomplishment 36%), Blacksmithing (Minor Accomplishment 1%)]

[Comprehension: 3 (Average Talent)]

Su Mu's lips curved into a slight smile. He wiped the sweat from his brow. After three months of relentless effort, his mastery of blacksmithing had indeed broken through.

"Blacksmithing advancing from beginner to Minor Accomplishment increased my lifespan by two years."

"More importantly, my comprehension has also increased again. My comprehension is now three times what it was initially, so from now on, learning any skill will be 50% more efficient than before."

Su Mu was very satisfied. He knew that with his increased comprehension, it wouldn't be long before Five Animal Frolics broke through again. This time, he had a vague premonition that once Five Animal Frolics advanced again, his comprehension would likely see a significant boost.

"What's the next tier after Average Talent?"

Su Mu was filled with anticipation. At the same time, after these three months, the originally slender Su Mu had grown a bit taller. He no longer looked sallow and thin, and while he wasn't muscular, he at least appeared more robust.

"Five Animal Frolics played no small part in this!"

Taking a few deep breaths and adjusting his breathing, Su Mu continued to swing his hammer.

With his comprehension improved, Su Mu's mind became more agile. Some blacksmithing knowledge that Master Zhou had explained a few days ago, which hadn't been fully digested yet, was suddenly understood.

As the mist in his mind cleared, Su Mu's eyes grew brighter, and he gained a deeper understanding of blacksmithing.

Clang, clang, clang!

Sparks flew as Su Mu vigorously hammered the hoe on the anvil. Once it was shaped, Su Mu used tongs to pick up the hoe and plunge it into a water vat filled with cold water for quenching.

Sizzle.

After a series of crisp sounds, Su Mu, with a pleased expression, took out the hoe and examined it.

"It's done!"

"Hmm? Let me see?"

Just then, a slightly surprised voice rang out. Su Mu turned to see his master, Zhou Shan, and immediately handed him the hoe.

Zhou Shan picked up the hoe with tongs, his expression immediately becoming serious. After examining it thoroughly inside and out, he nodded slightly at Su Mu.

"This hoe is acceptable. You've made considerable progress these past three months." Zhou Shan paused. "I'll give you two choices. Starting tomorrow, you can begin forging farm tools on your own. I can speak to Shopkeeper Li for you then."

Su Mu's heart soared. Being able to forge farm tools independently meant Zhou Shan recognized him as a blacksmith apprentice, essentially graduating in a way.

A blacksmith shop would provide apprentices who could forge farm tools independently with a monthly wage of 300 wen. If there were many orders, there would be additional bonuses. During busy farming seasons, orders could increase, potentially reaching 500 wen a month.

"The second choice is to continue assisting me when I forge weapons and blades."

Upon hearing this, Su Mu didn't hesitate and immediately replied, "Master Zhou, my forging skills are still shallow and not yet sufficient to handle forging independently. I wish to continue learning forging techniques from you and assist you."

Zhou Shan nodded inwardly. He was very pleased with Su Mu's answer. "Good. I will also mention it to the shopkeeper and see if I can secure a monthly wage for you."

"Thank you, Master Zhou!"

"You don't need to thank me. This is the result of your own hard work."

That day, Shopkeeper Li Tie met Su Mu alone in a small courtyard. "Master Zhou has told me about you. Since your skills have reached the standard for graduation, your monthly wage will be the same as other masters who forge farm tools, 300 wen per month."

"Graduating in three months indicates you have considerable talent in blacksmithing. This tael of silver is a reward for your graduation. You're in a growth phase, so use this money to buy some meat, eggs, rice, and flour to supplement your nutrition."

"Yes, young master thanks the shopkeeper."

Beneath the night sky, Su Mu carried the meat and eggs he bought from town back to the village. As he entered his house, Su Mu inexplicably felt a chill run down his spine.

"Ding Shisan."

A somewhat sinister voice sounded from behind him. Without knowing when, a tall, thin man in black, wearing a grey wolf mask, appeared behind him. The figure took out a token and waved it in front of Su Mu.

Su Mu put down the meat and eggs, feigning respect as he knelt on the ground.

"Ding Shisan pays his respects, my lord."

"Get up."

Su Mu complied. The man in black immediately reached out and felt Su Mu all over. A cold stream of energy flowed from the man's palm into Su Mu's body, as if checking something. "This is the antidote for the next six months."

"This humble one thanks my lord for the reward."

"I heard you graduated today... Good. Keep up the good work."

The visitor lightly patted Su Mu on the shoulder, then moved with incredible speed, his figure disappearing like a phantom into the night sky in a few flashes.

"This person should be a ranked martial artist, but I wonder what rank?"

After the man in black left, the respectful expression on Su Mu's face vanished. He narrowed his eyes, recalling the man's build and comparing it with everyone in the blacksmith shop, and everyone in the shops around Juren Street.

But he found nothing. He couldn't find anyone whose build matched this man in black.

"Perhaps he's not from Juren Street..."

Su Mu thought to himself. The man in black seemed to be congratulating him on his graduation, but it was also a warning. He was telling Su Mu that his every move was under his observation.

Lowering his head slightly, Su Mu's gaze fell on the two bottles of antidote in his hand. "One dose per month, three pills per bottle. He gave me half a year's worth of antidote at once, and then specifically came to warn me before leaving. It seems this fellow will likely be leaving this area soon."

"During this period, I can also pay attention to whether anyone has left the shops near Juren Street recently..."

"This might be an opportunity, but I can't rush it..."

Time passed like a white steed flashing by, and in the blink of an eye, winter turned to spring. Another three months flew by, and Su Mu turned thirteen.

[Five Animal Frolics (Minor Accomplishment 99%)]

The early spring in Qingzhou was still cold. Snow began to fall from the sky after nightfall. After returning from the town's blacksmith shop, Su Mu practiced the Five Animal Frolics regardless of the wind and rain.

Initially, Su Mu's skin crawled from the cold, but as he got into the rhythm, he felt a faint flow of energy within his body. Soon, he gradually stopped feeling the cold, as if it were being kept at bay outside his body.

Practicing day after day, after more than half a year of training, Su Mu had become extremely familiar with the Five Animal Frolics. His movements were fluid and natural, without any hesitation.

At a certain moment.

Hummm---------

Su Mu's body suddenly trembled. A familiar warm current generated in his abdomen, but this time it was stronger than ever before, even feeling somewhat scorching.

Even in the cold, snowy night, Su Mu felt so hot that he wanted to shed his clothes. He closed his eyes and carefully felt the warm current circulating through his meridians, finally surging slowly upwards into his brow.

At this moment.

Su Mu's bones and muscles vibrated slightly, giving him an indescribable sense of comfort, as if he had undergone a complete transformation.

He slowly opened his eyes. Whether it was an illusion or not, he felt that the world before him had become clearer. He could see every falling snowflake in the sky more clearly, and the spiderwebs on the eaves were also clearly visible.

"This breakthrough actually caused such a big reaction and change?!"

Su Mu was surprised and immediately brought up his status panel to check.

[Name: Su Mu (13 years old)]
[Lifespan: 43 years]
[Skills: Five Animal Frolics (Major Accomplishment 1%), Blacksmithing (Minor Accomplishment 55%)]
[Comprehension: 5 (Slight Potential)]

After diligently practicing the Five Animal Frolics for over half a year and breaking through to Major Accomplishment, Su Mu gained three years of lifespan. More importantly, his comprehension also increased by two points, rising from three points to the current five.

His comprehension had transformed from ordinary to having slight potential!

"No wonder I felt like I was reborn this time. Before, I was just slightly better than ordinary people, at a middle level. Now, with slight potential, I should be considered at the upper level among ordinary people."

Su Mu suddenly understood. The two-point increase this time was crucial, a qualitative leap from a quantitative change that directly elevated his comprehension.

Immediately, Su Mu tried to continue practicing the Five Animal Frolics. He crouched and lunged forward, pressing down with crossed claws, like a tiger pouncing. This was a move called "Tiger Pounce" from the Tiger Form.

Whoosh------

His claws cut through the air, creating a slight gust of wind. When his paws landed, they stirred up a blast of air, kicking up dust nearly half a meter high in the small courtyard.

Next, Su Mu tried running.

"Deer Form, Deer Run!"

Su Mu lunged forward in a bow stance, swinging his arms back like a galloping deer. A gust of wind hit his face, and he moved like a deer darting through the forest, his speed easily exceeding ten seconds per hundred meters.

This tremendous change shocked Su Mu. His body was now worlds apart from what it was half a year ago. He was strong, agile, and coordinated; he truly felt reborn.

"I now have slight potential and can be considered a genius among ordinary people. If I continue to cultivate, I will surely undergo more transformations. What level can I reach in the future?!"

Su Mu's breathing quickened. The past half-year of cultivation had made him realize that success was a combination of effort and talent, but cruelly, that one percent of talent was often more important than ninety-nine percent of effort.

"Comprehension is very important... I need time to grow."

The next day, Su Mu entered the forging room early to begin hammering.

Zhou Shan watched Su Mu's hammer swings, which were quite fluid, and was astonished. Not only that, but Zhou Shan was also shocked by how much strength Su Mu had seemingly developed in the past half-year.

After watching for a while, a sharp glint flashed in Zhou Shan's eyes. Su Mu's progress over the past half-year had been immense.

After some thought, he stopped Su Mu.

"Su Mu, from today onwards, you don't need to assist me anymore. Try forging a blade by yourself."

Su Mu was overjoyed. Compared to forging farm tools, forging blades was the most profitable business for a blacksmith shop. A blacksmith master who could forge blades received a fixed monthly salary of two taels of silver, almost seven times that of an apprentice blacksmith.

A ten-forge blade could easily sell for several taels of silver. Because of this, the blacksmith shop would give each master a bonus for forging blades. For every ten-forge blade forged, an additional three hundred copper coins would be awarded, which was equivalent to an apprentice blacksmith's monthly salary.

"Yes, Master Zhou, I will work hard and forge a good blade!"

Zhou Shan's lips curved slightly. He was increasingly optimistic about Su Mu.

Outside the forging room, footsteps paused. A figure stopped, and Sun Li's face showed intense jealousy.

After the same half-year, Sun Li could barely manage to forge farm tools by himself, yet his master was letting this guy Su Mu start forging blades independently!

"No, I absolutely cannot let him forge this blade."