After giving He An his instructions.
He Ping spent some tender time with his wife.
Under Wang Rou's reluctant gaze, he slowly disappeared around the street corner.
He An stood in the courtyard, with no intention of resting. Following the instructions and movements in the Yi Jin Jing, he struck a stance and began practicing.
He drew a deep breath, lowered his waist, and bent his legs into a horse stance, his knees aligned with his toes as the muscles throughout his body began to engage.
At first, it was fine.
But as time passed, an ache set in.
He felt as though his whole body were about to fall apart.
Crack, crack, crack!
One burst after another of sharp, popping sounds came from inside him.
"This guy really hasn't practiced at all!"
He An gritted his teeth as sweat poured from his forehead like rain. He performed the movements steadily, following the Yi Jin Jing's instructions to circulate the Qi and Blood within him.
Before Entering the Ranks, there were four Martial Dao Realms, also known as the Four Basic Realms.
The four realms were closely interconnected.
Every one of them laid the groundwork for Entering the Ranks.
The Body Refining Realm.
The skin and muscles were tempered, shedding the mortal body, until one's punches could unleash a force of a thousand catties.
The Bone Forging Realm.
The bones were hammered into shape, allowing one to withstand blunt weapons without injury and snap iron bars with bare hands.
The Muscle Condensing Realm.
The sinews were strengthened to ensure the flow of Qi and Blood, so that one's punches could split the air.
The Blood Circulation Realm.
Qi and Blood circulated within, strengthening the internal organs and laying the foundation for Entering the Ranks.
Even with poor natural talent, anyone could cross the first three realms through their own efforts and reach the Blood Circulation Realm.
But if they wanted to Enter the Ranks—
That was difficult.
If there were ten Blood Circulation Realm Martial Artists, only one or two would truly manage to Enter the Ranks.
Time crept by amid the torment.
He An felt as though his body were being scorched by a branding iron. Every breath came desperately fast, tinged with the faint smell of blood, while his legs trembled like sieves.
Half an hour later.
A subtle change came over He An's body.
His body, which had been trembling, suddenly managed to stiffen.
He An wiped the sweat from his forehead and thought, I didn't expect the Yi Jin Jing to be so effective. I still have strength left in my whole body.
If I keep building it up bit by bit like this, I'll definitely be able to Enter the Ranks.
He did nothing else. He simply repeated the dull movements over and over, but the results were remarkably good. His physique was far stronger than before.
During that time,
He Ru came looking for him to play.
He turned him down every time.
He shut out all distractions, focusing solely on martial arts.
"Phew!"
After another round of practice, He An felt as though his whole body had fallen apart. His limbs went limp, and he lay on the ground.
He focused his mind.
Golden Text slowly appeared in his mind.
[Destiny: Success Comes Naturally.] [Yi Jin Jing: (5/200) Entry Level.]
Every Martial Art
was divided into four levels: Entry Level, Minor Accomplishment, Great Accomplishment, and Perfection.
"So tired."
"Martial arts are so hard!"
Gazing at the sky as it gradually darkened, He An sighed.
He had practiced all afternoon and only completed five rounds. That was far too slow.
But there was nothing he could do about it.
He had only just started, and he didn't understand the movements well yet. He had to think through every single one before he could perform it.
What was more, sometimes he was so tired he couldn't move at all and had to stand still and rest.
After a while, once he got used to it,
he would be able to practice faster.
He had only been lying down for a short while
when He Ru came scampering over.
"Little Uncle, are you tired? Do you want some water and a rest?"
He An sat up, took the water He Ru offered, and ruffled his little head with a smile. "Ru'er, you're such a good boy. How about I buy you some candy after I finish practicing?"
"Okay!"
He Ru ran off with a grin, then quickly returned with a large steamed bun.
"Little Uncle, have this."
He An accepted it without hesitation.
After several hours of practice, he had burned through all the food in his stomach. His belly kept protesting, and he was about to faint if he didn't eat.
Fortunately, it wasn't long before
Wang Rou finished making dinner.
After eating his fill, He An returned to the courtyard and continued practicing.
His Destiny said:
With every drop that gathers, a vast ocean is formed. On the path of martial arts, there is no worry of bottlenecks.
That meant that if he wanted to overcome a bottleneck, he still had to keep building himself up. Only then could he reach the point where he could break through.
Again and again and again.
Until late into the night.
Subtle changes were taking place in He An's body, too.
He threw a heavy punch and felt his fist brimming with strength—enough, perhaps, to kill a bull.
"Time for bed!"
After finishing one last round, He An promptly called it a night.
[Destiny: Success Comes Naturally.] [Yi Jin Jing: (9/200) Entry Level.]
Over the following days,
He An hardly did anything else. He stayed in the courtyard, repeating the same movements over and over, pushing his body to its limit again and again.
With the experience he had gained, and a body several times—or even dozens of times—stronger than before,
he grew faster and faster.
Half a month passed like this.
After completing his final round,
Qi and Blood erupted within He An, surging wildly through his meridians. The veins across his body bulged, and a series of crackling sounds burst from within him.
"Phew!"
"After half a month of practice, I finally got the Yi Jin Jing to Minor Accomplishment. If I hadn't taken two days off along the way, I'd probably have broken through even sooner."
"I just didn't expect my realm to break through, too."
"Could it be that I, This Young Master, am a martial arts prodigy?"
He An found a discarded piece of iron. Fixing his gaze on it, he clenched his right fist.
He gave it only a light punch.
Yet it carried an irresistible force.
The piece of iron bent instantly, and the ground beneath it was left with a small crater.
"Not bad, not bad. An ordinary Martial Artist who has just broken through to the Body Refining Realm can punch with a force of about a thousand catties, but my punch is several degrees stronger."
"The Yi Jin Jing really lives up to its reputation."
[Destiny: Success Comes Naturally.] [Yi Jin Jing: (1/300) Minor Accomplishment.]
"Little Uncle, are you done practicing your punches? Mother says dinner's ready!"
He Ru ran over happily, not minding He An's stench at all as he gazed up at him eagerly.
"Coming."
At that, He Ru beamed.
He turned and ran off, calling out as he went, "Mother, Little Uncle's done practicing! Can we eat now?"
For the half month He An had been practicing his punches, mealtimes had always been arranged around him.
As long as he hadn't finished practicing, He Ru couldn't eat either.
He had told Wang Rou more than once not to wait for him.
But she refused, saying that after practicing his punches, he needed to replenish his Qi and Blood right away.
What was more, because of his training, there was meat on the family's table every two or three days. Even He An thought such a life was rather extravagant.
After all, he knew the family was already nearly out of Silver Taels.
Spending so freely now meant they must have dug into their hidden stash.
Even so, Wang Rou never complained.
With an Eldest Sister-in-law like her, what more could one ask for in life!
He An clenched his fist, his resolve to repay his Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law growing ever firmer.
"Little Uncle, hurry up! We've got meat again today."
"Coming!"
He An answered and strode toward the main hall.
"Xiao An, how many rounds did you practice today? Have you made any progress?" Wang Rou asked with a smile as she served meat to him and He Ru.
"Yes!"
He An didn't want to hide anything from his family. "Eldest Sister-in-law, I've reached Minor Accomplishment in the Yi Jin Jing, and my realm has broken through, too. I'm a proper Martial Artist now."
Wang Rou sucked in a sharp breath.
Though she wasn't a Martial Artist, she knew what He An's words meant.
After a long moment,
she finally came to her senses, her face full of excitement.
"Xiao An, you've given your eldest brother and me such a wonderful surprise! When your eldest brother comes back, he'll be even more excited and happy than I am."
He An chuckled, but a trace of worry welled up in his heart.
Half a month had passed.
There was still no news from his eldest brother.
"Sigh."
"I hope nothing's happened to him!"
He An glanced at his Eldest Sister-in-law without letting his concern show.
He couldn't bear to imagine what she would do if something had happened to his eldest brother.
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