Initial Glimpse

Chen Yi glanced at the illusory panel, then no longer let it distract him, focusing on following Wang Lixing in practicing the Great Spear Stance Cultivation.

With every exhale and inhale, he could feel wisps of heat surging from his limbs and bones, falling upon his flesh and skeleton like hammer blows.

Only a trace of that heat remained in his sinews and channels; without careful sensing, it would have been impossible to notice.

Wang Lixing watched Chen Yi closely from the side. When he saw sweat emerge on Chen Yi's forehead and his body tremble slightly, he silently breathed a sigh of relief.

It worked.

In truth, aside from the foundations of the Martial Path and the contents of the Great Spear Stance Cultivation that he had just explained, there were still a few things he had not said.

First, not everyone could cultivate the Martial Path.

Even with the simplest Stake Training, those with overly poor physical aptitude or certain special constitutions would likewise be unable to cultivate.

Fortunately, Chen Yi's present performance perfectly matched the cultivation traits of the Great Spear Stance Cultivation.

Second, the older one was when beginning Martial Path cultivation, the lower one's eventual achievements would be.

For someone like Chen Yi, who had only begun cultivating at twenty, even if he toiled without cease every day, reaching the Eighth Rank Realm in the future would already be his limit.

"From now on, once the Hour of the Tiger is halfway through each day, wake him and bring him to practice his stance."

At this moment, Xiao Xuanshuo had likewise seen that Chen Yi's Stake Training had begun to take shape. After giving that instruction, he pushed his wheelchair away from Chunhe Garden.

To him, teaching Chen Yi the Great Spear Stance Cultivation had merely been incidental. His main purpose had been to observe Chen Yi's performance.

"Yes, Second Master."

Wang Lixing respectfully saw him off, then turned back to continue watching Chen Yi.

Only after an hour did Wang Lixing speak. "That's enough, Son-in-law. We'll stop here for today."

At his words, Chen Yi's breathing faltered, and his body slipped out of that state of rolling heat. He immediately felt sore, weak, aching, and numb all over, as though he had been hollowed out, making his legs buckle.

Seeing this, Wang Lixing stepped forward and grabbed the back of his collar, steadying him as he explained:

"son-in-law, cultivating the Great Spear Stance Cultivation consumes an extreme amount of strength. Have Xiao Die prepare more meat for you in the future, lest you exhaust your body and deplete your vital blood."

Chen Yi swayed where he stood. He wearily raised a hand and nodded feebly.

The expenditure really was enormous. It felt like he had unloaded five or six dozen times in a single night; there was not a shred of strength left in him.

A smile appeared on Wang Lixing's dark face as he said:

"The Great Spear Stance Cultivation is a secret Martial Path cultivation technique of the Xiao Family. Its grade is quite high; compared with the techniques of those great sects and prestigious schools in the martial world, its effects are not inferior in the slightest."

"Thus, it is only natural for it to consume more during cultivation."

Chen Yi nodded, wanting only to sit down and rest for a while before eating a huge meal to properly fill his five viscera temple.

Wang Lixing knew he was exhausted and did not disturb him further. Before leaving, he reminded him:

"son-in-law should have heard what Second Master said just now. From now on, once the Hour of the Tiger is halfway through each day, I will come call son-in-law to practice Stake Training."

Four in the morning?

"Alright, alright..."

Chen Yi did not even have the strength to argue. Whatever Wang Lixing said went.

Though his schedule had been fairly regular these days, he had still slept until the Hour of the Rabbit before getting up.

Now he had to rise a full hour earlier. He did not know what that would feel like.

It probably would not be pleasant.

After Wang Lixing left, Xiao Die, who had been waiting outside the western gate of Chunhe Garden, finally came trotting over with several plates of pastries in her hands.

"Son... Son-in-law, Eldest Miss asked me to bring these to you."

Chen Yi could not be bothered to say much. He sat down in the pavilion and began wolfing them down.

Only after every piece of pastry had gone into his stomach and he had drunk some water did the exhaustion in his body ease somewhat.

"Xiao Die, bring some more food. This little isn't enough. Right, meat. Brother Wang just said I need to eat meat."

"Alright, I'll go right away. Please wait a moment, Son-in-law."

Seeing that he had recovered somewhat, the worry on Xiao Die's face faded a little. After agreeing, she trotted toward the rear courtyard kitchen.

After sitting for a while longer, Chen Yi let out a long breath. "The aftereffects of this Stake Training are really something."

Yet once he had recovered a little, he noticed the benefits of practicing Stake Training.

The most obvious was that his body had gained a measure of strength.

It was not the sort of strength found in muscles. Rather, whenever he clenched his fist, he could faintly sense a thread of force flowing within him amid the pauses and shifts of his breathing.

"So this is the Martial Path?"

Chen Yi silently experienced it for a moment, marveling at its wonder before summoning the panel:

Name: Chen Yi

Cultivation Base: Mortal Body

Martial Dao Body: Not Initiated (0/1)

Cultivation Technique: Great Spear Stance Cultivation (Initial Glimpse)

Fortune: 1

After reading it, Chen Yi directly added the Fortune point to "Martial Dao Body."

At once, some profound and indescribable things appeared in his mind.

Just as when he had added points to the Way of Calligraphy, these contents did not directly allow him to comprehend everything at a stroke. He needed to gain understanding through personal practice during cultivation, until he had absorbed it all.

Chen Yi did not rush to ponder them. He continued looking at the panel. "There's an additional 'Cultivation Base.' Mortal Body, huh..."

It was rather fitting.

He was a frail scholar. Being called a mortal body was already decent enough.

Then Chen Yi lowered his gaze and looked at the intelligence refreshed today:

[Daily Intelligence · Profound Grade Low Rank: Before the Hour of the Rat, within Jiaxing Garden, Young Marquis Xiao of the Xiao Family, Xiao Wuge, and heir apparent Zhang Heng will engage in a fierce battle and are bound to determine who is superior. You may obtain a small amount of Fortune.]

Jiaxing Garden?

Chen Yi froze, then turned to look at the long corridor not far behind him.

So close... should he give it a try?

After waiting so long, this was the first Fortune he had encountered at such a close distance.

As thoughts churned in his mind, Chen Yi stroked his chin and considered the feasibility.

Jiaxing Garden was where Eldest Miss Xiao's chambers were located. Those Armored Soldiers presumably could not enter there.

And before the Hour of the Rat was precisely when men and horses were weary.

If his luck was good enough, perhaps he would not even need to leave Chunhe Garden. He could simply lie atop the wall and watch those two fight.

"It's worth trying!"

Having made his decision, Chen Yi relaxed.

Before Xiao Die returned, he began recalling the mysteries of the Martial Path in his mind.

"The Martial Path encompasses an extremely broad range: the fleshly body, fists and kicks, grappling techniques, Body Movement Techniques and footwork, weapon combat, and more. Every category can be cultivated separately until one enters the Dao."

"Take Stake Training, for example. Even after one's Cultivation Base breakthrough, it can still be practiced as a technique to temper the fleshly body."

"Therefore, Cultivation Base is merely one's Martial Path realm. Even among those in the same realm, there are differences in force, qi, and physical body."

Combining his experience from the past hour of Great Spear Stance Cultivation with the mysteries he had absorbed from "Martial Dao Body," Chen Yi gained some understanding.

"The road ahead is long and the burden heavy."

"Without additional Fortunes, relying solely on daily 'laziness,' let alone improving my Martial Path cultivation, even advancing in the Way of Calligraphy will take a long time."

This only made Chen Yi more determined to find a way to sneak into Jiaxing Garden tonight.

"Young Marquis Xiao Wuge and heir apparent Zhang Heng?"

Xiao Die had mentioned Xiao Wuge in passing before, saying that he had always studied the Martial Path, scriptures, and classics in the Marquis's mansion.

He wondered how far Xiao Wuge had progressed on the Martial Path.

Still, even Lady Xiao Jinghong possessed Fourth Rank Realm cultivation. Presumably, this Young Marquis would not be lacking either.