Unpolished Jade and Rough Stone

At the martial arts school's main entrance, Cui Hao encountered Lin Da and Old Man Lin, father and son.

"Brother Hao," Lin Da said, his eyes wide with nervousness, "you're here to see me off."

A smile flickered across Cui Hao's face. "I'm studying martial arts here. It happened a month ago."

Lin Da: "..."

Old Man Lin: "..."

"I took down a big beast," Cui Hao explained. "It was just enough for the tuition."

Envious of Cui Hao's good fortune, Old Man Lin entrusted his son to him.

After bringing Lin Da into the courtyard, Cui Hao found Sun Cheng. "Fourth Senior Brother, this is my childhood friend from the same village. His full name is Lin Da. He's here to learn martial arts and has brought the tuition. Please take him to see Master."

Sun Cheng agreed and led Lin Da to see the Master.

Wang Nian sidled up and asked, "Since he's your childhood friend, why aren't you taking him to see Master yourself?"

Since entering Zhanhong Martial Arts Academy, Cui Hao had only spoken to the Master alone on the first day. He hadn't had any further interaction and felt like a stranger.

Instead, he was more familiar with Sun Cheng and Liu Yan. They taught him how to temper his strength, the martial arts incantations, how to stand in a horse stance, and how to accumulate qi and blood.

Seeing that Cui Hao ignored him, Wang Nian whispered, "I plan to use Qi and Blood Powder."

"Have you thought it through?"

"I have," Wang Nian sighed. "What Clear Force, Dark Force, or martial scholar... they have nothing to do with me. I just want Mortal Martial. Enough to be a guard for a wealthy family."

It was a simple aspiration, but Cui Hao still wanted to try. He changed into his coarse linen training clothes, walked silently to a corner, stood firm, took a deep breath, and began to stretch his limbs.

His arms, shoulders, back, and hips – every joint was stretched to its limit. His muscles alternated between relaxation and tension.

At this moment, Liu Yan, a young woman with delicate features and a sturdy build, walked over. "Junior Brother Cui, you're practicing the stance today. Remember the method."

"Please, Senior Sister."

"The five toes grip the ground like roots, the crown of the head is lifted as if by a string. Chest concave, back hunched, shoulders lowered. Knees like bedrock, waist like a wheel."

"Thank you, Senior Sister, for teaching me the method. I've remembered it."

"You've remembered it?" Liu Yan's smile was beautiful. "Explain it to me."

"My toes grip the stance surface tightly, the top of my head is pulled by a string to keep my spine straight, my chest is concave and back hunched to ensure smooth qi flow, and my knees are stable while my waist and hips are as flexible as a rotating wheel."

"That's right. Practice well. If you have any questions, ask me or Fourth Senior Brother. Remember, don't disturb others. Everyone is very busy."

"Senior Sister," Cui Hao called out to Liu Yan in time, "what's the goal of this practice?"

"Initially, you need to grip the stance surface firmly. Later, you'll practice Broken Fist on the stance. Then you'll be taught footwork."

Liu Yan paused for a second. "Try to persist for a long time. Stance training is the basic method for tempering qi and blood."

Cui Hao cupped his fists in thanks.

The requirement was to grip the stance surface firmly, so his movements were limited to a horse stance, with his soles closely adhering to the stance surface. He couldn't stand with his legs spread apart.

With a good foundation, Cui Hao only managed to hold the stance for about two quarters of an hour before his legs started shaking violently. He was forced to step off the plum blossom stances, sitting on the ground to catch his breath, and contemplating in his mind.

He had originally planned to go into the mountains once to hunt for money. However, due to his substantial gains last night, he didn't need to go into the mountains for now and could still afford to buy rice and meat.

Thinking of food, Cui Hao took out the rations prepared by Su Yun. A mixed-grain cake wrapped with pork cracklings – good stuff that filled the stomach and suppressed hunger. He took a big bite, chewed slowly, and felt very satisfied.

While eating, he observed. Over the past month, people had come and gone in the courtyard. Familiar faces gradually became fewer, and new faces constantly appeared. He was now considered an old disciple of the martial arts school.

He could still remain calm, but several of his fellow disciples who had joined at the same time had grim expressions.

Lin Da, who had just arrived, changed into his training clothes and started with tempering his strength. His energetic appearance formed a stark contrast with the worried look of the older disciples.

After a short rest, Cui Hao got back on the stance for the second time, silently reciting the incantations and firmly planting his feet.

Before long, Xu Dian passed by and stopped. "How long have you been at the martial arts school?"

Cui Hao stepped off the plum blossom stances and respectfully replied, "Reporting to Master, one month and seven days."

Xu Dian's expression didn't change much. He offered some perfunctory encouragement, without much hope. "If you don't understand anything, ask more."

Cui Hao cupped his fists in acknowledgment and watched as Xu Dian walked over to Xiao Li, giving him detailed guidance.

Clearly, only disciples with exceptional talent received the Master's meticulous guidance. Was Cui Hao, like most others, just a runner-up?

The older disciples were all shrewd. They were generally too lazy to bother with junior disciples who had mediocre talent, couldn't bring any benefits, and were unlikely to achieve much in the future.

Only Fourth Senior Brother Sun Cheng and Senior Sister Liu Yan were exceptions. The former was kind and honest, occasionally offering guidance to newly admitted disciples.

The latter, due to her experience buying chickens, was willing to occasionally enlighten him.

Apart from them, many people came and went at the martial arts school, but Cui Hao had almost no interaction with them.

As the sun began to set, after practicing Broken Fist for the last three times, a Senior Brother surnamed Zhao with a loud voice shouted, "Time to work!"

His gaze swept over a few disciples who had just finished their boxing practice and hadn't entered Mortal Martial. Zhao Ming's eyes landed on Cui Hao. "Wang Nian... Li He! You two will clean the windows today! Don't break the window paper!"

Li He, the designated disciple, a thin and dark teenager who had joined about half a month after Cui Hao, seemed to sag upon hearing this.

Compared to scrubbing the floor, cleaning windows took more time, had more corners and crevices, and the paper was easily torn.

"Cui Hao, Guo Yong, you two will clean the storage room."

With their target clear, the two grabbed brooms and rags and entered the storage room.

Guo Yong was a man of few words, and he worked with the same diligence he applied to his martial arts practice.

While working, Guo Yong suddenly asked, "Senior Brother Cui, do you think... all this hard training we're doing is actually useful?"

Cui Hao, who was meticulously wiping the floor, replied, "It's useful. Others won't dare to bully us casually anymore."

"Is that all?" Guo Nian's eyes held a hint of confusion and unwillingness. "My mother... she took out all her dowry silver, her eyes are almost worn out from straining... I don't just want to be a little stronger than before..."

"The road is walked one step at a time." Cui Hao's words were spoken plainly, even with a touch of helplessness, but they held the most practical truth.

Upon hearing this, Guo Yong scrubbed the wall with even more force, as if trying to scrape sparks from it, like he had a grudge against the wall.

Just as the two were about to finish cleaning the storage room, Senior Brother Zhao, who had assigned the task earlier, reappeared, a strange expression on his face as he looked at Li He, who was wiping the windows.

"Li He!" Zhao Ming's voice was gentler than before, but still left no room for doubt. "Stop wiping. Go to the backyard quickly. Master is looking for you."

Li He's body paused for a moment, then he suddenly looked up, a flicker of disbelief and pleasant surprise in his eyes.

"What are you waiting for? Hurry up!" Senior Brother Zhao urged.

"Yes! Yes! Senior Brother Zhao!" Li He quickly dropped his rag, wiped his hands haphazardly on his old clothes, and hurried to the inner courtyard.

"You two..." Senior Brother Zhao ordered Cui Hao and Guo Yong, "Wipe the windows."