A Ten Percent Chance

Half an hour passed, but Sun Tao did not appear, nor did anyone come to remind them that it was time to practice.

"It seems Senior Brother Sun Tao isn't coming; we'll have to practice on our own."

Someone spoke, his expression grim. He hadn't fully memorized the Turtle-Snake Great Stance, and the few others in the same boat reacted with similar dismay.

If Sun Tao wasn't coming, how were they supposed to practice?

Luo Dehu felt as if he had been slapped in the face. He secretly regretted clashing with Zhang Yong and Zhang Hong; he hadn't expected Wei Yuan Hall to be so perfunctory after they had spent so much money.

Lin Cheng had left after a single round of guidance, and Sun Tao had only offered pointers three times.

"Ten wen, and you can come to me anytime."

Zhang Hong spoke with a grin, rising to walk into the Martial Arts Arena to strike the pose for the Turtle-Snake Great Stance.

Xu Yang, having rested enough, walked over near Zhang Hong and began his own practice. Soon, Zhang Yong also arrived nearby and took up his stance.

"Boss Lu Ren..." Luo Dehu looked toward Lu Ren for help.

"No matter, I'll teach you!" Lu Ren said, standing up.

As soon as these words were out, those who hadn't memorized the stance were overjoyed. They cast provocative glances at Zhang Yong and Zhang Hong, their eyes seeming to say: Look, this is the difference between you and a true genius.

Not only was their natural aptitude inferior, but their character was lacking as well.

Xu Yang ignored them, focusing only on his practice, finding his rhythm more and more.

As expected, I have to eat well and eat plenty.

That morning, he had only eaten a bit of brown rice and two slices of pork belly; his stomach hadn't even been half-full. With no food in his belly, the effectiveness of his practice had been greatly diminished.

This midday meal, however, was better than what he usually ate during the New Year. With sufficient nutrition, the effect of standing in the stance changed instantly, and he was able to hold the Turtle-Snake Great Stance for longer and longer.

"You idiots, I'm done with this. Practice on your own."

Suddenly, Lu Ren's voice rang out. He threw his hands up, quit, and ran off to the side to practice by himself.

Although he had been egged on by Luo Dehu and had a desire to play the role of the leader, he was, after all, a genius with Grade B-plus aptitude, not a fool. Once too much time had been wasted, he realized it would affect his own progress.

"I thought he would keep teaching forever!" Zhang Yong laughed.

It wasn't easy to play the good guy; Lu Ren hadn't seen through Luo Dehu's little schemes, but he had seen through them at a glance.

"He couldn't teach it at all!" Xu Yang shook his head.

Even though Lu Ren had memorized the entire Turtle-Snake Great Stance, he only had a half-baked understanding of it himself. How could he possibly teach others? If anything, these people wouldn't appreciate his good intentions and would likely suspect him of holding back secrets.

"So this is the guy with the Grade B-plus aptitude you were talking about?" A young man approached them.

During the break, disciples who had entered Wei Yuan Hall earlier than them came over to make contact and get acquainted.

This person was named Zhou Yuan. He had arrived half a month before Xu Yang and the others, and he had already mastered the basics of the Turtle-Snake Great Stance.

Through their exchange, he learned that Xu Yang and his group were there to practice martial arts with the support of the Huang Family.

"Yeah, that's him." Zhang Hong nodded.

"You lot are still clear-headed. If this Lu Ren doesn't wake up in time, I'm afraid he'll struggle to become a martial artist. To actually waste his own time guiding others," Zhou Yuan shook his head.

Zhang Yong asked skeptically, "Lu Ren has Grade B-plus aptitude. Even if he wastes a little time, it shouldn't stop him from becoming a martial artist, right? At most, it'll just be a bit later."

Of the ten of them, whether the others could become martial artists was uncertain, but there shouldn't be any surprises regarding Lu Ren's aptitude.

Yet, the Zhou Yuan before them claimed Lu Ren would struggle to become a martial artist.

"Haha... a bit later? You don't actually think the Huang Family will fund your martial arts training forever, do you? Three months at most. If you don't become martial artists by then, the Huang Family will cut off your funding. You really thought you could just grind away at your own pace? Hasn't anyone told you about this?"

A burly figure walked over, muscles bulging, sweat dripping like rain as he took a large gulp of water.

This man was Zhou Yang. He had interacted with Xu Yang and the others before and was Zhou Yuan's cousin.

Zhang Hong and Zhang Yong's expressions shifted. They knew the Huang Family wouldn't fund them forever, but they hadn't expected it to be for only three months at most.

If becoming a martial artist in three months were that easy, martial artists wouldn't be so rare.

"Senior Brother Zhou Yang, is there a specific reason for this?" Xu Yang frowned slightly.

He didn't believe Zhou Yang had the ability to know the Huang Family's top-level decisions; the only explanation was that there were things here that they, as newcomers to the martial path, didn't understand.

Zhou Yang sat down heavily beside Xu Yang, panting, and said, "Martial cultivation begins with stance work. Those with superior talent can master the basics in three to five days; even those with weaker talent can do it in ten days or half a month.

If you can't master the basics in half a month, you're a fool who should go home early rather than waste food.

Once you master the stance, you begin to store qi and blood and temper your physique. At the same time, you must start practicing fist techniques to prepare for the first hurdle of the martial path.

From the moment you start practicing fist techniques, this entire process takes no more than three months to reach the first major hurdle of the martial path.

Once you attempt the hurdle, success makes you a martial artist, while failure means you bow out in disgrace. That is why the Huang Family's support for you will not exceed three months."

"After failing to cross the hurdle, can't you try a second time?"

Zhang Hong's expression was grim. He finally understood why there were so few martial artists—they only had three months.

"Do you think crossing a martial hurdle is like the imperial examinations, where if you fail this year, you can just come back next year and try a dozen times? Your first attempt is when your essence, qi, and spirit are at their absolute peak. If you can't succeed then, you never will.

Of course, if your family can cough up several hundred taels of silver to help you rebuild your body, then consider what I just said to be hot air."

For these families, let alone hundreds of taels, even a few taels would be a struggle.

"Senior Brother Zhou, what is the general success rate for breaking through?" Xu Yang asked.

"The success rate is generally around thirty percent!"

Zhou Yang held up a finger: "But for the ten of you... it's only ten percent."

He might as well have said that only Lu Ren could become a martial artist, while the rest would all fail.

"Why is it only ten percent for us?"

At this moment, Luo Dehu and the others came over to rest. Although he was panting, he couldn't help but speak up.

Zhou Yuan glanced at him and said: "For an average person practicing martial arts, it takes at least several dozen taels of silver over three months to earn that thirty percent chance.

Among you, excluding Lu Ren, none have spent even ten taels on martial arts in these three months. What makes you think your success rate would be the same as those who spent dozens of taels?

As for aptitude, anyone who can master the Turtle-Snake Great Stance can't possibly have such terrible innate talent, can they?"

None of the ten spoke, and even Lu Ren fell into a somber silence.

While others spent dozens of taels, he had only spent around twenty, which was also quite risky.

When cross-referenced with what Master Lin had said earlier, it all seemed to make perfect sense.

"The Huang Family is truly stingy. Thinking they can cultivate a martial artist with just a few taels of silver is nothing but a pipe dream; they treat martial arts like child's play," Zhou Yuan shook his head.

Zhou Yang wore an expression of disdain: "Short-sighted upstarts, delusional enough to think they can win big with a small investment. They want to cultivate their own martial artists, yet they are unwilling to spend the money to take risks. How can one succeed without Health-Nurturing Soup, Body-Strengthening Soup, and medicinal baths to temper the body?"

"So you're saying we're destined to fail?" Qian Jiaxing's voice was low.

"If I were you, I'd trade the resources in my hands for cash; that's the only way to get some benefit out of this."

After saying so much, Zhou Yang finally revealed his true objective.