The next day.
Lin Yan arrived at the training ground and discovered that his master was there too.
He hadn't seen his master for over a month, not since he'd first become his disciple.
Could word of yesterday's sparring have reached his master, and had he come especially for him?
But Lin Yan soon realized he was flattering himself.
The moment he stepped into the training ground, two figures appeared at the courtyard entrance. The two young men entered almost one after the other.
The sight of them sent many of the disciples in the courtyard into a frenzy.
"It's Junior Brother Zhao!"
"Junior Brother Zhao succeeded in Foundation Cultivation too? It's only been a few days!"
"Five days. I was in the front courtyard when Junior Brother Zhao arrived there. It's been five days at most."
"If I remember right, Junior Brother Zhao is only sixteen this year. That's terrifying!"
Listening to the other disciples' discussion, Lin Yan understood what was happening.
A talented disciple from the front courtyard had advanced to the middle courtyard. He'd succeeded in Foundation Cultivation in just five days. No wonder it had drawn his master's attention.
The two young men walked over to Yang Qingfeng. The one in front strode with confidence, his face brimming with self-assurance. The one a few paces behind him looked calm, even keeping his head lowered. He seemed unaccustomed to being the center of attention, even if it was only the other disciples' sidelong glances.
"Your disciple Zhao Linyuan pays his respects, Master."
"Your disciple Zhuang Zheng pays his respects, Master."
The two young men spoke one after the other. Lin Yan's eyes narrowed slightly. Zhao Linyuan was a fine name, but he felt like he'd heard or seen the name Zhuang Zheng somewhere before.
He soon remembered where he'd seen the name "Zhuang Zheng."
In Zhang Dahai's ledger, it said, "Zhuang Zheng borrowed fifty taels."
Was it just a case of two people sharing the same name?
Lin Yan couldn't be sure. Anyone who could start training in the martial arts school's front courtyard should, in theory, come from a family that wasn't short on money. They wouldn't need to borrow fifty taels from someone like Zhang Dahai, who set people up.
"Five days. Not bad."
Yang Qingfeng looked at Zhao Linyuan with clear satisfaction. He'd built up enough qi and blood in five days, faster than Yang Qingfeng had expected.
He'd given Zhao Linyuan ten days.
Even if someone had enough money to buy secret medicines, their body still had to be able to absorb them.
As for precious medicines that could overcome the body's limits, no family in all of Guangping County could afford them.
Yang Qingfeng made no secret of how pleased he was with Zhao Linyuan. Though he wasn't quite as pleased with Zhuang Zheng, he still smiled encouragingly. "Building up enough qi and blood in a month and a half is also quite good. Train diligently in the martial arts from now on, and you can still achieve something."
"Your disciple will remember your teachings, Master. I would never dare slack off in the slightest." Zhuang Zheng kept his head lowered as he answered respectfully.
Just as he'd done when teaching Lin Yan, Yang Qingfeng said no more and began teaching them the Mountain Splitting Fist.
Many disciples gathered to watch. Several of them hadn't yet mastered the Mountain Splitting Fist, so they took the opportunity to observe it a few more times. Lin Yan stood to one side as well, but unlike the others, he wanted to see whether his master's Mountain Splitting Fist differed from his own.
After watching one set, Lin Yan wore a thoughtful expression.
His master's movements carried more force than his own, and Lin Yan keenly sensed that his master was still holding back.
When his master began teaching Zhao Linyuan and Zhuang Zheng the moves one by one, Lin Yan stopped watching and went off to the side to practice his own Mountain Splitting Fist.
The leaf in his mind was almost complete. He only needed that final push.
"This move, the body..."
Crack!
Crack, crack, crack!
A series of crisp sounds rang out across the training ground. Yang Qingfeng's eyes narrowed, and he immediately looked toward Lin Yan.
Lin Yan's entire body was red. Beneath his skin, surges of qi and blood stretched it taut, then subsided.
As his skin was stretched again and again, it began to loosen. But then a drumlike series of sounds rang out from within him, and his skin began contracting repeatedly, fine lines appearing across it.
After the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, his qi and blood surged and washed over him. The strange sight of his skin swelling and contracting gradually subsided.
Lin Yan opened his eyes and let out a low "Open." The last breath of stale air left his body.
His skin, loosened and covered in irregular fine lines from the rush of qi and blood, now seemed to be slowly smoothed and pressed firm by an invisible hand.
His once-smooth, delicate skin now felt coarse and solid.
With every movement, the muscles beneath his Rough Skin rippled slightly, resisting with a springy firmness that could easily deflect ordinary scrapes and blows.
That was the most prominent feature of Rough Skin, the first stage of Skin Polishing. At this point, ordinary clubs could no longer injure him.
Lin Yan slowly finished his form and stood still. He gently rolled his arm, feeling the new, taut texture of his skin and hearing the faint friction it made. A grin spread across his face.
He was happy not only because he'd entered the first stage of Skin Polishing, but also because a new message had appeared on the Martial Dao Tree in his mind.
The Martial Dao was like a tree; it had no bottlenecks.
The four stages of Skin Polishing were also called the Four Passes because many martial artists failed when attempting to break through. With the Martial Dao Tree, he didn't need to worry about failure. Once he reached the right level, he would break through naturally.
This message excited him far more than entering the first stage of Skin Polishing.
The other disciples on the training ground all turned their eyes toward Lin Yan, their gazes filled with envy.
What had just happened to Lin Yan was the very scene they dreamed of day and night.
Ge Hui's expression was terribly grim. Lin Yan had entered the first stage of Skin Polishing far sooner than he'd expected. That meant that from this day on, Lin Yan was in the same realm as him.
Zhao Linyuan stopped practicing the Mountain Splitting Fist and looked at Lin Yan with a hint of surprise, but he wasn't displeased that Lin Yan had stolen the spotlight.
His ambitions reached far beyond this.
Yang Qingfeng stroked his beard and smiled. "Entering the first stage of Skin Polishing in two months is quite good. You can collect a twenty-year-old Blood Ginseng from the Medicine Hall later."
He still remembered this disciple, Lin Yan. Lin Yan was the first student he'd ever taught who had made him thirsty.
"Thank you, Master."
Hearing his master's reward, Lin Yan quickly expressed his thanks.
"The rest of you must train hard as well and strive to enter the first stage of Skin Polishing soon."
Yang Qingfeng glanced at the other disciples, whose faces were full of envy, and offered them a few words of encouragement. Then he turned his attention back to Zhao Linyuan and Zhuang Zheng.
"Is there anything the two of you still don't understand?"
Zhao Linyuan shook his head. "Your disciple has already memorized it."
"Master, I... I still don't quite understand some of it." Zhuang Zheng glanced at Zhao Linyuan and spoke with some embarrassment.
"Very well. Then watch it one more time."
Yang Qingfeng guided Zhuang Zheng through it a few more times. Once Zhuang Zheng confirmed he'd memorized the moves, Yang Qingfeng left with a carefree air.
After Yang Qingfeng left, the training ground grew lively.
"Junior Brother Zhao, I knew you'd make it to the middle courtyard soon."
"Junior Brother Lin, amazing! You've reached the first stage of Skin Polishing in just two months."
Some of the disciples gathered around Zhao Linyuan, while others approached Lin Yan. But most of those who went to Lin Yan simply offered a word of praise before leaving. In the end, Zhao Linyuan was still the one surrounded by disciples.
For one thing, everyone had seen how specially their master treated Zhao Linyuan. Before leaving, their master had told Junior Brother Zhao to try to reach the first stage of Skin Polishing within a month.
Their master hadn't said that to anyone else. By comparison, Lin Yan entering the first stage in nearly two months seemed like nothing special.
The second reason, of course, was that Senior Brother Ge was still there. If they got close to Lin Yan, Senior Brother Ge might target them, and they'd probably face his suppression.
Lin Yan didn't care what the others thought. He was heading to the martial arts school's rear courtyard to begin the next stage of his martial arts training.
"Junior Brother Lin, you've reached the first stage of Skin Polishing?"
In the rear courtyard, Li An was practicing his punches when he caught sight of Lin Yan from the corner of his eye. He immediately stopped, disbelief written across his face, and hurried over.
"I was lucky to break through."
"Lucky my ass. If it took you more than half a year, then you could call it luck. Let me work it out. You reached the first stage of Skin Polishing in less than two months—that's ability."
Li An grabbed Lin Yan's arm and pressed it a few times. "This firmness—you've built an exceptionally solid foundation."
"Li, there's a new face. Aren't you going to introduce him to us?"
The others in the courtyard walked over. Lin Yan unobtrusively pulled his arm free.
With that name, that bushy beard, and all that enthusiasm, he couldn't help but think twice.
"Lin Yan, Junior Brother Lin. He's been in our martial arts school's middle courtyard for less than two months." Li An introduced Lin Yan first, then introduced the senior brothers standing before him.
"Senior Brother Zhang Liang. He's already reached the second stage of Skin Polishing."
"Senior Brother Yang Feng. He's not far from the second stage."
"Senior Brother Lv Qianfan. He's not far from the second stage either."
Lin Yan greeted the eight senior brothers in the courtyard one by one. Aside from Senior Brother Zhang Liang, the others were all at the first stage of Skin Polishing.
"Junior Brother Lin reached the first stage of Skin Polishing in less than two months. That's remarkable martial talent. Are you from the South City Lin Family?"
Lv Qianfan asked with a friendly smile. Among the Lins in the city, the strongest was the Lin Family in the south.
Lin Yan shook his head. "You've mistaken me for someone else, Senior Brother. I have no connection to the South City Lin Family."
"If you're not from the South City Lin Family, then are you from the Lin Family that runs a dye shop?" interjected a senior brother named Yang Feng.
"I'm not." Lin Yan denied it again, his tone calm.
"Don't bother guessing, brothers. His family's been peddling goods for three generations."
Ge Hui's voice came from the doorway. When Lv Qianfan and the others heard that, their smiles faded a little.
If he came from an ordinary family, then reaching the first stage of Skin Polishing in two months wasn't all that impressive.
The four stages of Skin Polishing were also called the Four Passes of the Martial Dao.
Each stage was a pass, and each one was harder than the last.
There were several disciples in the martial arts school who had reached the peak of the first stage long ago, yet had failed to break through again and again.
As for the first stage, few disciples in the school failed to pass it.
Junior Brother Lin had reached the first stage of Skin Polishing in just two months. He must have spent every last bit of his family's wealth on that first breakthrough.
Unfortunately, each stage cost more than the one before it. Junior Brother Lin's potential only went so far.
It wasn't that they were too practical. If they got close to Junior Brother Lin, he might ask to borrow money one day. Refusing would hurt their relationship, so they might as well keep things cordial but distant.
Lin Yan could feel the senior brothers' warmth toward him fade after Ge Hui's remark. It was only human nature, and he could understand it.
But Ge Hui...
First, he'd sent Zhang Bo to tempt him, hoping to have him crippled. Now he was targeting him again.
The day Lin Yan reached the second stage of Skin Polishing would be Ge Hui's death day.