The Martial Dao Tree's Initial Effect

The Lin family courtyard.

Lin Yan and Liu had just returned when Xiao Cui arrived at their doorstep.

"Please, come in, Miss Xiao Cui."

Liu hurriedly welcomed her inside, and Lin Yan served tea and water. As for his younger brother, he had gone out to run wild early in the morning.

At that age, children were at a stage where even a mother sow would find them tiresome; they simply couldn't sit still at home.

After taking a sip of tea and offering her thanks, Xiao Cui smiled and said, "My master heard that Young Master Lin has begun practicing martial arts, so he asked me to bring a gift of money to wish the young master good fortune."

Seeing the silver envelope Xiao Cui produced, Liu hurriedly waved her hands. "How could we possibly accept this?"

"This is a token of sincerity from my master and mistress. If Madam Lin and the young master do not accept it, I will have no way to answer for myself when I return."

Seeing Xiao Cui's firm attitude, Liu did not refuse again, but she did not reach out to take it either. Instead, she looked at Lin Yan. "Yan'er, you must remember this kindness from your Fourth Aunt."

"Your nephew will keep it in his heart. I will certainly study martial arts diligently and not let Fourth Aunt's expectations go to waste."

Lin Yan responded earnestly, though he felt a bit surprised. Given the distance between his family and this distant aunt, it was already a great favor that she had helped him find a stance technique; he hadn't expected her to also gift him twenty taels of silver.

This was the kind of treatment reserved for true nephews.

Unable to fathom the underlying reasons, Lin Yan stopped overthinking it. Regardless of his aunt's motives for sending the twenty taels, it was a great kindness to him.

He took the silver envelope from Xiao Cui and solemnly tucked it into his robes.

"Then I shall not disturb you any further. My mistress is waiting for me to report back."

After Xiao Cui said a few more auspicious words, she took her leave. Liu followed her to the courtyard gate and intended to see her further, but Xiao Cui stopped her, refusing to let her go any further.

"Madam Lin, I am merely a servant. If you walk me to the mouth of the alley and my mistress finds out, I will be punished."

Hearing this, Liu stopped. Lin Yan followed at her side, watching Miss Xiao Cui depart. He couldn't help but feel impressed; his aunt was truly formidable. Her handling of affairs was flawless, and she even managed her maids with such cleverness.

"Yan'er, I'm going out for a moment to deliver these clothes to my employer."

After seeing Xiao Cui off, Liu returned to the house, picked up the mended clothes, and headed out.

With no one home, Lin Yan didn't idle away his time; he began to flip through the Rock Stance.

The Rock Stance was not complex, consisting of four standing postures in total, with detailed illustrations for each in the book.

Beyond that, there was a set of breathing and meditation chants.

According to the author, this breathing and meditation was the foundation of the Rock Stance.

To practice the stance without practicing the breath is to end up with nothing.

After memorizing the postures, Lin Yan began to experiment. The postures themselves were not difficult, and he mastered them after a dozen attempts.

However, when he began to breathe and meditate according to the book, he felt a tightness in his chest after only a few breaths. His breath became difficult to sustain, and his body suddenly reached a critical limit, unable to maintain the posture any longer. He stumbled back several steps.

Lin Yan was not discouraged, however. If martial arts were easy to learn, there would be no such thing as martial artists who could transcend their social class.

He continued to try: once, twice, three times...

After dozens of attempts, he still could not complete a full cycle of breathing and meditation.

By now, his body was aching and weak.

Is my breathing wrong, or was I just too confident? I should have swallowed my pride and asked Guard Zhou to demonstrate it on the spot, even if he mocked me.

Lin Yan gave a bitter smile and took the lesson to heart.

His skin was still not thick enough; he needed to improve.

After resting for a moment, he continued to practice.

Half an hour passed, then an hour.

As another cycle of breathing ended, Lin Yan's entire body suddenly shuddered. In the next moment, as if he had discovered something, he hurriedly sensed the strange tree in his mind.

A tiny, pale yellow bud was slowly emerging from the middle of a green branch on the left side.

In his perception, the bud gradually unfurled, transforming into a half-curled petal about the size of a fingernail—the prototype of a tender leaf.

At the same time, more information about the Martial Dao Tree appeared in his mind.

Practice a technique a hundred times, and its meaning will reveal itself!

Lin Yan's eyes lit up. As long as he practiced any technique a hundred times, he could use the tender buds produced by the Martial Dao Tree to achieve an entry-level mastery.

Lin Yan's mind stirred, and the tender leaf trembled slightly. An indescribable, cool sensation seemed to flow down from his Niwan Palace at the center of his brow, instantly permeating his limbs and bones, reaching deep into his consciousness.

He felt a "brightness" before his eyes—not a physical vision, but an internal awareness where he could clearly "see" his posture, his breathing, and even the imperceptible flow of blood and qi within his body as he had just performed the stance.

Every subtle mistake, every mismatch between his breath and his posture, and every instance of stiffness or slackness in his muscles and bones were illuminated by this cool energy, as clear as stones resting at the bottom of a pool.

Almost subconsciously, he reset himself into the starting position of the Rock Stance.

This time, the angle of his hips was three parts more natural than before. His spine was relaxed but not collapsed, and there was a newfound sense of harmony in the movement of his shoulders and elbows.

Most crucially, under the guidance of that cool energy, he completed a full cycle of breathing and meditation smoothly, without even realizing it!

Lin Yan's heart shook violently, but he dared not harbor a single distracting thought, fearing he might break this profound state. Following the cool guidance, he practiced it again, and then again.

Unknowingly, dozens of cycles passed.

A sense of hunger and exhaustion washed over his body, causing Lin Yan to slowly withdraw from this state of self-forgetfulness. As he finished his stance and stood up, he felt a warm sensation throughout his body, with a faint, extremely weak trace of heat settling in his dantian.

Rock Stance, mastered!

His body, however, was famished.

Enduring the hunger, Lin Yan walked toward the kitchen stove, his eyes bright.

This Martial Dao Tree of his was truly miraculous; it could actually guide him to master a cultivation technique.

This golden finger of his could be considered a small success.

After downing a bowl of lard-mixed rice, his stomach was half-full, and his aunt's voice drifted in from outside the door:

"Yan'er, come and help for a moment."

Lin Yan quickly set down his bowl and walked to the courtyard gate, where a flatbed cart was parked, loaded with two sacks.

The carter was a clerk from the city grain shop, and his aunt was settling the bill. Lin Yan stepped forward to help carry the sacks into the house.

"I've heard that if you practice martial arts, you have to eat well, or your qi and blood won't keep up and you'll end up depleting your body. These two bags are polished rice; that's what all the martial arts families eat."

Liu was also carrying a bag of pig offal. Given the Lin family's circumstances, they couldn't afford meat for every meal, but buying some cheap offal was manageable.

In the evening, Liu finished cooking, and Lin Mo happened to return just then.

"It smells so good! Did Mom buy meat today?"

Catching the scent of meat, Lin Mo reached out to grab a piece from the plate.

Slap!

Liu struck down with her chopsticks. Lin Mo pulled his hand back in pain, looking at his mother with a grievance-filled face.

"This is for your older brother to eat for his martial arts training."

"Aunt, it's fine if my little brother wants some; I won't be able to finish it all anyway." Seeing his younger brother staring longingly at the pig offal on the table, Lin Yan said with a smile.

"Absolutely not."

Liu's attitude was firm: "Yan'er, our family can only afford to support one person in martial arts. If we split it between two, your qi and blood won't be sufficiently replenished, and Mo'er is just satisfying a craving. If you feel bad for Mo'er, then work hard to make a name for yourself, and you can take care of him in the future."

Liu didn't understand grand principles, but she was decisive in her actions.

Few ordinary women would have the heart to close their shop, let alone move house, but she did it simply because she was certain it was better for the children's growth.

It was the same with Yan'er learning martial arts now; the family only had so much money, so every cent had to be spent on his training.

"Big brother, Mom is right. You need to eat more for your training. Once you make a name for yourself, just help me beat up Wang Dachui."

Lin Yan looked at his aunt's resolute expression, then at his little brother, and finally reached out to ruffle the boy's hair: "Aunt, I'll remember that."

"That's right." A smile returned to Liu's face, and she cautioned Lin Mo: "Mo'er, don't talk to anyone outside about your brother practicing martial arts."

After the meal.

Lin Yan's body had recovered, and he continued practicing his stance in the courtyard.

Lin Mo curiously followed along on the side, and seeing this, Lin Yan didn't stop him.

Without the breathing and meditation techniques, knowing only the stance was useless.

Because of Guard Zhou's warning, he didn't dare teach his brother the breathing method, but he had already made up his mind: once he achieved success, he would find a technique for his brother.

Over the next few days, Lin Yan stayed home to practice in peace.

Although there was no major change in his body or strength, Lin Yan was not discouraged, because the sprout in his mind was growing steadily.

Though the growth was slow, it was definitely growing.

According to the information about the Martial Dao Tree in his mind, this sprout corresponded to the Rock Stance he was practicing; when the sprout grew into a leaf, that would be the moment the Rock Stance was fully mastered.

Beyond practicing martial arts, he had also pondered many things over these past few days.

The most important of these was recalling the martial arts novels he had read in his past life.

Regardless of how different those novels were from the world he was in, some principles were universal and held reference value.

The Lime Martial Saint, the Cautious Martial Saint, the Delusional Martial Saint...

After a few days, combining his situation in this world, he set down a few codes of conduct for himself.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Is Brother Lin in?"

Hearing the familiar voice outside the door, Lin Yan narrowed his eyes, a coldness on his face, but by the time he opened the door, his expression had returned to normal.

"Brother Zhang, what brings you here?"

Seeing Zhang Dahai standing at the door holding a food box, Lin Yan acted surprised, though he felt no ripples in his heart.

If Zhang Dahai had set a trap for him, he must have known where he lived. He had likely been waiting outside for a long time, only knocking once he was sure his aunt had gone to deliver clothes to her employer.

"Brother Lin, you haven't come to get your medicinal soup for two days in a row. I was worried something had happened to you, so I specifically asked around to find where you lived."

"So that's it. I've troubled you, Brother Zhang."

Lin Yan realized, then a look of indignation appeared on his face: "Brother Zhang, a few days ago I told my aunt I wanted to practice martial arts, so I specifically quit my job at the shop. As a result, it made her angry, she locked me at home and wouldn't let me go out, and she even cut off my allowance."

"You didn't tell your aunt about the decoction I gave you, did you?"

Zhang Dahai's heart skipped a beat. The widow of the Lin family was a formidable woman; if this kid Lin Yan let it slip, he feared the widow would realize her nephew had been set up.

"Don't worry, Brother Zhang. I, Lin Yan, am a man of my word. Since I promised not to say anything, I definitely won't."

Lin Yan patted his chest with a loud thud, but his face immediately fell again: "Brother Zhang, could you ask that martial artist to come to my house? As long as that martial artist visits, my aunt definitely won't stop me from learning martial arts anymore."

"Visit my ass."

Zhang Dahai cursed inwardly. The martial artist at the teahouse that day was a member of his gang, which consisted of only two people total, specifically targeting fat sheep like Lin Yan. This time, there were two such sheep who had fallen for the trap.

"Brother Lin, what kind of status does that master have? How could he possibly come to your house?" Zhang Dahai shook his head: "Only after your body is properly nourished can I take you to see that martial artist."

"Alright then."

Lin Yan looked dejected, but Zhang Dahai didn't care about that. He opened the food box, which contained a bowl of already-brewed Blood-Activating Decoction.

"Brother Lin, I specifically brewed this decoction and brought it to you. You can't stop taking it; if you stop, the effects will be gone. Sign and press your thumbprint, then drink it while it's hot."

Watching Zhang Dahai pull out the ledger, Lin Yan didn't hesitate to sign and press his thumbprint, though he held the decoction in his hands without drinking it.

"Brother Lin, why aren't you drinking?"

"Brother Zhang, I... could I ask you for a favor?"

"What favor?"

Lin Yan looked a bit bashful: "Brother Zhang, since you're willing to let me buy the decoction on credit, could you lend me some money? Once I become the martial artist's apprentice in the future, I'll pay you back all at once."

He wants to take even more?

Zhang Dahai wanted to refuse outright, but he was afraid that doing so would cause this fat sheep to run off. He twitched his mouth: "What do you need to borrow money for?"

"Brother Zhang, my aunt's birthday is coming up. I was thinking of buying her some jewelry to appease her so I can go out." Lin Yan explained the reason, then patted his chest again with a loud thud: "Don't worry, Brother Zhang, it'll be the same as before. Once I succeed in my training, I'll pay you back many times over."

Buying jewelry?

Zhang Dahai pondered for a moment. If he bought jewelry, it would still end up in the hands of the Lin widow, and eventually, it would return to his own pockets.

"How much do you want to borrow?"

"Ten taels."

Zhang Dahai's eyes widened.

"Eight taels... or seven would be fine too."

"I only have three taels. If you want to borrow it, you have to write down that you'll pay back double."

Zhang Dahai cut Lin Yan off directly. He didn't demand double repayment for the decoction because that Blood-Activating Decoction only cost a few coppers to make, but this silver he was lending out was his own hard-earned cash.

"Fine, three taels it is."

Lin Yan looked a bit dissatisfied, but in the end, he readily signed and pressed his thumbprint on the paper.

Confirming that Lin Yan had written down the double repayment, Zhang Dahai finally pulled a money pouch from his chest. After counting for a long time, the loose silver wasn't enough to make three taels, so he finally pulled half a string of copper coins from his waist to make up the difference.

After seeing Zhang Dahai off with a smile and closing the door, Lin Yan pondered deeply.

Working as a shop assistant, he got one meal a day and a monthly wage of three hundred coppers. For Zhang Dahai to struggle to scrape together three taels of silver, even if he didn't have all his money on him, his total net worth shouldn't exceed ten taels.

In this light, Zhang Dahai's gang wasn't very powerful; at most, they were just street-level thugs.

Borrowing money from Zhang Dahai was partly because he was indeed short on cash, but it was also a test of the strength of Zhang Dahai's gang.