Becoming a Martial Artist

Lin Yi took the silver his uncle Lin Changgong had handed him and turned to leave.

"Good nephew, wait!"

Lin Yi stopped in his tracks.

Lin Changgong shook his head helplessly and muttered, "What a cold little fellow. You're exactly like your father was back then!"

With that, he flicked his sleeve, sending a thin booklet flying toward Lin Yi.

Lin Yi reacted quickly and caught it. Looking down, he couldn't help showing a hint of surprise.

Lin Changgong's voice drifted over. "You know our Lin Clan used to run an Escort Agency. Study what's in there carefully. Don't bring shame upon our ancestors' name."

Lin Yi looked at his second uncle with mixed feelings.

But Lin Changgong said no more. He left Lin Yi with only the sight of his retreating figure, hands clasped behind his back as he slowly walked deeper into the house.

Lin Yi bowed slightly toward the door as it began to close.

He did know that the Lin Clan had once run an Escort Agency.

The foundation of an Escort Agency was the Martial Way.

Though its overall strength might not match that of the famous martial arts schools, anyone capable of keeping an Escort Agency running had to be a first-rate fighter.

As for why his eldest uncle, Lin Hua, had never taught him any martial arts techniques, the reason was simple: Lin Hua himself had no talent for martial arts. He had never truly practiced, and little remained in his memory of the techniques passed down through the Lin Clan.

Lin Yi gently opened the manual in his hands. The ink was fresh, and the neat, forceful handwriting carried a resolute quality.

His second uncle, Lin Changgong, must have copied it out by hand just recently.

Only after Lin Changgong had disappeared completely into the house did Lin Yi slowly come back to himself.

His second uncle seemed... very different from the person he remembered.

He couldn't help thinking again of that night, when a corpse had lain soundlessly in the courtyard.

Had his second uncle had anything to do with it?

With his thoughts in turmoil, Lin Yi turned and left.

Inside, Lin Changgong watched Lin Yi's retreating figure and murmured, "Judging by his aura, he hasn't condensed True Qi yet. I didn't sense any Corpse Puppet Path yin energy, either. But his Martial Way essence is abundant... So it wasn't him that night?"

He fell silent for a moment, then let out a soft sigh. "Forget it. I only hope the boy will make something of himself in the future..."

After leaving Lin Changgong's residence, Lin Yi felt inside his sleeve.

There were thirty taels of silver his second uncle had given him, along with the fifty-tael banknote Member Jia had practically forced on him that morning.

He didn't hurry home. Instead, he detoured to a familiar shop nearby and carefully bought a supply of dried beef, along with several basic medicinal ingredients he needed for his daily training.

The herbs weren't particularly valuable, but they could nourish his blood and vital energy and aid in cultivating the Long Rainbow Technique.

Once he had finished his shopping, Lin Yi returned to the secluded courtyard he had bought in the outskirts.

He shut the doors and windows, went straight into the hidden chamber, and lit the oil lamp. Then he solemnly took out the manual Lin Changgong had given him and began to read it closely.

After only a few pages, Lin Yi's pupils suddenly contracted.

This martial technique wasn't an ordinary movement art, hidden weapon technique, saber art, or sword art.

It was an exceedingly rare kind of technique—one that amplified the user's abilities.

Its name was Wind Forest Fire Mountain.

However, Lin Yi would have to cultivate this technique on his own, so his progress would probably be much slower.

Lin Yi put the manual away carefully.

Now, he had nothing left to worry about and could focus all his efforts on breaking through.

[Long Rainbow Technique (Fourth Level)]

[Proficiency: 1425/1500]

He needed less than a hundred proficiency points to reach the fourth level's great completion and cultivate the Long Rainbow Technique to the threshold of a breakthrough.

Lin Yi silently calculated the time it would take and continued training methodically.

He would need only about five days to build up enough blood and vital energy to attempt to breach the Martial Pass that stood between the mundane and the transcendent.

With his breakthrough imminent, he made even more preparations and didn't dare slack off for a moment.

The sun rose and the moon set, and time slipped quietly by.

In the blink of an eye, five days had passed.

That night, all was silent. Only a small lamp glowed in the hidden chamber.

Lin Yi sat cross-legged, his mind focused, as his blood and vital energy surged through his body like a river.

When he completed the final cycle, a light screen visible only to him appeared before his eyes.

[Practiced the Long Rainbow Technique, proficiency +1]

[Long Rainbow Technique (Fourth Level)]

[Proficiency: 1499/1500]

He was only one step away.

Lin Yi exhaled deeply, releasing a breath he had held for a long time. It carried a faint trace of heat.

The blood and vital energy inside him had built up to their limit, like floodwaters on the verge of bursting through a dam. They churned through every limb, desperately seeking an outlet.

"Those who travel a hundred miles consider themselves only halfway after ninety..." he murmured, slowly getting to his feet.

The moment he rose, his bones cracked in a series of sharp pops, like bamboo joints bursting.

His long-suppressed blood and vital energy surged free. He became a blazing furnace, radiating astonishing heat.

He didn't linger. Opening the hidden chamber's door, he followed the secret passage and stepped into the courtyard.

The night breeze brushed his face, cooling his burning thoughts and clearing his head a little.

He had been training in martial arts for less than two months. The events of the past seemed to drift before his eyes like fallen leaves.

He had painstakingly hidden his abilities day after day, carefully gathering every hard-won resource.

His eldest uncle's family had spent their own wealth to support his training, holding nothing back...

He had seen so much, too.

In the martial arts school, countless trainees were stuck at this final step before a breakthrough. They spent their lives striving, only to make no progress.

Lin Yi's gaze was distant, his expression calm.

Once he broke through the Martial Pass, he would be a true Martial Artist.

By then, he would have the strength to shoulder certain responsibilities, protect certain people, and accomplish certain things...

"Break through..." he sighed, releasing the last trace of restraint he had placed on the immense blood and vital energy within him.

The next moment!

The blood and vital energy he had built up to the limit turned into wave after wave of savage, overwhelming power that thundered through his body.

His meridians throbbed with pain, as if they were about to burst.

His muscles trembled through a cycle of tearing and rebuilding, growing tougher and stronger with every moment.

The power moved from the outside in, seeping through his flesh and skin, tempering his bones and blood, then surging into his organs and coursing through his extraordinary meridians.

Agonizing pain and a strange tingling sensation intermingled, washing over his body again and again and pushing his physique to a peak it had never reached before.

At the same time, a warm sensation, mysterious and profound, quietly arose deep within his dantian.

It was different from the Corpse Puppet Path True Qi, which gave off a gloomy aura.

Martial Way True Qi extended into countless fine streams, spreading along his meridians to every limb and blending seamlessly with the surging power of his flesh and blood.

True Qi!

This was the True Qi that only a Martial Artist could wield!

In an instant, the entire world took on a new clarity in his senses.

He clearly heard a withered leaf fall a hundred meters away, twirling through the air before lightly brushing the ground.

He could even detect the faint yet powerful heartbeat of a hibernating toad beneath a thick layer of mud, a hundred meters away. It pounded as though it were right beside his ear.

At that moment, Lin Yi knew with absolute clarity.

He was a Martial Artist now.

Everything had fallen into place as naturally as water flowing into a channel.

From now on, most of the martial arts school's monthly tuition would be waived.

He could also enter the inner academy to study more advanced martial arts, and the academy would provide him with fine meat every day to nourish his body.

He could take up a position as a guest retainer, supported by wealthy landowners and gentry. As a disciple of the martial arts school, he would also enjoy many conveniences he had once never dared imagine.

But at that moment, those thoughts merely flashed through his mind.