[I Can Be That Person]

Early the next morning, Shen Xiu rose at daybreak.

Following the location the steward had mentioned the day before, he arrived at the External Affairs Hall within the martial arts school.

By the time he stepped back out the gates, he had two sets of light azure standard short robes in hand, close-fitting training outfits for daily practice.

Besides that, he had also received a Formal Disciple token, and even his residence had been changed.

Led by a steward, Shen Xiu soon arrived at his new quarters.

It was a secluded little courtyard, not particularly spacious, but it had the advantage of being a home all to itself.

When he pushed open the door and entered, the place had already been cleaned and carried a faint scent of medicinal incense. The furnishings were fairly complete as well.

The clean and orderly sight made him feel refreshed and at ease.

The days of sleeping in the communal bunk room had truly been unbearable. More than a dozen people crammed into one room, where the space was narrow and the ventilation poor—scorching in summer and damply cold in winter.

The smell of who knew whose feet and an inexplicable sour stench drifted everywhere. Shen Xiu felt that if he stayed any longer, he would be pickled through and through.

Now, he had finally changed environments.

After familiarizing himself with the place, Shen Xiu made a trip to the Labor Disciples' quarters to pack his belongings. Yet he had little to pack: two pieces of ragged clothing and a few taels of silver.

On the way, he ran into the despondent Wang Si and offered him some comfort, but Wang Si's smile was forced, and he gave little response.

Once he had settled into his new residence, a steward came to summon him to Instructor Duan's place.

Shen Xiu was somewhat surprised, unsure why Instructor Duan wanted to see him.

But after thinking it over, he felt it should not be anything bad.

Although Instructor Duan had spent the shortest time at the martial arts school among the instructors, he was easygoing, and both Labor Disciples and Registered Disciples spoke highly of him.

If it had been Li Yan, one of the five instructors, Shen Xiu would have found some way not to go. There was no other reason: among all the instructors, only that man was both greedy for money and addicted to wine as if it were his life.

The few taels of silver his former self had gotten from selling the house deed had been stuffed into Instructor Li Yan's hands.

After putting away his things, Shen Xiu quickly arrived at Instructor Duan's courtyard. Duan Hongfei was sweating lightly on the forehead and sat comfortably on a stone chair in the courtyard, drinking tea.

He was clearly resting after training.

"Instructor Duan, you summoned me." Stepping into the courtyard, Shen Xiu bent at the waist and cupped his hands.

Duan Hongfei nodded slightly. "Your assessment yesterday was good. Three Resonances Power—you've entered the Lower Body Tempering Realm, haven't you?"

"I only just entered it."

"Entering Body Tempering in half a year is not an especially remarkable pace, but it is still fairly good, better than most disciples. I heard you have practiced the Dragon Subduing Tiger Taming Art diligently. Show me a complete set now, and let me have a look."

"Yes, Instructor Duan."

Shen Xiu nodded, shifted his stance, and began directly in the spacious courtyard. His fists and palms stirred up fierce gusts of wind, carrying considerable force.

At the side, Duan Hongfei watched and nodded to himself.

Though the Dragon Subduing Tiger Taming Art was merely an Extraordinary Grade Body Tempering technique, its progress was slow. For Shen Xiu to have trained it to this extent in half a year, aside from putting in considerable hard work, his comprehension truly had to be quite good.

"Do it again."

After one round was finished, Duan Hongfei, seated at the side, spoke once more. Shen Xiu nodded without suspecting anything and began demonstrating it again from the start.

"When you threw that punch just now, put thirty percent of your strength into the elbow..."

"Move the right side of your waist one finger-width to the left, then use eighty percent of your strength..."

At this point, Duan Hongfei rose from his seat, walked to Shen Xiu's side, and began instructing him point by point.

After practicing the Dragon Subduing Tiger Taming Art for so long, Shen Xiu could be said to have made virtually no mistakes.

Yet when he practiced according to the small details Instructor Duan pointed out, the flow and exertion of force in the technique became far smoother, while several killing moves became even sharper and fiercer.

After completing another round, the proficiency of the Dragon Subduing Tiger Taming Art unexpectedly increased by a full 2%.

Sure enough, guidance from an instructor made all the difference.

"Now that you have become a Formal Disciple, I presume you know some of the martial arts school's rules. After becoming a Formal Disciple, you must complete three assigned tasks each month."

"The martial arts school will give you one month to adjust. Make good use of that time. Also, do not forget the Pharmacy Hall's five monthly servings of Qi Cultivation Soup. The physician was invited by the school master from Shanglin City, and that medicinal soup is highly beneficial to both training and cultivation."

Standing off to the side, Shen Xiu listened with rapt attention. This was experience from someone who had been through it before, and it would help him avoid many detours.

Seeing Shen Xiu listening so earnestly, Duan Hongfei nodded inwardly, greatly satisfied.

"Instructor Duan, this junior knows that after becoming a Formal Disciple, I can choose another technique. Do you have any recommendations?"

Before leaving, Shen Xiu suddenly remembered this and turned back to ask.

"The Dragon Subduing Tiger Taming Art tempers the physique and refines blood and qi, while the Thirteen Stances also contains killing moves. If you need another technique, it would be best to choose a saber art. In the early stages of martial cultivation, one still cannot withstand the might of blades and weapons. The saying that the saber is the courage of a hundred weapons is no empty boast."

"Then what kind of saber art should I choose?"

"I have one here. I just do not know whether you are willing to learn it. I obtained this saber art by chance, and by rank, its power is close enough to a Mysterious Grade martial skill."

A saber art close to a Mysterious Grade martial skill?

Shen Xiu's eyes lit up at those words.

In an age when Dao Grade secret arts were as rare as Phoenix Feather and Unicorn Horn, and Divine Grade methods remained long hidden from view, Mysterious Grade techniques were already exceptionally precious.

Even Extraordinary Grade techniques with a rank were difficult to come by, let alone a saber art nearing the Mysterious Grade.

Such a technique could likely be treated as an inherited martial art in many of Taixi City's lineages.

One had to know that Yang Jinhong, the school master who had founded the Golden Rainbow Martial Arts School, had once carried a great saber from the eastern side of the city to the western side, cutting his way through with the Seven Luminaries Gate Breaking Saber—and even that was only rated Lower-grade Mysterious Grade.

A technique like this, calculated in true worth, would be worth a thousand pieces of gold without exaggeration.

Yet as Shen Xiu thought further, he suddenly calmed down.

Would Instructor Duan truly hand such a precious saber art to him so readily?

"Instructor Duan, this..."

"You mean it is too valuable, don't you?"

Shen Xiu nodded. He understood the principle of not accepting rewards without merit.

Instructor Duan smiled, and a look of reminiscence surfaced in his eyes.

"How should I put it? This saber art was not mine. More than ten years ago, Hedong Region suffered a great drought. I was one of the refugees then, and afterward I ended up in a city working as a laborer. The boss would beat and curse me at the slightest provocation. When I was beaten half to death, a passerby saved me, gave me silver, and gave me a saber manual..."

"After that, I escaped my predicament. Yet my talent was truly ordinary, and I fear I buried his saber art. Later, I thought of finding him, thanking him, and returning the technique to him..."

"But afterward, no matter how I searched, I could not find that person. I did not even know his name..."

"Later, I thought, if I could not find him, then so be it. If I could not find that person, I could be that person..."

As though tired from speaking, Duan Hongfei paused for a while, took a sip of tea, and smiled. "Shen Xiu, I have watched you for nearly a year now. You are very good..."

Shen Xiu did not understand, nor did he know what exactly Duan Hongfei meant by "very good."

Yet he did not know that once, while Duan Hongfei was out traveling, he had happened to glimpse a scene on the road.

A struggling youth hurried through the city. Passing an old woman on the street selling her daughter, he frowned and walked away, but after taking a few steps, he hesitated for a while.

Then he turned back and tossed down more than a dozen copper coins.

In an empty corner after leaving again, Duan Hongfei clearly saw the youth curse himself for his overflowing sympathy and mourn those few copper coins, yet he never once turned back.

At that time, Duan Hongfei could not help but laugh heartily.

He seemed to see someone from long ago, carrying a certain similar quality...

"Those few copper coins bought one saber art from me. That should not count as a loss, should it..."

Duan Hongfei sat idly in the courtyard and drained the tea in his cup in one gulp. His eyes narrowed as he gazed into the distance, a faint smile lingering on his face...