Time flew by.
In the blink of an eye, ten days had passed.
Gu Sheng's days followed a strict routine. He rose early to chop wood, practiced archery in the afternoon, and in the evening, pulled his bow and held his stance within his limits to train his balance. This was a little trick Gu Sheng had discovered by chance, and it made his archery proficiency rise even faster.
In just ten days, Gu Sheng's archery had reached 40% of the beginner stage, even faster than he had expected!
At this pace, his archery might reach minor mastery in less than half a month.
The current Gu Sheng—
Drawing his bow and nocking an arrow had become second nature. His arms were steady, and with one shot, he could accurately hit a fist-sized target fifty meters away.
Although he was still far behind Gu Erniu, for a beginner, this progress was already astonishingly fast.
Ever since archery had been entered into the panel, Gu Sheng had gradually revealed his monstrous talent.
Gu Erniu had originally thought that if Gu Sheng could shoot steadily and accurately within a month, without straying too far from the intended direction, that would already be very good. But the result left him utterly dumbfounded.
He discovered—
Gu Sheng was simply a monster. Every time he shot an arrow, he improved. A mistake he had made once would never be repeated a second time.
He constantly corrected his own flaws as well.
On top of that, Gu Sheng was incredibly diligent. As his proficiency in Chopping Wood rose, he squeezed out more and more time to practice archery. With both advancing together, it would have been difficult for him not to improve.
By the end, Gu Erniu had nothing left to teach Gu Sheng.
All that remained was for Gu Sheng to slowly polish his skills through time.
Gu Erniu kept saying that he had misjudged him. What mediocre talent for archery? Gu Sheng was clearly an archery genius!
After his astonishment came immense delight. The stronger Gu Sheng's talent was, the faster he could reach the higher realms of archery and help him. That was a good thing; Gu Erniu felt no jealousy.
If Gu Sheng truly prospered one day, Gu Erniu could bask in some of his glory as well.
Yet Gu Sheng merely smiled at Gu Erniu's praise and astonishment, without becoming complacent.
Only he himself knew that he relied on nothing more than the panel. He still needed to work even harder.
That day—
Gu Sheng was chopping wood at the main household.
Crack!
Crack!
The crisp sounds of firewood splitting echoed through the woodshed, dense and rhythmic.
Gu Sheng's Chopping Wood proficiency had now reached 99% at the major mastery stage. He could exert force as naturally as breathing. The instant his axe touched a piece of wood, he could clearly sense the changes in its grain. With only a little strength, he could split it open with ease.
This was also why Gu Sheng spent less and less time chopping wood. Since he used less strength, he needed less rest as well.
"Major mastery in Chopping Wood lets me borrow strength from my entire body and exert force as I please. But Chopping Wood at the perfected stage goes a step further—it lets me sense the grain of the wood and split it at its weakest points!"
Gu Sheng's eyes shone brightly.
He had completely grasped the direction of perfected Chopping Wood.
It was a more profound realm, shifting from relying on oneself to relying on the object, from exerting force to sensing.
At that moment—
Gu Sheng casually swung his axe, splitting piece after piece of firewood into two even halves, each one so precise that it seemed measured.
At one point, Gu Sheng brought his axe down. The sensing ability within his heart suddenly surged, as though he could see every detail inside the log with perfect clarity.
Crack!
The axe split down along the grain. Gu Sheng even felt that he had merely sent the axe forward slightly, yet the wood had already divided into two halves and fallen to either side.
Gu Sheng stood rooted in place, silently savoring that wondrous moment. Joy filled his eyes.
"Is this... the perfected stage? It's so strong!"
Gu Sheng could truly feel the immense increase in the power of Chopping Wood. It now carried the flavor of martial arts.
"Chopping Wood can sense the grain. If I were chopping a person or a beast, I could sense their vital points, cut bone and sever tendons, and carve them apart as easily as an ox!"
Gu Sheng seemed to gain some insight. If he had possessed perfected Chopping Wood when the wild wolf attacked at night, one swing would have been enough to easily kill it without even needing to break its back.
He opened the panel. Beside Chopping Wood, it had changed to perfected 0%!
"Hmm? There's another realm after perfection?"
Gu Sheng was somewhat stunned.
He vaguely remembered that the martial arts panel he had designed in his previous life only had four realms: beginner, minor mastery, major mastery, and perfection. Yet a progress bar had appeared after the perfected stage, which meant he could continue grinding experience even after reaching perfection!
"Could the panel have changed somehow after crossing over with me?"
Gu Sheng's gaze flickered as he considered all kinds of possibilities. At the same time, anticipation rose in his heart as he wondered what new surprises might appear after the perfected stage.
After resting for a while and calming himself down, Gu Sheng continued chopping wood.
Once he had finished the remaining three hundred-odd logs, the progress bar beside Chopping Wood still had not risen to 1%.
Gu Sheng was not anxious. He would continue chopping tomorrow. As long as there was a progress bar, he had nothing to fear. He simply had to keep grinding!
But it was not all bad news.
Based on the pace just now, he estimated that he would be able to chop a thousand logs in half a day from now on. That meant Gu Sheng would have more time to practice archery.
Not only that, chopping wood consumed less stamina, leaving his arm muscles in much better condition. Gu Sheng's efficiency in practicing archery would likewise increase considerably.
With the two combined, Gu Sheng's rate of improvement in archery would increase by at least fifty or sixty percent!
At the thought, a smile appeared at the corner of Gu Sheng's lips.
Rapidly increasing his strength was naturally a good thing.
After packing up, Gu Sheng received ten copper coins for the day from Gu He. Gu He's eyes were full of amazement.
He had watched this youth grow step by step with his own eyes. The current Gu Sheng no longer looked frail in the slightest. His body had visibly filled out, and his progress in chopping wood was even more shocking.
In just about a month, he had gone from barely managing to chop two hundred-odd logs a day to finishing a thousand logs ahead of schedule.
Gu He often marveled at Gu Sheng's exceptional comprehension and his extraordinary talent for exerting force.
"Gu Sheng, have you considered learning martial arts in the future? Martial arts require no small amount of wealth."
Gu He offered a reminder.
"My third younger brother has a daughter your age..."
There was no need to spell things out when speaking to a smart person. Gu He's meaning was simple: if Gu Sheng became family with him, he would be willing to support Gu Sheng's martial arts training.
It would benefit both sides. Gu He had hinted at it several times before, but never this directly. It seemed he had received approval from that side.
Gu Sheng froze, then replied after considering his words.
"Thank you for your kindness, Steward, but Gu Sheng is still young and has no thoughts of marriage for now. I can only disappoint your good intentions."
Gu He immediately fell silent.
He could not understand why Gu Sheng would refuse. For the son of a tenant farmer, this was an exceptional opportunity. Though it was not like marrying a daughter of the main household and rising to the heavens in one step, gaining Gu He's support was still rare assistance. His future martial path would be more than ten times smoother.
Gu Sheng was a smart person. He should not have refused.
Unfortunately, Gu He did not know Gu Sheng's ambitions.
Although he was currently trapped in this tiny Gu Family Village, Gu Sheng's heart was vast. Sooner or later, he would go out and see the world beyond.
Perhaps he would marry someday, but it definitely would not be now.
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