Turtle-Snake Great Stance

"Master Lin, I'll leave them in your hands!"

Huang Jin did not linger. He had not come to supervise everyone's training, but to make arrangements with the Mighty Far Hall and pay the fees.

As for whether Xu Yang and the others trained diligently, the Huang Family did not care at all. Besides, he could always ask the Mighty Far Hall about that.

If they merely wanted to coast along without putting in effort, stopping their payments would naturally get them kicked out of the Mighty Far Hall.

"Greetings, Master Lin!"

As soon as Huang Jin left, everyone cupped their hands in salute to Lin Cheng.

Although they were paying to learn, they still had to show the proper respect and courtesy.

Lin Cheng nodded slightly, sweeping his gaze over the ten of them before letting it linger on Lu Ren. "What do you think matters most in martial training?"

"Bone Root!"

"Perseverance!"

"The ability to endure hardship!"

"Hard work and persistence!"

Their answers varied, but Bone Root was the most common. After all, if Bone Root were not the most important thing, the Huang Family would not have examined their bones before choosing them.

As for hardship and perseverance, plenty of people could endure hardship and persevere. Why had the Huang Family chosen only them? Oxen and horses could toil tirelessly too, but could oxen and horses practice martial arts?

"Money!" Xu Yang spoke from the heart.

He had spent half a year preparing to learn martial arts, and money was what he had heard about most. Few people who heard his plans told him he lacked talent or could not endure hardship. What they said most often was that he had no money.

To pay for Yang Jun's martial training, Second Xu had even set his sights on the few hundred copper coins Xu Yang had earned through blood and sweat in the mine.

Lin Cheng gave Xu Yang a surprised look, then nodded. "Correct. Money. Without money, you wouldn't even get to see me!"

Luo Dehu, Lu Ren, and the others were dumbfounded. They had never expected a master like Lin Cheng to be so mercenary, talking about money the moment he opened his mouth.

"Don't think I'm mercenary. I only want to tell you that, for others, Bone Root, perseverance, and such things might matter most in martial training. But for you, what matters most is money.

"The Huang Family examined your bones, so you naturally all have the Bone Root needed to train. You all come from the bottom rungs of society, so hard work and hardship are nothing new to you. The one thing you lack is precisely money."

"And martial training burns through money faster than anything.

"Never mind medicinal decoctions. Food alone can eat some modest households out of house and home."

Everyone was puzzled. Was Master Lin trying to persuade them not to train?

Lin Cheng continued, "If you can't even eat your fill, then even someone with B-Grade Upper Bone Root like Lu Ren won't become a martial artist after ten years of training. So the first lesson I'm teaching you today is to eat. Eat for all you're worth. Every time, eat until your belly can't hold another bite. Ideally, eat four or five meals a day. That way, you might someday struggle free of the mire."

"Talk to your families when you go home tonight. If you have any money, bring it all out and spend it on good food."

His advice might not have been universally correct, but for this group struggling in the mire, it was gospel truth.

After all, food was the one thing the Huang Family provided generously. They could eat as much as they liked.

"We have learned our lesson. Thank you for your instruction, Master Lin." Everyone cupped their hands in unison.

Lin Cheng nodded inwardly. Rich disciples had their strengths, and poor ones had theirs. At the very least, he did not need to remind this group to work hard and endure hardship. What remained was a question of comprehension.

"Come. I'll teach you stance training first. Stance training is the foundation of all methods, and the foremost way to nourish your qi and blood and temper your body. For beginners, it is more important than fist techniques."

They were finally about to truly encounter martial arts. Everyone grew excited, their eyes fixed on Lin Cheng. Even the group practicing fist techniques nearby rushed over in a swarm and gathered around him.

He assumed a strange posture, resembling a great python rearing upright. A fierce aura radiated from him, his skin began to turn crimson, and his already burly body swelled further, revealing powerful muscles like tangled tree roots.

"This is the Turtle-Snake Great Stance. Turtles and snakes live long lives. We martial artists often carry hidden injuries, some of which even medicine cannot heal. Only stance training can repair them. Remember this: no matter how high your cultivation becomes, practice this stance once every morning and evening. It can prolong your life."

Xu Yang and the others watched while beginning to imitate Lin Cheng's movements.

"Don't rush to copy my movements. The true core of stance training isn't the movements, but the breathing method. Watch the rhythm of my breathing and the way my skin expands and contracts..."

Xu Yang watched Lin Cheng with rapt attention. At one point, a faint light flashed before his eyes, and the Martial Longevity Panel appeared.

[Turtle-Snake Great Stance · Not yet Entry (0/5)]

His eyelids twitched involuntarily. He had not actually memorized everything Lin Cheng had taught, but now, whenever he tried to recall it, the panel supplied images of Lin Cheng and his words.

He had not remembered it, but the panel had remembered it for him. All that remained was to practice by copying the model, like drawing a gourd from another gourd.

Of course, it was not quite that simple. It merely meant he always had a replay available. The advantage was that he did not have to strain to memorize anything; the difficulty of training itself had not changed.

It only takes five proficiency points to reach Entry.

Xu Yang did not yet know how much difficulty that "5" represented, and he did not dwell on it.

"Give it a try!" Lin Cheng ended his practice and straightened, his crimson skin returning to normal.

The ten spread out and each assumed the posture he remembered.

"Not bad!"

Lin Cheng swept his gaze over them, looking first at Lu Ren, who had the best Bone Root, and nodded inwardly.

Although Lu Ren's Turtle-Snake Great Stance was still a complete mess, it was the best among the ten.

He examined each of them, committing their first attempts at stance training to memory, then strode forward and corrected them one by one.

"Draw in your chest and stretch your back!"

"Sink your qi into your dantian."

"Your sinews and bones should seem relaxed, but actually be taut."

"Don't deliberately hold your breath."

After making one round, he went to instruct the disciples who had been practicing fist techniques earlier.

Once he had instructed everyone, Lin Cheng called toward the rear courtyard, "Sun Tao, come here!"

The man in white from earlier soon appeared. Lin Cheng pointed at him and said, "This is your senior brother Sun Tao. He'll guide you through the basics from here."

With that, he strode away.

Everyone exchanged looks. Instead of continuing to teach them the Turtle-Snake Great Stance, Lin Cheng had left it to this senior brother named Sun Tao. One tael of silver had bought them only that tiny sliver of instruction.

"Don't expect Master to teach you himself. Until you've reached Entry in the Turtle-Snake Great Stance, he won't teach you again. This

"is only the outer courtyard. Master generally comes once every half month.

"If ten of you hadn't arrived together this time, you wouldn't even have seen him."

Sun Tao seemed to understand what Xu Yang and the others were thinking, and immediately explained.

"Senior Brother Sun, what counts as Entry in the Turtle-Snake Great Stance?" someone asked.

Xu Yang looked over and saw that the question came from the youth ranked second in Bone Root, with a B-Grade Upper rating. He remembered that his name was Zhang Yong.

Sun Tao smiled. "Once you feel strength rising from the ground, and your qi and blood boil throughout your body like boiling water as you hold the stance, you've reached Entry in the Turtle-Snake Great Stance."

He was responsible for guiding new outer-courtyard disciples through initiation, which naturally included answering their questions and explaining basic martial knowledge.

"How long does initiation generally take?" This time, Lu Ren asked.

Sun Tao glanced at him. "For someone exceptionally talented, perhaps three to five days. For someone who struggles, it's possible they'll never achieve it in their entire life."

Several faces changed dramatically at those words.

"Senior Brother Sun, does talent mean Bone Root?" Luo Dehu asked.

Sun Tao shook his head. "No. Martial talent doesn't consist of Bone Root alone. There's also comprehension. I know the Huang Family examined your bones, but let me tell you: Bone Root is certainly important, yet comprehension must not be overlooked either."

"The Mighty Far Hall doesn't test Bone Root, because there are too many examples of people with good Bone Root who never became martial artists."

"All right, stop asking these useless questions for now. First, you need to learn the Turtle-Snake Great Stance."

Everyone's heart tightened. Those who had been feeling smug about their Bone Root immediately put those little notions aside.