After a full two hours, Zhou Muzhi understood the suffering of martial training.
His entire body ached, his muscles trembling.
These were merely the most superficial outward reactions.
His internal organs felt as though someone had punched them over and over, as though ants were biting into them-painful, but not fatal.
He did not consider himself someone who could persevere, but with a great terror chasing him from behind, he could only grit his teeth and keep going.
In the open courtyard of the front grounds, with flowers and plants growing along all four sides, Li Jingfei took the wine flask from his waist and poured himself a mouthful.
Sounding reasonably satisfied, he said, "Not bad. Neither too old nor too young, neither good nor bad natural aptitude. With perseverance alone to sustain you, you could just about manage to make something of yourself."
Then he put away his wine flask and leisurely headed toward the rear courtyard.
Seeing him leave as soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Muzhi grew a little anxious and called out, "Master!"
"Stop!"
Li Jingfei immediately corrected him. "You're only here to learn from me for a while. All I'm teaching you are the basics that can be passed on to anyone. That doesn't qualify me to be your master."
Clearly, he was not so easily persuaded. If Zhou Muzhi failed to meet his standards, their relationship would probably amount to no more than a passing acquaintance.
Zhou Muzhi could only change his form of address. "Master Li!"
"Yes? What else is there?"
He could also tell that Zhou Muzhi had something to ask, so he stopped again.
Zhou Muzhi voiced the questions on his mind. "How are the levels of martial arts divided? And roughly how long will it take me to reach the entry level of body condensation? Also... do you know any methods for exorcising evil, Master Li?"
Li Jingfei's gaze remained calm and indifferent. This time, he looked Zhou Muzhi up and down, his fingers tapping lightly against the edge of his wine flask, before finally speaking.
"You seem... very anxious?"
He had sensed the unease in the young master of the Zhou Family standing before him.
Zhou Muzhi nodded in tacit acknowledgment.
"Very well, I'll tell you about it."
Whether because Li Jingfei himself was easy to talk to or because the letter of introduction from his second brother carried considerable weight, the master standing on the winding path began clearing up Zhou Muzhi's doubts.
"The martial path begins with body condensation. Tempering your blood and qi is an oft-repeated principle, but the most important thing is to train your flesh well, to train it until you achieve something: strength to rival a breeding bull, defenses capable of stopping three feet of gleaming steel. That is successfully completing body condensation and knocking at the next gate.
"As for the realm after that, it involves gathering the five qi. That realm is too far from you. There's no point in learning too much about it."
Li Jingfei seemed to sink into recollection. With his hands behind his back, his voice paused before resuming.
"As for when you'll reach the entry level, the requirements aren't particularly strict. If you can lift a three-hundred-jin stone lock with one hand and your skin can withstand the claws of domestic fowl, that counts as reaching the entry level. Roughly... three months should do!"
Watching his changing expression toward the end, and hearing his choice of words, Zhou Muzhi knew that much of what this master had said earlier was probably empty praise. His aptitude was likely utterly mediocre.
"As for exorcising evil..." Li Jingfei took a rare moment to think before saying, "The Profound Sect is more useful than martial arts in that regard. But all methods return to the same source. A martial artist's blood and qi are powerful; ordinary evil entities cannot even approach."
Then his words took another turn. "In today's Song Kingdom, scholars have the best lot. Neither the Profound Sect nor martial arts are doing particularly well anymore. Many inheritances have been broken off. If you know distinguished scholars or high ministers, you could also find someone to resolve such troubles."
Having said this, Li Jingfei looked at Zhou Muzhi, who was still pondering slowly, and spoke no more. He followed the winding path toward the rear courtyard, his gray-clad figure vanishing among the trees and flowers.
Zhou Muzhi's eyes were still. Apart from martial arts, none of the methods Li Jingfei had mentioned were within his reach.
His family was merely a minor clan in the county town and had essentially no dealings with officials of the Song Kingdom, much less high-ranking ones.
As for the Profound Sect, had this body's parents not already gone to seek help from the True Immortal Temple? That path was difficult too.
"Only martial arts!"
Things grew increasingly clear in Zhou Muzhi's mind.
Feeling the pain in his body also strengthened his resolve to follow this path.
What he needed to do now was use deduction points to deduce a way forward.
If he truly proceeded according to his own aptitude, three months later he would probably be nothing but dry bones in a grave.
He walked over to a small table in the pavilion to one side. On it lay a book with curled edges, large, archaic lettering, and a dark-blue cover.
"Turning Lock Body Condensation Method"
He opened the booklet. There were illustrations and annotations, as well as insights written by predecessors in the blank spaces.
These were not the main point. Upon coming into contact with this body condensation method, the deduction panel changed.
[Body condensation method annotated by an accomplished martial artist] [Current deduction paths] [1. Simplify the difficulty of circulating the method (effect: doubles progress). Deduction points required: 1] [2. Advance the method (effect: greatly improves the effects of practicing the method). Deduction points required: 2] [3. Obtain the true martial intent within the book and gain the wisdom of predecessors (effect: enhances understanding of methods in the same series and grants a state of sudden enlightenment). Deduction points required: 3]
This book offered three branches. In Zhou Muzhi's eyes, the third was what he needed. As for the other two, there was no time for them.
With a thought, he acted.
In a rush, his brain felt as though a torrent had crashed into it, and his eyes involuntarily closed.
These were all the secrets of this body condensation method, just like looking straight at the answers during an exam!
A long while later.
He opened his eyes and looked at his hands again. His seemingly smooth, fair skin had acquired a resilience; when he scraped a fingernail across it, the skin bounced it straight off.
His hands naturally clenched into fists, and a surge of strength circulated through his arms-roughly three hundred jin of strength in a single arm.
Just like that... I've reached the entry level?
Zhou Muzhi was utterly stunned. Was this still the deduction panel?
It had acted directly upon his body. The effect was somewhat heaven-defying.
He looked at the panel again.
[Name: Zhou Muzhi] [Status: Cursed (temporarily sealed)] [Skills: Nine Heavens Profound Intent (time limit: seven two-hour periods), Wisdom of the Ancients · Enlightenment (2/3)] [Deduction points: 2]
Looking at the words "sudden enlightenment," Zhou Muzhi grew thoughtful.
Suddenly, his stomach growled, and his digestive tract began churning rapidly.
Zhou Muzhi's expression instantly changed.
A terrifying hunger swept from his stomach through his entire body, growing ever more intense.
Tucking the manual into his robe, he left the front courtyard and stepped through the vermilion gate under the gaze of Li Jingfei's grandson.
At the instant the main gate closed.
Zhou Muzhi looked outside and saw Lao Xu with one hand propped on his saber hilt, half his body leaning against the wall, looking half dazed and half asleep.
The sound of the gate opening woke him.
Opening his eyes and seeing Zhou Muzhi, his expression immediately changed, and he rubbed his hands together with a smile.
"Fourth Young Master, you're out."
"Yes. Why didn't you go inside?"
At Zhou Muzhi's question, Lao Xu rubbed his head a little sheepishly.
"Well, I was afraid of disturbing you, Fourth Young Master. Besides, I couldn't very well go inside. It wouldn't be appropriate. Waiting outside was best."
Zhou Muzhi glanced at Lao Xu, then stepped down the stairs, his voice steady. "Come inside with me tomorrow. There isn't even a servant in this residence. We can't make Master Li do everything himself."
"Oh, right. You have silver on you, don't you?"
He essentially never carried silver himself. Usually, Xiaozi took out the silver to pay. This time, he had come to visit alone and had not brought her.
Lao Xu was stunned to hear this. He had never expected this matter to actually work out.
When asked whether he had silver on him, he immediately nodded, indicating that of course he had silver.
The two went to a nearby eatery. Under Lao Xu's wide-eyed gaze, Zhou Muzhi ordered all kinds of meat, amounting to a full three taels of fine silver.
In the end, Lao Xu took out the silver to pay.
Only after eating and drinking his fill did Zhou Muzhi feel that his body was no longer weak.
Next, it was time to attend to proper business.
Hiring a carriage, the two headed to Half-Immortal Xu's home.
Martial arts, after all, required gradual progress. However heaven-defying Zhou Muzhi's cultivation might be, he could not possibly attain great mastery within a few hours.
On this path, he still needed outside help.
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