The next day, before dawn.
When Jiang Fa woke, the darkness outside the window had yet to fade completely.
He lay still in bed, his eyes open as he gazed at the indistinct rafters overhead. The glowing image of that panel appeared in his mind once again.
[Talents: Heaven Rewards Diligence, Learning Inevitably Bears Fruit] [Realm: None] [Arts: Mountain-Breaking Stance (Yellow grade, middle tier) · First layer (3/200), Seven-Colored Glazed Glass Art (Heaven grade, upper tier) · First stage (0/1000)]
It wasn't a dream!
Jiang Fa drew a deep breath and slowly exhaled the stale breath that had been trapped in his chest all night.
Last night, he had tossed and turned, drifting between dreams and waking. In his dreams, he could never quite make out Ye Qingyu's face. The harder he tried to see it clearly, the more blurred it became,
until, in the end, that face seemed veiled in a hazy mist, as unfamiliar as though he had never known her.
Shaking his head, he stopped thinking about it.
He slipped gently out of bed, the wooden bed frame giving a faint creak.
Li Tie was still fast asleep in the neighboring bed.
Wang Dahu's snores were as loud as ever.
He glanced at the sky. It was still well before morning practice.
Jiang Fa dressed, hastily washed his face, pushed open the door, and went out.
The morning wind struck his face, carrying the chill of the night's dew.
The flagstone path in the outer courtyard was still damp. The flames on the distant torch stands had grown feeble, their orange-red tongues flickering in the wind, ready to go out at any moment.
Jiang Fa walked over the bluestone slabs toward the outer courtyard's training grounds.
Just as he reached the outer courtyard, he suddenly stopped short.
Someone was already standing beside the wooden posts in a corner of the open ground.
The man held a standard Mountain-Breaking Stance, his knees slightly bent, his waist lowered and hips sunk, his back held rigidly straight.
His gray robe had been washed almost white, with several patches at the collar and underarms, their stitches crooked and uneven.
The morning breeze stirred the hem of his robe, but the man remained utterly still, as though his feet had taken root in that patch of earth.
In the dim light, Jiang Fa vaguely recognized his figure from behind.
He was one of the senior disciples from yesterday.
Jiang Fa was somewhat surprised.
He hadn't expected anyone to be up practicing so early.
Without disturbing him, Jiang Fa quietly walked to the spot where he had practiced yesterday and began loosening his muscles and joints.
First, he rotated his wrists and ankles, then stretched his waist and back,
and by the time he finished the simple warm-up, his body was slightly warm, and yesterday's soreness seemed to have eased considerably.
The man had clearly noticed Jiang Fa too, but offered no greeting either, simply continuing his stance practice.
He was also practicing the first layer of the Mountain-Breaking Stance Art, though having joined the martial hall earlier, he held the stance far more proficiently than Jiang Fa.
After his stance practice, he went through the martial hall's fist routine, every punch whipping up a fierce wind, each strike backed by substantial force.
Jiang Fa withdrew his gaze, settled his mind, and began his stance practice.
He set his feet shoulder-width apart, bent his knees slightly, lowered his center of gravity, straightened his back, and held his clenched fists at his waist.
He closed his eyes and adjusted his breathing,
following the essential instructions of the Mountain-Breaking Stance as he gradually felt out his body's center of gravity and the flow of his strength.
A dozen or so paces apart, the two practiced separately, never exchanging a word.
The streak of blue-green at the horizon gradually spread, diluting the curtain of night.
The outlines of the distant mountains slowly grew clearer,
while a thin layer of dew had condensed on the nearby eaves.
A few rooster calls reached his ears, and the sparrows in the old scholar tree beside the training grounds began chirping as well.
The sky gradually brightened.
The senior outer courtyard disciples arrived at the training grounds one after another.
Some rubbed their eyes and yawned, some fastened their belts as they walked, and others approached while eating coarse-grain flatbread.
When they saw Jiang Fa already practicing in the grounds, they cast surprised looks his way.
"This kid... he only joined yesterday, and he's already getting up this early?"
"He's young. The novelty lasts three days. Give him a few more, and he'll settle down."
"True. I was just like him back then, but I only kept it up for a few days."
Their comments were neither loud nor quiet. Jiang Fa could hear them, but he paid them no mind and continued holding his stance.
Yet everyone ignored the senior disciple who had risen even earlier than Jiang Fa to practice his stance, clearly long accustomed to the sight.
Not long afterward,
the new disciples also began appearing in the outer courtyard's open grounds.
Most were still bleary-eyed, even swaying a little as they walked. Seeing Jiang Fa already practicing, quite a few looked surprised.
"Jiang Fa, why are you up so early?" Li Tie approached, rubbing his eyes, his hair a tangled mess.
"I only just got here myself."
Jiang Fa released his stance, wiped away his sweat, and answered with a smile.
Wang Dahu followed behind him and gave a huge yawn, his mouth wide enough to fit a fist. "Say, Jiang Fa, how do you have so much spirit? I was as exhausted as a dead dog last night. I slept straight through until now before I recovered."
"We're about the same. I only got up because I was too sore to sleep."
Jiang Fa gave a vague reply.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, they stopped wasting time and each found a place to begin their morning practice.
Li Tie and Wang Dahu copied Jiang Fa and settled into horse stances. Though their postures were crooked and awkward, at least they were taking it seriously.
An hour later, everyone had eaten breakfast.
The sun was already high overhead. May's sunlight had grown rather fierce, beating down until heat rose from the flagstones.
Wang Shi continued leading everyone through their drills that morning.
The inner courtyard's eldest senior brother was extremely strict in his teaching, repeatedly correcting even the smallest details and delivering a scolding at the slightest mistake.
But he truly put his heart into teaching as well. He explained the essentials of every movement clearly, and would even demonstrate them himself so everyone could see where to exert force and how their center of gravity shifted.
Zhao Zhong would occasionally make a few rounds through the outer courtyard as well.
Whenever he came, his gaze fell on Qin Xuan eight or nine times out of ten, and sometimes he would even personally offer a few words of guidance.
Though his tone remained as indifferent as ever, everyone could see the concern in his eyes that he could not conceal.
The sight stirred another wave of envy among the outer courtyard disciples.
Even Wang Shi, the inner courtyard's eldest senior brother, unconsciously began treating Qin Xuan a little differently.
Originally, he had treated all the new disciples equally,
but now he would occasionally explain a little more to Qin Xuan, and would even give him private pointers on a move or two in his spare time.
Time slipped quietly by as everyone practiced,
and in the blink of an eye, nearly a month had passed.
A month was not particularly long,
but for these newcomers who had only just stepped across the threshold of the martial path, every day was like polishing a rough stone.
Some polished faster, others slower, and Qin Xuan was undoubtedly the fastest of them all.
His progress in training was fast enough to drive others to despair,
and in just under a month,
he had already practiced the first layer of the Mountain-Breaking Stance to the point where he could engage and release it at will.
Even more enviably, Zhao Zhong had given him special permission to enter the inner courtyard and observe its disciples practicing.
Upon hearing the news, the many outer courtyard disciples who had joined alongside Qin Xuan exchanged looks, unsure whether to feel envious or sigh.
They envied the preferential treatment he received, and sighed over when they might ever have such an opportunity themselves.