Lin Fan switched to practicing Gale Leg, a martial skill that combined footwork and kicking techniques. It could be used to dodge and maneuver, travel quickly, and attack enemies, suiting Lin Fan perfectly.
But kicking techniques were harder to practice than fist techniques. Lin Fan lost his footing and fell to the ground.
Thus began Lin Fan's journey of constant falls. Stumbling and fumbling, he took nearly two incense sticks' worth of time to complete one round of Gale Leg.
Gale Leg (Initiated 10/400).
"Just thirty-nine more rounds and I'll reach initiation in Gale Leg. Let's do this!"
Lin Fan gave himself some encouragement and continued practicing Gale Leg.
By dinnertime, his progress in Gale Leg had reached 120/400, leaving him just twenty-eight rounds short of minor accomplishment.
Lin Fan knew no one here. After collecting his food and medicinal meal, he sat alone in a corner.
He had only just started eating when someone sat across from him. Looking up, he saw Han Feng, who had taught him Gang-Breaking Fist and Gale Leg.
"Lin Fan, you can only drink half your medicinal meal. You must take the other half back to the dormitory, then leave it on the table without touching it." Han Feng spoke as though delivering a notice.
Lin Fan frowned. "Why?" he demanded.
Han Feng was extremely impatient. "There's no why. Those are the rules. If you don't do as you're told, you can get out right now!"
"Is this aimed at me, or does it apply to everyone?" Lin Fan's voice turned cold.
"Heh..." Han Feng scoffed. "You really think you're somebody? This rule applies to everyone." With that, he rose and left.
Lin Fan swept his gaze over the others and saw that they all reluctantly set their medicinal meals on the table after drinking half.
What kind of damned rule is that? Lin Fan was furious. He only wanted to practice martial arts in peace, yet all sorts of things kept turning his stomach.
With the experience of two lifetimes, he saw at a glance that someone intended to take half their medicinal meals for profit. In the outer courtyard, only Zhang Yu, the senior brother, could manage such a thing.
No, Zhang Yu alone couldn't cover this up. Someone in the martial school's upper ranks must be involved. Lin Fan realized that this supposedly respectable martial school had become a den of filth and corruption.
Looking at the medicinal meal before him, Lin Fan could not make up his mind for a while. He was not afraid of Zhang Yu alone, but the martial school's higher-ups were beyond his ability to contend with.
If he took the lead in resisting, his corpse might be left in the wilderness tonight. The martial school's higher-ups would never allow anything to go wrong with this operation.
"Alas... under another's roof, you have no choice but to bow your head. Strength-it all comes down to not being strong enough." Lin Fan clenched his fists, growing ever more desperate to improve his strength.
He drank half, then set the medicinal meal down. Not far away, Han Feng saw this and gave a disdainful sneer.
"I thought he had some backbone. Turns out he's just as spineless."
After finishing his food, Lin Fan carried his medicinal meal, picked up his bundle, and followed the others toward the dormitories.
Han Feng walked over to his side, carrying no bowl. As Zhang Yu's lackey, he naturally did not need to surrender any of his medicinal meal.
"Come with me. I'll show you to your dormitory." With that, he moved ahead to lead the way.
Lin Fan was suspicious. This fellow is being so helpful? He felt there had to be something fishy about this.
He followed him all the way to the dormitory area. The dormitory building had two floors. He noticed that the other senior brothers all entered the first floor, while Han Feng led him up to the second.
He also noticed the pity in the other senior brothers' eyes as they looked at him, making him even more certain that Han Feng was up to something.
Like the other senior brothers, he set his medicinal meal on a large table, then followed Han Feng upstairs to a dormitory door in the middle of the second floor. Han Feng took out a key and opened it.
A clean, tidy dormitory came into view. The spacious room held only one bunk bed. Bedding had already been laid out on the lower bunk, while assorted belongings occupied the upper one.
"You'll live here from now on. This is the best room in the entire dormitory building. If you hadn't latched onto Young Master Tang, you couldn't even dream of coming here." Han Feng's tone brimmed with mockery.
Lin Fan became even more certain that something was wrong. Through the windows just now, he had noticed that the other rooms on the second floor all had three bunk beds, while this one had only one. There was definitely a problem.
"I'm not used to living somewhere this nice. Could I change rooms?" Lin Fan asked in a low voice.
Han Feng's gaze turned cold, a mocking smile hanging on his lips. "Sure. You can go outside and live in a latrine for all I care. If you refuse the senior brother's arrangements, we can answer to Young Master Tang even if we throw you out."
Lin Fan fell silent. A single rank higher was enough to crush a man, let alone someone at the very bottom of the martial school like him. He had no choice.
Han Feng sneered and left. Lin Fan began clearing the upper bunk. Since he was here, he might as well settle in. Whatever happened later could wait until later. He couldn't simply go without sleep, could he?
After making his bed, Lin Fan resumed practicing Gale Leg. The open space in the dormitory was just right for practice.
He did not want to waste a single second. As long as he was strong enough, all schemes and plots were paper tigers.
The sun set and the moon rose, and his progress in Gale Leg kept climbing.
130/400...180...250...350...400.
By the time the medicinal meal's effects ran out, his Gale Leg had reached initiation.
But Lin Fan was not happy, because it was still early. He clearly could have continued practicing, but the insufficient medicinal meal left him unable to do so.
He rubbed his stomach, his expression dark. "Zhang Yu, and whoever's behind you-there can be no living under the same sky with those who block my path. Just you wait!"
The night passed without incident. The next morning, Lin Fan went to the outer courtyard after breakfast.
He did not seek Zhang Yu out for further guidance in Iron Cloth Shirt. For one thing, there was no need; for another, he did not want to invite humiliation. Zhang Yu would certainly ignore him.
He went to the training room where he had practiced Gang-Breaking Fist and Gale Leg the day before, then continued practicing Gang-Breaking Fist.
Gang-Breaking Fist (Minor accomplishment 10/800).
The experience required had doubled, but Lin Fan was confident he could reach minor accomplishment today.
In Li Feng's training room, Zhang Yu sought Li Feng out again.
"Junior Brother Li, Lin Fan knows his place. He hasn't come to me for guidance in Iron Cloth Shirt. Of course, even if he did, I wouldn't teach him. His Iron Cloth Shirt is destined to remain at minor accomplishment, and he's destined never to reach initiation in Gang-Breaking Fist or Gale Leg." Zhang Yu spoke with a beaming smile, intoxicated by the feeling of controlling another person's fate.
Li Feng nodded in satisfaction, a vicious grin spreading across his lips. "Don't let him have it too easy. I want him to regret offending me for the rest of his life."
"Don't worry, Junior Brother Li. I've already assigned him to Junior Brother Lu Hao's dormitory. Given how overbearing Lu Hao is, once he returns from disaster relief and discovers another person in his room, Lin Fan will lose a layer of skin even if he doesn't die." Zhang Yu's expression turned savage.
Lin Fan spent the entire morning practicing Gang-Breaking Fist. By lunchtime, his progress had risen to Gang-Breaking Fist (Minor accomplishment 420/800), already past the halfway mark.
That afternoon, Lin Fan went to Young Master Tang's training room to wait for his arrival.
He stood at the doorway, his gaze fixed intently on the main courtyard, where martial masters were teaching the apprentices body-tempering techniques.