Chaos begins when one joins a martial arts school

Chapter 14 Decision
Time flies like a galloping horse, and years pass like falling flowers and flowing water.

In the blink of an eye, another three days have passed.

As dawn broke, a faint aroma of meat wafted from Yang Jing's room in Datongfang.

The horse meat in the casserole was stewed until tender. He ate more than a pound of it with the hot soup. The familiar warmth in his stomach slowly spread, soothing his muscles and bones, and adding a touch of warmth to the morning.

After cleaning up the dishes, he took his only two hundred coins and headed out towards the Sun Family Martial Arts School in Chengpingfang.

The bluestone slabs were wet with morning dew, making them a little sticky to walk on, but his thoughts were already churning.

The little money I have in my pocket won't last more than five days, even if I spend it sparingly.

He knew very well that the money he needed to practice martial arts came from the food his whole family had saved by tightening their belts.

The hopes of the whole family rested on his shoulders; this heavy burden was even heavier than the weight he carried when practicing boxing.

Yang Jing had already spent all the money he had received from Feng Lei, and now he had nothing left.

If things continue like this, his family will find it difficult to support his continued martial arts training. They won't even be able to afford horse meat, which will slow down his progress even further.

You have to understand, his natural talent was already lacking, and his progress in martial arts training was slower than other disciples. If it were to slow down further...
"We need to find a way to earn money. We need money for future martial arts training and the martial arts school's operating expenses."

Yang Jing clenched his fists instinctively, his fingertips turning white.

Thinking of this, he felt a little gloomy.

Fortunately, he is now close to mastering the beginner stage of "Crushing Mountain Fist" and is only one step away from developing internal strength and breaking through to the realm of Ming Jin.

"Perhaps I can break through to the Ming Jin realm today," Yang Jing thought excitedly.

Once you break through to the Ming Jin realm, you will become a formal disciple of Master Sun Yong, and the apprenticeship fee will be greatly reduced, saving you a lot of money.

Moreover, having broken through to the Ming Jin realm, he could be considered a "master" in Yuhe County.

Many large families, shops, and security escort agencies would extend offers to martial arts school disciples, allowing them to take up temporary positions, similar to a part-time job.

The remuneration for a Ming Jin master on temporary assignment is quite considerable, at least Yang Jing will no longer need to ask his already starving and freezing family for money.

He quickened his pace and walked along Zhuque Avenue to Chengping Ward, which was close to the inner city.

The outline of the Sun Family Martial Arts School gradually became clearer, and the copper bells on the eaves jingled softly in the wind.

"We'll see today!"

Yang Jing muttered to himself, his eyes sharp as knives.

Arriving at the gate of the Sun Family Martial Arts School, Yang Jing pushed the gate open with a creak.

Yang Jing stepped inside.

The front yard was quiet, with a thin layer of frost still clinging to the bluestone slabs. Only the copper bells on the eaves occasionally jingled in the morning breeze. Yang Jing did not stop. He first took off his shirt, revealing his strong and muscular upper body, then walked to the center of the yard, raised his arms, assumed a horse stance, and began to lift the stone weights to train his qi and blood.

His breathing slowed down, each exhale accompanied by a subtle gurgling sound. The energy accumulated in his body from eating horse meat transformed into waves of warmth, rising within him.

Half an hour later, Yang Jing finished warming up. He lowered his waist and gathered his energy, and began the starting stance of the Mountain-Crushing Fist.

The fists cleaved through the frost, creating a dull echo in the empty courtyard. Each move was as steady as a rock, with a touch of desperate ruthlessness.

As the sun slowly climbed higher and its golden rays spilled over the walls, the martial arts school's disciples began to arrive one after another.

The sound of footsteps came in twos and threes, mostly young faces, mostly male disciples with very few female disciples, totaling about thirty people.

Seeing Yang Jing already practicing his boxing in the arena, many of them were filled with admiration, and several new disciples even respectfully called him "Senior Brother Yang".

Yang Jing's heart stirred slightly when he heard the shouts of these new disciples.

When he first entered the martial arts school, he was a naive young man who followed others around calling them "senior brother." Now, without realizing it, he has become the "senior brother" in the mouths of his junior brothers.

Only he himself knows how much hardship and struggle is hidden within this title.

The disciples dispersed to practice their boxing, and the front courtyard gradually became lively.

Yang Jing glanced at the crowd. Of the disciples who had joined the martial arts school around the same time as him, only two or three were still diligently practicing in a corner, while the rest had long since disappeared.

The rules set by the master of the academy, Sun Yong, were strict and impartial—if someone could not break through to the Ming Jin level within six months of joining the academy, they would have to pack their bags and leave.

Today marks his sixth month at the school, and theoretically, he only has half a month left. In many people's eyes, he hasn't even reached the first level of the challenge yet, and the possibility of him breaking through to the Ming Jin level is zero. This will be his last half month at the Sun Family Martial Arts School.

He thought of his fellow disciples who had left.

Some families simply couldn't afford to send them to school, and when their parents came to pick them up with their luggage, the guilt in their eyes was heavier than their reluctance to let them go.

Some failed to break through the barrier, even two or three times, damaging their meridians. Seeing their hands and feet becoming increasingly sluggish, they knew they had no chance of gaining strength and could only pack up and leave with red eyes.

Many of the disciples who left the martial arts school reportedly returned to their rural hometowns to farm, working from sunrise to sunset. Some went to the docks, carrying goods and making a living in the wind and waves. Others became bodyguards for wealthy families, living at the mercy of their masters. Just thinking about such a life made Yang Jing feel a tightness in his chest.

He abruptly pulled back his fist, the blade slamming into the wooden stake with a muffled "bang".

He took a deep breath, assumed a fighting stance again, and his fists carried a do-or-die determination.

He absolutely did not want to walk that path himself!

Fortunately, he was different from others.

At that moment, a line of text that only he could see appeared before Yang Jing's eyes—

[Introduction to Bengshanquan (199/200)]

(End of this chapter)