A Martial Saint in Chaotic Times: Starting with Grinding Proficiency

"It really worked!"

Zhou Yuan stared at the changes on the panel and murmured to himself.

As long as you practice diligently, your martial arts skills will definitely improve.

After a moment, he suppressed his excitement and assumed the Liuhe Zhuanggong posture to continue practicing.

The morning passed quietly in this tedious and painful standing meditation.

Zhou Yuan was already soaked in sweat, and a tingling and numb sensation surged from the depths of his limbs and bones, with every muscle groaning in pain.

But he didn't stop.

[Exercise: Six Harmonies Stance Exercise (Beginner Level)]

[Progress: 2/300]

After an unknown amount of time, just when he was almost exhausted, the numbers on the panel finally started to jump again.

[Progress: 3/300]

Just then, a strong feeling of hunger surged up like a tide, and his stomach rumbled, making it impossible for him to continue.

Zhou Yuan finished practicing the stance, only to find his legs so weak they didn't feel like they belonged to him.

He supported himself against the wall and slowly made his way toward the kitchen.

As Li Dazhuang, a senior disciple, once said, the headmaster Zhu Xiaowen understood the hardships of apprentices practicing martial arts and would provide a meal at noon. Although it was just simple food, it was enough to fill their stomachs.

However, when he dragged his tired body to the kitchen, it was already empty.

Several disciples responsible for chores were clearing away the dishes and chopsticks, and the fire on the stove had gone out.

It's past lunchtime.

A bitter feeling welled up in Zhou Yuan's heart, but he didn't say anything and turned to leave.

"Junior brother, please wait."

A gentle greeting came from behind.

Zhou Yuan turned around and saw a young man sitting at a stone table not far away.

The man was about seventeen or eighteen years old, wearing a clean blue cloth shirt, the material and workmanship of which were far superior to those of the others in the martial arts school.

In front of him was an exquisite food box containing fluffy white rice and two meat dishes glistening with oil.

This is a sight that can only be seen during the Chinese New Year in the sewage alley.

"Junior brother, you're late. Did you miss the mealtime?" The young man smiled. "I brought too much food; I can't finish it all by myself. If you don't mind, would you like to share some?"

Zhou Yuan was indeed starving, so he didn't stand on ceremony and went over to bow to them.

"Thank you, senior brother."

"Don't be so polite. When we're traveling, we're all brothers." The young man pushed a clean bowl and chopsticks in front of Zhou Yuan. "My name is Chen Shaoshang. May I ask how I should address you, Junior Brother?"

"Zhou Yuan".

Chen Shaoshang filled Zhou Yuan's bowl with rice and then gave him half of the vegetables.

"Junior Brother Zhou looks unfamiliar, is he new here?"

"Yeah, I just arrived today," Zhou Yuan replied, then buried his head in his food.

The sweet aroma of the rice and the rich, oily flavor of the meat and vegetables melted in his mouth, whetting his appetite.

He hadn't tasted this kind of feeling in far too long since his family fell on hard times.

"I've seen you standing in this stance since morning, your body is almost stiff, yet you haven't uttered a sound. Anyone else would have been complaining by now," Chen Shaoshang said with a hint of admiration.

"After all, the money has already been paid."

Zhou Yuan sighed and continued eating with his head down.

The meal was finished quickly.

The two gradually became more familiar with each other. Zhou Yuan didn't talk much, but Chen Shaoshang didn't seem to mind. On the contrary, he was quite curious about Zhou Yuan's humble yet arrogant attitude.

After lunch, Zhou Yuan said goodbye and returned to the corner of the courtyard to continue his stance training.

Chen Shaoshang watched his retreating figure, lost in thought.

……

Time passed, and only when the setting sun dyed the sky orange-red did the disciples in the martial arts school gradually disperse.

Zhou Yuan slowly finished his practice and exhaled a long breath.

[Exercise: Six Harmonies Stance Exercise (Beginner Level)]

[Progress: 5/300]

At the end of the day, the progress only increased by five points. Moreover, he could clearly feel that the further he went, the longer it took to increase each point of progress.

Heaven rewards diligence; there are indeed no shortcuts.

He stretched his stiff limbs, preparing to go home.

Turning around, I found that the courtyard was not empty.

In the corner, Li Dazhuang was still standing on the stake, drenched in sweat. His skin was red, and he looked as if he had been pulled out of the water.

Zhou Yuan couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration.

This honest and kind senior may not be very talented, but his perseverance far surpasses that of ordinary people.

Zhou Yuan did not disturb him and quietly left Qingyang Martial Arts School.

On my way home, as I passed the grocery store at the entrance of the sewage alley, I happened to see an old man and a young boy pushing an empty cart back from outside.

The older one is called Song Laogen, Song Fang's father, while the younger one is Song Fang's younger brother, Song Tao.

"Hey, isn't this Zhou Yuan?" Song Tao said sarcastically as soon as he saw Zhou Yuan. "I heard you went to learn martial arts from a master? What, you really want to rise in the ranks like a phoenix?"

Song Laogen tugged at his son's sleeve, signaling him to say less.

Song Tao, however, persisted. He looked Zhou Yuan up and down in his coarse cloth shirt and sneered, "I advise you to stop daydreaming. And stop thinking about my sister. She's an embroiderer at Feiyun Embroidery Tower now, and she's going to marry into the inner city and become a young mistress. She's not from your world."

Zhou Yuan stopped and looked at him calmly.

There was no anger, nor shame.

Seeing this, Song Laogen quickly stepped forward to smooth things over, his face showing some apology and embarrassment: "Yuanzi, don't listen to his nonsense. It's our Song family's fault for breaking off the engagement. It's mainly... it's mainly because the rules of that embroidery house are so strict, there's nothing we can do."

"Uncle Song, there's no need to take it to heart," Zhou Yuan said slowly. "It's just that our time hasn't come yet; there's no question of who's right or wrong."

After saying that, he turned around and continued walking deeper into the alley.

Song Tao's prepared barrage of sarcastic remarks all got stuck in his throat, neither coming out nor coming out.

He had expected Zhou Yuan to be furious, or at least look embarrassed.

But to his surprise, the other party was so calm that he felt like a clown jumping around.

"Dad, look at his behavior! What's he pretending for!" Song Tao was exasperated.

Song Laogen stared blankly at Zhou Yuan's departing figure, lost in thought.

This child seems different from before.

……

As darkness fell, Zhou Yuan quickened his pace.

But as soon as he turned into the alley where his house was located, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The dull thud of the door being slammed was particularly jarring in the quiet alley.

The old wooden door to his house was shaking violently.

Outside the door, three familiar figures were standing there. The bald, pockmarked man in the lead was none other than Wang Laizi!

"Open the door, you bitch! Don't push your luck!"

"If you don't open the door, I'll kick it down!"

The obscene and foul language, accompanied by the forceful slamming of the door, made Zhou Yuan's blood rush to his head.

"stop!"

He shouted and rushed forward.

Wang Laizi and his two companions were startled by the shout. When they turned around and saw that it was Zhou Yuan, they were first stunned, and then a sinister smile appeared on their faces.

"Hey, the main character's back?" Wang Laizi cracked his neck and approached Zhou Yuan. "Perfect, saves me the trouble of kicking down the door. Kid, I heard you've got some treasure hidden in your house? Hand it over if you know what's good for you, and then let your crippled sister keep us company. Otherwise..."

Zhou Yuan didn't speak, he just stood there, his eyes fixed on him.

That wasn't the timid, evasive look in his eyes from yesterday.

It was something mixed with coldness and violence that made Wang Laizi choke on his words.

He suddenly felt that something was off about Zhou Yuan in front of him.

He still had that same thin frame, but his entire aura had completely changed. He was like a lone wolf driven to the brink of despair, ready to fight to the death.

"Hey, why waste your breath on him!" one of his henchmen yelled and was about to step forward.

"Get out of here!"

Wang Laizi shoved his follower aside and then looked Zhou Yuan up and down a few more times with suspicion.

The street thug's intuition told him that Zhou Yuan was in danger today.

It's not worth risking your life to fight a reckless guy for a cripple and a little uncertain money.

"Kid, you're ruthless."

Wang Laizi ultimately chose to back down. He pointed at Zhou Yuan's nose and uttered harsh words.

"There will be times when you're not home, you just wait!"

After saying that, he left with his two henchmen, cursing and swearing.

Zhou Yuan waited until their figures disappeared at the alley entrance before rushing to the door and pulling open the latch with trembling hands.

The room was dimly lit.

The older sister, Zhou Ting, huddled in the corner, clutching a pair of scissors that had been sharpened to a gleaming shine, the tip of the blade pointing towards the door.

Her body was still trembling uncontrollably, her face streaked with tears and terror.

"Sister, I'm back."

Zhou Yuan's voice was a little hoarse.

Hearing his voice, Zhou Ting seemed to come alive. The scissors in her hand clattered to the ground, and she threw herself into Zhou Yuan's arms, bursting into tears.

"Yuanzi...they...they're impersonating your friends and knocking on the door..."

Zhou Yuan held his sister's cold, trembling body, gently patting her back and comforting her.

His gaze, however, went past his sister's shoulder and landed on the wooden door that had been kicked and was now teetering on the verge of collapse.

A murderous intent surged within him.

Just because you can fool Wang Laizi today doesn't mean you can do it tomorrow.

He must become stronger as soon as possible!

......