Breaking Limits in Martial Arts: Grinding Your Way to Becoming a Martial Saint in a Chaotic Era

Just as Zhao Yan instructed Chen Wang to gather the outer disciples at the training ground, the sun was rising.

Before everyone had even lined up, Zhao Yan walked out from the inner courtyard, followed by Ning Yun and Xu Qing.

Xu Qing hadn't had time to change his clothes yet. He was wearing an indigo-blue constable's uniform, with a leather belt around his waist, and his back was as straight as a knife's spine.

The morning light shone on him, making his black clothes shine. He looked neat and upright, as immovable as a mountain, with a dignified and imposing air between his brows. He was completely different from the boy who stood at the entrance of the martial arts school more than twenty days ago, wearing a faded old dress and saying "I want to become a disciple".

The disciples from the outer courtyard looked at each other, their eyes scanning Xu Qing back and forth, wondering what was about to happen.

"I called you here because I have something to announce." Zhao Yan's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached the ears of everyone present.

His gaze fell on Xu Qing, unhurried yet carrying an undeniable weight: "From today onwards, Xu Qing is my personal disciple. He will move into the inner courtyard and practice with me."

The training ground erupted in chaos.

"What?! A personal disciple?!" Someone dropped their handkerchief, but he didn't pick it up.

"Move into the inner courtyard? The inner courtyard! What right does he have?" someone muttered under their breath.

"Exactly! With only average or below-average talent, why should they be allowed to?" someone secretly protested.

"He's only been here for a little over twenty days..."

The buzzing of voices was like a pot of boiling water, bubbling and gurgling out.

Zhao Yan did not speak to stop them. He simply stood there, his hands hanging at his sides, his face expressionless, his gaze calmly sweeping over everyone.

His gaze wasn't intense, but every time it swept over a spot, the murmurs there seemed to be choked by a hand, abruptly ceasing.

After a sweep around, the training ground was so quiet that you could hear the wind blowing through the wooden dummy and the sound of thrushes flapping their wings in their cages under the eaves in the distance.

"I don't care what you're thinking or what you want to say," Zhao Yan said calmly, his voice revealing no emotion. "You only need to remember one thing—from this day forward, Xu Qing is my personal disciple."

Everyone in the compound understood the weight of those words.

What Master says in public is set in stone, and no one can overturn it. From now on, if anyone dares to speak ill of Xu Qing in the courtyard and Master finds out, the punishment will be lenient, and being expelled from the courtyard is not out of the question.

After Zhao Yan finished speaking, he walked towards the backyard with his hands behind his back. His pace was neither fast nor slow, just like when he came. Ning Yun followed behind him, and when she passed Xu Qing, she gently patted his shoulder, smiled warmly, and didn't say anything more.

Xu Qing stood there, feeling the gazes cast upon him by his fellow disciples. There was surprise, confusion, jealousy, envy, congratulations, and joy... a mixed bag of emotions.

He neither bowed his head nor looked up; he simply stood there, like a tree firmly rooted to the ground, unmoved by the wind or the rain.

Those gazes fell upon him like raindrops hitting a stone; they could only flow down the surface and not penetrate the stone.

Wu Mingyuan watched his master leave, then turned around and continued practicing his standing meditation.

His face was expressionless, but his eyes betrayed him. They were filled with jealousy, incomprehension, and a resentment at being surpassed. Like a thorn stuck in his throat, he couldn't swallow it down or spit it out.

He sought confirmation from various sources. He asked his senior brother Peng Yue, his elders at home, and even asked other martial arts schools. The answers were all the same: with average to below-average physique, regardless of constitution, the chances of breaking through to the Dark Force level were slim; the Explicit Force level was basically the limit. So why did his master still accept him as a personal disciple? Why did he let him move into the inner courtyard? What did his master really want from him?

Wu Mingyuan couldn't understand it.

All he knew was that the fisherman's son he had never given a second glance, the country bumpkin he hadn't even bothered to look at, was now stepping on his head. Not in terms of cultivation level, but in terms of status within the martial arts school. A personal disciple carried far more weight in his master's heart than he, a mere nominal disciple.

Xu Qing stood there, stunned, as if someone had poured a bucket of cold water over his head. His face was the most ashamed... shame, anger, and jealousy were mixed together, like a pot of burnt porridge, black and thick.

He was Xu Qing's cousin. He'd been at the martial arts school for over three months and hadn't even reached the threshold of Ming Jin. Xu Qing, on the other hand, had only been there for twenty-odd days, yet he'd not only broken through to Ming Jin but had also been accepted as a personal disciple by the master and was about to move into the inner courtyard. He'd even been beaten by Xu Qing before—beaten to the ground in front of all the other disciples.

He recalled the things he had said to Xu Qing: "With his poor, scrawny frame, what's the point of practicing martial arts?" "A lowly fisherman, thinking he can turn his life around by learning martial arts?" "If I were you, I wouldn't have the face to stay in the martial arts school."

Those words were like slaps to his face, one after another, burning and echoing.

"Master is really getting senile." He lowered his head, his voice very low, as if squeezed out from between his teeth, and muttered softly.

Zhou Wen stood beside him, glanced at him upon hearing this, and remained silent. Zhou Wen was also uncomfortable, but he knew that some things could be said, and some things couldn't. To say that his master was senile was suicidal.

Chen Wang stood at the front of the crowd, looked at Xu Qing, and nodded with a smile. Xu Qing smiled in response and nodded as well, without saying anything more.

"Congratulations, Junior Brother Xu!" Qin Liang's voice rang out from the crowd, loud and undisguised. He stood in the middle of the crowd, grinning, a smile more genuine and sincere than anyone else's.

Sun Ping chuckled, his eyes shining brightly with genuine joy: "Senior Brother Xu, you're amazing! A personal disciple! When will I ever be able to..."

Xu Qingchao nodded to Qin Liang with a smile, then looked at Sun Ping, his tone not harsh but very serious: "Practice hard, and you can do it too."

Sun Ping gave a strong "hmm" and clenched his fist.

......

A few days later, the day of rest for the government office arrived.

The martial arts school's day off was also on this day. Originally, the martial arts school's days were set according to the county government's schedule; the master said this was called "sharing the day off with the officials."

These days, since his master accepted him as his personal disciple, he has been teaching him everything he knows without holding back a single bit. Every day, he personally instructs him in stance training and spars with him to practice boxing techniques.

Along with that, we also made him several new outfits. They were all made of fine, dark gray cloth, with tight stitches, making him look neat and presentable.

On the training ground.

"Bang!"

Xu Qing threw a punch, the sound deep and solid, like someone striking a thick cowhide drum with a heavy hammer, accompanied by the crisp sound of bones vibrating. It bounced back and forth a few times in the open space before dissipating.

The force of the punch exploded, raising a cloud of dust in front of him.

He withdrew his fist and slowly exhaled a breath of stale air. The progress of his cultivation technique resurfaced in his mind—

【Five Elements Fist (Mastery): 856/1000】

【Three Talents Stance (Minor Success): 18/200】

Almost there. A few more days of practice and I'll be able to master the Five Elements Fist.

"Senior Brother Xu." Sun Ping's voice came from the entrance of the inner courtyard. He stood under the moon gate, leaning halfway out. "Senior Brother, the carriage is here, right at the gate. Shall I help you carry your things?"

Yesterday, Master knew that Xu Qing was taking a day off today and would be going home. Knowing Xu Qing's family situation, he insisted on giving him five taels of silver so that he could buy some useful things for his family. Ning Yun accompanied him around the city for an hour, and they bought two large bundles full of food and other necessities.

We had too much stuff, so we called a horse-drawn carriage today.

Sun Ping helped load the things onto the carriage. After it was loaded, Xu Qing went to the backyard to say goodbye to his master.

Zhao Yan sat in the pavilion drinking tea as usual, with Ning Yun standing beside him. Both of them were looking towards the moon gate. When they saw Xu Qing enter, Zhao Yan put down his teacup, and Ning Yun nodded with a smile.

"Master, your disciple is returning." Xu Qing stepped forward and bowed.

Zhao Yan nodded, his gaze gentle, but his tone was somewhat solemn: "Things outside the city have been rather unsettled lately, so be careful on the road. If you're staying home for too long, stay overnight and come back tomorrow morning. Don't walk at night. Don't worry about the yamen; I'll have Chen Wang ask for leave for you."

"Understood, Master." Xu Qing felt a warmth in her heart and bowed again.

Zhao Yan waved his hand, picked up his teacup, and continued drinking.

Xu Qing turned and walked out. When he reached the moon gate, he heard Ning Yun's voice behind him: "Junior Brother Xu, take care on the way."

Xu Qing turned back and smiled, his smile bright and resolute in the morning light. Then he turned around and strode out.

With a crack of his whip, the coachman sent the carriage rumbling out of the city. The wheels rolled over the flagstones, making a soft, gurgling sound that grew fainter and fainter as it went on into the distance.

......

Once outside the city, the road became bumpy.

The dirt road was full of potholes, causing the carriage to sway and bounce, and the bundles inside the carriage bounced along with it. Xu Qing and Sun Ping sat facing each other, chatting idly.

"Senior Brother Xu, do you practice martial arts to avoid being bullied?" Sun Ping suddenly asked, his voice not loud, as if he were asking a question that had been weighing on his mind for a long time.

Xu Qing didn't speak, but nodded.

"Me too." Sun Ping chuckled, his smile carrying a youthful, earnest simplicity. He lifted the carriage curtain and looked outside. Field ridges, withered grass, and distant farmhouses flashed past him.

He watched for a while, then suddenly spoke, his voice lower than before: "Senior Brother Xu, do you know Old Man Zhou at the east end of the bay?"

Xu Qing glanced at Sun Ping. He remembered that Old Man Zhou—his second uncle—had said that the once wealthy families in the village had been ruined and killed by the Giant Whale Gang.

He had seen him with his second uncle outside the dock shed; his face was full of wrinkles, his eyes were lifeless, like a piece of withered wood. That day, Old Zhou's shack collapsed, and his little grandson Shunzi was crushed to death.

"His shack was right behind my house." Sun Ping's voice lowered a little. "Not long ago, Old Zhou's shack collapsed, and his grandson was crushed to death. That night, Old Zhou jumped into the river. The next morning, someone found his body three miles downstream from the bend."

Xu Qing remained silent. The carriage fell silent, save for the rumble of wheels on the dirt road and the clatter of horses' hooves on the muddy ground.

"I watched him being pulled out of the water with my own eyes." Sun Ping clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white. "I can't describe the expression on his face... It wasn't fear, it wasn't pain, it was just... emptiness. He had nothing left. His home was gone, his grandson was gone, and he went with it all."

The carriage jolted, and Sun Ping swayed, but he steadied himself by holding onto the carriage floor.

"I didn't sleep a wink that night." He looked up at the distant, hazy horizon, and thought, "What if my family ever had that kind of life?"

"What if my dad gets his leg broken by the Giant Whale Gang and can't get up anymore? What if my mom gets sick and we don't have money for medicine? I don't want my family to suffer like that. I don't want to be bullied like this anymore, unable to even breathe. I don't want to be like a dog with its neck stepped on, unable to even bark."

He paused, his voice suddenly softening, tinged with relief: "Fortunately, fate helped me. Not long after, my father also caught a treasure fish deep in the bay. That fish sold for more than four taels of silver, and with what my family had saved and borrowed, we raised enough for the apprenticeship fee, so I came to the martial arts school."

Sun Ping turned to look at Xu Qing, smiled, and said with a simple and honest air, "I practice martial arts just to protect my family. I don't want anything else."

Xu Qing looked at him and remained silent for a moment. Then he reached out and patted Sun Ping on the shoulder. He didn't say anything like "practice hard" or "you can do it," but simply said two words: "I will."

Sun Ping gave a forceful "hmm," his eyes a little red, but his mouth was stretched wide. The redness and the smile were mixed together, making it hard to tell whether it was from emotion or something else.

The carriage continued forward, its wheels making a dull rumbling sound as they rolled over the dirt road.

Neither of them spoke, each lost in their own thoughts.