Horse step +2
Horse step +2
...
The glowing text suddenly ceased.
Xun Xie collapsed, sweat streaming down his face. If not for the discipline built through years of exercise in his past life, he would have given up long ago.
His first attempt at the horse step had lasted about a stick of incense - roughly half an hour.
Not bad at all.
"This effective from just Double Critical?!" Excitement coursed through him. If this is Double, what would Ten Thousand be like? After a brief rest, he eagerly spread his legs.
Horizontal split +2
Horizontal split +2
Horizontal split +2
...
His legs slid wider and wider, inching closer to the ground with each attempt.
"Pain... pain... PAIN..."
Xun Xie's face contorted. It felt like his body was being torn apart.
Then suddenly—
A cold sensation as his groin met the ground.
Success!
He stared down at his perfect one-word horse stance in disbelief. In his past life, he'd never managed this - it had seemed impossible. Yet here he was, achieving it in moments.
Next came the side splits. Another wave of searing pain, then... success again.
Elation surged through him. Great Clarity wasn't useless after all - it was turning him into a martial arts prodigy!
"Time for the carp leap!"
He lay flat, hands at his sides. Legs up, then down - using his hands for leverage as he tried to thrust his hips skyward.
Instead, he crashed back to earth.
Carp Swimming +1
His mouth twitched, but determination burned in his chest. Again and again he tried, each attempt bringing smoother movements, better coordination.
After thirty failures, something clicked. His body moved like water, and for one perfect moment, he was a carp breaking through the surface, leaping toward heaven.
"Ha ha!"
His laughter rang out, pure joy impossible to contain.
The other students turned to stare, confusion on their faces - they'd missed his successful leap.
Old Man Hu merely glanced his way before closing his eyes, unimpressed. What's there to celebrate about a simple carp leap? Such childish excitement.
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
"Keep going!"
Riding his success, Xun Xie mastered the somersaults in one breath. But finally, exhaustion caught up with him. His limbs felt like lead, refusing to move.
And then his stomach growled - a sharp reminder that even aspiring martial artists needed to eat.
Xun Xie saw people leaving the yard now and then, going through the gate and not coming back.
But it's still early...
He'd struggled until the fourth bell.
"Senior Brother, I'm hungry. When to leave?" he asked Yun Shan.
"Go when you want," Yun Shan grinned. "Body can't take more than four, five hours of this. Rest of the day's yours. Old Hu won't say nothing."
Understanding hit, and Xun Xie left the Hu residence straight away.
That stall with mutton soup and milk cubes... Leading his donkey through the streets, his mouth watered. Expensive treats, but worth the coins.
The mutton soup was better than he'd hoped - hunger drove him to two full bowls. The milk cubes melted on his tongue, cooling him to the bone.
"Practicing takes more food. Need meat to keep up." Xun Xie touched his purse, knowing his costs would rise. Nothing to do with good taste, just need it for training!
Good thing he had forty-three taels of silver, that dusty gold coin, and those treasures - the wild ginseng and Ganoderma lucidum. Money wouldn't be tight for a while.
Besides, with Treasure Seeker, money wasn't a worry.
His donkey let out a loud bray - it seemed he wasn't the only hungry one.
"You make the road easier, friend." After thinking it over, Xun Xie bought a bag of good feed before heading out of Blue Grain Town in the setting sun.
The path twisted nine bends and eighteen turns beyond the town.
He rode happy on his donkey, remembering each turn as they covered more than ten li.
Just as the sun disappeared, his land temple came into view. Not much of a home, but it gave him peace all the same.
Despite his tired bones, Xun Xie grabbed a sickle and cut fresh grass, mixing it with the feed for his mount.
The donkey made happy sounds while eating, clearly never having tasted such good food before.
Exhaustion hit Xun Xie hard. His hands and feet went weak, and he fell onto his bed. Sleep took him the moment he lay down.
He woke with the dawn, feeling fresh.
His lower body ached some, but nothing serious.
"Time to get food in town."
Xun Xie didn't want to cook - his food wasn't good. He had no ingredients, and his modern knowledge didn't help much. These people had family recipes passed down for generations, practiced for years. They could match any restaurant. Without rushing for customers, they put their whole heart into each dish, earning loyal eaters who came back again and again.
First though, Xun Xie settled his mind and spun the wheel.
Spirit light hummed around it.
The wheel stopped, its pointer resting on three coins glowing verdant green.
"You spun the lottery wheel and won Treasure Locator."
"Duration: 1 day."
"Critical activated: Ten times critical obtained."
"Treasure locator effective for 10 meters."
Xun Xie's lips curled up.
"Treasure Seeker cheat, the money is rolling in." He grunted with satisfaction. Pity it's not the 10,000 critical multiplier.
He prepared the donkey's feed.
The sky brightened.
Morning light washed over him as he rode toward Blue Grain Town.
In town, Xun Xie headed straight for the breakfast stalls - four of them clustered together, with his target being the one selling beef honey skewers and bean curd.
A large bowl of bean curd brain, two fried dough sticks, two buns - one meat, one vegetable - and two eggs. Plus a skewer for the road.
His appetite had doubled.
Physical training requires proper caloric intake. No food means no energy for practice.
Besides, this young body was in its peak development phase - proper nutrition was essential.
At the Hu residence, people already filled the yard - some warming up, others lifting stone locks or practicing together.
Most of these people lived in town, so naturally they arrived earlier than me.
Xun Xie went to the east corner and started his warm-up.
Once his muscles were properly limbered, he began practicing basics step by step, starting with the horse step.
This time, no cheat to help.
Each second in the stance brought torment, but he persevered through gritted teeth.
Half an hour - same as yesterday. No progress, no regression.
Splits? No problem.
Perfect form, every time.
The carp leap too - mastered.
He could even execute it without hand support now.
Now for the hardest part - practicing somersaults alone.
"Start with a simple side flip."
Xun Xie breathed deeply. A few steps forward, leaning in - left leg as starting point, right as take-off, head as rotation axis, hands as support points.
His face met dirt.
He lay there, speechless. Could it be I can't do it without a cheat? I don't believe in this evil!
Again and again he tried, each attempt ending in falls or nondescript moves.
