The next morning, Yang Jing arrived at the Martial Arts Hall bright and early.
As usual, he was the first of all the disciples to arrive.
Many disciples felt he had already exhausted his potential. They thought that no matter how hard he tried, he would never break through to the Anjin realm and that he'd be better off finding another path sooner rather than later. To them, burying his head in training at the Martial Arts Hall now just seemed foolish.
The opinions of others could not sway Yang Jing's determination in the slightest.
'The panel's effectiveness has already been proven.'
He just needed to train his martial arts and Cultivation Techniques to their limits, and he could break through to the next realm without any bottlenecks.
This meant that although his cultivation speed was slow, as long as he had enough time, he could surely go far.
After Yang Jing had been training for an hour, the number of disciples in the Martial Arts Hall's front courtyard gradually increased.
His Fourth Senior Brother, Liu Maolin, also arrived. Seeing Yang Jing training with the same focus as always, his eyes flickered, and he gave a slight nod. He then took off his shirt, walked over to Yang Jing, and smiled. "Junior Brother, training hard, I see."
Hearing his voice, Yang Jing immediately withdrew his fist and turned, a smile on his face. "Fourth Senior Brother, you're here."
"Come, let's trade some blows." Liu Maolin assumed a fighting stance, his gaze sharpening. "Let me see just how solid your power is."
Yang Jing didn't hesitate. He sank his waist, dropped his elbows, and assumed the opening stance of the Mountain-Shattering Fist. "Please guide me, Senior Brother."
The moment their fists met, the difference in their skill was clear.
Liu Maolin's punches looked casual, but upon closing in, they carried a sticky force. Yang Jing's Mingjin was fierce and powerful, yet Liu Maolin always managed to dissipate it with a gentle redirection.
"Watch your waist and hips."
Liu Maolin flicked his wrist, avoiding the edge of Yang Jing's fist, and tapped his fingertips lightly on Yang Jing's side. "The Mountain-Shattering Fist emphasizes being 'unmoved even as a mountain collapses before you.' Your footwork is too light. Your roots aren't stable, so your power dissipates."
Yang Jing took this to heart and adjusted his footwork as instructed. He immediately felt his lower body become much more stable.
The next time he threw a punch, Liu Maolin suddenly changed his move. His fist grazed past Yang Jing's ribs, and the wind it generated made his skin tingle. "Mingjin isn't just about being forceful; you also have to know how to retract your power. It's like driving a stake. You don't just want to drive it deep; you need to be able to pull the force back, or your next punch will have no follow-through."
As he spoke, he demonstrated. When the Anjin flowed through his body, his clothes actually bulged slightly. Where his fists passed, bits of grass on the ground were swept up into swirls.
Yang Jing watched intently, committing every detail to memory. A realization dawned on him. 'So the transition from Mingjin to Anjin is hidden in this very act of releasing and retracting power.'
The two exchanged over a hundred moves. Liu Maolin held back a good deal of his strength the entire time, yet he helped Yang Jing gain a much more thorough understanding of the fist's second layer of principles.
As they finished with a final move, Yang Jing was breathing heavily, but his eyes were astonishingly bright. "Thank you, Senior Brother! I think I understand what 'power seeping into the muscle' means now!"
Liu Maolin smiled and handed him a cloth. "It's good that you understand. The Martial Dao is like climbing a mountain. Every step reveals a new view. Don't rush; just climb steadily."
Yang Jing nodded.
Liu Maolin uncapped a waterskin and passed it to Yang Jing. After watching him GULP GULP down more than half of it, he finally spoke slowly. "Junior Brother, how are things going with finding a position?"
Yang Jing handed the waterskin back and shook his head helplessly. "A few families have approached me, but the price they offered was only seven or eight taels a month. I want to wait a little longer. If nothing better comes up, I'll have to choose one of them."
Liu Maolin frowned upon hearing this. "Junior Brother, you've just entered the Mingjin realm. This is a crucial time for building your foundation. You can't skimp on nutritional and medicinal supplements."
After a slight pause, he continued, "As you know, my family is in the medicine hall and medicinal herb business. We often have to transport herbs, and occasionally we run into some undiscerning petty thieves. My father has been looking for a reliable Martial Artist to help guard the shipments. You wouldn't have to go many times a month; it's mainly to act as a deterrent."
"I'd like to invite you to take up a position as a Guest Scholar at my family's medicine hall. You'd escort two shipments of medicinal herbs a month for a monthly stipend of ten taels of silver. In addition, our medicine hall has some ferocious beast meat in the storeroom. I'll give you an extra ten jin of bear meat each month. What do you think?"
After he finished speaking, Liu Maolin's bright gaze fell on Yang Jing.
Over the past few months of interaction, his impression of Yang Jing had been very good. The man was focused, dependable, and conscientious in his work. He also had a certain resilience, remaining calm and composed even when faced with widespread criticism.
Yang Jing had a quality that put people at ease.
Even if he made no further progress in martial arts, he was still worth this price. After all, even many geniuses favored by the great families couldn't necessarily break through the gate to the Anjin realm, whereas Yang Jing was already at Mingjin.
A Mingjin Martial Artist of superior character was well worth the price of ten taels of silver and ten jin of bear meat per month.
The Liu Family's medicinal herb business involved transporting valuable ingredients, so they placed an even greater emphasis on the character and integrity of their escorts.
Yang Jing looked up at Liu Maolin, his eyes full of surprise.
Ten taels of silver?
That was two or three taels of silver more than the monthly stipend offered by the other families that had invited him.
More importantly, there was the extra ten jin of bear meat each month. This was essentially a form of sponsorship beyond the official position.
As far as Yang Jing knew, the price of ferocious beast meat was absurdly high.
Take bear meat, for example. The price was over five hundred large copper coins per jin, which was close to one tael of silver per jin.
After eating the braised bear meat at the Jufu Pavilion last time, Yang Jing had felt his cultivation progress rapidly.
If he could get ten jin of bear meat every month, and also buy some more himself, his speed at breaking through to the Anjin realm would surely increase significantly.
"This... This is too generous..." Yang Jing had to admit he was tempted.
But it was precisely because Liu Maolin was so close to him that he felt hesitant.
This was Liu Maolin's way of trying to help him.
"Junior Brother, don't think I'm just being polite or deliberately offering you a high price. You can go and ask around. These are the standard rates the Liu Family offers the guards and Guest Scholars we recruit."
Liu Maolin clapped Yang Jing on the shoulder. "Besides, you'll be helping the medicine hall transport herbs and might even run into robbers sometimes. You'll be earning this with your own abilities; it's not a handout. Plus, with a Mingjin expert like you around, my family's herbs will have an extra layer of protection. This is mutually beneficial."
Seeing Yang Jing still hesitating, Liu Maolin added with a smile, "If you still feel bad about it, just train harder and make your skills more solid. That way, if we really run into trouble in the future, you won't drop the ball."
Looking into Liu Maolin's sincere eyes, Yang Jing also began to smile, and the trace of hesitation in his heart gradually dissipated.
He knew how rare this opportunity was. It wasn't just the monthly stipend of ten taels of silver, but also the ten jin of precious beast meat. These would play a crucial role in his future martial arts training.
He took a deep breath and cupped his fists solemnly. "Thank you, Senior Brother!"
Seeing Yang Jing accept, Liu Maolin laughed heartily. "Hahaha, that's more like it. This afternoon, I'll take you to the medicine hall to meet my father. As it happens, there's a batch of herbs that needs to be delivered to the outskirts of the city tomorrow. It's not dangerous, so you can come along and get familiar with the route."
Hearing this, Yang Jing nodded gravely.
「...」
「Afternoon.」
Wazi Town, Yang Family Village.
Elder Yang was squatting in front of the main house, smoking his long-stemmed pipe.
Liu Cui Ling was by the stove, clearing away the dishes.
His grandmother, Qin Family, was in the courtyard wiping down some farm tools.
The courtyard was silent at this moment, with only the sound of the wind rustling through the branches.
The three of them would occasionally glance toward the sturdy plow ox in the corner of the yard.
Liu Cui Ling came out of the kitchen. Her brow furrowed again as she looked at the brand-new saddle blanket on the ox's back.
"This Ning Family... just what are they up to?"
Qin Family sighed. "Sending us an ox for no reason at all... it makes my heart feel uneasy."
"Isn't that the truth," Liu Cui Ling chimed in. "Not long ago, they were fierce and menacing, and now they're all smiles. How could something so good just happen? Don't tell me they've dug a pit and are just waiting for us to jump in."
Elder Yang tapped his pipe. "It's a good ox," he said in a low voice, "but where it came from..."
He didn't finish, but the worry in his eyes was plain to see.
The matter of the two mu of prime land north of the village was still weighing on their minds. Now, the arrival of this ox felt like a heavy stone pressing down on them.
They knew all too well that with the Ning Family's Master's stingy nature, he would never give handouts to common farming families like them for no reason.
Just as they were speaking, the cry of the village peddler, Yang the Third, came from outside the courtyard gate. "Auntie Yang, there's a letter for your family!"