Chapter Eleven: Initiation

Without the slightest hesitation, he hurriedly excused himself and made straight for the secluded corner of the rear courtyard. There, he quickly assumed his stance and began to practice.

The first form, the second, the third...

This time, everything flowed with remarkable smoothness—like a blade slicing through bamboo. He progressed from the first form directly to the sixth without a single pause, then continued—seventh, eighth...

It was only upon reaching the thirteenth form that his movements began to slow.

Yet it was not due to any lack of energy or vitality. On the contrary, his body was suffused with rolling heat; his condition, his vigor, and his blood surged in a way he had never before experienced. He even felt as if he possessed boundless strength, as though he might lift a three-hundred-pound stone with ease.

The reason for his pause was simple: at the thirteenth form, he distinctly sensed an unfamiliarity. The rhythm of his breath and his motions no longer matched—the transitions faltered, his movements grew distorted, and his breathing, too, became disordered.

Helplessly, he had no choice but to stop.

He then fell into silent contemplation, reflecting on the principles at work and correcting the flaws in his technique.

“Continue.

This is the moment when I must not pause. For with every breath’s delay, the precious medicinal energy of the Nourishing Elixir is being wasted.”

Chen Yushu ceased pondering and instead relied on the unceasing surge of strength within him, forcing his way through the practice, breaking through every obstacle.

As for any problems? He would discover them and correct them—correct and try again, forging a path through persistence.

First form, second, third... This time he trained straight through to the eighteenth form before sensing resistance and pausing.

Then came the twenty-third form, the twenty-eighth, the thirtieth...

“The thirty-fifth form.

Just one more, and I will have completed an entire cycle of the Medicine King’s Stance. The thirty-sixth form is quite peculiar—like a golden rooster standing on one leg, yet with one foot extended at an angle, the spine held perfectly straight, both hands raised to the heavens... The breath is drawn out, slow, exhaling with a distinct sound...”

Silently, Chen Yushu recalled and pondered the key points of the thirty-six forms, then executed the final stance.

At the instant his movements and breath finally synchronized—

A great rumble, as if a switch had been thrown.

His entire body began to tremble violently, as though his flesh and sinews were set into intense motion. Beads of sweat surged from his skin in an instant.

Within, it was as if a flame had been kindled, quietly burning, causing his blood to flow like quicksilver—slow and powerful, his vitality ever increasing.

“It’s done!

I have completed all thirty-six forms of the Medicine King’s Stance!”

Chen Yushu panted heavily, but his face shone with boundless delight.

Almost impatiently, his gaze fell upon his own attribute panel.

Name: Chen Yushu

Age: Twelve

Martial Arts: Medicine King’s Stance: Initiate (1/100)

Skills:
Literacy: Comprehension (72/200), Calligraphy: Self-Expressive (79/100), Throwing: Initiate (18/100),
...

“My stance practice—at last, I’ve reached the entry level!”

Seeing the word ‘Initiate’ beside the Medicine King’s Stance filled Chen Yushu with an indescribable excitement.

It meant that he had taken a solid, foundational step in the cultivation of martial arts. The step was small, yet essential.

Moreover, after this session, he could truly feel an increase in his strength. His once frail frame now stood a little straighter, faint traces of muscle beginning to show.

The change was most evident in his strength. Originally, he could scarcely be called strong—barely able to lift thirty pounds at most.

But now—

Not far from him lay several stones, used by the apprentices to test their strength, marked with their weights: twenty, thirty, fifty pounds for the lighter ones, and heavier ones of a hundred and two hundred pounds.

He chose the thirty-pound stone and lifted it with ease.

Then, the fifty-pound one.

With a little effort, he managed to hoist it as well, holding it for a full ten breaths before fatigue set in.

“This means my strength has increased by twenty pounds in a single practice?”

Chen Yushu set down the stone, an involuntary smile spreading across his face.

Such a tangible improvement in strength was truly exhilarating.

Upon reflection, however, it made sense. After all, this was his first session—he had reached the entry level of the Medicine King’s Stance in one go, aided by the Nourishing Elixir worth three taels of silver. It was only natural that the effects should be so dramatic.

He expected that further improvement would not come so easily.

Sure enough, after repeating the entire cycle of the Medicine King’s Stance, he found that the increase in strength was much less pronounced.

The key was that the medicinal energy of the Nourishing Elixir had been completely exhausted.

Any further practice would now consume only his own physical energy.

It was like a furnace—no matter how fiercely it burns, it can only use so much firewood. Burn too hot, and the fuel is quickly spent; when the firewood is gone, the flames die down.

So, he stopped practicing.

Instead, he returned to his bed, took out a stack of books from his bag.

The Three-Character Classic, The Hundred Family Surnames, The Thousand Character Essay...

He had brought all his treasured books with him.

He had always believed in the value of study.

Especially after reaching the second realm—‘Comprehension’—in his reading, he noticed that his mind had grown sharper and more agile.

He could now grasp the deeper meaning of texts much more quickly and thoroughly.

It was, in fact, this reading ‘realm’ that allowed him to master the movements of the Medicine King’s Stance so swiftly.

...

He read. He wrote.

When reading tired him, he wrote; when writing became exhausting, Chen Yushu would pick up some small stones and practice throwing them at a tree stump, again and again.

Although he had entered the realm of martial arts, he was not about to neglect his skills in reading, calligraphy, or throwing.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Stone after stone struck the tree stump.

Out of every three throws, one would hit the mark, and with each accurate throw, his throwing experience increased a notch.

Before long, his skill improved again.

Throwing: Proficient (1/200)

He threw another stone.

Thud!

It struck the trunk with a dull thump.

The power in his throw was now clearly greater, and his accuracy had improved as well—he could hit the mark almost every time.

However, his experience points no longer increased as quickly.

Only after hitting the target three or five times in a row would he gain a little more experience.

“Now that I’ve reached proficiency in throwing, simple practice only improves my experience slowly.

I must increase the difficulty for better results.”

Chen Yushu quickly grasped this insight.

Without hesitation, he increased the distance of his throws from thirty feet to fifty.

+1, +1, +1

His experience began to climb, bit by bit.

Of course, his accuracy dropped as well—now it might take five or six tries to hit the target once.

...