Chapter Forty-Two: Easy to Grasp, Hard to Master

Chen Yushu's gaze also fell upon the attribute panel.

King of Medicine Stance: Proficient (1/200)

As expected, he had broken through and reached the realm of proficiency.

At this very moment, Yushu's understanding of the entire stance art was fundamentally different. Many aspects that had once puzzled him now had clear answers in his mind. Even his movements—previously learned rigidly from the manual and from Qian Qian, never daring to alter a single detail—were now subtly adjusted. Because his comprehension of the stance had changed, he finally felt free to make slight modifications, tailoring the practice to better suit himself.

Though his movements now differed slightly from those demonstrated by Qian Qian, they aligned more naturally with his own physique.

“So this is what it means to reach proficiency,” he mused. “One can adapt the practice to one's own physical characteristics, allowing the martial art to fit the individual. Naturally, the effects of cultivation are vastly improved.”

A look of contemplation appeared on Yushu's face.

But soon, he put these thoughts aside. At this moment, waves of heat still surged through his body—the restorative energy of the Nourishing Essence Decoction had not yet been exhausted and continued to exert its effects.

Without hesitation, Yushu resumed his training.

From the very first stance, he felt the difference. His body was relaxed and comfortable; breath and movement were perfectly coordinated. With every moment, strands of power welled up from within.

The effectiveness of his cultivation had increased more than twofold.

“If before, a single session of the King of Medicine Stance would yield a thread of strength, now it’s three, perhaps four. And the quality of power is markedly stronger. In fact, it’s nearly ten times as effective.”

Yushu marveled at his progress, continuing until the very last movement was completed.

The surging warmth and strength left him feeling utterly refreshed.

King of Medicine Stance +1

He repeated the practice three more times, and only then was the medicinal power of this session's Nourishing Essence Decoction fully depleted.

“As I thought, the realm of stance mastery is the true foundation of a cultivator’s physical strength. No wonder the pharmacy requires apprentices to reach at least minor accomplishment in stances before they can begin martial arts or external strengthening techniques. Indeed, from the introductory stage to minor accomplishment, the apprentice’s foundation is already firmly established. Only then does the practice of external techniques double the results with half the effort. Of course, the higher the level in stance training, the better the effect. But given the time required, it’s best to start external training upon reaching minor accomplishment.”

Only now did Yushu truly understand.

Stance work is the foundation.

The higher one’s level in cultivation, the more solid the base. Yet for ordinary apprentices, it takes three to five years to progress from beginner to minor accomplishment, and even longer to reach mastery.

It’s simply not worth the extra time.

That’s why most begin training external skills and martial arts upon reaching minor accomplishment in stance work. Only true prodigies or those with abundant resources would further solidify their foundation by cultivating the stance to full mastery.

…

After a bout of training, night had fallen completely.

Fortunately, when he’d checked earlier, Yushu had found a spare oil lamp in the study.

He went to the study, lit the lamp, then took out the “Dawn Talisman Arts” and began to read it closely.

“Drawing talismans is actually quite simple. Hold the talisman brush and, in one stroke, inscribe the corresponding symbols. That’s all. But to do so requires three things: a tranquil mind, precision, and alignment with the heavens and earth… In ancient times, talisman makers would even bathe and burn incense, recite incantations, and invoke the ancestors or the four divine spirits. For higher-level talismans, they’d erect altars and hold rituals, all complicated and elaborate. Nowadays, things are much simpler—so long as the correct glyphs are drawn and one’s spirit aligns with the symbol, the talisman naturally absorbs the ambient energy, forming of its own accord. The challenge lies in this: if there’s even the slightest error, the talisman is ruined, becoming nothing more than a meaningless scrawl.”

By the light of the lamp, Yushu read through the “Dawn Talisman Arts” from cover to cover.

Though it seemed basic, and consisted of only one volume, this book was anything but ordinary. Its origins must be significant, for the theories and principles within, spanning ancient and modern times, were meticulously detailed. It was, as he would have described in his previous life, textbook-quality—something that seemed easy to understand but difficult to execute.

“A tranquil mind, precision, harmony with the heavens and earth… Of these, the tranquil mind is essentially entering a meditative state. In meditation, with no thoughts or distractions, only a flash of clarity remains in the heart. With my current ‘minor meditation’ level, this is well within reach. As for precision…”

Yushu understood that precision meant once he started drawing a talisman, the glyph must be completed in one continuous motion, without pause or error.

But when he examined the glyphs for advanced talismans, each was incredibly complex. Although they appeared flat on the page, as if written on paper, in reality they represented three-dimensional structures—glyphs that could ‘stand’ in the air.

Writing them was far more difficult than ordinary calligraphy.

“Thus, the second requirement for making talismans—precision—is equally daunting. I may not need to ‘understand’ the glyphs, but I absolutely must be able to reproduce them smoothly. This demands highly refined skills in calligraphy, even painting.”

Yushu pondered, his gaze drifting to his own attribute panel.

Calligraphy: Neat (45/200)

“So, before I can draw talismans, I need to practice my calligraphy?”

He blinked.

Compared to his scholarly studies, his progress in calligraphy had been much slower. The main reason was the environment. At the Liu family pharmacy, he had more opportunities to read; even perusing books like the “Herbal Classic” or “Materia Medica” increased his scholarly experience. But for calligraphy, he had little time to practice, so he had only managed to reach the second level, ‘Neat.’

“But things are different now. Having moved out, I should have enough time to practice calligraphy. The only thing I need is to buy some paper.”

As for brushes and ink, there were some left in the study, likely belonging to Chen Jie, the son of the former owner, Chen Shi. Out of thrift, Yushu borrowed them shamelessly—he could always replace them later. His sense of moral flexibility was quite broad.

In the days that followed, Yushu settled into a routine.

Each morning, he went to the Liu family pharmacy to work, returning home only at night to continue his training and practice.

Naturally, all his meals were taken at the pharmacy—free of charge, a benefit courtesy of Qian Qian. He was not one to miss out on a saving.

Upon returning home, he first brewed a nourishing decoction, drank it, and practiced martial arts.

Then, he read and practiced calligraphy.

It was worth noting that the study still held a fair number of books, mostly the Four Books and Five Classics with Confucian commentaries. With a spirit of earnest study, Yushu perused them all. Each new book he read greatly improved his scholarly experience—especially these Confucian classics. Occasionally, when he came upon a particularly insightful passage, his scholarly experience would increase by four or five points at once.