Chapter 7: Immediate Results

When Duan Rong carried a pair of stinking shoes and walked into the courtyard where the Miscellaneous Disciples lived, the sky had already turned pitch black.

Most of the Miscellaneous Disciples, exhausted from a day of labor, were already asleep, but in the corners of the courtyard, there were still a few figures practicing their skills.

Seeing that the day of the assessment was drawing near, anyone with even a shred of hope did not want to let this opportunity slip by.

Duan Rong had already practiced for two hours in the morning and spent the entire afternoon doing Stance Training in the horse stable; the strength in his whole body had been squeezed dry and thoroughly exhausted, and at this moment, he only wanted to sleep.

Duan Rong came to the well, drew water while naked, washed his body, and then burrowed into the blanket on the communal sleeping platform.

That night, Duan Rong slept extremely soundly; in his dream, a sturdy figure was still practicing the Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber.

Just as the hour of Mao arrived, the faint sound of a rooster crowing could already be heard in the pitch-black night.

At the Yuanshun Escort Agency, the door curtain of the Miscellaneous Disciples' dormitory was lifted, and a figure walked out; this person had a square, thin face and a sallow, dark complexion—it was none other than the just-awakened Duan Rong.

Duan Rong washed his face with cold water and specifically picked a slightly thicker branch from the woodpile, preparing to practice a few sets of routines first.

But just as Duan Rong began his opening stance, he heard a "whoosh" sound, and the branch snapped in response.

Duan Rong was stunned for a moment before realizing that after standing in his stance for a full day yesterday and sleeping through the night, his strength had increased quite a bit; even these slightly thicker branches could no longer withstand it.

Duan Rong threw away the half-broken branch in his hand and left the courtyard where the Miscellaneous Disciples lived.

Duan Rong prepared to go to the courtyard where the Miscellaneous Disciples usually practiced; that courtyard was some distance away and quite remote, and usually, except for the hours of practice, almost no one went there.

Duan Rong went around the back of the servants' quarters.

The horse stable and the Inner Courtyard were both guarded by watchmen; at this hour, if he happened to run into them, there would inevitably be a round of questioning, so Duan Rong would rather take the long way around.

Duan Rong walked into the remote courtyard where firewood and charcoal were piled; in the pitch-black night sky, a large, shining star hung upside down, and with no one around, everything was deathly silent.

Duan Rong walked to the weapon rack, pulled out a discarded saber, and gripped it in his hand.

This was the first time Duan Rong had held a saber since Devouring the Artifact Spirit; although it was only a discarded saber with a chipped edge, the moment Duan Rong gripped it, a strange feeling still rose in his heart.

Starting from the opening stance, Duan Rong performed the Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber, one move after another.

Moreover, he varied between fast and slow, and the more he fought, the more he felt it; gradually, even the pauses between the moves seemed to have a certain rhythm.

Once Duan Rong finished a set, his mind was as clear as a mirror.

His strength had climbed significantly.

No wonder a single opening stance had snapped the branch.

Yesterday, he had eaten many hearty dishes at the restaurant, and his muscles had been thoroughly worked through by the Stance Training.

His one day of cultivation yesterday was probably worth ten days or more for others.

After all, he had the experience bonus of Entry Level Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber; once his physical fitness improved even slightly, his strength would climb geometrically.

It could be called immediate results.

Duan Rong practiced the Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber routine three times in a row.

After three sets, Duan Rong stopped.

The muscles in his right arm and shoulder were already aching slightly; his physical fitness was still on the weak side, and he could not sustain the Entry Level saber technique for long.

Duan Rong sighed; the improvement of physical fitness was a slow, grinding process, and being anxious was useless.

"If I could supplement with food and medicine, I reckon I could improve faster," Duan Rong blinked his eyes and muttered to himself.

The table of hearty dishes at the restaurant yesterday clearly had an effect, but with Duan Rong's financial resources, it was absolutely impossible to eat and drink like that, and medicinal supplements were even more of a fantasy.

"Things are only easy to handle when you have money. Money is a resource; it's the same in any world. After passing the assessment, I must find a way to get money."

Duan Rong felt that his current state was just like when he had first started his job in his previous life—everything was a mess, and he couldn't get anything done.

Duan Rong rested for a while, then put the discarded saber back on the weapon rack and began his Stance Training.

Duan Rong continued to try the method of Internal Breath circulation he had seen in his dream.

It wasn't until the sky was bright that Duan Rong spat out a mouthful of white air like an Arrow; this was the effect of containing the Qi without revealing it.

However, he still hadn't grasped the knack for the Internal Cultivation Method of the Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber.

Duan Rong first left the Escort Agency through the back courtyard's side gate and ate a large bowl of mutton pita bread outside, adding a big spoonful of chili oil, which left his stomach feeling warm.

After eating, Duan Rong returned to the Escort Agency, went to the place where food was served, took two steamed buns, and walked toward the horse stable while biting into a bun.

For the entire day, Duan Rong worked in the horse stable.

Sun Laotou had strained his waist and couldn't do heavy work, so Duan Rong basically did everything, while Sun Laotou only helped out with minor tasks.

However, with Sun Laotou here, Duan Rong couldn't practice his Stance Training like he did yesterday.

If Sun Laotou saw that strange posture of his, which looked like a crab walking, he would probably think he had been possessed by an evil spirit.

Duan Rong's physical fitness and strength had not only improved, but even his way of exerting force was different from before, so after a full day of work, he hadn't even gasped for breath once.

Sun Laotou looked at Duan Rong, who hadn't even broken a sweat, and his wrinkled old face suddenly bloomed into a smile as he said, "As expected of a young man, he doesn't hold back at all when it comes to work."

Sun Laotou was already thinking that if he could keep Duan Rong in this horse stable, he would have a much easier time.

Duan Rong grinned; as soon as he saw Sun Laotou's expression, he knew what this old guy was calculating in his heart.

Duan Rong sneered inwardly: "Work a few more days, and I'll be saying goodbye, old man; you can play by yourself. With your 'Sun the Skinflint' personality, even if I were truly a Miscellaneous Servant, I wouldn't work in this horse stable."

The sixth quarter of the Shen hour was the time for these Miscellaneous Disciples to practice in the firewood courtyard.

The horse stable where Duan Rong was located was the furthest from this place; when he walked into the courtyard just in time from the side gate, he discovered there were only seven people left in the courtyard.

Except for Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng, and Li Chong in the first row, Duan Rong only recognized the faces of the four people standing in the second row and couldn't even name them.

The original owner was introverted by nature and almost never interacted with other Miscellaneous Disciples, and he himself had only transmigrated for a few days, with all sorts of complicated problems in his mind, so he couldn't be bothered to socialize with these Miscellaneous Disciples at all.

However, Duan Rong felt this wasn't good; at the very least, his information was blocked, and if there were any rumors, no one would tip him off.

Duan Rong believed that no matter which world one was in, social skills were a very important ability; being well-connected among the crowd would save a lot of trouble in many matters.

Even if the original owner hadn't died, with his personality, there would have been absolutely no chance of turning his life around in this world.

However, since he had come here, he would live well for the original owner, at least to the point of making something of himself.

Duan Rong glanced at Li Chong, who wore earrings and had a slender figure, then took a few large strides and walked over, standing beside him.

Li Chong had always been a clean freak; suddenly, he saw a black shadow flash beside him, and then he smelled a thick, pungent odor of horse manure.

Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng, and Li Chong always stood in the first row, and the other Miscellaneous Disciples all sensibly avoided standing with them.

But unexpectedly, Duan Rong stood by Li Chong's side today; just as Li Chong was about to flare up, he heard a deep, heavy cough at the courtyard gate.

Zhao Mu spat a mouthful of thick phlegm onto the steps and strode inside.

(End of chapter)