Chapter 18: Becoming a Disciple!

Master has keen eyes like a torch; A Shuo is indeed a hunter from the outer city, and he came today hoping to become a disciple of our Six Harmony Martial Hall.

Seeing Wei Yuan rise to his feet, Zhang Xiong hurriedly explained their purpose.

Oh? You want to learn martial arts!

The black-clad old man walked around Qin Shuo once, then returned to his seat.

Greetings, Hall Master Qin Shuo.

Qin Shuo bowed with clasped hands, and Qin Lan followed suit with her respects.

How old are you this year?

Wei Yuan lowered his head to drink tea, no longer looking at the siblings.

I am eighteen, my sister is fourteen.

Oh? Your sister also wants to learn martial arts?

Wei Yuan raised his eyebrows slightly in surprise, his gaze sweeping over the siblings one by one.

Please accept me as your disciple, Hall Master. Qin Shuo bowed again.

Come forward.

Wei Yuan gestured, and the siblings obeyed, stepping forward.

Wei Yuan extended his hand, pinched the siblings' shoulders, and lifted them sharply; Qin Shuo grimaced in pain but made no sound.

Qin Lan also remained silent.

Although the old man's hands were like iron vises, making her bones ache, the girl gritted her teeth and refused to cry out.

Oh? Not bad.

Wei Yuan withdrew his hand, his face showing a satisfied expression.

One has heavy bones and supple tendons, the other can endure hardship; both are promising seedlings.

Is the fee clear?

Clear. Qin Shuo nodded.

Zhang Xiong had already told him about it on the way.

To join the Six Harmony Martial Hall, one must pay ten taels in tuition, not including medicinal soups, medicinal baths, or meals, for a three-month study period.

If meals are included, it costs twenty taels; if medicinal soups and baths are included, it costs fifty taels.

Hmm, Zhang Xiong, take them to the accounts office to pay the fee and collect their uniforms, and also explain the martial arts training rules inside the hall.

The old man leaned back in his rattan chair, picked up his teacup again, and no longer paid attention to the two siblings.

Over the years he has opened the hall and taken on disciples, he has seen no fewer than eight or nine hundred students.

He has also taken on quite a few with good foundations like Qin Shuo and Qin Lan, and even now there are seven or eight such disciples in the courtyard.

But ultimately, fewer than one in ten manage to master the arts.

It's simply because they lack money and resources.

The poor study literature; the rich study martial arts!

This is not just idle talk.

Medicinal diets, meat, medicinal soups, medicinal baths— which of these does not require money?

Impoverished youths who study martial arts mostly come to nothing; to truly master it is as hard as climbing to heaven!

The reason is that ordinary commoners simply cannot afford the expenses of a martial artist.

Take those disciples in his courtyard who have cultivated internal energy— none of them come from poor families.

These siblings, coming from a hunter's family, are both studying martial arts.

It is estimated that after three months of study they will have no further prospects, so naturally they are not worth noting.

Come on, I'll take you to pay the fee.

After receiving the master's permission, Zhang Xiong led the siblings to the inner courtyard's accounts office to pay the fee.

Along the way, whenever they passed a place, Zhang Xiong patiently introduced it to the siblings.

This is the storehouse, that is the dining hall… if you need medicinal soups or baths, you must make an advance reservation with Housekeeper Hu.

The training grounds for female disciples are in the side courtyard, separate from the males; later I will take Ah Lan to meet Senior Sister Song, who oversees the instruction of female disciples.

Finally, the three arrived at the accounts office.

Following Zhang Xiong's suggestion, Qin Shuo paid forty taels in tuition, each sibling twenty taels, covering morning and evening meals.

According to Zhang Xiong, the hall's meals are specially arranged by the master's hired help, very suitable for consumption during martial arts training.

Therefore, unless a disciple comes from an exceptionally poor family, most choose to eat at the hall.

After paying, they received their uniforms.

Zhang Xiong had Qin Shuo go to the front courtyard to find Wei Yuan himself, while he took Qin Lan to the side courtyard to find Senior Sister Song, who teaches swordsmanship.

The hall's rule is that unless one cultivates internal energy and becomes an inner-door disciple, techniques are passed on by senior brothers and sisters.

Of course, when encountering some with extraordinary foundations and aptitude, Hall Master Wei Yuan will also personally step in to give guidance.

But Qin Shuo is clearly not among them.

Having just changed into his uniform and arrived at the front courtyard, a pale-faced, clean-shaven middle-aged man came up to greet him.

Junior Brother Qin, I am Lin Feng, the front courtyard instructor; from now on I will teach you the White Ape Heavenly Gang Blade Technique.

Thank you, Senior Brother.

Qin Shuo bowed with clasped hands, having no objections.

He is a complete novice in martial arts; guidance from a senior brother who has cultivated internal energy is already sufficient, and there is indeed no need for the hall master to teach personally.

The White Ape Heavenly Gang Blade is one of the master's two supreme arts, a martial technique that blends blade technique with footwork.

This blade technique emphasizes both form and spirit; one must train until the body resembles an ape to achieve perfection and cultivate White Ape internal energy.

Today I will first teach you the pile stance footwork; after you become proficient, I will teach you the blade method.

Lin Feng is pragmatic, with little idle talk.

He immediately began demonstrating the pile stance of the White Ape Heavenly Gang Blade to Qin Shuo.

He leapt onto the plum blossom piles in the courtyard, arms outstretched, swaying like a monkey.

His feet light, stepping on the piles and swinging his arms like flowing clouds and water, seamless, as if a nimble monkey were dancing on the wooden stakes.

"The White Ape pile stance emphasizes the coordination of arms and steps, mainly training the synergistic ability of hands and feet."

"When throwing a punch, it should be heavy; when swinging the arms, far; the release should be clean and crisp—remember not to hesitate."

Lin Feng demonstrated the movements while explaining the key points of the White Ape pile stance.

"Power rises from the ground, probing the waist and pulling the back, extending to strike far."

"When exerting force, tighten the core, feel the power travel from the feet to the waist, then integrate through the back and shoulders into a single line, and release it via a swinging arm."

"When throwing a punch, the fingertips, toes, and nose must align as three lines as one, only then can the force remain undispersed…"

Lin Feng was very patient, breaking down each movement into simple explanations and incorporating his own insights and understanding, making it profound yet accessible.

This allowed Qin Shuo, a complete novice in martial arts, to easily grasp the essentials of each movement.

"Junior Brother Qin, give it a try."

After demonstrating the full set of pile stance, Lin Feng smiled and invited Qin Shuo to try it on the piles.

"Yes, Senior Brother."

Qin Shuo stepped onto the wooden piles, imitating Lin Feng's posture.

As soon as he steadied himself, he froze.

【Ingredients: White Ape Pile】

【Refining Condition: Walk the pile one thousand times!】

【Refining Effect: Pile stance perfected, body resembling an ape, form and spirit united!】

Huh?

Can this White Ape pile also be refined?

Qin Shuo was both surprised and delighted.

But upon reflection, it makes sense.

Over the years, who knows how many mental imprints from senior brothers and sisters walking the piles have been left on these few plum blossom piles; it's no surprise they can be refined by the Taotie Cauldron.

"As long as it can be refined, my mastery of this pile stance is certain."

Qin Shuo felt exhilarated.

According to Lin Feng, becoming proficient in the White Ape pile stance is not difficult.

But to achieve perfection, besides needing assiduous daily practice, one also needs comprehension.

Ordinary disciples can only attain the perfect state of united form and spirit, with a body like an ape's, through repeated practice of the pile stance.

This process may take as little as half a year or as long as two to three years, depending entirely on one's diligence and comprehension.

Previously, Qin Shuo worried that learning a pile stance would take two or three years, meaning he'd have to wait until the Year of the Monkey and the Month of the Horse before mastering any martial art.

Now it seems those worries were unnecessary.

With the Taotie Cauldron, Qin Shuo is confident that at most one month will suffice to refine this White Ape pile stance to perfection.

"Junior Brother Qin?"

Seeing Qin Shuo standing motionless on the plum blossom piles, Lin Feng couldn't help but call out to remind him.

Upon hearing that, Qin Shuo quickly composed himself, sinking his mind and spirit into the Taotie Cauldron.

Boom!

In the depths of Qin Shuo's mind, it seemed as if hundreds of different figures suddenly appeared, standing on piles.

Each of their movements guided Qin Shuo's muscular exertion, driving his body toward the standard White Ape pile stance.

Crack!

Qin Shuo took a heavy step, his body swaying like a drunkard, as if he might topple from the wooden piles at any moment.

Lin Feng beside him had already prepared to rescue him.

But at the critical moment, an invisible force seemed to drag him, forcing him to halt his fall and take a second step.

"Oh?"

Lin Feng's eyes lit up, his face showing astonishment.

This Junior Brother Qin has remarkable comprehension!

On his first attempt at walking the piles, he not only didn't fall, but also faintly sensed the essence of power generation.

You know, when he first walked the piles back then, he really took a nasty fall, face-planting in the dirt.

In fact, it's not just him; the vast majority of senior brothers fall from the piles on their first try due to unstable balance.

This Junior Brother Qin appears to be staggering as if drunk.

Yet he remains upright on the wooden piles without falling, which is quite rare.

However, what surprised Lin Feng even more was yet to come.

After finishing the first round of walking the piles, Qin Shuo, still unsatisfied, walked another round.

Although this round was still wobbly, his coordination was much better than before, and the progress was obvious.

"Junior Brother Qin, have you practiced the White Ape pile stance before?"

Lin Feng expressed surprise and couldn't help but ask.

Qin Shuo suddenly realized, knowing his performance had been too conspicuous, drawing Lin Feng's attention, and immediately explained:

"When I used to go hunting in the mountains, I once casually practiced with some stones."

"I see! No wonder your waist and abdomen strength is so solid." Lin Feng realized.

"Just keep doing what you were doing, practice a few more times, I'll go check on the others."

Seeing that Qin Shuo could already walk the stakes alone, Lin Feng stopped staring at him and began to guide the other disciples.

As an instructor of the outer courtyard, Lin Feng had many disciples to instruct, so it was only natural that he couldn't keep focusing on Qin Shuo.

After Lin Feng left, Qin Shuo's mind sank once again into the gluttonous beast cauldron, following the predecessors' guidance to continue stake-walking.

【Ingredient: white ape stake】

【Current refinement progress: 1%】

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【Current refinement progress: 2%】

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