Chapter 8: The Guest Arrives

With apprehension in his heart, Wang Anfeng followed Ci Yuan all the way to the back mountain of Shaolin Temple, where tall trees densely filled the mountain landscape. The towering monk stopped by a tree and pointed at it, saying to the youth, "The use of felling trees is nothing more than for firewood or for carpenters in home building, the ones with fine texture and straight trunks are worth more silver than those that grow crooked."

"Of course, they are also harder and tougher to break."

Wang Anfeng looked at the tree trunk that would take a person's embrace to encircle, his facial features creased together, and said, "Master... I want to ask again, do you really want me to smash this tree with my bare fists?"

"That's right."

"Shaolin emphasizes external cultivation, and by hitting the trees with your fists, your inner strength will burst forth while the inner strength circulates in its meridians, naturally tempering the body and enhancing martial arts cultivation, killing two birds with one stone. Why wouldn't you do it?"

Ci Yuan nodded slightly, speaking as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The youth's cheeks trembled as he raised his eyes to size up the stout tree and sighed, "Then, Master, you must prepare some medicinal remedies for your disciple..."

Otherwise, I'm afraid his hands might be ruined.

"Medicinal remedies? Haha, have you forgotten that you also have inner strength?"

The monk paused in astonishment, then shook his head and laughed, saying, "If you protect your meridians with inner strength and your inner qi does not exhaust, you will only suffer some minor flesh wounds, which are of no concern. Once your inner qi is depleted, just sit and meditate with the Naqi Pills; combining movement and stillness is the way for inner qi to truly cultivate."

"Come, let me teach you our Shaolin martial arts. You have no foundation in martial arts, so begin with cultivating Shaolin Changquan. Once you're proficient, you can cultivate Arhat Fist. This martial arts sequence consists of thirty-two stances, but in the end, it's merely about the reality and deception in offense and defense, as well as a set of killing moves, using hands and feet together with emphasis on the elbows. Watch closely."

After laughing, Ci Yuan casually assumed a stance. While explaining, he advanced on the old tree. His moves were simple yet profound and difficult to withstand, with punches and elbows raining down, smashing or thrusting. That dignified and immovable old tree suddenly shed a flurry of fallen leaves, as Wang Anfeng's eyes unwittingly widened, with threads of light dust converging from the surrounding world into his pupils, causing Ci Yuan's movements to appear to slow down in his sight.

"Beep—Entering scenario learning mode: Shaolin Changquan."

In its original, unmutated form, this scenario was meant to bestow the participant with their first set of martial arts skills, but now, what appeared before Wang Anfeng was the complete thirty-two stances of Shaolin Changquan. The way to exert power and the flow of inner strength in the meridians were displayed before him in stark clarity, as if revealing a world unprecedented to him. He couldn't help but immerse himself, unconsciously mirroring Ci Yuan's movements in a dance-like manner.

Crack!

Accompanied by a loud noise that suddenly burst in his ears, Wang Anfeng was jolted from that special state to find the old tree in front of him had been brutally broken by Ci Yuan's fists and fell heavily to the ground, raising a large cloud of dust and leaves. The monk with the serene face dusted off his robe, looking as relaxed as if he had just enjoyed a cup of fragrant tea. Wang Anfeng looked on in admiration and said:

"Master, you are amazing..."

With a light chuckle, Ci Yuan replied, "I only used an inner strength similar to yours just now. If you diligently practice your martial arts, you can achieve this too. At that time, you won't have to worry about not having enough silver."

"There are plenty of trees around here, why don't you give it a try now? Here are today's Naqi Pills; take them and meditate when your inner qi runs low."

"Yes, Master!"

Wang Anfeng's eyes sparkled as he bowed to Ci Yuan, then took the elixir and eagerly found an old tree. He calmed his mind, assumed a stable stance, closed his eyes to recall the scene he had just witnessed, and then suddenly opened his eyes, shouting sharply as he called upon his inner strength to deliver a powerful punch without any flourish directly onto the large tree.

The old tree shook imperceptibly, but the youth only felt a wave of soreness and pain emerging from the front of his fist, which then rapidly spread throughout his body along his meridians. He couldn't help but grimace, yet remembering his master was behind him, he gritted his teeth, retreated, and struck diagonally with a Reverse Elbow Break.

Ci Yuan, seeing the youth practice Changquan meticulously, nodded with satisfaction, his face showing a hint of appreciation.

Name: Ci Yuan.

Sect: Shaolin Sect

Main cultivation technique: Vajra Indestructible Divine Skill Twelve Layers.

Partial background special effects: Martial Arts Grandmaster…

...............

When Wang Anfeng returned from Shaolin that day, he was so exhausted that he lay limp on his bed as if boneless.

He had been smashing trees for five hours, five hours!

The flow of inner strength within his body was no longer warm like spring, but a piercing pain, with unbearable soreness throughout his body, and his fists were even more reddened. Were it not for the nurturing Shaolin elixirs, he might have already become a cripple.

He didn't know how long he had lain sprawled on the hard plank bed, his stomach rumbling like thunder. Barely managing to turn over and get up, he staggered to the grain bin and hastily washed the remaining food. He immediately steamed it till it was cooked, devoured it without caring for the scalding heat, feeling the hunger being gradually satiated. He almost cried. When he realized that he had devoured three days' worth of food in one meal, the young boy held a sparkling, coarse ceramic bowl with a look of despair on his face.

Putting down his chopsticks, he flexed his sore palms. Wang Anfeng's gaze involuntarily shifted to the hard plank bed, but the thoroughly cleaned grain bin that could make a mouse cry made his eyes firm again. He let out a clouded breath, clenched his fists, and strode out, taking the old path up to Great Liang Mountain.

He practiced his punches on trees, and whenever his Inner Qi was depleted, he would sit and meditate to recover.

By dusk, he came down with a bundle of dry branches. The firewood fetched far less than his usual food. Upon returning home, he collapsed on the bed like a pile of mud.

The next day, after returning from Shaolin and consuming all the food, he took purposeful strides up the mountain.

Days like these continued for a full hundred days.

"Li Lao, on the order of my father, I've come to deliver this 'Young Phoenix Card' to you. But I wonder, which young hero has caught your eye that you would write to him personally?"

A young man dressed in black vigorous attire sat in the only establishment in the village that could pass for a tavern, smiling as he spoke to an older man whose hair was like a wild lion's mane. Although he maintained a demeanor neither servile nor overbearing, his every move and word was filled with respect. Behind him, Old Li from the tavern had been chased out of the kitchen and stood awkwardly to the side, gripping a silver ingot tightly in his chicken-claw-like hands.

In the kitchen now was a top chef from Wangxian County, expertly handling the knife. On the table was the fine liquor once favored by the valiant swordsman Qinglian, whose fragrance alone made the onlooking villagers gulp greedily. But the old man just kept drinking turbid wine from his gourd, his expression serene and indifferent. Despite his ragged clothes, he exuded an air of a lofty master. He scoffed at the young man, asking:

"Did your father tell you to ask this?"

"I'm just a bit curious. This card was sent to young heroes under fifteen in the entire Wangxian County. Li Lao, you haven't been active in the Jianghu for a long time. Haha, to be honest, not just I am curious about today's events..."

The young man shook his head with a smile. Li Lao glanced at him with contempt. The former felt a sudden chill, though his face maintained a composed smile. The old man burped lazily, then turned his head and casually pointed at a few middle-aged men beside him, asking:

"Your Liu Family specializes in hidden weapons, so your eyesight must be good, right?"

"You flatter me, elder Li."

Li Lao waved his hand and said, "Then tell me, what are their identities?"

The martial young man took a confident look at the men and laughed lightly, "This is not difficult. Although these brothers are dressed simply, the fabric of their clothing is clearly better than that of the local villagers of Great Liang Mountain. They must be residents of a nearby county, with their strong, muscular arms, they're probably accustomed to manual labor. Great Liang Mountain has plenty of fine wood, and judging by the eagerness in their eyes, they must be carpenters here to purchase lumber..."

"It's around noon now. If they came, they would've had to set off early in the morning. I suppose today is the day for Great Liang Village to deliver goods."

His voice was warm, tinged with a touch of self-satisfaction. The elder snorted and didn't answer, but a burly man in a blue shirt beside them already burst out laughing. "This young hero has a keen eye, but there's a little mistake. Our Great Liang Village delivers wood on the tenth day of every month. We're the ones who make deliveries; why would they come here to compete for purchase?"

"This..."

The young man's expression faltered, revealing a hint of embarrassment. Just then, the old man suddenly spoke up:

"Liu lad, weren't you eager to know who I'm recommending?"

"Here he comes."

Startled, the young man watched as the carpenters raced towards the entrance of the village, eyes wide. At the village mouth, they saw two gargantuan trees, thick enough for one person to embrace, being carried by a youth. The teenager had a handsome, delicate face, a straight figure, and although his body was slightly thin, it didn't conceal the overwhelming aura of vigorous strength. With every step, steady and light, he approached the entrance. The fissures in the trees were full of fist marks, evidently made by raw fists!

"?!"

The young man's pupils constricted slightly as he pondered whether he could have achieved such a feat at that age. The outcome made him feel somewhat defeated inside. Meanwhile, the old man gulped down his turbid wine, his eyes on the youth carrying the tree, and said leisurely:

"This wood has a fine grain and is as tough as iron. It is so deep in the mountains that a normal strong man would take three to five days just to cut down one, and several more days to transport it down. The whole village can obtain about ten in a month, but he can get one every day. As of today, he brings two daily."

"Can he be worthy of your Young Phoenix feast, and compete with the Bai Family?"

The young man, suppressing the alarm in his eyes, slowly let out a word.

"... Yes."