Cultivation Starts From Simplifying the Exercise

Pingyin County.

"Train your muscles and bones externally, refine your breath internally. At our Jishan Boxing Gym, we treat everyone equally. Even the precious internal cultivation techniques are taught to all of you. As long as you work hard, better and stronger martial arts are waiting for you!"

Senior Brother Bi Hong shouted loudly, and the people in the gym listened earnestly. In the corner, a dark and thin figure stood with his head raised, but upon closer inspection, his gaze seemed dull and slow.

Having closed and opened his eyes, Chen Fei had somehow found himself in this world for over ten days. Absorbing the memories of the original owner, he came to know that it was a world similar to the ancient era of Blue Star.

But here, martial artists came and went, killing an ordinary person as easily as pinching a chicken.

Chen Fei was currently a menial worker in a medical clinic, not even qualifying as an apprentice, and spent his days doing odd jobs.

Learning medical skills? That was out of the question; they wouldn't even give him the chance.

Stealing knowledge? If caught, he would be crippled on the spot, left to fend for himself afterwards.

The original owner was unwilling to remain this way for his entire life, behaving obediently and servilely in the clinic, trying to gain favor and learn some skills.

Unfortunately, all the menial workers had the same idea, leaving the original owner disillusioned.

Helpless, the original owner used some accumulated silver to come to the Jishan Boxing Gym to seek apprenticeship, hoping to change his fate.

The Jishan Boxing Gym was straightforward and taught him a breathing technique and a set of accompanying boxing techniques. Upon receiving them, the original owner treated them like treasures and studied them diligently in his spare time.

After three months of practicing martial arts, the boxing technique and breathing method had yet to be mastered, and the overexertion led to serious illness, and he passed away!

Chen Fei inherited the memories of the original owner and was naturally interested in martial arts, so he practiced for a period of time as well.

But the fact proved that the original owner couldn't make progress in three months of training for a reason.

The reason was that his talent was truly lacking; Chen Fei inherited this body and found that his talent was nothing to brag about.

Relying on modern thinking, he wanted to make some money and become a wealthy person.

Chen Fei did have this idea before, but as a menial worker in the clinic, the original owner had signed a contract and had to remain there for a full twenty years.

If he wanted to leave, it was not impossible, but he had to pay a high price in silver to dissolve the contract.

Moreover, all his additional income belonged to the clinic, and if anything was hidden, they would cripple him on the spot.

It was quite inhumane and brutal.

For such a terrible clinic, the original owner had paid everything he had just to enter it.

At least in the clinic, they let you be a laborer for your whole life, while in other places, they wouldn't even give you a chance to be a laborer.

Just now, a virtual panel appeared before Chen Fei's eyes.

[Name: Chen Fei]

[Occupation: None]

[Martial Arts: Jishan Boxing, Jishan Breathing Technique]

[Realm: None]

"Discover martial arts, spend one silver to simplify Jishan Boxing?"

"Discover martial arts, spend one silver to simplify Jishan Breathing Technique?"

The panel displayed some information about Chen Fei, and at the same time, two reminders kept blinking below the panel. Chen Fei had been staring at this suddenly appearing panel just now.

"Why are you standing there stupefied? Start practicing your boxing!" Bi Hong appeared in front of Chen Fei, shouting loudly, "If you don't make progress in your Jishan Boxing soon, you'll have to pay more to come to the gym next month, and you should know that!"

Chen Fei snapped back to his senses, not daring to say much, and started to practice harder.

Bi Hong looked at him a few times and shook his head. He knew Chen Fei's background; he came to the Jishan Boxing Gym to take a gamble. Now it seemed that he was just an ordinary person, unable to change his fate.

An hour later, Chen Fei left the gym, drenched in sweat, with nothing gained other than feeling hungry.

He hurried back to the clinic in three or two steps, greeted a few familiar menial workers, and then hid in his room.

This place was a big dormitory, where nearly ten people usually slept, and various pungent odors kept assaulting Chen Fei's nose. Fortunately, he had already gotten used to it; when he first woke up, he was nearly overwhelmed by the smell.

"One silver? I don't have that much money."

Sitting on the dormitory bed, Chen Fei frowned. He still didn't understand the function of this panel; no matter how he asked or focused, reciting all kinds of "open sesame" words, the panel remained unchanged and unresponsive.

Only those two lines of text kept blinking, urging Chen Fei to pay up quickly.

But when Chen Fei originally went to the Jishan Boxing Gym, he had staked all the accumulated silver he had, and now, after just a few months, he hadn't saved up even one silver coin.

"I must find a way to come up with this money." Various ideas flashed through his mind, and Chen Fei remembered that the original owner had hidden a medicinal herb outside.

Four months ago, when the clinic lacked medicinal herbs, a group of menial workers followed the herbalist up the mountain to collect herbs. That medicinal herb was secretly hidden by the original owner. At the same time, during that herb-gathering trip, they encountered something eerie on the mountain, leading to the deaths of three people, which prompted the original owner to make up his mind to learn martial arts.

The original owner had heard that practicing martial arts to a certain level could counteract the eerie occurrences. Even if they couldn't resist it, if among the group, other people had weaker vitality than oneself, the eerie entity would target the weaker ones first.

Recently, the area outside the county town was not peaceful, and the clinic occasionally faced shortages of medicinal herbs. Going up the mountain to collect herbs every few months might become a regular occurrence.

Chen Fei walked out of the house, intending to borrow money from other menial workers, but one silver coin was too much for them, and no one would lend it to him.

If he borrowed a little money from several people, it might raise suspicions. Chen Fei hesitated for a moment and then left the clinic.

Half an hour later, Chen Fei obtained that medicinal herb without losing it, and he wore a bamboo hat to conceal his face as he secretly sold the herb for one silver coin and fifty copper coins in a marketplace.

Chen Fei dared not return to the clinic and found an abandoned courtyard within the county.

"Simplify Jishan Breathing Technique."

Chen Fei silently recited in his mind, and in the next moment, the one silver coin he had disappeared from his sleeve, and the panel in his field of vision slightly flickered.

"Simplified Jishan Breathing Technique... Simplification successful... Jishan Breathing Technique → Breathing!"

Breathing?

Chen Fei's mind hadn't turned the corner yet, but he suddenly noticed that the information representing himself on the panel had changed.

[Name: Chen Fei]

[Occupation: Warrior]

[Martial Arts: Jishan Boxing, Jishan Breathing Technique (Entry 1/100)]

[Realm: None]

As Chen Fei continued to breathe naturally, a warm feeling spread throughout his body, and at the same time, the number after the entry of the Breathing Technique was steadily increasing. In just a moment, it had become Entry 10/100.

Numerous insights about the Jishan Breathing Technique naturally emerged in his mind.

"By simply breathing, I can cultivate this technique?"

Chen Fei was completely shocked, finding this simplification function to be somewhat excessive. The Jishan Breathing Technique utilized special breathing methods to activate the body's organs and strengthen the body.

But now, after being simplified, it turned out that simply breathing could increase the proficiency of the technique.

This was incredibly amazing; Chen Fei expressed that he really liked it!

"Bang!"

Chen Fei was about to continue studying the Breathing Technique when the gate of the courtyard was suddenly kicked open, and a group of people rushed in aggressively.

"It's him, Steward Cui!" Shadaxin pointed at Chen Fei and said, "I just saw him holding a medicinal herb and selling it for money, then he ran here."

Chen Fei furrowed his brows. Shadaxin had conflicts with the original owner before, and he didn't expect him to witness the herb-selling incident. Or perhaps, this person had probably been spying on Chen Fei for a long time and finally found an opportunity.

"Search him!" Cui Sanjie waved his hand, and several menial workers immediately pounced on Chen Fei. Chen Fei didn't resist and let them search him.

In a moment, the menial workers threw all the silver coins they found on Chen Fei on the ground, and there was only fifty copper coins.

"Didn't you say he sold a silver coin's worth of money?" Cui Sanjie frowned and turned to look at Shadaxin.

"He must have hidden it somewhere in this courtyard," Shadaxin said, somewhat flustered but quickly thinking of a reason. He walked a few steps to Chen Fei's side, grabbed his collar, and shouted, "Chen Fei, we've already caught you. Hand over the money right now, or it won't be so simple for you later!"

"I didn't sell any medicinal herb. You're wrongly accusing me." Chen Fei broke free from Shadaxin's grasp, looking innocent.

Cui Sanjie didn't say anything but glanced at the dilapidated courtyard. The ground was covered in dust, and the only footprints were the ones they had left; there was nothing unusual elsewhere.

"What are you doing here?" Cui Sanjie asked Chen Fei.

"I couldn't make progress in martial arts, so I came here to take a break," Chen Fei replied softly.

Cui Sanjie grinned. He had heard about this menial worker in front of him, who went to the Jishan Boxing Gym to learn martial arts but had achieved nothing in the past three months.

"Shadaxin, come here," Cui Sanjie said.

"Ah, Steward Cui" Shadaxin didn't dare to delay and quickly walked over to Cui Sanjie.

"Smack!"

With a muffled sound, Shadaxin fell to the ground, clutching his cheek subconsciously, which had already turned swollen and red. Some teeth had fallen out of his mouth.

"Next time, if you have no evidence, don't come to me. Remember that," Cui Sanjie said calmly, looking at Shadaxin.

"I... I understand!" Shadaxin quickly nodded, frightened by Cui Sanjie's demeanor.

Cui Sanjie shook his head indifferently, feeling bored, and left the courtyard, with the other menial workers quickly following. Shadaxin stood up, glared coldly at Chen Fei, as he couldn't vent his anger on Cui Sanjie, he could only direct it all towards Chen Fei.

"You got lucky this time!"

Shadaxin stared at Chen Fei, but Chen Fei didn't react. The one silver coin had already disappeared, and it couldn't be found. As for confronting the person from the shop?

The clinic wouldn't go to such lengths just for one silver coin.

"Humph!"

Without getting a response, Shadaxin's anger grew even stronger. He cast a cold glance at Chen Fei and left the courtyard.

Half an hour later, Chen Fei returned to the communal dormitory of the clinic and looked at his panel.

[Name: Chen Fei]

[Occupation: Warrior]

[Martial Arts: Jishan Boxing, Jishan Breathing Technique (Proficiency 930/1000)]

[Realm: Warrior (1/100)]

The Jishan Breathing Technique had already reached proficiency, and the feeling it brought to his body with each breath became more apparent. At the same time, the realm had changed, becoming a warrior.

Chen Fei had heard the senior disciple of the boxing gym say that a warrior was an ordinary person who had just started practicing martial arts. To truly achieve something, they should reach the "Leather Training Realm."

Reaching this realm would truly set one apart from ordinary people. At the same time, the Jishan Boxing Gym would fully accept them, making them a member of the gym.

As Chen Fei silently studied, the panel changed again.

[Martial Arts: Jishan Breathing Technique (Perfection 1/10000)]

[Realm: Warrior (2/100)]

The warm feeling in his body seemed to become more apparent, and his realm also increased by one point. At the same time, Chen Fei's stomach began to growl. As his body grew stronger, it naturally started to consume energy.

The clinic only provided two meals a day, and fish and meat were out of the question. However, eating enough wasn't a problem; the clinic wasn't that strict on this point.

Chen Fei deliberately ate a lot more, but by midnight, he was awakened by hunger. He looked at the panel; the Breathing Technique was still in perfection status, but the progress had already reached several thousand points, and it was estimated that it would reach perfection by tomorrow.

He wondered if there would be other realms after perfection.

At the same time, his cultivation also increased by a few points. Based on estimation, perhaps in less than twenty days, Chen Fei would reach the Leather Training Realm and become a true warrior.

By then, whether he continued to stay at the clinic or went to the Jishan Boxing Gym, Chen Fei had gained some bargaining power.

Having eaten well during the day, Chen Fei was full of energy while working. Not only was his body getting stronger, improving his physical stamina, but he also had some hope in his life.

Every breath brought him strength; what a wonderful thing. Moreover, looking at the constantly changing numbers on the panel gave him a great sense of achievement.

Before noon, the Jishan Breathing Technique had reached perfection.

[Martial Arts: Jishan Breathing Technique (Grand Perfection)]

There was no room for further improvement. Various insights about the Jishan Breathing Technique continued to circulate in Chen Fei's mind. At this level of practice, Chen Fei was close to the realm of the person who had created this technique.

In the Jishan Boxing Gym, probably no one had cultivated the Breathing Technique to Grand Perfection. After all, it was merely an introductory breathing technique, and there was no need to persevere to this extent. Chen Fei didn't force it; he just naturally reached the peak.

At the Grand Perfection level, the feeling the Breathing Technique gave Chen Fei became even more apparent, and the panel confirmed his conjecture. It might only take ten days to reach the Leather Training Realm, instead of the estimated twenty days, effectively doubling the speed.

Chen Fei's appetite gradually increased, but he didn't receive any scolding for it. Moreover, two days ago, one of the supervisors praised him by name.

Compared to other gloomy menial workers, Chen Fei's recent positive attitude had been quite noticeable. The difference in spirit made the supervisor quite satisfied and unintentionally paid more attention to Chen Fei, giving him some recognition.

The other menial workers were envious and grew closer to Chen Fei. Only Shadaxin, who was sitting in the corner, glared at Chen Fei with a sinister expression.

(End of this chapter)