Free Web NovelChapter 19: Chapter 19: Hard to Get Started?
Hodar thought for a moment before asking tentatively,
"Master, is it because Junior Brother Xie’s family is poor? That he doesn’t have much... uh, that he can’t contribute much to the hall?"
"Bah! What a crude way to put it."
Liu the Monk’s expression turned a little awkward. This senior disciple had been with him for a long time and was getting quite good at guessing his thoughts.
"That’s not the whole story.
"The main reason is that the boy’s body is too deficient.
"Having talent is good, but can talent be used as Blood Qi? If his body were like the others—thin, yes, but not like this—I could have taken him in and trained him a bit.
"But as he is now, you can tell at a glance his body has been failing him since childhood. I doubt he could even pass the initiation, let alone reach the First Training.
"To train him, we’d have to spend a fortune, stuffing him full of medicinal supplements and tonic soups to build his body back up. He certainly can’t afford it, and as for the hall..."
Liu the Monk’s face darkened.
"We’ve had fewer and fewer disciples joining lately. Those other two schools are closing in, about to steal all my students! Silver is tight. I’ve been losing sleep over it, to the point I’m tempted to go fight in the ring myself!"
Hodar fell silent. He was well aware of the Iron Cloth Shirt Sect’s situation. Their income was dwindling, and raising the initiation fee had been a move born of desperation.
He sighed softly.
"What a shame."
Liu the Monk folded his arms, his face impassive as he said,
"What’s there to be ashamed of? Talented disciples are a dime a dozen; it’s resources that are scarce. His talent isn’t that special. It’s not like he’s about to have a breakthrough and sense his qi in the next day or two. Now *that’s* the kind of genius I’d covet.
"With his physique, if he really wants to make something of himself, he either has to spend a fortune on supplements or find a ’nourishing method’ to train from the inside out."
Hodar gave a bitter smile.
"A nourishing method? Inner Power? I doubt any school even in Yunzhao County has one, right? Only a Major Sect would have the foundation to let disciples cultivate both inside and out from the very beginning."
"Exactly. Even I don’t have an Inner Power technique to practice, or I would have broken through to the Second Training long ago! That kid has no hope. Tell him and the others to have him train less. The last thing I need is him injuring himself and causing trouble. We have few enough disciples as it is..."
Liu the Monk muttered to himself as he walked away.
「In the training grounds.」
The atmosphere suddenly became a little strange.
Everyone had assumed Xie Yuan was about to become a Core Disciple, including Xie Yuan himself.
Of course, no one else had Liu the Monk’s keen eye, which had spotted the deficiency in Xie Yuan’s body at a glance. This was a long-term deficit, caused by a lack of food and clothing and exposure to hunger and cold during his formative years. It wasn’t something that could be fixed with a few square meals.
But when Xie Yuan wasn’t chosen as a Core Disciple, the way the others looked at him changed. Some glances were sympathetic, others held a hint of schadenfreude.
Tao Jelin came over and clapped Xie Yuan on the shoulder.
"Don’t worry about it. Maybe he just didn’t get around to announcing it. Besides, it’s not unheard of for someone to be accepted as a disciple after a while!"
Xie Yuan shook his head.
"Didn’t you say yourself that nine times out of ten, it happens right then and there? If I wasn’t chosen, so be it. I’ll just keep practicing at my own pace."
In truth, Xie Yuan felt a little disappointed, but it was mainly because he was thinking about how much more silver this was going to cost him...
Otherwise, he was fine. He’d been through a lot in his life and wasn’t about to get discouraged over this.
The attitude of the other three from his group was harder to pin down—a complex mix of pity and private delight. In an instant, that feeling of wanting to cozy up to him was gone.
They wouldn’t be smug about it, but they simply treated him with a quiet indifference.
In contrast, Tao Jelin was the same as always, throwing an arm around Xie Yuan’s shoulders.
The merchant’s son was sharp, and he had a gut feeling that Xie Yuan was still someone special.
Just then, Hodar came over again and gathered the small group.
"The Master said you’ve all been practicing well. Keep up the hard work. Once you’ve mastered all six sets of the Pile Skill, you won’t need to come every day. You can come every other day for a progress check, or if you have any questions.
"Junior Brother Xie, you can start practicing at home now. Uh, but don’t work too hard. Rest when you’re tired. Practice a little less."
’Huh? Why is he telling them to work hard, but telling me *not* to?’
’Is this some kind of one-size-fits-all approach?’
Xie Yuan’s face was a mask of confusion. Seeing this, Hodar coughed and pulled him aside.
"Junior Brother Xie, it’s like this... your constitution is just a bit too frail. Our martial arts training strengthens the body, but it also puts a strain on it. Your physique... it might not be suited for it. At least, don’t push yourself too hard."
Xie Yuan’s brows furrowed as he listened.
"Am I that weak? I feel fine."
"It might not be obvious in daily life, but martial arts training squeezes out your body’s potential. Before reaching a certain realm, a Martial Artist’s lifespan can even be shortened."
Hodar explained patiently, feeling quite regretful himself.
Xie Yuan was silent for a moment before asking,
"Is there no solution?"
"There are solutions. A long-term, sufficient regimen of medicinal herbs and dietary supplements. The sect has methods for it. But the price... I’m afraid fifty or sixty silver taels wouldn’t be enough."
’That expensive?’ ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
’It’s a solution, but I probably can’t afford it anytime soon...’
"Are there no other ways?"
Hodar hesitated for a moment, then said,
"There is one... finding a ’nourishing method’ to cultivate the body."
"A nourishing method?"
"What’s commonly known as Inner Power.
"There are four aspects to martial training: Nourishing, Training, Fighting, and Killing. The ’nourishing method’ is Inner Power, which cultivates the body and develops skill from the inside out. The ’training method’ is what we’ve been practicing lately, which can be considered an external art. I don’t need to explain the ’fighting’ and ’killing’ methods—those are the techniques and skills for actual combat.
"I was reluctant to tell you too much at first, because nourishing methods are incredibly rare. It’s not just our Iron Cloth Shirt Sect that doesn’t have one; neither does the Divine Weapon Hall, the Black Tiger Fist Hall, or even the major martial arts halls in Yunzhao County. Inner Power techniques are basically things only Major Sects and great families possess. A single inherited nourishing method can be the foundation of an entire Sect."
"Are they that rare?"
Xie Yuan couldn’t help but ask.
"Yes." freēwebnovel.com
Hodar said with a sigh,
"When you cultivate both internally and externally, you get twice the results with half the effort in your training. At the same realm, the difference in combat power between someone with Inner Power and someone without is like night and day.
"Inner Power can also nourish the body and extend one’s life. Moreover, the higher realms of the Martial Dao are impossible to reach without it. So you tell me, how rare do you think they are?"
’So that’s how it is. I never knew.’
Xie Yuan’s understanding of martial cultivation deepened. He took a breath, cupped his fists, and said,
"Thank you for the explanation, Senior Brother Huo!"
"Of course."
"The Martial Dao is indeed difficult, but I will not give up."
"...Mm."
Hodar watched Xie Yuan turn away with determination, wanting to say more but holding his tongue.
’He’s a talented and perseverant young man, but what a pity.’
’No matter how hard you work on the wrong path, it’s useless. It might even harm you in the end.’
Xie Yuan returned home and shut the courtyard gate, his lips pressed into a thin line.
’So I’m not good enough?’
’I refuse to believe it!’
He immediately struck a stance and began to practice tirelessly under the moonlight.
[Iron Cloth Shirt - Initiate: (78/100)]
[Iron Cloth Shirt - Initiate: (81/100)]
...
[Iron Cloth Shirt - Initiate: (97/100)]
...
[Iron Cloth Shirt - Initiate: (100/100)]
He continued until the moon was high in the sky.
Xie Yuan’s body trembled as he suddenly felt a faint, wispy thread of Blood Qi in his chest, as if it had appeared from thin air.
’Is this initiation?’
’What was so hard about that?’
