Of course, under Ji Xuantong's tutelage, she was merely the second senior sister.
Above her, there was the first senior sister.
It was Ji Xuantong's daughter, Ji Feiyan.
Ji Feiyan, with intermediate root bone, had been exposed to her father's Martial Arts education and influence since childhood. Because of her father's connections, she did not attend the affiliated Martial Arts school in Pingjiang,
but chose to enroll directly in the Dragon City Martial Arts University's affiliated school. Now, at the age of 20, she was a sophomore at the Dragon City Martial Arts University with an Eighth Rank cultivation, enviable to many. In the future, it was highly likely that she could stay on at the university to become a Martial Artist. The chances were great!
Lu Chenzhou stood straight as a pine, quietly regulating his breath.
He looked at the proficiency levels increasing on the Martial Arts Tree, feeling full and satisfied.
Shi Ruyu was moved by the young man's rapid progress.
"Your mastery of Tiger Form Fist has already surpassed mine."
"Sister, you flatter me. Your main practice is Ape Form."
Shi Ruyu glanced around, then whispered in Lu Chenzhou's ear:
"For your 'Black Tiger Fist' training, you can ask the Master for guidance. Be smart about it, he won't be stingy with his advice." What she meant was that Lu Chenzhou should ask Ji Xuantong whenever he had the chance, since it was free of charge. Lu Chenzhou understood her meaning: "Thank you, sister."
"You should head home early, your mom must be worried about you."
With that, he ended a day full of substantial Martial Arts Cultivation.
On the Martial Arts Tree, characters emerged.
[Black Tiger Fist: Proficiency (65%)]
"This three-day holiday, 70% is a sure thing. By the end of the month, I should be able to enter the Mastery Realm, and although the progress might slow down afterward, reaching Small Success before June shouldn't be a problem. The next key lesson is the Dragon and Tiger Heavenly Pile, to refine the Middle Strike Acupoint early on."
Stone Lake Garden Block 3, Apartment 2802.
"How did it go? How well did Master Ji teach?"
"No wonder he's a Martial Artist, he really knows his stuff. Have you eaten?"
"I have. Oh right, mom, I've reached the Second Rank, with a Qi Blood Value of 1.46."
Lu Chenzhou remembered, he hadn't yet shared this good news with his parents.
Li Xianghua's hand, which was washing dishes, stopped, and she was stunned for a moment.
"Chenzhou? What did you say? You're at the Second Rank now?"
Li Xianghua came out of the kitchen, an irrepressible joy on her face, but she was so excited that she was at a loss for words and just looked at Lu Chenzhou, speechless.
Then she suddenly burst into tears.
"This is wonderful, so wonderful."
Lu Chenzhou quickly hugged his mother.
"Mom, don't cry, this is something to celebrate."
"I know, I'm just so overwhelmed."
"Mom, this year I'm planning to take part in the special admissions exam at Pingjiang Martial Arts University."
"Good, go for it. Martial Arts University is definitely better than a regular university."
"Mm, mom, I'm going to rest now."
Li Xianghua watched her son go into the bedroom, murmuring to herself,
"If I had known my son was capable of this, I would have sent him to the Martial Arts Hall much sooner. What's the point of trading for an Inner City house? A house isn't as important as my son's future." Fresh chapters posted on Nov3lFɪre.ɴet
She was filled with regret now and planned to have a serious talk with Lu Guoping about it.
In truth, it wasn't entirely the old couple's fault.
The main reason was that before awakening the Martial Arts Tree, aside from his willpower, Lu Chenzhou's talent and comprehension were indeed average — just the standard of an ordinary person with no hope for Martial Arts.
His parents didn't have the heart to say it directly, because they had no money to provide better resources for Lu Chenzhou, so they let him indulge in Martial Arts.
Both the middle and high school homeroom teachers had private talks with the old couple, urging them to persuade Lu Chenzhou to do his best to apply for the top-ranked Imperial Capital Cultural University.
They felt guilty towards their son and never told him that maintaining top fifty ranks and getting into a key university was good enough. The child had worked very hard.
In the end, it was all because of poverty!
"Lu Guoping! Chenzhou has reached Second Rank! You heard me right, he went from First to Second Rank in three months! My son is definitely going to be a Martial Artist! I just knew it!"
She called before Lu Guoping even got home, she couldn't wait a moment longer.
Lu Chenzhou said he would rest, but in fact, he started practicing the Dragon and Tiger Heavenly Pile again.
He felt energetic today and didn't feel tired. It must have been after stepping into the Second Rank that his Qi-Blood improved, and his endurance increased, which meant he could train longer.
Some Martial Artists reportedly spend days and nights in high-efficiency cultivation training fists at times, to deeply research some difficult aspects of Martial Arts without harming the body.
The Daoist term for this is "Fasting."
Lu Chenzhou's body was like the strange pines of Huangshan, with peculiar poses. Without guidance from a famed instructor, it would be very difficult for an average person to perfectly replicate this even with a Pile Skill Diagram.
A ticklish sensation came from the Middle Strike Acupoint on his right hand, like insect bites, an itch that can't be reached through a boot, occasionally there was also a sharp pain as if a nail was being driven under his fingernails.
"This Dragon and Tiger Heavenly Pile looks simple, but in reality, it's much harder than practicing punches. Stimulating the acupoints is too painful; even I can barely stand it. But I have to persist, Pile Skill cannot be cheated. It requires suffering day after day."
"Lu Chenzhou, you can do this!"
"Pingjiang Martial Arts University is waiting for you!"
He continually applied mental suggestions to himself, beads of sweat continuously emerged on his forehead, his strong and bare upper body glistening as if coated in grease.
An hour later, he reached his limit.
Lu Chenzhou's face was flushed red, his body drenched in sweat.
He looked towards the Martial Arts Tree.
[Dragon and Tiger Heavenly Pile: First Aperture (2%) → First Aperture (4%)]
"2% improvement in an hour, not a bad pace. If I train morning, noon, and evening, I can open the first acupoint in half a month. The Master said even for talents with Intermediate root bones, it would take ten days to solidify the first acupoint. I'm not much worse."
The Master hadn't lied to him, there were no shortcuts in cultivating Pile Skill!
Wrong, the Martial Arts Tree was the shortcut.
"If it weren't for the Martial Arts Tree, I wouldn't have been able to progress this fast."
Lu Chenzhou was self-aware.
"But I've heard that Martial Bone Daoists or some other exceptional people are born with the ability to open three or even all Nine Apertures, saving a lot of time and entering the Martial Artist realm more quickly."
Of course, in comparison to the 720 acupoints,
these could only be considered as a faster start in the early stages.
Lu Chenzhou had the Martial Arts Tree, and he just needed to cultivate steadily.
One day, he would be able to overtake others at the bend!
"Too tired... can't train anymore, early to bed and early to rise."
Lu Chenzhou took a bath and quickly went to sleep.
Before sleeping, Qin Zheng and Li Linling were chatting in the Martial Arts Society's small group.
[Qin Zheng: Lu Chenzhou is really a freak, he made it to Second Rank in just three months.]
[Li Linling: Despairing, watching you all catching up to me while I can only struggle in a mountain of books and sea of problems. In the last monthly exam, I was only ranked 45th. I can't be distracted now. I'll push hard for this half year and try to get into a better key university.]
[Qin Zheng: Annoying, Lu Chenzhou also made it into the top 15 of the monthly exam.]
[Qin Zheng: ...Lu Chenzhou, come out and chat for a bit.]
[Lu Chenzhou: (smile.jpg) Going to sleep, will practice punches early tomorrow.]
[Qin Zheng: King of Rollers!]