That morning marked the day of the tri-weekly Fist Strength Test.
Jiang Ping opened his eyes from sleep, his gaze sharp, his long hair thick and black, and even his complexion had changed, no longer dark.
"Am I turning from black to white?" Jiang Ping mused, noticing his skin becoming more delicate.
"It must be that as my level increases, my physical state is changing."
With this thought, he glanced at his Fate:
[Nourishing Life Art 9th Layer (58/300): Practice a hundred times daily, mastery in three years]
[Flying Snow Saber Qi (1997/2400): Practice a thousand times daily, mastery in ten years]
Since joining the Four Seas Escort Agency, Jiang Ping had been there for a full month.
The changes were nothing short of earth-shattering. He had become one of the martial artists he once looked up to and was close to mastering the Nourishing Life Art.
His talent in saber art was unparalleled. Jiang Ping reached the level that Chief Escort Liang had achieved in ten years within just half a month, and he was about to enter a saber domain that Liang hadn't grasped in twenty years.
Jiang Ping was undeniably gifted!
However, Jiang Ping understood the importance of discretion. Even with exceptional abilities, he knew to act cautiously.
"Jiang Ping, want to wash up together?"
A voice interrupted Jiang Ping's thoughts, but he politely declined.
"Sun Zheng, let's go." Luo Tiegen called out to the just-awakened Sun Zheng.
After the two left, Qian Dele emerged from his bed, glanced at Jiang Ping, and chuckled, "Luo Tiegen used to call you 'brother' all the time, nodding and bowing. What's changed recently?"
Time heals all wounds. Qian Dele and Jiang Ping had no major grudges or conflicting interests, and sharing a dormitory led to occasional greetings. They weren't friends, but they were cordial enough to exchange a few words.
Perhaps it was due to Jiang Ping's growing strength. Even Sun Zheng now respectfully called him 'Brother Jiang,' without the previous hostility.
"Who knows," Jiang Ping replied casually.
Of course, that was someone else's business, and Jiang Ping had no place to comment.
"Let's go, Brother Jiang, time to wash up. We have the Fist Strength Test later," Qian Dele said, then sighed, "Now I realize how hard the Nourishing Life Art is. Half a month and I'm still stuck at the second layer."
...
Before long.
A group of youths stood neatly in the Martial Training Ground.
In front, Escort Master Huang held the familiar yellow booklet, looking composed, while the head escort exuded a natural authority.
At the dining hall entrance, an unremarkable-looking young man held a large bowl, eating meat while leisurely observing the varied expressions of the crowd, savoring his meal with a unique relish.
This was Fang Yong. Due to his exceptional strength, he didn't need to participate in the ranking tests, so he enjoyed watching others during their tests, occasionally offering comments. The usually stern head escort never got angry or reprimanded him, allowing him this freedom.
This made many envious and uncomfortable, but there was nothing they could do.
After all, Fang Yong had reached the 5th Layer of the Nourishing Life Art in just a month, and the head escort predicted that his Flying Snow Saber Art would soon reach Entry Level.
So, how could the seniors be harsh on someone so outstanding?
"Zhang San!"
With the familiar name called, the Fist Strength Test began.
"Sun Qi, two hundred seventy-three pounds."
"Little Sun still hasn't broken through the 3rd Layer. Is the Nourishing Life Art that difficult? It's been half a month," Fang Yong remarked with suspicion as Sun Qi's result was announced.
But it was clear to everyone that he was mocking Sun Qi.
After all, half a month ago, Fang Yong was at the 4th Layer, and Sun Qi was at the peak of the 2nd Layer. Now, Fang Yong was at the 5th Layer, while Sun Qi remained stagnant.
Sun Qi's expression was somewhat cold, but he didn't dare to retort. He lacked the ability and the connection with Chief Escort Liang.
Soon, Jiang Ping and Liu Wensheng, both somewhat talented, finished their tests with similar results to Sun Qi, having made little progress in half a month, not breaking through the 4th Layer.
Fang Yong also commented condescendingly, but Jiang Ping remained calm, while Liu Wensheng struggled to hold back, initially wanting to argue but ultimately choosing silence under Escort Master Huang's warning gaze.
The Fist Strength Test ended quickly, with everyone's progress slowing down. Even Sun Qi, who was once the top, hadn't broken through the 3rd Layer, let alone the others. The source of this chapter is NovelPing.
"What a dull test. Without Brother Fang, it lacks excitement," Luo Tiegen remarked with some regret.
No one paid him any mind. His shamelessness in befriending Fang Yong was beyond them.
At the edge of the Martial Training Ground, the head escort was about to leave when Liu Wensheng ran up to him, asking:
"Chief Escort Liang, I've been eating four servings of food supplements each meal for ten days, reaching the peak of the 3rd Layer in the Nourishing Life Art. Despite daily hard practice, why haven't I broken through to the 4th Layer?"
Chief Escort Liang glanced at him and said, "Because of a bottleneck."
"Bottleneck?" Liu Wensheng looked puzzled.
At this point, many gathered around Liu Wensheng, clearly interested in his question.
"A bottleneck is neither real nor imaginary. You can think of it as reaching a point where no matter how hard you try, you can't improve. But if you persist, after some time, you might suddenly break through, and that's overcoming the bottleneck."
"Of course, you might also remain stuck, unable to progress, like many veteran escort masters in our agency who reached the 6th Layer of the Nourishing Life Art and never broke through. This stagnation can last decades, or even a lifetime."
"A lifetime..." Liu Wensheng's eyes changed, and others first felt relieved, then their expressions shifted.
Doesn't that mean they're facing a bottleneck now, unable to progress, and might be stuck for life?
Seeing their disheartened faces, the head escort added, "Bottlenecks before becoming a martial artist aren't that difficult. With persistence, you can still master the 6th Layer. Of course, if you have a better food supplement than beef, you can use its strong blood qi to stimulate your organs and quickly break through, even becoming a martial artist."
Hearing this, Liu Wensheng's eyes lit up, "Is there a better food supplement than beef?"
"Of course, there is. There's a special beast in the north of Dali, similar in size to a cow, called the Spirit Rhinoceros. It doesn't eat grass but meat, and its meat is more potent than some precious herbs for nourishing blood qi. If you eat Spirit Rhinoceros meat every meal, breaking through the bottleneck would only take a few days."
Chief Escort Liang's words made everyone excited and eager. Sun Zheng, in particular, grumbled, "If there's such a food supplement, why doesn't the escort agency provide it?"
Escort Master Huang glanced at him, raising an eyebrow, "Used to getting things for free, are you?"
"No, no," Sun Zheng realized his mistake and blushed.
"Such meat must be expensive, right?" Liu Wensheng asked. Such good meat couldn't be cheap, but he still wanted to know the price, just in case he needed it in the future.