’My almost self-torturous efforts yesterday were actually recorded! And the effects were amplified!’
A much more specific and systematic understanding of medicinal herbs had appeared out of thin air in his mind.
His previously fragmented and vague impressions were now organized and crystal clear, as if they had been neatly sorted. This wasn’t just an increase in Experience Points; it was a genuine infusion of knowledge.
’And the Iron Mountain Fist!’
Chen Yue subconsciously clenched his fists, and a faint sense of flow traveled through his arms.
The parts that his predecessor and he himself had always found awkward and could never get the hang of during practice now came to him with a sudden, enlightening clarity!
This understanding wasn’t just intellectual. He moved his arms slightly, and it felt as if his muscle memory had been corrected. The insights had settled deep within his body, forming a nascent reactive instinct.
’Although I’m still a long way from true mastery and developing any combat power, this is genuinely the Entry Level!’
’I’ve crossed the most critical threshold, the one from nothing to something!’
Amidst the morning rush, Chen Yue found an empty corner and quickly undid a part of his lapel to take a look.
The black spot on his chest seemed to have grown slightly larger than yesterday, now about the size of a fingernail. Its color was deeper, and its edges bled like smudged ink.
When he touched it with his fingertip, a bone-chilling cold immediately spread from his finger, making him shudder involuntarily.
Chen Yue took a deep breath, suppressed the anxiety in his heart, and focused his attention on the translucent panel.
The single "Source Point" still hung there, capable of turning decay into wonder... ’But now is not the time.’
He fastened his clothes, burying both his fear and his desire deep in his heart, and melted into the noisy chores of the pharmacy’s backyard as usual.
Grinding herbs, chopping herbs, sorting, drying, sweeping... He performed every task meticulously, with even more focus than before.
Only during his breaks would he very quickly strike a stance from the Iron Mountain Fist, or throw a punch and a kick into the air.
Unlike his previous raw and awkward movements, every one of Chen Yue’s moves now followed the correct trajectory for exerting force through his muscles and bones.
A slight turn of his waist drove his shoulders and arms, and power rose from his feet. Though still weak, it had a faint, continuous momentum, no longer the stiff strain of his whole body fighting itself like when he practiced blindly.
"Yo, Chen Yue, what kind of Divine Skill are you practicing? Planning a career change to become a street performer?" an apprentice who was turning over drying herbs called out with a sneer, drawing a few mocking glances from nearby.
Chen Yue acted as if he hadn’t heard, silently retracting his hand and continuing to organize the herb sieve in his hands.
Finding it dull, the apprentice curled his lip and turned away.
Occasionally, when the front hall got too busy, Chen Yue would be called over to help out. Fetching herbs, passing instruments, cleaning the floor next to the consultation desk. Every time he entered the front hall, Chen Yue kept his ears pricked and his eyes wide open.
He would try to memorize every herb and its dosage in the prescriptions that the presiding Doctor Qin recited while stroking his beard in thought.
He strained to understand the unfamiliar terms in Doctor Qin’s questions and answers with patients, the descriptions of symptoms, the speculations on pathogenesis. He even secretly observed and forcibly memorized the force of Doctor Qin’s fingers and his choice of pressure points when performing acupuncture or massages.
Chen Yue was like a dry sponge, greedily absorbing every piece of information he could, swallowing it all down even if he didn’t understand it for now.
The black spot on his chest was like a silent countdown, forcing him to be faster and more efficient.
...
「Another midnight.」
Lying on the communal sleeping platform amidst thunderous snores, Chen Yue’s eyes were wide open in the darkness.
[Daily Settlement]
[Diligently ground, chopped, and identified herbs. Recognize Medicinal Herbs Experience +50]
[Diligently practiced Iron Mountain Fist. Iron Mountain Fist Experience +50]
[Diligently studied medical principles. Medical Skill Experience +5]
[Name: Chen Yue]
[Skill: Recognize Medicinal Herbs (Minor Success 3/200)]
[Skill: Iron Mountain Fist (Entry Level 60/100)]
[Skill: Medical Skill (Entry Level 5/100)]
[Source Point: 1]
’It’s here!’
The instant the panel’s information refreshed, a stream of data far larger than yesterday’s surged into his mind.
The forms, scents, properties, origins, processing methods, combination contraindications, and primary effects of a vast number of medicinal herbs... all of it surfaced, arranged itself, and fell into place as if he had read and recited it a thousand times.
He could now list off the details of most of the medicinal ingredients in Huichun Hall’s cabinets with his eyes closed.
His insights into the Iron Mountain Fist also deepened once more.
The sluggishness in the transitions between moves dissolved further. His grasp of when to exert force and his control over his center of gravity became much clearer.
His muscle memory adjusted and solidified accordingly, as if he had genuinely undergone months of arduous training.
There was also a vague awareness of the human body’s meridians, the most basic theories of cold, heat, deficiency, and excess, and the simple effects produced by combining several common medicinal herbs...
Though rudimentary, it signified that the great door to Medical Skill had cracked open a sliver for him.
The corners of Chen Yue’s mouth couldn’t help but curve upward.
...
The next day, Chen Yue repeated the same focused and diligent routine.
By day, he was the most diligent shadow in the pharmacy. By night, he was a martial practitioner sweating profusely under the moonlight.
The black spot on his chest continued its slow, stubborn spread, the cold sensation clinging to him like a gangrene on his bones. But the hope brought by the panel was a faint lamp illuminating the path ahead.
Another settlement night arrived.
On the panel, the Iron Mountain Fist’s experience increased by another 50, and then he had a breakthrough.
[Skill: Iron Mountain Fist (Minor Success 10/200)]
The instant the skill leveled up, a peculiar change occurred inside Chen Yue’s body. A faint but undeniably real stream of heat rose without warning from his Dantian in his lower abdomen.
This stream of heat was as fine as a silk thread at first, but it soon spread along a specific path toward his limbs and bones, bringing a tingling warmth wherever it passed.
More importantly, when this faint stream of heat reached his chest, it came into contact with the cold aura emanating from the black spot.
HISS!
It wasn’t an actual sound, but a feeling in his senses.
The clinging, cold numbness, like a maggot on his bone, was actually pushed back a fraction by this weak stream of heat. Although it was just an insignificant fraction, the real sense of it weakening made Chen Yue’s body tremble slightly.
On the panel, a new entry quietly appeared at that moment.
[Realm: Martial Arts Apprentice (3/100)]
’Martial Arts Apprentice!’
’Is this the sign of having achieved a preliminary entry into martial arts, the birth of Qi in the body?’
Excited, Chen Yue tried to focus his attention on the experience points after the realm, but he found that he couldn’t use his Source Point to increase it directly like he could with skills.
’It seems that advancing my realm must depend on leveling up skills and accumulating experience through my own hard training.’
In the following days, Chen Yue squeezed every last drop out of his free time.
He completed his chores at the pharmacy quickly and well. When fetching herbs, he barely needed to look at the labels, grabbing them with ease and perfect accuracy in dosage.
His Fist Technique practice also evolved from secret motions to seizing every opportunity—even if it was only for a few breaths—to regulate his breathing and feel the faint stream of heat inside him.
This effort, along with the visible changes, began to attract the attention of those around him.
Chen Yue’s Essence, Qi, and Spirit were truly different now.
Although his face was still pale from the encroaching black spot, his eyes were growing brighter and brighter. It was a drive that came from within, a vigor that fought to grow upward.
And this vigor, in the apathetic atmosphere among the other apprentices, was incredibly conspicuous.
"What a show-off."
"Tch, what’s the use of practicing that crappy fist technique? Does he think he’ll become an expert? With that energy, he’d be better off getting more sleep."
"Look at him, so high and mighty. So what if he’s a little faster at fetching herbs? He’s still just an apprentice!"
"We’re all just rolling around in the mud together, but he has to act all different. Who’s he trying to impress?"
The criticism and ridicule behind his back grew, and the ostracism and distance in their gazes became more obvious by the day. When everyone else is sinking, the one who tries to lift his head will always be an eyesore.
Chen Yue had no reaction to this. He silently continued to do his own thing, seizing every opportunity to practice and learn.
One day, when the front hall was a bit slow, Chen Yue was sorting a newly arrived batch of medicinal herbs for storage. Steward Chen Lin stood by the counter with his arms crossed, watching him for a good while.
Chen Lin was mainly in charge of reception, dispensing prescriptions, and accounts in the front hall. He had been noticing this apprentice named Chen Yue for a while now.
Other apprentices always had to check the labels and weigh the herbs repeatedly, but this kid was quick and deft, and he never made mistakes. He was even exceptionally familiar with the rarer and easily confused herbs in the cabinets.
"Chen Yue, come here." Chen Lin beckoned.
Chen Yue put down his work, walked quickly over to Chen Lin, and bowed slightly. "Steward Chen."
They both shared the surname Chen, but in Huichun Hall, having the same surname didn’t imply any family ties.
"Mm."
Chen Lin sized him up and nodded. "You’ve been very fast at fetching herbs lately, and you’re careful with verification. Not bad."
"It’s just what I should be doing," Chen Yue said with a slightly reserved smile.
Chen Lin pondered for a moment before saying, "Master Lin’s Alchemy Room is short a helper lately. The work is a bit miscellaneous and tiring, but you can learn a few things. However, if you want to go, I’ll have to test you."
Chen Yue’s eyes lit up slightly.
Master Lin, Lin Quan, was Huichun Hall’s Alchemy Master.
A portion of the pharmacy’s profits came from consultations and prescriptions, but the bigger share came from selling various finished Elixirs.
To be able to enter the Alchemy Room, even just to do odd jobs, meant access to deeper skills.
"Please test me, Steward," Chen Yue said respectfully, suppressing the excitement in his heart.
Chen Lin casually asked about five or six medicinal herbs, some common and a couple that were rather obscure. Chen Yue answered fluently, not only stating their names, properties, and tastes, but also briefly mentioning their common pairings.
Although his knowledge wasn’t profound, its solid foundation far surpassed that of an ordinary apprentice.
A trace of surprise flashed through Chen Lin’s eyes, which quickly turned to satisfaction. He nodded. "Mm, you remember them well. Go on, get back to work. I’ll let you know when there’s news."
"Thank you, Steward Chen." Chen Yue bowed again and returned to his work.
Late at night, on the large communal bed, Chen Yue’s hand rested silently on his chest beneath his lapel.
The sensation from his fingertips was still icy cold, but that bizarre feeling of growth, like a living thing squirming, had indeed slowed down significantly.
Ever since his Iron Mountain Fist entered the Great Success Realm, the nascent Qi in his Dantian had grown stronger by the day. By practicing diligently without pause, his Cultivation progressed by leaps and bounds.
[Realm: Martial Arts Apprentice (61/100)]
’At this rate, I’ll definitely break through in another four or five days.’
The next day, Chen Yue woke up early as usual, waiting to be called to help in the front hall. Perhaps he would see Steward Chen and find out if there was a decision about the Alchemy Room.
But for the entire day, he was assigned to the most remote corner of the backyard, handling the most tedious and time-consuming herb-sorting and cleaning tasks.
Chen Lin’s figure never once appeared in the backyard.
The third day, the fourth day, the fifth day... all were the same.