Chapter 21: Time Flies, Mastery of Swordsmanship!

Moonlight spilled down.

"Where am I supposed to sleep tonight?" Jiang Ning was somewhat dazed, his heart filled with a momentary sense of aimlessness.

Suddenly.

*Tap, tap, tap—*

A series of rapid footsteps sounded from behind the wall.

A sturdy figure emerged from behind the courtyard wall.

"Sister Sun!" Jiang Ning spoke up.

Sister Sun glanced at Jiang Ning and immediately noticed the heat rising from the top of his head and his clothes soaked with sweat.

"Little guy, you're working too hard! Practicing martial arts at this hour!!" Her eyes softened slightly.

Jiang Ning smiled. "Since I chose to practice, shouldn't I endure some hardship? As a child born into an ordinary family, it isn't easy to get this chance to learn martial arts; I must seize it tightly."

"No matter how much hardship you endure, you still have to sleep! It's already midnight. If you don't sleep well to recover your strength, how will you practice tomorrow?" Sister Sun spoke with a hint of irritation.

"I do need to sleep," Jiang Ning nodded.

Seeing his nod, the expression on Sister Sun's face instantly softened.

"Then follow me! I prepared a bed for you long ago. I saw you reading seriously just now and didn't have the heart to disturb you!" Sister Sun said in a rambling manner.

Listening to her words, a faint smile appeared on Jiang Ning's face.

The two walked through the silent martial arts hall, their feet treading on a path paved with blue bricks.

The moonlight was like water, casting clear reflections of the two on the ground, while the sounds of various insects echoed in their ears.

After passing through a courtyard and walking along a path for dozens of meters, they arrived at another courtyard.

"The martial arts hall has many vacant rooms. I'll leave this courtyard for you to live in alone; I'm right next door!" Sister Sun said, stopping in the middle of the courtyard.

"Thank you, Sister!!" Jiang Ning pursed his lips and spoke with a serious expression.

Sister Sun couldn't help but smile. "You've already called me 'Sister'! What is there to thank me for!"

She then added, "By the way, I haven't had time to sun your quilt yet. Just make do for tonight, and I'll dry it for you tomorrow."

"It's fine!" A smile appeared on Jiang Ning's face. "As long as I have a bed, it's enough! I didn't come to the martial arts hall to enjoy a life of luxury!"

"You are such a sensible child!" Sister Sun shook her head slightly, a trace of reminiscence appearing in her eyes. "He was just as sensible as you back then!!"

"Sister Sun, who is this 'he' you're talking about?"

Hearing this, Sister Sun snapped back to reality. She composed herself, shook her head without answering, and instead said, "It's late. Go take a bath and get some sleep! I should head back to sleep as well!"

Under the moonlight, Jiang Ning watched Sister Sun's retreating figure.

"It seems Sister Sun is also someone with a story!!" Jiang Ning sighed inwardly, then walked toward his room.

*Creak—*

He pushed open the door.

The entire room was laid out before him.

The room was not large, perhaps only forty or fifty square meters, and the layout was simple, containing only basic tables, chairs, and a large red-flowered wooden bed against the corner.

However, the dustless furniture indicated that the person who cleaned this room did so with great care.

The neatly folded bedding on the bamboo mat made Jiang Ning think of his past life.

In his past life, every time he returned from outside at the end of the year, his mother would have already laid out his bed, and the bedding would always carry the scent of sunshine.

He let out a soft sigh.

Turning around, he walked out of the room, fetched two buckets of water from the front courtyard, gave himself a simple wash, and took the opportunity to wring out his previous clothes before hanging them on the windowsill.

In mid-July, Luoshui County had entered the hottest time of the year.

In this sweltering climate, any clothing could be dried by the warm wind in a single night.

***

The next day.

The first thing he did upon waking was open his panel.

[Source Energy]: 4.4

"The Source Energy increased by 0.5 this time."

Jiang Ning thought reflectively, stroking his chin. "It seems the growth of Source Energy is indeed as I predicted—it is related to my daily intake! Yesterday, I ate wild ginseng twice, and my lunch and dinner were much more sumptuous than any other day. Thus, the increase in Source Energy broke my previous record, growing by a full 0.5."

He then murmured to himself, "Judging by yesterday's efficiency, it will take at least eleven more days to reach ten Source Energy points! In that case, there's no rush to grind the experience points for the Firewood Chopping Saber Technique! As long as I can grind out the required experience before the Source Energy reaches ten, it will be fine!"

He then pushed open the door and walked out of the room.

Even during the hottest time of the year, the morning breeze still carried a hint of coolness.

The horizon, currently cool, was tinged with streaks of red clouds, clearly indicating that a fiery red sunrise would soon arrive.

Jiang Ning took a deep breath of fresh air.

*Whoosh—*

He slowly exhaled the turbid air that had accumulated in his abdomen overnight.

After a few cycles, he felt his body and mind become incredibly relaxed.

"On such a morning, it is only right to practice fist forms!" Jiang Ning smiled.

He immediately took a stance, adjusted his breathing rhythm, and began practicing his fist forms.

[Five Animals Fist Experience +2]

By the time he finished one set, nearly the time it takes for an incense stick to burn had passed.

The horizon, which had just begun to show faint light, now had a warm, red sun peeking out.

At this moment, Jiang Ning's body began to heat up completely.

His skin turned slightly red, heat rose from his head, and large beads of sweat began to drip from his cheeks.

However, his mind and body were immensely joyful.

One set of the technique increased his experience by two points, which was equivalent to practicing the form twice.

Such efficiency was naturally a pleasant surprise.

After resting for a moment, he continued practicing.

[Five Animals Fist Experience +1]

[Skill]: Five Animals Fist (Beginner 31/100)

Looking at his panel.

*Whoosh—*

Jiang Ning exhaled a long breath of turbid air.

One-third of the progress!

He was one step closer to a breakthrough in his fist technique.

Jiang Ning nodded with satisfaction.

***

In the blink of an eye.

Another two days passed.

During these few days, Jiang Li had personally visited the martial arts hall once to bring Jiang Ning several sets of change of clothes.

Seeing that Jiang Ning's originally somewhat thin body had become sturdier, Jiang Li returned home at ease.

Jiang Ning had not slackened for a moment during these days, utilizing his time to the maximum.

Aside from practicing fist forms and physical labor like chopping wood, he spent his time reading.

The thick book he had brought from home was also completely finished the previous night.

[Name]: Jiang Ning [Source Energy]: 5.4 [Skill]: Literacy (Limit Break 1 once 148/2000) (Trait: Photographic Memory) Five Animals Fist (Beginner 88/100) Firewood Chopping Saber Technique (Great Success 109/1000)

Three full days had caused some changes in Jiang Ning's panel.

With a daily growth of 0.5, his Source Energy had reached 5.4 points.

His fist technique had also progressed significantly, with only 12 experience points left until a breakthrough.

Among them, the biggest change was the Firewood Chopping Saber Technique.

In these few days, he had directly ground it to the level of Great Success.

After reaching the Great Success level, Jiang Ning could clearly feel that his saber was faster and more accurate.

He only needed to exert eighty percent of his previous strength to easily split a heavy log down the middle.

With twenty to thirty percent more explosive power and twenty to thirty percent more speed, if this were a technique for killing enemies, it would produce an overwhelming effect.

This was the change after the Firewood Chopping Saber Technique broke through from Small Success to Great Success; it provided him with an all-around boost.

Having experienced the change from Small Success to Great Success, Jiang Ning was even more full of anticipation for the subsequent breakthrough of the Five Animals Fist.