Chapter 10: Cultivation

Chen Ping’an’s hands weren’t particularly dexterous, but he did decent work.

“That’ll do.”

He inserted the newly fashioned wooden peg into the door latch; it fit perfectly, neither too loose nor too tight.

“Wow, Brother is amazing!”

Chen Er’ya stood to the side, clapping and showering him with sycophantic praise.

“Alright, Brother needs to practice martial arts now. Nannan, if you get sleepy later, don’t wait up for me; just go to bed.”

“Okay,” Chen Er’ya replied.

Chen Ping’an retrieved his undergarments from inside the house.

These undergarments had now become auxiliary tools for his Iron Cloth Shirt training. They were no longer fit to be worn, but they served this purpose quite well.

Once he had more money to spare, he would definitely buy proper soft cloth for his Iron Cloth Shirt training.

The conditions for practicing martial arts were truly too crude.

If not for his golden finger interface, Chen Ping’an wouldn’t dare be confident that he could succeed.

After folding the undergarments properly, he wrapped them several times around his chest and back, then began his Iron Cloth Shirt practice.

Having succeeded twice before, he was familiar with the routine.

He rubbed his body vigorously, then flexed his elbows and arms to make his chest expand and contract, repeating the motion over and over.

Again and again, and again.

As he rubbed with force, Chen Ping’an felt his body gradually heating up. Then, as the heat intensified, a faint sense of pain began to emerge.

As he continued to rub, the pain intensified, becoming more and more pronounced.

However, this pain was still within his tolerable range.

Chen Ping’an gritted his teeth and persisted.

Then, the next moment.

A “+1” text symbol flashed within Chen Ping’an’s field of vision.

Name: Chen Ping’an Realm: None Martial Arts: Iron Cloth Shirt (Not yet initiated) (3/5)

“Excellent!”

The lines of text appearing before him, especially that eye-catching “3,” made Chen Ping’an feel exhilarated and his blood boil.

“Two points. Just two more points of experience, and I’ll meet the requirements to initiate the Iron Cloth Shirt.”

Chen Ping’an mused to himself, unwrapping the clothes from his chest and back. Everywhere he looked, his skin was flushed red. His entire body felt numb—a complex sensation of numbness mixed with pain, and pain mixed with itching.

“Brother~”

Chen Er’ya, standing to the side, very obediently handed him a bowl of water.

“Good sister!”

Chen Ping’an praised her, took the bowl with one hand, and gulped it down in one go.

After finishing the water, he didn’t sit on the wooden stool; instead, he walked a few steps and sat right on the threshold of the courtyard gate.

The two of them had eaten early, and with the time spent cleaning up and his half-hour of practice, it wasn’t too late yet.

Chen Ping’an wanted to see if he could complete two Iron Cloth Shirt sessions tonight.

Sitting on the threshold, Chen Ping’an felt a tingling sensation all over his body, as if tiny insects were crawling everywhere. Compared to just a moment ago, the pain had subsided quite a bit.

He rested on the threshold for a good half-hour before slowly rising. Once up, he didn’t immediately start practicing the Iron Cloth Shirt again; instead, he adjusted his posture slightly to relax his muscles.

“Nannan, go wash up first. Once you’re done, just go to bed; don’t wait for Brother.”

Chen Ping’an looked at Chen Er’ya, who was drooping her head while waiting for him, and instructed her.

“Mm, okay,” Chen Er’ya replied.

“Continue!”

Chen Ping’an picked up the undergarments, wrapped them around his chest and back several times, and began his Iron Cloth Shirt practice with practiced ease.

His hands rubbed vigorously over his body. At first, it was fine, and he could manage. But after only a short while, he felt the pain in his body becoming unbearable.

Chen Ping’an gritted his teeth, wanting to persist, but the subsequent pain became increasingly obvious. It wasn’t just a matter of pain; he felt as if his skin and flesh were about to tear open.

“I can’t try anymore!”

Chen Ping’an made a prompt decision to give up on this session. It wasn’t that he couldn’t endure this level of pain, but he was worried that if his skin broke, it would affect his Iron Cloth Shirt practice for the next few days.

It seemed that with his current physique and level, it was unlikely he could practice the Iron Cloth Shirt twice in a short period.

The reason he had practiced twice yesterday was that he had done one session in the morning, rested well all afternoon, and only started the second session at night.

If he woke up earlier in the morning and practiced once before heading to work, then practiced a second time at night—if he operated like that, he should be able to practice the Iron Cloth Shirt twice a day.

“Mm, I’ll rest early tonight and try again first thing tomorrow morning!”

Having made up his mind, Chen Ping’an took off the wrapping clothes. He brought over a basin of water and carefully wiped his body with a cloth.

Speaking of water, his courtyard didn’t have a well. About a mile to the east, there was a small stream with a well beside it. Usually, when they needed water, they would fetch it from there and store it in the kitchen’s water vat.

“There’s still half a vat left, so there’s no rush to fetch more.”

Chen Ping’an thought to himself.

Although Chen Er’ya was precocious, she was still young, and heavy labor like fetching water was difficult for her. Chen Ping’an could fill the vat in ten trips, but for Chen Er’ya, it would likely take more than twenty.

After wiping his body and washing up, Chen Ping’an went to rest.

When he entered the room, Chen Er’ya wasn’t asleep yet.

“Brother, you’re done~”

“Yes.”

Chen Ping’an replied.

Before sleeping, the siblings chatted for a while as they usually did.

Chen Er’ya shared the state of their household expenses with Chen Ping’an.

Things like how they rarely lit candles, but they were running low and needed to buy one to keep in reserve. There wasn’t much salt left, so they needed to buy some tomorrow. There was still plenty of rice and oil, but they would need to organize them tomorrow to prevent mice from stealing them. And, she mentioned the neighborhood gossip she had heard while out buying vegetables today.

All in all, it was mostly daily life.

Most of the time, Chen Ping’an just listened without interrupting. In the gaps, he would briefly share his own daily routine at work.

The siblings slept together every night, and doing so generally gave them peace of mind.

*Huff... huff... huff...*

Early in the morning, Chen Ping’an began practicing in the small courtyard.

Compared to last night, his physical state was undoubtedly much better. His hands rubbed continuously, moving all over. His elbows and arms flexed repeatedly, making his chest expand and contract.

Today, Chen Ping’an had woken up more than half an hour earlier than usual. Before dawn had even broken, he had already started practicing the Iron Cloth Shirt.

Chen Er’ya had been sleeping, but she was eventually woken up by the sounds of Chen Ping’an’s practice.

Seeing her brother working so hard early in the morning, her heart ached for him.

But no matter how much it ached, the only thing she could do to help was to prepare a bowl of hot porridge for him.