Chapter 54: Chapter 54 Assistance Gu Sheng returned home. The hunger in his stomach made his eyes almost turn green. After a whole day of practicing, with only two flatbreads in between, he was so famished that he could hardly tell east from west. He quickly started a fire to cook. He simply prepared a large piece of smoked meat and then began to devour it ravenously. Burying his head in his food, he didn’t even have time to savor its taste. Gu Sheng quickly finished all the dishes he’d prepared. As the hunger subsided, he finally felt much better. "Practicing the Iron Stone Fist might not seem to consume much, but in truth, it requires engaging the muscles across the entire body to condense power. If I continue this kind of grueling training daily, I’ll need to consume at least a pound of meat every day!" Gu Sheng couldn’t help but click his tongue in amazement. The cost alone for meat consumption would amount to around one or two taels of silver each month. No wonder Gu Erniu hadn’t even managed to reach the entry-level of the Iron Stone Fist back then. With insufficient money, it was simply impossible. Iron Stone Fist is easy to learn but hard to master. Staying diligent will ensure entry sooner or later—the key is whether you have the resources to sustain it. And reaching the entry-level is just the beginning; the real challenge of tempering the skin starts afterward, and that requires even more funds. Even for common tenant farmers and hunters, let alone those from noble families, many struggle to become Martial Artists despite receiving subsidies from their clans if they lack proper aptitude. Having just started delving into Martial Arts, Gu Sheng now had a clearer understanding of the resource demands involved. Though he currently had over thirty taels of silver, to be honest, it wasn’t much. "Hunting remains my fastest means of acquiring money and resources for now. I’ll have to keep it up and accumulate as much wealth as possible." As for relying on the noble family... Gu Sheng never considered it. That path required sacrifices he was unwilling to make, like marrying a woman he didn’t love or risking life and limb. He’d heard bits and pieces about Gu Jingang’s situation. But he had his panel. As long as he stayed on track and developed steadily, success through sustained effort was only a matter of time. ... From then on. Gu Sheng’s days became much like those from before he went to town, just with the added routine of practicing the Iron Stone Fist. As winter approached, the temperature in the air grew steadily colder, and fewer prey could be found in the mountains. The hunters within the manor reduced their trips to the mountains significantly, and Gu Sheng was no exception. When he wasn’t heading into the mountains, Gu Sheng spent most of his time focusing on practicing the Iron Stone Fist, while the remainder went to honing his arrow technique. Even though he had now learned real Martial Arts, he wouldn’t abandon his arrow technique. It had already reached 15% progress in the Perfect Realm, with the intense battle against the mountain bandits improving his proficiency greatly. With his arrow technique at the Perfect Realm proving so powerful, he eagerly anticipated the day when it produced a special effect. That might very well allow him to truly contend with Martial Artists. Until he became one himself, this was one of his strongest advantages. Thankfully, the Iron Stone Fist and arrow technique didn’t conflict with each other. Supplemented by meat and simple medicinal broths for nourishment, Gu Sheng’s body could handle the demands perfectly. Training the Iron Stone Fist made his physique grow stronger by the day, with the strength contained in his muscles gradually increasing. At this rate, by the second month of spring next year, his arrow technique should surpass the Perfect Realm. As for the Iron Stone Fist, Gu Sheng’s progress remained consistent—not too fast nor too slow. By now, he understood that his aptitude for the Iron Stone Fist was likely average. Based on past examples within the manor, it would take close to two months to reach entry-level. However, he noticed something peculiar: although he was initially slow to grasp the basics, the more he practiced, the more it seemed that controlling power wasn’t as difficult as he first thought. At this pace, he estimated he could reach the entry-level of the Iron Stone Fist in just over a month! This wasn’t the result of the panel’s effects, as the Iron Stone Fist hadn’t yet been input into the panel. "It’s from chopping wood!" Gu Sheng’s doubts cleared, and he had an epiphany. The training for the Iron Stone Fist ultimately involved mastering the body’s power. Once at the entry-level, this power could stimulate the skin, thereby tempering it. Back when Gu Sheng achieved Great Success in chopping wood, he could already harness power from his whole body. Now that his wood-chopping had surpassed the Perfect Realm, his degree of power control naturally exceeded that of the average person, giving him an edge in training the Iron Stone Fist. "Martial Arts aptitude isn’t fixed. My mastery of wood-chopping beyond Perfect provides an advantage for training the Iron Stone Fist. Likewise, if my Iron Stone Fist reaches a profound realm in the future, it will enhance my understanding of Martial Arts overall, making progress in other disciplines easier. It seems I’ll need to expand my knowledge on the path of Martial Arts extensively." The logic was simple, much like how one would first learn phonetics, then words and phrases, and finally full compositions in a previous life. If one jumped straight into advanced compositions, success would be almost impossible. Of course. There were prodigious geniuses who could leap directly to compositions—such people were freakish talents. Gu Sheng wasn’t a genius, so following a step-by-step approach was enough to make steady progress. Gu Sheng’s understanding deepened. His training of the Iron Stone Fist became smoother. At the Gu’s Manor training field. The place was bustling with activity. Today, an especially large number of youths were practicing Martial Arts. Gu Sheng focused solely on practicing his punches. In his mind, he replayed Gu Jingang’s movements from that day. His body followed the ideas in his mind, his punches slow and heavy like steady boulders. Streams of power gradually gathered and flowed along the punching movement, but still couldn’t reach the level needed to stimulate his skin. "Again!" Finishing one round of the Iron Stone Fist, Gu Sheng remained undeterred, his gaze unwavering. A voice suddenly came from nearby. "You need to relax more. Imagine a stone dropping into a lake, creating ripples. Those ripples are the power that reverberates to stimulate the skin, achieving the effect of tempering it." Gu Sheng turned his head. He saw Gu Xiaojiang standing there with his arms crossed, though he wasn’t sure when he had arrived. Today, Gu Xiaojiang wore a black training outfit, looking particularly sharp. Occasional glances from nearby youths carried admiration and respect. Gu Xiaojiang was undeniably gifted. He mastered the Iron Stone Fist in just seven days and progressed rapidly thereafter. In less than half a year, he was on the verge of breaking through to the Small Success realm, poised to become the fourth person in Gu’s Manor to achieve Small Success in the Iron Stone Fist— The other three were Gu Dajiang, Gu Changming, and a Martial Artist in the Refining Skin Realm, Jade Skin stage. Gu Jingang, however, was the only one to achieve Great Success in the Iron Stone Fist. At this rate, Gu Xiaojiang was likely to reach the Great Success level in the future, and might even attain the unprecedented Perfect Realm, earning high expectations from the clan elders. Gu Sheng had come to understand. A high Martial Arts realm didn’t directly translate to a higher Martial Artist realm, but it allowed for faster advancements. Take the Iron Stone Fist as an example. The speed at which someone in the Small Success realm tempered their skin was several times faster than someone at the entry-level! Hearing Gu Xiaojiang’s guidance, Gu Sheng felt inspired. The image of rippling waves resonated with him, subtly enlightening his understanding. Gu Xiaojiang’s innate talent was indeed exceptional. "Your injuries have healed?" he replied with a smile. Gu Xiaojiang nodded. "Thanks to you. Without you that day, I wouldn’t just be bearing a few minor injuries. Even if I had survived, I’d likely be crippled." Gu Xiaojiang looked at Gu Sheng sincerely. "If you have any questions about the Iron Stone Fist in the future, feel free to ask me. I can teach you." The other youths nearby immediately showed envious expressions. A budding prodigy nearing Small Success personally offering guidance—this was something many would dream of. Other Martial Artists in the Small Success or higher realms within the manor certainly didn’t have the time for such things. Gu Xiaojiang intended to repay Gu Sheng in this way. Though he was proud and ambitious, he discerned gratitude from grievances, and he admired Gu Sheng’s brilliant display of arrow technique. Gu Sheng was momentarily stunned, then slowly nodded with a smile and said: "Alright, I’ll trouble you, then." He didn’t shy away from accepting guidance from a peer. The capable are fit to teach. With Gu Xiaojiang’s pointers, his time to entry-level mastery would significantly shorten.