The next day, while it was still dark, Wu Ying woke up.
After washing up and finishing his warm-up in the courtyard, Instructor Yamada arrived.
"Instructor Yamada, I forgot yesterday—go find some reliable samurai to expand the guard unit. They will be of great use in the future."
"And the current guards must be thoroughly drilled in their strength."
Instructor Yamada nodded and turned away.
Wu Ying walked over to the water vat prepared the day before. It was about two meters in diameter, which would do nicely.
He took off his shoes, carefully stepped onto the rim of the vat, walked slowly in a circle a few times, and then picked up the pace into a light jog...
After God knows how long, when his mind began to feel fuzzy and dizzy, a misstep caused him to slip and fall off.
He lay flat on the ground, panting for half a day before his wits returned.
Having excessively strong mental faculties was truly a drawback; the feeling of not even being able to faint when you wanted to was utterly miserable.
He pulled up his status panel and took a look, instantly growing excited—his physique had improved...
He grimaced, trying to sit up, only to find the soles of his feet stinging fiercely.
Oh, the skin had broken...
Wu Ying twitched the corner of his mouth and looked up at the sky. The morning light was filtering through the leaves and scattering across the courtyard.
When Steward Uesugi arrived, what he saw was Wu Ying staring at the scraped sole of his foot, completely lost in thought.
He hurried to Wu Ying's side, pulled him up, and supported the young master as they went to tend to the wound.
When Kaoumi saw Wu Ying in this state, tiny pearls of tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.
Wu Ying rubbed her head, signaling that he was fine.
He had grown a bit careless; he should have practiced while wearing shoes. Without a medical ninja around, this would set back his progress in growing stronger...
Wu Ying let the steward apply medicine to his foot while inwardly cursing himself.
The method of walking on a water vat certainly couldn't conjure up movement techniques out of thin air.
He had practiced it as a child in his past life, though it was still quite effective for improving personal coordination.
He also needed to grind out experience points for Basic Swordsmanship...
*As heaven maintains its vigor through movement, a gentleman must never cease striving.*
If it doesn't kill you, you train yourself to death; if you don't break through your limits time and again, how can you rapidly grow stronger?
After finishing breakfast, Wu Ying began arranging matters.
"Steward Uesugi, don't forget the task I gave you yesterday."
"If there are any medicinal herbs for nourishing the body, buy some and properly build up Huimei's health."
"Instructor Yamada, you too—hurry up and recruit reliable men and train the guard unit. Come to the study later; I'll give you a blueprint."
Saying this, Wu Ying glanced sideways at Instructor Yamada.
"Oh, going to the Land of Iron to have weapons forged—that shouldn't attract the attention of ninjas, right?"
"As long as the quantity isn't huge."
Instructor Yamada's unique voice sounded.
Wu Ying nodded to show he understood.
Dismissing the steward, Wu Ying stood up. The sole of his foot didn't hurt too much anymore, but he didn't rush back to training.
He went into the study, pondered for a moment, and drew the design of a Tang saber.
After noting down a few fine details, he drew a set of xiao flute as well, handing both papers over to Instructor Yamada.
"Have eleven sabers of this style forged for now. The second item with holes is a musical instrument; just make two of those. Make sure to give instructions for them to be crafted with precision."
Instructor Yamada carefully put the papers away and left.
After sitting in a daze for a while, he wrote down the improved brewing method.
He hoped the steward would bring back good news.
As for ninjas—those parasites who produced nothing—once he had the strength, he would directly monopolize the grain trade and see how high they could jump...
Was playing the prodigal son really that great?
Without strength, you can protect nothing and simply end up reduced to a clown...
The chaotic thoughts drifting through his head began to pull him into daydreaming, but he immediately reined in his focus and calmed his mind.
He beckoned to Huimei and the two of them went out to the back courtyard together.
He took down two wooden swords and handed one to Huimei.
"I won't demand too much of you for now, but while building up your health, you still need to maintain a healthy and positive mindset!"
"You also need the strength to protect yourself."
"After all, living in this turbulent world, surviving is no easy task."
"But if even you give up hope, how can miracles ever happen?"
"So..."
At this point, he paused, looked at Huimei with a resolute gaze, and continued:
"No matter what difficulties and setbacks you encounter, you must never easily surrender!"
"Do you understand?"
Huimei took the wooden sword and nodded her little head.
Wu Ying glanced at her again. She was still a good six months away from turning fifteen, and she had been in this household for several years now.
Yet the servility deep in her bones still couldn't be washed away. It seemed she needed to be raised with proper indulgence...
"Follow along with my practice. If you get tired, go rest on the side by yourself."
"Don't grit your teeth and force yourself through it; that has an even worse impact on the body."
Without any further nonsense, Wu Ying assumed a stance and began practicing Basic Swordsmanship. The little girl followed along, her eyes unblinking as she mimicked his movements.
After practicing through once, Wu Ying grew familiar with the flow of the routine, feeling that blindly practicing with brute force alone would yield no improvement.
He recalled a Daoist teaching: *"Movement leads to excessive outward exertion, causing one to lose the state of primordial emptiness."*
In the long run, the primordial qi would be excessively depleted, the kidney channels would turn deficient, the root would become unstable, and all sorts of illnesses would arise.
...
Thanks to his high mental stats, his memories of various texts he had studied in his past life were gradually becoming clear.
His eyes instantly closed halfway, his gaze turned inward to observe his own body—his eyes watched his nose, his nose watched his heart, and his heart watched his dantian...
His ears blocked out all external interference, concentrating on listening to his breath.
Wu Ying took a deep breath, readjusted his posture once more, and prepared to begin a new round of cultivation.
He concentrated all his attention on sensing the flow of power within his body, skillfully utilizing technique to guide them.
After a painstaking effort, he finally completed a full round of practice.
When he stopped moving, his clothes were soaked with sweat, but Wu Ying's gaze was filled with determination and satisfaction.
Huimei watched her young master's figure.
His posture was upright and straight, and an indescribable ethereal aura seemed to emanate from his entire body.
That aura felt as though it had merged completely with the surrounding environment, making one unable to help but be captivated.
Huimei silently marveled in her heart:
"Young master is truly amazing!"
She knew that she had to keep working hard in her cultivation so that one day she could take control of her own destiny and be of help to the young master.
Thus, she rallied her spirits once more.
Seeing Wu Ying look over, the little girl immediately scurried to the side, picked up a towel, and handed it to him.
Wu Ying wiped the sweat from his face and casually glanced at his status panel again. The growth of his experience points was simply too slow.
Sighing, he accepted that there was nothing to be done about it; at least it was better than seeing no progress at all.
His physique had also improved by a tiny fraction.
It seemed he could try out the qi-absorption technique later on...
"Young master, it's time to eat."
Steward Uesugi's voice interrupted Wu Ying's drifting thoughts.
"Steward Uesugi, did you find anything? Were the medicinal herbs bought?"
"There are only ordinary herbs for conditioning the body, and I also bought a few books. They've been placed in the study; I just don't know if they are what the young master needs."
"That's good enough. After I finish eating, I'll go study them myself, and arrange a medicinal bath for Huimei as well."
"Understood."
"Have the funds been collected and brought over?"
"That Wasabi lord from yesterday—is his name Wasabi Jirocho?"
"Let's deal with this matter first for now."
Just as Steward Uesugi was being stumped by his young master's string of questions, Wu Ying fortunately spoke his final instructions.
Giving Wu Ying a surprised look, the steward replied:
"Yes."
"Is there a young man named Morino Idate by his side right now?"
Steward Uesugi pondered for a moment and answered:
"I've heard that lord mention him."
"Later on, go find that Lord Wasabi, make contact with that young fellow, and see if he's willing to sell a Chakra Refining Technique."
"If the other party asks why, just subtly hint that Instructor Yamada wants to improve his strength to better protect this household."
"If they don't ask for the reason, you don't need to say that."
After finishing his meal, Wu Ying dismissed the old steward and took Huimei to read and rest for a while.
The sky gradually grew dark.
Wu Ying finally figured out the simple meridian distribution of this world.
If the steward managed to bring back a Chakra Refining Technique, then he would also have a reference for internal cultivation...
Looking at Huimei, who was nodding off with sleepiness, Wu Ying felt a bit helpless.
He walked over to her and lightly flicked her forehead.
Huimei instantly jumped up, looked up at Wu Ying, and muttered silently.
Wu Ying smiled.
With his hands clasped behind his back and a profound look in his eyes, he said:
"Huimei, life is short, passing like a rushing river."
"Only by hurrying to make yourself strong and bravely chasing your dreams can you avoid wasting this fleeting journey through life."
"Come, follow me to cultivate."
Huimei curled her lips, her large eyes filled with incomprehension and curiosity.
She looked Wu Ying up and down carefully.
She always felt like her young master had fallen ill.
Watching Wu Ying disappear through the doorway, she hurriedly chased after him.
Fortunately, the monotonous cultivation didn't last too long.
Because a servant came to call them for dinner.