The information on the light screen had changed somewhat. An innate talent had appeared, "untransformed" had changed to "first transformation," and his satiety level had dropped to zero.
Shen Xiu could feel that some unknown change had seemingly occurred within his body as well, making his physical form feel light and agile.
More importantly, the transformation had added the talent of "Heaven Rewards Diligence."
This talent digitized everything he learned and practiced; every bit of effort yielded a corresponding increase. There were no negative changes such as forgetting or regressing—only a continuous upward path without bottlenecks.
In other words, no matter how poor his comprehension of martial arts was, or how difficult a technique was to cultivate, he could grind his way through it with time.
This meant that even with mediocre aptitude, as long as he kept practicing, he could raise his cultivation level and increase his strength.
It meant that there were no longer any martial arts techniques in this world that he could not master, nor any bottlenecks he could not break through.
Five days passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, the day arrived for the martial arts instructors to impart their techniques at the martial arts school.
To give the menial disciples enough time to study the techniques, the martial arts school had even made a rare exception, granting them half a day off in the afternoon.
That afternoon, long before the designated time, many excited menial disciples hurried over to the training ground.
At this moment, the four corners of the training ground were divided into three areas, corresponding to the three instructors teaching three different martial arts techniques. Shen Xiu found the spot where the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill was being taught and ran over.
Before long, a middle-aged man with a majestic and robust build, dressed in a black athletic robe, walked into the center of the training ground. He glanced around and said with a stern expression:
"I am Duàn Hóngfēi, an instructor here at the school. You can call me Instructor Duan. I believe that over the past year, all of you have already gotten to know me."
"I don't need to elaborate on our martial arts school's strength now. Teaching you martial arts is giving you a chance—a chance to rise above others. I hope you will seize it yourselves."
"Very well, the technique I am going to teach you now is the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill. This technique consists of thirteen postures, primarily aimed at tempering the physique. When practiced to the ultimate level, it grants the strength to subdue dragons and tigers. Next, I will demonstrate it a few times, and you must memorize it well."
After this speech, Duàn Hóngfēi looked at the menial disciples, who were brimming with excitement and barely able to contain themselves. He nodded slightly and began his demonstration.
Duàn Hóngfēi's movements were agile and vigorous. As he executed the thirteen postures, every transition from stillness to motion was as fluid as flowing water, at times fierce and ferocious, at times concealing sharp internal energy.
The faint, fierce aura emanating from his body spread outward along with the movements of the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill.
The disciples standing near the front, even though they were not directly facing him, still felt a spine-chilling sensation, as if they were being stared down by a ferocious beast.
Despite such an intimidating aura, the surrounding menial disciples did not scatter. Instead, they stared unblinkingly at Instructor Duan's movements, knowing that such an opportunity was hard to come by.
After completing three demonstrations, Duàn Hóngfēi slowly withdrew his fists and stood upright, exhaling a line of white breath about three feet long from his mouth.
Seeing that the menial disciples were still savoring the movements in their minds, he did not disturb them. Instead, he waited for a short while before allowing the disciples to begin practicing on their own.
As for himself, he stood watching to the side, guiding them on key points of their form and checking to see if there were any promising prospects worth nurturing among them.
Shen Xiu, positioned further back, was no different from the other menial disciples. Recalling Instructor Duan's movements, he attempted to recreate the thirteen postures of the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill one by one.
Although his execution was clumsy, a complete mess, and punctuated by pauses to stop and think, he did not give up.
When he practiced like this and finally managed to complete a full sequence, the text under the technique section on his light screen flickered.
【Technique:】
【Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill: 1st Layer, Initial Mastery 0.1%】
Indeed.
The talent of Heaven Rewards Diligence was already taking effect.
He practiced again, still stumbling through the thirteen postures with less-than-standard form.
However, as he continued practicing, he observed the increase in proficiency while dealing with various obvious flaws in his form. Comprehending it mentally, he began consciously correcting his movements.
The proficiency of the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill also climbed at a rate visible to the naked eye.
By the time the experience value for this technique reached 2%, he had already practiced it seven times, and his postures and movements rarely contained major errors.
"Hoh, someone is already able to execute the complete set."
Duàn Hóngfēi swept his gaze across the group of menial disciples before him, his eyes suddenly coming to rest on Shen Xiu.
For no other reason than that Shen Xiu's state was far too eye-catching.
While everyone else was still stopping and starting, trying to recall the movements from memory before executing them—most of them giving up halfway and unable to finish the whole set—this disciple was already capable of performing an entire sequence.
Even if it was rather clumsy.
Yet, among the short, standing out as the tallest, set against the backdrop of his peers, he still appeared a cut above the disciples beside him.
Although Duàn Hóngfēi thought nothing much of this—there were plenty of formal disciples with such comprehension abilities—it was somewhat rare among the menial disciples.
After the menial disciples had practiced for a while, Duàn Hóngfēi stepped forward again, performed the thirteen postures of the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill once more, and waited for about the time it took for a stick of incense to burn.
Only then did Duàn Hóngfēi slowly speak, "Today's demonstration ends here. Tomorrow at noon, I will demonstrate the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill here once more. For the rest, you must rely on your own practice. If there is anything you do not understand, you may seek me out again, or consult your martial brothers."
With that said, Duàn Hóngfēi turned and left with brisk strides, while the menial disciples on the ground still felt unsatisfied. Seizing the remaining free time, they lost no time in continuing their practice.
The chores that had been left unfinished that afternoon were postponed until late into the night. By the time he finished those miscellaneous tasks and returned to his quarters, it was already deep in the night.
Yet even at this hour, quite a few disciples were still standing outside in the courtyard practicing the martial arts they had learned that afternoon, looking unusually excited.
As long as one practiced martial arts, there was a chance to become a formal disciple who didn't have to worry about food and drink or spend all day busy with menial chores. The temptation of this was enormous.
By the second day, fewer menial disciples arrived than the day before. Clearly, some had harbored thoughts of whether they could switch to a different discipline, but the outcome would likely not be what they wished.
Duàn Hóngfēi did not mind this at all; his gaze merely lingered for a moment on the few menial disciples with relatively strong comprehension abilities.
Still, he said nothing, only offering a few more corrections whenever their movements were wrong.
After all, it was still the early stage; any real achievements could wait to be seen during the examinations.
Once the lessons of the second day concluded, for the time ahead, aside from his daily chores of fetching water, carrying loads, and moving training equipment, Shen Xiu spent all his spare time practicing the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill.
This was the only martial art he was currently practicing.
Whether he could pass the examination in half a year and shake off his status as a menial disciple depended entirely on this.
Only then would he have more time to devote to cultivating martial arts, and he would never again have to deal with these tedious and entangling chores.
Many menial disciples shared the same thought, and these days, whether in the quarters or on the plaza, figures of menial disciples practicing martial arts could be seen everywhere.
Most practiced the White Tiger Fist, followed by the Vajra Palm, while the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Skill had the fewest practitioners, truly displaying exceptional diligence.