Lin Ming had thrown countless punches, finally exhausting all his strength. He leaned against a tree trunk and sat down on a rock, taking some medicinal herbs from the backpack on the ground. After crushing them, he applied the paste to his battered fists. Martial Artists had to regularly use herbs to treat their bodies; otherwise, they would accumulate hidden injuries. Too many of these injuries could lead to disability or even death.
This medicinal herb was called Iron Wire Grass. The name came from the fact that while the green juice squeezed from it had healing properties, applying it to a wound felt like being scrubbed with a wire brush—the pain was excruciating.
Lin Ming gritted his teeth, enduring the pain. He took a fresh white cloth from his pack and wrapped it around his fists, layer by layer.
In truth, there were plenty of medicinal herbs that were more effective and gentler than Iron Wire Grass—ones that didn't cause any pain at all. But without exception, they were all expensive. Lin Ming's family could not possibly afford them.
Lin Ming's parents ran a fairly large restaurant in Qingsang City. However, the restaurant's assets didn't belong to them; they belonged to the Lin Family of Qingsang City.
Although Lin Ming shared the Lin surname, he was several generations removed from the main branch of the family. The main branch entrusted some of its businesses to distant relatives from the side branches to manage. Lin Ming's parents, who ran the restaurant, received a fixed annual salary and a share of the profits. This income was quite substantial compared to that of an ordinary family, providing them a comfortable life. However, when it came to supporting Lin Ming's Martial Cultivation, it was stretched to the limit.
At first, Lin Ming's parents had hoped he would take over the family business and become a Shopkeeper. But when they saw his heart was set on the path of Martial Arts, they took out all their savings to buy him healing herbs.
Now, the family's savings were dwindling away, yet Lin Ming remained stuck at the Body Cultivation First Layer.
The Body Cultivation Stage is the first phase of Martial Cultivation, where one guides True Essence to temper the body. It consists of six layers in total: the First Layer, Refining Power; the Second Layer, Muscle Training; the Third Layer, Organ Cultivation; the Fourth Layer, Muscle Strengthening; the Fifth Layer, Bone Forging; and the Sixth Layer, Meridian Condensation. After completing these, a Martial Artist enters the Gathering Essence stage.
After applying the Iron Wire Grass juice to his wounds, Lin Ming rested for an hour to let his wounds fully absorb the herb's medicinal properties. Just as he stood up to resume his training, a chubby youth carrying an exquisite longsword emerged from the woods. Seeing Lin Ming, he grinned and said, "Brother Min, today's the day to register for the Seven Profound Martial Mansion's entrance assessment. You didn't forget, did you? Still practicing your punches out here?"
The youth's name was Lin Xiaodong, and he was slightly younger than Lin Ming. They had grown up together and were as close as brothers.
Lin Xiaodong was actually one of the Lin Family's Direct Disciples. However, even among the Direct Disciples, there was a pecking order, and Lin Xiaodong was at the very bottom. His parents were also in business and lived very close to Lin Ming's family.
Lin Ming glanced at Lin Xiaodong before turning back to the tree stump. "There will be too many people signing up at the start. You'd have to wait in line for one or two hours. Just standing around would be a waste of time."
"Damn, you won't even spare this little bit of time? Are you for real?" Lin Xiaodong said with a bit of exaggeration. He walked over to the stump and saw the fist imprints and flecks of blood. Then he looked at Lin Ming's heavily bandaged hands and sucked in a sharp breath. "You're insane. You've beaten this ironwood tree to a pulp. If you keep training like this and only rely on Iron Wire Grass, you're going to permanently damage your hands. You could even end up crippled!"
Lin Ming said nothing. 'The path of Martial Arts is a fight against destiny,' he thought. 'With my Third-Grade Talent, it's already incredibly difficult to reach the Meridian Condensation Stage. If I don't give it my all while I'm young, I'll have absolutely no hope. If I push myself, I might accumulate enough hidden injuries to end up crippled, but I could also succeed before they flare up. Once I break through to the Meridian Condensation Stage, True Essence will temper my body, and all these hidden injuries will disappear.'
'For me,' Lin Ming thought, 'this is a do-or-die battle. A gamble with my very life on the line.'
Lin Xiaodong sighed. He pulled a cloth-wrapped package from his robes, carefully unwrapped it layer by layer, and said, "Brother Min, this is for you."
Lin Ming turned to look and saw a stalk of Blood Ginseng, as red as blood, lying quietly in the cloth. It looked to be at least a hundred years old and was a top-grade panacea for healing wounds and nourishing the blood. A single thin slice was enough for one dose. It was gentle yet potent. This ginseng alone was worth at least one hundred and fifty taels of gold—equivalent to his family's entire annual income.
Lin Ming froze for a moment, then shook his head. "I can't take this Blood Ginseng."
'They might be brothers, but this Blood Ginseng was simply too precious,' he thought. 'Lin Xiaodong's branch was at the bottom of the Lin Family's Direct Disciples. Although his family was much better off than mine, they wouldn't have much to spare if they were also funding his own Cultivation.'
But Lin Xiaodong shoved the Blood Ginseng into Lin Ming's hands. "I bought this for you. I'm completely inconsistent with my Cultivation, so I barely have any hidden injuries. It would be a waste on me. If you don't take it, I bought it for nothing. Don't be difficult and try to give it back. To be honest, my dad doesn't have high expectations for me. He just hopes I can hold onto our status in the Lin Family's Direct Lineage so my own kids don't lose it."
Lin Ming was silent for a moment before finally accepting the Blood Ginseng. "Alright," he said, putting it away. "I'll take it. And for the sake of this ginseng, I swear I'll break through to the Peak of Meridian Condensation Realm."
"Haha, now that's more like it! Not only do you have to break through to the Peak of Meridian Condensation Realm, you have to crush that bastard Vermilion Flame! I've hated the sight of that son of a bitch for ages!"
'Vermilion Flame...' Lin Ming exhaled softly. His own talent wasn't bad, but Vermilion Flame's was top-tier. He had already been accepted into the Seven Profound Martial Mansion and was even a High-Level Disciple of its Celestial Mansion. His strength had already reached the Peak of Body Cultivation Third Layer. Despite all that, Lin Ming had still set the goal of surpassing him. It wasn't because of Lann Yunyue; it was because the pursuit of the Martial Arts Realm meant crossing one threshold after another, climbing one mountain after another. He would surpass him, even if it took him ten, twenty, or even more years in this lifetime!