CHAPTER 36: CHAPTER 36 BREATHING TECHNIQUE (VOTE FOR RECOMMENDATION AND FOLLOW-UP READ)

In front of everyone, Chen Ku effortlessly drew the ten-stone Iron-tire Bow without changing his expression or gasping for air and then gently put it down.

"Thousand Jin Force!!"

Now, the expressions on the faces of the instructors from the various courtyards turned even more interesting.

"Not only does he have the talent of a Pharmacist, but he also possesses such excellent Martial Talent?!"

Subconsciously, their gazes turned toward Chai Bao.

Their hearts tensed.

As expected, after witnessing Chen Ku effortlessly draw the ten-stone Iron-tire Bow, which was the highest strength level for a bow, Chai Bao, as the instructor of the Medicine King Hall’s guards—Chai Bao, with his leopard-like head and ringed eyes, tall stature, and powerful, long legs—turned to Hong Shouxiong, the Third Shopkeeper, and said, "Shopkeeper, let me take this man. He has a strong Root Bone, and he is bound to have a bright future."

He was, in a sense, the mightiest fighter of the entire Medicine King Hall. He was in charge of many guards and responsible for suppressing outsiders, taking action, and ensuring the safety of the Medicine King Hall. His keen insight allowed him to recognize talent.

Drawing the thousand-jin bow so easily meant that Chen Ku must have at least thirteen to fourteen hundred jin of strength. What did this indicate...

Root Bone!

Some people are born with Innate Divine Strength, not needing any training, and naturally possessing hundreds of jin of strength. This is known as Innate Root Bone, the seedling of a martial artist.

At this moment, Huang Gun spoke solemnly, "He’s been here for less than a month and has only practiced the Spirit Ape Great Strength Skill. How could he have such strength? This shows that he was already at the Perfection of Strength Training when he came in. Joining the Medicine King Hall with such Martial Arts, what exactly are his intentions?"

He had assumed Chen Ku had practiced some Martial Arts, but he had not expected Chen Ku to have attained Perfection in Strength Training, or even surpassed it.

The others were also astonished by Chen Ku drawing the full bow. Now, regaining their composure, they were moved by Huang Gun’s words.

Huang Gun squinted his eyes. It was because of Chen Ku’s background... Seeing Chen Ku reminded him of Huang Ba from Snake Fish Town and his death. It made him feel uneasy and caused him to harbor grudges and aversion towards the people of Snake Fish Town. Subconsciously, he wanted to make things difficult for Chen Ku.

Chen Ku naturally had his explanations for this.

And before he could be asked, Cao Shouxiong spoke up, looking at Chen Ku and asking, "You’ve practiced Martial Arts before, right? What did you practice?"

Chen Ku glanced at Huang Gun.

Huang Gun harbors ill will towards the Diagram Master. A Chong Sha has already occurred...

He thought to himself: I haven’t reported you yet, and you’re already showing me dislike? Very well, just like Huang Ba. Someday, when I rise, I’ll make sure to take care of you too.

He faced Cao Shouxiong’s inquiry without intending to hide anything. After all, if the Medicine King Hall truly cared about people who had trained in Martial Arts joining them, they wouldn’t have accepted others from the city. Moreover, the Martial Arts he had practiced wasn’t anything profound, so he half-truthfully answered, "Replying to the Third Shopkeeper, I have practiced Martial Arts. I practiced ’Ten-Section Brocade’ and reached great achievement not long ago."

"Ten-Section Brocade..." Cao Shouxiong laughed upon hearing this, "You bought it from the black market, didn’t you?"

"Ah? How did you know?" Chen Ku feigned surprise.

Cao Shouxiong smiled. The Pharmacists from the courtyards behind him also smiled.

"So it’s Ten-Section Brocade indeed. That technique from Minghe Martial Hall is almost spreading like wildfire outside—fifty taels of silver a copy, I’ve seen it myself."

"A martial hall on the verge of bankruptcy, resorting to selling Martial Arts Manuals to save their family business, it’s quite pitiable."

Hearing that Chen Ku had practiced ’Ten-Section Brocade,’ Huang Gun said no more. This Strength Training Technique was indeed common, available to anyone who could afford it.

Seeing Huang Gun wanting to speak, Cao Shouxiong settled the matter with a final word, "Alright, it’s not just one or two who have practiced Martial Arts before joining my Medicine King Hall. Just as Instructor Chai said, his Root Bone is not bad. Such good seedlings joining our Medicine King Hall is a fortunate thing."

Huang Gun’s gaze subtly swept across the few people present. If he kept being stubborn about this matter, he might offend the other people in the hall—after all, when others sent someone here, they always brought some kind of talent. Therefore, his expression softened, and he smiled, "The Shopkeeper is right, I was overthinking it."

"Alright, Chen Ku, you can step down first and wait for the others to finish their competition," Cao Shouxiong waved his hand, signaling Chen Ku to withdraw as there were still a few more people left to test the bow.

After Chen Ku stepped down, he watched as others continued to try their hand at the bow, but his attention was focused on those important figures. They seemed to be intentionally moving away to discuss something.

"Shopkeeper, leave this person to me!" Chai Bao said, "He’s a promising seedling."

"Instructor Chai, what do you mean by that? It’s true that Martial Arts are important, but don’t forget, the foundation of the Medicine King Hall is medicine." The speaker was Pharmacist Wei, President of Jinshi Academy, who had a goatee; his high status gave him the confidence to challenge Chai Bao.

"That’s right, Instructor Chai. We Pharmacists will still be needed to make medicine for you martial artists in the end..." Qu Hua chimed in, siding with his fellow Pharmacist, naturally preferring someone with a talent for pharmacology.

"Then let the Shopkeeper decide," Chai Bao said with an expressionless face.

Cao Shouxiong pondered.

"Let’s ask him himself."

It wasn’t long before all three events were completed. As expected, Chen Ku monopolized the top spots in two major events, thus securing an additional spot. This time, only eight new apprentices were accepted, including Song Yuan and Che Ping.

Looking at Zhang Erniu departing in dejection, Chen Ku thought, If I didn’t have the Transformation Diagram, I would probably be just an ordinary person like him.

At that moment, he saw Cao Shouxiong approaching. Cao Shouxiong announced the names of the other apprentices who had been accepted, but Chen Ku’s name was conspicuously absent. Before Chen Ku could wonder why, Cao Shouxiong looked straight at Chen Ku and asked, "You’re quite good. All three courtyards and Instructor Chai want you, and even I, this Shopkeeper, can’t decide. I cannot offend anyone, so I’ll let you choose. Which courtyard would you like to enter?"

"I want to enter the Butcher Court."

This answer not only made Cao Shouxiong and several other masters frown, but even Ke Yansheng of the Butcher Court was completely surprised.

Ke Yansheng blurted out, curious, "Why do you want to come to our Butcher Court?" Jinshi Academy has the highest status, and Chai Bao’s place is best for learning Martial Arts. Why would he choose the dirty and tiring Butcher Court?

Chen Ku cracked a smile, showing a set of white teeth. "Master Ke, I was fascinated by Grandmaster Shang’s bladesmanship that day. I like knives and want to learn the bladesmanship of the Butcher Court."

It turned out to be for that reason. Indeed, when it came to bladesmanship, Shang Yunfang was considered the top expert in the entire Medicine King Hall.

Seeing this, the other masters from the different courtyards said no more. Everyone has their preferences in Martial Arts. Some like swords, others like knives. Only with passion can one excel, and that’s the philosophy of Martial Arts.

"Good, then follow me into the Butcher Court," Ke Yansheng said cheerfully but didn’t forget to apply some pressure, "However, learning Elder Shang’s bladesmanship won’t be so easy. He’s picky and doesn’t just accept any disciple."

"I shall strive to do my best," Chen Ku responded with a bow.

"Since you’ve joined my Butcher Court, this double first-place reward will be given to you by us." Ke Yansheng chuckled as he handed Chen Ku a plate, "Aside from the standard ’Spirit Monkey Breathing Technique’ for apprentices, there are also ten taels of silver. Since you want to learn bladesmanship, I, on behalf of the Butcher Court, award you in advance the ’Bone-Chopping Butcher Blade,’ another Force Transformation Martial Arts. This skill is usually given to an apprentice who has made significant progress, and now I’m rewarding you with two superior Force Transformation Martial Arts at once. This is a generous reward, isn’t it?"

Chen Ku’s heart stirred. Two superior Force Transformation Martial Arts! The reward was even better than he had imagined.

"Many thanks, Master Ke!"

Chen Ku accepted the gifts.

Shortly afterward, he followed Ke Yansheng to the Butcher Court and moved into the apprentice housing.

"Starting tomorrow, I’ll have your senior here take you under his wing, beginning with cattle slaughtering, dog butchering, and collecting Cow Gallstones and Dog Treasure," Ke Yansheng instructed. "If you have any difficulties with the bladesmanship or breathing technique, you can find me anytime. I’m off now."

"Take care, Master Ke," Chen Ku said, appreciating the treatment.

An apprentice is indeed worthy of being considered half a disciple.

Looking around at his own room and bed, no longer needing to squeeze into a communal bunk, he couldn’t help but exclaim with contentment, "Refreshing!"

That night, he began delving into the Spirit Monkey Breathing Technique.