[Name: Su Mu (14 years old)]
[Lifespan: 62 years]
[Skills: Five Animals Qigong (Great Success 93%), Forging (Great Success 75%), Tiger Subduing Fist (Great Success 42%), Rock Shattering Fist (Small Success 1%), Startled Sparrow Step (Small Success 1%), Alchemy (Entry-level 87%)]
[Comprehension: 10 (Jade-Level)]
Su Mu opened his current attributes panel and, indeed, noticed a change in the comprehension column.
This time, after Startled Sparrow Step and Rock Shattering Fist both reached Small Success, Su Mu's comprehension broke through the threshold of 10, his lifespan increased by a full ten years, and his comprehension transformed from Slight Potential straight into Jade-Level!
Previously, Slight Potential was considered a genius among ordinary people, and with diligent effort, some success could be achieved.
But Jade-Level talent has surpassed the realm of ordinary people, a true innate genius—like a piece of jade that stands out among rocks even before carving; with a bit of polishing, it's impossible for common folk to catch up. Raw jade can be crafted into a vessel.
Su Mu tried using Startled Sparrow Step again, and immediately felt a difference.
Before this, Su Mu had to concentrate all his energy to execute Startled Sparrow Step. Lightweight Skill, whether in cultivation or in action, was more difficult than ordinary fist techniques. Moreover, Startled Sparrow Step required instant explosiveness, demanding perfect coordination of leg muscles, Qi Blood, Power, and breathing to achieve.
But now, it was as if a light switched on in Su Mu's mind. While he still wasn't performing Startled Sparrow Step with total ease, it had become much more relaxed and comfortable.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
Even in the dense forest, Su Mu was agile and nimble. After performing three consecutive Sparrow Jumps, he found he still had energy left, so his figure leapt up like a mountain sparrow once again.
Whoosh!
Su Mu's silhouette flickered, leaving a faint afterimage behind him. When he landed, he had leapt over four to five zhang.
"So this is the difference between a genius and an ordinary person?"
Su Mu turned back in astonishment. Previously, he could only leap just over three zhang in one step, but now he could go four or five zhang at once. Not only had he broken past his previous three consecutive jumps limit, but he could now perform four in a row.
"A Jade-Level talent only needs to put in a little effort, and ordinary people have to give it their all and more just to keep up. If they strive as hard, they'll never hope to catch up!"
After another comprehension breakthrough, from utterly average, to passable, to Slight Potential, and now Jade-Level—Su Mu gained even deeper insight into the meaning of comprehension.
Effort is indispensable, but if your talent and comprehension are lacking, no matter how hard you try, you might not even reach others' minimum. In the end, what determines a martial artist's true height and potential is…
Only talent and comprehension!
After that, Su Mu continued to train Five Animals Qigong and Tiger Subduing Fist in the mountain behind; soon, he noticed new changes in both martial arts.
"Maybe it won't be long before Five Animals Qigong and Tiger Subduing Fist break through to the next realm!"
After checking his progress, Su Mu was highly satisfied. At that moment, his stomach let out a loud rumble—Su Mu smiled and turned back to the village.
At this time the sky was still not yet bright. In the pale dawn, the sunlight spilling through was still dim. On his way back, Su Mu met a few villagers from Dongbian Village.
"Xiaomu, did you just come down from the mountain?"
"Mm, I thought since it rained last night, I'd try to pick some wild vegetables on the mountain, but no luck today."
Su Mu smiled as he responded, greeted them, and walked past.
At that very moment, a ray of morning sun shone down on Su Mu. Instantly, the villagers' eyes widened in shock—Su Mu, dressed in his rough linen clothes, suddenly looked as if he was draped in a robe of flowing colors.
The villagers rubbed their eyes hard in disbelief. Looking again, Su Mu was still just Su Mu, wearing nothing but his simple clothes.
"Was that an illusion... Did I just see things?"
"It must be that my wife wore me out too much last night. I really need to get some rest these days, I'm hallucinating now."
The villagers withdrew their gaze, muttered under their breath, and kept walking to the fields with their hoes on their shoulders.
A martial artist's Qi Blood and Power are strong and need plenty of nutrition. Back at home, Su Mu cut three jin of pork with equal fat and lean, stir-fried it into minced topping with lard, and made a pot of noodles—this was his breakfast now.
After breakfast, Su Mu put on his conical hat and raincoat and headed out.
Number 13 Juren Street. Su Mu saw Shopkeeper Li Tie at the shop entrance. "Shopkeeper Li."
Su Mu greeted him and entered the forge, just as Li Xiaohu was carrying a three-tier bamboo steamer out of the back kitchen. Su Mu immediately put down his hat and raincoat to give him a hand.
As Su Mu lent a hand, Li Xiaohu suddenly felt the steamer in his hand had become as light as nothing. He was surprised, but didn't give it much thought for now. Li Xiaohu placed the steamer on the stone table in the courtyard and called Su Mu to eat steam buns.
Every day, the shop prepared breakfast for the blacksmith masters. Although Su Mu had already eaten, he still picked up his two big steam buns so as not to attract attention.
Li Xiaohu leaned over mysteriously, "Su Mu, have you noticed my dad has been hanging around the door a lot lately?"
Actually, Su Mu had noticed this too.
"Let me tell you, my dad recently sent something to the county through someone. These days, he's probably waiting for news from the county, right?"
So that's it. Su Mu wasn't too curious, but as he bit into his bun, he suddenly shuddered all over.
Waiting for news?
Wait, suddenly he remembered something.
In this sweltering summer heat, Su Mu suddenly felt a coldness all over his body.
Before leaving, the leader with the gray wolf mask said he'd be away for a while. As he was leaving, he secretly warned Su Mu and left him two bottles—six antidote pills.
Now, it's been over seven months since that person left Qingshui Town, and there's been no news. Previously Su Mu thought the long journey delayed things, which was normal in this era.
After that, due to the Black Market incident and this month's focus on cultivation, Su Mu had temporarily forgotten about it.
Now, with Li Xiaohu mentioning it, he suddenly woke up to the problem.
The deadline had already passed by a whole month. Normally, the antidote was taken once a month. If Su Mu had followed the dosage from the start, he'd be close to dying from the poison by now.
"Boy, listen… If you don't get the antidote after three months, the itch will get worse and then become agonizing pain, and soon after, you'll rot into a pool of pus, wishing you were dead."
Suddenly, Su Mu heard the words said by the person who brought him here in the carriage that day, ringing in his ears.
Three months is the final deadline before the poison kills you!
Ten days ago, Su Mu had just taken the last antidote pill. Now, he only has one left in hand—the backup he kept in order to break free from restraint.
After months of experimenting, Su Mu managed to stretch the interval for taking the pill to every fifty days or so—that's his current limit.
Every time he neared the fifty-day mark, Su Mu would endure the agony of feeling as if thousands of insects were gnawing him from inside out—especially under his heart, where it felt like his chest was being torn apart. Rainy days were even more unbearable.
The sheer inhuman pain made it clear to Su Mu that the poison in his body could really kill him. The man in the carriage wasn't just threatening him for nothing.
"Is it just a delay on the road…"
"Or have I been abandoned?"
Su Mu felt a chill in his heart. Of course he didn't want the latter, but he always had a habit: when considering things, he assumed the worst-case scenario.
"If it really is the latter…"
Counting the one pill he hadn't yet taken, Su Mu didn't have much time left. Less than five months remained for him.
...