Comprehending Myriad Techniques as Woodcutter

He assigned a few jobs that didn’t require a master to lead, letting the junior members handle them. He then locked himself up in the Escort Agency to train.

’I’ve had a breakthrough with my fist techniques this time. I used to think "the longer the reach, the stronger the weapon," and that weapons were superior to fists and feet. But now I see it all depends on the cultivation technique and the Martial Artist’s strength. At the very least, my Eight Trigrams Mountain-Shaking Fist is incredibly useful in many situations. Heh, fist fighting really works.’

’I still need to work on my axe skills. The Moon-Cutting Axe technique is exceptionally powerful. Hmm, and there’s the Body-Nourishing Art, the Golden Bell Shield... There’s too little time, just not enough time!’

With the help of his Golden Finger, as long as he trained, he would reap rewards. It was all just a matter of how much time he put in.

The upside to this was that no matter how difficult or advanced the cultivation technique, his practice was always remarkably effective.

The downside was that all these techniques were extraordinary, making him want to practice them all, but there was simply not enough time to go around.

Xie Yuan could only plan his training based on the order of breakthroughs and his current needs, burying himself in arduous practice every day, never growing tired of it.

「Ten days later.」

The Escort Team had completed a round trip. As their leader, Xie Yuan gave them a few words of encouragement before continuing his secluded training.

This was the best part about being a master. Aside from the Agency Chief, no one could order him around. Xie Yuan wished he could just stay put at the Escort Agency forever.

But of course, Xie Yuan wasn’t just lazing around. Training behind closed doors, free from outside distractions, yielded obvious results.

[Chopping Wood: (7215/10000)]

[Golden Bell Shield - 2nd Layer: (136/1000)]

[Body-Nourishing Art - 3rd Layer: (1589/3000)]

[Eight Trigrams Mountain-Shaking Fist - Proficient: (98/1000)]

[Moon-Cutting Axe - Proficient: (14/1000)]

[Rushing Wolf Saber Skill - Major Success: (1573/2000)]

[Black Celestial Book: (???/???)]

The progress on all of Xie Yuan’s techniques had taken a great leap forward, and his overall strength had risen another notch.

But the most obvious improvements were, of course, to the Eight Trigrams Mountain-Shaking Fist and the Moon-Cutting Axe. Both had advanced, entering the "Proficient" level.

’Proficient? My previous cultivation techniques didn’t have this kind of tiering. It was either by layer or straight to Minor Success and Major Success...’

Xie Yuan folded his arms and pondered for a moment. He quickly understood that it was probably related to the grade of the cultivation technique.

’For example, a technique like Iron-Cloth Long Fist would probably reach Minor Success after just a little practice beyond the basics. It was Liu the Monk’s technique, after all... Hmm, no disrespect intended.’

Techniques like the Moon-Cutting Axe and the Eight Trigrams Mountain-Shaking Fist, which were immensely powerful and had extraordinary origins, would naturally be divided into many more levels of progress.

Even at the entry-level stage, these two techniques had greatly increased Xie Yuan’s combat power. Now that he had crossed into the Proficient realm, his strength had risen to another level!

He stood on the training ground in his courtyard, gathered his qi slightly, and threw a punch.

The fist carried a majestic force, compressing the air with a BOOM. Potent energy coiled around his fist like a tiger’s roar as it blasted forward. Before his fist even touched the dummy, the black ironwood training post was sent flying, smashing against the wall and snapping in two with a CRACK!

Xie Yuan slowly withdrew his stance and nodded.

’The power of that punch is so much stronger than before I advanced! It’s even a slight improvement over when I first broke through a few days ago.’

From sparring with that bandit leader, Xie Yuan had gained some insight into the practical application of his fist techniques. That’s why he had made progress after returning and practicing diligently.

His axe technique had also broken through, its power increasing just as much, but Xie Yuan decided not to practice it today.

When he had just broken through, one set of the Moon-Cutting Axe technique had destroyed two more training dummies and several green bricks, costing him a good portion of his monthly salary in fines.

Although a master’s base salary was fifty silver, and his share of the profits was several times that, Xie Yuan was already far wealthier than before. A small fine of a few, or even ten, silver was nothing to him.

The breakthroughs in two High Grade cultivation techniques had brought Xie Yuan a massive increase in strength. Mastery of either the axe or the fist would be enough for him to dominate his peers, let alone the fact that he knew two such techniques.

However, with Xie Yuan’s talent, the more cultivation techniques the better; he never had to worry about being unable to learn them. Having different techniques for different situations was perfect.

’In the future, I’ll learn more and more techniques, all of them High Grade. If I learn ten thousand of them, probably no situation or enemy in the world will be able to stump me.’

As Xie Yuan was lost in his fantasy, someone called out to him.

"Master Xie, the Agency Chief is looking for you... Uh, you broke the dummy again."

"Hahaha, sorry to trouble you. Please replace it for me and put it on my tab."

Xie Yuan said with a laugh to the young handyman.

Now that he was a master, he naturally had his own private courtyard in the Escort Agency. The agency itself took up half a street, like a large estate, and several of the masters’ courtyards were still vacant. Although his courtyard wasn’t huge, it was more than enough for him to use as a personal training ground. Everything in the courtyard was for his exclusive use.

"The other Darts Masters and masters don’t break things this often..."

The young handyman muttered to himself, a mix of envy and admiration in his voice.

’I’ve heard that only people who break through frequently have trouble controlling their strength and are prone to damaging equipment. The only other explanation is a strange fetish for destroying things. But the training equipment in the Escort Agency is all high-quality and expensive, with each piece costing at least several silver... That’s real silver, and these masters aren’t fools. Who would be willing to just throw away several silver like that!’

’They say this Master Xie’s progress is rapid, but is he really breaking through every few days?’

Xie Yuan walked to the study, knocked, and entered. He bowed to Shen Longteng inside.

"Agency Chief, you were looking for me?"

"Ah, Xie Yuan. You’ve been training every day. Made any progress?"

Shen Longteng asked with a smile when he saw him.

Xie Yuan said humbly,

"I’ve made a little bit of progress."

"Haha, that’s good. Martial arts is a slow grind, an accumulation of effort day by day. Daily progress is the best you can ask for. The day will come when you can’t advance no matter how hard you train, when all you can do is maintain your current level without backsliding... that’s when you really have something to worry about..."

Shen Longteng remarked with a sigh, then shook his head and laughed heartily.

"I’m getting old, talking about these things with you. Young people like you probably don’t understand.

"Anyway, Xie Yuan, you’ve become quite famous in the county recently. I’m sure you’re aware of that?"

Xie Yuan nodded. Lately, so many invitations had been sent over that his desk was almost overflowing.

The news that he had broken through to the Third Training and killed Xiang Zhuo had already spread. After all, they had already schemed against the Vajra Sect once; there was no point in hiding it any longer, nor could they.

A new Third Training expert in the county was no small piece of news, and many people would soon find out. After all, a Third Training expert in Yunzhao County could open a small martial arts school and become a master, or serve as an instructor or master for a major power. It was by no means a low status.

And when this Third Training expert was also so young, it was enough to cause a huge stir.

A Third Training expert under the age of twenty... "boundless prospects" wasn’t even enough to describe it. Naturally, anyone with some influence in the county wanted to seize this opportunity to befriend him.

Thus, Xie Yuan had received countless invitations and calling cards these past few days. That was one thing, but what was more absurd was that matchmakers had even come to his door asking for his "Eight Characters"!

They claimed they wanted his Eight Characters for a reading, but he suspected that no matter how astrologically incompatible they were, the other party would insist it was a match made in heaven.

Xie Yuan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and naturally refused them all on the grounds of preparing for the tournament. He wanted to use this time to train properly in the Escort Agency and didn’t want any delays. Although networking with famous people and being sought after was flattering and had practical benefits, that wasn’t where Xie Yuan’s focus lay.

The whole county knew about the death feud between the Escort Agency and the Vajra Sect, so his excuse didn’t offend anyone. Otherwise, it would have been awkward to refuse so many wealthy squires who were regular clients of the Escort Agency.

"Mm, good that you know... So, this time someone has specifically requested you for an escort mission. The pay... is quite generous. I figured you’ve been training for a while, so it might be good for you to get out and about."

Shen Longteng stroked his short beard, smiling awkwardly.

Seeing his expression, Xie Yuan fell silent for a moment.

’It seems they offered so much that even the Agency Chief couldn’t refuse and had to send me out directly.’

"Who is the client? And what am I escorting?"

"Mm, it’s Landlord Lin from the south of the city. His family owns a thousand acres of fertile land and is in the silk business. They’re very wealthy, as you know."

"The same Landlord Lin who sent the matchmaker to my door?"

"That’s right. This time, he’s specifically requested you for a personal escort mission: to take his daughter to Yunzhou Prefecture..."

Xie Yuan was utterly silent.

’Looks like my value has gone up quite a bit. He’s willing to spend a fortune just to have me escort her.’

’Landlord Lin probably wishes I’d just hijack this "shipment" myself.’

’From the Agency Chief’s expression, it looks like he had no choice but to agree... Yunzhou Prefecture?’

Xie Yuan’s mind drifted for a moment. ’Going there might not be a bad idea.’