High-level martial arts: Start with a grueling grind for the Golden Bell Shield.

Chen Hongzhi could tell at a glance that Lu Lin was unaware of the situation.

He dragged his chair closer to Lu Lin and lowered his voice.

"Lu Lin, do you know that our Great Liang has neither external threats nor internal troubles, so why do we still focus on cultivating martial artists, and even the civil officials in the court must be at least at the level of the Five Organs?"

Lu Lin shook his head; he really didn't know this rule.

Martial arts training begins with forging one's strength, then condensing enough blood and qi to refine the skin, flesh, and bones, before finally reaching the level of refining the five internal organs.

People like Hu Sanshan are considered experts in the eyes of ordinary people.

But compared to the level of the five internal organs, it's still far from being good enough.

Now, Chen Hongzhi actually said that all civil officials in the imperial court should cultivate themselves to the level of the five internal organs.

What is the logic behind this?

"Because of the monsters."

"Don't be fooled by the fact that Jinshan Prefecture is peaceful and safe, or that everything in Qinbei Prefecture is stable and peaceful. That's because... you haven't left Qinbei Prefecture yet."

"The Great Liang Dynasty has 15 prefectures, 7 in the south and 8 in the north, and there is a large wilderness between each prefecture."

"The wilderness is home to countless monsters and strange creatures."

"If an ordinary person enters the fog, they will bleed to death in no time."

"Even martial artists who have refined their skin, flesh, and bones won't fare much better if they enter this place."

"Not to mention, there are terrifying monsters lurking in the mist."

"This..." Lu Lin stared blankly at Chen Hongzhi.

Although he had only recently transmigrated, he had never heard of such a thing before.

Chen Hongzhi must be bluffing him.

"Do you think I'm bluffing you? Humph," Chen Hongzhi slapped Lu Lin on the shoulder, but the force of the impact made his hand go numb. He shook his hand and said, "The mist is real. Otherwise, why do you think that the Mozhu Academy, which is supposed to select officials and cultivate talents for the imperial court, requires one to reach the level of a martial artist to enter?"

Lu Lin pondered.

"Think about it again. In all these years since you were a child, have you ever heard anything about other prefectures, not even the slightest bit?"

Lu Lin shook his head.

"That's it. It's because of the fog that the connections between the various prefectures are not smooth, which is why the imperial court values ​​military men and vigorously cultivates them."

"One purpose is to connect various state governments and promote economic and trade activities."

"Secondly, it is to protect the people in various places from being harassed by monsters."

"Thirdly, it is to find out the source of this fog and completely eliminate this major threat. Unfortunately, the Great Liang Dynasty has existed for a thousand years, plus the Jing Dynasty for the previous three thousand years, and the chaos of the four kingdoms that lasted for a thousand years. No one has been able to find the reason for the formation of the fog."

Chen Hongzhi sighed, then his eyes suddenly lit up, and he stood up from his chair.

"By the way, Lu Lin, I don't have to go to school this afternoon. I've made plans to go on a picnic with some friends. Why don't you come with me?"

One second they're all compassionate and sympathetic, the next they're back to their true nature.

"Thank you, Fourth Young Master. I'll go check on the stone this afternoon."

After joining the Chen family, Lu Lin signed a three-year employment contract.

However, since he was there to be a sparring partner, he naturally couldn't bring Shi Tou with him. Fortunately, the steward Chen Tong found a family for Lu Lin, allowing Shi Tou to live there for a period of time at a price of one tael of silver per month.

Now that Lu Lin's Golden Bell Shield technique has reached a minor level, he plans to rent a house outside so that it will be easier to take care of Shi Tou.

After all, the stone was still too small.

"Okay, then I'll go by myself this afternoon. But next time, you have to come with me."

Lu Lin nodded, thinking to himself that he would definitely do it next time, and then took his leave.

"Wait, Lu Lin, pack these pastries along with Shi Tou and take them over too."

Chen Hongzhi called out.

Lu Lin cupped his hands in greeting to him, packed up the pastries, and then left.

……

"Stone, how about I take you to stay somewhere else?"

"Go out? Where to?"

Shi Tou was happily eating dried fruit and rice cake when he heard this and looked at Lu Lin curiously.

"These days, I've received quite a bit of reward money from the Fourth Young Master, enough to rent a house."

"Besides, it's inconvenient for them that you're always staying at Aunt Xu's house."

Shi Tou chewed and slowly swallowed the rice cake in his mouth.

"Brother, I heard from Aunt Xu that being a sparring partner is very hard work, is that right?"

Seeing that Lu Lin didn't shake his head, Shi Tou naturally understood, "Then getting the reward money won't be easy, right?"

Lu Lin pondered for a moment.

After each training session these past few days, Chen Hongzhi would give him some money, more or less.

Sometimes it weighs five taels, and sometimes it weighs one tael.

Lu Lin now has twenty taels of silver saved up.

"Brother, let's wait a little longer. Aunt Xu is very good to me."

"Also, when you're sparring with someone, you must protect yourself, understand?"

As Shi Tou spoke, he stood up and tenderly touched Lu Lin's hair.

This scene left Lu Lin both amused and exasperated.

He's such a grown man, yet he still needs a little kid to comfort him.

"Okay, I understand. Let's talk about it again in a few days."

The Golden Bell Cover technique has been partially mastered.

The number of times one improves.

There's also a little bell in my sea of ​​consciousness.

This gave Lu Lin enough confidence.

What mist, what demons?

Given enough time, nothing matters in front of Lu Lin...

……

After having dinner with Aunt Xu's family, Lu Lin bought them some rice and noodles before leaving.

In this day and age, ordinary families don't need anything expensive; rice, flour, and cooking oil are the most practical things.

It got dark.

Lu Lin didn't have the time to wander around outside, so he went back to the training room early.

Time passed day by day.

Of the twenty youths, only two failed to master the Golden Bell Shield technique within the fifteen-day deadline.

After Chen Tong gave him the choice between entering the mansion as a slave or packing his bags and leaving.

The two men chose to enter the manor as slaves.

Since that day when he sparred with Chen Hongjie, Lu Lin had never seen this third young master again.

When the second young master Chen Hongming occasionally came to the martial arts arena, he ignored Lu Lin.

The eldest son, Chen Hongyu, was rarely seen, perhaps every three to five days. It was said that he had been sent by the master to the county town to discuss a cooperation with a major merchant.

bang bang.

A corner of the training ground.

Chen Hongzhi punched Lu Lin in the chest repeatedly.

Lu Lin didn't even bother to dodge; he would occasionally parry, but most of the time he would simply take the hits with his body.

"Fourth Young Master, use a little more strength."

"Fourth Young Master, you said you went out with your buddies yesterday, you didn't go to a brothel, did you?"

"Fourth Young Master, do you want to rest for a bit? You're covered in sweat."

We've spent a lot of time together.

Lu Lin and Chen Hongzhi became like buddies, and Lu Lin would constantly tease Chen Hongzhi during training.

"Rest my ass! Prepare to die!"

Enraged, Chen Hongzhi leaped up and punched Lu Lin in the head from above.

Lu Lin raised his arms to block.

boom.

[Golden Bell Shield: 1/50000 (Mastery)]

Lu Lin had not yet sensed any changes in the Golden Bell Shield.

Chen Hongzhi felt an immense force as he threw a punch.

My fist felt numb.

My arms are sore and weak.

In addition, he had been training for a long time, and his knees buckled, about to kneel down in front of Lu Lin.

Lu Lin quickly reached out to support him.

"Fourth Young Master, why don't you rest for a while?"