Heaven rewards diligence; he fought his way through chaos to become a saint.

The next day.

Ye Ci got up very early. Yesterday, Master Yang taught him a footwork technique, and he couldn't help but look forward to it.

"I'll go prepare breakfast for you."

Seeing the commotion of getting up, Murong Yanyu also rubbed her eyes and got up.

There are no servants at Tingzhuxuan. Meals are usually prepared by Murong Yanyu. Ye Ci does not want anyone else in the mansion to participate, so he just sends fresh ingredients.

Murong Yanyu tidied up the kitchen briefly, then started a fire and threw the chopped tiger meat into the casserole.

Ye Ci also lent a hand, adding water, scallions, ginger, and some fennel seasoning, then covered the pot and simmered it slowly.

"Where's Grandma?"

"Yaoyao had a great time playing with the Shen family's children and slept at the eldest young lady's place, so Grandma stayed there with her. The eldest young lady is very respectful and personally cooks porridge for Grandma every day, just like family... You forgot, she hasn't come back to sleep for several days now."

The young lady she was referring to was Shen Xin. In this respect, Ye Ci felt as if he had fallen into a widow's pit, whether it was Li Shi, his second aunt, or this young lady of the Shen family.

Unlike the protagonists in novels, who are surrounded by beautiful young women in flowing skirts.

When this matter came up, Shen Wanzhou and he both tacitly agreed not to discuss the marriage of their daughter again.

"The Shen family has many houses, and there are beds and servants to wait on them wherever they go. If Grandma is comfortable, there's really no need for her to come back to live here. It's more like we're family."

Ye Ci chuckled to himself. These days, his second aunt rarely comes back, mostly managing the business at the former Zhou family grain shop. Tingzhuxuan has become his and Murong Yanyu's residence.

However, Li was indeed treated well by Shen Xin. In the past, Shen Xin would take her grandmother to listen to music and opera, or invite people to tell stories.

Murong Yanyu was overjoyed when she heard the last sentence, "We are family."

"Young master, I'll keep an eye on things here. I'll call you when the meat is cooked."

"Um."

Upon entering the courtyard, Ye Ci took out the book "Chasing the Moon Steps".

The booklet is rough, the paper is coarse linen, the ink is fresh, and it looks like large, vigorous characters written by Master Yang himself.

"This footwork emphasizes speed, deception, stillness, and change. When you move, your steps are as light chasing your shadow, and your footsteps are as silent as the moon moving."

Ye Ci turned the pages one by one, and the more he looked, the happier he became.

This footwork not only has a complete training method, but also diagrams and explanations of its power, as well as specific application notes for combat, and how to enhance combat strength when combined with Baoshanquan (抱山拳).

Combining the powerful and solid nature of Baoshanquan (抱山拳), this footwork is known for its agility. When the two are combined, the balance of strength and softness is achieved, which will greatly enhance the user's overall strength.

"Master it first, and then gradually improve your proficiency."

Ye Ci followed the diagram, focusing his energy on his hips and waist, rooting himself in his feet and channeling his strength into his waist and abdomen.

Ye Ci's footwork was somewhat strange, and his posture was difficult to learn. When he took his first step, it felt as heavy as if he had crashed to the ground, and even dust was kicked up.

Ye Ci made slight adjustments, lightly touching the ground with his front foot and gathering strength with his back foot. He dared not take large steps, only moving back and forth within a small space.

After an unknown amount of time, Ye Ci lifted his foot when he inhaled and stepped down when he exhaled. At first, it was always chaotic, but slowly, it became less heavy and his figure became less clumsy as he completed the steps.

In the illusory space before me, the words leap out.

[Technique: Moon Chasing Step Beginner (1/300)]

Ye Ci was quite satisfied, and when he performed it again, he finally didn't raise a single speck of dust.

"Young master, breakfast is ready."

"Okay, coming right away."

Ye Ci swung his legs, his joints making a series of soft cracking sounds. He felt that although his footwork was only at the beginner level, he had already experienced a wave of improvement.

With more practice, your speed will likely increase significantly.

The meat was cut into small pieces and stewed for just the right amount of time, making it chewy and flavorful. The aroma of the meat, mixed with the warmth of the stew, slid down my throat and into my stomach, leaving me feeling completely comfortable.

The tearing sensation caused by using the Baoshan Seal yesterday has completely dissipated.

Ye Ci ate with great relish, leaving not even a drop of soup. After finishing his meal, he practiced his footwork for a while.

The movements of turning, lifting the knee, and stepping are smooth and graceful, and the body leaps three steps away in one bound, incredibly swift.

He then continued to use stance training to cultivate his qi and blood. As he watched his proficiency level on the panel increase, he felt a sense of satisfaction.

"With sufficient tonics, it's not difficult to reach the Transformation Realm in a little over a year."

If anyone else heard this "not difficult" statement, they would probably be shocked.

The difference between internal strength and external strength is enormous. It's rare for a young person in the county to reach that level in ten years. Those disciples who join martial arts schools often only reach the level of internal strength at most. Even Jiang Ding'an, among others, never considered trying to break through to external strength in three years.

Often, young people who truly reach the Transformation Realm are introduced to the sects in the prefecture city and are thus known as martial arts talents.

However, Ye Ci was very confident, as he was well aware of his cultivation progress.

Most importantly, there are no bottlenecks.

His advantage over others was that while others spent their days practicing martial arts and worrying about supplements, he took one step at a time and directly became a retainer of the Shen family, the head of the five major families.

"Offering of leaves".

An elderly man dressed in a dark blue silk robe stood at the door carrying a food box. He was Steward Chen from the mansion, in charge of the kitchen, pharmacy, and other food-related matters.

"Come in."

"Alright, here's your tonic."

Ye Ci took the food box, opened it, and found ten "Hundred-Refined Qi and Blood Pills" inside.

He also knew that this kind of tonic was not sold in ordinary pharmacies, and even the few martial arts schools in the county had difficulty obtaining it. It was said that it was only supplied to disciples of sects in the prefectural city.

According to Shen Wanzhou, it wasn't too expensive, but without that connection, you couldn't get the goods.

Of course, his not being too expensive is different from the average person's not expensive.

"Where is Master Shen?" Ye Ci then asked.

Shen Wanzhou usually comes in person, and they'll exchange a few pleasantries along the way.

Manager Chen said respectfully, "A few guests arrived this morning, saying they were from the Taiping Chamber of Commerce. The master is currently entertaining them."

"Taiping Chamber of Commerce?"

"This is a chamber of commerce that has only recently emerged. I've never heard of it before, but several wealthy families in the county have connections with them, it seems..."

Manager Chen lowered his voice: "They sell smuggled medicine. The prescription is some kind of Buddhist secret medicine from Xiluo Kingdom. I had this old servant test it once a while ago, and the efficacy was fine, but Master Shen was too demanding in terms of price, so the Shen family's pharmacy stopped doing business with them."

"Private medicine..."

Ye Ci pondered for a moment. The imperial court strictly controlled various tonics. For example, ordinary martial arts schools could only buy Qi and Blood Powder, which cost three taels of silver per dose. However, he learned from Shen Wanzhou that the imperial court would take half of that as tax.

In fact, every household engaged in the private medicine business, and even some sects had members who concocted and sold medicines. The imperial court had no way to control it, and even when the government investigated, they usually only arrested a few typical cases. Strictly speaking, the Qi and Blood Soup of the Panshi Martial Arts School could also be considered a private medicine.

"Has the person left?"

Ye Ci inexplicably connected the incident to the attack he suffered last night.

That weirdo!

The Demonic Sect's Three Treasures?!

These things seem unrelated, but a sudden thought flashed through my mind, and I felt that something was not quite right.

Manager Chen said, "The person hasn't left yet."

"Take me to see it."

Ye Ci considered for a moment, put down the food box, and asked Steward Chen to take her to find Shen Wanzhou.