Martial Arts Sainthood Begins with the Tiger-Taming Fist

The siblings extinguished the candles, quietly pushed open the door, and walked west along a deserted alley.

Before long, we arrived at an old courtyard with low walls, where two lanterns were swaying in the breeze.

This is the old man's old house, where Chen Bao's family has lived for a long time.

Although it couldn't compare to those domineering local gentry, it was still much better than Chen Mo's meager possessions.

The slightly overweight Chen Bao was in the courtyard when he saw Chen Lan and her brother approaching from afar.

The siblings called out "Second Uncle".

But Chen Bao didn't respond immediately. Instead, he lowered his head and imagined the situation when the siblings borrowed money later, and how he would refuse.

He mentally prepared a speech.

When the siblings were almost in front of Chen Bao, he looked up, pretending to have just noticed them, and deliberately raised his voice.

"Oh dear, it's Alan and Amer!"

Someone inside heard the noise and made a few rustling sounds. A hunched old man came out leaning on a cane. This man was Chen Mo's grandfather, whom he had only met a few times.

The old man looked up and saw the thin linen clothes worn by the brother and sister in the cold wind. He wanted to say something, but the words stuck in his throat and fell back down.

At this moment, a young couple came out of the house. They were Chen Mo's cousin Chen Hang and his cousin Chen Mei.

Chen Hang studied martial arts at a martial arts school, while Chen Mei married a man from a middle-class family in the town.

The old man finally asked in a calm voice, "How have you and your brother been lately?"

"We..." Chen Lan paused slightly, "...recently, we've been under some pressure regarding the monthly tribute grain, but we're working hard."

Hearing this, Chen Bao, fearing that the old man might suddenly become generous, quickly interjected:

"If it weren't for the fact that Xiao Hang needs a lot of money to practice martial arts, we would definitely help you out. Sigh, it's really too much trouble for you."

Chen Hang nodded immediately, "Yes, yes, the cost of food supplements alone at the martial arts school is four or five times the usual amount, not to mention the medicinal supplements, and tuition fees too."

As he spoke, he rolled up a small section of his jacket sleeve, glancing at Chen Mo to reveal the silk martial arts uniform underneath and his noticeably stronger arms.

Chen Mei pressed her advantage, "Sister Lan, really! You're so old and you still haven't found a man to marry. You work so hard every day, taking care of Amo. Even if you can't find a good man, someone decent would be fine. Look how relaxed I am now, my family has connections, and I can get my tribute tax reduced by half!"

The curve of her lips was higher than the steps she was standing on.

His words revealed a hidden agenda.

From a young age, she was compared to Chen Lan. Neighbors would always gossip that Chen Lan was prettier than her, so she secretly remembered it.

Chen Lan could easily understand this meaning, but she had come today to borrow martial arts techniques from Chen Mo, so she couldn't afford to break off relations.

Chen Mo noticed his sister's hands clenching tightly.

He knew it was his turn to speak. "Ah Hang, to be honest, I came here today to borrow a martial arts manual from you to practice."

Upon hearing this, the four people opposite him all cast surprised glances at him.

Chen Bao smiled first, then stepped down the steps with his belly protruding and patted Chen Mo on the shoulder.

"Chen Mo, it's not that your second uncle is criticizing you, but you're just jealous of Xiao Hang learning martial arts, so you want to learn it too, right? With those skinny arms of yours, you're obviously not cut out for martial arts. You should stick to working in the iron furnace room."

Chen Mei covered her mouth and let out a hissing sound.

Chen Hang raised his head and said, "Learning martial arts is no easy feat. Only one in hundreds can successfully embark on the path of martial arts. I'm just one step away from it. You lack the natural talent and the guidance of a master, so you're destined to fail!"

Chen Mo's expression remained unchanged despite hearing these sarcastic remarks.

"I know it's difficult, I just want to stay healthy so I'll have more energy to work."

Chen Hang rubbed his chin. "That won't work either. If they find out I'm teaching martial arts to others, the martial arts school will kick me out."

Upon hearing the words "expelled from the house," both the old man and Chen Bao trembled.

Chen Hang is the hope of the family now, how could anything happen to him!

"If it's the most basic martial arts moves, it shouldn't be that strict, right?" Chen Lan asked.

"You two stop being so unreasonable, you'll only hurt Xiaohang." Chen Bao lost his patience, his face showing anger.

"Alright, alright." The old man tapped the ground with his wooden cane. "You two can go back now."

Upon hearing this, Chen Mo didn't want to linger. He glanced at the four people, then pulled Chen Lan out of the courtyard.

……

Such is the nature of human relationships—their warmth and coldness.

The two returned home and ate some hard steamed buns for dinner.

After dinner, Chen Mo tossed and turned in bed, realizing he needed to find another way to deal with the cultivation technique.

He suddenly remembered that Master Wu from the furnace had mentioned that he had practiced some martial arts moves before, but ultimately hadn't achieved anything significant.

Master Wu was different from the other laborers. He was skilled in forging and smelting techniques and was hired by the Black Tiger Hall with money. He wouldn't be beaten or scolded, and he didn't have to pay tribute.

If Master Wu still had his martial arts manual, that would be great.

……

The next day, the cold wind persisted.

Chen Mo went to the furnace early, and the other laborers arrived one after another, along with two supervisors from the Black Tiger Hall.

If you want to know how ruthless the foreman was, just look at the shocking whip marks on the laborers' bodies and you'll get a glimpse.

Inside the furnace room, there were people in charge of each task: tending the fire, fanning the air, forging, quenching, carving, and carrying.

Chen Mo was in charge of tending the fire, which was tiring, but better than forging and carrying loads.

While the supervisor was out drinking, Chen Mo quickly approached Master Wu and asked, "Uncle Wu, you once said you practiced some martial arts moves. Do you still have any copies?"

Master Wu looked up at Chen Mo. "What, you're interested in this too?"

Chen Mo nodded. "I'm somewhat interested. If Master Wu has any copies, could I borrow them for a look? I'm willing to pay a fee."

Master Wu loves to chat about martial arts, and he often uses terms like "jianghu" (江湖, the martial arts world) and "xiake" (侠客, chivalrous heroes) in his speech. If there are like-minded people, he is very happy to chat with them.

His eyes suddenly lit up. "I do have one with me. I'll get it for you."

Master Wu rummaged through a wooden box and finally pulled out a book with a dark blue cover that read "Tiger Subduing Fist".

"This is the book. It's considered an introductory-level martial arts manual. I practiced it for several years." Master Wu sighed with reminiscence.

"But with little success, I guess I have no hope of pursuing martial arts in this lifetime."

Chen Mo accepted the book with both hands. "Thank you, Uncle Wu. Consider it a loan. How much should I pay you?"

"That's fine." Master Wu waved his hand. "I won't accept your payment. Just let me know if you can figure out a way."

Chen Mo bowed again in thanks.

The Tiger-Taming Fist in his hand now represents a heavy hope.

He walked to a corner, opened the book cover, and saw that it contained illustrations of boxing moves and some annotations.

Turning the pages one by one.

Completely incomprehensible.

Even with the most basic martial arts, it is difficult to grasp the essentials.

As I turned to the last page, golden words suddenly appeared in my mind:

[Refined through countless trials, nurtured by mountains and rivers]

[Successfully binding the Tiger-Taming Fist requires the following refinement: Rough Iron]

Polishing this material will unlock its inherent potential and enhance your martial arts comprehension.