Supreme Martial Venerable: Starting with the White Ape Cloak Hammer skill point allocation

For the first time in over a month, Zhou Yuan saw this "ancient city" with his own eyes.

The street, paved with square bluestone slabs, stretches in both directions, lined with all sorts of shops, inns, restaurants, and casinos.

The entire county town was neatly arranged, with pedestrians thronging shoulder to shoulder, and the cries of various vendors rising and falling.

Zhou Yuan had no connection to the hustle and bustle; he only saw the numb faces beneath the surface, burdened by the weight of life.

Gaoshan County has two cities, an inner city and an outer city, which are divided into twenty-four neighborhoods by horizontal and vertical streets.

Zhou Yuan lived in "Anyefang", which was a slum in the outer city.

On the way to the river construction site, Zhou Yuan happened to pass by "Anyefang" and glanced at the low thatched earthen house following his memory.

Suddenly he saw a white dress flash by in the alley, and he couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.

In this day and age, the poor can't afford white clothes. What's someone like that doing at "An Ye Fang"? That direction looks like his house.

Zhou Yuan felt like he had forgotten something.

The constable behind him had already given him a push.

"Hurry up, the river construction site is waiting for you to repair the tools. Boss Gao gave the order that if you dare to slack off, our whips won't discriminate!"

The constable cursed.

Zhou Yuan quickened his pace, inwardly thinking, "I guess I'm just passing by my own home without going in?"

We arrived at the river construction site outside the city.

After seeing it with his own eyes, Zhou Yuan finally understood why those blacksmiths avoided this place like the plague, and even if they bribed Gao Dazhuang, they would not come here to perform corvée labor.

A group of people, almost naked, were busy at work; some were clearing silt, while others were moving stones to reinforce the dike.

Right on the riverbank, a stove made of yellow mud stood there, without even a shady thatched shed.

There was a pile of broken shovels, crowbars, and iron-toothed rakes next to the stove, at least dozens of them.

"You've finally arrived!"

A constable came up and said loudly, "That Gao guy is really something, he transferred all the blacksmiths away, and now there aren't enough tools on the construction site."

Just this one?

"One can't hold up; the tools on the riverbed break down too quickly."

When the constable saw that Zhou Yuan was alone, his brows immediately furrowed.

"Gao Tou'er said that this guy is skilled, so let him work a few more hours every day, it won't delay things."

The bailiff who brought Zhou Yuan here pushed Zhou Yuan.

"Stop standing there, get to work. If you delay the progress, you'll regret it."

Zhou Yuan went to the stove, put down his bedding, and silently began to work.

An individual cannot fight against a system; he is now merely a craftsman serving a corvée labor service and has no right to refuse.

soon.

The clanging sound of blacksmithing rang out.

The overseers on the river exchanged glances, leaving one to monitor Zhou Yuan while the others went to supervise the other laborers.

…………

From morning till night.

Zhou Yuan repaired a total of twenty tools.

In the end, his arms were so sore that he couldn't lift them, and only then did the supervisor let him rest.

After eating two black cornbread buns, he set up a makeshift bed on the floor not far from the stove.

Other laborers slept in thatched huts not far away.

Fortunately, the weather isn't too cold yet, and there's no wind or rain.

Zhou Yuan fell asleep immediately and slept soundly until dawn.

Aches and pains filled his shoulders, back, and arms. Zhou Yuan struggled to turn over and lay on his back. In a flash, he brought up the system panel.

This is his only motivation to keep going.

Name: Zhou Yuan

[Free Points: 10]

[Realm: None]

[Technique: White Ape Cloak Hammer - Not Yet Mastered (9/30)]

[Skill: Intermediate Blacksmithing Technique (2/100)]

Yesterday's harvest, 10 o'clock!

Zhou Yuan was overjoyed. As he expected, he had practiced the White Ape Cloak Hammer yesterday, and his points had increased again.

It's true that the harder you work, the luckier you get!

Without the slightest hesitation, Zhou Yuan silently decided to add points in his mind.

As the writing on the panel changed, a barely perceptible stream of heat appeared out of nowhere, flowed through the body, and then disappeared.

The original soreness was greatly reduced immediately.

At the same time, a new memory appeared in Zhou Yuan's mind. Just like his many days of hard practice with the White Ape Cloak Hammer, his understanding of this martial art has deepened a lot. Although it has not yet undergone a qualitative change, he is not far from mastering it.

As the laborers and overseers got up one after another, they were all somewhat surprised to see Zhou Yuan already busy in front of the stove.

"He worked until 9 PM last night, and he's up so early this morning again. Is he made of iron?"

"It's hard to say whether he's made of iron or not. He's a blacksmith, and blacksmithing is no easy job. If he keeps doing this, he'll be worked to death."

"What can he do if he doesn't work? The foreman is forcing him. He's the only blacksmith in the entire river, and there are so many broken tools waiting to be repaired. Does he have a choice?"

"If you ask me, with this kind of life, it would be easier to just work yourself to death."

The laborers whispered among themselves, some of them expressing sympathy.

But sympathy aside, everyone is subject to corvée labor, so whose life is better than anyone else's?

Nothing to say for a day.

The clanging and banging continued for eight hours.

Even the supervisors were dumbfounded.

Having received instructions from Gao Dazhuang, they had already devised many methods to target Zhou Yuan, methods that had proven effective in the past when used on these laborers.

As a result, all of these methods became useless.

Saying Zhou Yuan is slacking off?

They really couldn't say that. From morning till night, except for going to the toilet and eating, they hardly stopped for a moment.

They didn't even have a chance to cause trouble.

Is it true that Zhou Yuan cut corners in his work?

Those laborers all said that Zhou Yuan's repair tools were sturdy and durable, and much better than the previous ones.

"I'll observe for a few more days; I refuse to believe he won't make a mistake."

As night deepened, several foremen huddled together, watching Zhou Yuan sleeping soundly in the open from afar, and began to discuss, "At this rate, I don't think he can last more than a few days."

Even if he never makes a mistake, it won't be hard to find an excuse to whip him later.

I could even blame it on him for drinking cold water!

The foreman, with a face full of fat, grinned menacingly.

Another day has passed in the blink of an eye.

This is Zhou Yuan's fourth day at the river construction site.

Early in the morning, Zhou Yuan gritted his teeth and got up, the soreness feeling like a bone-scraping knife sweeping through his entire body.

Looking at the changes on the system panel, a smile appeared on his lips.

With today's points added, energy transforms into quality, and the White Ape Cloak Hammer has truly entered the realm of mastery.

"According to Master Li, being able to maintain your breathing technique while practicing the White Ape Stance and the Cloak Hammer is considered to have entered the beginner level."

Zhou Yuan recalled what Li Lin had taught him that night.

"It takes ordinary people anywhere from one month to half a year to get started. Master Li took three months back then, but I only took five days."

However, considering the hardships of the past five days, Zhou Yuan felt that it was only natural for him to have achieved this.

"Once you master the White Ape Cloak Hammer, you officially enter the foundation-building stage of martial arts."

The essence of martial arts training is to strengthen one's qi and blood, and to build up physical strength and power.

With a body of copper and iron, and immense strength, ordinary people would be injured if they were brushed against, and die if they were touched. That means one has mastered martial arts.

When Qi and blood are abundant to a certain extent, they can circulate Qi and break through barriers. Each breakthrough in the barriers of skin, flesh, bones, and marrow brings about transformative changes.

Once all four barriers are overcome, the foundation building is complete, and one possesses the potential to become a martial arts graduate.

Zhou Yuan thought about the road ahead, feeling slightly excited. He silently added all 10 points he had earned yesterday to the cultivation technique section.