Through his exploration of the county town, Chu Qiguang had seen money-making opportunities everywhere he looked. Unfortunately, if one wanted to become rich in this era, they would have to ideally be an official or be related to one. At the very least, they had to have some ties to an official. Otherwise, without official backing, their business would be eaten alive as soon as it reached any meaningful scale.

In contrast, with an official title to one’s name, money would find its way to them even if they didn’t know how to do business.

Right now, my top priority is to pass the martial examination so I can make use of the imperial court’s power. Given the sharp inflation in recent times, it looks like there really could be a war soon. I should go back and ask Qiao Zhi what he thinks about this.

After leaving the county town, Chu Qiguang changed back into his old clothes. His new clothes were worth several months of living expenses for his family, and he had no intention of wearing them everyday.

After returning home, he was inevitably questioned by Ergou's mother about the new clothes, but he was able to make up a story to placate her.

“Why were you gone for so long?” Qiao Zhi asked with a lazy yawn as he laid on the roof.

Qiao Zhi was worried about the possibility of running into Daoist priests in the county town, so he had chosen to remain home.

“I did a bit of exploring,” Chu Qiguang explained.

At that moment, Ergou's sister dropped Fish Egg and ran over, throwing her arms around his leg. Looking up at him with pitiful eyes, she said, “I missed you.”

“I think you miss eating meat!” Chu Qiguang scoffed. “I didn’t catch anything today.”

Ergou's sister’s face immediately fell. She let go of his leg and ran back into the house.

A moment later, however, she came rushing back out with half a piece of flatbread. She offered it to him as she said, “I saved this for you from this morning. I’m sure you’ll be able to catch some rabbits tomorrow once you’ve had something to eat.”

Chu Qiguang accepted the piece of flatbread as he gave Ergou's sister an affectionate pat on the head. She wasn’t the sharpest, but she was quite adorable.

He pulled out a pair of fruit pies that he had purchased from the county town, then handed it to her as he said, “I didn’t manage to catch any rabbits, but I bought a couple of pies. You can share these with Mother.”

Ergou's sister took a bite out of the fruit pie, then looked up at him in astonishment as she asked, “What is this?”

The poor girl hasn’t even had any pies before, Chu Qiguang lamented to himself.

Ergou's sister immediately ran back toward their mother with the pies in her hands as she yelled, “Mother! Come eat this! It tastes even better than meat!”

“Where’s that piece of flatbread that I was saving for Ergou?” their mother asked. “I left a whole piece here!”

“I already gave it to him,” Ergou’s sister replied. “Come and try this, Mother! It tastes even better than meat!”

Outside, Chu Qiguang shook his head in amusement and exasperation. Only now did he realize that Ergou's sister had robbed him of half a piece of flatbread.

Nearby, Qiao Zhi, Fine Silk, and Fish Egg briefly rubbed against one another and groomed each other before Qiao Zhi turned to Chu Qiguang and said, “Tell your sister not to pick on my cats.”

“What did she do?” Chu Qiguang asked.

“She tried to make Fish Egg and Fine Silk farm for her!” Qiao Zhi exclaimed in displeasure. “Thankfully, they were able to fool her by playing dumb, but you need to keep her in check!”

She tried to make animals farm for her? That sounds like a good idea!

A sense of foreboding rose in Qiao Zhi’s heart at the sight of Chu Qiguang’s intrigued expression.

Shit! I haven’t given him some sort of inspiration, have I?

After that, Chu Qiguang gave three hundred of the copper coins that he had exchanged at the bank to his mother. Given the high copper content of these coins, three hundred copper coins were equivalent to half a tael of silver.

Chu Qiguang told his mother that he was currently working for the Wang Clan, and that they didn’t have to worry about their outstanding grain tax anymore as the Wang Clan would take care of it for them.

He then gave Ergou's mother a stern lecture about the importance of keeping wealth hidden before making his way to the rear mountain with Qiao Zhi and the batch of Hundred Refinement Ointment.

Just like last time, Qiao Zhi applied the ointment all over Chu Qiguang’s body, then administered a series of paw strikes to help his body absorb the medicine more effectively.

“Hundred Refinement Ointment is most effective the first time it is used,” Qiao Zhi said. “You must wait until the ointment has been completely absorbed into your body before you start cultivating. Only then will you be able to maximize the ointment’s medicinal benefits.”

Chu Qiguang felt as if there were bursts of fire rising in his body, filling him with an uncontrollable urge to release that burning energy through physical exertion.

“Fight it!” Qiao Zhi yelled. “Don’t move until the ointment has been fully applied!”

After applying the rest of the ointment, Qiao Zhi delivered one final paw strike to the back of Chu Qiguang’s chest, and he immediately felt as if something had exploded inside his body.

A thunderous roar erupted out of his throat as he started unleashing the Heavenly Spirit Body Refinement Fist Techniques.

These fist techniques were the only set of martial arts techniques that he had mastered so far, and each time he unleashed them from start to finish, he was able to integrate the power of his entire body.

At that moment, he felt like his body was filled with limitless power. As he repeatedly unleashed his fist techniques, the medicinal effects of the Hundred Refinement Ointment were continuously being absorbed by his flesh and blood. After a full hour, Chu Qiguang was finally completely exhausted, and the Hundred Refinement Ointment’s medicinal properties had also been fully absorbed.

“That still wasn’t enough for me to reach the first state,” Chu Qiguang said with disappointment.

“I already told you that martial arts is different from Dao arts; you can’t just expect instant breakthroughs,” Qiao Zhi said. “The Hundred Refinement Ointment has nourished your body, and the effects were enhanced by the Heavenly Spirit Body Refinement Fist Techniques, so you’ve definitely made some significant progress.

“That said, you’ve just completely exhausted yourself. Your body needs to recover in order to grow stronger, so you can’t just expect a breakthrough right after the ointment is applied. From here, you need to continue focusing on nutrition and meditation. Tomorrow, once you’re fully recovered, the breakthrough will come naturally.”

Thus, Chu Qiguang continued to meditate and take literacy lessons under Qiao Zhi’s guidance.

That night, he paid a visit to the Wang Manor to fulfill his promise of administering “treatment” to Wang Cailiang.

***

The next morning, Chu Qiguang was feeling completely refreshed. With a low roar, his fist snapped forward with an audible bang.

He then unleashed a series of consecutive punches and kicks, and every single blow was also accompanied by an explosive bang.

Only after throwing over twenty punches in succession did Chu Qiguang feel his stamina begin to fade, at which point he was no longer able to produce the same sounds with his fists.

After taking a moment to catch his breath, he smiled and declared, “Ever since I began pursuing martial arts, I have displayed unmatched diligence and dedication, not daring to slack off for even a single second! After six whole days of arduous cultivation, I have finally reached the first state of martial arts! Looking back, what a journey this has been.”

You make it sound like you’ve been going at it for six years! Qiao Zhi scoffed inwardly.

Chu Qiguang was very pleased with himself as he examined his own body.

Over the past six days of cultivation, coupled with medicinal and nutritional nourishment, his originally thin and frail body was already looking more solid. He had clearly gained a bit of muscle, and he had even grown a little taller.

He patted his chiseled abdominal muscles as he mused, “I should be able to enroll at Wise Hero Academy now that I’m a first state martial artist, right?”

Wise Hero Academy was a martial arts school that was jointly funded by several wealthy clans of Azure Sun County specifically to prepare bright talents from those clans for the martial examinations.

However, as those wealthy clans became more powerful and influential in Azure Sun County, more and more current and former county officials began sending the young talents of their clans to Wise Hero Academy as well.

By this point, these clans had a complete monopoly over all of the spots assigned to Azure Sun County for participation in the martial examinations. There were no official rules on the matter, but the situation had evolved to the point that all those who took part in the triennial county martial examinations were students of Wise Hero Academy.

Hence, if one wanted to take part in the martial examinations in Azure Sun County, then they would first have to enroll in Wise Hero Academy, and there were two prerequisites for acceptance. Firstly, one had to have reached the first state in martial arts, and secondly, a letter of recommendation was required.

According to Chu Qiguang’s knowledge, Wang Chengwang had once studied in Wise Hero Academy, and he was also very familiar with some of the officials and wealthy figures in the county who had the status and authority required to write valid letters of recommendation.