This Martial Saint is Too Cautious
Chapter 19 - 14: First Showing of Prowess

Chapter 19: Chapter 14: First Showing of Prowess

Yang Family Martial Arts Hall, Central Courtyard Training Grounds.

As Lin Yan stepped through the courtyard gate, he noticed several new faces on the training grounds. They were all youths who had successfully completed the Nourishing Foundation stage and had just been promoted to the Central Courtyard.

The one in charge of instructing them was, as usual, Ge Hui.

Ge Hui’s expression darkened the moment he saw Lin Yan.

’He never thought Lin Yan’s luck would be this good!’

No sooner had he found men from the Black Tiger Gang to set a trap for Lin Yan, than the Black Tiger Gang was wiped out.

Over the past two days, he had given up on the idea of finding someone else to deal with Lin Yan.

On second thought, Lin Yan wasn’t worth the two taels of silver.

But now, as he watched Lin Yan hold up a token from the Chores Hall and walk straight to the large iron cauldron to scoop out some Skin Smoothing Cream, Ge Hui’s anger flared up again.

’Master forbids disciples from fighting amongst themselves, but he never said we couldn’t spar.’

An hour later, Lin Yan walked toward the large iron cauldron.

Ge Hui’s gaze swept over. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Lin Yan roll up his sleeve, revealing a bronze-colored forearm.

He swallowed the rebuke that was on the tip of his tongue.

’He knew perfectly well that scolding was useless against Lin Yan. The guy was shameless.’

’Back when the Martial Arts Hall was providing Secret Medicine for free, Lin Yan had dared to apply it despite all my taunts and pressure. What more now that he’s paid for it himself?’

Lin Yan paid Ge Hui’s thoughts no mind. ’My proficiency with the Mountain-Splitting Fist has improved, and so has my efficiency in absorbing the Skin Smoothing Cream,’ he calculated inwardly. ’It used to take two hours to absorb completely, but now it only takes one. I can apply it four times a day. This one tael of silver was well spent.’

He was getting four taels’ worth of effect for the price of one.

’Thank you, Master,’ he thought. ’The time is limited, but the amount isn’t.’

A second time, a third, a fourth...

By the time the firewood under the iron cauldron had burned out, Lin Yan had just finished his fourth application.

Ge Hui stared intently at him, suspecting, ’Did this guy secretly hide the Skin Smoothing Cream? Otherwise, how could he possibly absorb it so fast?’

Unfortunately for him, he couldn’t find any proof by the time the sky grew dark, and he could only storm off in a rage.

「Three days passed.」

Lin Yan turned his gaze inward. In his mind’s eye, the trunk of the Martial Arts Tree was growing steadily. ’Almost there. Just a few more days will be enough.’

"Everyone, stop!"

Ge Hui’s voice rang out across the training grounds.

Lin Yan, who was in the middle of his practice, frowned slightly but stopped and relaxed his stance.

’After all, Master himself ordered Ge Hui to instruct us. I can resist his unreasonable demands, but I can’t just ignore the rules—I can’t give Ge Hui any ammunition against me.’

"Practicing Martial Arts isn’t just about blindly repeating techniques; you have to focus on real combat," Ge Hui announced, surveying the crowd. "Today, you’ll pair off and spar. We’ll test your practical combat abilities."

As soon as he said this, many of the disciples’ eyes lit up.

Which of these youths who had entered the Martial Arts Hall hadn’t dreamed of cutting a heroic figure, taking on ten opponents at once?

But ever since they had joined, it had been nothing but day after day of practicing forms, and it was excruciatingly dull.

The moment they heard they could actually fight, every single one of them was eager to have a go.

"None of you have reached Single-Time Skin Smoothing yet, so your strengths are all comparable. I’ll group you randomly. You’re all martial brothers, so pull your punches."

"Wang Hai and Zhang Qiang, you’re a pair."

"Zhang Ping’an and Li Kexiu, you’re a pair."

Ge Hui assigned several more pairs, his gaze finally landing on Lin Yan with a meaningful glint in his eye.

"Lin Yan and Qian Jun, you’re a pair."

’Me and Qian Jun?’

Lin Yan glanced at the tall, powerfully built Qian Jun across from him. ’If I remember correctly, Qian Jun joined the Martial Arts Hall four months before me and has been using Skin Smoothing Cream continuously. Even if he hasn’t reached Single-Time Skin Smoothing, he must be close.’

’This match is aimed at me.’

’Ge Hui must have briefed Qian Jun in private.’

’He says to pull our punches, but fists and feet have no eyes. As long as no one gets crippled, the Martial Arts Hall won’t investigate too deeply. Disciples like us, who haven’t even achieved Single-Time Skin Smoothing, aren’t considered important in Master’s eyes. If you get hurt, you can only blame yourself for being weak.’

Lin Yan saw the situation with perfect clarity, but he didn’t refuse.

’Besides, I’m not far from Single-Time Skin Smoothing myself. Qian Jun is actually a suitable opponent.’

Soon, Wang Hai and Zhang Qiang stepped into the center of the training grounds.

Lin Yan watched them trade blows and shook his head slightly. ’Too rigid. There’s no flexibility in their movements at all.’

’If it were me, I could take either of them down in two moves.’

"Wang Hai, your power generation on that punch was off. Zhang Qiang, when faced with that move, why didn’t you shift your right foot to counter? The techniques are fixed, but the person using them must be flexible..."

After the spar, Ge Hui offered his commentary, appearing for all the world like he was earnestly guiding his Junior Brothers.

This move earned him a fair bit of goodwill from the others.

After a few more pairs, Ge Hui’s gaze sharpened. "Next up, Qian Jun versus Lin Yan."

"Junior Brother Lin, if you please."

Qian Jun stood there nonchalantly, not giving Lin Yan a second thought.

’He’d been at the Martial Arts Hall for over five months and was close to completing his Skin Smoothing. Lin Yan had only been here for a month. How could he possibly be a match for him?’

’This kid dared to offend Senior Brother Ge. This is the perfect chance to teach him a lesson on Ge’s behalf.’

"Senior Brother Qian."

Lin Yan didn’t perform the traditional cupped fist salute. Instead, he took a few steps forward, stopped in front of Qian Jun, and very naturally extended his right hand.

Everyone was stunned.

When Martial Artists sparred, they either exchanged a cupped fist salute or started fighting directly. What did extending a hand mean?

Qian Jun was also taken aback. Seeing the hand with its well-defined knuckles extended before him, he instinctively grasped it.

"Please guide me, Senior Brother Qian."

Lin Yan released his hand and stepped back to his original position.

"What kind of greeting was that?"

"It seemed like one, but I’ve never heard of it..."

Hearing the murmurs around him, Lin Yan smiled faintly. "It’s called a Hand-Clasping Greeting. I read about it in an ancient book. Senior Brother Qian joined before I did, so sparring with me is a form of guidance. It felt appropriate to offer my hand."

The crowd seemed to understand, and though the explanation felt a little far-fetched, no one gave it much thought.

In his mind, Lin Yan saw that the gray Martial Arts Tree representing Qian Jun was a good bit shorter than his own. He was now completely at ease.

’Qian Jun’s Skin Smoothing progress is significantly behind mine, his Qi Blood is weaker, and as for his proficiency with the Mountain-Splitting Fist... there’s no comparison.’

’There’s no way I can lose this fight.’

’The only question now is whether I should hold back or not.’

Seeing Lin Yan retreat to his spot and fall silent, Qian Jun let out a low shout. "Junior Brother Lin, watch out for my fist!"

He sank into a horse stance, his right fist whistling through the air as it shot straight for Lin Yan’s face.

Before the fist arrived, the wind it generated was already striking his face.

The surrounding disciples cried out in alarm.

Lin Yan’s expression remained unchanged.

In his eyes, the punch was riddled with openings. ’In his pursuit of Power, Qian Jun is leaning too far forward, his center of gravity is shifted to his left leg, and he didn’t fully open up his shoulder blades when he threw the punch. The force has already dissipated by half by the time it reached his elbow.’

Lin Yan neither dodged nor retreated. Only when the wind from the fist struck his face did he tilt his head in a seemingly last-second, perilous dodge, letting the fist graze past his ear.

At the same time, his footwork shifted fluidly, and he slipped smoothly into the opening in Qian Jun’s guard.

There were no fancy techniques, just the Straight to the Point move from the Mountain-Splitting Fist. He raised his right fist from his waist, sunk his shoulder, dropped his elbow, and struck out along the shortest, most direct path.

The timing was impeccable.

It was the exact moment Qian Jun’s initial force was spent and his center of gravity was unstable.

Qian Jun’s pupils contracted. He wanted to block or dodge, but his body was stiff from overexerting himself. His movements were half a beat too slow, and all he could do was barely twist his body to meet the blow with his left arm.

THUD!

A dull thud exploded outward.

Qian Jun felt a sharp, numbing ache spread from his left arm. Half of his body went limp, and he stumbled back five or six steps before collapsing onto his butt.

He looked up at Lin Yan, his eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

The entire field fell silent.

Many of the disciples hadn’t even seen clearly what had happened. They only saw Qian Jun throw a fearsome punch that missed, Lin Yan take a step forward, throw a seemingly casual punch of his own, and Qian Jun was down.

Lin Yan slowly withdrew his fist, his breathing as steady as ever, as if he had just swatted away a fly.

He glanced at Qian Jun, who was still slumped on the ground, then at the ashen-faced Ge Hui. He cupped his fist and said calmly, "Senior Brother Qian, thank you for the match."

The sneer on Ge Hui’s face froze solid.

’He couldn’t understand how Lin Yan had defeated Qian Jun so easily. Even he himself, without using the suppressive power of his Single-Time Skin Smoothing Qi Blood, couldn’t have won that quickly.’

"Junior Brother Lin, you truly are impressive. It’s making me, your senior brother, itch for a fight. How about we exchange a few moves?"

"Senior Brother Ge, you are already a Single-Time Skin Smoothing Martial Artist. How could I possibly be your match? I concede."

Lin Yan refused bluntly, feigning weakness.

’His fight with Zhou Wu had taught him that challenging those of a higher realm was far too risky. He wouldn’t do it unless he absolutely had to.’

Looking at Lin Yan’s humble, "I’m not worthy" expression, Ge Hui wanted nothing more than to punch him in the face.

But he didn’t dare.

’If he actually attacked, Master would never forgive him.’

"The sparring session is over. Resume your practice."

Ge Hui walked away, suppressing his rage.

Lin Yan resumed his practice on the training grounds, as if nothing had happened.

This time, however, many pairs of eyes on the training grounds kept drifting toward him—full of curiosity, scrutiny, and re-evaluation.

The two who had deliberately distanced themselves from him before now quietly sidled back over.

Lin Yan greeted them with a smile, his attitude unchanged.