Two weeks had passed since Linfeng and the other new disciples began their training in the Outer Court of AzureCloud Martial Hall.

  During those fourteen days, the rhythm of life on AzureCloud Mountain had carved itself deeply into Linfeng’s bones.

  Morning bells rang before sunrise.

  Training sted until the sun reached its peak.

  Evening exercises continued until the sky darkened and the mountain winds turned cold.

  Every day followed the same brutal pattern.

  Horse stances that burned the legs like fire.

  Mountain trails climbed with heavy stones pressed against their shoulders.

  Meditation beneath the roaring waterfall where freezing water crashed against their backs like falling boulders.

  For many disciples, the first week had already broken their enthusiasm.

  Compints had filled the dormitories at night.

  Some noble cn youths grumbled that the training was beneath them.

  Others cursed the instructors for turning martial disciples into borers.

  But Linfeng felt something completely different.

  As painful as the training was…

  He liked it.

  Because every aching muscle reminded him that he was walking the path he had chosen.

  Morning sunlight slowly crept across the terraces of **AzureCloud Martial Hall**, illuminating the vast courtyards carved into the mountainside.

  The **Outer Court training grounds** were already alive with movement.

  Dozens of disciples ran along the stone paths surrounding the courtyard, each carrying heavy training stones across their shoulders. Others practiced stances in long rows while instructors walked among them, correcting posture with sharp commands.

  Linfeng moved along the mountain trail with steady steps, a rough stone resting against his shoulder.

  His breathing was heavy, but controlled.

  Each step pressed into the mountain path as sweat slowly soaked into the blue robe of an **Outer Disciple**.

  Beside him, Guo Ren lumbered forward with a rger stone resting across his back.

  The tall boy exhaled loudly.

  “I swear this rock keeps getting heavier every p.”

  Linfeng chuckled.

  “Maybe you’re just getting weaker.”

  Guo Ren snorted.

  “Impossible. My vilge used to make me haul sacks of rice bigger than this thing.”

  He shifted the stone slightly before gncing sideways.

  “But this mountain… this pce is different.”

  Linfeng nodded faintly.

  It truly was.

  Even after several days inside **AzureCloud Martial Hall**, the sheer scale of the pce still amazed him.

  Terraced training fields climbed the mountain like steps toward the heavens.

  Tall pavilions rested on cliffs overlooking waterfalls that plunged into deep valleys below.

  Stone stairways connected courtyards filled with disciples practicing sword forms, spear thrusts, and body conditioning exercises.

  The entire mountain seemed alive with martial training.

  Linfeng wiped sweat from his brow.

  “Yeah… it’s bigger than I imagined too.”

  Guo Ren ughed.

  “You imagined it?”

  “Of course.”

  Linfeng grinned.

  “Back in the vilge, AzureCloud Martial Hall was like some legendary pce people talked about during festivals.”

  “Turns out they weren’t exaggerating.”

  The two of them completed another p around the mountain trail before returning to the outer courtyard.

  Several disciples had already colpsed onto the stone tiles, breathing heavily.

  Others compined openly.

  A well-dressed young man from a noble cn threw his training stone aside with frustration.

  “This is ridiculous!”

  His robe was finer than most outer disciples wore, the silk clearly expensive despite the AzureCloud insignia stitched across the chest.

  “I didn’t come here to haul rocks like a borer!”

  Another noble youth beside him nodded.

  “My family didn’t send me here for this either.”

  Not far away, a few commoner disciples simply kept silent and continued training.

  Guo Ren gnced toward the compining nobles.

  “They won’t st long,” he muttered.

  Linfeng shrugged.

  “Maybe they will.”

  Guo Ren looked surprised.

  “You think so?”

  Linfeng picked up his training stone again.

  “Some people compin loudly but still endure.”

  He hoisted the stone onto his shoulder.

  “What matters is whether they keep training.”

  Guo Ren stared at him for a moment.

  Then he ughed.

  “You’re strange, Linfeng.”

  “Maybe.”

  Linfeng started jogging toward the trail again.

  “But if we’re going to climb this mountain, we might as well keep moving.”

  Guo Ren quickly grabbed his own stone and followed.

  “You really don’t like resting, do you?”

  “Not when I’m still weak.”

  By midday, the outer court training ground had quieted.

  Most disciples sat in groups beneath the shade of rge pine trees, eating their rations and resting sore muscles.

  Linfeng and Guo Ren sat together near the edge of the courtyard.

  Guo Ren tore into a steamed bun like a starving wolf.

  “This food tastes amazing after training.”

  Linfeng ughed.

  “That’s because you’re starving.”

  Guo Ren shrugged.

  “Same thing.”

  As they ate, Linfeng looked toward a tall pavilion standing on a higher terrace of the mountain.

  It was a beautiful structure with curved roofs and dark wooden pilrs.

  Disciples occasionally entered and exited through its wide doors.

  “What’s that pce?” Linfeng asked.

  Guo Ren followed his gaze.

  “Oh, that?”

  He swallowed his food before answering.

  “That’s the **Martial Arts Pavilion**.”

  Linfeng blinked.

  “Martial Arts Pavilion?”

  “Yeah,” Guo Ren said. “It’s where the sect stores martial manuals, training records, and old cultivation texts.”

  Linfeng’s eyes widened slightly.

  “So that’s where disciples learn martial arts?”

  Guo Ren shook his head.

  “Not us.”

  He pointed toward the outer courtyard.

  “Outer disciples have to build their bodies first. Only after passing the instructors’ evaluations can we access basic martial manuals.”

  Linfeng nodded slowly.

  That made sense.

  Without a strong body, learning martial arts would be meaningless.

  Still, he gnced at the pavilion again.

  Something about it stirred his curiosity.

  Guo Ren noticed.

  “Thinking about it already?”

  Linfeng scratched his cheek.

  “Maybe a little.”

  Guo Ren ughed loudly.

  “You really are impatient.”

  “Not impatient,” Linfeng replied.

  “Just curious.”

  Guo Ren stood up and stretched.

  “Well, curiosity won’t make our legs stronger.”

  He gestured toward the training field.

  “Come on.”

  “Again?”

  “Again.”

  Linfeng grinned.

  “Alright.”

  As the afternoon training resumed, most disciples struggled through the exercises with exhausted bodies.

  Some attempted to skip repetitions.

  Others simply moved slowly.

  But two figures continued training with quiet determination.

  Linfeng.

  And Guo Ren.

  While others rested, they practiced their horse stances.

  When the instructors allowed a break, they carried extra stones along the mountain trail.

  Even as the sun began to set behind the peaks, they continued pushing their limits.

  Instructor **Kang Jinhai** stood at the edge of the courtyard, watching the disciples.

  His sharp eyes moved across the training ground.

  Eventually they settled on the two boys still practicing stance training near the far wall.

  Both of them were trembling from exhaustion.

  Yet neither stopped.

  Kang Jinhai folded his arms.

  “Hmph.”

  He had seen countless disciples over the years.

  Some were talented.

  Some came from powerful families.

  Some possessed natural martial instincts.

  But perseverance…

  That was rarer.

  As the evening bell rang and the other disciples slowly returned to their dormitories, Linfeng and Guo Ren remained in the courtyard.

  Guo Ren colpsed onto the stone tiles, breathing heavily.

  “If I die tomorrow… tell the instructors it was their fault.”

  Linfeng ughed and sat beside him.

  “You’re not dying.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  Guo Ren stared at the darkening sky.

  The first stars had begun appearing above the mountains.

  After a moment, he gnced sideways.

  “You’re really serious about becoming strong, aren’t you?”

  Linfeng didn’t answer immediately.

  Instead, he looked toward the towering cliffs surrounding **AzureCloud Martial Hall**.

  The mountain felt enormous.

  Endless.

  Like a path that never truly ended.

  Finally he nodded.

  “Yeah.”

  Guo Ren chuckled tiredly.

  “Well… good.”

  “Because if you’re climbing this mountain…”

  He extended his arm zily toward Linfeng.

  “I guess I’ll climb it with you.”

  Linfeng bumped his fist lightly against Guo Ren’s arm.

  “Then we better get stronger.”

  Guo Ren groaned as he slowly stood up.

  “Not tonight.”

  He pointed toward the dormitories.

  “Tonight we sleep.”

  Linfeng grinned.

  “After one more stance.”

  Guo Ren stared at him in disbelief.

  “You’re insane.”

  “Maybe.”

  Linfeng lowered into horse stance again beneath the quiet evening sky.

  Guo Ren sighed heavily.

  Then he joined him.

  Above them, the stars slowly filled the sky over **AzureCloud Mountain**.

  And beneath that vast sky…

  Two new disciples continued their training long after the rest had gone to sleep.