Longevity Martial Arts: Grinding Experience in the Chaotic World novel Chapter 56

Chapter 56: Chapter 56: Keep a Low Profile and Develop

Gu Xiaojiang naturally knew about his father’s efforts to secure main family privileges for Gu Sheng as a youth, and he wholeheartedly agreed.

However, in recent days.

The clan elders had been voicing their dissatisfaction, even suggesting that the three-year term was too long and should be shortened to two years.

It was only because Gu Dajiang stood firm against all opposition, even taking his half-crippled left arm as a reason, that the stubborn clan elders were finally silenced.

Gu Xiaojiang was particularly unhappy about this, but although he was a genius, an unproven genius held no real sway.

He merely resolved in his heart that, once he held power in the future, he would change this situation.

If not, how could Gu’s Manor ever truly grow strong? While the clan elders clung stubbornly to this tiny plot of land, Gu Xiaojiang’s ambitions extended far beyond.

For now, Gu Sheng’s progress in Refining Skin Realm was fairly good, and there was a high possibility he could become a Martial Artist within three years; naturally, the clan elders had one less excuse to interfere.

"But I fear that when the time comes, the clan elders won’t release the resources for the three years so easily."

"However, with your frightening archery skills, as long as you become a Martial Artist and make future contributions, their recognition will come gradually. The hope of stepping into higher realms of martial cultivation will then be within your grasp!"

Hearing Gu Xiaojiang’s assessment.

Gu Sheng smiled internally but didn’t take it to heart.

Under normal circumstances, this was indeed the case.

For someone of his aptitude, it would ordinarily take at least ten years to cultivate Iron Stone Fist to the Small Success realm—and even that was uncertain. With Gu Sheng’s natural bone structure, it would indeed take nearly three years to use Iron Stone Fist at the entry-level to temper his epidermis.

But the issue was—

Gu Sheng had a cheat!

Seeing that the progress bar for Iron Stone Fist had already reached 2%, a trace of joy welled up in Gu Sheng’s heart.

"At this rate, it will take approximately two months to advance Iron Stone Fist to the Small Success realm! By then, my speed in tempering my epidermis will increase several times over!"

"And that’s not to mention that I can continue advancing to Great Success and Perfect. The speed will only grow faster and faster, accelerating as I progress!"

"Three years? No way! It might not even take a year!"

Gu Sheng felt a deep sense of confidence—his system was his foundation.

Even Gu Xiaojiang, the genius of Gu’s Manor, had taken more than half a year to advance Iron Stone Fist to the Small Success realm. Comparing their progress showed just how exaggerated Gu Sheng’s speed truly was.

...

Gu Sheng’s talent in Refining Skin Realm soon spread to the three great masters of Gu’s Manor and the clan elders.

The trio, including Gu Dajiang, were slightly disappointed.

If Gu Sheng’s aptitude were better, they could use it as stronger leverage in negotiations with the clan elders.

But now, they’d just have to be patient and wait for Gu Sheng to become a Martial Artist and demonstrate his value before making further moves.

The clan elders no longer nitpicked over the resources allocated for the three-year period.

A Stone Skin Realm archer was still within the control of Gu’s Manor.

High-level attention gradually waned.

Gu Sheng was happy about this.

He was now preparing to use his second portion of Body Refining Ointment for the month.

The Body Refining Ointment was a dark brown paste that, when applied evenly over the body, would gradually induce a cooling sensation.

The working principle of the ointment was simple: it heightened the epidermis’s sensitivity, improving the efficiency of tempering while also protecting the skin during the process of power-induced hardening.

Over time, the efficacy of a portion of Body Refining Ointment would gradually decline to nothing—usually within about half a month.

To maximize its efficiency, main family youths typically received an allocation of two portions per month.

If an additional portion was used, at most it could increase efficiency by 40%; two extra portions would increase efficiency by over 60%, though with diminishing returns over time.

Daily application of one portion could yield results roughly equivalent to using two portions monthly—the effects were threefold!

This meant that even someone like Gu Sheng, with his current aptitude, could undoubtedly become a Martial Artist within a year!

But such an approach was incredibly costly—the monthly expense of 30 taels of silver amounted to 360 taels a year. It was practically burning money, and even Gu Xiaojiang couldn’t afford such treatment.

Having experienced the benefits of Body Refining Ointment firsthand, Gu Sheng had made his decision.