Chapter 4 Apprenticeship
"So, this is the sect you mentioned, Master?" Gu Qingyuan looked at the desolate scene of overgrown weeds in front of him. It was indeed a sect with only a gate left.

I can't tell you, I can only say that when mice come, they leave crying, and thieves have to come to bring bags of rice during the New Year and other festivals.

"Well, I haven't been back much in these years, and I haven't taken good care of it, so it's inevitable that it's worn out." Taoist Qingxu covered his face.

"Master, tell me honestly, how many people are there in our sect?" Gu Qingyuan said expressionlessly.

"Including you and me. Two... two." Qingxu stuttered a little, "But having fewer people also has its advantages. When I die, all my things will belong to you."

Hearing Qingxu still trying to make up for it, Gu Qingyuan sighed. He thought he could live a life where his master would do the fighting, his senior brothers would do the work, and he would only be responsible for communicating with his junior sister. But now all that is gone.

There are only two people. What's the difference between this and the general manager, human resources manager, accountant, cleaner and security captain?

Unfortunately, there is no way. I have already kowtowed, and my master is a grandmaster, so I can only make do with it.

That day, Gu Qingyuan thought again and again and finally decided to hold on to this golden thigh. It was not that Gu Qingyuan was too trusting, but the master was too powerful. This was like a ray of light in the darkness for Gu Qingyuan who was anxious to save his life.

Gu Qingyuan secretly left all the money he had to the doctor, as a way of repaying the doctor for taking him in and teaching him skills. Then the two of them went to the valley where the medicine boy was trained, but found that the place was empty. They then changed direction and hurried to their own sect's headquarters.

After walking through the sect's gate, where only the door is left, you can see a small pavilion and several small buildings.

The pavilion is an octagonal pavilion with glazed green tiles and small red pillars. On the beams there are reliefs of auspicious dragons and phoenixes, and immortals swimming in the sea. There are chess lines engraved on the stone table inside the pavilion, and two boxes of black and white pieces, one on the left and one on the right. The main gate building is inscribed with "Guanlan Pavilion".

Gu Qingyuan walked to the red painted doorposts, both of which had words on them, and brushed off the dust with his hands.

"In this world, when there is no fixed law, we know that it is not a law; when things in the world are resolved, they are still unresolved, and finally they are unresolved."

After smacking his lips a few times and laughing softly, Gu Qingyuan realized that his master was no longer beside him and continued to walk inside.

After passing the small pavilion, there is a solemn palace.

Gu Qingyuan pushed open the door, and the first thing that caught his eye was a large red altar table. The incense on the table had just been burned, and densely packed tablets were crowded behind it, as if competing for the incense.

Qingxu, who had changed into a dark blue robe, no longer looked like a poor old Taoist priest. He came out from the back hall, sat on the first armchair under the altar, accepted the tea served by Gu Qingyuan, and then took him to pay homage to the ancestral hall. The master and disciple were officially established.

"My surname is Zhang, Zhang Qingxu, and I have no children. Qingyuan, you are joining my Fufeng sect today. There is only one rule, which is to respect your teacher first. The rest is up to you." Zhang Qingxu put down the teacup in his hand.

"Disciple understands." Gu Qingyuan said quickly.

"But you and I need to agree on three rules."

"Please enlighten me, Master."

Zhang Qingxu looked a little serious and stood up to face Gu Qingyuan.

"I know you are gifted and intelligent, but it is important to learn martial arts early. Now you are fifteen, and you have lost seven or eight of your innate energy. If you are slow, you will be slow. There are so many geniuses out there. If you want to catch up with them, you have to endure more hardships and practice more. Do you understand?"

"Qingyuan understands." Gu Qingyuan nodded respectfully.

"For your own sake, I need to temper your character and temporarily keep you in Yandang Mountain for three years. This is the first chapter." Zhang Qingxu raised a finger, "You are not allowed to leave the mountain within three years. I will take care of your food, clothing, housing and transportation. In return, I guarantee that you will advance to the second level and become an innate in three years."

He didn't wait for Gu Qingyuan to reply, and said the rest at once: "With my precious medicine and elixir, plus careful teaching, it is not difficult to be a congenital, but it is difficult to become a master. At fifty, you are a congenital, and at sixty, you are a master. It is difficult to become a master, so you can only rely on yourself. In my Sutra Pavilion, there are more than 800 volumes of upper, middle and lower grade exercises, medicine, astrology, divination, dragon point selection, scriptures and miscellaneous books like stars. I require you to read them all within three years. I don't ask you to memorize them, but you must remember them. This is the second chapter."

"Get up early in the morning. I will teach you and answer your questions in the morning. In the afternoon, you will learn techniques at Guanlan Pavilion. At night, you will practice your skills. This is the third chapter. Is it possible?" Zhang Qingxu looked directly into Gu Qingyuan's eyes.

"Every word of Master is for Qingyuan's consideration. I will abide by it without any compromise." Gu Qingyuan promised. "Well, you are tired today. Have dinner and rest early." Zhang Qingxu waved his hand, "Remember, this is your last free time."

The next day, it was daybreak.

Zhang Qingxu practiced a set of boxing with Gu Qingyuan. After breakfast, the two sat opposite each other in the room.

"Today I will first teach you some martial arts knowledge. If you have any questions, you can ask me directly."

This lecture lasted the whole morning and involved nouns, code words, experience, and key points. Gu Qingyuan felt as if the clouds and fog had been cleared and he could see the blue sky. All his confusions were resolved.

Before, Gu Qingyuan just followed the map and was always confused. Now, he can be said to have acquired some knowledge of martial arts.

A jade box was placed in front of Gu Qingyuan.

"This is the secret book of my Fufeng lineage that has been passed down from top to bottom and leads to the master. It contains 28 volumes of internal training, external training, and techniques." Zhang Qingxu said.

Opening the jade box, a pair of hands picked up the first secret book and handed it to Gu Qingyuan.

After Gu Qingyuan took it, Zhang Qingxu spoke: "This "Qi Yang Jue" is most suitable for beginners. Practicing it will make your breath last longer. You should read it through first. If you have any questions, write them down. I will explain it to you in detail first, and then focus on answering your questions. Don't feel ashamed. Not understanding the deep meaning will only hurt yourself."

Gu Qingyuan opened the secret book and recited it silently in his mind.

Zhang Qingxu then explained the key points in detail, each word was like a gem, pointing directly to the great truth.

There is nothing I don't understand. I think... I understand it? Gu Qingyuan was a little surprised by what he had verified.

"Master, I think I can do it now."

Zhang Qingxu didn't take it seriously. He was the same at the beginning, thinking he knew everything, but in the end he only knew the results but not the reasons.

Then he asked a few questions, and he actually got the answers right. Zhang Qingxu glanced at Gu Qingyuan and asked more questions in depth, and found no mistakes.

Is there really such a genius?

"Lie cross-legged and gather Qi." Zhang Qingxu put his hand on Gu Qingyuan's shoulder. After Gu Qingyuan completed a full cycle of Qi circulation, he had already mastered the "Qi Nourishing Art". After practicing it a few more times, he had mastered it to perfection, as if he was a veteran who had been immersed in it for years.

"Haha, if I had known that you were an extraordinary person, I would have treated you as an ordinary person. I was wrong." Zhang Qingxu shook his head and picked up another book on martial arts.

"This Five Elements Circulation Method strengthens the bones..."

"Master, I got it."

"This 'Eight Methods of Sanshou' is good at fighting with bare hands..."

"Master, I got it."

"This……"

Zhang Qingxu was a little shocked at first, but as time went by, he became numb and then it became a habit.

Perhaps it was because of the foundation laid by the previous exercises, Gu Qingyuan, who had a certain level of martial arts literacy, was able to learn by analogy and learn faster and faster. While Zhang Qingxu was looking at a monster, he had finished learning all 28 secret books.

(End of this chapter)