In a corner of the Martial Arts Arena, the last rays of the setting sun spilled down.

Lin Jing had her back to Su Yu, her hands braced on a weapon rack. Her slender waist dipped low, perfectly accentuating her full, pert curves.

"Hurry up! Just do it here! What are you dawdling for!"

Her tone was still feisty, as if she didn’t care at all, but her slightly trembling long eyelashes and tightly bitten lower lip betrayed her inner panic and shyness.

Su Yu glanced at Lin Dong, who stood to the side looking even more nervous than his sister, and chuckled to himself.

’This pair of siblings aren’t spoiled brats after all. They’re worth befriending.’

So, he picked up Mo Yuan, still in its sheath, and gave her pert rear a light smack.

SMACK!

The hit wasn’t hard, but Mo Yuan had some weight to it. Even through her leather skirt, the firm, elastic impact traveled right back up the sheath.

Lin Jing’s body jolted, her long, slender legs tensing. No one had ever hit her like this before. A strange feeling suddenly washed over her, and her ears instantly flushed as red as a ripe apple.

In the distance, the Lin Family disciples who were pretending to train while secretly watching gawked, their eyes nearly popping out of their heads.

’That’s the famously fiery Sister Jing! And someone is actually... spanking her?’

SMACK!

Another smack. Her rounded rear rippled like a wave, and the girl’s ears flushed an even deeper red.

Just then, Lin Wanzhu arrived at the Martial Arts Arena, hauling Lin Xiaotian by the collar.

Although she had quickly discovered that the substance on Lin Xiaotian’s hand wasn’t dog poop, she had still taken a long, thorough hot bath before grabbing him and dragging him here.

’Since he refuses to study, he can come to the Martial Arts Arena and learn Martial Arts instead. I’ll be teaching him myself this month. I can’t let him keep causing trouble like this forever.’

But the moment she arrived, she stumbled upon this mortifying scene.

Su Yu was spanking Lin Jing in public!

A flash of astonishment crossed her beautiful eyes; she had no idea what was going on. Lin Xiaotian saw it too and, still dangling in the air, let out a great shout, "Whoa, Lin Xiaoniang’s getting spanked by a guy! Lin Xiaoniang’s getting spanked by a guy!"

The boy’s shouting instantly amplified the awkwardness of the situation.

Many of the Lin Family disciples couldn’t help but snicker.

Su Yu saw her arrive as well. He coughed, gave one final smack, and said, "Alright."

Lin Jing felt a sudden urge to murder Lin Xiaotian. Thanks to his shouting, this embarrassing incident would now be known throughout the entire Lin Family.

But what made her blush even harder was the look in Sister Lin’s eyes, which seemed to ask, ’What sort of flirtatious game are you two playing?’

"Sister Lin, I was sparring with Su Yu and I lost. This was the wager we agreed on," Lin Jing explained, trying to sound casual.

Lin Wanzhu took a deep breath, suppressing the strange, inexplicable feeling in her heart.

"If that’s the case, just focus on your training. I’ll be back tomorrow." After speaking, she dropped Lin Xiaotian on the ground, turned, and walked away.

Her mind was still reeling. ’I didn’t realize young people were so... creative with their games these days. Right out in public...’

’Compared to them, I’m far too conservative... No wonder no young men pursue me, just those old fossils in the Flesh Refining Realm... It seems I just can’t keep up with their complicated little games...’

She couldn’t help but subtly lift her heavy chest, and some of her confidence returned. ’These youngsters are still wet behind the ears. In certain aspects, they just can’t compare to me.’

...

Back at the Martial Arts Arena, Lin Dong, his sister, and Su Yu all acted as if nothing had happened, each focusing on their own training.

Lin Xiaotian, however, seemed like a completely different person. He squatted quietly to one side, his eyes darting between the three of them. After a moment, he apparently grew bored and slipped away, disappearing to who-knows-where.

Soon, evening fell. The people in the Martial Arts Arena gradually dispersed. Lin Dong and his sister said their goodbyes to Su Yu, and eventually, only Su Yu remained.

Su Yu trained for a while longer and was just about to leave.

Just then, Lin Xiaotian suddenly shot out and ran in front of Su Yu. With a THUD, he dropped to his knees and kowtowed. "Big Brother, I beg you, please take me, Lin Xiaotian, as your little brother!"

Not knowing whether to laugh or cry, Su Yu simply walked around him and kept going.

"Big Brother, don’t go!"

Lin Xiaotian hurriedly chased after him. "Big Brother, you were so cool today! You actually gave that Lin Xiaoniang a good thrashing! From now on, I, Lin Xiaotian, am rolling with you!"

Su Yu kept walking, not saying a word.

Lin Xiaotian immediately ran to his other side. "Big Brother, I was disrespectful to you before. This is an apology gift. Please accept me as your little brother."

As he spoke, he pulled a delicate porcelain vial from out of nowhere and proudly shoved it into Su Yu’s hands.

Curious, Su Yu took the porcelain vial, uncorked it, and took a sniff. A peculiar, fresh fragrance wafted out.

He tipped it over and discovered a single, priceless, bluish-green medicinal pill.

"Big Brother, this is my family’s special Nourishing Spirit Pill. My aunt said it helps you recover from the fatigue of training. A single pill is worth dozens of taels. All those people at the Martial Arts Arena are always trying to trick me into giving them one."

He said this with his hands on his hips, an incredibly smug look on his face.

Su Yu smiled. Lin Xiaotian might seem like a little terror, but he was perceptive and quite clever, acting like a miniature adult.

"And you’re just giving this to me?"

"This one is my apology to you, Big Brother. If you take me as your little brother, I’ll give you more when I steal—no, when I *get* them in the future."

Su Yu smiled. "Then what do I have to do for you as your Big Brother?"

"Just teach me that branch-throwing technique of yours, Big Brother! I think it’s super cool. Then I can use it to hit them with rocks when they’re not looking!"

"Alright. But if you’re my little brother, you have to listen to me from now on. And don’t bother me when I’m training."

"Of course a little brother has to listen to his Big Brother!"

Su Yu smiled, put the pill away, and planned to ask Senior Sister Lin about it the next day.

...

「The next morning at the Martial Arts Arena.」

Dressed in training gear, Lin Wanzhu cut a dashing and heroic figure as she began to guide the three in their preparations.

"Lin Dong, it will be difficult for your staff techniques to improve significantly in just one month. For this month, stop practicing staff forms and focus all your energy on refining your Qi and Blood."

"After this, go to our clan uncle and collect ten Black Scale Blood Orifice Pills. Use them to push your Qi and Blood to their absolute peak before opening the First Acupoint!"

"Thank you, Sister Lin!" Lin Dong’s face lit up with delight. The Black Scale Blood Orifice Pill was a full three times more expensive than the Red Ginseng Jade Skin Pill and was considered a top-tier item even for use after opening the First Acupoint!

"Lin Jing, your whip technique has already reached a state of perfection. For the next month, focus all your energy on cultivating the Snow-Stepping Stance!"

"Yes, Sister Lin!" A flicker of fighting spirit ignited in Lin Jing’s eyes, and she shot Su Yu a challenging glance.

’If my Snow-Stepping Stance had just been at the entry-level, there’s no way Su Yu would have gotten close and defeated me in two moves!’

"Su Yu, your White Ape Fist is in a similar situation to theirs; it will be difficult to break through in such a short time. For the next month, I will take you to the fighting arenas to strengthen your Spiritual Ape Demon-Slaying Saber through real combat experience!"

Su Yu nodded. His fight with Lin Jing yesterday had directly increased his Skill Level by seventy or eighty points, which had been a huge boost to his practical combat experience.

’The Demon-subduing Saber really is better suited for improvement through real combat!’

’But my White Ape Fist will definitely break through within the month, too, not to mention my Seven Fiends Thunder Collapse Step. I’ll just keep those as my trump cards!’

"Let me give you some pointers on your saber technique first."

After speaking, Senior Sister Lin began to meticulously instruct him on his saber techniques. Physical contact was unavoidable, and Su Yu couldn’t tell if she was doing it on purpose, but whenever he felt his Qi and Blood begin to stir, she would pull away at just the right moment.

During a break, Su Yu told Senior Sister Lin about the pill Lin Xiaotian had given him. He couldn’t, in good conscience, scam a child out of a valuable pill, especially not in the Lin Family’s home.

Senior Sister Lin simply smiled and told him not to worry. They had intended to give him those pills anyway; Xiaotian had just given him a few extra. Ultimately, as long as Su Yu could achieve a good result in the Martial Examination, it would all be worth it.

For the next dozen or so days, Su Yu regularly took the Nourishing Spirit Pills delivered by Xiaotian. The pills had a remarkable effect, nourishing his spirit and eliminating the fatigue from his training.

As a result, Su Yu started grinding even harder!

During this time, Su Yu would go with Senior Sister Lin to the city’s fighting arenas every few days to compete and hone his saber techniques.

An amusing incident also occurred during this time. The Yang Sisters finished making his clothes and, upon learning that Su Yu was at the Lin Family estate, came looking for him directly.

Senior Sister Lin laughed and teased Su Yu, remarking on how good his luck was with girls.

...

「With less than two weeks to go before the Martial Examination.」

On this day, Su Yu’s movement technique, the Seven Fiends Thunder Collapse Step, finally broke through!

[Seven Fiends Thunder Collapse Step Skill Level +5]

[Seven Fiends Thunder Collapse Step has broken through to the Skillful Realm]

[Martial Art]: Seven Fiends Thunder Collapse Step (Skilled 1/2000)