It wasn't until sunset that the tightly shut courtyard gate was pushed open again. At Chu Mu's call, several burly men pushing a handcart followed him into the yard.
"Put the wooden man target in that corner. As for the Hanging Ball Array... hang it from the tree."
Following Chu Mu's directions, the strong men immediately got to work. Some dug holes, some mixed mortar, and others carried the equipment.
In a little over an hour, the training ground Chu Mu had envisioned took shape in the courtyard.
"Young Master, it's all set up. We'll be heading back now."
The leader of the men walked up to Chu Mu and said with a cheerful smile.
"Mm..."
Chu Mu glanced around at the training equipment he had designed and nodded. He then pulled a few pieces of Paper Currency from his robes and stuffed them into the man's hand. "Good work. It's cold out, so buy the brothers some wine to warm up."
"Hehe, you're too generous, Young Master."
"We'll be on our way then."
The man chuckled, gave a shout, and the other men pushed the cart away. As a final, considerate gesture, they helped Chu Mu close the courtyard gate.
Once the gate was shut, the previous clamor gave way to silence.
Chu Mu studied the training equipment he had designed, a small thrill of excitement rising in his heart.
The wooden man target was something Chu Mu had modeled after the training dummies from the kung fu movies of his past life.
However, Chu Mu had altered it slightly to make it more suitable for practicing his Sword Technique forms.
The wooden man target was slightly taller than a person. Although called a "target," it had a head, body, arms, and legs, giving it a generally humanoid shape. Its wooden body was wrapped in several layers of thick hemp cloth, making it look like a statue wearing heavy armor at first glance.
Chu Mu stepped forward with his Long Saber and stood still. After a moment of silence, he drew the saber and swung it fiercely.
Hack, slash, flick, thrust...
Each strike was no longer just a motion through empty air as before, but a solid blow landing on a real target.
The multiple layers of thick hemp cloth did an excellent job of cushioning the Power of his blade, while the humanoid shape of the wooden man target allowed Chu Mu to consciously simulate striking different parts of a body.
After about a quarter of an hour of vigorous, satisfying practice, Chu Mu finally stopped and stood still. The wooden man target before him was now covered in vicious-looking sword marks.
Chu Mu glanced at his Light Curtain Panel. In just a quarter of an hour, his Sword Technique Skill Level had, for the first time ever, shot up by a whole five points.
'It really works.'
A look of delight crossed Chu Mu's face as he turned to look at his custom-modified Hanging Ball Array.
The hanging balls were woven from rattan and bamboo strips, each about the size of a basketball from his past life. They were hung from the tree by thin ropes at varying heights.
Although it was slightly different from the Sandbag Array he had seen in the movies of his past life, the principle was more or less the same.
Setting down his Sword, Chu Mu picked up a Wooden Sword he'd had the craftsman make on the side. He weighed it in his hand, then casually struck one of the hanging balls.
The impact sent the hanging balls, suspended at different heights, into erratic, unpredictable motion.
As his Wooden Sword struck the balls one after another, their swinging grew more forceful, assailing Chu Mu from all directions.
His task within the Hanging Ball Array was to learn how to dodge, how to swing his sword precisely to block the balls, and how to avoid being struck.
Unsurprisingly, Chu Mu soon retreated from the Hanging Ball Array in a sorry state.
'Good thing I didn't use solid balls!'
Chu Mu watched the balls still swinging wildly before him, smacking his lips with a sense of exasperation.
Originally, he had planned to use solid wooden balls and had even intended to gradually switch to heavier materials as his practice progressed.
Clearly, he had overestimated himself.
If he had actually used solid balls, he would be black and blue, grimacing in pain right now.
After a moment's hesitation, Chu Mu stepped back into the Hanging Ball Array. The result was, unsurprisingly, the same. He quickly retreated in disarray once more.
Chu Mu pursed his lips. After a moment of thought, he stepped back in again with his Wooden Sword.
Facing irregularly moving targets was a completely different concept from swinging a sword in the air or striking a stationary object.
Just as Chu Mu had suspected, he was currently unable to properly translate his Sword Technique, which had already reached the Initial Glimpse stage, into practical strength.
His flustered state inside the Hanging Ball Array was clear proof of this.
With one attempt after another, the clumsy figure in the Hanging Ball Array slowly began to improve.
Without a doubt, the most important thing was his mindset.
He couldn't panic, nor could he let his blood rush to his head.
The moment he panicked or got carried away, he became a flustered mess, unable to use even a tenth of his actual skill.
Once he calmed his mind, his Sword Technique, already at the Initial Glimpse stage, slowly began to reveal its proper Mighty Power in his hands.
With each swing, his control over his Power was enough to let him manage the arc of the struck ball.
The rest was all about reaction time.
He needed to learn how to dodge most effectively, swing faster and more concisely, and better control his strength. The goal was to make the entire Hanging Ball Array move with him, rather than being forced to react to its movements.
But for now, that was obviously still very difficult for Chu Mu.
However, he knew the path forward. All that was left was practice.
If one try wasn't enough, he'd do it twice. If twice wasn't enough, he'd do it three times.
If one day wasn't enough, he'd take two. If two days weren't enough, he'd take three...
Since coming to this world with his "golden finger"—the ability to grow stronger through focus—the one thing Chu Mu didn't lack was patience.
Inside the Hanging Ball Array, each swinging ball in Chu Mu's vision became a murderous bandit charging at him. Getting hit meant taking an injury!
Chu Mu didn't know if he would ever actually face such a scene.
But success depends on preparation; without it, failure is certain. In the current state of the world, with tensions that could erupt at any moment, the skills he was painstakingly honing might just be what saved his life one day.
Time trickled by during his practice. The sky, already at dusk, slowly darkened into night.
The dull THUDS of impact were incessant, and the figure moving and swinging his sword within the Hanging Ball Array seemed tireless.
The moon rose high in the sky. Winter sweat flew. The once clumsy, flustered figure slowly became more methodical. Although he still made mistakes and was often hit, his progress was visible to the naked eye.
"Hah..."
At some point, Chu Mu finally stumbled out of the Hanging Ball Array, panting heavily. Though utterly exhausted, he couldn't hide the excitement on his face.
'When one's heart holds a sharp blade, the intent to kill arises on its own.'
Chu Mu now truly understood the meaning of that phrase.
Perhaps because he had been imagining himself being besieged in the Hanging Ball Array, he now had an inexplicable urge to fight someone for real, with live steel.
He wanted to see if the skills he had practiced so hard could truly be used for self-defense, and... for killing!
At that moment, Chu Mu couldn't help but think of his team leader, the one with True Martial Arts.
He subconsciously pictured himself fighting the man, but after a moment, he shook his head.
Putting everything else aside, the sheer difference in their physical conditioning was enough for the man to crush him easily.
'The power in that punch... it wasn't human!'
...