Trouble Comes

"So I've been targeted after all?"

Lin Sheng sighed, his heart tightening with helplessness.

When he had been training earlier and heard some noise here, he initially thought it was that stray cat causing trouble, but out of caution, he decided to come take a look.

He naturally recognized whose back that was—one of the men who had been beside Brother Dog in the narrow alley.

He had thought he slipped away fast enough to avoid any trouble, but it seemed trouble had found him anyway.

It was his own fault for being too careless; he hadn't noticed anyone tailing him along the way.

He had noticed the greedy looks in Brother Dog and his men's eyes back then—just some pork and fine rice, and it had already brought this trouble.

Now that they had come to scout his place, they'd likely show up at his door before long. He didn't know exactly what they planned to do, but he was sure it wouldn't be anything good.

Thinking this, a cold glint flashed across Lin Sheng's face.

He hated trouble, but he wasn't afraid of it. Since trouble had come knocking and couldn't be avoided, he would find a way to settle it for good.

With that in mind, he turned back, told Lin Hong he had something to handle, and quickly left the house, disappearing into the street.

He followed Third Brother through Crock Street for about half an hour until, finally, he spotted Brother Dog and his men roaming the street ahead.

The group was strolling along, casually grabbing snacks and fruit from stalls on either side. The vendors mostly dared not speak up, their faces tight with suppressed anger—clearly, they had suffered at these men's hands before.

In his sight, Third Brother sidled up to Brother Dog and whispered a few words, after which the group vanished down the street.

But the joy on their faces as they left was etched into Lin Sheng's eyes from where he stood nearby.

This time, he didn't follow. Instead, he stopped at an old man's baked flatbread stall on the street.

"Uncle, give me five flatbreads."

"Coming right up, just a moment."

The old man, seeing a customer, responded promptly and got to work with practiced hands.

Lin Sheng asked casually, as if offhand.

"Uncle, those men who just took stuff from your stall without paying—who are they?"

"Ah, those are the Tooth Gang's people."

Hearing Lin Sheng's question, the old man sighed.

"Young man, you might not know, but the Fist Gang that used to run the west side of Crock Street has disbanded. Now the Tooth Gang's in charge here. Not only have the stall fees gone up, but those thugs from the Tooth Gang are always bullying people on the streets."

"That skinny one leading that group is called Liu Ergou, a minor boss in the Tooth Gang. If you see them in the future, make sure to steer clear—don't let them set their sights on you..."

The old man seemed to recall something as he spoke, and let out another heavy sigh.

"Life's getting harder and harder..."

Lin Sheng nodded in agreement and took his five flatbreads.

After that, he gathered more information about Liu Ergou by asking around at other stalls.

As expected, he found out his specific address and a few places he frequented.

After buying some odds and ends, Lin Sheng returned home.

By then, Xie Guihua was back from work, and she was quite happy to hear that Lin Sheng had successfully joined the Beast Hunter Hall.

The family of three enjoyed a rare, hearty dinner in a relaxed and cheerful atmosphere.

After the meal, Xie Guilan cleaned up the dishes, while Lin Hong, seeming tired, went to his room and turned in early.

Lin Sheng, meanwhile, went out to the yard and resumed practicing the Raging Bull Fist.

He set up his stance, and blood and qi surged within his body. His movements started slow, but as time passed, they grew faster and faster, until every motion carried a whistling wind.

After a long while, Lin Sheng stopped, feeling his blood and qi churning vigorously within him.

"It seems my strength has increased again. Every session, I can feel myself improving."

Looking at his flushed, reddened skin, a smile spread across his face.

"The key to minor mastery of the Raging Bull Fist is, under the premise of stirring blood and qi, breaking through the blood and qi acupoints, so that the blood and qi nourish the body in return, enhancing overall physical ability."

"Stirring blood and qi is easy for me. Breaking through the acupoints is a bit harder, but not by much."

Lin Sheng savored the insights from his training. Reaching minor mastery in the Raging Bull Fist meant stepping into the first realm of the Martial Way—Body Tempering. Once he entered Body Tempering, he would be a true martial artist.

A Body Tempering martial artist's physical enhancement was considerable. Wang Dehai had told him that, in a bare-handed fight, a Body Tempering martial artist could take on five ordinary men.

So compared to the roughly thirty percent strength boost from initial mastery, the minor mastery of the Raging Bull Fist was a far more significant leap—the stage where one truly pulled away from ordinary people.

Meow!

A cat's cry rang out from the eaves, and a black shadow flashed by—it was the black cat from earlier that day.

The black cat stood on the roof, body low, nose twitching constantly, eyes fixed on the stove in the yard.

"Don't even think about it. That stuff isn't for you."

Seeing the cat's gaze, Lin Sheng let out a wry laugh, understanding it was eyeing the leftover pork in the stove.

The black cat meowed a few more times.

Watching the black cat's eager expression, Lin Sheng ultimately turned around and fished two pieces of broken bone from a black clay jar beneath the stove.

These were leftover pork bones from their meal; Xie Guihua had set them aside to boil into bone broth later. For a poor family, meat was a rare treat, so naturally every scrap had to be squeezed dry.

But from now on, that kind of life would no longer exist—well, at least not like before.

Generously tossing the few bone fragments into the yard, Lin Sheng looked up at the sky.

It was already deep into the night. Few stars dotted the sky, and the moonlight was dim and murky, carrying an inexplicable sense of oppression.

"Not a bad night."

Lin Sheng muttered to himself, changed into a black outfit inside the house, and vaulted over the wall with agile movements.

Late at night, few people were out on Crock Street.

Though it was within the city, as a neglected slum, public safety was naturally poor—especially now, with the Tooth Gang and Fist Gang trading power, making the area even more chaotic.

So hardly anyone was active outside at this hour.

Lin Sheng moved lightly, weaving swiftly through the streets.

The Fist Gang had originally controlled the western district of Crock Street, but now they had retreated and the Tooth Gang had taken over, seizing all their territory.

During the day, aside from inquiring about Liu Ergou, he had also focused on gathering information about the Tooth Gang, so he had learned quite a bit about the recent conflict between the two gangs on Crock Street.

The Fist Gang had operated on Crock Street for years, with dozens of members, several of whom were martial artists, and their leader Tian Song was a genuine Muscle Forging Realm martial artist.

Yet such a force had been helpless against the newly emerged Tooth Gang, with many members beaten to death.

Rumor had it that the commotion was considerable—even Tian Song himself had suffered serious injuries and could only flee with his remaining trusted followers.

But despite such a major disturbance, the authorities had shown no reaction at all. Lin Sheng understood very well what this meant—clearly, this so-called Tooth Gang had deep backing.