Practical Combat (Part 2)

After that, Cheng Shaojiu sparred with him on the spot. The two of them began exploring how to increase their chances of victory under all sorts of circumstances.

When one's strength and speed were not much different from an opponent's, the fastest method was to catch them off guard.

To suddenly strike in ways no one could possibly anticipate.

That was what was known as a hidden move.

The two studied it and found that without relying on any external objects, the best approach was to disrupt one's moves, mixing feints with real attacks.

Feint upon feint, real attack upon real attack; the use of strength could make it impossible for others to discern the true focus of one's assault.

With that, Wei He immediately felt as though the gates to true practical combat had opened before him.

In his mind, practical combat was no longer just a routine of making moves, countering moves, and seeing whoever failed to hold out first lose.

It was about catching the enemy off guard, ambushing them, ambushing them again, and ambushing them yet again!

The two of them opened their minds completely, no longer hiding anything as they exchanged the best ways to respond in real combat.

Cheng Shaojiu's vital blood was stronger, and he had already reached the Stone Hide level. Moreover, the elders in his family constantly drilled him with advice, so his breadth of knowledge and experience surpassed even his vital blood cultivation.

Their exchanges greatly made up for Wei He's shortcomings and imperfections in the details.

Meanwhile, Wei He's modern way of thinking and logical approach also gave Cheng Shaojiu many novel ideas and ingenious thoughts.

The two could truly be said to have helped each other and brought one another success.

It was not until dusk was approaching that Wei He reluctantly went back.

The next day, the two continued their exchanges as before.

Then came the third day, and the fourth.

As the days passed, the two gained more and more experience and ideas regarding practical combat.

When they sparred and crossed hands with their fellow disciples, the results became increasingly obvious.

The most direct sign was that both of their rankings in practical combat slowly rose.

Wei He was all right, since there were more than ten disciples at the Ox Hide level, and there was also the genius Xiao Ran. His performance did not stand out much.

But Cheng Shaojiu, at the Stone Hide level, was different from before. His performance became eye-catching. Several times when he fought Senior Disciple Brother Zhao Hong, despite both being at the Stone Hide level, he had nearly won by a narrow margin.

Though he had relied on strange and unorthodox moves, he still caused quite a stir.

Because of this, Cheng Shaojiu's standing in the courtyard quietly rose another step, earning even greater attention from everyone.

And Wei He, who had always been close to Cheng Shaojiu, also rose with the tide, drawing no small amount of subtle envy.

In the blink of an eye, another month passed.

Wei He trained, pondered, and practiced day and night, gradually forming his own unique style of attacking.

He did not dare claim he could gain the upper hand in practical combat, but he certainly would not be like before, unable to bring out his strength even against weaker opponents in poor condition.

Besides, during his exchanges with Cheng Shaojiu, Wei He had another thought that he had not voiced.

Nor was it easy to voice.

That was—

Hongshi Town, the Li Family Blacksmith Shop.

The sky had only just begun to lighten when Li Shen carried a newly bought basket of raw iron ore on his back and pulled open the shop's front doors.

Not long after entering, just as he set down the basket on his back, he heard footsteps approaching from behind.

Someone had entered the shop.

"The finished goods are all on the racks by the wall. Look around and pick whatever you need yourself," he said, getting to his feet and turning around.

The person who entered so early in the morning was a tall, burly young man dressed in close-fitting short clothes that exposed the solid, well-proportioned muscles of his upper body.

His upper body was powerfully built, while his legs were sturdy and rooted to the ground like stakes. The lines of his muscles were not particularly pronounced.

One look was enough to tell that he was someone who specialized in training his upper body.

Li Shen did not pay it much mind. His blacksmith shop had operated in Hongshi Town for many years; he had seen at least eight hundred, if not a thousand, customers like this.

"What does the customer need? Have a look yourself." He pointed toward the various racks along the wall.

Row upon row of racks were filled with all kinds of household and farming tools.

Hoes, kitchen knives, iron pestles, awls—everything was available.

The visitor was a youth no more than twenty years old, with an indifferent face. He could not be called handsome, but neither was he ugly. It was Wei He, who had just left home and headed straight here.

"Boss, I want to have something made. A small thing."

"Have something made? What is it? Let me say this first: I won't make anything prohibited." Li Shen made his position clear in advance.

"It isn't prohibited. Just a small handle." Wei He took out a rough sketch he had drawn beforehand and handed it to Li Shen.

Li Shen took it and unfolded it for a look.

Drawn on it in charcoal was a T-shaped handle, except the end of the grip was sharply pointed.

"How big do you want this thing?"

"The size of a child's palm." Wei He roughly indicated the dimensions for him.

"A palm-sized one? Fine. Will you provide the material yourself, or use what I have here?"

"Use what you have."

"The price depends on the material, cheap or expensive. I've had a lot of work lately, so you'll have to wait a month."

"...All right."

When Wei He walked out of the blacksmith shop, he felt as though his wallet had been hollowed out.

He had not expected silver to be so resistant to spending. Forging such a tiny thing, with slightly better materials and a few more requirements, actually cost so much.

Still, this was something he had wanted for a long time. Using the money he had earned escorting goods before to forge one could make it a trump card.

What he had originally considered was a glove, but something like that could not achieve the effect of a sneak attack. And to serve as a trump card, it would need extremely high strength, which would definitely make it very expensive.

So he could only settle for the next best thing.

In the early morning, quite a few shops along the streets of Hongshi Town had already begun opening their doors.

Many farmers carrying shoulder poles loaded with vegetables had also spread out their stalls.

Government constables in their uniforms swaggered down the streets.

There were also gang members bearing uniform markings, strutting through the streets and collecting protection money everywhere.

Comparing this place with where he lived, the prosperity on both sides was so different that they hardly seemed to be in the same city.

Back in Shiqiao Town, where the Huishan Fist school was located, it was near the Inner City and just as lively, yet it was nowhere near as prosperous as Hongshi Town.

There were fewer shops here and more residential compounds, all quiet and deserted. Compared with Hongshi Town, it was like the difference between a commercial district and an old residential neighborhood in his previous life.

After finishing his morning training, Wei He should have gone back to rest, but Second Sister suddenly came over and stopped him.

"Little He, are you free? I want to discuss something with you."

Second Sister Wei Ying now relied on Old Zheng of the Huishan Fist school to look after her. She ate three meals a day with everyone in the courtyard, and her complexion had improved greatly.

On top of that, she lived in the room next door. Her sense of security had increased, her heart had settled, and even her skin had improved considerably compared to before.

Standing at the courtyard entrance, even her plain gray-white clothes could not conceal her graceful, curving figure.

"What is it, Sis?" Wei He hung the towel he had used to wipe his sweat back on the rack and walked over.

Wei Ying looked around, pulled Wei He to the wall, and only lowered her voice after making sure no one was nearby.

"Before, while everyone was resting at night, I took on some needlework and saved up a little money."

She secretly stuffed a small paper packet into Wei He's hand.

"Take it and use it. I eat and live here thanks to Old Zheng, and I have nowhere to spend money. You have many places to spend money while training your body, on food and drink. Don't be stingy. Only what goes into your stomach truly belongs to you."

Wei He accepted the paper packet and gave it a squeeze. The contents were light and scattered.

But needlework itself paid very little, at best enough for meals, and work was not available every day.

He did not know how much time she had spent to save up this much.

"Little He, is there still no news from Eldest Sister? And from Father and Mother..." Wei Ying asked softly, her eyes still carrying a trace of hope.

"..." Wei He shook his head. He had gone to the Blackwater Gang several times, but the Blackwater Gang had already seen newcomers replace old hands. There was almost no one left who had even heard the name of his eldest sister, Wei Chun.

As for Mingde Temple, he had gone there once. Other than learning that his parents had vanished midway through their journey, he knew nothing else.

The hope in Wei Ying's eyes slowly faded. She let out a breath and lowered her head.

"Whether they are alive or not, only the two of us are left now. We both have to live well."

"Mm." Wei He nodded. He did not return the money, because he knew Second Sister's personality. If he did not accept it, she would not be at ease.

"Later, give me all your old clothes, the torn ones too. I'll mend them for you. And I'll make you another pair of shoes. Don't buy them outside. The shoes I make are better than those outside. The shoes outside aren't sturdy, they aren't pressed firmly enough, and they easily delaminate..."

Wei Ying went on and on for quite a while, all words of care and concern.

Wei He listened, only responding now and then.

After they had spoken for some time, the sound of the watch drum came from outside. It was getting late.

Only then did Wei Ying reluctantly return to the courtyard and head into the inner rooms.

She still had to boil water and prepare towels for everyone.

When she reached the doorway, she turned back to look at Wei He. Seeing him still standing at the courtyard entrance and watching her, she immediately felt much more at ease.

So she smiled and waved at him, then waved him off to let him get on with his own business.

Turning back around, Wei Ying's steps seemed to grow much lighter.

In these chaotic times, while working, if one knew there were still family members outside supporting them, then one was not alone and helpless, and one's heart could feel steady.

She mused that starting today, she would save money to buy cotton batting for her younger brother and make him a new quilt.

The weather was getting colder and colder. He must not fall ill.

Wei He stood at the entrance, watching until Second Sister reached the innermost room and the sounds of her working began to drift out. Only then did he leave the courtyard and return to his lodgings.

He still remembered that Second Sister's greatest wish had once been to open a bun shop.

Perhaps he could earn money and fulfill that wish for her.

For him now, the money needed to open a bun shop was not much.

After all, houses in most parts of the city were becoming less and less valuable.

After sleeping for about two hours, Wei He returned to the Huishan Fist school in the afternoon.

To his surprise, he saw that quite a few fellow disciples had already arrived. Everyone, old and new alike, stood in a circle, with Xiao Ran and Old Zheng in the middle.

Even Old Zheng, who always arrived late on ordinary days, had actually come much earlier than usual.

Wei He was puzzled. As soon as he entered, he saw Third Senior Brother Cheng Shaojiu waving at him.

He hurried over, stood beside Cheng Shaojiu, and looked inward as well.

"What happened?" he asked quietly.

There was an indescribable emotion on Cheng Shaojiu's face—complexity, envy, and something else besides.

His lips moved, and he made a sound that was not very clear.

"Xiao Ran... broke through."

"!?" Wei He's heart jolted.

"Didn't he break through just a few months ago?!" he could not help asking in a low voice.

"Yeah. That's why even Old Zheng was alarmed." A fair-skinned senior brother beside him spoke quietly, his face full of envy.

His name was Li Jue. It was said that he had come from a scholarly family, but later his family had suffered at the hands of the Thief Gang. No one knew which Thief Gang it had been, but seven or eight out of every ten members of his family had died, leaving only him.

Later, carrying away the remaining belongings that had not been moved in time, he sold the house and came here to learn boxing. He had trained for five years.

Yet he was still at the Ox Hide level.