I Want to See a Higher Martial World

"Hm? What is it?"

For a moment, One Line Sky and the other three all turned their eyes toward Fang Xuan, pricking up their ears.

Fang Xuan took a black scripture from his sleeve and placed it on the stone table before him. Then he said, "This is the Dragon Whale Technique. One Line Sky, Water Monkey, take it and cultivate it. What realm you can reach will depend on your own fortunes. As for A-Ming, you may cultivate it as well if you wish. But if you want to study and seek official honors, you can also choose to withdraw and focus on your studies in peace."

The moment those words fell, One Line Sky and Water Monkey were instantly beside themselves with joy.

After a brief daze, Chen Jingming nodded, a thoughtful look appearing in his eyes.

Fang Xuan's gaze fell on Chu Chong. After mulling it over, he said, "As for A-Chong, your temperament is too fierce and unyielding. The Dragon Whale Technique does not suit you very well; the Tiger Sprint Technique is more fitting. Wait a little longer. If I manage to obtain the Tiger Sprint Technique later, it will not be too late for you to cultivate it then."

Chu Chong nodded. "Alright. I'll follow your arrangements."

Fang Xuan gave a grunt, then swept his gaze across Water Monkey and the other three before speaking.

"From now on, I probably won't pay as much attention to the gang's affairs as I did before. I'll have to trouble the four of you with the businesses at the various branches.

"However, I hope the four of you can devote more of your minds to cultivation. As for the gang's affairs, leave whatever can be handed over to Li Can, Pang Xun, and the others to them. At most, they will pocket a little more silver in secret. It won't matter."

As soon as he said this, the four exchanged glances, their hearts all giving a sudden thump.

"Brother Xuan... are you planning to leave the martial world?" Water Monkey asked cautiously.

Fang Xuan raised his head to look at the azure sky and smiled faintly.

"No. I want to see a higher martial world."

Within the city.

Anning Mountain, halfway up the slope.

The red lanterns that normally hung from the Vermillion Gate of Yang Mansion had all been replaced with white lanterns bearing the character "Mourning."

Strands of white funeral banners hanging from the upturned eaves and roof beams of the halls fluttered gently in the cold wind.

The servants and maids coming and going were all draped in white hemp cloth. Walking on tiptoe with bent backs, they hurried along in silence.

A black coffin lay quietly suspended in the center of the main hall.

Behind the coffin stood a black tea table with seats for two.

"Master Wang, have you figured out Zheng'er's condition?"

An elderly man dressed in luxurious brocade, with white hemp cloth draped over it, spoke with a face full of exhaustion.

In the seat beside him, a burly, silver-haired elder nodded. After pondering for a moment, he said, "Master Yang, I examined A-Zheng's wounds. Though he was killed by a single slash, the cut was rough. Where flesh, bone, and blood had been torn apart, there were mostly mangled scraps of meat and splintered bone. Clearly, the one who killed him was not proficient in the Dao of the Blade, but merely cleaved him apart with pure, ferocious strength."

"Then what was this person's approximate cultivation?" the brocade-clad elder draped in white hemp asked.

The burly elder known as Master Wang stroked his beard. After a slight hesitation, he said, "The one who killed A-Zheng must have been an Entry Realm Martial Artist for quite some time. An ordinary Entry Realm Martial Artist might be able to kill A-Zheng, but they could never have split a living man in two so effortlessly!

"Furthermore, he shattered the heart meridians of those other two Yamen Runners with finger force before they even realized it!

"Anyone capable of such methods must possess at least mid-stage First Heavenly Gate cultivation, or be in the late stage of the First Heavenly Gate shortly after entering it!"

"Mid-stage or late-stage First Heavenly Gate..."

Yang Jiang narrowed his eyes, and a flicker of baleful qi flashed through their depths.

"Master Wang, though my Zheng'er was disappointing and his character truly was somewhat unruly, he was, in the end, Yang Jiang's son! He cannot be murdered by someone without cause or explanation!"

"So, Master Wang, I must trouble you.

"Whoever killed Zheng'er, I want blood for blood! I want his entire family to pay with their lives!"

The burly elder rose to his feet and cupped his hands.

"This old man will certainly do his utmost!"

After the burly elder strode away, Yang Jiang took a deep breath and looked toward a young lord standing behind him to one side. He asked coldly, "Did that group of Yamen Runners who ate wontons with Zheng'er last night say anything?"

The young lord hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. "Father, no matter how harshly they were tortured, they kept to the same story. They said Little Brother chased after a woman and left East City last night. But the rain was too heavy, and they were too far away, so they did not see the woman's appearance clearly."

"Is that so?"

Yang Jiang narrowed his eyes, then said impassively, "Zheng'er liked pomp and circumstance. He liked being surrounded by people. Since they always boasted that they were Zheng'er's best brothers, send them down to keep Zheng'er company."

"Yes!" The young lord cupped his hands and withdrew.

In the entire hall, only Yang Jiang remained.

He raised his head and stared into the boundless void, seemingly lost in thought.

A moment later, Yang Jiang rose and stood before the coffin, lowering his head to look inside.

Within the coffin lay a hideous corpse. Its body had been forcibly sewn back together from two halves with needle and thread, while more than half its face had been gnawed away by wild dogs. It lay there silently, exuding an eerie chill.

Yang Jiang, already past sixty, reached out and gently brushed the coffin. A flicker of grief passed through his eyes as he murmured to himself:

"My son, it's been so long since Father last had a proper talk with you.

"Father used to scold you for idling away your days and refusing to do proper work. I said you'd never amount to anything, but in truth, you were the one Father loved most. From now on, Father will never scold you again, all right?

"My son, you loved grandeur, loved bustle, loved having a crowd around you flattering and fawning over you. So Father will send all those friends of yours down to keep you company.

"Why should my son be dead while that lot gets to go on living safe and sound?

"You liked women. On the day you're buried, Father will seize ten women and bury them with you. My son lived in style all his life up here; when he goes down below, he mustn't live poorly either."

Yang Jiang spoke slowly, his entire body gradually hunching over.

At that moment, he no longer seemed to be the great gentry lord who had stirred the winds and clouds of Pingjiang City, but merely an ordinary old man who had lost his son in his twilight years.

Drawing a deep breath, Yang Jiang pulled the white cloth over the corpse upward, covering that face that had been gnawed away by more than half. The grief in his eyes turned into an icy killing intent.

"My son, is the wind fierce and cold on the road below? Don't be afraid. Father will soon send the one who killed you down to accompany you!"

The sun rose and the moon set; the stars shifted.

In the blink of an eye, half a month had passed.

Yang Zheng's death was like a great stone falling into a lake. Though it had stirred up towering waves, everything would eventually return to calm.

The entire East City returned to its former noisy, bustling state.

The only slight difference was this.

The fishermen's children discovered in astonishment that Fang Xuan, that mongrel Ruffian Fang who had once run rampant through all of East City, bullying merchants and monopolizing the market, had not grown more insatiable or redoubled his excesses after becoming a hall master. Instead, he seemed to have vanished without a trace, nowhere to be seen all day.

Instead, Water Monkey, one of his Four Heavenly Kings, began to make a name for himself in East City. He seemed to have become the Fang Xuan of old, leading a crowd around every day, strutting about like a tyrant.

As for the other three—

One Line Sky began spending each day taking his wife sightseeing, waiting for the birth of his child after the New Year, and rarely involved himself in the affairs of the martial world anymore.

Big Eyes Chen Jingming seemed to have finally made up his mind. He set down the blade in his hand and once more took up his books.

As for Chu Chong, he returned to the solitary way he had been at the start. Almost every day, he merely practiced martial arts and tempered his bones and sinews.

He was a loner by nature, fond neither of beauties, wealth, nor fine wine. Only the martial path utterly captivated him!

Other than Fang Xuan, he rarely dealt with anyone.

The old fishermen who had watched Fang Xuan and the other four grow up could not help but sigh at the sight.

The five children seemed to have begun walking down different forks in the road.

Outside Pingjiang City, at a bend in the river.

Splash—!

A majestic, towering, broad-shouldered man emerged naked from the water.

His disheveled black hair hung loose over his shoulders. Every muscle on his bronze skin was even and sharply defined, while savage scars crisscrossed his body. His phoenix eyes held neither joy nor sorrow.

Every step he took was steady and firm. His gaze seemed to contain boundless authority, bringing an overwhelming pressure crashing down on anyone before him and making their hearts tremble.

"Black Talisman."

Fang Xuan spoke silently.

In an instant, a drop of ink fell before his eyes, spreading into lines of tiny characters.

Technique: Dragon Whale Technique (Entry Level)

Progress: 200/500

Method of Advancement: Hold whale blood in the mouth, battle the waves with the body, temper the skin and hammer the muscles, and dragon sinews shall arise on their own!

Description: Walk upon the waves, with strength enough to move mountains!

Looking at the panel displayed on the Black Talisman, a smile could not help appearing at the corner of Fang Xuan's lips.

Over the past half month, Fang Xuan had spent nearly every day either practicing the Whale Sand Palm in the rear courtyard of his home or grinding away at the Dragon Whale Technique in the Pingjiang River!

Perhaps because of the torrential rain half a month ago, the entire Pingjiang River had remained endlessly turbulent. Each night, he used his body to battle the waves in the river, and his strength had practically doubled with every passing day. At last, today, he had completed two-fifths of the Dragon Whale Technique's progress!

"Dragon Whale Technique!"

Fang Xuan gave a low shout.

Rumble—!

In an instant, Fang Xuan's blood and qi surged through his body like a raging river, coursing through his limbs and bones and producing wave after wave of roaring surf!

A thin golden film covered the surface of his skin, as if he had donned a suit of close-fitting golden armor!

The black Jiao Mark that had originally only covered his arms now spread across both entire arms!

The bone-cutting cold wind of deep winter blew over him like a gentle spring breeze, unable to bring him the slightest chill.

"Mid-stage First Heavenly Gate—an indestructible body!"

Fang Xuan reached forward and casually plucked a palm-sized pebble from the Mud Ground.

His five fingers tightened slightly.

Bang.

In an instant, the palm-sized pebble turned into countless specks of powder, streaming like sand through his fingers.

Fang Xuan casually picked up the long saber beside him again and drew it across his chest!

Screech—!

A string of sparks burst across his chest!

"So this is the middle stage of the First Heavenly Gate? Unaffected by heat or cold, impervious to blades and spears. Beyond that, my five senses, reflexes, speed, and more have all improved markedly."

A sharp gleam flashed in Fang Xuan's eyes. He could feel with absolute clarity that compared to half a month ago, his strength had nearly doubled!

Back at the Wind and Moon Tower in South Hall, a single Whale Sand Palm strike had sent Yuan Bo staggering back three steps and vomiting blood.

But Fang Xuan was confident that if he fought that same Yuan Bo, who had also entered the realm, once more—

He would need only a simple punch to send that aged, frail Yuan Bo, who already had one foot in the coffin, with the other foot stepping in as well!

"At most, Zheng Juexiong will return from the Northern Land in another month. Within that month, I must push my martial cultivation to the late stage of the First Heavenly Gate!

"And for that, I need to raise the progress of the 'Dragon Whale Technique' to four hundred at the very least!"

Fang Xuan drew a deep breath, a trace of resolve flashing through his eyes.

The higher his cultivation rose, the less he dared underestimate Zheng Juexiong. Instead, he grew ever more aware of how terrifying Zheng Juexiong truly was.

He had only just reached the middle stage of the First Heavenly Gate, yet he already possessed such strength.

As a martial arts powerhouse at the First Heavenly Gate Great Perfection, if Zheng Juexiong unleashed all his qi and blood, would he not be no different from a humanoid ferocious beast?

"Beyond one mountain lies a higher mountain. I still have to work hard and grow stronger."

After pondering for a while, Fang Xuan let out a soft breath. He picked up a flask of wine from the ground and was just about to drink when he seemed to notice something amiss, his brows knitting together.

"What's going on? Why has the wine I leave by the bank been mysteriously reduced by half so often lately?"

Fang Xuan shook the flask, which held only half a flask of wine, his brow deeply furrowed.

This was not the first time it had happened.

Ever since half a month ago, he had discovered that some of the wine he brought would always vanish for no reason.

At first, he had thought it was merely his imagination. But today, he had deliberately kept an eye on it and had not taken a single sip of the wine he brought.

Yet half the wine was still gone.

"Someone's stealing my wine?"

Fang Xuan's thoughts stirred slightly, and an idea immediately came to him.

"Hah—! Back to cultivation!"

Fang Xuan loudly declared as if talking to himself, then stepped back into the river and slowly sank beneath the surface.

Underwater, Fang Xuan's eyes snapped open as he stared intently toward the bank.

About the time it took to burn half an incense stick later—

From deep within a patch of reeds as tall as a man not far away, a faint rustling suddenly sounded.

Clumps of reeds shook continuously, parting to either side.

Then, a slender, tall figure with fair skin emerged, bent at the waist and sneaking about furtively.

The slender figure cautiously approached where Fang Xuan had left the wine. She first looked around, and only after seeing no one did she finally relax, straighten up, and lift the wine flask to her nose like a little cat, giving it a sniff.

"Hehe, what fine wine!"

The slender figure grinned, showing her teeth. She pulled out the stopper and was just about to tilt her head back and drink.

In that instant—

"You little thief! You dare steal wine from Fang?"

A thunderous shout exploded in an instant!

The slender figure was so frightened that her soul nearly fled her body. She tossed away the wine flask, turned, and tried to dive back into the reeds.

But a large, well-defined hand had already seized her by the shoulder.

"Speak! Why did you steal Fang's wine?"

Fang Xuan's face was filled with murderous fury, vicious light blazing from his eyes.

The slender figure stiffly turned her head back. At first, she could not help shrinking her neck, but then she fearlessly puffed out her chest and retorted, her face flushed red:

"Pah, pah, pah! How can something done by a drinker be called stealing?"

A big chapter.

A new book is not easy. To get recommendations, it needs PK, and PK requires continued reading.

Therefore, Old Drunk begs you not to let the book pile up unread. Many thanks!