Li Shuxing's Surprise!

"Please."

Led by the current head of the Fang Family, Li Shuxing stepped into an elegant, ancient pavilion.

Inside the pavilion sat an old man drinking tea. Serving him was a blonde, blue-eyed woman from the Western Lands. Her features were exquisite, her legs long and waist slender; even by Eastern standards of beauty, she was a peerless beauty.

"Old man, long time no see. Are your bones still holding up?"

Li Shuxing sat opposite him, lifted a cup of tea, and took a sip.

"Don't worry. This old man has no other talents, but I'm good at living. That old blind man once told my fortune and said I'd outlast you."

The old man spoke slowly, and even his movements were unhurried, like any ordinary elderly man.

Yet Li Shuxing knew that this old fellow's martial arts were terrifyingly profound, and his seniority was outrageously high. He was of the same generation as Li Shuxing's grandmaster.

This was the old patriarch from two generations before of the Fang Family, as well as the former chief of the Martial Guild.

The Fang Family had been able to possess immense wealth without ever drawing jealous eyes. On one hand, it was because they invested in Martial Arts Halls and had drawn in a Peak Expert like him. On the other, it was because this old fellow was still alive.

"Come, taste the tea I brewed."

The old man clapped his hands, and the Western woman beside him promptly served Li Shuxing a cup of hot tea.

"How is she?" Seeing Li Shuxing examining the Western woman, the old man smiled. "I asked Consul Henry for her. She can sing and dance, and her skill with her legs is especially remarkable."

"Shameless old lecher."

Li Shuxing's face remained expressionless.

The old man did not take offense. Sipping his tea, he said, "Foreigners are formidable. Western firearms, Western cannons, and all sorts of strange contraptions. If we don't change, sooner or later they'll fight their way Inside the Pass...

"I wanted to know why foreigners were so formidable, so naturally I had to experience it for myself..."

"If you keep this up, sooner or later you'll be swindled out of every last coin of your pension."

Li Shuxing grabbed the tea and drained it in one gulp, swallowing even the leaves without spitting them out.

"Don't worry, I haven't gone senile yet." The old man smiled and lightly raised his hand, pushing a cup of tea toward Li Shuxing. "Today, we only drink tea and learn foreign languages. We do not discuss business."

The tea filled the cup to the brim, a hair's breadth from spilling over. Yet with a light sweep of the old man's palm, it began to rotate slowly, gradually turning its way before Li Shuxing.

As it moved, the water filling the cup rotated gently as well, yet never spilled.

This exquisite application of Internal Force, brought to the very pinnacle, left the Fang Family head waiting nearby utterly shaken. He was a famed master of Transformation Strength, yet even he was awestruck.

"And what if I insist on discussing it?"

Li Shuxing said blandly. He reached out and pressed down, and the rotating teacup stopped at once. The water within seemed to be pressed down by some invisible force, all of it settling into the cup without a single drop spilling or stirring.

Then he curled a finger and lightly tapped the rim of the teacup.

"Bang!"

The teacup jolted, and the tea inside immediately splashed toward the old man. Yet before it could fall onto the stone table, the cup suddenly slid sideways in a straight line. With a swish, it abruptly returned to the old man.

As it moved sideways, it caught every last drop of the splashed tea.

Not a trace of wetness stained the table.

The Fang Family head stared blankly.

He could barely understand a little of his grandfather's method. It relied on the mutual cancellation of Taiji Soft Force, both internal and external, to keep the tea under control within the cup.

But he could not understand Li Shuxing's method at all. It seemed that Li Shuxing had merely flicked his finger and knocked the teacup back.

But the question was: what degree of microscopic control over force, what terrifying circulation of Internal Force, was needed to ensure that not a single drop spilled even when the teacup moved several times faster?

He could not imagine it.

"Your martial arts have improved again."

Looking at the teacup that had suddenly returned before him, the old man still smiled, but his gaze grew increasingly profound.

"Can we discuss it now?"

Li Shuxing did not respond to that, merely speaking blandly.

The old man smiled and shook his head. Slowly reaching out, he picked up the teacup. "Do you know... why we implemented the Martial Prohibition Decree?"

Without waiting for Li Shuxing to speak, the old man continued on his own. "Because foreigners are too strong. An ordinary person only needs to hold a Western firearm..."

"Bang!"

The old man made a shooting gesture.

"It is that simple. They can kill a Manifest Strength martial artist."

"And how many Manifest Strength martial artists does our Celestial Empire have? Fewer than one in a thousand."

"How long does it take an ordinary person to train to Manifest Strength? More than ten years."

"After training for ten years, even twenty or thirty years, they still cannot withstand the crack of a Western firearm. In the future... who will still be willing to practice martial arts?"

"Even Dark Force practitioners, when fully focused, can strike faster than a fist within seven steps. But can they guard against an assassination from the shadows? Can they withstand concentrated fire from a squad of foreign riflemen?"

"Even Transformation Strength masters could charge through battle formations alone in the old days. But now? Heavy sniper rifles, cannons—take one hit from either, and it will be enough to make you drink a bitter cup."

"We few above Transformation Strength can still remain detached for now, but what about the future?"

"A great upheaval unseen in a thousand ages is coming."

The old man spoke without haste. "When it comes to guns and cannons, foreigners are far ahead of us. We cannot catch up. If we do not want our people extinguished or our ancestors' inheritance severed, there is only one way..."

The old man paused before slowly saying, "Gather all resources and all strength to cultivate a Martial Immortal—a Martial Immortal like True Man Zhang three hundred years ago, who crushed all beneath heaven."

"So you chose to concentrate every resource upon the children of great families?" Li Shuxing poured himself a cup of tea and spoke blandly.

"Correct. Since ancient times, nearly all those above Transformation Strength have come from great families. The number of geniuses among great families also far exceeds that of the Commoner Faction. Concentrating resources to cultivate the carefully selected geniuses of great families and choosing from among them a true king is undoubtedly the wisest choice."

The old man spoke calmly.

"Have you ever considered that those Martial Persons of the Commoner Faction already possess less than a tenth of the resources, and now even that pitiful fraction is to be forcibly taken away...

"Do those from great families truly lack even that miserable tenth?"

Li Shuxing took a sip of tea and spoke slowly.

"Less than a tenth is still resources." The old man's expression remained calm. "For our people, for our ancestors' inheritance, necessary sacrifices are worthwhile...

"In this life, I may be guilty in minor matters, but I have not failed in great righteousness. My choices, my deeds, are worthy of the Xia people and worthy of our ancestors."

The old man said calmly.

"And can you guarantee that the Martial Immortal of the future will definitely come from the children of great families?"

Li Shuxing asked quietly.

"If not, then who?" The old man gave a faint laugh. "Could it be that little disciple of yours?"

"Why not?" Li Shuxing slowly set down his teacup and looked at the old man.

The old man was somewhat surprised and raised his head to look at Li Shuxing as well. "Do you truly think that highly of that newly accepted little disciple?"

"He is very talented. Perhaps... even more talented than I was in my youth."

Li Shuxing said.

Ripples finally stirred in the old man's eyes, but they quickly subsided.

He shook his head.

"He is too late. He is only at Minor Accomplishment in Manifest Strength now. To reach the peak of Manifest Strength and then enter Dark Force will take at least a year or two. We cannot wait that long...

"Besides, we do not lack geniuses. Take Wu Yuanchu. He is twenty this year and has already reached Great Accomplishment in Dark Force. That is only because he suppressed his realm for three extra years in order to walk Manifest Strength to its utmost limit...

"At the Jinmen Grand Competition twenty-odd days from now, he will be a strong contender for first place."

The old man said.

Li Shuxing also fell slightly silent.

He could not refute this point. It was an indisputable fact.

Even if Huo Yuanhong might be more dazzling than him, he had started far too late. He lagged far behind monsters like Wu Yuanchu, who had received cultivation from childhood.

He was likely unable to catch up with the coming great upheaval.

"So there is no room for discussion?"

"No room for discussion. If you want money, you will not get a single copper."

The instant the old man spoke those words, the smile on Li Shuxing's face vanished.

The two quietly stared at each other. It seemed as though nothing had happened, but the Fang Family head beside them broke out in a cold sweat. He felt like a lone boat amid a raging tempest, liable to be capsized by the slightest misstep.

When immortals fought, mortals suffered.

Even as a Transformation Strength master, he was no more than a mortal before these two Peak Experts.

Just as the stifling atmosphere reached its limit and was about to erupt...

"Flutter, flutter..."

A carrier pigeon suddenly flew in.

The old man frowned, removed the note, and unfolded it.

Then his gaze froze, and an unusual look of surprise appeared on his face.

After a moment of silence, he gave Li Shuxing a deep look and suddenly said, "I can give that disciple of yours treatment no worse than Wang Tianlong's earth-tier treatment."

Li Shuxing calmly took a sip of tea, having no idea what had happened.

Yet outwardly, his expression remained indifferent, as if everything had been within his expectations.

"If I'm not mistaken, you accepted him as a disciple as early as last year and have been secretly cultivating him since then..."

The old man spoke slowly in a certain tone. "Training for one year and reaching Great Accomplishment in Manifest Strength is passable enough."

Great Accomplishment in Manifest Strength!

Li Shuxing's heart shook.

Huo Yuanhong... had actually reached Great Accomplishment in Manifest Strength?!

But when he had left two days ago, Huo Yuanhong had clearly only just reached Minor Accomplishment in Manifest Strength.

It had only been two days. How had he suddenly reached Great Accomplishment??

"Having reached Great Accomplishment in Manifest Strength, he should be nearing the peak as well. With the Baji Quan inherited from you, he presumably will not be inferior to Wang Tianlong in a fight...

"Then in future contests against foreigners at the Manifest Strength level, he can be of some use. An exception can be made to grant him earth-tier resources."

The old man took a sip of tea and continued,

"As for heaven-tier resources, they must still be reserved for Wu Yuanchu. He has reached Great Accomplishment in Dark Force and intends to contend for first place in the Grand Competition. He cannot lack resources at a critical moment."

"Oh? What if, by the day of the Grand Competition, my disciple has also reached Great Accomplishment in Dark Force?"

Perhaps because his mood had improved, Li Shuxing made a rare joke.

The old man laughed as well. "If that day truly comes, then whatever I give Wu Yuanchu, I will naturally give him the same."

A joke was ultimately only a joke. Neither man took it seriously, and the oppressive atmosphere in the pavilion vanished like clouds scattering after rain, becoming relaxed once more.