Li Shuxing's Surprise!

"Please."

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

Inside the pavilion sat an old man drinking tea. A Western woman with blonde hair and blue eyes, delicate features, long legs, and a slender waist was serving him. Even by Eastern aesthetic standards, she was a top-tier beauty.

"Old man, long time no see. Are you still in good health?"

Li Shuxing sat down opposite him and took a sip of tea.

"Don't worry, this old man doesn't have many skills, but he can live a long time. That blind old man predicted I could outlive you."

The old man spoke slowly, his movements sluggish, like any ordinary old man.

But Li Shuxing knew that this old fellow's martial arts were terrifyingly high, and his seniority was outrageously high, on par with his own grand-teacher.

This was the previous head of the Fang family from two generations ago, and also the last chief of the Martial Bureau.

The Fang family's ability to possess immense wealth and remain free from envy was partly due to their investment in martial arts schools and their alliance with this peerless expert. Another reason was that this old fellow was still alive.

"Come, try the tea I brewed."

The old man clapped his hands, and the Western woman beside him proactively served Li Shuxing hot tea.

"How is it?" Seeing Li Shuxing scrutinizing the Western woman, the old man chuckled. "I got her from Consul Henry. She can sing and dance, and her legwork is particularly impressive."

"Shameless old man."

Li Shuxing's expression was unreadable.

The old man wasn't angered. While sipping his tea, he said, "The foreigners are powerful, with their foreign guns, foreign cannons, and all sorts of strange contraptions. If we don't change, we'll eventually be invaded...

I want to know why the foreigners are so powerful, so I naturally have to experience it firsthand..."

"If you keep this up, you'll be swindled out of your retirement money sooner or later."

Li Shuxing reached out and grabbed the tea, downing it in one gulp, not even spitting out the leaves.

"Don't worry, I haven't gone senile yet," the old man smiled gently and raised his hand, pushing a cup of tea towards Li Shuxing. "Today, we'll just drink tea and learn the foreign language; we won't discuss business."

The tea was full, just a hair's breadth from overflowing, but under the old man's gentle caress, the cup began to slowly rotate, gradually moving towards Li Shuxing.

As it moved, the water in the cup also swirled gently, yet it never spilled.

This exquisite application of refined strength, reaching the pinnacle of control, left the Fang family head, a renowned master of Transforming Strength who had been waiting by the side, utterly astonished.

"What if I do want to discuss it?"

Li Shuxing said calmly, reaching out and pressing down. The rotating teacup immediately stopped, and the tea inside seemed to be pressed down by an invisible force, all settling back into the cup without a single drop spilled, immobile.

Then, he curled his finger and gently tapped the rim of the teacup.

"Bang!"

The teacup vibrated, and the tea inside immediately splashed towards the old man. But before the tea could land on the stone table, the teacup abruptly shifted horizontally, tracing a straight line, and with a swish, it suddenly returned to the old man's front.

During its horizontal movement, it perfectly caught the splashing tea, not a drop falling.

There wasn't even a damp spot on the table.

The Fang family head stared, dumbfounded.

He could barely understand his grandfather's technique, which relied on the interplay of internal and external Tai Chi's soft strength to cancel each other out, keeping the tea within the cup.

But Li Shuxing's technique was completely beyond his comprehension. It seemed like a simple tap of his finger had brought the teacup back.

But the question was, how much minute control of force, how terrifying was the circulation of strength, was needed to achieve this, with the teacup moving several times faster, yet not a single drop of tea spilled?

He couldn't imagine it.

"Your skills have improved again."

Looking at the teacup that had suddenly returned, the old man's smile remained, but his eyes deepened.

"Can we talk now?"

Li Shuxing didn't reply, merely stating it plainly.

The old man smiled and shook his head, slowly reaching out to pick up the teacup. "Do you know... why we are pushing for the martial arts ban?"

Without waiting for Li Shuxing to speak, the old man continued on his own, "Because the foreigners are too strong. An ordinary person, as long as they have a foreign gun..."

"Bang!"

The old man made a gesture of firing a gun.

"It's that simple, and they can kill a Manifest Strength martial artist."

"And how many Manifest Strength practitioners are there in our Heavenly Dynasty? Less than one in a thousand."

"How long does it take for an ordinary person to reach Manifest Strength? Ten years or more."

"After practicing for ten, twenty, or even thirty years, they're still no match for the sound of a foreign gun. In the future... who will be willing to practice martial arts?"

"Even with Hidden Strength, when fully focused, one can be faster than a punch within seven steps, but can they defend against an ambush from the dark? Can they defend against a volley of fire from a squad of foreign gunners?"

"Even Transforming Strength, in the old days, one person could charge into a formation, but now? A heavy sniper rifle, a cannon, even one hit is enough to cause serious trouble."

"A few of us above Transforming Strength can still remain detached for now, but what about the future?"

"A great change unseen for millennia is coming."

The old man said unhurriedly, "In terms of firearms, the foreigners are far ahead of us. We can't catch up. If we want to avoid extinction and preserve our ancestors' legacy, there is only one way..."

The old man paused, then slowly said, "Concentrate all resources, all strength, to cultivate a Martial Immortal, a Martial Immortal like True Man Zhang three hundred years ago, who could suppress the world."

"So, you chose to concentrate all resources on the scions of noble families?" Li Shuxing poured himself a cup of tea and said calmly.

"Indeed. Since ancient times, those above Transforming Strength have almost all come from noble families. The number of geniuses from noble families far exceeds that of commoners. Concentrating resources to cultivate geniuses meticulously selected by noble families, and choosing one true king from them, is undoubtedly the wisest choice."

The old man said calmly.

"Have you ever considered that those commoner martial artists actually only occupied less than ten percent of the resources to begin with, and now, even this less than ten percent of resources is being forcibly taken away...

Do those people from noble families truly lack this pathetic less than ten percent of resources?"

Li Shuxing took a sip of tea and spoke slowly.

"Less than ten percent of resources is still resources," the old man said with a placid expression. "For our nation, for the legacy of our ancestors, necessary sacrifices are worth it...

In this life, I have been lacking in minor matters, but not in major ones. My choices, my actions, are all worthy of the Xia people and our ancestors."

The old man said calmly.

"Then can you guarantee that the future Martial Immortal will definitely come from the scions of noble families?"

Li Shuxing said slowly.

"Why not?" The old man gave a dry laugh. "Could it be your little disciple?"

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

The old man seemed somewhat surprised and looked up at Li Shuxing. "You think that highly of that new disciple you just took in?"

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

Li Shuxing said.

The old man's eyes finally showed a ripple of emotion, but he quickly calmed down.

He shook his head.

"He's too late. He's only at Minor Accomplishment of Manifest Strength now. It will take at least another year or two to reach the peak of Manifest Strength and then enter Hidden Strength. We can't wait that long...

Besides, we don't lack geniuses. Take Wu Yuanchu, for example. He's twenty this year and has already reached Great Accomplishment of Hidden Strength. This is even after suppressing his realm for three years to reach the extreme of Manifest Strength...

He is a strong contender for first place in the Jinmen Grand Competition in more than twenty days."

The old man said.

Li Shuxing was also slightly silent.

He couldn't refute this point; it was an undeniable fact.

Even if Huo Yuanhong might be more astonishing than him, he had started too late and was far behind prodigies like Wu Yuanchu who had received training since childhood.

He probably wouldn't make it in time for the great change that was about to arrive.

"So, there's no room for negotiation?"

"No room for negotiation. If you want money, not a single cent."

The moment the old man finished speaking, the smile on Li Shuxing's face vanished.

The two looked at each other quietly, as if nothing had happened, but the head of the Fang family beside them broke out in a cold sweat, feeling like a small boat in a storm, liable to be capsized at any moment.

When gods fight, mortals suffer.

Even as someone at Transforming Strength, in front of these two peak experts, he was nothing more than a mortal.

Just as the atmosphere reached its peak and was about to explode...

"Rustle..."

A carrier pigeon suddenly flew in.

The old man frowned, took down the letter, and unfolded it.

Immediately, his gaze sharpened, and he showed a rare expression of surprise.

After a moment of silence, he looked deeply at Li Shuxing and suddenly said, "I can give your disciple the same Earth-grade treatment as Wang Tianlong."

Li Shuxing calmly drank his tea, completely unaware of what had happened.

But outwardly, he maintained a composed expression, as if everything was as he expected.

"If I'm not mistaken, you already took him as a disciple last year and have been cultivating him in secret..."

The old man said slowly in a tone of certainty. "Cultivating for a year and reaching Great Accomplishment of Manifest Strength is acceptable."

Great Accomplishment of Manifest Strength!

Li Shuxing's heart trembled.

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

But when he left two days ago, he had only just reached Minor Accomplishment of Manifest Strength.

In just two days, how did he achieve Great Accomplishment??

"Minor Accomplishment in Manifest Strength, and Great Accomplishment should be close behind. With the Baji Quan passed down from you, he likely won't be any worse than Wang Tianlong in a fight…

After that, he'll be able to play a role in contests with foreigners at the Manifest Strength level. I can make an exception and grant him Earth-tier resources."

The old man took a sip of tea and continued, "As for Heavenly-tier resources, those must be reserved for Wu Yuanchu. He's achieved Great Accomplishment in Hidden Strength and is aiming for first place in the Grand Competition. He can't be short on resources at such a crucial time."

"Oh? What if, by the day of the Grand Competition, my disciple also achieves Great Accomplishment in Hidden Strength?"

Perhaps feeling better, Li Shuxing made a rare joke.

The old man also smiled, "If that day truly comes, I will naturally give him as much as I give Wu Yuanchu."

Jokes were jokes, after all. Neither of them took it seriously, and the oppressive atmosphere in the pavilion instantly dissipated, replaced by a relaxed mood.