Village Tyrant, Sparring

Xie Yuan tossed Zhang Lao Er to the ground and dusted off his hands.

Everyone else in the woods, including Wang Lei and the other four, wore somewhat dazed expressions.

How long had Zhang Lao Er been running rampant through the village?

Ever since Zhang Lao Da had become a martial artist in the county a few years ago and entered the County Office, Zhang Lao Er had been the village tyrant.

He had started with stealing chickens and dogs, then moved on to bullying men and women, and now he was even plotting to seize farmland. Not even the village chief and clan elders could control him. Small Stone Village had long grown accustomed to the sky above their heads bearing the surname Zhang.

Yet now, this local tyrant was being pinned down and beaten, without even the strength to fight back?

The sky had changed.

Xie Yuan had overturned it.

Quite a few of the hooligans had strange looks in their eyes. The quicker-witted ones had already seized the chance to secretly crawl up and slip away.

Wang Er Gou, for instance. He knew exactly how ruthless Xie Yuan could be. He had long since quietly crawled out, gotten to his feet, and vanished in a cloud of dust.

Sure enough, after finishing with Zhang Lao Er, Xie Yuan came over and gave every hooligan lying on the ground a resounding slap across the face.

"Speak! Will you block my way again in the future?"

"Never again, never again! Yuanzi—no, Brother Yuan, we won't dare!"

"Will you keep stirring up trouble in the village?"

"We won't dare, we won't dare!"

Smack!

Xie Yuan gave him another slap. The hooligan was dumbfounded.

"Brother Yuan, what did I say wrong?"

Xie Yuan nodded in praise.

"I'm praising you for answering well! Scram!"

The hooligans scattered like birds and beasts. The two who were slightly more loyal still remembered to haul Zhang Lao Er away with them.

There were too many people to kill them all. He could only teach them a lesson and let them go.

But after this, the village should be much more peaceful.

Once the lead wolf fell, the remaining wild dogs would not necessarily stay obedient.

And wild dogs without an organization were nothing to worry about.

The real trouble was the people deliberately raising the dogs.

Zhou Feng came over with a face full of admiration and exclaimed, "Brother Yuan, that was awesome!"

The others also looked at him differently.

Though they had all felt recently that Xie Yuan had changed greatly and was becoming more and more capable—

Only after seeing him beat the former village tyrant flat did they realize that Xie Yuan had become completely extraordinary.

He was practically more Zhang Lao Er than Zhang Lao Er himself!

Wang Lei and the others were still thinking about how Xie Yuan had struck ruthlessly and decisively, scattering this whole group of scourges by himself. As expected of someone who had practiced martial arts.

Only Zhu Dongming was not particularly surprised. He knew Xie Yuan had not even been that ruthless.

Over the following days, the village indeed became much quieter.

What happened in the woods quietly spread. Xie Yuan had already enjoyed great prestige for killing a tiger and a bear, and now he had beaten Zhang Lao Er as well...

Xie Yuan had rid the village of three scourges. No matter who it was, there was now a trace of respect in their eyes when they looked at him. The young girls also loved lingering around his doorstep, passing by several times a day.

Only, his sights were no longer set on this place. Otherwise, with a single shout, he could surely gather another gang around himself and become some kind of village tyrant.

Chopping Wood: (2712/10000)

Iron Cloth · Third Layer: (673/1000)

Nourishing Body Skill · Second Layer: (1369/2000)

Iron Cloth Long Fist · Mastery: (21/500)

In the small courtyard, Xie Yuan finished his practice and stood quietly, sweeping his gaze over the panel before him.

The progress of Chopping Wood had slowly risen without him noticing. Though it would still be a long time before the next breakthrough, the abilities gained from the first two breakthroughs could be said to have completely changed Xie Yuan's path in life. He was quite looking forward to the new ability.

As for Iron Cloth, its progress had already passed the halfway mark. It was time to consider the matter of breaking through.

The Nourishing Body Skill grew neither too quickly nor too slowly, exceptionally steadily. Just like the skill itself, it continually strengthened Xie Yuan's physique through subtle influence. His slowly growing Inner Breath was also increasing his strength.

Lastly, there was this Iron Cloth Long Fist.

Xie Yuan drove out a punch. His fist was so fast it was nearly impossible to see, the wind from it howling as its force turned fierce and savage.

"The techniques at Mastery really are far more formidable!"

Xie Yuan smiled:

"Though the fist technique was simple, trained to this level, its power could not be underestimated. If I'd had this level a few days ago, there would've been no need to chop down trees first to divide the battlefield. I could've gone straight in and knocked them all out, one punch each!"

Now, the Blood Qi in his chest had gradually grown thicker, as thick as two thumbs pressed together. His Skin Tempering had reached a certain level, and the Inner Breath flowing through his meridians like a small stream gave him an unceasing supply of strength. Combined with the Great Accomplishment Iron Cloth Long Fist and the immensely powerful Three-Pronged Axe, his strength had completely surpassed that of ordinary people. Below the level of a martial artist, few could match him.

"Iron Cloth is nearly at the peak of the third layer, but to truly achieve Great Accomplishment in Skin Tempering, I'll need a specialized method. Only then can I become a true martial artist."

Xie Yuan pondered.

"I'll go ask at the martial hall first. Senior Brother Huo thinks highly of me—maybe he'll be willing to guide me into becoming a Core Disciple and teach me the method."

In Coiling Dragon Town, within the Iron Clothes Gate.

The moment Xie Yuan entered the martial hall, he found disciples coming and going with grave expressions. The large Martial Arts Field had been cleared out and swept until not a speck of dust remained.

"What's going on? Why is no one practicing? Is someone coming?"

Xie Yuan pulled aside a Registered Disciple he was somewhat familiar with and asked.

"You don't know? Today, Black Tiger Fist Hall and Divine Weapon Hall are coming over for an exchange."

"No one told me?"

"Uh..."

Seeing the man's expression, Xie Yuan gave an awkward "oh" and sheepishly let go.

He came to the martial hall too rarely, and he was only a Registered Disciple. Whether he came or not made no difference, so naturally no one had notified him.

Xie Yuan's interest was piqued. It seemed he had come at just the right time today.

Martial artists sparring—what exactly did it look like when they fought? This was the perfect chance to see for himself. Perhaps it might even help him improve.

By late morning.

The martial hall's gates suddenly grew noisy. Then the doors swung wide open, and two groups entered.

Leading one side was a dark, burly man. In the depths of winter, he wore only a padded vest, exposing two tiger-like arms knotted with muscle.

On the other side stood a middle-aged elder with graying hair. He was of average height and wore a calm expression, but the two disciples behind him carried a large black iron spear. When the sunlight struck it, its cold gleam was intimidating.

More than ten disciples followed behind each of the two men. Together, they nearly blocked off the entrance to the Iron Clothes Gate, an imposing sight indeed.

Liu Heshang had long been standing at the entrance of the main hall. Seeing this display, his face darkened.

"You two, bringing such a crowd with you—what are you trying to do?"

The dark, burly man laughed heartily.

"Gate Master Liu, does this count as making a grand show of force? We only brought a few disciples. Hey, why is everyone from your Iron Clothes Gate already here? Is this all you've got?"

Liu Heshang's expression turned ugly. The Iron Clothes Gate was already at a disadvantage; in terms of disciple numbers, it naturally could not compare to them.

The dark, burly man—Wang Black Tiger, master of Black Tiger Fist Hall—continued.

"Ah, our two martial halls have so many disciples to feed. Yet the medicine businesses in Coiling Dragon Town are always short on stock, slowing the disciples' progress and making us masters anxious. Look, your Iron Clothes Gate barely has any disciples, yet you occupy such a large share of the medicine businesses. Great quantities of medicinal herbs are delivered straight here to you. That doesn't seem appropriate.

"Old Fang and I discussed it. The three of us should hold a martial contest and exchange pointers, then reassess the medicine business shares. As for the rules, we'll send out disciples to fight! Whoever wins the most is the stronger one. We'll rank first, second, and third, then divide up the medicine business shares accordingly!"

Liu Heshang's brow furrowed deeply. The shares of Coiling Dragon Town's pharmacies had been decided early on, with all three sides receiving roughly the same amount. But now that the Iron Clothes Gate had weakened, the other two wanted to seize his share.

Martial training benefited enormously from medicinal supplements, yielding twice the result with half the effort and allowing disciples to progress faster. If the Iron Clothes Gate's share were cut, the already weak Iron Clothes Gate would have even less chance to develop—and this might only be the beginning.

Wang Black Tiger and Old Ghost Fang called it a contest to determine the rankings, but the two had clearly joined forces. They had come to the Iron Clothes Gate with the intention of making it two against one.

He could not even contend against one of them. How was he supposed to fight both?

A sense of helplessness rose in Liu Heshang's heart, but with matters having come to this, there was no other choice.

He snorted coldly.

"Fine. We'll do it your way. Huo Da, you go first!"

Though the Iron Clothes Gate was weaker overall, his few personal disciples had followed him for many years, and their skills were not lacking.

Moreover, his Iron Cloth was truly extraordinary. They were all disciples at the same stage, so even against opponents of the same realm, they might not be able to break through its defense. At the very least, he was not afraid of any of the other two halls' personal disciples!

Huo Da wore a solemn expression and was about to step onto the field when Wang Black Tiger suddenly chuckled and said, "Hold on."