Feng Family Pharmacy

Zhang Lingshan froze.

He had only just succeeded in Skin Grinding, and before word had even gotten out, someone had come to recruit him?

Sure enough, just as Senior Brother Song Dazhuang had said, after Skin Grinding, there was no need to deliberately look for work. All kinds of jobs would naturally come knocking.

That was how sought-after martial practitioners were.

Even the most ordinary, lowest-ranking Ox Hide Martial Practitioner already had a certain value.

Though they could not catch the eye of the major powers, small forces like the Feng Family Pharmacy were already willing to spend money to recruit them.

But the price Feng Shaolong had offered...

Zhang Lingshan did not know the market rates here, so he hesitated.

Feng Shaolong smiled and patted his shoulder. "Junior Brother Shan, there's no need to rush into a decision for my sake. It won't be too late to decide after you've heard everyone else's terms."

"Yes, thank you, Senior Brother Feng."

Zhang Lingshan cupped his hands.

He still felt he should first hear Da Zhuang's opinion.

While Zhang Lingshan practiced his fist technique and waited for Song Dazhuang, Feng Shaolong returned to his small group, sat down, and gently rubbed his forearm.

"How did it go?" his friend Yu Mengyuan asked from beside him.

Feng Shaolong nodded. "His strength is quite impressive. No wonder Master thinks highly of him. It has only been around three months since he began training in martial arts."

"Yeah. Succeeding in Skin Grinding in three months—he's a genius. I, Yu Mengyuan, trained painstakingly for three years before breaking through to Stone Skin. Comparing people really can make one furious."

As he spoke, Yu Mengyuan asked curiously, "So what treatment did you offer this genius junior brother of ours?"

Feng Shaolong told him without concealing anything.

Yu Mengyuan was startled. "His treatment is nearly the same as mine? You're really giving him a lot of face!"

"He is a genius junior brother, after all. Once some time passes and he breaks through to Stone Skin, we might not be able to hire him even if we wanted to. Better to build a good relationship now. Perhaps someday, for the sake of this connection, he might lend us a hand."

"Sigh, that's true."

Yu Mengyuan had no answer. He could only cast an envious, jealous look at Zhang Lingshan.

Meanwhile, Feng Shaolong continued rubbing his arm.

There was one thing he had not told Yu Mengyuan: he had been injured during his exchange with Zhang Lingshan just now!

It was an extremely minor injury. The arm Zhang Lingshan had struck repeatedly merely felt uncomfortable, as though it had been scalded by boiling water.

But Feng Shaolong could not understand it.

How could a mere Ox Hide Martial Practitioner who had only just broken through injure an established Stone Skin Martial Practitioner like him?

What a weird fist.

It was as if that fist contained a scorching heat, impossible to guard against.

Geniuses really are different from everyone else.

Unable to figure it out, Feng Shaolong shook his head and stopped thinking about it.

He bore the other man neither grudge nor grievance. Why study him so thoroughly?

Zhang Lingshan knew nothing of Feng Shaolong's thoughts. As he practiced the Red Thread Fist, he reflected on himself. How had Feng Shaolong knocked him back so easily just now?

He could not help replaying the earlier fight in his mind, and the movements of his fist technique naturally began to change.

The Cultivation Method transformed into a Combat Technique.

It was as though an opponent had appeared out of thin air before him to spar with him, helping him build experience.

Before he knew it, Zhang Lingshan was drenched in sweat, his clothes clinging stickily to his body in great discomfort.

Only then did he stop and discover that Song Dazhuang had arrived at some point.

"Hey, finished already? You look like you're in good shape. You reached Skin Grinding?"

Song Dazhuang said with a broad smile.

Zhang Lingshan nodded. "Yes, Skin Grinding."

"Skin Grinding is good. You've taken a step ahead, and now it's my turn to chase after you." Song Dazhuang clenched his fists, showing that he would work hard as well.

As the two spoke.

A tall, thin young man walked over and cupped his hands. "Congratulations to Senior Brother Shan on succeeding in Skin Grinding. This junior brother is named Lü Feng. My family runs an escort agency. If Senior Brother does not mind, you may come visit my home sometime."

"So it's Junior Brother Lü Feng."

Zhang Lingshan cupped his hands in return.

His impression of Lü Feng was even less substantial than his impression of Feng Shaolong. He had at least met Feng Shaolong once at the pharmacy, while he had never met Lü Feng before.

It seemed Lü Feng had always been surrounded by fellow apprentices like stars encircling the moon, standing in the center where Zhang Lingshan could not even get close enough to meet him.

He had not expected Lü Feng to recruit him too.

"How much does an escort run pay?" Song Dazhuang suddenly asked on Zhang Lingshan's behalf.

Lü Feng said, "If you officially join our escort agency, food and lodging are included. For an Ox Hide escort master, a short escort run pays ten taels, while a long run pays thirty taels. The exact price depends on what is being escorted, the distance, and the number of guards."

Zhang Lingshan nodded. "What if I do not officially join?"

"If you do not officially join, then when we need help, you can temporarily guard an escort shipment as outside support. A short run pays fifteen taels. But Senior Brother Shan is different—I can apply to give you twenty taels per run."

Lü Feng patted his chest in guarantee.

"Alright, I understand. If you need me, you can come find me," Zhang Lingshan said.

Lü Feng said, "Then it's happily settled. From now on, Senior Brother Shan will be outside support for our Zhenwei Escort Agency. Whenever there is a good escort job, I will definitely come ask Senior Brother Shan."

After chatting with Zhang Lingshan for a few more sentences, he left and returned to his small group.

After that, several more fellow apprentices came to speak with him. Some were from various gangs, while others wanted to hire him as a wealthy landowner's courtyard guard.

Zhang Lingshan politely declined them all.

First, their terms were not much better than those Feng Shaolong and Lü Feng had offered.

Second, working for them would require long-term employment, whereas working for Feng Shaolong only meant occasionally guarding a medicinal herb gathering trip.

Going with Lü Feng was even more casual and free. He would only need to go when there was an escort shipment, and he could choose not to go.

So, after Zhang Lingshan and Song Dazhuang analyzed the matter, he decided to accept Feng Shaolong's recruitment.

Moreover, joining the pharmacy and building a good relationship with Feng Shaolong had another benefit for Zhang Lingshan: his cultivation required a large quantity of medicinal ingredients.

If he could use Feng Shaolong's connections to buy medicinal ingredients closer to cost, that would be even better.

With that thought, Zhang Lingshan stopped waiting for others to recruit him and went directly to see Feng Shaolong.

"Junior Brother Shan has decided?"

Feng Shaolong smiled, not surprised by the outcome.

After all, the price he offered was nearly the same as the treatment given to Stone Skin Martial Practitioners. For martial practitioners like them, still in the rising stage of cultivation, work with relatively free time was the best kind of work.

"I've decided. I'm willing to join the Feng Family Pharmacy." Zhang Lingshan nodded.

"Good. Then after lunch today, Junior Brother can come with me to take a look around our Feng Family Pharmacy and get familiar with the other Herb Gathering Guards. If Junior Brother wants someone to spar with, I can have them accompany you."

"Thank you, Senior Brother."

"What are you being polite for? We'll be family from now on."

Feng Shaolong draped an arm around Zhang Lingshan's shoulders and laughed.

He then introduced Yu Mengyuan and the others around him to Zhang Lingshan.

They were all fellow disciples he had recruited from the Hong Clan Martial Hall. Since they had learned under the same school and served the same pharmacy, they naturally ought to grow closer.

Zhang Lingshan greeted them one by one, only then realizing that Feng Shaolong's small group was anything but ordinary. They were all Stone Skin Martial Practitioners.

He was the only Ox Hide Martial Practitioner.

It seemed the Feng Family Pharmacy was more powerful than he had imagined.

He just did not know what status Feng Shaolong and his Herb Gathering Guard group held within the Feng Family Pharmacy.

Zhang Lingshan could not help feeling curious.

Thus, after lunch, he hurried without pause to the Feng Family Pharmacy with Feng Shaolong and the others.

Unlike when he had bought medicine in the past, this time he did not enter through the pharmacy's main entrance. Instead, he went directly into the Feng Family estate.

"Sixth Young Master has returned."

A servant immediately greeted him.

Feng Shaolong smiled and explained to Zhang Lingshan, "I rank sixth in my family. Above me are three older brothers and two older sisters. I'll introduce you to them later."

"Mm."

Zhang Lingshan nodded.

The Feng Family was truly wealthy and powerful.

He had always thought the Hong Clan Martial Hall and Hong Zhengdao's main residence were already quite large. Yet the Feng Family was even more outrageous, five times the size of the Hong Clan Martial Hall.

The medicinal ingredients business was truly profitable.

Following Feng Shaolong's footsteps, Zhang Lingshan arrived at the Herb Gathering Guards' courtyard.

Various Stone Locks stood here, along with common weapons of every kind—sabers, spears, staffs, and clubs, everything one could need.

Zhang Lingshan was immediately drawn to the weapon rack.

Following his gaze, Feng Shaolong smiled. "When we go gathering herbs in the future, Junior Brother Shan can choose one of these weapons to use.

"But we learned fist techniques at the martial hall and know nothing about weapons. We need to practice first before we can use them. Otherwise, in a rush, we might end up hurting ourselves instead.

"If Junior Brother Shan is interested in any weapon, you can take it and play around with it first.

"But you cannot take it away. That is my family's rule. If it were mine personally, what would be the harm in giving it to Junior Brother Shan?"

Faced with Feng Shaolong's pretended generosity, Zhang Lingshan responded with a few perfunctory words before walking to the weapon rack and picking up a broad, thick Hand Axe.

He liked this thing.

Since he had never learned weapons, he would use what he was most familiar with.

Back when he had wanted to prevent himself from being robbed, he had made a stone axe on Red Leaf Mountain and used it to chop the thug Li Hu to death.

The advantage of an axe was that even if one knew no techniques, one could still swing it with the force of a tiger. There was no need to worry about applying strength incorrectly and breaking the weapon, or being injured by it in return.

Even if he truly could not chop someone, the axe could still be used to smash them, with equally astonishing killing power.

Therefore, Zhang Lingshan had already made his decision. He wanted this axe.

When Feng Shaolong saw Zhang Lingshan pick up the Hand Axe, he could not help staring blankly. This was the first time he had seen someone choose an axe.

Young martial practitioners like them had all heard storytellers' tales. Who had not dreamed of becoming a great hero with a sword, roaming the ends of the earth?

Thus, when Yu Mengyuan and the others saw the weapon rack, they all chose swords. Few even chose sabers.

Yet Zhang Lingshan had chosen the most unexpected weapon of all: an axe.

This truly was...

"Junior Brother Shan is indeed different from the rest."

Feng Shaolong praised him, then said to a Herb Gathering Guard in the courtyard, "Uncle Tie, you practice with axes too. Spar with my Junior Brother Shan for a while."

"Yes, Sixth Young Master."

Uncle Tie replied in a deep, muffled voice.

The man was broad and powerfully built, with muscles bulging all over his body. He looked overbearing and mighty.

He walked up to Zhang Lingshan and revealed a kind but ugly smile. "You are Sixth Young Master's friend, so you truly have a good eye. But though an axe looks simple, it is not easy to use. I'll first teach you how to exert force."

"Alright."

Zhang Lingshan immediately watched him without blinking.

Uncle Tie planted his feet in a horse stance. Then his right foot suddenly stamped the ground, his waist drove his shoulders into a twist, and he viciously chopped down with the axe, splitting the air with a whooshing sound.

But his posture as he swung the axe was truly ugly, like a clumsy bear. He even nearly toppled to the ground because he had used too much force.

Yu Mengyuan and the others could not help laughing out loud.

In their eyes, Uncle Tie was a joke. Though he was strong and looked imposing and robust, he was incredibly inflexible and stupidly clumsy.

The reason he was made a Herb Gathering Guard was mainly to serve as labor. No one expected him to be useful against enemies. It would already be good if he did not create trouble.

With his Combat Technique, he would likely use too much force and fall over before even chopping at an enemy, perhaps knocking down his own companions first.

Thus, his use was limited to carrying heavy loads and clearing the way.

"Enough, enough. You can't even handle such a simple task. With that posture of yours, what if you chop up my Junior Brother Shan?"

Feng Shaolong said with some dissatisfaction.

He had known Uncle Tie was stupid and clumsy, but he had not expected him to be this stupid and clumsy.

He had thought that since the fellow used axes often, he would at least know a move or two. Instead, that display was simply a disgrace!

What if Junior Brother Shan thought all the Herb Gathering Guards in their family were at this level? Wouldn't that make him look down on the Feng Family Pharmacy?

"A Lei, go spar with Junior Brother Shan."

Feng Shaolong pointed at another young man wearing a smile.

"Alright, coming."

A Lei immediately ran over and said to Zhang Lingshan, "I am Sixth Young Master's most trusted guard. My name is A Lei. Young Master Shan may chop at me as freely as you please. Do not fear hurting me. If I get hurt, that only means I lack the skill and deserve the injury."

"Then I won't hold back."

Zhang Lingshan did not waste words. From the man's build and footwork, he could tell that he was highly skilled, so he immediately gripped the Hand Axe.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

A Lei held a curved saber in his hand, moving with extreme agility. No matter how fiercely Zhang Lingshan chopped and slashed with his axe, he could not get past that curved saber at all.

The other man merely gave a casual lead with his curved saber and redirected Zhang Lingshan's strength to the side.

Had the other man not held back, Zhang Lingshan likely would have ended up like Uncle Tie, falling to the ground after his strength went astray.

Though A Lei had spared him embarrassment out of consideration for Feng Shaolong, Zhang Lingshan himself felt too ashamed to continue.

He felt like a three-year-old child.

The other man was purely playing along with him.

The exchange was truly meaningless and could not serve as training in the slightest.

So he immediately stopped, cupped his hands, and said, "As expected of Senior Brother Feng's most trusted guard. Your strength is extraordinary. I admit defeat."

"Oh, everyone is only exchanging pointers and having fun. Why talk about winning or losing?"

A Lei smiled.

He then pointed out some of Zhang Lingshan's force-exertion techniques. Although he did not know how to use an axe, when one principle was understood, ten thousand principles were understood. Guiding a beginner like Zhang Lingshan came easily to A Lei.

Seeing Zhang Lingshan listen so humbly, Feng Shaolong was very pleased as well.

Now Junior Brother Shan had seen the strength of their Feng Family, hadn't he?

As time passed, the sky gradually darkened.

Though Zhang Lingshan had not heard enough, he still cupped his hands in farewell. But the moment he stepped out of the courtyard gate, he saw an acquaintance.

"Tie Feng?"