A Vile Guest at the Door, a First Show of Might

The next morning, Chen Yuan emerged from deep meditation feeling refreshed and invigorated. His Qi and blood coursed briskly through his body, and the newfound resilience beneath his skin grew ever clearer.

He gently stretched his limbs. The thread of Qi and blood power within him surged like a docile tide, smooth and effortless.

When he pushed open the wooden window, clear and cold air rushed in, instantly rousing his spirits.

In the yard, his mother, Lin Sanniang, had already started the fire to prepare breakfast, while his younger sister Xiao Li obediently helped feed the chickens nearby.

Everything was quiet and peaceful, no different from before. Yet Chen Yuan knew that since last night, everything had changed.

Having washed up, he was just about to formally tell his family the good news that he had broken through to the Skin Grinding Realm when a clamor of footsteps and shouting suddenly erupted outside the yard. Several crude bellows mixed within, shattering the fishing village's morning tranquility.

"Chen the Elder! Is Chen the Elder home? Come out and have a word!" a rather overbearing voice called from outside the gate.

Chen Yuan frowned slightly and walked to the window to look outside.

Five or six men stood beyond the courtyard gate. Their leader was a burly man in a black short jacket, his chest bared. He looked around thirty-five or thirty-six, with a face full of flesh, a scar at the corner of his eye, and a vicious gaze. A copper-bound shortsword hung at his waist.

The lackeys behind him were also mostly men in their prime, brimming with Qi and blood. They lounged about carelessly, their expressions hostile.

"It's Scarred Liu from the Black Tide Gang!" Chen Dahai, who had been chopping firewood, froze. His face darkened as he quietly said to Chen Tie Mao, who had emerged from the house at the sound, "Dad, what's that scoundrel doing here?"

Chen Tie Mao's expression turned grave. In a low voice, he said, "He must have smelled blood.

"We caught that Golden Thread Sea Bream yesterday. Though we told the family not to spread word of it, walls have ears in a fishing village. He must be here for that fish." The old captain was experienced and saw through the visitors' purpose at a glance.

The Black Tide Gang was a small gang entrenched in Iron Clothes Village and several nearby fishing villages. They usually collected "protection fees," forcibly bought fishing catches at low prices, and loaned money at usurious rates.

Their gang leader was said to be an expert who had achieved Skin Grinding, with more than a dozen Qi and Blood Realm thugs under him. In this remote, impoverished region, they counted as a force people feared.

Scarred Liu was one of the gang's minor leaders. He had reached the peak of the Qi and Blood Realm, was arrogant and overbearing by nature, and left the villagers angry but afraid to speak.

Worry and fear appeared on the faces of Lin Sanniang and Grandmother Zhang Shi. Xiao Li was so frightened that she hid behind her mother.

Second Uncle Chen Dajiang also poked his head out from the house. When he saw Scarred Liu, his face changed, and he instinctively shrank back inside, pressing down Chen He's head as the boy was about to peek out.

Chen Tie Mao took a deep breath and gestured for the family not to panic. Straightening his clothes, he put on the helpless smile he usually wore when dealing with such people, stepped forward, and opened the gate. "So it's Lord Liu gracing us with his presence. What brings you here so early in the morning?"

Scarred Liu cast Chen Tie Mao a sidelong glance and said with a smile that was not a smile, "Old Chen, I heard your family stepped in dog shit yesterday and netted a Golden Thread Sea Bream?"

"Something that good would only be wasted in the hands of people like you. Our gang leader needs nourishment for his cultivation lately. Be sensible and hand it over. Our Black Tide Gang will pay market price... ten copper coins!"

Ten copper coins? Its market price was at least ten taels of silver! This was outright robbery! Chen Dahai's face turned livid with rage, his fists clenching until they cracked, but he restrained himself because the other side was too powerful.

Chen Tie Mao's expression stiffened as well. He forced a smile. "Lord Liu, you jest. What Golden Thread Sea Bream? It was merely a somewhat larger golden bream. We stewed it into soup and ate it last night..."

"Bullshit!" Scarred Liu impatiently cut him off, shoved Chen Tie Mao aside, and tried to barge into the yard. "My information is solid! You won't take the hint when it's given to you. Brothers, get in there and search!"

The lackeys responded with a roar and prepared to charge inside.

"Stop!" Chen Dahai could endure no longer. He stepped in front of the gate, glaring furiously. "What are you trying to do? In broad daylight, you dare rob us by force?"

"Heh! Chen the Elder, we gave you face, didn't we?" Scarred Liu sneered, rolling his wrists. "I heard you know a few moves? What, you want to trade blows with Lord Liu? My hands have been itching anyway!" He had never regarded Chen Dahai, who was merely somewhat stronger than average, as a threat.

Just as the conflict was about to erupt, a calm voice sounded from the courtyard. "Father, Grandfather, what happened?"

Chen Yuan slowly walked out of the house, his expression calm as his gaze swept over Scarred Liu and his men.

After breaking through overnight, Chen Yuan deliberately restrained himself. Yet upon entering the Skin Grinding Realm, his Qi and blood had become one whole, his skin tough and resilient, his essence, Qi, and spirit held within. Even his gait carried an air of steady composure. He was utterly unlike the somewhat brooding youth he had been before.

Scarred Liu was himself a martial artist at the peak of the Qi and Blood Realm, with far keener eyes than ordinary people. When his arrogant gaze landed on Chen Yuan, it abruptly froze. The cruel grin on his face stiffened, replaced by uncertainty and suspicion.

As a martial artist, he could more clearly sense the faint pressure emanating from Chen Yuan!

Chen Yuan's eyes in particular were placid and unruffled, yet they inexplicably sent a chill through him.

"You..." Scarred Liu looked Chen Yuan up and down, and his tone unconsciously grew more restrained as he probed, "Chen boy? It's only been a few days, but you've... changed quite a bit?"

He vaguely sensed that Chen Yuan seemed to have broken through, yet he dared not be certain. The gang leader had said that even after reaching the peak of Qi and Blood, one would need at least three to five months of replenishing Qi and blood before breaking through to Skin Grinding. How could it happen so suddenly...

Chen Yuan did not answer his question. He merely said flatly, "Head Liu, my family has no Golden Thread Sea Bream. Please leave."

Normally, Scarred Liu would have flown into a rage long ago. But now he was uncertain. Forcibly suppressing his anger, he squeezed out an ugly smile. "Brother Yuan, I heard you study at Blackwater Martial Arts School? It seems your cultivation has greatly advanced. I wonder, are you now..."

Before he could finish, a tactless lackey behind him, hoping to earn credit, saw that Chen Yuan was just a youth yet dared to step forward and immediately barked, "You little brat, who gave you the right to speak here? Get lost!"

As he spoke, he reached out to shove Chen Yuan.

Chen Yuan's gaze turned slightly cold.

Before the lackey's hand could touch him, Chen Yuan casually flicked out his right hand. His movement was swift as lightning and sparks, precisely catching the lackey's wrist.

No one saw him exert any force, yet the lackey seemed to have been violently shoved by an invisible power. With a miserable cry of "Aiyo," he staggered backward and fell flat on his backside. His wrist had already fractured, leaving it unable to move. He stared at Chen Yuan in shock and terror.

He wielded great weight as though it were light; force arose of its own accord!

At that sight, Scarred Liu's pupils suddenly contracted, and his face completely changed!

He had seen it clearly. Chen Yuan's strike was not merely the power of Qi and blood, but true condensed force!

"Skin Grinding Realm! You... you really broke through to the Skin Grinding Realm?!" Scarred Liu cried out, his voice cracking as disbelief and horror covered his face.

The Skin Grinding Realm! In Iron Clothes Village, and even in the surrounding towns, one could be considered somebody after reaching that realm!

It meant Chen Yuan was no longer an ordinary martial arts school apprentice, but had truly crossed the threshold of martial arts!

He was qualified to seek an official position at the county yamen, serving as a street patrol runner, tax collector, or even constable!

Or he could be hired by major county businesses, shipping companies, or fish markets as a head guard, with generous pay.

He could even gather men and establish a small gang like the Black Tide Gang, just as their gang leader had done.

Scarred Liu had lorded over the village on the strength of his peak Qi and Blood Realm cultivation, but before a genuine Skin Grinding Realm martial artist, he was not worth mentioning!

If Chen Yuan wished it, a few punches and kicks would be enough to knock him down.

The thought that he had just tried to forcibly seize something from a Skin Grinding Realm martial artist immediately brought cold sweat pouring down Scarred Liu's body. His back was drenched in an instant.

The other lackeys behind him were also terrified senseless. Silent as cicadas in winter, they hurriedly helped up their fallen companion, scarcely daring to breathe.

Chen Yuan neither admitted nor denied it. He only looked calmly at Scarred Liu, but that gaze held more power than any words. "Head Liu, can you take your men and leave now? My family still needs to eat."

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Scarred Liu shuddered. The vicious air around him vanished without a trace, replaced by flattery and awe. His waist even bent unconsciously.

"Oh, look at these blind eyes of mine! I failed to see that Lord Chen has already achieved divine mastery! Damn it! Truly damn it! Lord Chen, you have a great heart and vast tolerance. Please do not lower yourself to the level of rough men like us!"

He hurriedly fished a small money pouch from his robe. Judging by how bulging it was, it contained far more than ten copper coins. He respectfully offered it with both hands. "Lord Chen, this is merely a small token, unworthy of respect. Take it as compensation to calm the old man's fright and as an apology to your family! We'll get lost now! We'll get lost right now!"

Chen Yuan did not even glance at the money pouch. He simply said, "From now on, no one from the Black Tide Gang may set foot in my family's courtyard without permission. Do you understand?"

"Understood! Understood! Absolutely understood!" Scarred Liu nodded and bowed as if granted amnesty. "Rest assured, Lord Chen! Your family's affairs are the Black Tide Gang's affairs from now on! Whoever dares cause you trouble, I, Scarred Liu, will be the first not to allow it! Farewell! Farewell!"

After saying that, he set down the money pouch. Not daring to stay even a second longer, he led his terrified lackeys away in disgrace. They fled more than twice as fast as they had arrived.

Outside the courtyard gate, several villagers drawn by the commotion had gathered at a distance to watch. Seeing the once-unrivaled Scarred Liu treat Chen Yuan with such respect—indeed, such fear—before finally fleeing in embarrassment, all of them were stunned. They looked at one another and broke into discussion.

"What happened? Why did Scarred Liu run away?"

"Didn't you hear? Brother Yuan... seems to have broken through to that... Skin Grinding Realm!"

"The Skin Grinding Realm? Good heavens! Isn't that the same as those officials at the county yamen?"

"The Chen Family is about to rise!"

Within the courtyard, the Chen Family was also overwhelmed by shock. They stared blankly at Chen Yuan as though seeing him for the first time.

They only knew that Chen Yuan had broken through yesterday. But they did not understand martial arts deeply. They knew it was impressive, yet never imagined it would be this impressive!

Merely revealing his cultivation had frightened the Black Tide Gang leader, who usually looked like a fiend and caused headaches for the whole village, into wetting himself and groveling!

"Yuan... Yuan'er... you..." Lin Sanniang covered her mouth, her voice trembling. Her eyes brimmed with shock, joy, and a trace of helplessness.

Chen Dahai suddenly came back to his senses. He strode up to his son, gripped his shoulders tightly, and spoke in a trembling voice, "Good boy! You... you didn't merely stabilize your realm... You broke straight through to the Skin Grinding Realm?!"

Seeing his family's shocked yet ecstatic expressions, Chen Yuan smiled faintly and nodded. "Yes. I was fortunate enough to break through. I've only just entered the Skin Grinding Realm, and it was also thanks to that Golden Thread Sea Bream."

"Good! Wonderful!" Chen Tie Mao slapped his thigh, his beard trembling with excitement. The old man's heart was filled with comfort. "Skin Grinding Realm, a true Skin Grinding Realm! My Chen Family... my Chen Family has finally produced a real martial artist! Our ancestors have blessed us, blessed us indeed!"

Grandmother Zhang Shi was so overjoyed that she burst into tears, repeatedly chanting Buddhist prayers.

Second Uncle Chen Dajiang and Second Aunt Zhou Shi also ran out of the house, their faces filled with disbelief and wild joy.

Chen Dajiang was so excited that his words tangled together. "Skin Grinding Realm! It really is the Skin Grinding Realm! Brother Yuan, you truly... you truly brought honor to our old Chen Family! This is wonderful! Let's see who still dares bully our Chen Family now!"

At that moment, he was incomparably glad that he had strongly insisted on keeping the Golden Thread Sea Bream yesterday. That investment had been more than worthwhile!

His younger cousin also looked at Chen Yuan with worship in his eyes.

Chen Yuan calmed his excited family and explained, "Only after entering the Skin Grinding Realm can one be said to have truly stepped onto the martial path. The skin becomes tough enough that ordinary clubs and staffs cannot easily injure it, while Qi and blood force condense and far surpass the Qi and Blood Realm."

"Under Imperial Court regulations, Skin Grinding Realm martial artists are qualified to take part in county yamen recruitment. After passing the assessment, one can serve as a street patrol constable, tax official, or even a village militia captain. The annual salary is at least twenty taels of silver, with additional perks besides."

Even if one does not enter official service, the major businesses, shipping companies, fish markets, and even martial arts schools in the county town will compete to hire them as guards, instructors, or resident experts, with even better compensation.

He paused before continuing, "Take the county town's Sihai Shipping Company, for example. They hire Skin Grinding Realm martial artists year-round to escort their ships and guard against River Bandits and Sea Beasts. Zhangji Fish Market needs capable men to hold down the fort, preventing others from seizing their supply or causing trouble. Then there are Hundred Refinements Iron Shop, Green Spirit Medicine Hall, and the like. Even if one merely lends them his name, he can receive several taels of silver in monthly stipend money."

"That is why the Black Tide Gang fears me. Their gang leader is only at the Skin Grinding Realm as well, so he would not easily offend another martial artist of the same realm—especially one as young as I am."

The family listened in utter astonishment. They had only known that the Skin Grinding Realm was formidable, never imagining it came with so many tangible benefits and such lofty status!

An annual salary of dozens of taels, simply for lending one's name! That was a fortune their family could not save even after fishing hard for an entire year. And there were all sorts of positions that inspired awe just by hearing their names...

It meant that the Chen Family would finally cast off the fate of lowly fishermen. They truly had a path upward now, along with the confidence to walk it!

"Good! Good! Good!" Chen Tie Mao said "good" three times in a row, tears glittering in his eyes. "Brother Yuan, you have earned unprecedented honor for our family!"

As Chen Yuan watched his family's excited and joyful faces, his heart too filled with a sense of accomplishment and responsibility. He knew this was only the beginning.

Though the Skin Grinding Realm already made one somebody in the county town, on the broad road of martial arts, it was merely the first step.

At the same time, the Tidal Stele that had lain silent in his Sea of Consciousness trembled faintly once more. Tide Luck Points +10 (Skin Grinding first revealed, vile guest driven away).

Realm: Skin Grinding Realm · Initial Stage (5/100)

Tide Luck Points: 35/100

The Tidal Stele within his Sea of Consciousness was his true support.

He would accumulate Tide Fortune, wait for the next Ebbing Tide, and obtain more resources and opportunities.

The Chen Family's small courtyard was immersed in unprecedented joy and hope. Chen Yuan wore a smile as he dealt with his family's wild excitement, but his heart gradually calmed.

The Black Tide Gang... though they had retreated today, they might not be truly convinced. His experience from his previous life had taught him that one must pull weeds up by the roots when eliminating evil. He knew even better that, given the nature of such thugs, deterrence alone might not be reliable.

"Grandfather, Father, Mother," Chen Yuan said steadily, "there is no need to publicize this matter too widely for now. I must first return to the martial arts school, report to the instructor, and register my cultivation. That will make it legitimate, and I can enjoy the school's preferential treatment for Skin Grinding Realm disciples. As for what we do afterward, we can discuss it at length."

"Right, right, right! That is exactly what should be done!" Chen Tie Mao nodded repeatedly. "Brother Yuan has thought it through thoroughly. Quick, Sanniang, prepare some dry rations for Brother Yuan to eat on the road..."

"Grandfather, there's no need to trouble yourselves. I'll be back soon." As Chen Yuan spoke, he strode out of the courtyard, but he did not head directly toward the county town.

His figure flashed. Using the village houses as cover, he listened intently, then quickly followed Scarred Liu and his group.

His Skin Grinding Realm cultivation made his steps light and his hearing sharp. He trailed them from afar without being discovered.

He heard Scarred Liu quietly berating his men. "...Shut the hell up, all of you. Skin Grinding Realm—are they someone we can provoke? How old is he? He'll become an official someday. Even the gang leader would have to be polite when he sees him! If anyone dares cause trouble for the Chen Family again, I'll cripple him first. Get moving, did you hear me?"

"Heard you, heard you..." The lackeys hurriedly replied. None of their former arrogance remained; only lingering fear filled their faces.

Another person quietly asked, "Head Liu, then... that money pouch we left on the ground..."

"Idiot! You're still thinking about the money pouch?!" Scarred Liu was so furious he nearly jumped. "That was life-buying money, understand? He didn't take it because he's magnanimous. Are we supposed to go ask for it back? Are you tired of living? Hurry up and move. When we get back, all of you keep your mouths shut!"

The group dared not say another word. They quickened their pace, slinking miserably toward the Black Tide Gang's hideout outside the village as though fierce beasts were chasing them from behind.

Concealed at the corner of a house, Chen Yuan heard every word clearly.

It seemed they truly feared him and would likely not dare cause trouble again in the short term. He weighed the matter in his heart. If he followed them and attacked now, he could eliminate the threat, but it would inevitably alarm everyone around them. If it provoked the Black Tide Gang leader into retaliating, the loss would outweigh the gain.

Better to let them go for now. His own strength and status were the foundation. Once his cultivation was higher, dealing with them would be as easy as lifting a hand.

His killing intent subsided, and he turned, striding swiftly toward the county town.