From the Inner City to the Outer City.
From sprawling courtyards with rows of upturned eaves to short, low houses built of packed earth in Coiling Snake Alley.
Luo Yongcheng was not wrong to want to protect the secret recipe.
Most people would have made the same choice. After all, his grandfather had gathered the ingredients for the recipe deep in the mountains, enduring countless hardships and escaping death several times before finally putting it together. And that was without even counting the time and effort involved; they had spent a great deal of silver as well.
After all, this Blood Nourishing Medicinal Cuisine really did work wonders for ordinary people preparing to practice martial arts. Once it went on sale in Pingling County, it would be like owning a hen that laid golden eggs. As long as he protected the secret recipe, silver would keep rolling in.
It was truly a family fortune that could keep them wealthy for generations.
Was there anything wrong with wanting to protect such a fortune?
There really wasn't.
It was just that he was too weak.
A man is not guilty of a crime, yet a piece of jade brings disaster upon him.
To truly gain a foothold in Pingling County, one had to be steady and ruthless.
Being steady meant having a high enough martial realm, or finding a reliable backer.
Being ruthless meant eliminating every threat before danger arrived.
Luo Yongcheng's situation was one Jiang Shu would surely face himself someday.
He had to prepare early.
Traveling between the Two Worlds, standing in stances, breathing, and practicing his punches.
He trained diligently, day and night, and a month slipped by in silence.
Pingling County.
The sky was dark and heavy, thick with clouds, as if a downpour were about to break.
Hungry Tiger Martial Arts School.
It was time for the monthly sparring matches again.
The moment Little Fatty Zhou Yang saw Jiang Shu step inside, he hurried over, the flesh on his face bunching into an obsequious smile. "Brother Jiang, you're here! Have you eaten? I brought some of Tongfu Restaurant's finest Blood Strengthening Wine today. Do me the honor?"
"This Blood Strengthening Wine isn't like ordinary wine. They say it's made with several rare medicinal ingredients."
As Zhou Yang spoke, his voice grew quieter and quieter. He wished he could lean right into Jiang Shu's ear. "This wine works wonders. The young masters from those wealthy families always have a cup when they go to Sparrow Pavilion! They can go all night without falling."
"Of course, if you'd rather not, Brother Jiang, all you need to do is circulate your qi and blood. The wine will strengthen your whole body's qi and blood, saving you about half an hour of grueling stance practice!"
Pointing proudly at the exquisite wooden box he had set aside earlier, Zhou Yang looked pleased with himself.
He had watched Jiang Shu join Hungry Tiger Martial Arts School as a nobody, then earn Elder Qiu's praise several times in a row.
Among the forty or fifty students at the school, who had the best chance of becoming an official disciple?
Without a doubt, it was Jiang Shu!
An official disciple of the martial arts school was no ordinary practitioner who had completed the Full Body Vital Energy Circulation.
An official disciple had already stepped halfway into the Skin Tempering Realm.
With enough Hungry Tiger Secret Medicine, reaching the Skin Tempering Realm would come naturally, in as little as half a year or as long as a year.
If he didn't build a good relationship now, what was the point of currying favor after Elder Qiu took Jiang Shu in as a disciple? The daylilies would already have gone cold!
Besides, he and Jiang Shu had had a small disagreement back then. He didn't know whether Jiang Shu held a grudge, but it couldn't hurt to smile and flatter him a little.
"Hmph."
Jiang Shu hadn't even replied when footsteps sounded nearby. Luo Yongcheng strode through the entrance and snorted as he looked at Jiang Shu and Zhou Yang.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Trying to curry favor with Jiang Shu didn't mean Zhou Yang had to put up with everyone else.
If Luo Yongcheng's family pharmacy were still open, Zhou Yang might have shown him some respect. Not out of fear, purely because he didn't want trouble.
But now?
In a little over a month, that member of the Yao Family would be celebrating his fiftieth birthday.
After all that effort, the secret recipe for the Luo Family Pharmacy's Blood Nourishing Medicinal Cuisine would surely appear on the list of birthday gifts.
Did Luo Yongcheng think he could protect it?
Dream on.
"Keep it down. Aren't you almost ready to start Qi and Blood Transportation? Do you really have to go this far? If you didn't have that kind of talent, what you did to Han Dali would've gotten you kicked out of the school long ago."
"Heh..." Hearing Jiang Shu's blunt words, Zhou Yang only grinned foolishly. He wasn't an ingrate; by now, he had gotten a pretty good sense of Jiang Shu's temperament.
If Jiang Shu was willing to exchange a few words with him, it meant they could still get along.
Looks like all the effort he'd put in lately hadn't been wasted.
While Zhou Yang continued to flatter him, the sparring matches began.
Two more students had been recruited by wealthy families last month and become senior guards.
So there were only a few students on the field today who had completed the Full Body Vital Energy Circulation.
Before long, it was time for the students practicing Qi and Blood Transportation to spar.
"First round: Jiang Shu and Luo Yongcheng."
The maid's voice rang out clearly.
"Junior Brother Jiang, a pleasure."
Luo Yongcheng quickly strode onto the field.
A dose of Hungry Tiger Secret Medicine only lasted three to five days.
He had been waiting a long time for this day's sparring match.
Watching Jiang Shu follow him onto the field, Luo Yongcheng narrowed his eyes and spoke one word at a time.
This time, he was still lucky.
His opponent wasn't one of the students who had been practicing Qi and Blood Transportation for a long time.
Jiang Shu had been practicing it for less than two months. He couldn't possibly be Luo Yongcheng's match.
Jiang Shu had won last month purely by luck, drawing someone with a weaker foundation.
This month, Luo Yongcheng would put an end to his good fortune.
Thinking of Elder Qiu's occasional guidance of Jiang Shu, Luo Yongcheng couldn't help glancing back at Elder Qiu. He clenched both fists.
If Jiang Shu was beaten in front of everyone and failed to earn the Hungry Tiger Secret Medicine, what would Elder Qiu's expression be? And what would Jiang Shu's be?
Just imagining it sent a strange thrill rising from the depths of his heart!
Without the slightest hesitation, Luo Yongcheng struck first.
For martial artists who hadn't yet reached the Skin Tempering Realm, there were no moves that could shatter stone tablets or split boulders.
When the two fought, it came down to whose fists were bigger, harder, and faster!
Jiang Shu, you think there's no point in becoming a martial artist.
But I've never slacked off in martial arts.
The Hungry Tiger Secret Medicine is mine!
Luo Yongcheng charged straight at him, swinging his right palm viciously toward Jiang Shu's chest.
He had already mastered the Tiger Form Three Styles!
Jiang Shu didn't hurry. He pivoted, shifting his body just enough to evade the fiercest part of the blow. He let the wind of the strike whistle past his ear, then stepped back.
Unlike last month, when they had traded blows head-on, this month he knew how to use finesse.
In his view, the most important thing in a fight was eyesight.
If he could see his opponent's moves coming, he had several ways to respond.
Retreat when the attack was at its strongest.
Strike when the opponent was most exhausted.
Deal the greatest damage at the smallest cost.
Jiang Shu stepped back, but Luo Yongcheng pressed his advantage and closed in again, chopping down with another palm strike.
Jiang Shu retreated once more.
But as he moved back, one hand darted out from the side and slammed into Luo Yongcheng's shoulder. Luo Yongcheng had overreached, and his stance was already unsteady!
"Bang!"
That single strike was enough. Luo Yongcheng let out a muffled groan, and his attack was interrupted at once.
Jiang Shu surged forward.
Fists and palms flew without pause.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
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