Soaking in a bath and getting stronger at the same time—what a delightful deal.
Twenty minutes later, Su Chen glanced at the panel, his expression briefly going blank:
Martial Arts:...Iron Cloth Skill Fragment (Second Layer 1%) Easy Mode:...Iron Cloth Skill Fragment 0 times (Limit Ape Arm Skill + 10 portions of Qi Blood Powder/time)
On the panel, Iron Cloth Skill had advanced to the second layer. However, the requirements for advancing to the next layer had increased by one.
Besides ten portions of Qi Blood Powder, he also needed to train Ape Arm Skill to its limit.
After confirming that, Su Chen paid it no further attention.
"I was wondering what to spend money on for my next upgrade. Now I don't have to agonize over it: I'll push Ape Arm Skill to its limit first, then gather Qi Blood Powder and upgrade Iron Cloth Skill too. Two birds with one stone."
After his bath, Su Chen got up, eager to test the power of Iron Cloth Skill at the second layer.
He could faintly feel the force in his palm had grown stronger. At a thought, it coursed swiftly through his hand.
After getting dressed, he went to the backyard and struck a stone. In the blink of an eye, it cracked with a sharp snap.
Su Chen didn't stop there. He kept testing, striking five times in a row before the force in his palm was completely spent.
In other words, Su Chen could now attack with force five times—four times as many as before.
"If I'd had this much strength when I fought those two, why would I have hesitated? I'd have slapped them both to death!"
That was what Su Chen thought. Thanks to Iron Wire Fist and Iron Sand Palm, his force was somewhat stronger than that of an ordinary beginner who had learned to wield force.
He'd killed them with a single ambush before. Now that his force had increased, he should be able to slap them both to death.
"Come to think of it, I wonder where I'd rank in White Stone City with my strength now."
The thought came to Su Chen, then quickly faded. He shook his head and went inside to sleep.
Over the next two days, Su Chen barely went out, staying home to study medicine.
He still remembered how Chu Ming had dismissed his poison as completely worthless, so he planned to spend the coming days researching a new poison.
As he studied poisons, Su Chen also worked on his poisoning techniques. He felt that his failure to poison Chu Ming unconscious last time was due not only to the poison's weakness, but also to his crude methods.
Other people administered poison without a sound, while he was still using the old-fashioned approach. It was only natural that he'd been found out.
"Whether it's medicine or poison, I have to keep learning and keep up with the times. Otherwise, I'll be left behind."
After two days of study, Su Chen had made little progress in developing poison, but his poisoning techniques had improved considerably.
They weren't particularly sophisticated, but he could now administer poison with a flick of his sleeve—a huge improvement.
On the third day, Su Chen continued studying in the morning and planned to go to the Martial Hall in the afternoon.
It had been seven days since his last visit. Today was the eighth, which meant he could collect his Qi Blood Powder.
After eating, Su Chen bought some gifts for Hong Ming. He felt bad about always showing up empty-handed.
When he arrived at the Martial Hall, Su Chen sensed something strange in the air as soon as he entered. The disciples had gathered in groups, whispering among themselves.
Some of the people who recognized Su Chen straightened up when they saw him, then greeted him. "Senior Brother Su."
Su Chen nodded. "What happened?"
The few disciples clearly froze for a moment, but then one of them remembered that Su Chen rarely came to the Martial Hall and explained, "Senior Brother Su, you may not know, but Master was injured."
"What are you all standing around for? Get back to training!"
Just as Su Chen was about to ask more, a shout rang out. Li Mo walked over, interrupting the disciples' whispers.
At his words, the disciples scattered like startled rabbits and began practicing.
"Junior Brother Su, you're here."
Li Mo came over to Su Chen, noticed the gifts in his hand, and paused. Then he smiled.
"Senior Brother Li Mo, what exactly happened? How did Master get injured?"
Su Chen didn't explain. He simply asked what he wanted to know.
"You don't know?" Li Mo blinked, looking surprised.
Su Chen shook his head. Seeing Li Mo glance at the gifts in his hand, he explained why he'd brought them.
"I thought you'd heard." Li Mo scratched his head after listening. "Master was injured by someone."
"Injured by someone?" Su Chen furrowed his brow.
Li Mo nodded. "Yeah. He was hurt while sparring with someone..."
From Li Mo, Su Chen learned what had happened.
The situation had grown increasingly tense lately. News had come from neighboring Yellow Stone City that rebels were causing trouble. Though the authorities had sent troops to suppress them, the uprising still hadn't been quelled.
As a result, some of the forces in Yellow Stone City had moved to nearby cities, including White Stone City.
Three days ago, a group of martial artists arrived in White Stone City, set up a challenge ring, and challenged the city's various Martial Halls.
The group was powerful. Many Martial Hall masters had been defeated, and in the end, they set their sights on the city's three top Martial Halls.
Their first choice was the Hong Family Martial Hall. The other side put up a hundred taels as the stakes and challenged Hong Ming to a match.
If Hong Ming won, he would get the hundred taels. If he lost, he wasn't allowed to interfere with their opening a Martial Hall in White Stone City.
With no other choice, Hong Ming agreed to fight. He hadn't expected his opponent to be a force-wielding martial artist. Naturally, Hong Ming was no match for him and was easily defeated.
"Junior Brother, don't worry too much. Master's injuries have improved over the past few days. He'll recover before long."
Seeing Su Chen's grave expression, Li Mo tried to reassure him.
"I'll go see Master first."
Su Chen didn't explain. Injuries caused by force weren't easily healed. He said a few words, then turned and headed into the inner courtyard.
In the inner courtyard, Hong Ming sat on a stone bench, leaning on a cane as he instructed Qin Hao in his training.
His expression was stern, and his complexion ruddy. His injuries didn't look too serious, which eased Su Chen's mind.
"Junior Brother Su!"
Qin Hao was the first to notice Su Chen. When he saw him, he called out.
Su Chen nodded and went to Hong Ming. He set down the gifts and asked, "Master, are you all right?"
"What could possibly be wrong with me?" Hong Ming glared at him. "What did you bring all this stuff for?"
"Uh, it's a token of my respect," Su Chen said with an awkward grin.
Hearing this, Hong Ming's expression softened slightly. He didn't dwell on it and then said with a knowing smile, "You came to the Martial Hall to show your respect, but you're also here to collect your medicine, aren't you?"
Su Chen: "..."
"All right, wait a moment." Hong Ming stood and left, leaning on his cane. A short while later, he came back out of a room with a packet of medicine in his hand.
He handed it to Su Chen and coughed several times. "Cough, cough, cough. Take it!"
As Su Chen watched Hong Ming cough and looked at the Qi Blood Powder being handed to him, his heart trembled.
He reached out and accepted the Qi Blood Powder. For some reason, the packet felt unbearably heavy.
"Thank you, Master," Su Chen said softly.
Hong Ming waved a hand, as if desperately holding something back. He said nothing more.
Seeing this, Su Chen bowed and took his leave. "Master, I'll head out now."
With that, Su Chen walked away. Hong Ming nodded.
Qin Hao watched Su Chen leave with such ease, envy flickering in his eyes. He wished Master would treat him so gently too.
"What are you looking at? Get back to training."
"Yes, Master!"
After leaving the inner courtyard, Su Chen found Li Mo and asked, "Senior Brother Li Mo, could you tell me which force injured Master?"
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