The Qingyun Army's morale soared. The black-armored brute was dead, and once Qian Wu, a Bone Forging Qingyun officer, was free to move, he led his men in several fierce charges, while Su Mu kept cutting down the enemy.
The Black Mountain Rebel Army's will to fight collapsed completely. In the end, the battle ended in a resounding victory for the Qingyun Army.
"Thank you, hero, for your righteous aid and for ridding the people of this menace. I, Qian Wu, offer my thanks on behalf of the Qingyun Army."
Qian Wu clasped his hands toward Su Mu in salute, then bowed.
Su Mu merely gave a slight nod. He quickly searched Hong Shan's corpse, pulled out a blood-soaked bundle, then tore a piece of cloth from a nearby corpse, wrapped up the severed head, and turned to leave.
He had come for revenge. Now that his blood feud was settled, he would be on his way.
"Officer Qian, we can't let him take the bandit's head or belongings. The County Marshal specifically ordered—" one Qingyun Army soldier began hesitantly.
Before he could finish, Qian Wu shot him a fierce glare. "Don't bring this up again. I'll report it to the County Marshal myself."
Qian Wu knew full well that the black-armored brute was stronger than he was. With his iron armor and inborn brute strength combined, the man had nearly matched a Second Bone Forging Martial Artist. If Su Mu hadn't stepped in today, they wouldn't just have failed to kill the brute—all of them might have died here.
"The roar of a tiger, Tiger Subduing Fist. This man has ties to Vajra Temple... He knows not only a high-level Lightness Skill, but Hidden Force, too. The fist technique he used to kill the bandit leader was extraordinary as well... He's deliberately lowering his voice, but he's probably not very old. Vajra Temple really has produced an incredible talent."
Watching Su Mu walk away, Qian Wu found himself intensely curious about him. Vajra Temple was a religious institution, but as one of the five great powers in Qingyun County, it also had many lay disciples.
He guessed Su Mu was one of them, and no ordinary one at that. Perhaps he was a disciple of some Vajra Temple master.
Without a renowned master's guidance or the resources of a great power, how could anyone, no matter how gifted, master several martial arts at such a young age—and even cultivate Hidden Force to a level most Martial Artists could never reach in their lifetimes?
What Qian Wu could never have guessed was that Su Mu had learned all his martial arts on his own. Martial Artists who had mastered Hidden Force could indeed send their energy through their skin and flesh, but in practice, they could only cover a small part of their bodies.
The "film of force" that had been mistaken for Transforming Force was simply the result of Su Mu's three practiced fist techniques giving him far more abundant force than an ordinary Martial Artist, his near-perfect bodily control from Perfected Five Animal Frolics, and his astonishing comprehension. By a stroke of chance, he had brought them together.
"I've avenged Master Zhou and the other masters!"
On the way, Su Mu took off his bloodstained Night-walking Clothes and abandoned them in the wilderness. Before returning to the shop, he changed back into gray cloth garments. He rented a room at an inn in town, stored the head and blood-soaked bundle there, then quickly washed up.
When he returned to the Iron Shop, Li Xiaohu had woken up.
"Su Mu, why are you back? Hmm, what's that sharp smell on you?"
Before Su Mu could answer, someone noticed the blood dripping from his arms. One of the masters asked anxiously, "Xiao Mu, are you hurt? Come here, there's still a bottle of the bruise medicine you brought. I'll put some on for you."
"I just... took a tumble when I went out earlier. It's nothing."
The sound of suona horns lingered over the town for more than half a month. Nine households out of ten wore mourning clothes. While secretly asking around for news of Pharmacist Lin, Su Mu stayed at the shop to help handle the deceased masters' funeral arrangements.
The other masters all had families. Su Mu accompanied Uncle Li as he went from house to house to deliver the news of their deaths. Before long, their families came to town to claim the bodies and take them back to their ancestral villages for burial. Uncle Li also gave each family a substantial sum for funeral expenses.
Master Zhou Shan had no family. After Uncle Li consulted with the townspeople and made the necessary arrangements, they agreed to let Zhou Shan be buried alongside the people of Qingshui Town who had died, at White Egret Mountain to the west of town.
Su Mu ordered a fine coffin for Zhou Shan, then placed the ancestral Parchment Scroll of prescriptions inside it.
The fifth day was an auspicious one. Su Mu carried Zhou Shan's coffin to its final resting place. Once it was lowered into the ground and covered with yellow earth, the funeral was over.
"Xiao Mu, it's time to go back."
"Uncle Li, you and the others go on ahead. I want to talk with Uncle Zhou a little longer."
"All right."
Su Mu bought several jugs of wine. He poured one cup over the grave and drank another himself. After several jugs, he collapsed drunk before the tomb. That night, he had a long, long dream.
Two years in a dream.
From the Qing Province prison to the sickly young master who rescued a prisoner from the execution ground; from the death soldiers to his time as an apprentice practicing martial arts and blacksmithing—Su Mu relived nearly everything he had experienced since crossing into this world almost two years ago.
In his drunken stupor, memories of training in Five Animal Frolics, Tiger Subduing Fist, Rock Shattering Fist, Startled Sparrow Steps, Gale Fist, and the rest swept past. At that moment, Su Mu's Excellent Talent, Raw Jade comprehension of 14 quietly took effect.
The force within his body began to circulate on its own.
At a certain moment.
Vmm—
The drunk Su Mu's bones and muscles hummed. Faint tiger roars seemed to circle around him. In the mountain night, the restless jackals, snakes, and insects fell silent, not daring to go anywhere near the hill where he lay.
Tiger Subduing Fist (Perfected)
Comprehension: 17 (Excellent Talent, Raw Jade)
Tiger Subduing Fist was the first Ranked Martial Art Su Mu had practiced. After his life-and-death battle with the armored brute, he had already come infinitely close to perfection. Then came parting and death, and now, with his blood feud settled, he had drunk himself into a stupor and found peace of mind. In his dream, he achieved sudden enlightenment, breaking through the limits of mastery in one fell swoop and surging into perfection.
Whoosh—
Just then, a fierce, searing warmth welled up in Su Mu's abdomen. It flowed through every limb and channel, setting the blood in his body surging and his force churning until it sounded like rushing water.
The dream continued. The fierce force of Tiger Subduing Fist, the gentle force of Rock Shattering Fist, and the concentrated force of Gale Fist slowly collided inside Su Mu. Then the three forces intertwined and merged.
"Hic... Uncle Zhou, I avenged you!"
"Force follows the heart, covers the whole body, and becomes armor..."
The drunken boy murmured in his sleep as the film of force flowed over every inch of his skin.
At dawn, the rising sun spilled a ray of light across the boy's resolute face. After a whole night of drunken sleep, he slowly awoke.
The moment Su Mu got to his feet, he sensed something was different.
Hm?
He felt more refreshed than ever, and his body was astonishingly light. Su Mu looked puzzled and immediately brought up his attribute panel to check.
What he saw stunned him.
"After I got drunk last night... Tiger Subduing Fist reached perfection, and my comprehension increased by three points?"
Su Mu calmed himself and carefully examined his body. He immediately noticed that the three forces inside him had merged in a way he had never experienced before.
"What happened last night?"
Su Mu tried to summon his force, only to find that the merged energy was far more abundant than before. With a thought, he tried to form the film of force.
In an instant, it was as if he had opened the door to a new world. His force spread outward, flowing over every inch of his flesh and blood, reaching his internal organs before rising to the surface of his skin.
At a thought, his force surged like a rising tide, instantly reaching every part of his body, right down to the skin and hair. It churned at tremendous speed across his surface, strong enough to withstand ordinary blades.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
A mountain breeze swept through, sending dead leaves and dust whirling over Su Mu. But when the wind died down, not a speck of dust remained on him. At his feet, a small patch of ground lay bare, without a single dead leaf.
Beyond that patch lay a pile of fine powder: dead leaves shattered by the film of force.
"This is Transforming Force... No, not yet. It should count as half a step toward Transforming Force. The force in my body still isn't solid enough. Maybe I'll advance once I master Gale Fist, or perhaps after I perfect another fist technique!"
Feeling the power of this half-step toward Transforming Force, Su Mu was filled with confidence. If he faced the armored brute again, even without Qian Wu backing him up, he could kill his enemy alone—and wouldn't have to pay for it with injuries to both arms.
"Transforming Force really is strong enough to rival a Bone Forging Martial Artist!"
Just then, several clusters of tiny black dots below the mountain caught Su Mu's attention. From the summit, he looked down into the distance. Those ant-sized specks were actually a force of more than a hundred people.
The hundred-strong force was heading toward Qingshui Town.
"The Black Tiger Gang. You're finally back!"
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