Fuyang Saber Technique

Chen Mo slept until midday before waking.

The first thing he did after getting up was lift his undershirt and check the baby face on his abdomen.

Thankfully, the baby's mouth hadn't opened.

"This is making me so tense... I can't even get a decent night's sleep."

By dusk, Ma Tie arrived with three death-row prisoners bound up.

Chen Mo, who had still been lying in bed recovering, perked up at once. He sat bolt upright and sized up the three prisoners.

One was a thin young man, sickly and weak. His qi and blood were clearly inferior to Chen Mo's.

Another was a sturdy man who looked a little more imposing than Chen Mo. His qi and blood were probably somewhat stronger, too.

The third was a man with a face full of coarse flesh. His qi and blood were astonishing, and a prominent knife scar marked his face. When he smiled, the scar wriggled, making him look terrifying.

Ma Tie gave a brief introduction. "The skinny one's a petty thief. He was sentenced to death. The other one's a Maike. He killed someone over a dispute of interest and was sentenced to death, too. The scarred man's a bandit, a martial artist who's just entered the Skin Refining Realm. Captain Wang caught him. They're all vile, unforgivable criminals. The young master bought them to test medicine, so you could say he's carrying out Heaven's justice."

With that, Ma Tie took out some leftover silver and offered it to Chen Mo with both hands. "This is what was left over, Second Young Master. Please take it."

Chen Mo glanced at it. There were probably more than ten taels of silver.

Ma Tie could easily have pocketed that small sum.

But he'd handed it over of his own accord.

That showed his character could be trusted.

Chen Mo felt reassured. "Keep the extra for yourself. Consider it a fee for running the errand."

"Thank you, Second Young Master." Only then did Ma Tie happily accept it.

Chen Mo reached into the bowl, pinched off a small portion of the skin-and-membrane paste, and formed three equal-sized pills. He handed them to Ma Tie. "One each. Make them swallow them."

Ma Tie took the pills and forcefully shoved them into the three prisoners' mouths.

The prisoners had already been beaten black and blue. How could they possibly stand up to Ma Tie?

After struggling a couple of times, they gave up.

The next moment, Chen Mo stared hard at them, not missing the slightest change in their expressions. At the same time, he kept his eyes on the Bronze Clepsydra nearby, ready to record the time.

A few minutes later, the skinny man's skin suddenly turned bright red. He cried that he was burning up, then curled into a trembling ball. Before long, he started foaming at the mouth and died on the spot. His corpse radiated scorching heat.

Chen Mo's pupils shrank.

Just as he'd thought...

The Golden Finger was worth its weight in gold.

It was a good thing he hadn't rushed to take the medicine himself.

Otherwise, he'd be dead.

About a quarter of an hour later, the Maike began trembling too. He was tormented by unbearable heat and itching, then fell to the ground, shivering and crying that he was burning up. In no time, his legs jerked once and he died.

His corpse had already gone rigid, billowing waves of heat.

Chen Mo felt a chill run through him again.

The Maike had been a little sturdier than him, yet he'd still died.

It seemed an ordinary person's qi and blood couldn't withstand the Yang Qi corrosion of Guard Qi.

Chen Mo forced down his panic and watched the last bandit.

Half an hour passed. The bandit only trembled a few times, his skin reddened, but he showed no other unusual symptoms.

Another half hour passed. The bandit still showed no particular reaction. He only trembled and complained that he was hot.

Chen Mo let out a breath and asked, "Does anything feel wrong with your body?"

The bandit glared at Chen Mo with venom in his eyes and didn't answer.

How could he not see? Chen Mo had bought him to test poison.

What a vicious bastard.

He'd have been better off in prison. Even if they'd dragged him out to be beheaded, at least he'd have gotten a last, filling meal.

Chen Mo saw what he was thinking. "You just need to cooperate with me and let me keep track of your symptoms. Once it's done, I'll let you go."

The bandit looked up and asked in disbelief, "Really?"

Ma Tie kicked him. "Our Second Young Master is famous throughout Honghe County. Why would he lie to a nobody like you?"

Only then did the bandit speak. "So you're the Second Young Master of the Chen Family. I've heard of you. I just feel hot, hot to the bone. Nothing else."

Chen Mo nodded. "What's your name?"

"Chen San."

Chen Mo said, "For now, you'll stay in the rear building in the back courtyard. I'll have someone keep an eye on you, and you'll get meat and wine every day. But I'll have someone record your symptoms regularly."

At the promise of meat and wine, Chen San immediately nodded in agreement.

Chen Mo swept his hand. "Ma Tie, take him away. Tie him up and keep him separately from the woman. Also, take these two corpses to her."

After dismissing the two men, Chen Mo collapsed onto the bed and let out a deep breath of relief.

"At last, I've found a glimmer of hope in this desperate situation. The qi and blood of a martial artist just entering the Skin Refining Realm can withstand the Yang Qi corrosion in this Guard Qi paste. As long as I cultivate to the Skin Refining Realm, I'll be able to take it."

"I wonder how hard it is to reach the Skin Refining Realm. Tomorrow morning, I'll ask Uncle Zhou for a martial art to practice."

Practicing martial arts was a serious matter. It would be best to consult Uncle Zhou.

Having made up his mind, Chen Mo tried to sleep, but tossed and turned in bed, unable to drift off.

He was constantly on edge, afraid he'd suddenly fall ill and turn into a man-eating, heart-ripping demon, then eat himself...

In the end, he was so exhausted that he finally sank into a fitful sleep.

The next morning, the sky had only just begun to brighten.

Chen Mo turned over and checked the baby face on his abdomen. Its mouth still hadn't opened, and only then did he feel relieved.

Chen Mo hurried to check on the woman. Seeing nothing amiss, he asked Qiulan to fetch Zhou Liang.

"Second Young Master wants to practice martial arts?" Zhou Liang was greatly surprised to hear that Chen Mo wanted to take up martial arts.

The Chen Family had been merchants for generations. No one in the family had ever practiced martial arts.

Besides, when Chen Yin Fu raised his two legitimate sons, he taught them how to conduct themselves and run a business. He'd never encouraged them to practice martial arts.

Zhou Liang truly couldn't understand why Chen Mo would turn his back on a life of wealth and comfort and insist on enduring the hardships of martial arts.

Chen Mo came up with an excuse. "My elder brother died of the illness last month. I fell ill four days ago and nearly died myself. The world's in chaos, and disease is rampant. I want to practice martial arts and give myself a better chance of staying safe."

Zhou Liang nodded. "That's true enough. But martial arts are hard work, and I'm worried Second Young Master won't be able to endure it. And even if you can bear the hardships, there's no guarantee you'll get anywhere."

Chen Mo gave a bitter smile. "Uncle Zhou, I've already died once, in a manner of speaking. Compared to the terror of Mad Demon Disease, what's a little hardship? As for whether I can succeed, I have my own reasons."

Zhou Liang studied Chen Mo for a long while. Noticing the seriousness in his eyes, he truly felt that the Second Young Master was no longer the same as before. He nodded. "After this illness, you've become much more mature and steady. What martial art do you want to practice?"

What martial art?

That really stumped Chen Mo.

He didn't know the first thing about the martial arts of this world...

Zhou Liang seemed to notice his awkwardness and began listing the options from memory. "Martial arts are means of killing, a path of great danger, and should be treated with seriousness. Ordinary martial arts are usually built on stance training. Only after laying a solid foundation can you begin practicing fist, palm, and leg techniques. Once your hand-to-hand skills are mastered, you can move on to weapons: saber, spear, and sword techniques. Of course, you can also practice weapons directly after laying a solid foundation in stance training. Which kind does Second Young Master want to learn?"

Chen Mo gave a bitter smile and asked outright, "Is there a martial art that can quickly improve qi and blood?"

Zhou Liang was a little surprised. "Second Young Master sees things clearly. Fist and foot techniques or weapon skills are only the outward trappings. What a martial artist ultimately relies on is the strength of his own qi and blood. That's the right path. You've only just started learning about martial arts, yet you already have such clear insight."

Chen Mo: "..."

I just want to stay alive.

Zhou Liang continued, "Training with a heavy weapon is the fastest way to build qi and blood. Hammer techniques, the long spear, saber techniques—they'll all do. I'm best at saber techniques. Since Second Young Master is interested, I'll give you the saber technique I practiced in my younger days. Take a rough look at it first. Once you've recovered and can get out of bed, I'll teach you."

With that, Zhou Liang took a yellowed booklet from inside his clothes and handed it to Chen Mo.

"Thank you, Uncle Zhou." Chen Mo thanked him before taking the booklet.

Four large characters were written on the cover:

Fuyang Saber Technique.

Chen Mo tried to bring up the panel.

To his surprise, a rectangular bar had appeared on the cover, along with a Black Rod and three lines of text.

[Current Original Understanding Essence: 0]

[Current Recognition Count: 1]

[Detected an object that can be recognized. Recognize it?]

Hmm?

He had another chance to recognize something?

Just in time.

Chen Mo didn't hesitate. He immediately focused his thoughts:

Recognize!