Blackwater County Prison arrived at dusk.
Lin Guanhuo and the others led the prison cart to the prison entrance, where several guards were on duty.
A tall wall of black bricks surrounded the prison, making it look like a colossal fortress, its depths unfathomable.
This was where Blackwater County held its most serious criminals. As an important County Office facility, it was plastered with signs warning, "No admittance to unauthorized persons."
"Gentlemen, the prisoner's here," Lin Guanhuo said, then handed over the prisoner intake form issued by the Government Office.
The guard at the gate gave it a cursory glance and waved them on. Several of his colleagues opened the prison gate and shoved the old man inside, jostling him all the way.
Just then—
"Here, this is for your hard work."
The guard casually tossed a few copper coins at Lin Guanhuo and the others, as if shooing away a pack of beggars.
"Clink."
The coins hit the ground with a crisp sound.
Lin Guanhuo bent to pick them up. There were two in all.
After collecting the coins, the group left the prison. The two White Servants accompanying him, Xu Dadao and Li Hu, immediately started cursing.
"Damn it! We work our asses off all day, and they give us two Wen Coins?!" Xu Dadao spat on the ground. "What a bunch of stingy bastards! What can two Wen Coins even buy? You'd be hard-pressed to get two coarse flour buns!"
"Enough. Give it a rest," Li Hu said, his face just as sour. "Come on, let's get back. I'm frozen stiff after a whole day of this."
The two men walked off, still grumbling.
Lin Guanhuo didn't complain. He simply slipped the two copper coins into his pocket in silence.
By the time he reached the Miscellaneous Room Courtyard, night had fallen completely.
Lin Guanhuo walked quietly along the street. In the faint moonlight, he looked thoughtful, then pulled out the oilcloth bundle the old man had given him.
The old man had been so mysterious about it earlier. Lin Guanhuo had no idea what was inside.
But—
When he saw what was inside, Lin Guanhuo froze for a moment.
It was... a piece of silver!
Its surface was somewhat blackened, and its shape was irregular.
Lin Guanhuo bit down on it. A clear tooth mark appeared on the surface.
Real silver!
He weighed it in his hand. It had to be at least two taels!
In this world, one Wen Coin could buy a steamed bun, while one tael of silver was worth a thousand Wen Coins!
These two Taels of Silver were enough for a family of three to live comfortably for half a year!
If he used it to buy meat... he could get at least fifty jin of the finest cooked beef!
Good people get good things in return, huh...
Half an hour later.
Lin Guanhuo hurried back to the Miscellaneous Room Courtyard, carrying a paper-wrapped bundle.
The moment he stepped inside, the rich aroma of meat filled the room, impossible to hide.
He shut the doors and windows, then eagerly opened the bundle.
Inside were two whole jin of sliced Braised Beef, giving off an irresistible fragrance.
On an ordinary day, Lin Guanhuo wouldn't even have dared dream of this.
He grabbed a big piece of beef and stuffed it into his mouth like a starving wolf, barely bothering to chew.
"Mmm..."
The long-missed taste of meat burst across his tongue, rich with the fragrance of fat and protein!
One piece after another, he wolfed it down.
He polished off the full two jin of beef in less than a quarter of an hour.
As the food settled in his stomach, warmth spread through him, and the weakness caused by long-term malnutrition quickly faded.
In its place, a wave of heat surged through his limbs.
"Now this is a proper meal!"
Lin Guanhuo rubbed his slightly distended belly and let out a long breath.
"With this meat in me, tonight's training..."
A sharp glint flashed in Lin Guanhuo's eyes as he gripped the saber by his bed.
"I'm sure to make a lot of progress!"
The night was as dark as ink.
In a corner of the rear courtyard of the Miscellaneous Room Courtyard.
A figure tirelessly repeated the same movement.
"Ha!"
Lin Guanhuo gave a low shout and suddenly threw all his strength into it.
But the long saber was stuck in its sheath.
He had put too much force into it at the wrong angle, and the blade had jammed tight against the mouth of the sheath. He had only drawn it halfway before it refused to budge.
The force instead pulled him into a stumble, and he nearly fell into the Snow Land.
[Draw Sword failed]
"Failed again."
Lin Guanhuo pushed the saber back into its sheath, frustrated. This was his tenth failure tonight.
The system's criteria for "Draw Sword" were extremely strict.
Simply drawing the saber didn't count as success. The speed, force, and angle all had to come together perfectly.
Only a strike with effective killing power counted.
But this time, with his stomach full, Lin Guanhuo didn't give up.
"Don't rush... haste makes waste."
Lin Guanhuo took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.
He sank his qi to his dantian, drove his strength up from the soles of his feet, then channeled it through his waist and abdomen into his arm...
He gripped the hilt again. This time, he didn't rush to exert force. Instead, he slowly adjusted his breathing and felt the direction of the wind...
He kept trying, again and again.
Until, at last—
"Shing!"
A clear ring sounded.
[Draw Sword successful. Count +1.]
"Finally!"
Lin Guanhuo wiped the sweat from his forehead and let out a long breath.
That seemingly simple draw had taken him more than half an hour of trial and error.
He wasn't in a hurry.
Now that he had managed it once, the rest was a matter of patient, steady work.
That night, he stood in the cold wind for a long time.
By the time his hands and feet had gone numb, he had only managed to draw his saber successfully three times.
The days that followed grew dull and regular.
By day, Lin Guanhuo did the same odd jobs at the Government Office as always: hauling corpses, washing floors, running errands. He remained obscure and unnoticed.
But every night, he would sneak out, buy beef, and feast to nourish himself.
With plenty of meat to replenish him, his once-skinny frame began to grow sturdier at a visible pace.
Color also returned to his pale face.
And late at night, when everyone else had long since fallen asleep—
The steady, monotonous sound of Draw Sword would ring out from that corner of the rear courtyard.
On the first day, he succeeded three times.
By the third day, he succeeded ten times.
By the tenth day, he succeeded thirty times.
With each Draw Sword, his movements became more precise and practiced!
His once-clumsy motions began to flow like water.
The heavy saber felt as light as a feather in his hands.
Time passed, and a month slipped quietly by.
On a deep winter night, snow fell thick and fast.
A thick layer of snow blanketed the open space in the rear courtyard.
Only the small patch beneath Lin Guanhuo's feet remained clear, steamed dry by the heat rising from him.
"Whew..."
Lin Guanhuo exhaled a white breath like an arrow, his gaze as sharp as a falcon's.
"Shing! Shing! Shing!"
He barely moved, and his Right Hand became a blur.
In the space of a single breath, the long saber left its sheath and returned—a proper Draw Sword.
[Draw Sword successful. Count +1]
"Fifty-two... that's about enough."
Now, the number of successful Draw Sword strikes he managed each night had stabilized at over fifty.
He closed his eyes and summoned the system panel.
[Name: Lin Guanhuo] [Realm: Third-rate] [Lifespan: Two years and two months] [Martial Arts: Precept Breaking Saber Art (First Layer)] [Remaining Draw Sword count: 240]
"240..."
A glimmer of anticipation flashed in Lin Guanhuo's eyes.
How much would a month's worth of Draw Sword training improve him?
If you're enjoying this book and don't want to lose it, remember to add it to your bookshelf.
Before you continue