Chen Qinglin couldn't be bothered to meddle in that sort of thing, and it wasn't his place to, either.
In his past life and this one, Chen Qinglin had never felt much about romance and had little experience with it. He couldn't understand how people like that thought.
"You like her, she likes him, then he doesn't like her, but likes her instead!" Chen Qinglin had seen enough of these melodramatic soap-opera plots to be thoroughly used to them.
For Chen Qinglin, nothing was as practical as practicing swordsmanship. With no women in his heart, his sword would naturally become divine.
After collecting his allowance and drinking it, Chen Qinglin went to the courtyard to practice swordsmanship. He could feel his Blood Qi speeding up the tempering of his body, and his strength increasing.
Unfortunately, while the martial arts school could guarantee meat, resources for Body Tempering had to be shared among everyone. There wasn't much to go around, and even with money, there was nowhere to buy more.
Chen Qinglin shook his head and focused on practicing his sword.
+1, +1, +1...
Chen Qinglin enjoyed this kind of calm, uneventful life.
Unfortunately, how could life go by without a few little surprises?
That afternoon, Fourth Senior Brother Li Lin came in and told him someone from Linhe Village was looking for him. When Chen Qinglin went outside to take a look, he saw his uncle, Chen Liangyuan, talking to Chen Qingshi.
Chen Qinglin turned back to tell Li Lin, then the three of them headed to his place.
"Uncle, what brings you here?" Chen Qinglin asked, a little puzzled as they walked.
"Alas, Er Niu from the village is dead. A tiger came to the mountain behind our village, and Er Niu ran into it while gathering firewood. Alas...!"
"The village chief sent me to find you and ask you to get someone from the martial arts school to come to Linhe Village and deal with that tiger. The village will pool the money to pay the martial arts school's instructor."
"Now that tiger's out there, everyone's in a panic. We're afraid it'll come into the village one day." Chen Liangyuan was a little flustered as he spoke.
"Uncle, don't panic. Your nephew can take care of this." After hearing the whole story, Chen Qinglin felt a little more at ease.
It was just an ordinary beast. Even if it was a tiger, with Chen Qinglin's current strength and a bow of at least Three Stone, it wouldn't be a problem.
"Qinglin, you can't just go rushing in recklessly. Something terrible could happen." Chen Liangyuan thought Chen Qinglin was showing off and hurried to dissuade him.
"Trust me, Uncle. Even if I can't kill the tiger, I can still get away unscathed. I won't be in any danger."
"But I'll need to prepare a good bow." Without a powerful bow, Chen Qinglin wasn't sure he could beat a tiger, though he could still protect himself.
The tiger's muscles were simply too dense, and he didn't have a sharp enough sword. Otherwise, with a Long Sword in hand, he could take down the beast.
If it came to it, I'll just slide under it...
Chen Liangyuan was only half-convinced. He didn't know much about Martial Artists, only that they were all very powerful. Worried about his nephew, he couldn't help asking several more questions.
Besides, Chen Qingshi had already told him that his nephew had become a Martial Artist. If they were going to hire someone, they might as well hire their own nephew.
"Don't worry, Uncle." After saying that, he took the two of them to the blacksmith's shop at the end of the street.
The blacksmith at the shop was surnamed Cao. He was tall, and at that moment he was raising his hammer high before bringing it down with all his might. Sparks flew everywhere.
Every strike landed precisely on the anvil, like a beat in a piece of music, full of rhythm.
As the three entered the blacksmith's shop, a boy of about fifteen or sixteen came over to serve them.
"What can I get for you?"
"Do you have any bows of at least Three Stone?"
"We do. We have Three Stone and Four Stone bows, as well as one Five Stone bow. Which would you like?"
"How much do they cost?"
"The Three Stone bow is eight hundred copper coins, the Four Stone bow is one thousand three hundred, and the Five Stone bow is two thousand."
"Bring out the Four Stone and Five Stone bows so I can take a look."
"Please come inside."
He led Chen Qinglin into the shop and showed him the bows. Chen Qinglin tried both of them, and the boy looked him over.
"If you buy the Five Stone bow, we'll throw in twelve Fine Iron Arrows."
"..." They were about to have him over a barrel. He only had four or five taels of silver on him, and this would take half of it.
But to do a good job, one must first sharpen one's tools! If he couldn't bear to spend the silver, he wouldn't be able to kill the tiger.
"I'll take the Five Stone bow!"
After paying, he took the bow and arrows. They also gave him a quiver, so Chen Qinglin had no complaints.
He picked up a few small things as well, then went back to pack his belongings before returning to Linhe Village with Chen Liangyuan.
Linhe Village.
He brought gifts back for his parents, younger brother, and younger sister. The whole family enjoyed a harmonious dinner together.
Chen Xiaoxiao and Chen Qingyun were playing around with each other. Before long, Chen Xiaoxiao burst into tears.
His little sister was all play and no skill, while Chen Qingyun kept trying to explain himself. Their mother, Yang Xiu, held Chen Xiaoxiao in her arms and scolded Chen Qingyun.
Chen Liangwu and Chen Qinglin sat to one side, talking. Clearly, the two of them were already used to this sort of scene at home.
Chen Liangwu looked at his eldest son. Ever since he had gone to town, he had grown more and more mature, and father and son had found more and more to talk about.
The next day, Chen Qinglin entered the mountain, while several members of the Chen clan waited at its outskirts for news.
"Do you think Lao Wu's boy can really kill that tiger...?"
"I heard they can't even find Li Er Niu's bones now."
"Who knows..."
Deep in the mountains.
In the dense forest, ancient trees soared skyward, their twisted branches coiling like serpents and dragons, making the forest seem even more mysterious.
Chen Qinglin followed a winding path, with mist-shrouded thickets all around him.
The morning mist had yet to clear. Through it, he could just make out a patch of bare rocks covered in moss, as though they were telling the story of years gone by.
Chen Qinglin searched along the way for signs of the tiger, following its trail deeper into the mountains.
Villagers gathering firewood generally didn't go far into the forest. If they ran into the tiger, it wouldn't have been far away.
Chen Qinglin searched carefully, then suddenly stopped in his tracks. He heard a faint sound.
He slipped up into the branches and concealed himself.
He peered into the dense thicket and spotted a colossal shape looming among the trees.
Following its gaze, he saw a wild boar eating by itself.
That dead pig—looks like its brothers won't have to call it to dinner anymore.
The tiger lay in wait deep in the forest.
Suddenly, a lithe figure darted past, flashing into view like lightning. Without hesitation, it charged out and sank its teeth into the wild boar's throat!!
The wild boar squealed and struggled in agony, but it couldn't escape the tiger's jaws. Terror-stricken, it breathed its last.
The tiger pinned the boar with its powerful forepaws and tore into its flesh with its gaping jaws.
Its mouth gradually relaxed. Blood dripped from the corners of its lips, and its eyes gleamed with cruelty and satisfaction.
Chen Qinglin patiently waited for it to finish eating, looking for the best angle to shoot from.
The bowstring snapped like a peal of thunder. Its deep twang shot through the forest and echoed all around.
The tiger's shrieks and roars followed, uncontrollable, its thunderous bellow shaking the heavens! A Fine Iron Arrow had pierced its left eye!
Before it could even spot its enemy, another Fine Iron Arrow flew into its open mouth as it roared. The powerful force drove the arrow straight through its skull and out the other side!!!
Its roar cut off abruptly. Then only a whimper remained. The tiger lay in the forest, bewilderment filling its eyes, before they closed for good.
I let you eat your fill before you died, so at least you went down with a full belly. Chen Qinglin thought he had been pretty merciful.
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