Urgency

Watching the Chen brothers disappear at the end of the path, the sharpness in Li Xiao's eyes slowly receded.

Yet a deep glint gathered in their depths.

He gently rolled his aching shoulder, feeling the soreness, numbness, and dull pain left behind by the exchange.

"Xiao'er, are you all right?"

Li Youde hurried forward, looking at his son with concern.

"Dad, I'm fine. Just a bit of skin and flesh damage."

Li Xiao shook his head reassuringly.

His gaze turned toward the door again. Rather than joy at having driven back a powerful enemy, he felt a powerful sense of urgency rise within him.

If he had not trained without pause over the past month or so and brought Iron Wire Fist to Entry Level, he would never have been able to stop Chen Long today.

Then his father's and sister's fates would have been unthinkable.

In this world, without strength, one could not even protect one's family!

Through their exchange just now, he had also roughly figured out Chen Long's capabilities.

Though the other man was a First-Turn Martial Master who had condensed Internal Force, with strength and speed both above his own,

his punches and kicks were disordered and unstructured, relying entirely on brute ruthlessness and experience from street brawls.

The Clear Water Gang was only a small gang to begin with. Chen Long had rendered meritorious service and earned the regard and guidance of those in the gang, which was how he became a Martial Master.

But the Clear Water Gang's Martial Arts were nothing impressive in the first place, leaving Chen Long's use of Internal Force crude and rough, far inferior to the exquisite techniques described in Iron Wire Fist.

As long as I break through to Martial Master, with the finesse of Iron Wire Fist, killing a wild-path Martial Master like him won't be difficult.

Li Xiao was certain of it.

The existence of the Panel gave him a clear understanding of his own progress.

And today, at the Martial Arts Hall—

At his current cultivation speed, in roughly another month and a half, once he had accumulated enough, he would naturally condense Internal Force and step into the Martial Master realm.

A month and a half...

Li Xiao's brows furrowed slightly.

For an ordinary Martial Arts Hall disciple, this speed was already extraordinarily fast, yet he felt it was far too slow!

Chen Long had retreated today, but he would never let the matter rest. No one knew what underhanded means he would use next time.

The longer the night, the more dreams it brought!

"If only I had Exotic Beast Meat to assist me..."

That thought surfaced in Li Xiao's mind again.

He still vividly remembered the sensation of his cultivation speed soaring after eating the Golden Thread Eel.

If he had sufficient Exotic Beast Meat to nourish his Muscles and Bones, accelerate the accumulation of Qi and Blood, and speed up the condensation of Internal Force, the time needed to break through to Martial Master would surely be greatly shortened!

But where would the money come from?

After turning it over and over in his mind, he still found no answer.

"Dad, I'm going back to my room to regulate my breathing."

Li Xiao spoke to his father, then turned and walked toward his little room.

He needed to carefully plan how to gather enough silver to buy Exotic Beast Meat as quickly as possible while ensuring his cultivation did not suffer.

Closing the door, Li Xiao sat cross-legged on the bed.

He did not immediately go to sleep. Instead, he carefully recalled every detail of his exchange with Chen Long, reflecting on where his moves had failed to connect smoothly and where his reactions had been too slow.

At last, he drew a deep breath, and his Eyes became resolute.

No matter what, within one month, he had to obtain at least enough silver to buy several pounds of ordinary Exotic Beast Meat!

Only then could he gain enough strength to protect himself—and even strike back—before Chen Long made his next move.

Meanwhile, the departing Chen brothers walked along the village path in a stifling atmosphere.

Chen Hu followed behind, his face still carrying traces of shock and unwillingness.

Several times, he wanted to speak, but each time he saw his elder brother's gloomy expression, he swallowed the words back down.

He truly could not believe that Li Xiao, who only a few months ago had meekly followed behind him,

could now exchange more than a dozen moves with his elder brother without losing!

His elder brother was a genuine Martial Master!

"Big Brother... that Li Xiao..."

Chen Hu finally could not hold it in any longer and asked cautiously.

Chen Long abruptly stopped, spun around, and his gaze seemed especially chilling in the dim light.

"You saw it too, didn't you? There's something damned strange about that kid!"

His voice was low, carrying a trace of wariness he himself was unwilling to admit.

"I've seen disciples of the Iron Wire Fist Martial Arts School before, but how long has it been since he joined the school?

There are only a handful who could train their fist techniques to this level in such a short time!

What's even more terrifying is the speed of his progress..."

Chen Long recalled how Li Xiao's responses had gone from unskilled to gradually steady during their exchange. That visible growth potential sent a chill through his heart.

"He can already trade moves with me without having condensed Internal Force.

If he breaks through to Martial Master..."

He did not finish the sentence, but its meaning was self-evident.

Chen Hu's face turned pale as well.

"Then... then what do we do?

Are we just going to let this go?"

"Let it go?" Chen Long snorted coldly, Cold Light flickering in his Eyes.

"We've already torn all civility apart. Do you think this can still end peacefully?

Once he becomes a Martial Master, the first people he'll deal with will be us brothers!"

He drew a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. His many years in the gang had taught him to assess the situation and adapt accordingly.

"Our most urgent task is to find out exactly how much weight this kid carries at the Iron Wire Fist Martial Arts School!"

After pondering for a moment, he swiftly made his decision.

"I'll send someone to inquire at the Martial Arts Hall and see whether he has caught the eye of Master of the Hall Qian Li or any Martial Master.

If he has someone backing him and is highly valued..."

Chen Long gritted his teeth, a flash of pain and humiliation crossing his face.

"Then we'll have to prepare generous gifts, go to his door to apologize, and resolve this grudge.

Face may be important, but it's not more important than life."

"But what if... he doesn't?"

Chen Hu hurriedly pressed.

Chen Long's eyes instantly turned vicious, like a venomous snake in the dark night.

"If he is merely an insignificant, unvalued ordinary disciple...

then we absolutely cannot let him grow any further!"

His tone was grim, filled with resolute Killing Intent.

"Before he breaks through to Martial Master, we must find an opportunity to 'deal with' this hidden danger!

Otherwise, he will surely become a threat close to our hearts in the future!"

The more Chen Long spoke, the angrier he became. He suddenly stopped, turned around, and pointed at Chen Hu's nose as he cursed.

"This is all your doing!

If you hadn't had that Granny Wang abduct his Eldest Sister, how would things have reached this point?

Even if the marriage proposal had failed, we could at least have kept up appearances.

But now? We've completely torn all civility apart!"

Chen Hu shrank his neck from the scolding, defending himself with a wronged expression.

"Big Brother, I really didn't tell her to kidnap anyone!

I only... only gave her Two Taels of Silver and asked her to say more good things about me in front of Li Yu, so the marriage could be settled sooner.

I did have that intention... but I hadn't had the chance to act yet!

Who would have thought that Old Woman would be so brazen as to directly try to snatch her away!"

He was so anxious he nearly swore an oath. "If I've said even half a lie, may heaven strike me down with thunder!

That Granny Wang must have wanted to get the rest of the reward sooner, so she acted on her own.

Who knew her luck would be so bad that she ran into the Wolf Pack... Can you blame me for that?"

Chen Long stared at Chen Hu for a long while. Seeing that his expression did not appear false, he finally waved a hand irritably.

"Good for nothing but ruining things!

What use is there in saying all this now?

Granny Wang is dead and cannot testify. In the Li Family's eyes, this debt is pinned on us!"

He took a deep breath and suppressed his anger, his Sinister gaze fixed in the direction of the Iron Wire Fist Martial Arts School.

"It's useless to say any of this now. The urgent matter is to learn Li Xiao's background.

You'd better keep yourself in line lately too. Don't go causing trouble for the Li Family again. Wait for my news."

Chen Hu nodded repeatedly. "I understand, Big Brother."

The two brothers spoke no more and silently disappeared into the evening glow.