The Shi Family

At the Merchant Alliance in Skyfall City, inside Boulder Hall.

Yang Hai, a slightly portly man, sat upright on a stone slab, his small eyes narrowed as he flipped through page after page of account books. He reported the mines' recent output to Shi Jian, head of the Shi Family.

Shi Jian was in his seventies, yet still vigorous, with a head of thick black hair. As head of the Shi Family, he wore nothing but a coarse hemp robe for training and sat with legs spread wide on a gray-brown boulder above them. His expression was calm, his sharp gaze restrained as he listened intently to Yang Hai.

Only after Yang Hai had explained everything did Shi Jian furrow his brows and ask, "Hai'er, the ore mined lately is a full twenty percent less than in previous months. What's going on?"

"Because of the Mo Family and the Ling Family." Yang Hai sighed. "They've poached a lot of our experienced miners with high wages, so we're short-handed. We've suffered quite a few losses in our covert struggle with them lately. The miners are afraid we can't hold our own against those two families, and with their higher offers, they've gone elsewhere."

"Hmph!" Shi Jian gave a cold snort. "Those two families are clearly targeting us on purpose. Ever since the marriage between those two juniors, Mo Yan Yu and Ling Shaofeng, was settled, the two families have grown closer and closer. The Ling Family has even sent people to interfere in our recent covert struggle with the Mo Family. They must have reached some kind of understanding behind our backs. Otherwise, the Mo Family wouldn't stand a chance against us."

"Patriarch, should we strike back?" Yang Hai asked.

"Don't worry. I have a plan." Shi Jian remained utterly composed. After a pause, he suddenly asked with a frown, "That little brat Shi Yan still hasn't come back?"

"No. I was just about to tell you." Yang Hai smiled bitterly. "When he left, he said he was going to the Gloomy Forest. It's been nearly a year, and he still hasn't returned. I heard a couple of days ago that Mo Chao Ge and Mo Yan Yu are both in the Gloomy Forest. Do you think something might have happened to him? He didn't take any powerful family guards with him when he left. Qing'er died young, and he's my only child. I'm afraid..."

Shi Jian frowned and fell silent for a long moment before sighing. "That boy was born without the Shi Family's Petrifying Martial Soul. He's never liked martial arts, and spends all day tinkering with strange things. He's always running off somewhere, too. He really knows how to worry people."

"Patriarch, it's my bloodline that's at fault. If I had a Martial Soul, the child Qing'er and I had together wouldn't have turned out like this." Yang Hai looked ashamed.

"It was fate." Shi Jian shook his head. "Hai'er, I found you in the Endless Sea. You're not my biological son, but I've always treated you as one. Otherwise, I wouldn't have married Qing'er to you. True, you don't have a Martial Soul, and you never devoted yourself to martial arts. But could the Shi Family have managed its affairs or its mines without you? Without you, I, Shi Jian, could never have amassed so much wealth. You may not be skilled in martial arts, but your contributions to the Shi Family are no less than anyone else's!"

"But now, a peak Martial Artist is worth more than all the wealth in the world." Yang Hai smiled wryly. "If I'd had a Martial Soul, I probably would've devoted myself to martial arts. If Yan'er had inherited his mother's Petrifying Martial Soul, perhaps he would've kept cultivating, too. But why must a Martial Soul be decided at birth? Ah..."

Shi Jian nodded and sighed. "You're right. A peak Martial Artist is indeed worth far more than wealth these days. That's the truth of it."

"Patriarch, do you think something might have happened to that boy?" Yang Hai still couldn't put the matter out of his mind.

"I don't think anything's happened to him." Shi Jian thought for a moment. "That boy never liked martial arts, so the Mo Family has never paid him any attention. Neither Mo Chao Ge nor that Mo Yan Yu girl has probably even seen him. If they don't know him, they can't target him."

"But I still feel something's wrong. He should've been back by now."

"Hmm. I'll have our people stationed in Silent Town keep an eye out. Silent Town borders the Gloomy Forest, so as soon as that boy shows up, we'll hear about it. Don't worry."

"Thank you, Patriarch."

"What are you thanking me for? That boy's your son. Isn't he my grandson, too?" Shi Jian glared and barked, "How many times have I told you not to call me Patriarch? I'm your adoptive father and your father-in-law. Call me whatever you like, just don't call me Patriarch."

"Father, I'll remember."

"Good."

The Gloomy Forest, a quiet night.

On a secluded patch of grass, Luo Hao stood straight as a mountain, releasing a fivefold gravity field around himself. The crushing pressure made it hard to breathe.

Shi Yan was drenched in sweat as he bounded around Luo Hao, leaping and springing, his body flowing through a series of dodges and tumbling combat moves. The veins in his face stood out, twitching like little snakes along his neck.

In the grass, Mu Yu Die watched in secret with a blade of grass between her teeth.

"Guess how long that kid will last today?" Di Ya Lan sidled up quietly, squatted down beside Mu Yu Die, and whispered.

"Have you finished your assignment today?" Mu Yu Die asked with a light laugh, not answering her question.

"Zhao Xin took over. That was a close call just now. A one-horned silver snake was coiled around a branch. I didn't notice it and nearly got bitten to death. Thank goodness I reacted in time, or I wouldn't be here talking to you."

Di Ya Lan still looked shaken. Cursing, she said, "We've been running into more and more yao beasts lately. We have to be careful. We've already run into five groups of them in the past three days. They're especially active at night. Next time you sneak a look, you'd better bring me along. You might be in danger otherwise."

"That last bit was what you really wanted to say, wasn't it?" Mu Yu Die smiled softly.

"Ha, you saw right through me." Di Ya Lan made no attempt to hide it. "That kid's incredible. Every time over the past three days, he's broken through his limits, and his stamina's improved each time. I'm at the Innate Third Heaven Realm, and even I wouldn't dare mess around in Uncle Luo's fivefold gravity field. That guy's a lunatic. He won't stop until he passes out every single time. What a lunatic!"

"His stamina isn't even the scariest thing about him." Mu Yu Die shook her head, a strange light flickering in her beautiful eyes.

"Yeah, his recovery is even more monstrous. I can't believe he's only at the Innate First Heaven Realm. How can he recover so frighteningly fast?" Di Ya Lan was just as baffled.

"That guy's got so many secrets..." Mu Yu Die fell silent for a moment, then muttered softly, "I've never seen anyone eat as much as he does, either. He's nearly eaten all our food in just three days. I'm starting to worry about our supplies. He's a real glutton."

"Ha." Di Ya Lan laughed. "That little rascal's hilarious. One casual remark from him can have you doubled over laughing. He has all sorts of strange ideas I've never heard before. He says it's only right for commoners to elect their emperors, and that merchants can sway an entire country. He even makes these sappy poems. I just can't understand how a seventeen-year-old can have so many odd ideas in his head."

"Yeah, but when that seventeen-year-old looks at you and me, he looks like he wants to swallow us whole. I've never seen such naked possessiveness. That bastard's rotten to the core!" Mu Yu Die ground her teeth and made a chopping motion. "Sooner or later, I'll show him what I'm capable of!"

"Wait until your Martial Soul recovers. Ha, so what if he looks? It's not like you'll lose a piece of flesh. Take Zhao Xin and Hu Long, for example. Those two only dare sneak a look at my butt when my back's turned. They don't have the guts. I despise that sort. Compared to them, that kid has plenty of guts. I like him." Di Ya Lan laughed boldly.

"Are you lovesick?" Mu Yu Die mocked. "He's still a kid. Don't go seducing him."

"Have you ever seen a kid look at someone like that?" Di Ya Lan asked in a lowered voice. "I suspect he's actually older than he looks. Maybe he used some secret technique to make himself seem so young. He's pretending to be a kid on purpose! Maybe it's some kind of secret, special Martial Soul, too..."

"That makes sense. We should keep a closer eye on him." Mu Yu Die thought it over, then nodded slowly.

"Thud!"

Shi Yan spread his arms and legs and fell flat on his back, utterly spent. In a hoarse voice, he asked, "How many laps?"

"Fifteen." Luo Hao's expression was complicated. "For those fifteen laps, you kept jumping, falling, rolling, and doing all sorts of movements. You endured several times the pressure an ordinary person would. Kid, can you really... take it?"

"Cough, cough. Whether I can take it, I'll find out tomorrow." Shi Yan could barely speak.

For the past three days, whenever he had free time during the day, he had secretly practiced Berserk.

With all his hard work, he could now release negative energy from the acupoints in his chest and waist at will, making his whole body appear much thinner.

He had nearly trained every part of his body to the limit, except for the hardest part of all: his brain...

At night, he would cling to Luo Hao and make him release the fivefold gravity field, then recklessly push himself under the crushing pressure.

In just three short days, he had gone from a limit of eleven laps to fifteen. He had also deliberately increased the difficulty as he ran, adding jumps, dodges, strikes, and other movements that consumed even more energy.

With this high-intensity training, he could clearly feel his strength growing. His hands and feet, bones, muscles, and even his internal organs had all become stronger. Every morning when he woke from cultivation, he felt light as a feather under normal gravity and could leap several meters into the air. His body brimmed with explosive power, and even his hands and feet had become far more nimble.

The benefits were clear to see each day, so he kept raising the difficulty, almost possessed, ruthlessly tormenting himself. He used the cruelest, most insane methods to temper his body, greatly improving every aspect of his physical abilities. Even the speed at which he cultivated and condensed essence energy had increased.

"Wooo! Wooo!" A strange cry suddenly came from the perimeter.

Luo Hao's expression changed. "That's the cry of a level-four yao beast, a Fire Cloud Yao Python! It's extremely dangerous, but it usually doesn't come out at night. Someone must have stirred it up!"

"Uncle Luo!" Zhao Xin and Hu Long hurried over, both looking anxious.

"What happened?" Luo Hao barked.

"A group of Martial Artists is hunting a Fire Cloud Yao Python. It's coming this way, and those people are still chasing it. The Fire Cloud Yao Python's completely enraged," Zhao Xin said urgently.

"Damn it!" Luo Hao quickly pulled the broad sword from his shoulder. "Protect Mu Yu Die!" With that, he charged off.

Though his whole body ached, Shi Yan abruptly sat up. He circulated his essence energy, his eyes gleaming as he calmly watched the direction Luo Hao had charged in.