Behind the back mountain lay an open patch of ground where the handymen usually dried firewood.
A dozen or so people formed a circle while Liu San stood in the middle, having stripped off his upper garments to reveal a rugged, muscular physique.
"Kid, it's still not too late to admit defeat," Liu San twisted his wrists. "Breaking two legs is no child's play."
Li Xuan did not speak, his eyes observing the opponent carefully.
Liu San's feet were apart with his weight biased forward—a typical brute-force fighting style that relied on crashing impact to win.
His arm muscles bulged, but stiff shoulder joints indicated that force generation lacked smoothness.
His breathing was short and rapid with floating Qi and blood, and his constitution would not exceed 0.9.
As for himself, his constitution was 1.01 and strength 0.88; although his strength was slightly weaker, his constitution was greater and his recovery was faster.
More importantly, he possessed a cultivation method's circulation route that could mobilize Qi and blood for a far stronger instantaneous explosive power.
He could not drag this out; he had to win in a single strike!
"Let's begin," Li Xuan said.
Liu San gave a low roar and charged fiercely.
He was like a wild boar, yet his speed was fast, reaching Li Xuan in three steps and throwing a right hook straight at his face.
Li Xuan did not dodge.
He stepped his left foot half a step back, twisted his waist to let the fist's edge pass, and simultaneously formed his right hand into a palm, sweeping down along Liu San's arm—
This was a variant of the "Grasping Stance" from the Iron Fist Three Forms. Master Zhou had mentioned in passing during a demonstration that it "could transform into a grapple," and Li Xuan had remembered it.
Liu San only felt his arm go numb as his entire limb was pulled off course and his body involuntarily tilted forward.
An opportunity!
Li Xuan stepped forward with his left foot, dropped his right shoulder, and slammed fiercely into Liu San's chest.
A dull thud sounded.
Liu San retreated three steps, his face turning pale.
The watching handymen let out a burst of exclamations.
"This move... looks a bit like the outer court's Iron Mountain Lean?"
"Bollocks, Iron Mountain Lean requires reaching the Body Tempering third layer to use. How would a mere handyman like him know it?"
"Then how..."
Liu San rubbed his chest, his gaze changing.
The force of that impact just now was at least a hundred catties.
This kid hid his abilities deeply.
Yet he did not panic. A fight was not just about comparing strength, but also ruthlessness.
Liu San spat a mouthful of phlegm and fished a short cudgel out from behind his waist.
It was made of wood, but both ends were wrapped in sheet iron.
He was pulling out the hardware!
Li Xuan narrowed his eyes.
The short cudgel was about two feet long and whistled as it was swung. Liu San had learned his lesson this time and did not charge wildly, instead approaching slowly while the club flickered left and right in front to seal off Li Xuan's movement paths.
Li Xuan retreated half a step and hooked up a piece of firewood from the ground with his toe.
It was as thick as a wrist and three feet long, serving just right as a cudgel.
The two men confronted each other for three breaths.
Liu San made the first move.
The short cudgel in his hand slashed diagonally, heading straight for Li Xuan's left shoulder.
If this strike landed solidly, his collarbone would definitely break.
Li Xuan advanced instead of retreating.
The firewood parried upward, knocking aside the short cudgel; at the same time, his left foot stepped forward and his right fist drove straight into Liu San's abdomen.
Halfway through the strike, he changed the fist into a palm, the heel of the palm thrusting fiercely upward—
Iron Fist Three Forms, Charging Fist Variant: Heaven Lifting Style.
This was something he had figured out on his own.
A charging fist emphasized straight-line movement, but if the direction changed at the very last moment, the force would concentrate at the heel of the palm, making it suitable for close-quarters infighting.
Liu San did not see the movement clearly at all.
He only felt a pain in his abdomen, and his entire person was pushed off his feet by the force, tumbling two zhang backward.
The short cudgel left his hands, and he rolled three times on the ground before coming to a stop.
The entire scene fell silent.
Li Xuan stood in place with steady breathing.
He had held back his strength during that palm strike just now.
Otherwise, had the upward thrust of the palm heel been three inches higher, it would have targeted the heart and directly shattered the heart meridian.
Pity that according to the martial arts hall's rules, private fighting among handymen was permitted, but killers paid with their lives.
"Are we still fighting?" Li Xuan asked.
Liu San lay on the ground, unable to crawl up for a long time.
That palm strike had shaken his internal organs into turmoil, leaving a sweet taste in his throat and nearly making him vomit blood.
He raised his head and looked at Li Xuan.
Those eyes were very calm, without complacency or mockery, resembling a pool of bottomless deep water.
A chill crept into Liu San's heart.
This kid was no pushover.
"No... no more fighting," Liu San said with a hoarse voice.
Li Xuan nodded and turned to leave.
"Wait," Liu San struggled to sit up. "Contribution Points... I'll give them to you."
He fished a small cloth bag out from his embrace and poured out three wooden plaques, each representing one Contribution Point.
Taking the plaques, Li Xuan hauled the firewood and walked back to the courtyard.
Behind him, Liu San stared at his back with a gloomy gaze.
Evening, the firewood room.
Li Xuan lay on the communal platform, looking at the panel.
[Li Xuan] [Strength: 0.88] [Agility: 0.57] [Constitution: 1.01] [Spirit: 1.6] [Cultivation Method: Unknown Body Tempering Method (Incomplete, completion 3.1%, mastery 2.0%)] [Potential: 0.08]
He thought for a moment and added 0.04 to strength, and 0.04 to constitution.
[Strength: 0.88] → [Strength: 0.92]
[Constitution: 1.01] → [Constitution: 1.05]
A warm current surged through him, and the sore, bloated feeling in his arms rapidly faded.
Today's battle made him realize a problem—his strength was still insufficient.
A strength of 0.92 was stronger than an ordinary person's, but it was simply not enough to look at in the martial arts hall.
He needed to find a way to get more potential.
Just as he was thinking, footsteps sounded at the entrance.
The old handyman walked in carrying an oil lamp, its dim light illuminating the wrinkles all over his face.
"You fought well today," the old handyman said.
Li Xuan sat up. "You saw it?"
"The whole courtyard saw it," the old handyman hung the oil lamp on the wall. "That brat Liu San ran rampant for five years, and today he finally took a tumble. But you must be careful; he is not the kind of person who takes a loss and admits defeat."
"I know," Li Xuan nodded.
"Good that you know." The old handyman sat down opposite the communal platform, pulled a small paper parcel from his embrace, and tossed it to Li Xuan. "Take it."
Li Xuan caught it and opened it to find two pieces of dried meat.
"This is..."
"Leftovers from the kitchen today," the old handyman said. "You finished your firewood chopping quota with excess, and Steward Zhao was quite satisfied. This is extra."
Li Xuan smelled it; the dried meat carried a faint medicinal scent.
It was not ordinary meat, but had been marinated with medicinal herbs capable of supplementing Qi and blood.
"Many thanks," Li Xuan said earnestly.
The old handyman waved a hand. "Don't thank me. The martial arts hall doesn't raise idlers; if you can do the work, you have food to eat. But remember—a towering tree catches the wind."
Having spoken, he got up to leave.
He stopped upon reaching the entrance.
"Right, in three days a team from the outer court is heading into the Trial Forest to gather herbs, and they lack two handymen to carry things," the old handyman turned back, the lamplight casting shadows across his face. "Fifty Contribution Points per trip. If you want to go, come find me to sign up tomorrow."
Trial Forest.
He had finally waited for his opportunity.
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