The next day, Xu Qian seized an opportunity while Zhou Kang was making his rounds. He "casually" mentioned that he'd seen rats scurrying around again the previous night and had "luckily" poked one especially fat rat to death with a stick.
As soon as Zhou Kang heard this, his brows—relaxed for only a few days—furrowed again. The rat infestation hadn't been eradicated; it remained a persistent threat.
Watching Zhou Kang's expression, Xu Qian cautiously suggested, "Captain Zhou, my hometown's near a river. There wasn't much to do when I was a kid, so I liked taking a fish spear to the shallows to catch fish. I got quick hands and sharp eyes from practicing, and my aim's not bad. What do you think... should I give it a try? I'm just standing around on night watch anyway. I could treat it as... reliving my childhood?"
He sounded perfectly natural, a little embarrassed yet eager to give it a try—the very image of a young man looking for a chance to prove himself. Passing off Sword Qi as "the aim and technique I developed from spearfishing" was entirely plausible. After all, who would bother digging into the details of some country boy's fishing skills?
Zhou Kang gave Xu Qian a skeptical look. Spearfishing? Could that really work? But Xu Qian's folk remedy had proved effective before, and the kid always seemed to have some odd knack. Deciding he might as well give it a shot, Zhou Kang waved a hand. "Fine. If you want to give it a try, go ahead. Just don't let it interfere with your actual duties. What equipment do you need?"
"Nothing, nothing." Xu Qian hurriedly waved his hands. "Just an ordinary short wooden stick. It's handy."
So, starting that night, Xu Qian's watch duties gained a new "recreational activity"—spearing rats.
Of course, he didn't dare use that faint sense of Sharpness again, not like he had the first time. Its effects were too shocking; he'd risk giving himself away. Instead, he relied only on the simple, efficient First Stab technique for exerting force that the Dao Fruit had deduced, along with the precise predictions granted by the Qi Gazing Technique.
Even without adding that sense of qi, the force technique and eyesight optimized by the Dao Fruit alone turned him into a terrifying "rat exterminator."
Under the Qi Gazing Technique, the rats' paths, the way their muscles tensed, even the direction they might dart next, all appeared as clear as slow motion. The short wooden stick in his hand became the most precise spear of judgment!
"Whoosh!"
The stick shot out—fast, accurate, ruthless!
There were no flashy moves, just the simplest, most direct thrust! Every strike was accompanied by a faint "thup" and a dead rat. He aimed for their heads or spines, striving to kill in one blow and spare them pain (and, more importantly, keep down the noise).
At first, he was still a little clumsy. Now and then, he missed or misjudged his force and made a bit of noise.
But before long, he grew more and more skilled. His movements flowed like water, his accuracy almost maddening. Eventually, he could even predict the movements of two or three rats at once and strike repeatedly in a split second. The stick flickered through the air, and several rat carcasses appeared on the ground.
He was far more efficient—and a lot quieter—than Zhang Meng, who relied on brute force to smash around wildly.
At first, the jailers on night watch would watch him curiously. Once they saw that he really was just poking rats with a stick, and with incredible accuracy, they stopped finding it strange. Some even jokingly called him "Yi Gun Xu."
Xu Qian just smiled sheepishly and explained, "Practice makes perfect, practice makes perfect. I've got the foundation from fishing."
After several days, Xu Qian had killed a considerable number of rats with his "spearfishing skills." The rats had all but vanished from the area he was responsible for, and the nights had grown much quieter.
When Zhou Kang heard about it, he came to see for himself. Hiding in the shadows, he watched Xu Qian, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, drive a stick into a rat that darted out from a corner without even looking. His movements were clean and decisive, with an indescribable coordination and explosive force. Zhou Kang couldn't help clicking his tongue in amazement.
[That kid must have practiced his spearfishing skills until they're in his bones.] Zhou Kang muttered to himself. It seemed like overkill, but the results spoke for themselves. The rat infestation in the area under his jurisdiction had clearly eased, and he'd have something to be proud of when the higher-ups came to inspect.
So Zhou Kang not only turned a blind eye to Xu Qian's behavior, but even praised him a few times during a gathering without naming names, saying that someone had been thinking things through, coming up with solutions, and helping the group solve a problem. His gaze swept meaningfully over Xu Qian.
Xu Qian naturally kept his head down, looking modest as if to say, "It's only what I should do."
Zhang Meng was even more excited, thrilled that his buddy had made a good impression again—happier than if he'd been praised himself.
[Perfect!] Xu Qian gave himself a mental thumbs-up.
He'd used the opportunity to practice the force technique deduced by the Dao Fruit, gain a better understanding of the sense of Sharpness (even if he didn't dare use it often), solve a real problem, and earn more of Zhou Kang's trust and his colleagues' approval.
Most importantly, he'd done everything under the perfectly reasonable cover of "spearfishing skills," without arousing anyone's suspicion. Who could have guessed that behind this seemingly plain and simple staff technique lay the beginnings of what might be an unparalleled sword intent?
He'd even gained a small "privilege" as a result—Zhou Kang tacitly allowed him to "stretch his legs a little" while on watch, as long as it didn't interfere with his actual duties.
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