Ice Talisman and Benefits

Meng Sheng and Qian Peng exchanged a glance, never expecting that the tall, lean Jiang Yan would turn out to be such a ruthless man.

They had misjudged him.

"Jiang Yan, are you a Martial Apprentice?"

Shan Renhu suppressed his astonishment and tested the waters with a tentative question.

The reason was that Jiang Yan's attack just now had been utterly ferocious—like a raging storm sweeping through clouds, clean and decisive.

He himself had already touched that threshold of sensing Vital Energy, and even he couldn't have dealt with the Submerged Grass so effortlessly.

Though he asked this, disbelief still lingered in his heart, yet he had already concluded that Jiang Yan had crossed that threshold countless ordinary people dreamed of and become a true martial artist.

At his words, Meng Sheng and Qian Peng also looked over with curiosity.

Sliding his sword back into its sheath, Jiang Yan shook his head with a smile and admitted generously, "I only broke through last night, haven't had the chance to tell Captain Tang yet."

"Tell him, you must," Shan Renhu said earnestly. "Our Dahe Gang has a rule—once you become a Martial Apprentice, you can be appointed as a minor leader. Even if you don't get real authority, the treatment alone is better than that of an ordinary member."

He explained it to Jiang Yan in detail.

Jiang Yan nodded. He had already picked up some of this information over the past few days.

"What? You're saying Jiang Yan is already a Martial Apprentice?"

In the evening, on the training ground, Tang Long was equally incredulous.

Jiang Yan put on a slightly uncertain expression. "Captain Tang, I'm not entirely sure myself. These past few nights, I've been going back and training hard in the Chopping Iron Four Forms. Every time I finished, I felt a bit stronger—until last night."

He looked Tang Long straight in the eye, his gaze appearing very sincere. "Last night, I trained until very late. I got lost in thought while practicing, and when I came back to myself, I felt a wisp of energy below my lower abdomen, and my strength had increased quite a bit."

Tang Long's expression had now returned to normal.

"Your breakthrough method is standard. The fundamental purpose of the Chopping Iron Four Forms is to help you touch that threshold where you can sense Vital Energy. Drawing Vital Energy into the body does indeed greatly enhance one's physique."

After saying this, he furrowed his brow slightly.

"Is there a problem?" Jiang Yan pressed.

"No." Tang Long shook his head.

It's just that you broke through too fast, he said silently to himself.

Of course, he had heard of legendary geniuses in some biographies who, with sufficient resources, broke through three or even four realms in a single day.

So, Jiang Yan breaking through to Martial Apprentice in ten days, while surprising, was still something he could accept.

"Then there's just one last thing—let me test whether you've really broken through."

The Martial Apprentice realm had no distinctive features, but its strength was far beyond that of ordinary people. So, a test of strength would suffice.

With that, Tang Long raised his head, lifted his arm, and threw a punch.

Jiang Yan met it with a punch of his own.

With a bang, Jiang Yan's body shuddered, and he took five steps back before stopping. He opened his hand and looked at his knuckles—red and throbbing with pain.

Tang Long looked at Jiang Yan with a somewhat complicated expression. "Not bad, this is indeed the strength of a newly advanced Martial Apprentice. Congratulations, Jiang Yan. You are now a true martial artist."

Then he said, "Don't rush to eat. Come with me first."

Jiang Yan followed Tang Long toward the west side of the village. After passing four rows of houses, they stopped in front of a stone building.

The building was entirely constructed from blue stone, looking very sturdy.

Tang Long stepped forward and knocked lightly on the door.

Jiang Yan looked up. Above the door hung an exquisite plaque, bearing a single character: "Sheng."

After a moment, the door opened, revealing the face of a fair-skinned middle-aged man.

"Ah, it's Tang Long. What's the matter?"

Seeing this man, Tang Long instinctively lowered his voice. "Great Leader Sheng, I've come to report something..."

"Speak."

Tang Long patted Jiang Yan on the shoulder, signaling him to step forward, then said in a low voice, "This brother is new here. He has good talent and has already broken through—he's a Martial Apprentice now."

"Oh?" Sheng Fuwu finally raised his head and gave Jiang Yan a careful look.

Jiang Yan quickly clasped his fists. "Jiang Yan pays respects to Great Leader Sheng."

"Jiang Yan, I recall this Patrol Team has only been here for ten days. To break through to Martial Apprentice so quickly shows good aptitude—even a few days faster than my own breakthrough. Tang Long, handle the arrangements according to protocol, and give him an extra Blood Qi Pill."

Then Sheng Fuwu casually pulled out a Yellow Talisman. "This is an Ice Talisman, a grade higher than the Blazing Flames Talisman. Train well."

Jiang Yan thanked him, and Sheng Fuwu casually dismissed the two of them.

"Everyone's probably finished eating by now. Brother Jiang, come back to my courtyard with me, and we'll have a simple meal."

Jiang Yan also had some questions he wanted to ask, so he nodded. "That would be much trouble for you, Captain Tang."

A large table was set with five plates of braised meat and some dried fruits. Tang Long also brought out a jug of wine.

He poured a cup for each of them, and they drank together.

"Congratulations, Brother Jiang. In this world, if you can't become a martial artist, you can't live freely no matter how you try."

Jiang Yan downed the wine in his cup and, with good sense, refilled Tang Long's glass.

He took the opportunity to ask, "I'm grateful for Brother Tang's praise. Could you tell me about the benefits the gang offers for the Martial Apprentice realm?"

Tang Long drank another cup. "Even if you hadn't asked, Brother Jiang, I would have told you. First, your pay will increase considerably, and you'll also be given a small courtyard."

"But that's nothing major. The real key is that once you're a Martial Apprentice, the Dahe Gang will grant you a status token, making you a minor leader from then on. With that, if any hall of the Dahe Gang is short-handed, you can sign up. If the hall master agrees, you can transfer there. From then on, you'll have authority and a better chance at resources and techniques."

"Eh, does this other world also practice separation of powers?" Jiang Yan thought silently.

"Lastly, the Dahe Gang allows newly advanced disciples to choose one martial skill."

Jiang Yan quietly digested this. A pay raise was only right, and for now, he only had the title of minor leader. He'd have to find an opportunity to secure a specific post later.

What was most useful to him now was that one martial skill.

Then he grew a bit worried. The Dahe Gang's headquarters was said to be in Guihua City. How was he supposed to learn that martial skill?

"Brother Tang, the gang's headquarters is far away in Guihua City. How can I learn that martial skill?"

"Don't worry. The mining area is one of the Dahe Gang's core profit points. Status tokens, pills, techniques, and martial skills are all available here. Rewards for new breakthroughs in the mining area and the five villages are all distributed by the mining area's branch hall. Just be patient for a few days. Once the report goes up, the rewards will come down quickly."

Jiang Yan relaxed, raised his cup, and smiled. "Thank you for the clarification, Brother Tang. Let me toast you!"

They chatted about other things, and the conversation turned to Sheng Fuwu.

Jiang Yan learned that Sheng Fuwu was the newly arrived head of the Dahe Gang's Patrol Mountain Hall, a Body Refining Realm martial artist. He mainly dealt with Weirds that the patrol teams couldn't handle, as well as special Weirds that evaded patrol detection and lurked into the villages.