Settling Old Scores Today

Lin Hai felt a bit uneasy under the many gazes fixed upon him and let out a dry laugh. He pulled a yellowed slip of paper from his sleeve and held it up for everyone to see.

"This is a gambling debt that young brother Qin incurred at our gambling den over a year ago: forty taels of silver. It's all here in black and white, with his signature and thumbprint, clear as day."

The courtyard erupted into a buzz of noise.

"A gambling debt?"

"Over a year ago? Why come to collect only now?"

"Forty taels? Back then, Mengzi's family couldn't even afford a meal. Where would he have gotten the money to gamble?"

Qin Lai came back to life at this moment, shrilly shouting, "Debts must be repaid! Boss Lin has been benevolent and hasn't come to press for payment until now, yet you're the ones acting like you're in the right?"

Lin Hai waved his hand, still smiling. "In the past, I didn't press for payment out of respect for brother Qin Lai. But now..."

He glanced at Qin Meng. "I heard that young brother Qin has recently struck it rich, so I figured it was time for my small business to collect on the outstanding debt."

He paused, his voice remaining as mild as before. "According to the gambling den's rules, if a debt isn't repaid within a year, the interest compounds. With the principal and interest... let's round it off to one hundred taels."

"One hundred taels?"

Li Gensheng could no longer hold back. He shouldered his large iron hammer and pushed his way to the front, his muscles knotted as the aura of a body forging realm martial artist erupted from him.

"Lin! Your gambling den never came to collect before, but now that you see Mengzi has money, you come to extort him? Do you think Luming Fort has no one left?"

"Right! This is too bullying!"

"You didn't collect for over a year, and now you want one hundred taels? That's robbery!"

The crowd was ignited, their angry gazes shooting toward Lin Hai like arrows.

Lin Hai's smile didn't waver. His small eyes darted around, and he sighed. "Fine, I, Lin Hai, am not an unreasonable man."

"Since everyone says so... let's make it ninety-nine taels, for good luck."

He looked at Qin Meng. "Young brother Qin, this IOU is the real deal. Ninety-nine taels, paid in full today, and we'll be square. How about it?"

Everyone looked at Qin Meng.

Shen Qiuyue could barely stand; she leaned against the doorframe, tears welling up in her eyes.

Qin Tianbao gritted his teeth. "Mengzi, don't be afraid. We'll pool the money for you in the fort!"

"Right, we'll pool the money."

"We can't let them bully people like this."

Qin Meng remained silent. He kept his head lowered, his fingers gently stroking the hilt of his ring-pommel saber. The sunlight shone on his profile, making his expression impossible to read.

After a long while, Qin Meng raised his head.

"Fine." His voice was terrifyingly calm.

He pulled two banknotes from his pocket—one for fifty taels—and fished out a few pieces of broken silver to make up the total of ninety-nine taels, handing them to Lin Hai.

"Paying back debts is only right and proper," Qin Meng said. "Ninety-nine taels. Count it carefully."

Lin Hai took the banknotes and rubbed them between his fingers. His smile finally became a bit more genuine. "You're a straightforward man, little brother Qin!"

He cast a helpless look toward Qin Lai—a look that clearly said: I tried my best, but Bian Fort is too tough a nut to crack.

Then, Lin Hai turned and left with his men.

Qin Meng watched his retreating back, his eyes narrowing.

Hongyun Gambling House, Lin Hai, exorbitant compound interest—he would remember them.

Two debts, cleared.

But there was a third one, the most important of all.

With the two clan elders as witnesses, Qin Meng brought out fifty taels of silver.

"Qin Lai, this is the money Shen Qiuyue borrowed from you a few days ago."

The neatly arranged silver ingots shimmered with an alluring luster in the sunlight, causing greed or envy to flash in the eyes of many onlookers.

Qin Lai, however, was struck with shock. He had assumed that after the tax levy and the gambling house's debt collection, Qin Meng would be unable to produce this money, allowing him to take the person away regardless.

But at this moment, the smile on his face stiffened. He stared at the silver, a flash of resentment in his eyes. "You—how do you have this much money?"

"That is none of your concern." Qin Meng sneered and held out his hand. "Thank you for your help. Now that the money is repaid, where is the IOU?"

Nearby, the two clan elders and the many villagers cast their gazes over.

Under the pressure, Qin Lai reluctantly pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket.

Qin Meng took it and checked it carefully. It was indeed Shen Qiuyue's handwriting, complete with her thumbprint. In front of everyone, he tore the IOU in half, then tore it again, until it was nothing but scraps, scattering them into the wind.

"To buy medicine to save my life, Qiuyue mortgaged herself for fifty taels, to be repaid in seven days. Now, with everyone as my witness, the debt has been repaid to the creditor."

"From this day forward," Qin Meng raised his voice so everyone could hear, "Qin Lai and I are square. I have turned over a new leaf; I will earn money to support my family and will never again associate with the ruffians and scoundrels of this fort."

He paused, not caring in the slightest about Qin Lai's livid expression. "While everyone is here, I'll lay it out: if anyone dares to provoke me or bring me harm again, do not blame me, Qin Meng, for being ruthless and disregarding the bonds of our fort."

The words were spoken calmly, yet they pierced Qin Lai's heart like a knife. His lips trembled as he tried to retort, but he opened his mouth several times and found nothing to say.

Qin Lai packed up the silver and slunk away.

Li Gensheng slammed his large iron hammer onto the ground. "Mengzi, remember this lesson. That Lin fellow is no good! Stop dealing with them!"

The two clan elders also stepped forward, patting Qin Meng's arm with their aged hands. "Child, money can be earned again. Don't be foolish anymore."

Qin Meng bowed deeply toward everyone.

"Thank you all for your support. I, Qin Meng, will keep today's kindness in my heart."

With the matter settled and no more show to watch, the crowd gradually dispersed.

The courtyard gate closed.

Shen Qiuyue rushed out and threw herself into Qin Meng's arms. Watching their money fly away, her tears finally rolled down. "Mengzi... our... our family's money..."

"Money can be earned again." Qin Meng held her, his voice steady. "But today, we gained a reputation, we cleared our name, and we gained... the hearts of the people."

He looked at the weeping woman in his arms, then toward the little fox peeking out from the house.

Then, he raised his head, his gaze crossing the earthen wall and looking toward the direction of Linshan Town.

The gambling den, Lin Hai, Qin Lai...

His money wasn't easy to take; he was keeping track of every single debt.

With about a hundred taels of silver left at home, Qin Meng and Shen Qiuyue discussed and decided to hire someone to repair the house and buy some new furniture.

He also needed to visit old hunter wang to buy a bow.

Before that, Qin Meng didn't disrupt his schedule. After comforting Shen Qiuyue, he went to the courtyard, took off his outer shirt, and revealed his lean, sturdy upper body.

Since breaking through to the dengtang realm yesterday, his body's adaptation to the black dragon eighteen hands had clearly accelerated, but it still wasn't enough.

He took his stance.

Black dragon emerges from cave, black dragon probes claws, black dragon swings tail...

The sound of fists and kicks breaking the air echoed through the courtyard. Sweat quickly rolled down from his temples, tracing the lines of his neck and glistening in the sunlight.

He repeated the movements over and over.

His muscles memorized the angles of force through contraction and relaxation, while his bones and tendons adapted to the changes in the techniques through his movements and twists.

With wild instinct fully activated, every movement within ten zhang was reflected in his mind, while the intuition brought by weakness detection gave him a clearer grasp of where every strike should land.

He practiced until a few lines of small text appeared before his eyes:

[Black dragon eighteen hands - Proficient (9/500)]

[Special effects: killing intent suppression, weakness detection, black dragon slaughter]

[Special Status: Grappling (Emerging)]

Black Dragon Slaughter: Actively consumes blood energy to significantly increase the power of finishing moves such as black dragon emerges from cave, poison dragon swings tail, and black dragon turns over.

A deeper understanding flooded his mind.

It was not just the application of moves, but a sense of momentum—black dragon slaughter meant leaving no room for retreat once a strike was launched, using offense as defense and ending killing with killing. Qin Meng clenched his fists, feeling the power surging within his body.

With the martial skill upgraded to proficiency, both the special effects and the special status had been enhanced.

Special Status - Grappling: Increases combat power by 40% during night battles or in confined spaces. Increases damage by 30% when facing alien races or evil-path martial artists.

The special effects weakness detection and killing intent suppression were both improved by a percentage.

Qin Meng wiped away his sweat, put on his coat, and turned to enter the kitchen. He placed twenty catties of venison and half a deer antler into a bamboo basket. After telling Shen Qiuyue, he headed out and made his way toward the home of Hunter Wang at the south end of the fortress.