The young scoundrel struggled to his feet.
Chen Mo's punch had nearly sent him to meet Yama. He glanced at Yin Shanshan, who lay limp on the ground, and felt a little reluctant to leave her. But staying alive came first, so he scrambled away on all fours through the other end of the alley.
Chen Mo turned his gaze back to Yin Shanshan, who was leaning against the wall.
It wouldn't be right to leave her here alone in the middle of the night.
But if he carried her back to the martial hall, he'd expose himself—and have no way to explain it.
"I'll wait a little longer. If she doesn't wake up, I'll leave..."
Once he'd made up his mind, he sank his waist and settled his hips, then practiced two rounds of the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique. He had to use every spare moment to improve himself.
Fortunately, the drug took effect quickly and wore off just as fast. Yin Shanshan began to recover. With her foundation in Ming Jin, she gradually came around.
"Cough, cough..."
Yin Shanshan slowly rose to her feet. When she saw Chen Mo wearing a mask, she paused. "Thank you for saving me. Are you... from Tianqing Martial Hall?"
Chen Mo's tone remained calm. "You don't need to guess. Just pretend you never saw me."
With that, he turned and left the alley.
There were two things that mattered most right now.
First, he had to find Chen Lan a safe place.
Second, he had to get stronger as quickly as possible. His current strength, at the peak of early-stage Ming Jin, already surpassed that of ordinary people by far, but it still wasn't enough.
Even Zhang Chong, who was at mid-stage Dark Jin and possessed considerable talent, remained deferential in front of the Zhao Family.
The next day, at Tianqing Martial Hall.
Faced with Ji Chang's swift Dragon-Probing Claw, Chen Mo met it head-on with a Stone-Crushing Strike.
Ji Chang's face lit up. The Dragon-Probing Claw was his signature technique, and he often used it to end bouts at the martial hall. Even against stronger opponents, it gave him room to maneuver.
Chen Mo, however, remained composed.
As fist and claw collided, Chen Mo abruptly twisted his fist. The force behind the Dragon-Probing Claw broke apart and surged out to either side, leaving less than half of its strength to land on his fist.
Ji Chang took two steps back, his expression shifting. But his combat experience was solid, and he didn't lose heart. He immediately twisted his hips to a certain angle, then used the momentum to raise his knee and whip out a kick. It cut through the air toward Chen Mo's face.
"Whoosh!"
If that whipping kick landed, Chen Mo would still lose.
But he had already prepared his counter. He channeled his strength into his right fist and drove it upward, his fist blurring as it rose to knock aside Ji Chang's kick at a deft angle.
"Smack!"
Ji Chang staggered and fell to the ground.
It was the first time Chen Mo had beaten Ji Chang in three days. The latter dusted himself off as he stood, staring at Chen Mo in disbelief. "Little Junior Brother, how did you come up with these unorthodox moves?"
Chen Mo smiled without answering.
Just then, Yin Shanshan entered the hall with heavy steps. Her eyes were dull, and she hadn't even fixed her makeup.
As she came over to the two of them, Ji Chang asked without thinking, "Junior Sister, you're late today. Did you meet up with Senior Brother last night?"
Chen Mo froze beside him.
The man really had a knack for putting his foot in it.
Yin Shanshan slowly turned her head and shot him a shadowy glare.
Ji Chang realized something was wrong and stood stock-still.
Chen Mo thought for a moment, then said evenly, "Senior Brother, let's continue."
Yin Shanshan's brows knitted slightly as she looked toward Chen Mo.
That voice was exactly like the one from last night, and his build was about seventy percent similar.
Could it be...
Her lashes trembled. A knot of suspicion formed between her brows, and the shadow in her eyes seemed to ease a little.
"Cough, cough. All right." Ji Chang now didn't dare meet Yin Shanshan's gaze again. He cleared his throat and resumed sparring with Chen Mo.
Only then did Yin Shanshan start walking again. She crossed the entire inner hall and sat silently in a corner, lost in thought.
No one had ever seen her like this. No one dared approach.
After exchanging dozens of moves with Ji Chang, Chen Mo didn't take a break. He continued practicing his footwork and punches.
He alternated between footwork drills and sparring, putting what he learned into practice, then using combat to reinforce it. That was what he had been doing for the past few days.
As he lost himself in his footwork drills, Ji Chang's voice suddenly rang out beside him. "Little Junior Brother, the Wu Family's Third Miss is looking for you."
"Wu Zhiai?" Chen Mo stopped and took a few breaths to recover before heading for the martial hall's entrance.
In the corner, Yin Shanshan looked up and followed Chen Mo with her gaze as he went to the door, deep in thought.
At the entrance, Wu Zhiai looked rather anxious.
"Chen Mo, something urgent has come up. Let's talk as we walk."
The two headed toward the Wu Family estate. On the way, Wu Zhiai explained, "A guest of the Zhao Family came to provoke us today. Clearly, since their raid on our caravan the other night failed, they want to give us a show of force."
"What's his strength? Do you need me to step in?" Chen Mo asked bluntly.
She wouldn't have called him over just to have tea. At the same time, he was reminding Wu Zhiai that if the opponent was too strong, it might not be appropriate to send him out.
Wu Zhiai drew a breath. "The opponent's name is Xu Shan. He's a guest of the Zhao Family, at mid-stage Ming Jin. They say he's already touched the threshold of late-stage Ming Jin."
"Of the Wu Family's only two guests, one was beaten by Xu Shan half a month ago, while the other claims to be ill and is staying home. Otherwise, we wouldn't have called you."
Chen Mo nodded in understanding. "Mid-stage Ming Jin..."
"I can give it a try," he said calmly.
Wu Zhiai turned to look at him, pausing briefly. "It's fine if you lose. We just need to show them that we're determined to resist."
Chen Mo said no more. They hurried to the Wu Family estate.
Dozens of people had gathered at the entrance by now, most of them spectators. Xu Shan stood right in the middle of the doorway, chest thrust out and head held high, his posture arrogant.
When he saw Wu Zhiai return, Xu Shan said lewdly, "The Wu Family's Third Miss really is pouring heart and soul into the family. I wonder how much of the old man's estate you got after he died?"
Wu Zhiai didn't respond. Chen Mo, standing beside her, slowly walked up to Xu Shan, drawing surprised looks from the crowd.
Xu Shan's muscles bulged in knots. He rolled his shoulders, producing a series of crackling pops from his bones, a stark contrast with Chen Mo, who looked rather slender.
Xu Shan had defeated the Wu Family's Ming Jin guests several times. The spectators silently shook their heads. Could this slender, boyish-looking youth really handle him?
Xu Shan held up three fingers toward Chen Mo. "Three moves. Use everything you've got now, before you don't get another chance."
Chen Mo stood as calm as a pine tree.
Xu Shan grew impatient and moved first. He took two heavy steps, closing in on Chen Mo, then thrust out his right palm like an iron fan, striking toward Chen Mo's abdomen.
The Heart-Crushing Palm he practiced specialized in attacking the abdomen and ribs. If it landed, the opponent would suffer a disruption to their qi and blood and lose the ability to fight at best; at worst, they could lose their life.
Not far away, Wu Zhiai frowned, her worry barely concealed.
When the Heart-Crushing Palm was a foot from his abdomen, Chen Mo suddenly raised his right knee, precisely intercepting the force of the palm. But the powerful impact still drove him back two steps.
"Hmm?"
Chen Mo's method of deflecting the attack clearly caught Xu Shan by surprise.
Once he'd steadied himself, Chen Mo twisted one foot half a turn against the ground and stepped forward with the momentum. At the same time, he poured all his strength into his right hand, curled his fingers into a fist, and suddenly drove it forward.
His fist tore through the air toward Xu Shan's chest. Xu Shan immediately shifted his palm to meet it.
Fist and palm met. All the powerful force contained in the Stone-Crushing Strike poured into Xu Shan's palm. He grunted and stumbled back three to five steps, a numbing ache spreading through his palm.
The first move.
Before you continue