The City's Warriors (Seeking Daily Reads)

"If one wishes to study the Hard Bone Skill, how much silver would it cost?" Zhao An asked.

"Ten taels for entry and apprenticeship." Tang Niu replied, having already discerned that Zhao An's visit was aimed at his Hard Bone Skill.

He wasn't one to turn anyone away, as long as they paid.

Zhao An wasted no words, directly pulling out ten taels and placing them on the stone table.

"I don't seek to enter as a disciple; I only wish to borrow the manual for this skill for three days, and I swear not to pass it on. Is that acceptable?" Zhao An proposed.

"You just want to look at the martial arts manual?" Tang Niu was taken aback.

"Are you serious? What good would that do? A manual is dead, a person is alive. Just clutching a manual and practicing—there's no way you'll understand it."

Who in their right mind would stare at a manual and fumble through it on their own? That's nothing but wasted effort.

If martial arts were that easy to master, Martial Masters like them would be a dime a dozen, and anyone could become a martial artist...

Tang Niu truly couldn't fathom Zhao An's intent, but he could see Zhao An was serious.

He then went inside and came out with a handwritten copy of the Hard Bone Skill.

"Let me be clear: once the silver changes hands, it's settled. If you can't figure it out later, I won't be refunding this money." After handing over the manual and taking the silver, Tang Niu still reminded him.

"Of course."

Having obtained the martial arts manual he wanted, Zhao An next visited the Huang Family Martial Academy.

He took the Gale Palm manual in the same manner, and also took the opportunity to spar with Master Huang of that academy.

The Gale Palm had some merit, but it still couldn't match his Silver Snake Hand; in fact, this Master Huang didn't even last ten exchanges under his hands.

Finally, he went to the Zheng Family Martial Academy.

Master Zheng was advanced in years, his body still fairly robust, but he clearly looked past his prime.

When Zhao An proposed a sparring match, the old master politely declined.

However, he readily agreed to lend Zhao An the Mountain Crushing Fist manual he practiced, and even refused payment, treating Zhao An as a visitor drawn by reputation who wanted to observe the fist technique.

"Shen Pan, stand in for your master and have a bout with young friend Zhao." Master Zheng, his beard white, beckoned to a young man standing in a corner of the courtyard.

"..." Shen Pan had no choice but to walk over.

"Young friend Zhao, don't think I'm brushing you off just because my disciple is young. He is now a genuine Martial Master, having inherited a portion of my skills. Today, I'll trouble you to offer some guidance."

Master Zheng smiled, a hint of satisfaction in his expression.

Clearly, in his later years, cultivating a talented youth like Shen Pan filled him with great pride and contentment.

"Very well." Zhao An's gaze fell on Shen Pan.

His main goal was to see the power of this Mountain Crushing Fist; who he fought didn't matter.

But when Zhao An's eyes landed on him, Shen Pan felt his scalp go numb.

That day when Zhao An wiped out the Tiger Head Gang, he had been there, witnessing the slaughter firsthand.

If anyone understood Zhao An's strength best now, it was him.

Meeting Zhao An again today, the sea of blood and corpses from that night seemed to reappear before his eyes.

Though it was just a simple spar, it only made him more tense.

"Begin." Zhao An spoke.

"Begin..." Shen Pan took a deep breath, hearing the cheers from his fellow disciples around him, and finally assumed his stance.

Then, he suddenly rushed forward, throwing a punch.

With force infused, the punch carried no weak momentum.

But Zhao An simply stood in place, raising his palm, which easily enveloped Shen Pan's incoming fist.

With a casual grab and toss, Shen Pan flew several meters away.

Shen Pan knew he was outmatched, and seeing that Zhao An had held back, he gritted his teeth and continued executing the fist techniques he had learned.

About a quarter of an hour later.

Zhao An calmly left the martial academy.

Inside the academy, not only Shen Pan but many other disciples were also sprawled on the ground, lying or propping themselves up, watching Zhao An depart.

Originally, Shen Pan alone couldn't satisfy Zhao An, so he had a group of disciples all come at him together.

Yet even that bunch, combined, only managed to make Zhao An break a sweat.

"Though you lost today, don't be disheartened. You are still young, with endless possibilities ahead." Master Zheng approached and said seriously to Shen Pan.

"From today on, I take you as my closed-door disciple. I will teach you everything about the Mountain Crushing Fist. When you go to the prefectural city in the future, I also have a path reserved for you..."

On the official road, carriages and horses jolted along.

A cavalry unit led the way, followed by a hundred armored swordsmen marching in parallel.

These armored soldiers were all clad in fine armor, wielding excellent blades, their spirits full and vigorous, carrying the fierce Sha Qi of battlefield elites.

At the center was a heavy solid-wood carriage, pulled by two sturdy horses.

Around the carriage, many martial artists stood guard, constantly on alert for any ambushes or hidden arrows from the surroundings.

"Sir, Lianjiang City is just ahead," a guard suddenly spoke up.

"Speed up and enter the city as quickly as possible." A steady voice drifted out from within the carriage.

"Yes."

Soon, the troop approached the city gates, but was blocked and halted.

"Halt! The entire city is on high alert. State your origins and report yourselves!" a County Soldier leader shouted loudly.

At the same time, a group of archers on the city wall had already taken their positions, drawing their bows and nocking arrows, locking onto this arriving armed force.

"Have you lost your eyes?!"

"Our lord has been transferred from the prefectural city to take charge here, and you dare to point arrows at him!" one of the guards roared in anger at the sight of this formation.

"We have received no orders, and we know nothing of any new County Magistrate arriving. Could you be bandits in disguise!" the County Soldier leader said from atop his horse, showing no sign of relaxing his vigilance.

Once bitten, twice shy.

As for armor and weapons, the bandits also had well-equipped cavalry troops, and previously, the bandits had used a trick, sneaking a group into the city ahead of time, waiting for the right moment to coordinate from within and without, which led to the city falling that night and the County Magistrate's death!

Thus, entry and exit through the city gates were now strictly checked at every level, just in case.

"Go and report immediately. Have your County Vice-Magistrate and County Commandant come out to see me!" The voice from within the carriage sounded again, carrying a hint of firmness.

But no sooner had he spoken than several arrows suddenly shot down from the city wall, aimed directly at the carriage.

"Bastards!" A guard of imposing bearing beside the carriage suddenly moved, leaping into the air from his horse, his long spear flicking out to intercept the arrows mid-flight.

This action also put both sides on the verge of conflict.

The guard didn't stop there; he lightly stepped on his horse's back, leaping two or three zhang into the air, vaulting over a forest of County Soldiers' spears, and in one move captured the County Soldier leader on horseback!

That leader was no weakling as a martial artist, but before this guard, he had no room to resist.

Several other guards also swept past, charging straight for the city wall.

In their rush, they hurled their long spears, embedding them in the middle of the wall, then vaulted upward, scaling the walltop in a single breath, capturing the archers who had fired the arrows.

The entire process happened in the blink of an eye.

The crowd of County Soldiers at the city gate stood dumbfounded, having no idea what had just occurred.

Now, they were beginning to believe that these people really were from the prefectural city.

Only martial artists from the prefectural city could possess such extraordinary skill!